The Falcons Are In The Wild - But Rarer Than A Mewtwo! Gotta' Catch Them All!

[quote name='Trakan']
Tried that, not only does it not really fit, but it doesn't work. I know there is a seperate cable that comes with the elite, but I'm not seeing it here.[/QUOTE]

So I guess you have to buy the official MS HDMI cable (is it even out yet) if you want to use an optical cable to get 5.1 out of a Receiver with no HDMI inputs?
 
[quote name='Trakan']Tried that, not only does it not really fit, but it doesn't work. I know there is a seperate cable that comes with the elite, but I'm not seeing it here.[/quote]That confirms what we thought with the HDMI Premium, that it doesn't come with the optical out/RCA out audio dongle included with the Elite.

Thought by a few CAGs, including myself, is that MS wil be selling a "HMDI cable it" which will come with a HDMI cable and the audio dongle. Some Google searches seem to echo this as well, and a theoretical $49 price.

Picture of the dongle can be seen here, most of the way down the page:
http://www.llamma.com/xbox360/news/inside_the_xbox_360_elite.htm

This might be another way to have MS justify the difference in price between the Elite and the Premium w/HDMI, because if $50 of the $100 difference is the HDMI cable + audio dongle, it doesn't seem like that much of a reach.
 
Well that blows, and greatly decreases my intereset in getting a 360 anytime soon. $300 for everything I need is my limit, and now it looks like even if the Premium drops to $300 I'd have to shell out another $50 for the cable.
 
Yeah, when it clicked with me that the Pro HDMI doesn't come with the cable, that makes it less attractive. And I would have to have optical audio, I have to go HDMI->DVI to the tv. One more point for the Elite. That "hundred bucks difference" seems less and less.
 
fuck. I knew that the Premium's price was too good...there would be something shitty they snuck in there to drag more cash out of you. That is lame as hell.

I'm sure they'll say the elite is even better now because "you get a $50 cable!"...as if that cable shouldn't be less than half that price to begin with. Maybe a 3rd party solution will surface? And is the MS one even available yet?
 
You could always have your 360 connected to your TV via HDMI and set the TV to output via optical. That way all of the things that you connect to your TV would go to your surround via the one optical cable.
 
[quote name='Danil ACE']You could always have your 360 connected to your TV via HDMI and set the TV to output via optical. That way all of the things that you connect to your TV would go to your surround via the one optical cable.[/QUOTE]

Bing bing bing bing!!!! Remember, kids: HDMI transmits both video AND audio.
 
[quote name='evanft']Bing bing bing bing!!!! Remember, kids: HDMI transmits both video AND audio.[/quote]

1. Your reply makes no sense.
2. Optical digital audio shits all over HDMI.
 
* A receiver has to have HDMI input to accept HDMI audio/video.
* Is there even an HDMI standard yet? 1.1, 1.3, etc.?
* DVI was meant to be the "next thing" for a brief period of time; some older TVs have DVI but not HDMI.
* Do any TVs actually accept optical audio? I run all video and audio through my receiver, then to the TV via component and stereo audio (except for the aforementioned HDMI->DVI into the TV).

In the case of connecting to the tv then to the receiver, that's the same bundle of wires as running things through the receiver then to the TV, except that it's likely the receiver has better audio processing than the TV.
 
Some TVs do have an optical out. I just checked my Sony KDF50-2000E and it has one, but I've never tried it.

So that may be an option for those with a TV with an optical out.

Still with all this nonsense, waiting for more drops on a PS3 is looking better and better and I'd probably watch bluray movies more than I'd play 360 games anyway....
 
With Zephyr being around for sometime with the first release on Elite, how reliable are they?
 
[quote name='Trakan']1. Your reply makes no sense.
2. Optical digital audio shits all over HDMI.[/QUOTE]

You mean optical digital audio is shit compared to lossless audio transmitted via HDMI...
 
[quote name='laaj']With Zephyr being around for sometime with the first release on Elite, how reliable are they?[/QUOTE]

Elites haven't been out long enough to tell.
 
[quote name='getmyrunon']You mean optical digital audio is shit compared to lossless audio transmitted via HDMI...[/QUOTE]

Wait....You mean Optical Digital Audio is indeed better then HDMI? I agree then.
 
[quote name='pimpinc333']Wait....You mean Optical Digital Audio is indeed better then HDMI? I agree then.[/QUOTE]

Are you serious?

HDMI>Optical

Anyone who says anything different is on crack...
 
As I understand it, it doesn't really matter unless you're using a lossless audio source, and 360 games are lossless so it's really a moot point in this case. Guess it could matter if you wanted the HD-DVD add-on, but I'd think people that were techhead enough to care about lossless audio and hdmi vs. optical audio would buy a standalone player that shits all over the add on in A/V quality anyway.
 
[quote name='dmaul1114']As I understand it, it doesn't really matter unless you're using a lossless audio source, and 360 games are lossless so it's really a moot point in this case. Guess it could matter if you wanted the HD-DVD add-on, but I'd think people that were techhead enough to care about lossless audio and hdmi vs. optical audio would buy a standalone player that shits all over the add on in A/V quality anyway.[/QUOTE]

You need to stop responding to these a/v posts because you are so lost it's incredible. With hdmi in games you avoid having to compress the audio a second time. With launch systems in order to get 5.1 audio over to the receiver the already compressed audio samples need to be compressed again into dolby digital to allow for 5.1 positional audio. With hdmi you can have a straight lossless channel to each speaker.

What hd-dvd drive shits all over the add on??? It sure isn't the first gen hd-a1 which only supports 1080i and has a 1 minute startup time. You have a digital signal that is processed and output via a digital connection not a whole lot that can go wrong. This is in addition to the fact that the addon drive is quite a bit faster than the majority of standalone players.
 
Fair enough on HDMI, moot point for me as my receiver doesn't have HDMI, I don't plan on upgrading anytime soon, and I couldn't give to shits about audio quality as I'm not an Audiophile. As long as it's 5.1 and not staticky I'm good to go.

But my main question wasn't about the potential advantage of HDMI, but rather concerned whether 360 games (given that most 360s in homes don't have the HDMI output) are programmed to take advantage of the lossless options of audio over HDMI.

I imagine future games could, but current do not as they wouldn't be programmed for a feature that wasn't on the 360 until the Elite launched in June or whenever.

As for the Add On, just read reviews of it at tech sites, all note that it is a decent player, but can't compete with the best standalone players. Unlike the PS3 which reviews among the best Blurray players (after the firmware update last spring). Not to mention all the racket the drive and the 360's fans make vs. a standalone.
 
So wait, if your TV has an optical out, and you plug that into your receiver, it will take whatever is plugged into the TV and produce 5.1 sound?
 
[quote name='seanr1221']So wait, if your TV has an optical out, and you plug that into your receiver, it will take whatever is plugged into the TV and produce 5.1 sound?[/QUOTE]

I THINK that it how it works according to my TV manual. But I've not tried it. Though of course it can only send a 5.1 signal if that's what it's receiving. It's not going to turn a 2.1 feed to 5.1. So if you have it on a cable channel that is only 2.1, that's all it would send to the receiver. But if it's on a DVD, game, HD channel etc. with 5.1 sound it should feed that to the receiver.
 
I'm just surprised it would take the stereo sound and 'perfectly' convert it to 5.1.

I always figured the optical out was for HD programing.
 
[quote name='seanr1221']I'm just surprised it would take the stereo sound and 'perfectly' convert it to 5.1.

I always figured the optical out was for HD programing.[/quote]

well i actually use coax for my HD box cause there is no optical output, just use optical for my 360.
 
[quote name='seanr1221']So wait, if your TV has an optical out, and you plug that into your receiver, it will take whatever is plugged into the TV and produce 5.1 sound?[/QUOTE]
Not all tv's some like mine only pass 2.1 . Look in your Manual it should tell you.
 
[quote name='seanr1221']I'm just surprised it would take the stereo sound and 'perfectly' convert it to 5.1.

I always figured the optical out was for HD programing.[/QUOTE]

No, that's what I was saying. It WON'T convert stero sound to 5.1. It would just send the stereo sound to the Receiver.

Again, it's just a pass through. Whatever is being sent to the TV, be it stereo, DD 5.1, DTS 5.1, Pro Logic II etc., will get passed to the receiver.

The TV doesn't convert anything, it's just meant as away to get every audio source hooked up to the TV passed on to the receiver through 1 optical cable, rather than having to run every audio cable directly to the receiver and every video cable directly to the TV as most of us have our stuff set up.
 
[quote name='dmaul1114']No, that's what I was saying. It WON'T convert stero sound to 5.1. It would just send the stereo sound to the Receiver.

Again, it's just a pass through. Whatever is being sent to the TV, be it stereo, DD 5.1, DTS 5.1, Pro Logic II etc., will get passed to the receiver.

The TV doesn't convert anything, it's just meant as away to get every audio source hooked up to the TV passed on to the receiver through 1 optical cable, rather than having to run every audio cable directly to the receiver and every video cable directly to the TV as most of us have our stuff set up.[/QUOTE]

Ah, see my receiver only has one optical input. I have the 360 hooked up through vga, ps3 through hdmi, and the wii through component. Then, I switch out the optical between the PS3 and 360.

If I ever got one of these new 360s and wanted to use hdmi instead of component and still get 5.1 sound, I'd be screwed into buying that 50.00 cable.
 
[quote name='seanr1221']
If I ever got one of these new 360s and wanted to use hdmi instead of component and still get 5.1 sound, I'd be screwed into buying that 50.00 cable.[/QUOTE]

Same here, though my receiver has 3 opitcal inputs and one is free. But I'd still need the cable as my receiver doens't have HDMI inputs.
 
Hey guys FYI, EBStop are now carrying HDMI Pros, i sold 2 today at work.

so if you guys have lots of built up credit (there are a few out there) then here is your chance at getting the best Pro available as of now.

There are a lot of shipments of them coming in as well, so they are gonna be pretty prominent soon.
 
[quote name='Pestilence']Hey guys FYI, EBStop are now carrying HDMI Pros, i sold 2 today at work.

so if you guys have lots of built up credit (there are a few out there) then here is your chance at getting the best Pro available as of now.

There are a lot of shipments of them coming in as well, so they are gonna be pretty prominent soon.[/quote]

Are they all Zephyrs? Any idea what lot numbers?
 
[quote name='darkandlong']Are they all Zephyrs? Any idea what lot numbers?[/quote]

i forgot to look at that, but i saw on the back of the box it listed the HDMI port as included, plus it had a mfg. date of 7/07

ill take a look today(if i get a chance) and let you guys know what lot number and all that
 
[quote name='darkandlong']Are they all Zephyrs? Any idea what lot numbers?[/QUOTE]

They'd have to be Zephyrs since they've got the HDMI port.
 
[quote name='Wolfpup']They'd have to be Zephyrs since they've got the HDMI port.[/QUOTE]Whenever the Falcons start showing up, they'll also have the HDMI ports, won't they? Or did they decide to make this even more confusing and I just missed it?
 
[quote name='Danimal']Whenever the Falcons start showing up, they'll also have the HDMI ports, won't they? Or did they decide to make this even more confusing and I just missed it?[/quote]Most likely, yes. I'd be surprised if they brought out Falcon-based systems w/o HMDI for the Premiums, when they've released the Zephyr-based system w/HDMI.
 
[quote name='shrike4242']Most likely, yes. I'd be surprised if they brought out Falcon-based systems w/o HMDI for the Premiums, when they've released the Zephyr-based system w/HDMI.[/QUOTE]
I can't see any reason why they'd do that, but after some of the decision making we've seen to this point, I guess you can never say never. I'd be pissed, though. I've waited all this time for a lower price and more reliable hardware, and right now I'm banging my head against a wall trying to decide between breaking down and just getting one of the newer (presumably better) Zephyr models, or holding out just a liiiiiiittle bit longer to get a Falcon. After waiting all this time, it seems dumb to cave when the Falcons are (probably) a month or two away. But damn it, I'm on vacation next week with an empty house (wife back to work, kids back to school) , nothing to do, and I'm aching to play Bioshock. :bomb:

So having said all that, if it eventually came down to choosing between 65nm chips or HDMI, yeah, I wouldn't be thrilled.
 
[quote name='Trakan']1. Your reply makes no sense.
2. Optical digital audio shits all over HDMI.[/QUOTE]

Further replies in this thread have vindicated me!!!

If your receiver has HDMI, you have no need for an optical dongle.
 
[quote name='Malkovich']Are you able to see a difference by looking at the box? I don't want to get stuck with an old one.[/quote]
Yes.
 
[quote name='evanft']Further replies in this thread have vindicated me!!!

If your receiver has HDMI, you have no need for an optical dongle.[/QUOTE]


Why not? I have one of those Dolby Headphone portable decoders. It takes optical in from a 5.1 source (Xbox), converts it to Dolby Headphone (headphone surround, pretty solid) for use with my excellent Audio Technica A900 cans. Without optical, I'm screwed unless I want to use my TV speakers.
 
[quote name='evanft']
If your receiver has HDMI, you have no need for an optical dongle.[/QUOTE]

I think everyone is well aware of that. Many (most?) of us just don't have receivers with HDMI, not any desire to upgrade just for the 360.
 
Where is the best place B&M to find a Premium HDMI?

Fry's?

I'm picking one up tomorrow and don't want to be running all over the place. Bioshock is lonely.
 
WTF

I just bought my 360 premium. Read on Kotaku that the new bundles with Top Spin or Table Tennis have HDMI ports. Opened my box and nada. I don't need HDMI I just wanted some stable hardware. I guess I could return it but damn.

Just a warning to future purchasers. The bundles don't have the HDMI ports. They probably made these bundles to get rid of the old crappy hardware.

Bah
 
I believe the consoles with HDMI now say that specifically on the box. If it doesn't, don't buy or be prepared to return to the store for a refund if that's not what you want.
 
LOL this crap is a launch build i think. fuck You Circuit City. fuck me for buying it. What are the chances this shit has added heatsinks?

And what's the return policy to Circuit City for 360s? Since I already opened it can I beat Bioshock this weekend and then just return it next week?
 
have it coming from a reliable source that CURRENTLY

The Core will drop to 279
The Premium will drop to 349
The Elite will drop to 449

This will clear out the inventory of the Premium which is the most manufactured 360 and the most sold as they know Premium will sell the most until the demand for Elites pick up in 2008. Elites and Cores have relatively the same manufacturing percentage: low at the moment until FALL this year.

When the 65 nm processor falcons are introduced across all SKUs, the holiday season, a month or so after Halo 3 will see the core drop to $249, The Premium will drop to $299 and the Elite will drop to $399.

The Core, Premium and Elite Falcons will have a redesigned motherboard which includes HDMI across all SKUs, a quieter DVD Drive and the falcons will STILL have an extra fan heatsink as Microsoft is not prepared to take anymore risks.

The Falcon will reduce the cost to manufacture the Xbox 360 CPU and GPU by ~40-50% but Microsoft will incure additional costs on the new fans and HDMI across all SKUs. Still at the 249,299 and 399 price, Microsoft will expect a profit from the console by early 2008 when the Q4 results are announced.



EDIT: Clearing out inventory of 90nm so they mostly have 65nm on shelves this holiday season
Click to expand...

i hope thats true that we might get another price drop after Halo is out, that would help me a great deal and i could grab another game, and could someone explain what in the world HDMI is, i only have a Standard Definition TV
 
I really hope its true that the falcon will come out not much longer than a month after Halo 3...waiting for the Falcon is killing me! Its bad enough im not playing Bioshock, but when Halo 3 comes out im really going to be kicking myself!
 
[quote name='Nate1986']and could someone explain what in the world HDMI is, i only have a Standard Definition TV[/quote]

high definition multimedia interface. dont worry about it if you only have a SD tv though.
 
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