HD621 HDMI Audio Processor

User Guide

Important safety instructions • Readtheinstructions.

• Keeptheseinstructions.

• Followallinstructions.

• Donotusethisapparatusnearwater.

• Cleanonlywithadrycloth.

• Installonlyinaccordancewiththemanufacturer’sinstructions.

• Referallservicingtoapprovedservicepersonnel.

WARNING:TOREDUCETHERISKOFFIREORELECTRICSHOCK,DONOTEXPOSETHISAPPARATUSTORAINORMOISTURE.

ThisapparatushasbeendesignedwithClass1constructionandmustbeconnectedtoamainssocketoutletwithaprotectiveearthingconnection(thethird,groundingpin).

Thisapparatususesasingle-polepowerswitch.AsaresultitisnotisolatedfromACmainspowerwhenswitchedoffattherearpanel.

Theapparatusmaybeisolatedfrommainspowereitherbyunpluggingthepowerconnectorfromtherearoftheunit,orbyunpluggingtheconnectorattheopposingendofthepowercordorcablefromitssupplyoutlet.Asaresult,eitherorbothoftheseconnectorsshouldremainaccessible.

Safety warnings • Donotexposetheproducttodrippingorsplashing.

• Donotplaceanyobjectfilledwithliquid,suchasavase,ontheproduct.

• Donotplacenakedflamesources,suchaslightedcandles,ontheproduct.

To avoid interference

Donotpositiontheproduct:

• Nearstrongmagneticradiation,suchasnearapoweramplifier.

• Neartoatelevision,orwhereconnectingcablesmaybesubjecttoorcauseinterference.

To avoid overheating

Donotpositiontheproduct:

• Indirectsunlight.

• Nearheatsources,suchasaradiator.

Radio interference

FCC Warning:Thisequipmentgeneratesandcanradiateradiofrequencyenergyandifnotinstalledandusedcorrectlyinaccordancewithourinstructionsmaycauseinterferencetoradiocommunicationsorradioandtelevisionreception.Ithasbeentype-testedandcomplieswiththelimitssetoutinSubpartJ,Part15ofFCCrulesforaClassBcomputingdevice.Theselimitsareintendedtoprovidereasonableprotectionagainstsuchinterferenceinhomeinstallations.

EEC:Thisproducthasbeendesignedandtype-testedtocomplywiththelimitssetoutinEN55013andEN55020

Sales and service in the UK

MeridianAudioLtd,LathamRoad,Huntingdon,CambridgeshirePE296YEEnglandTel+44(0)1480445678•Fax+44(0)1480445686

Sales and service in the USAMeridianAmericaInc,8055TroonCircleSuiteC,AustellGA30168-7849,USATel+1(404)3447111•Fax+1(404)3467111

Web: www.meridian-audio.com

Copyright©2009MeridianAudioLtd

DesignedandmanufacturedintheUKbyMeridianAudioLtd.

MeridianAudioreservestherighttomakechangesandimprovementstoanyoftheproductsdescribedinthisdocumentwithoutpriornotice.Errorsandomissionsexcepted.

Dolby,DolbyDigital,andthedouble-DsymbolaretrademarksofDolbyLaboratoriesLicensingCorporation.DTSisaregisteredtrademarkofDigitalTheatreSystemsInc.HDMI,theHDMIlogo,andHigh-DefinitionMultimediaInterfacearetrademarksorregisteredtrademarksofHDMILicensingLLC.Boothroyd|StuartMeridian,Meridian,andMeridianDigitalTheatreareregisteredtrademarksofMeridianAudioLtd.

MHR:ThisproductincorporatespatentedcopyrightprotectiontechnologyandintellectualpropertyofMeridianAudioLtd.ThistechnologyisprovidedfortheexpresspurposeofsecurelycontainingcopyrightaudiowithintheMeridianSystemonly.Reverseengineeringorcircumventionofthisprotectionisstrictlyprohibited.

TheHD621incorporatesHigh-DefinitionMultimediaInterface(HDMI™)technology.HDMI,theHDMILogoandHigh-DefinitionMultimediaInterfacearetrademarksorregisteredtrademarksofHDMILicensingLLC.

HD621 Product highlights• Six-inputHDMIswitch.

• HDMIvideooutput.

• Extractsuptoeightchannelsofhigh-resolutionaudiofromtheHDMIdatastream,supplyingthemtoseparateaudio-onlyoutputs.

• ConnectsHDMIaudiodirecttoaMeridianprocessor.

• SmartLinkcoaxialdigitalaudiooutput(upto8channels).

• MultichannelMeridianHighResolution(MMHR):balanceddigitalaudiooutputviaRJ45/Cat5cable(upto8channels).

• Up/downsamplingofdigitalaudio.

• AudioFIFObufferingandresolutionenhancementimprovesPCMaudioreceivedviaHDMI.

• Lip-synccontrolcompensatesforlatencyresultingfromexternaldigitalvideoprocessing.

• KeepsHDMIvideosignalsawayfromyouraudioequipment,minimisingsignaldegradation.

Outline specificationForm factor

• 1U19inrackmounting.Availablewithorwithoutrackingears.

Power

• Internaluniversalpowersupply,100–250Vac

Connections

• Powerinput(IECconnector)

• DB9MSubRS232serialconnector

• BNCandDINMeridianComms

• SixHDMIinputsockets

• HDMIoutput

• 8-channelMMHRdigitalaudioout(RJ45)

• 8-channelcoaxdigitalaudioout(4xphono)

Front-panel Indicators

• PowerLED

• 6xHDMIInputLEDs(selectedinputlights)

About the HD621 HDMI Audio Processor

Front panel

Thefrontpanel(seeabove)simplyshowsaStandbyLED(whichshowsthattheunithaspowerbutisnotactive:itgoesoutwhentheunitisactivated),plussixLEDsindicatingwhichinputiscurrentlyactive.Amanualselectbuttonallowsyoutostepthroughtheinputs.

Rear panel views. Above: left-hand half. Below: right-hand half.

Rear Panel

Therearpanel(above)featuresthefollowingconnections(LtoR):

RS232DB-9MSubconnector-thisenablestheprocessortobecontrolledremotelyviaserialcommandandconfiguredusingtheMeridianConfigurationApplication(Windows).Italsopermitstheinstallationoffirmwareupdates.

Meridian CommsBNCandDINconnectors–theseenabletheprocessortobeintegratedwithaMeridianaudio/videosystemandcontrolledbyit,forexample,switchingtheHDMIinputwhentheappropriateselectionismadeviathesystemcontroller.

HDMI InputsH1–H6–ThesefollowthestandardinputidentificationinaMeridiansystem(thiscanbeoverriddenwhenthesystemisbeingconfigured):H1 DVDH2 TVH3 CableH4 SatelliteH5 VCR1H6 Game

Standby indicator Manual input select Active input indicators 1–6

HDMI Output: Video–ThisoutputsthevideoinformationpresentontheselectedHDMIinput.Bydefault,itdoesnotcarrytheaudioinformation,butcanbeconfiguredtodoso.

MMHR Output–ThisRJ45connectorcarriesuptoeightchannelsofbalanceddigitalaudiodataatupto96kHzsamplerateconformingtotheMeridianMultichannelHighResolution(MMHR)specification,withencryptionwhererequiredtocarryhigh-resolutionaudiodata.

SmartLink Output–Thesefourphonosocketseachcarryapairofdigitalaudiochannelsignalsatupto96kHzsamplerate:1/2,3/4,5/6and7/8.TheseareencryptedtoMeridianHighResolution(MHR)specificationswhencarryinghighresolutiondata.

Detail of SmartLink output section.

Power inputsocket,powerswitchandfuseholder–thepowersupplyacceptsastandardIECpowerconnectorandisauniversalvoltagetypeacceptingvoltagesbetween100and250VACat50/60Hz.

Up/downsampling of digital audio

TheMMHRandSmartLinkoutputscanbesettodelivereitherstandard(44.1/48kHz)orhighresolution(88.2/96kHz)sampleratedigitalaudio,withresolutionenhancementofupto24-bit.

Whensettostandardrates,theoutputiseither44.1or48kHzirrespectiveoftheinputrate,highsampleratesbeingdownsampledbyafactoroftwoorfourasappropriate.44.1and48kHzratesareunchanged.

Whensettohighrates,theoutputisalwayseither88.2or96kHz,irrespectiveoftheinputrate.StandardsampleratesareupsampledbyafactoroftwousingMeridian’spowerfulDSPtechnology,sothatinputsignalsof44.1and48kHzareoutputat88.2and96kHzrespectively.

FIFO Buffering

Inadditiontothefeaturesnotedabove,theHDMIaudioprocessorde-jittersdigitalaudioreceivedviaHDMIusingtwoFIFO(FirstIn,FirstOut)buffersystems.ThisensuresthattheaudioextractedfromtheHDMIstreamisofthehighestquality.

Lip-sync Delay

Theprocessoralsoincludesaconfigurableaudiodelayofupto85mstoallowlip-syncingintheeventthatthedisplayintroducesanappreciabledelayinthevideopresentation.

Initial system installationUsingthedefaultfactorysettings,theHD621isoptimisedforaMeridiansystemenvironment.ItallowsuptosixHDMIsourcestoconnecttoaMeridiansystemwhilesupplyingHDMIvideo(andoptionallyaudio)toadisplay.

Whileinstallingtheunit,pleasebesuretofollowthesafetyinstructionsprovidedatthefrontofthisGuide.

TheHD621cansimplybeplacedonaflatsurface;aversionwithearsisalternativelyavailableforrack-mountinstallation.

Initial connectionsUsingtheBNCorDINconnectorprovided,connectMeridianCommstotheunitfromtherestofyoursystem.

ConnectanHDMIsourcetoeachoftheinputsyouwishtouse.YouwillseethattheconnectorsarenamedaccordingtothestandardconventionadoptedbyMeridianequipment.Ifyouconnectyoursourcesassuggestedbythelabels,youwillnotneedtochangethemintheMeridianConfigurationapplication.

IfyouhaveMeridiansourcecomponents,connecttheiraudiodirectintotherestofthesystemusingSmartLink:seeoverleaf.Fornon-Meridiansources,seebelow.

ConnectanHDMIcablebetweentheHDMIOutputoftheHD621andaninputonyourdisplaysystem.

ConnecttheSmartlinkMHR(MeridianHighResolution)outputtoasuitabledigitalinputonyourMeridianprocessororDSPLoudspeakers.Besuretoobservethechannelallocationcorrectly.Eachsocketcarriestwochannelsandyoushouldconnecttheappropriatenumberofsocketsforthemaximumnumberofaudiochannelstobeused.

IfyouhaveaMeridianprocessorwithMMHR(MeridianMultichannelHighResolution)capability,connecttheHD621totheprocessorwithasingleCat5orCat6ScreenedTwistedPair(STP)RJ45-terminatedcable.Donotconnectthephonosockets.

Connectpower(100–240VAC)totheunitviatheIECmainsconnector.

Setting up non-Meridian sourcesNon-MeridiansourcessendingaudioviaHDMIshouldinmostcasesbeconfiguredtodecodetheaudiotoPCMinthesourcecomponenttotakeadvantageoftheresolutionenhancementfeaturesoftheHD621.

ForbestresultsyouneedtoconfigureyoursourcecomponentstogetthehighestpossiblequalityaudiofromyourHD621.TheHD621containssophisticatedDSP-basedFIFObuffering,reclockingandup/down-sampling,sobestresultswillbeobtainedbyconfiguringyoursourcessothattheHD621carriesouttheseprocesseswhenrequired,andnotthesource.

Herearesomepointstobearinmindwhensettingupnon-MeridiansourcesfeedingtheHD621:

• MakesurethattheHDMIsourceisturnedon,andthatitsHDMIoutputisprovidingaudioaswellasvideo.

• ConfigurethesourcetooutputPCM.

• Payspecialattentiontothewaythatthesourcehandlesdifferentcontent.Checktheconfigurationtoensurethatmultichannelmaterialisnotdownmixed.

• TheHD621acceptsamaximuminputsamplerateof192kHz.

• Ifpossible,settheoutputsamplerateofyoursourcetomatchthesamplerateofthecontentbeingplayed.Meridianup/downsamplingoffersexceptionallyhighperformanceandyouwillbenefitfromallowingtheHD621tocarryoutanyconversionthatisrequired.

Setting up Meridian sourcesInthecaseofaMeridiansourcecomponent,youshouldruntheaudiofromtheMHRSmartlinkoutputonthesourcetosuitableinputsontheMeridiansystem.

How sources and displays behaveTheHDMIinterconnectionsystemuseshandshakingtoestablishadialoguebetweenasourceandadisplay.Typicallythedisplaysignalsitscapabilitiestothesource,andthesourcethengeneratesthehighestqualitysignalitcantomeetthosecapabilities.Thisiswhy,whenyoufirstactivateasystem,theremaybeasuccessionofblankandbluescreenswhilethetwocomponentsworkouthowtocommunicatewitheachotheratthehighestlevelofqualitycommontoboth.

WhentheHD621isaddedtothesystem,itreadsthedisplaycapabilitiesandpassesthemtothesource,butatthesametimeaddsadescriptionofitsownenhancedaudiocapabilities.Essentially,theHD621tellsasourcewhataudioitiscapableofhandling(orisconfiguredtohandle),butitisleftuptothesourcehowitsatisfiesthosecapabilities.Forexample,ifyouconfiguretheHD621for2-channelaudiobutalsospecifythatitcanhandlebitstreams,youwillneedtoconfigurethesourceastowhetheritshouldsenda2-channelPCMtrackonthediscora5.1DTSbitstream,ifbotharepossible.

TheHD621alsohasa“receiver”mode,whichitwillenterautomaticallyifthedisplaydeviceisswitchedoffordisconnected.Thisallowsmusictoplayorcontinuetoplaywithoutadisplay.Itmaytakeafewsecondswhiletheunitshandshaketoestablishthismode.Itmayalsotakeafewsecondstore-establishcommunicationsifthedisplayisre-activated,becauseoftheHDMIhandshakingprocedure.AlsoseeNote1intheOperationalNotessectionattheendofthisguide.

System defaultsBydefault,theunitissettoworkwithMeridianprocessorsandDSPLoudspeakers,andtoenhanceupto6-channelPCMinputs.Iftheyhavenotbeendecodedintheplayerorsource(decodinginthesourceisthepreferredconfiguration),DolbyDigital,DTSandAACbitstreamsarepassedthroughuntouched.IfyouareusingtheHD621withotherequipmentthatdoesnotsupportMeridian’sMHR,thenyouwillneedtorunMeridianConfigtodisableMHR.

ToreconfiguretheHD621fromitsstandarddefaults,youwillneedtoconnectaWindowscomputerviatheRS232connectorandusetheMeridianMconfigapplicationtosetitup.Seebelowfordetails.

Controlling the HD621

TheHD621canbecontrolledviaMeridianComms,fromthefrontpanelandviaRS232serialcommands.

Thefrontpanelallowsyoutostepthroughtheactiveinputs.Aninputthathasbeendisabledwillnotbeincludedasyoustepthrough.Nootherfunctionsareaccessiblefromthefrontpanel.

RS232canbeusedtocontroltheHD621inconjunctionwithahomeautomationsystem.TheunitrespondstostandardMeridiancommandstoselectnamedsources,enterStandbyandotherfunctions.AnRS232commandtableisavailableonrequest.

Setting up the HD621 with Meridian’s Configuration ApplicationMeridian’sConfigurationApplicationisaWindowsapplicationthatisusedtosetupMeridiancomponentsandsystems,andissuppliedontheCDthataccompaniesmanyMeridianproducts.Fordetailsonhowtouseit,seeitsbuilt-inHelpfiles.YoucanalsodownloaditsUserGuidefromtheSupportsectionoftheMeridianWebSiteathttp://www.meridian-audio.com.MovethemouseovertheSupportoptioninthemainmenuandselect“ReleasenotesandGuides”,thenclickthelinktodownloadtheAcrobatPDFfile.TheConfigurationApplicationisinstalledbytheCommonInstallerwhichcanalsobedownloadedfromtheSupportsectionofthewebsite(choose“DownloadInstaller”fromtheSupportmenu).Web addresses may change over time. Contact Meridian if you cannot locate the information described.

ConnectionsConnectyourcomputertotheHD621viaRS232andruntheMeridianConfigurationApplication.

TheHD621issetupinthesamewayasanyotherMeridiancomponent.

• Note:theHD621canactasaController.Howeveryouwillonlyuseitassuchinanon-Meridiansystem.IfyouselecttheHD621asthecontrollerinaMeridiansystem,theavailableinputsonaMeridianprocessoryouaddsubsequentlywillbelimitedtothosedefinedfortheHD621.

ToconfigurethecapabilitiesoftheHD621,bringupthePropertiesdialogfortheproduct.

TheAudiotabisusedtodefinetheaudiobehaviouroftheHD621(seeillustrationoverleaf).

Thefirstrow,AudioOutput,selectstheoutputportusedtointerfacewiththesystem,usingthepop-upmenuinthe“Value”column.Thiswilleitherbe“SmartLink/MMHR”(normally,tousethephonoorRJ45outputs)or,exceptionally,“VideoHDMI”,whichretainstheaudioonthetheHDMIoutputalongwiththevideo.AllthefollowingrowsdescribetotheHD621thecapabilitiesoftheproduct(s)itisfeeding.

Thesecondrow,“MHRConnection”offers“SmartLink”,“SpeakerLinkcompatible”and“None”.Select“SmartLink”tofeedaMeridianprocessorsuchastheC61R,G61R,G68or861,andselect“None”heretofeedMeridianDSPLoudspeakersdirectly.

Thenextrowdeterminesthenumberofoutputchannels.Theoptionsare8-,6-and2-channelout.Thiswillgenerallybedeterminedbythecapabilitiesofyoursystem.NotethattheHD621advertiseshowmanychannelsitwantstoreceive.Forexample,inthecasethat6arechosenhereand8areavailablefromthesource,thentheHD621willinstructtheplayertooutputthe6-channelversion.

YouonlyneedtomakephysicalconnectionsbetweentheHD621andthesystemthatcorrespondtothenumberofchannelsselectedhere.So,forexample,ifyouhavea2-channelsystemandlimitthePCMoutputhereto2-channel,youonlyneedtoconnectthe“1/2”SmartLinkoutputfromtheHD621tothesystem.

ThenextthreerowsinformthesourceaboutthedecodingcapabilityoftheproductsfedbytheHD621.SelectallthreeforMeridianprocessorssuchastheC61R,G61RandG68,leave“AAC”uncheckedforthe861,andleaveallthreeuncheckedifyouaredrivingMeridianDSPLoudspeakersdirectfromtheHD621.

The“OutputRate”rowdeterminesthecapabilityoftheproductfedbytheHD621andwhethertheunitoutputshighsamplerates(88.2or96kHz)orstandardrates(44.1or48kHz).Checktheboxtosetthisto“Yes”:inthiscasetheunitwillalwaysoutputhighsamplerates,byupsamplingstandardsampleratesordownsamplingsuper-highsamplerates(176.4or192kHz).Ifsetto“No”,alloutputsareatstandardrates,withhigher-ratesourcesdownsampledaccordingly.Setto“No”forearlyDSPloudspeakers,D600sandthe561.

ThefinalrowdetermineswhetherMHRisactiveornot.CheckingtheboxallowstheHD621toprotectcopyrightedaudioortoenhancethequalityofothers.

NexttotheAudiotabistheSourcestab:

Thispaneldisplaysthelogicalsourcesassociatedwitheachphysicalinputandallowsthemtobeassigned.Eachphysicalsourceshowsasanicon–inthisexamplethereisonlyone,theBDplayer,sothereisonlyoneicon.Howeveryoucanassignmorethanone“logical”sourcetoaphysicalinput.

ThepenultimatetabinthePropertiesdialogaccessestheTypessection.ThisshowstheMeridianTypesstoredintheproduct.YoucanresettheHD621toaTypebyselectingthedesiredTypefromthelistandright-clickingonit,thenchoosing“ResettothisType”fromtheresultingpop-upmenu.

Thefinaltabis“Connections”.Thisdisplaystheinputsandoutputsavailableonthedeviceandwhattheyareconnectedto.Youcanfiltertheresultsshownherebyright-clickingonanitem(anyitem)inthelistandcheckingtheitemsyouwanttodisplay,oruncheckingthemtohidethem.

Complete the configuration process by Storing the settings to the HD621.Finally,clicktheClosebuttontofinishworkingwiththeHD621Propertiesandcontinuetosetupthesystemasrequired.

Operational Notes1.Somesource/displaycombinationsmaynotreturncleanlyfrom“receiver”mode,duetothewayinwhichtheyhandlehandshaking.Ifyoudonotgettheexpectedresult(egnoaudioisheard)evenafterseveralsecondshaveelapsed,itmayhelptoswitchtoanotherinputandthenbackagain.ThisisnotafaultintheHD621:itisafunctionofhowthesourceanddisplaycommunicatewitheachother.

2.Handshakingbetweenadisplayandasourcecantakesometimeandyoumay,forexample,seeaseriesofalternatingblankandbluescreens.Thisisnotafault.

HD621UG-ENG•Partno:P88380•Version1.320090601•REƒ

Meridian Audio Limited,LathamRoad,Huntingdon,CambridgeshirePE296YE,UK.T+44(0)1480445678F+44(0)1480445686Einfo@meridian-audio.com

Meridian America Inc., 8055TroonCircle,SuiteC,Austell,GA30168-7849,USA.T+1(404)3447111F+1(404)3467111

www.meridian-audio.com