HDMI isilencer

[Perp]

When Oppo sold the 205 4k universal player, they advertised that its HDMI output was lower jitter (than other players with HDMI out on the market). I betcha didn't know that?

This is with their HDMI (audio only) output and they stated on their Website (Still may be there. I haven’t looked), one may or may not hear a difference. I never did when comparing the two outputs into my AVR.

 

[jimfisheye]

The data rate on HDMI is way beyond the sample rate of the DACs etc. in the receiving equipment. So the serial data on the HDMI link will be read into parallel memory and processed in a DSP at a different clock rate (no jitter will affect this processing). Consequently, the clock rate seen by the output DAC is different to that on HDMI data.

Jitter issues are another of the fallacies peddled by a lot of 'audiophile' companies to make money, all it does at sample rate is add a bit of noise way down in level so out of hearing range or so low it is masked by the audio signal.

Yeah, see that's what I was thinking with my original comment above.
I think you and JediJoker need to hash this out!

 

[Steve Bruzonsky]

This is with their HDMI (audio only) output and they stated on their Website (Still may be there. I haven’t looked), one may or may not hear a difference. I never did when comparing the two outputs into my AVR.

Of course. Whether one hears any difference may depend upon their system, electronics, room, room treatments, and their own ears and brain/perception. And any placebo effect whether pro or con! But Oppo engineers felt that they objectively designed a cleaner HDMI output that might translate into better audio at least for some!

 

[DuncanS]

Yeah, see that's what I was thinking with my original comment above.
I think you and JediJoker need to hash this out!

If I can find time I'll pull together some stuff to show visually what is meant, and why something is or isn't relevant.

 

[Bretho72]

You all makin' me crazy, what the heck are you talking about, no links, no research notes so I had to look up myself. I'm just lurking here, don't own it and have no opinion.
IFI AUDIO MAKES IT
ISILENCER DIRECT LINK
MOON AUDIO REVIEW

There are many reviews online of this product. Seems to be a little on the Pro side vs the Con side. Price is $59.00 to $79.00.

You’ve got completely the wrong product on all counts there. It’s an HDMI isilencer, to improve picture and video from hdmi sources, in my case HDMI audio only for multichannel music from a PC.

 

[Bretho72]

 

[mandrix]

Brother, if that works for you then fine. I can't tell you what you're hearing.
I use my pc for 99% of music playback via HDMI, and I can categorically state (for me) that unless there is a breakdown in the chain of components, errant drivers, etc, it should be bit perfect from end to end.

Here's what I do know about that "chain" that can go a little sideways from personal experience.
With some pc motherboards and Nvidia gpu's, you may get audio dropouts. Tiny but irritating.
What I had to do was go into the motherboard BIOS and change the Pcie slot setting the Nvidia card resides in, to GEN 2 and that "fixed" the problem of audio dropouts.

I'll let the electronic gurus to explain exactly what is going on.

Asus Prime Z590-A motherboard
i7 11700K cpu
32 GB DDR4 DRAM
Gigabyte RTX 3060 gpu w/12GB VRAM
Adaptec ASR 7106 SAS/SATA board
10 HDD / 4 SSD / NvMe boot drive
Roku 43 inch 4K TV as monitor
8K rated Monoprice cables

Onkyo TX-RZ50 AVR w/HDMI 2.1

 

[PolkSDA]

Interesting! I purchased two of these units a couple of weeks ago and liked what I was hearing and seeing when installed (not a placebo for me). Normally, I am skeptical with the claims many of these type products claim they do but, the reason why it didn’t take me long to push that add to cart button on Amazon is because I use a couple of other iFi audio SilentPower Enhancer products and both those products work for me too, in my system. I use one for my ATV’s output into the AVR, another on the output of my BD player into the AVR and another one on the input of my OLED TV. Using the HDMI iSilencer has helped me to tolerate many of my discs that have that top end brightness including APP, Turn of a Friendly Card. What amazes me on the video side is how realistic and 3-dimensional the picture looks on my 2016 65” LG OLED TV. Similar to feeling like I’m right there, in the action, but at a distance to the screen (looking into the action).

(emphasis added)

How the [CENSORED} would this device make the picture "more 3D"?

I'm getting PTSD "green pen" and "CD mat" flashbacks...

 

[JediJoker]

How the [CENSORED} would this device make the picture "more 3D"?

I'm getting PTSD "green pen" and "CD mat" flashbacks...

The green marker is useless if you don't shave your CDs first:

 

[LuvMyQuad]

And it has to be a belt drive shaver. Those direct drive CD shavers just wont do.

 

[jimfisheye]

Sure, I'll go another round.

Has anyone claiming this thing cured a problem made a recording of it? So you can point right at it no matter what someone else claims they hear or don't hear? Just shut the whole argument down matter of fact like that? Make a digital capture with and without the device from the same digital source.

What mandrix just said. There are either dropouts or not. The ones and zeros get from point A to B or they don't. When digital audio gets dropouts or corruption, things go from zero to 100 with the DAC output from it. It isn't muddy or less clear or less treble or any analog flavor. It's usually garbled in a "pixelated" way as the digital codes don't make sense anymore.

The claims of these kind of products read as though they have full DSP built in. That should be setting your BS detector off at its lowest setting!

Going audio out from HDMI from a video card:
Pre thunderbolt computer = give up now!
Post thunderbolt computer = should just work.

Right, so show me a pre thunderbolt computer with a video card HDMI output where this iThing cures that communication issue. That might be genuinely useful if it was possible!

 

[jimfisheye]

Haha yeah, shave your CDs. Then get out the green marker.
Then... slap a label on them printed with your new label maker!

Was that trolling or was it genuinely an innocent but comically misguided mistake? Slap a sticky bulky label on the disk. It's not possible to center accurately enough to spin at 500rpm so it might not read at all right off the bat. Otherwise it will punish the bearings in the drive and make for a few error riddled reads before your drive fails now.
Bonus points for having the label start to peel off as the disc is ejected from the slot and stay stuck and gummed up inside.

Then plug that CD player in with an iSilencer!
You still won't be able to put another disc in with the label remains from the last one glued up in there but the iSilencer will still have you hearing less jitter. No, really!

 

[SeeMoreDigital]

Haha yeah, shave your CDs. Then get out the green marker.

A 'green' marker!!!

I've been using a blue one. No wonder all my CD's sound like crap!

 

[Mr. Afternoon]

A 'green' marker!!!

I've been using a blue one. No wonder all my CD's sound like crap!

Marker? I've been using crayon! The wax is supposed to make it smoother!

 

[LuvMyQuad]

Marker? I've been using crayon! The wax is supposed to make it smoother!

Make sure its green wax.

 

[LuvMyQuad]

.Bonus points for having the label start to peel off as the disc is ejected from the slot and stay stuck and gummed up inside.

Ive had that happen back in the day when i used to burn CDs. Then i went to the discs with burnable label sides. Then they stopped selling those discs.

 

[Sal1950]

Expectation bias is a powerful thing.
You spent your money hoping for an improvement and despite the science you hear one.

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...s/a-deep-dive-into-hdmi-audio-performance.56/
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...and-potential-for-hdmi-cable-differences.104/

 

[somethingcleveridunno]

 

[somethingcleveridunno]

The green marker is useless if you don't shave your CDs first:

You shaved them, but did you also de-magnetize them?

 

[SeeMoreDigital]

You shaved them, but did you also de-magnetize them?

A 'must do' process with aluminium...