http://www.iboum.com/artkill/chipsets.php
HD Media Player Chipsets
This page gives some technical background to the history of Media Player chipsets and lists the key players associated with each.
The first chipset to be capable of decoding 1080p full-HD video was the 863x from a company called Sigma Designs. The Sigma 863x spawned a whole series of Media Players from early 2008 onwards. It was these players that kick-started the Media Player revolution. Manufacturers released machines with modified versions of the original Sigma firmware, so the Sigma 863x machines are not identical. There are differences in all areas, from user interface to marginal decoding performance. The Sigma 863x is clocked at 300Mhz.
Sigma 8634, 8635
CPU Mhz: 300mhz
Sigma 863x
Media Players
The Sigma 863x has now been superseded by newer chipsets, aimed squarely at the growing Media Player market. Limitations of the Sigma 8635 such as slow user interface, limited DTS support, and just general lack of power have been addressed in a new generation of chips released in 2009.
The Realtek 1283 / 1073 chipset range appeared in mid 2009 and is clocked between the old Sigma 863x and the newer Sigma 864x/865x. The Realteks use one CPU, clocked at 400mhz. A flood of cheap Realtek based Media Players arrived through 2009. The 1073 is the same as the 1283 with some DTV functions stripped out, they are otherwise exactly the same chip providing the same performance in a Media Player. The only hardware performance difference amongst the Realteks is that the Xtreamer is clocked at 450mhz rather than 400mhz.
There are Realtek 1073DA and 1073DD variations, with the DA version being an early release that is unable to downmix DTS. The DA variation is becoming increasingly common among the cheaper players. We now differentiate between the two versions in our detailed specifications and comparison table.
The Realtek chipsets provide fast and reliable performance at a low cost. These players can cope with all Media files you are likely to come across with only abnormally high reframe files or some HD audio formats providing any problems. It was revealed in February 2010 that neither the 1073DA, 1073DD, or the 1283 can passthrough (bitstream) Dolby TrueHD or DTS-HD MA. This is a hardware issue and is unlikely to ever be resolved. For most people this is insignificant but if full bitstreaming of these formats is important then we advise avoiding the Realtek chip.
Realtek 1073DA, 1073DD, 1283
CPU Mhz: 400/450mhz
Realtek 1073/1283
Media Players
Sigma released both Sigma 864x series and Sigma 865x series chipsets in late 2009, with the first player featuring the 8643 (Popcorn Hour C-200) shipping in September 2009, and the first 8655 players (WDTV Live / Eminent EM7075) arriving in October 2009. The Sigma 864x and the 865x are related and similar chips with the 864x being the more powerful.
The Sigma 864x contains a 667mhz CPU, a 333mhz IPU (image processing unit), 2* HD video decoding, and three 333mhz Audio DSPs. The 8643 and 8642 are identical except that the 8642 is a Macrovision version allowing for the ability to play copy protected DVD / Blu-Ray.
Sigma 8642, 8643
CPU Mhz: 667mhz
Sigma 864x
Media Players
The Sigma 865x uses a 500mhz CPU, a 333mhz IPU, 1.25x HD video decoding, and one 333mhz Audio DSP. All the 865x variations are similar, with the 8655 being marginally the most powerful. The 8655 uses 64bit RAM whereas the 8653 uses 32bit and the 8655 has six video DACs whereas the 8653 has four. The only benchmarks we could find give identical scores so real world performance is likely near identical. The 8654 and 8652 are copy protection (Macrovision) enabled versions of each allowing for the ability to play copy protected DVD / Blu-Ray.
Sigma 8652, 8653, 8654 8655
CPU Mhz: 500mhz
Sigma 865x
Media Players
One notable deficiency in all the Sigma chips is the inability to play RMVB files.
In 2010 Intel is expected to release it's own new media processor, the 800 MHz Intel CE3100. This chip promises to take everything one stage further towards a single integrated home entertainment hub with computer functions. In some ways it is really just a Pentium M rebadged. It will be interesting to see how this chip compares (including for price) when devices are released utilising it such as the Conceptronic Yuixx.
Other chipsets that we've come across but have little information on are the Amlogic Apollo and MStar D7M26L. When we get more info it will be added to this page.
2009 saw many Media Player chipset developments. The Sigma 863x is now a relic of the past, with more powerful and cheaper chips being available from both Realtek and Sigma. These new chips are both capable of playing flawlessly almost any file you will find in the wild. In this sense, the choice of which chipset you choose has become slightly irrelevant. Of more concern should be the usability of the device and it's price. In the near future we would expect the range of HD formats being used to become much more narrow, largely negating the format issue.
User interface, on-demand content, and additional web-based services will become much more important to the bulk of users.
HD Media Player Chipsets
This page gives some technical background to the history of Media Player chipsets and lists the key players associated with each.
The first chipset to be capable of decoding 1080p full-HD video was the 863x from a company called Sigma Designs. The Sigma 863x spawned a whole series of Media Players from early 2008 onwards. It was these players that kick-started the Media Player revolution. Manufacturers released machines with modified versions of the original Sigma firmware, so the Sigma 863x machines are not identical. There are differences in all areas, from user interface to marginal decoding performance. The Sigma 863x is clocked at 300Mhz.
Sigma 8634, 8635
CPU Mhz: 300mhz
Sigma 863x
Media Players
The Sigma 863x has now been superseded by newer chipsets, aimed squarely at the growing Media Player market. Limitations of the Sigma 8635 such as slow user interface, limited DTS support, and just general lack of power have been addressed in a new generation of chips released in 2009.
The Realtek 1283 / 1073 chipset range appeared in mid 2009 and is clocked between the old Sigma 863x and the newer Sigma 864x/865x. The Realteks use one CPU, clocked at 400mhz. A flood of cheap Realtek based Media Players arrived through 2009. The 1073 is the same as the 1283 with some DTV functions stripped out, they are otherwise exactly the same chip providing the same performance in a Media Player. The only hardware performance difference amongst the Realteks is that the Xtreamer is clocked at 450mhz rather than 400mhz.
There are Realtek 1073DA and 1073DD variations, with the DA version being an early release that is unable to downmix DTS. The DA variation is becoming increasingly common among the cheaper players. We now differentiate between the two versions in our detailed specifications and comparison table.
The Realtek chipsets provide fast and reliable performance at a low cost. These players can cope with all Media files you are likely to come across with only abnormally high reframe files or some HD audio formats providing any problems. It was revealed in February 2010 that neither the 1073DA, 1073DD, or the 1283 can passthrough (bitstream) Dolby TrueHD or DTS-HD MA. This is a hardware issue and is unlikely to ever be resolved. For most people this is insignificant but if full bitstreaming of these formats is important then we advise avoiding the Realtek chip.
Realtek 1073DA, 1073DD, 1283
CPU Mhz: 400/450mhz
Realtek 1073/1283
Media Players
Sigma released both Sigma 864x series and Sigma 865x series chipsets in late 2009, with the first player featuring the 8643 (Popcorn Hour C-200) shipping in September 2009, and the first 8655 players (WDTV Live / Eminent EM7075) arriving in October 2009. The Sigma 864x and the 865x are related and similar chips with the 864x being the more powerful.
The Sigma 864x contains a 667mhz CPU, a 333mhz IPU (image processing unit), 2* HD video decoding, and three 333mhz Audio DSPs. The 8643 and 8642 are identical except that the 8642 is a Macrovision version allowing for the ability to play copy protected DVD / Blu-Ray.
Sigma 8642, 8643
CPU Mhz: 667mhz
Sigma 864x
Media Players
The Sigma 865x uses a 500mhz CPU, a 333mhz IPU, 1.25x HD video decoding, and one 333mhz Audio DSP. All the 865x variations are similar, with the 8655 being marginally the most powerful. The 8655 uses 64bit RAM whereas the 8653 uses 32bit and the 8655 has six video DACs whereas the 8653 has four. The only benchmarks we could find give identical scores so real world performance is likely near identical. The 8654 and 8652 are copy protection (Macrovision) enabled versions of each allowing for the ability to play copy protected DVD / Blu-Ray.
Sigma 8652, 8653, 8654 8655
CPU Mhz: 500mhz
Sigma 865x
Media Players
One notable deficiency in all the Sigma chips is the inability to play RMVB files.
In 2010 Intel is expected to release it's own new media processor, the 800 MHz Intel CE3100. This chip promises to take everything one stage further towards a single integrated home entertainment hub with computer functions. In some ways it is really just a Pentium M rebadged. It will be interesting to see how this chip compares (including for price) when devices are released utilising it such as the Conceptronic Yuixx.
Other chipsets that we've come across but have little information on are the Amlogic Apollo and MStar D7M26L. When we get more info it will be added to this page.
2009 saw many Media Player chipset developments. The Sigma 863x is now a relic of the past, with more powerful and cheaper chips being available from both Realtek and Sigma. These new chips are both capable of playing flawlessly almost any file you will find in the wild. In this sense, the choice of which chipset you choose has become slightly irrelevant. Of more concern should be the usability of the device and it's price. In the near future we would expect the range of HD formats being used to become much more narrow, largely negating the format issue.
User interface, on-demand content, and additional web-based services will become much more important to the bulk of users.
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