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HDMI audio extractor to Topping Dx7s vs. Marantz 6012

Neuromorphism

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Sep 28, 2019
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Given the general terribleness of almost all measured AVRs and preamp/processors I'm assessing other options for living room audio. To that end, I have compared the signal from a Marantz 6012 to the signal from an "Orei 4K 60Hz 18G HDMI 2.0 Audio Converter Extractor ARC Support" to Topping Dx7s.
tv_arc_marantz6012_motu_front.png


tv_arc_orei_dx7s_motu_front.png


These are taken with REW, 64k FFT, no averaging, Hann window.
The top graph is the Marantz chain: PC -> TV -> Marantz -> Motu M4 -> PC
The bottom graph is the Dx7s chain: PC -> TV -> Orei -> Dx7s -> Motu -> PC

In both cases signal goes to the TV over HDMI3 which the TV input is switched to and is sent out over ARC on HDMI. Until I tried it I had no confidence this would even work (i.e. TV outputting over a separate HDMI port from what it's using for input). I previously tried to use the TOSLINK out directly from the TV but it seems more selective in what sources it will output. Another pleasant surprise is that I expected the HDMI audio extractor to introduce problems of its own.

Sorry you can't see the top signal level, it's about -3.5 dBFS. Next time I'll know to turn on more options for the screen capture. So unless I'm fooling myself somewhere here I'm getting at least 105 dB clean signal using the Orei and Dx7s. This appears to be a very viable option for those who want clear audio integrated into their (presumably HDMI based) AV system using affordable components.
 

SpaceMonkey

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Jan 11, 2020
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I have ViewHD UHD 18G HDMI Audio Extractor/Splitter ( model VHD-UHAE2 ). It is an earlier implementation and It seems this Orei looks exactly like ViewHD. I haven't actually used mine and didn't measure it.
So your results seems very encouraging. Thanks for the effort.
 

jaynyc

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Mar 14, 2018
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@Neuromorphism what about trying:

PC -> Orei (HDMI), then
Orei -> TV (HDMI), and
Orei -> DAC (SPDIF)
DAC -> Motu (analog)

Do the measurements change?
 
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