Reviewed by Joe Witaker (www.thesohoshop.com)

HSS-1 HDMI Switcher

Built for Control4 home automation systems, but provides unique twist with audio and CEC control.

Rating: 9 out of 10

Entertainment Product Features

First off, let me say the new HSS-1 HDMI Switcher ($9000) is not integrated with HDBaseT, the one-wire Cat 5 technology found in some of today’s top switches. HydraConnect wanted to give homeowners the flexibility to use existing HDMI cables, traditional HDMI extender baluns or HDBaseT extenders. The company does make its own HDBaseT extenders starting at $450 for the transmitter/receiver pair.

Having said that, not only does the HSS-1 appear to handle HDMI switching better than some of the others, it offers a couple of innovative, if not downright unique, features.

First is the built-in analog audio matrix. HydraConnect addressed a major request of most Control4 users with this independent 8x8 audio matrix that provides 1:1 ratio volume control. This feature has become pretty common for full analog switches but not so much in HDMI switches. Generally, we’re forced to use a third-party switch or an amp with built-in switching at a high price.

Second, and most interesting, the HSS-1 takes advantage of the much-maligned (and rightfully so) HDMI Consumer Electronics Control (CEC) protocol, which enables A/V control via the HDMI cable. This feature allows homeowners to scrap ugly IR emitters, toss out cumbersome RS-232, and save a few ports on their network switch by controlling devices with CEC.

HydraConnect accomplished this by creating some "generic drivers" for TVs, DVDs, and AVRs. Inside the switch driver is the ability to create a number of virtual IR ports, so the Control4 system thinks it is using an IR emitter.

Rating: 10 out of 10

Ease of Installation

The first thing to note about the HSS-1 is there are no front panel or buttons. This switch is set up with an easy-to-use admin menu that is accessed from any Web browser. Set-up is fairly easy if you follow the directions.

But definitely do follow them. A few things to note:
• It’s very important to configure all devices as indicated in the HydraConnect CEC Compatibility Document.
• Ensure that all sources are displaying HDCP-protected content during the configuration process and that they are in PLAY mode.
• All cable and satellite boxes should be tuned to pay-per-view channels (you do not have to purchase a movie, just tune to the channel displaying the purchase screen).
• All A/V receivers should be configured so that the HDMI input which connects to the HSS-1 is shown on its front panel as the selected input.
• All displays that have multiple inputs should have the input selected which has the HDMI cable connection.

Rating: 9 out of 10

Entertainment Product Reliability

The HSS-1 is a new product that ships by the end of 2011. The company is also new, founded by two very experienced A/V engineers.

The HSS-1 comes with a 2 year warranty which is consistent with Control4 products. Our rating is based on a lack of a track record for product reliability.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Note: The above review has been extracted from a longer article written by Joe Witaker for CEPro.