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3D Blu-ray players such as this recently announced BDC6900 model from Samsung may create problems for A/V receivers and HDMI switchers.
A source from the Blu-ray Disc Association told Electronic House and sister publication CE Pro at CES 2010 that a possible speed bump in the road to greater adoption of 3D Blu-ray may not come from the TVs, players or content providers; it may come from A/V receivers and HDMI switching devices.
While HDMI 1.4 is in the specification for 3D Blu-ray, it’s not a requirement for sending a 3D Blu-ray signal from a player to a television. That’s why Sony’s Playstation 3 can be firmware upgraded to be 3D Blu-ray compatible while only having HDMI 1.3 built into its hardware. What is required is a minimum bandwidth allowance in order for the player to send the signal out to the TV.
A source told our publications that many A/V receivers with HDMI switching cannot accommodate the extra bandwidth. In other words, if you use your receiver for HDMI switching, you may not be able to connect it to a 3D Blu-ray player. The source said the BDA may be working with manufacturers to inform them of the bandwidth problem so they can help customers with questions and problems as well as establish a minimum bandwidth floor for receivers that will allow the 3D signal to pass.
One possible workaround the source suggested would be for Blu-ray players to include two HDMI outputs, one that would go directly to the 3D compatible display, and one to take the high-quality Blu-ray audio formats to the receiver.
Sony, Panasonic and Samsung are among those announcing 3D-compatible Blu-ray players at CES 2010.
Sorry guys but I will pass on the 3D thing. I visited w/JVC, Mitsubishi & Panasonic & the 3D was quite inspiring. Then I saw the 4k x 2k resolution screens that provide the best image I saw… Like looking through a window pane & you don’t need goofy glasses. So for now I would rather stick w/Blu-Ray 1080p TV, pass on the 3D thing and wait for the eventual release of 4k x 2k resolution. And by the way, I can’t see America sitting down at prime time to watch TV & having to put 3D glasses on - I just don’t SEE it.
This is not worth it. They’re doing a good job of generating demand where it isn’t really present.
The Panasonic DMP-BDT350 will have two HDMI outputs. No word yet on the other manufacturers.
Optical/coax audio can’t handle the new lossless codecs, so you would need to have HDMI to feed the audio data stream to your receiver, to decode the lossless codecs. The other issue I can foresee, is a syncing problem with the audio and video, when you have one going to your TV and the other going to your receiver. Not to mention having to use yet another cable with a not so cheap cost.
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My understanding is that the 4kx2k rez is only relevent for very large screens like those found in commercial movie theatres. Perception of 1080p over 720p is only marginal, if at all in most household setups. Anyway, Bluray has yet to max out the capabilities of hdmi 1.3 and 3d equivalent of the commercial theatre is far from mass market introduction.