[Mark Hinton]

Ran across the Miranda DT-4101 Digital Theater Pre-Processor at http://www.miranda.com/DT-4101.htm and was curious if anyone here has ever used this or anything similar?


Here's some of the key verbage from their website:


Large display applications have seen tremendous image quality improvements in recent years due to to improved projection technology and the availability of high-quality, up-scaling devices (e.g. line doublers, line quadruplers and scalers). The DT-4101, which is typically installed before the up-scaler or projector, is designed to radically reduce artifacts and maximizing signal quality. Pre-processing is important because up-scaling and large displays tend to magnify the effects of noise and other artifacts.


Top-Quality, 10-Bit Conversion and Processing

The DT-4101 accepts a large number of different video formats and provides conversion from these various formats to a common output format. Featuring multiple inputs of Composite Analog (NTSC or PAL), S-Video, Component and Serial Digital Component (SDI) the DT 4101 provides easy, seamless switching among inputs. Designed to guarantee the best possible signal quality, the DT-4101’s internal conversion is based on the same 10-bit processing featured in Miranda’s highly acclaimed broadcast and post-production converters.


MPEG-2 Artifact Reduction

Of all the signal processing built into the DT-4101, the single most important block is Miranda’s MPEG artifact reduction system (MARS). Based on new and advanced algorithms, MARS processing dramatically reduces an impairment commonly referred to as mosquito noise, which is introduced by MPEG compression and decompression. Mosquito noise appears around the edges of persons and objects within a video signal that has been compressed and decompressed and is particularly objectionable when the image is up-scaled and projected on a large-screen display. MPEG artifact reduction is now considered an essential function due to the wide deployment of MPEG-2 for Digital Television (DTV), Satellite TV (DBS), Digital Video Disk (DVD), Digital Video Tape (e.g. DV and DVHS), Personal Video Recorders (PVR) and new broadband digital video services (e.g. DSL and digital cable).


Adaptive Detail Enhancement

Another important DT-4101 feature is its adaptive detail enhancement, which, unlike linear-based detail enhancement processors, uses adaptive circuitry to detect the image zones where more or less detail is required. This adaptation is carried out pixel-by-pixel in real time. Detail enhancement helps to reduce the softening effect of up-scaling and large-screen projection.

 

[Allan Jayne]

Don't forget that (analog) component video cables are used to connect this device is between your DVD player and the next unit (scaler or TV with built in scaler). There is another analog to digital conversion occuring within, and depending on the bit width of the internal workings, there could be added softening of the picture. Since DVD has (approx) 720 pixels per scan line, a pixel width of 960 or more is needed to make the additional D to A conversion unobtrusive.


Video hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/video.htm

 

[Dave Harper]

Don't forget though, that this unit also features SDI throughput which can be utilized with an SDI DVD player and SDI scaler, so that would avoid the extra A->D conversion.


I believe it also converts all it's analog signals input to the device to SDI, so you would only need one SDI input on your scaler for all of your sources.

 

[oferlaor]

Miranda had long touted this option (MARS), on some of their processors. In fact I remember one specific processor where they had this big MPEG-2 artifact removal article and later removed it.


However, it looks like this feature is back.


I know no-one who actually saw one of these things. Probably due to the Cost (Miranda units are not for Joe Average).


What they do can definitely be done and if they did it right, it would be brilliant. From what I know, however, they still do not have 3:2 and 2:2 pulldown on their processors. That means that you would have to get a second processor AFTER their system.


That would make the HT system amazingly pricey.


Personally, I don't even think they are aware that there's such a thing as the HT market and are almost completely targeting the broadcasting market (e.g., rebroadcasters that want to clean up source MPEG signals).


Miranda is a bit of a quirky company, IMO.

 

[Robert2413]

Quote:

Originally posted by oferlaor Personally, I don't even think they are aware that there's such a thing as the HT market and are almost completely targeting the broadcasting market (e.g., rebroadcasters that want to clean up source MPEG signals). Miranda is a bit of a quirky company, IMO.

On the web site, they actually tout this piece as being for the projection and presentation market, so I think they might have been thinking about big-time corporate boardroom stuff.


It's a strange processor for the HT market because it's 480i in and 480i out. In addition to their MPEG2 clean-up, they are doing some video noise reduction, but if they stay in interlaced form and have a delay of only a bit more than one video field, they must be doing it very locally without using information from preceding frames.


I've not seen it in action.

 

[oferlaor]

Robert2413,


Strange as it seems the Miranda processor range have seemingly limited capabilities when it comes to deinterlacing.


Their stuff seems quite interesting and processing, but it looks like they'll have to team up with a processing company (Faroudja, keyDigital, TAW or Silicon Image) to provide a fully integrated solution here.


Do you think that they might be working with TAW on "Pixel perfect" or something else?

 

[Mark Hinton]

For the fun of it I got a price quote directly from Miranda. Their direct price quote was $5,997 although they claim their regular MSRP is $9,995. It's not clear from their web site if other resellers sell this unit or not, but I would guess that anyone who resells this unit may be able to come in with a better price.


Also interesting that in doing a search for MARS on the web, several of the higher end DVD players also claim to have this feature which would seem like the logical place to perform this function. If this is true, it would seem to eliminate the need for this unit although it does do some noise reduction that some of the dvd players did not mention.


Mark