Product Review
 

Anthem Statement D2 Surround Sound and Video Processor

August, 2006

Kris Deering

 

The first part of my evaluation was done with DVD at 480i being de-interlaced and scaled to the appropriate resolution for the respective projector. I started here because DVD is still the primary medium in home theater right now and represents the lions share of the software available to consumers. We put the D2 through our progressive scan benchmark and the Gennum VXP did an incredible job with al of our tests. The VXP really does represent the next generation of performance in video processing and is more in line with the offerings of the Silicon Optix Realta chip and the Anchor Bay Technologies ABT-102 board. These chips have taken video processing and cadence based de-interlacing to the next level, so much so that we will be updating our benchmark by year's end to take into account what is possible now and raise the bar on what constitutes top of the line de-interlacing performance.

The Gennum was exceptionally good with bad edit detection and locking on to cadences and staying locked. This was especially true with bad edits in source material. The VXP is one of only two chips that I've seen hold things intact through loops with difficult material, especially the famous Super Speedway clip found on the HQV benchmark DVD. Even the Realta chip with HQV processing can't hold things together through that loop. It passed every test in both our benchmark testing and the HQV test disc. It faired very well in the new DVDO Video Reference Series disc but tripped up with some of the harder mixed cadence tests.

The VXP does an excellent job with diagonal line processing with video based material. Up until recently the Faroudja DCDi solution was the only processor available to the general public that did well with diagonal line interpolation. That changed when the Silicon Optix Realta chip premiered in our reference DVD player, the Denon DVD-5910. While the VXP doesn't do quite as good as the Faroudja solution overall, it is pretty much on par with the Realta chip.

But the real standout for the VXP was its high definition video processing performance. Test patterns for high definition de-interlacing are extremely rare when it comes to video processing and I was lucky enough to see an early version of a new test disc that will be available in the next year. Stacey Spears and Don Munsil, former writers for Secrets of Home Theater and Hi Fi and the creators of the DVD Benchmark, have formed an outfit called Spears and Munsil (S&M) and are working on a disc for evaluation of high definition video processors. They are also the creators of Anchor Bay Technologies new Video Reference Series disc that is shipping with their new de-interlacing board, the ABT-102. Using the new Toshiba HD-A1 we were able to feed the D2 true 1080i test patterns for video setup and de-interlacing. The VXP did an exceptional job with the tests and passed the majority of the cadence tests including 1080i material mastered with 3-2 and 2-2 based cadences. It also held together through the brunt of the mixed cadence and bad edit tests, regardless of the amount of detail. It also does the same diagonal line processing for HD sources as it does for SD sources. The only other inverse telecine high definition processor (other than the Gennum chip in the Marantz projector) we had on hand was the Sony Ruby itself. The projector's internal video processor does handle 1080i material but it is not near the same level as the Anthem Statement D2. It had issues with even the basic 3-2 patterns on the S&M test disc. We plan on creating a new high definition video processing benchmark at Secrets in the next year as more test material is created and will be incorporating most of the test patterns included on Stacey and Don's disc. We wish them both the best of luck with their business and thank them for the opportunity to try out the beta of their new disc.

For component to HDMI conversion I used the output of the new Xbox 360, which is limited to component but is 720P. The D2 worked without a hitch in its conversion to HDMI and I didn't notice a single instance of latency during any games including fast paced racing and first person shooters. All of the resolution of the 360 was kept intact and the image looked razor sharp. At this time this is the only source I have in my system that I use a component output for.

For subjective evaluation of DVD I used a variety of players including the Sony 9100ES, Marantz DV-9600, Oppo DV970HD and Denon DVD-5910. All of the players worked without issue via HDMI except the Denon DVD-5910. For some reason this player would immediately lock up completely when connected to the D2 via HDMI. No matter how I set up either the player or the SSP the player would lock up. I am going to send the player to Anthem shortly so they can investigate the issue and hopefully resolve it. Over the course of development for the D2 Anthem have found a lot of issues with various HDMI products not meeting the specifications that they should to have HDMI outputs. Because of this they've had to continually update the D2's software to find workarounds to make products work correctly with the D2. This has included several cable boxes and DVD players. In the time I've had the D2 Anthem has corrected all of the compatibility issues I've found with DVD players and D-VHS players with the exception of the DVD-5910, which they haven't had yet to evaluate. So needless to say, product support has been phenomenal.

Moving on to high definition subjective evaluations were done with a variety of sources. On hand I had a Comcast HD PVR, a JVC 5U D-Theater D-VHS player, and the Toshiba HD-A1 HD DVD Player. I was able to look through quite a bit of pre-recorded content on HD DVD and D-Theater as well as material I had taped off of cable. Watching the pre-recorded content from D-Theater and HD DVD was by far the highlight of the evaluation and represented the best high definition viewing I've done to date. Using the Sony Ruby projector you got to see what the full extent of high definition could be with true inverse telecine de-interlacing of just about flawless HD material. In fact the only gripes I had was the motion artifacts present from the over compression present in the cable broadcasts. Unfortunately even the noise reduction filters in the D2 can't remedy this issue. HD DVD looked exceptionally good with no noise to bother at all. Titles like Serenity and Phantom of the Opera had amazing depth, clarity and color fidelity making them standouts in the evaluation. The difference between these HD DVDs and their standard DVD counterparts was not even close to subtle in A/B comparisons regardless of the source device. I tried the Marantz DV-9600 into the D2 at 480i via HDMI and also the Denon DVD-5910 and despite having some of the best video processing capabilities on the market available, they were just no match for the inherent resolution and color capabilities of the HD DVD format. I did have some issues with the D2 locking on to the correct colorspace for the Toshiba HD-A1 in the beginning but Anthem resolved those within about a week and I've not had an issue since. I do, however, have random HDMI communication link dropouts between the HD-A1 and the Statement D2. The HD-A1 has some HDMI output issues that are to blame and this became a rather frustrating issue over the last few weeks. Anthem is currently working with Toshiba's new firmware and hopes to resolve these issues soon.

Currently the Anthem Statement D2 represents the best high definition video processor we've evaluated to date. Its standard definition processing is better than any SSP or receiver I've tested and in line with the best processors I've seen on the market yet. The Realta HQV chip and the DVDO ABT-102 still do a bit better with mixed cadences. The fact that this add-on costs considerably less than what it would cost to buy a processor that would even be in the same league makes this one of the best values I've ever seen; especially if you are already a D1 owner.

Audio evaluations were a bit of a moot point. We've already covered the D2's audio capabilities extensively either as a footnote to existing reviews or in Brian's excellent review of the D1. Nothing has changed in this regard except for support of HDMI. For this I used the JVC 5U D-Theater deck, the Xbox 360, the Toshiba HD-A1 HD DVD player and the Pioneer Elite 79AVi.

Dolby Digital and DTS soundtracks were supported via HDMI without a single hitch regardless of the format. I tried this with D-Theater, DVD and HD-DVD as well as games on the Xbox 360. There wasn't any difference in overall quality either compared to the standard coaxial or SPDIF inputs.

DVD Audio was probably the biggest difference. I used the Pioneer DV-79AVi for transmission of high resolution DVD Audio via its HDMI output. This means the player decodes the MLP compressed material and sends the raw high resolution PCM data to the Anthem without any post-processing such as time alignment or bass management. All of this is done within the Anthem. Like all incoming digital signals, the Anthem upsamples the high-resolution data to 192/24 and will add any post-processing you want to the signal. This again includes THX modes or enhanced surround modes like PLIIx, all in the digital domain. The difference was noticeable in comparison to the analog outputs of the Pioneer Elite player. Bass response seemed a bit cleaner and imaging was tighter with the majority of the material I used. I was really bummed that I didn't have the chance to try out the Denon DVD-5910 like this. It supports HDMI 1.1 and has excellent audio playback capabilities through its analog outputs. But I have found over the last few years that I like the D1 better for stereo playback with the Denon 5910 feeding it coax digital information. CDs sound considerably better with a broader soundstage, more body and tighter bass. I was anxious to see if this would be the case with DVD Audio as well. I hope to have that chance soon.

Anthem is the only company I know of that is allowing the end user to set their speaker configuration for DVD Audio with HDMI. HDMI does not dictate what channel is what with high resolution PCM. There is an auto setting in the D2's setup that worked every time though and placed the outputs to the correct amplifier channel, but I use a different speaker configuration for DVD Audio playback. Instead of using my dipole surrounds, I use my direct radiating rear speakers for the surrounds with surround sound music. Anthem is the only company I know that lets you dictate what channel information goes to what output with HDMI but unfortunately they are not support the rear speakers for this. I have my fingers crossed that at some point the D2 will allow me the option of doing this like they do with the analog inputs. It is one of my favorite features of the D1!

I would say the most exciting part of the audio evaluation for me was trying out the new HD DVD format and Dolby's new DD+ format. For this I used the Toshiba HD-A1 HD DVD player and had the player output multi-channel PCM. The internal Dolby Digital decoder decodes the DD+ soundtracks to PCM. For some reason Toshiba has included some type of post processing because all of the PCM coming out of the HD-A1 was upsampled to 96/24. The Anthem then upconverted this audio to 192/24. I had the D2 set to apply Dolby PLIIx to all incoming multi-channel signals. The soundtracks sounded superb. Universal's release of Serenity was especially impressive with ample use of the surround channels and very clean bass. I am really looking forward to doing some A/B comparisons as more titles are released in this format.

Since HD DVD and Blu-Ray decode their high-resolution soundtracks internally and output high resolution PCM, this brings up a major concern for outboard video processors and a major advantage for the Anthem D2. Currently only a handful of outboard video processors handle HDMI, and I don't know of any that will pass through high resolution PCM. Most will output the standard Dolby Digital and DTS soundtracks though. But how do you handle this with HDMI? Most video processors only have one HDMI output and that needs to go to the display, so how do you get the PCM data to your SSP or receiver? I suppose you could use a splitter for the signal, but since most video processors don't pass through high resolution PCM, that data is lost. That means you are stuck with either resorting back to the analog outputs or something like the Anthem Statement D2. With these new formats coming out it is becoming apparent that the need for an all-in-one audio video processor will become a factor if you want the most out of the new formats. Either that or outboard video processors will need to find a way to pass through high resolution PCM and have dual HDMI outputs so that one output can feed a display and the other can feed a receiver or SSP. Anthem went above and beyond this and offered a one box solution that does everything and it does it extremely well.

Conclusion

The D2 encompasses one of the best add-ons I've ever seen for any product, period. As a stand-alone video processor it is outstanding and better than the vast majority of video processors I've ever evaluated. The fact that it does true HD video processing makes it a standout in a very limited market. Couple this with the HDMI switching and the fact that it supports all the audio formats that will be soon become the new standard with HD DVD and Blu-Ray and you have an investment that will pay off for a long time to come. The Anthem Statement D2 will continue to be my reference Audio/Video processor and I could not recommend a product more.

- Kris Deering -

 

© Copyright 2006 Secrets of Home Theater & High Fidelity
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