out plus an auxiliary S/PDIF digital coaxstereo/bitstream output. The analogue outputsfeature true 24-bit DACs that operate at sam-ple rates up to 192 kHz for the maximum possible audio quality at the output.

Audio connectors feature gold-plated con-tacts.

The G98 employs a modular construction formaximum flexibility, and Flash ROM memoryfor the operating system, so software updatescan be downloaded from the Internet andinstalled via a PC connected to the serial porton the rear panel. The serial port also allowsfull remote control and configuration of theunit via a special Windows graphic application.However the G98 can be configured entirelyfrom the front panel, thanks to its unique con-text-sensitive user interface and soft keys.

G98 DVD Audio Transport

Information contained in this data sheet iscorrect as far as possible, but MeridianAudio accepts no liability for errors oromissions. Trademarks are the property oftheir respective owners. Meridian Audioreserves the right to amend product speci-fications at any time.

Further technical details, images, productreviews and company history are availablefrom Meridian Audio or from our website, www.meridian-audio.com

©Text & images 2003 Meridian Audio Ltd.

Outline Specifications

Formats: DVD-Audio, DVD-Video, DVD-R; Video CD (VCD),CVCD, MP3; CD Audio (CD-DA) including CD-R,CD/DVD (DualDisc) and the CD layer of hybrids suchas SACD

Audio outputs: G98DH: 3 x digital coax main outputs plus MHRSmart Link digital output. 15 Pin ‘D’ type connector,plus 1 x aux digital coax.

G68AH: 6-channel analogue output on phonos,2V/47Ω plus 1 x optical Toslink aux out.

Video features: Automatic PAL or NTSC encoding on Composite andS-Video. NTSC black-level setup adjustable as 0 or7.5IRE. 16:9 and 4:3 displays supported. Screen savertimeout.

Video Processor: Three composite video inputs, three S-Video inputs;composite, S-Video, component and HDMI outputs(HDMI also carries audio and is DVI compatible viaan adaptor cable), all simultaneously active*; select-ed video input is converted to all formats.

Controls: Front-panel soft key functions include Play, Stop,Pause, Previous, Next, plus Home and More keys.Off, Display and Open/Close buttons. Off buttongently illuminated when off; keys back-illuminatedwhen on. Full RS232 control and status enables cus-tom integration or automation. Meridian Comms (ax DIN plus BNC).

Front Display: Multi-character dot-matrix graphic VacuumFluorescent Display (VFD).

On-screen Display: Switchable custom OSD allows instant review of discstatus. Screen saver with user timeout options. Logo

screen with pluge bars enables brightness setting ofdisplay device.

Dimensions: Width – 440mm (17.32in); Depth – 350mm (13.78in)plus connectors; Height – 90mm (3.54in)

Rack Mounting: Kit available from Meridian authorized dealers

Weight: TBD

Power: Universal supply 100–240V, 50–60Hz, 25W.

*analogue component limited to 480/576p.

Meridian Audio LimitedStonehill, Stukeley MeadowsHuntingdon, Cambridge PE29 6EXUKTel +44 (0) 1480 445678Fax +44 (0) 1480 445686

Meridian America Inc3800 Camp Creek ParkwayBuilding 2400 Suite 122Atlanta GA 30331 USATel +1 (404) 344 7111Fax +1 (404) 346 7111

Email info@meridian-audio.comWeb: www.meridian-audio.com

G98DS v2.4 • 04.08.03 RE

G98 DVD Audio Transport

Meridian’s G Series line of high performancedigital and analogue consumer audio compo-nents feature a stylish cabinet design in tradi-tional black or a sleek silver finish.

Designed to be either free-standing or rack-mounted, G Series components build on theirpredecessors, the multi-award-winning 500and our flagship 800 Series, and includeentirely new circuitry developed specifically forthe G Series.

Multi-layer boards reduce system noise andimprove performance. In products whichinclude video capabilities, broadcast-quality,wide-bandwidth video components areemployed for maximum image integrity.

G Series units are easy to use. Where appro-priate, a knob is included to control volume.The positive-action front-panel keys are soft-ware-defined: their legends are presented inthe vacuum fluorescent display and changeintelligently according to context.

Full installation configuration of many G Seriescomponents is achieved by running a specialsetup program on a Windows computer, con-nected to the G Series unit via a serial link.

G Series products also include serial ports forremote operation and configuration, alongwith infra-red sensor input and trigger capabil-ities, plus Meridian communications ports. Acomprehensive back-lit learning/programmableremote is included.

Video scaling/resolutionenhancement for single,high quality path to display

DVD-ROM drive reads datawith maximum accuracy

Plays all CD and DVD opticaldiscs including hybrids

Upsamples 2-channel digitalsignals to 88.2/96kHz

Powerful multi-formatvideo processor withHDMI/DVI

Unique MHR SmartLink con-nects high-resolution digitalsignals to Meridian systems

Decodes film soundtracks,enabling external upsam-pling to 24/96

Virtually every piece of audio equipment hasits own, characteristic sound. But at Meridian,our intention is to represent the originalacoustic or studio event as accurately as possi-ble. The characteristic sound of Meridian,therefore, is clear: it’s the real thing. Weachieve this sound in many ways, includingcareful choice of the right components, theright signal processing, the shortest possibleanalogue chain, precision digital design andthe lowest jitter.

The G98 is a DVD-Audio/Video transport offer-ing superb audio and video quality. It will playall CD and DVD fomat discs, includingCompact Disc, CD-R and CD-R/W, VCD, MP3,DVD-Video, DVD-Audio and DVD-R. It alsohandles hybrid discs such as the DualDiscCD/DVD combination, and the CD layer of anSACD.

At the heart of the G98 is a computer-styleDVD drive which has much more powerfulcapabilities than the drives usually found in aDVD player. While data is usually retrieved inreal-time, for example, the drive can operateat multiple speeds to recover accurate datafrom a problem disc. Because of this, the driverecovers the data from a disc perfectly. In acomputer, loading a program rarely fails dueto the ROM drive. Similarly, extracting the datafrom a CD or DVD can be achieved withouterror.

Normally, however, a computer pays no atten-tion to how smoothly the data flows from the

G98AH rear panel shown above

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G98 DVD Audio TransportG98 DVD Audio Transport

disc, and that’s where Meridian’s special tech-nology comes in. After leaving the drive, theinformation is handled by highly sophisticatedaudio circuitry to obtain ultra-low jitter and thehighest integrity data.

Unlike other players that use a mechanicalapproach to try to lower jitter by minimisingdrive vibration, the G98’s memory architectureabolishes this problem forever: it will even readthe data from the disc more than once if nec-essary, to ensure data integrity. The result ofthis sophisticated effort can be demonstratedby the fact that the G98 delivers ultra-low jit-ter, with sound and picture quality second onlyto the Reference 800 optical disc player.

Once the digital data stream has been recov-ered from the disc, powerful on-board digitalsignal processing (DSP) up-samples 2-channelsignals.

In the G98AH, signals are upsampled to a rateof 176.4/192kHz for digital to analogue con-version to drive the analogue outputs – DACscan offer better performance at higher sam-pling rates – while in the G98DH, 88.2/96kHzis used for the digital outputs, all at 24-bitword lengths. Here again, sending 24 bits athigh sample rates via an S/PDIF link reduces jit-ter as compared with the original signal.

Upsampling enables filtering to take place farbeyond the range of human hearing, as wellas offering other, audible benefits, right acrossthe audio band, including improved transientresponse and less ringing.

This results in a more open, transparent sound,tighter bass and a generally more “musical”overall sound.

The G98 employs a triple buffering system tominimise jitter, and therefore maximise HFtransparency and stereo image precision andstability.

The high-resolution digital outputs are encrypt-ed and, as a result, a high-resolution digitalsignal can be fed entirely digitally to aMeridian processor. Meridian was the firstcompany to do this: most other manufacturersare obliged to rely on analogue outputs.

As the G98 includes the ability to decode theMLP data stream from a DVD-Audio disc, thatprocessing power can also be applied todecoding Dolby Digital and DTS soundtracks(and DTS CDs). This allows a Meridian sur-round processor connected to the G98 toupsample the digital signals for a smoother,more detailed sound.

The digital electronics as a whole are driven bya new design of high-stability clocking systemwhich further reduces jitter and ensures thatthe highest level of detail is recovered from adisc. All digital data is accurately re-clocked.Multiple power supplies ensure that digital andanalogue circuitry are kept apart and can pro-vide the required power when called upon todo so.

At Meridian, we write our own DVD naviga-tion and driver software. As a result, our DVDplayers are some of the most responsive you’llfind, minimising the pause between layers andaccessing menus extremely quickly. This alsomeans that we can provide software updatesin the event that a disc is released that bendsthe mastering rules a little, rendering itunplayable on many other players.

On the video side, advanced video circuitdesigns, matched phase video filters and abroadcast-quality video encoder are employedto deliver low-noise images of outstandingcolour depth and resolution. Separate ultra-low jitter master video and audio oscillatorsallow picture and sound to be independentlyoptimized, ensuring that the G98 deliversbreathtakingly clear pictures.

The G98 includes a unique high-resolutionvideo processor/scaler. This processor canreceive composite, S-video and component(interlaced or progressive) and convertbetween the formats – and to the high-densitymultimedia interface standard, HDMI – to pro-vide a single video output for all the videosources in the system.

Also on-board is Meridian’s superior video pro-cessing and a unique implementation of theDCDi technology from Faroudja. Per-pixelmotion-adaptive deinterlacing delivers thehighest resolution picture while suppressingmotion artefacts. The oversampled video con-version and studio-grade output circuits resultin video of the highest quality. The HDMI portalso carries stereo high-resolution digital audioand is compatible with DVI systems via anavailable adaptor cable.

The HDMI port supports a wide range of high-quality digital video options including 480p,576p, 720p, and 1080i. A unique feature ofHDMI is that it is able to ‘handshake’ betweenthe source and the display to find the highestquality common format. Analogue componentout is available at 480p and 576p.

All G98s include an auxiliary S/PDIF digital out-put which delivers a stereo downmix or bit-stream signal.

The G98DH offers four S/PDIF coax outputsdesignated L/R, C/LFE, and two pairs of digitalsurround signals designed, typically, to connectto Meridian processors, or feed a stereo signalto a pair of DSP loudspeakers. These connec-tors can be configured for MHR SmartLink,carrying high sample-rate encrypted data fromDVD discs to the rest of a Meridian system forhighest fidelity decoding and reproduction.This system also carries information on the sig-nal source so that a Meridian processor down-stream of the G98 can switch processingmodes automatically. An HD15 connector isalso provided for MHR SmartLink.

As an alternative, the G98AH provides thesame video capability but instead of the digitaloutput set, includes six channels of analogue

The G98DH DVD Transport is an ideal source for, and with the G68 Digital Surround Controller formsthe basis of, a stunning Meridian Digital Theatre system. The units are shown here connected to a pairof Meridian’s top-of-the-line DSP8000 speakers for left and right, coupled with a pair on DSP420 in-walls for the surrounds and a DSP5500HC for the centre front channel. Any kind of video displaydevice can be supported, whether composite, S-Video, Component (progressive or interlaced) or eventhe latest interfaces such as HDMI or DVI. Different video inputs are converted to all formats, so thereis only need for one display connection.

In this analogue alternative to the system shown opposite, the G98AH and an analogue-out G68 areaugmented with the G55 5 x 100W multichannel power amplifier. The amplifier will drive any conven-tional passive analogue loudspeakers. Once again, the video output from the G98 can be selectedfrom any of the available formats, be it composite, S-Video, component (interlaced or progressive) oran emerging interface standard such as HDMI/DVI. The G98’s powerful video processor drives all theseoutputs irrespective of the input format. There are three composite and three S-Video inputs to theunit and broadcast-quality components deliver the highest possible picture quality in any format.

G98DH rear panel