Cinema Setup for older (Masterlink-era) B&O kit – my test results!

[CharlieWednesday]

Documenting this here just in case anyone finds it useful.

I decided to get a short-throw projector (a used one – nothing too expensive) and set up a home cinema in my office with my B&O equipment.  I have a Beovision 7 TV which has a projector output for cinema (VGA), and I also now have a Beosystem 3 Mk2 which has DVI outputs for both the TV and for the projector.  I would be using a Google TV device to watch the usual streaming apps.

After much experimentation over the last few days – this is what I have found:

Option 1: Beovision 7 with Google TV (Beosystem 3 unused) – FAIL

I connected a Google TV streamer to the BV7’s DVI input (using an HDMI-DVI adapter and audio splitter), and connected my projector to the BV7’s VGA cinema output, and a full set of speakers connected to the BV7.  This works fine if you are using the BV7 screen, but if I switch to cinema screen, I cannot view the Google TV, due to HDCP.  Google TV is HDCP compliant, so is the BV7 and so is my projector, but the HDCP ‘signal’ is clearly not making it through the complex connection of HDMI>DVI to the TV, and then VGA>VGA from the TV to the projector – the projector displays a message telling me it is protected content.

I also tried with a VGA to HDMI converter so I could connect the BV7’s VGA cinema output to one of the projector’s HDMI inputs instead, but got the same result.

I’ve been researching this to see if there is a workaround, and I cannot find one.  The BV7’s service menu does allow to turn HDCP off, but that only prevents the Google TV from working at all, even on the TV.  This would be the simplest solution if it were not for that damned HDCP issue!

Option 2: Beovision 7 with PC (Beosystem 3 unused) – PASS

I tried the same setup as above, but using my tablet PC instead of the Google TV for streaming services.  This does work, but it’s not great.  Using a tablet PC with the BV7 as a second screen is fiddly because it’s hard to control what is displayed on the seconds screen (the BV7) using the tablet PC’s main touchscreen, and you also have to change the sound settings on the tablet PC to use the HDMI sound output when in use for that purpose, but using its own speakers when not used for that purpose.  Pass, but not ideal.

Option3: Beosystem 3, Beovision 7 and Google TV – PASS

I connected my new Beosystem 3 Mk2 to the Beovision 7 via DVI.  In order to achieve this, I had to set the BV7 to Opt.4 (so it only responds to LINK commands), and set the BS3 to Opt.2.  The seconds DVI output on the BS3 was connected to the projector.

This worked – the Google TV is connected to HDMI1 on the BS3, and I don’t get any HDCP issues with it connected that way.  My BV7 is basically just a monitor in this setup, and I have therefore connected the BL7.1 speaker mounted on the TV stand to the BS3, rather than to the BV7, along with all my other speakers.  Using the clever (but complex) sound settings on the BS3, I am able to get sound out of the BL7.1 when watching on the BV7, on my full cinema speakers (including a BL7.4 centre speaker) when watching cinema, and only my front speakers (BL Penta) when listening to music via my Beosound 4 (which is set to Opt.0).

This does work, but it’s a bit of a shame that I have to use link commands to switch the BV7 on first.  The motorised stand is also not returning to its standby position when I switch everything off by holding down the power button, for some reason.

I’ve also found that my BV7 does not respond to commands from my MasterLink Gateway.  Even though was able to add both the BS3 and the BV7 to the MasterLink Gateway’s device list, any commands I try to send to the BV7 end up going to the BS3 instead.

 

So, in summary, unless anyone can tell me how to get around the HDCP problem I am having with Option 1, looks like I am going to stick with Option 3.  It’s a shame I can’t get Option 1 working as that would mean I wouldn’t need the Beosystem 3 at all, and that would tidy the cables up a bit!

[Guy]

A useful test and I feel your pain regarding HDCP!!!  I will admit that it was a big relief to get rid of my BV6’s, buy a BV10 and no longer have to worry about HDCP and DVI to HDMI conversion!

In an attempt to get your ‘Option 1’ to work, the only thing I can suggest is a different hdmi audio extractor in the hope that it also strips the HDCP.  The one that I had most overall success with was this type:  https://www.amazon.co.uk/Adapter-HDMI2HDMI-Converter-Extractor-Splitter-White/dp/B079251VBJ/

I then used a good quality HDMI to DVI cable into my BV6s.

PS:  Some of my audio extractor experiences are posted here:  https://archivedforum2.beoworld.org/forums/p/47367/339566.aspx

[CharlieWednesday]

Thanks Guy.  I’ve ordered that from Amazon, might as well give it a try.  My existing HDMI audio extractor is also a 3-way HDMI switch (I have two games consoles plugged into it as well), but I’d still like to test it and see if that can solve the problem.  I could always use both of them in series, if the box you have suggested works for me.

As for the BV10, am I right in saying that the BV10 doesn’t have a cinema output, for use with a projector?  My BV8 doesn’t, and that’s partly why I started using the BV7 again.

[Guy]

CharlieWednesday wrote:

am I right in saying that the BV10 doesn’t have a cinema output, for use with a projector?

That’s correct, but there could be a fancy way of using an hdmi matrix (expander?) to do the projector switching.  I have never tried, but it was discussed back in this thread:  https://archivedforum.beoworld.org/forums/t/35319.aspx

[CharlieWednesday]

That audio splitter arrived today but I’m afraid I got the same results – the projector shows ‘Content is Protected – select another source’ if I try to watch my Google TV via the cinema output on my BV7.  Damned HDCP.

It did give me a thought though – really, I only need the BV7 to deal with the audio, not the video.  If I buy a 4-in 2-out HDMI switch which is also an audio extractor (such as this one), I could plug my Google TV and my games consoles into that, then plug the audio output and one of the HDMI outputs into the BV7 (using an HDMI>DVI cable), and plug the other HDMI output into my projector.

That way, when I want to watch in cinema mode, I would just need to switch the HDMI output on that switch box to the one connected to my projector, hit Format 0 on the Beo4, and the switch box would deal with the video, while the BV7 continues to deal with the audio.

I am however assuming that the 3.5mm audio output on that switch box will only support 2.0 stereo, not 5.1 surround? I therefore think I might also need an HDMI audio splitter which uses digital coax such as this one so I could plug the audio into one of the coax audio inputs on my BV7.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

[CharlieWednesday]

Since posting the above I have also found this device which converts optical audio output to coax and supporters 5.1.  So, if I buy this device as mentioned in the above post, convert the optical audio output to coaxial, then connect that to one of the coaxial audio inputs on my BV7, I think that will achieve what I need for video, while also giving 5.1 surround.

I’ve tried to find a 4-in 2-out HDMI which that has coax audio out but cannot find one – they only ever seem to come with optical and 3.5mm analog audio outputs.

[CharlieWednesday]

I’ve been on holiday for a few days but now I’m back, I managed to get hold of a used 4×2 HDMI Matrix/Audio splitter that has a digital coax audio output – this seems quite rare as new ones usually only have optical outputs, which is why I bought this used one.

I exchanged this for my more basic 3×1 HDMI switch (this also had an audio extractor, but analog only, so no use for surround sound).

So, I connected my Google TV to the new HDMI matrix for testing.  I connected a digital coax cable from that to the A1 input on my BV7.  I then went into the Connections menu and altered the AV4/PC connection so that it used ‘A1’ instead of ‘None’ as the audio input.

I get no sound.  I have also tried A2, A3, A4 sockets, but still no sound.  I have tried switching the ARC switch on the HDMI matrix, but it makes no difference.  The HDMI matrix has a lot of EDID options using tiny switches, but I’ve tried them all – I keep getting picture, but no sound.

It’s possible that the digital coax audio output on the HDMI matrix is faulty (it is a used one after all), but before I return it, could I be doing something wrong with the Connections menu settings on my BV7?

[CharlieWednesday]

Following the above, I wanted to make sure the coax digital output on the HDMI matrix was working, so I connected my speakers up to my Beosystem 3, and connected the HDMI Matrix up to that instead, but using the Connections menu of the BS3, I set it to use SDDIF 1 as the sound input when using HDMI 1.

I did get sound, so at least I now the HDMI Matrix’s digital coax out is working, but I was only able to get it to work in normal stereo – even with the matrix set to output sound in 5.1/DTS format, the BS3 told me that it was only getting a sound signal in 2.0, and when I ran a 5.1 test video on Youtube, the same sound came out of all speakers.

Once I knew the HDMI matrix’s digital coax was working I plugged it back into the BV7 and tried again, but again, I got no sound at all when connected direct to the BV7.

Some compatibility issue between the HDMI matrix and the BV7 and BS3 then, I guess.

If anyone knows of an HDMI matrix that would work with a BV7-32 and give me digital 5.1 sound, please let me know!

[CharlieWednesday]

Further experimentation today – just to make sure there wasn’t a fault on my BV7-32 (maybe the digital audio inputs A1 thru A4 weren’t working, I wondered), I performed the same tests with the same setup connected to my BV7-40.  The results were exactly the same – I get picture. but no sound.

So, it does seem that the modern HDMI digital audio splitters (that provide sound via digital coax) are not compatible with the BV7, for reasons I don’t understand.

Did anyone ever use an HDMI matrix (with digital audio) with a BV7, using the coax digital audio in sockets on the BV7 for sound?  If so, can anyone recommend an HDMI matrix and/or digital audio splitter that would work?

[CharlieWednesday]

While searching for a solution to this I found this post on the old forum, and it seems this is a known issue with the BV7.  Those digital A1-A4 coax inputs seem to have known issues.

I will therefore go back to using the Beosystem 3.  This means I have to use link commands to switch on my BV7, but at least it works.

[Author]

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