home theater BUT true HiFi

Hercules Game Theater XPReview date: 15 May 2001.Last updated 27/11/05. The trouble with buying an expensive fancy sound card is that it doesn't let you show off enough.OK, it may have positional this and multi-channel that and digital the other, but it's a card inside your computer. A row of connectors at the back of the box, even if they're gold plated and two of them are optical, is unlikely to get you any oohs and ahs.Plus, sound gear traditionally has knobs and buttons. A physical volume knob is a very handy thing. And it doesn't hurt to have input connectors on the front panel of your computer, if you're interested in using the PC for digital recording.A connector panel on the front may spoil the featureless-Bauhaus-aluminium-panel look desired by the Lian Li case enthusiast. But if you prefer the bells, whistles and gongs look (and it's not hard to see that a lot of people do), then easily accessible controls and connectors are for you. Even if you don't need them.Creative have addressed the combined pose value and convenience shortfall with their top-of-range Sound Blaster Live Platinum, which comes with a control and connector panel that sits in one of your case's 5.25 inch bay cut-outs.Here in Australia, though, you're looking at more than $AU450 for the Platinum. You can get a GeForce2 Pro video card for less than that.Hercules Game Theater XPHercules have gone one better, and produced a more impressive looking but cheaper product, with the Game Theater XP.They couldn't fit all the ins, outs, knobs and lights into a lousy expansion bay. They needed a whole separate box.Game Theater XP rackHercules call this extra box an "external rack", which it isn't. It's just a 45 by 215 by 155mm (1.75 by 8.5 by 6 inch) black box with a purple front panel. The word "rack" implies it's got some sort of mounting dingus for other hardware, or that it complies with the professional 19 inch rack standard, or something. It doesn't. But "rack" sounds better than "box", so what the heck, I'll humour Hercules and call it that.The rack makes installation of the Game Theater XP slightly more complex than plugging a standard sound card into your computer. You install the sound card in a free PCI slot as normal, but then you connect...Connecting cable...this imposingly thick cable from the single three-rank high density D connector on the back of the card to the matching socket on the rack.The cable makes the average automotive jumper lead look very flexible indeed, but it's a generous two metres long. Which means you can install the XP in just about any computer and put the rack somewhere you can easily reach it.FeaturesThe Game Theater XP is built around the Cirrus Logic CS4630 chip, which has turned up in a few other sound cards, too. It's definitely up there with the best Creative can manage.Like every other serious gamer's sound card at the moment, the Game Theater XP supports a laundry list of sound Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). Microsoft's DirectSound 3D, Creative's EAX 2.0, Aureal's A3D 1.0, Interactive 3D Audio Rendering Guidelines Level 2.0 (I3DL2), and the various and amusingly named "technologies" (MacroFX, ZoomFX, EnvironmentFX and MultiDrive) which are really all just parts of the Sensaura positional audio system.What all of this stuff actually does is positional and environmental audio. See the sidebar to the right for more on what the heck this means.It's all highly hardware accelerated in the Game Theater XP's case, which means that intensive positional audio activity - lots of sound sources, lots of movement - will neither take a huge chunk out of your game frame rate, nor leave you with weird sound artefacts as the playback system throws stuff away in the name of speed.Ins and outsGame Theater XP PCI cardThe Game Theater XP PCI card has an eighth-inch stereo connector on the back for the Aux-1 input, and two standard four-pin connectors for internal analogue sound sources - Aux-2 and CD-in. There's no internal S/PDIF input, and all of the other connectors are on the rack.The front of the rack has two RCA connectors for left and right analogue input, and quarter-inch connectors for headphones and microphone. You get a quarter-to-eighth-inch adapter so you can connect small-plug 'phones.The mic input's shared with the line in; you can only use one at a time. There's a volume control for the 'phones and a level control for the mic. The front panel also has a standard gameport socket for your joystick or game pad.Rack rear panelOn the back of the rack, you get S/PDIF digital input and output connectors, both RCA and optical, and two five-pin DIN MIDI connectors, one for in, one for out. As usual for PC sound hardware, there's no MIDI through connector.The big news for many users, though, are the analogue outputs on the back of the rack. Full six channel output, kids - RCA connectors for front right and left, rear right and left, centre channel, and subwoofer.If you want your front and rear speakers to be computer speakers that use a stereo eighth-inch plug rather than RCA plugs, you don't need to get an adapter; the front and rear outputs also have an eighth-inch socket.The rack also serves as a four port self powered USB hub. There are two USB ports on the front and two on the back. The rack's cable has a separate connector at the PC end, for you to plug into one of the USB ports on the back of your computer. The hub draws power from the PCI slot you plug the Game Theater card into, and so it doesn't need a separate plugpack.All of the connectors are gold plated, which is not a good thing unless all of your plugs are gold plated too. Otherwise, galvanic corrosion effects will just corrode your chrome plated connectors faster than they'd otherwise rust, and you'll get a lousier connection in due course.This is unlikely to cause any serious problems, though. Just twisting the plug will break up the corrosion and give you a decent contact again, if it does have a significant effect. But even with gold plugs, gold connectors don't actually make a big difference to anything unless you live by the seaside.SoftwareSetup interfaceThe basic drivers for the Game Theater XP (you can get the latest drivers by picking the Game Theater XP from the drop-down box on the Hercules download page here) work with all current flavours of Windows - 95, 98, 2000 and ME.You also get a few bundled apps which you may find useful, and some others you're almost certain to find useless.Yamaha's S-YXG50 Soft Synthesizer is great if you want to dabble with MIDI - of which more in a moment - but not very interesting otherwise. There's also MusicMatch Jukebox, but the free downloadable Basic version of the software is good enough for most people.There's Kool Karaoke Lite, which is another program you can download for free if you're one of the sick, sick, evil, dedicated-to-the-destruction-of-all-that's-good-about-living people who like that sort of thing.There's Magix PlayR Jukebox, another free-download program that's one of the many less than totally exciting competitors to Winamp.More usefully, there's a proper full six-speaker-enabled version of Cyberlink's PowerDVD. You need a DVD-ROM drive to be able to use it, but if you've got the drive, this software lets you do proper full Dolby surround DVD playback using all six analogue outputs. Just hook 'em up to your surround amp and speakers, or to an appropriate collection of computer speakers; two, four or six speaker (well, 5.1 really; the ".1" is the bass-only subwoofer channel) output is yours, and no decoder hardware is needed.Many other multi-output sound cards let you do some sort of surround-sound DVD playback, but they usually only have four direct outputs, with no centre or subwoofer channel. And they may or may not work with the quality DVD playback program of your choice. PowerDVD is a quality DVD player package - even if its authors do devoutly believe in rolling their own non-standard interface - and so the Game Theater XP plus a DVD-ROM drive gives you a proper DVD-player-in-a-PC package, ready to rock and roll.If you've only got four speakers, the XP does proper downmixing of 5.1 channel audio to four channels. You just tell it to use four speaker mode and you're away.The full six speaker setup will only work when you're playing DVDs, though. In games, the Sensaura technology that the XP uses means that it only sends sound to the four standard outputs - the front and rear stereo pairs.There's nothing stopping you from connecting a subwoofer/satellite system to one or both of these outputs, of course. But if you've connected a six speaker set, two of 'em won't do anything unless you can connect them to another channel.Buy yourself a 5.1-capable Sound Blaster Live and you get six speaker sound for everything - but the card itself doesn't have six outputs. You need an outboard 5.1 channel decoder/amp with digital input.You pays your money, you takes your choice.If you've got a fancier home theatre setup with a multi-channel decoder/amp that's got digital input, PowerDVD with the XP is also alleged to let you send S/PDIF straight to the decoder via the XP's digital outputs, in all versions of Windows, in exactly the way that some cards with digital out don't. I don't have a digital-in decoder to test it with, though, so I'm just going on others' say-so here.The XP also supports Dolby Headphone, for positional-audio surround from headphones, so you don't strictly speaking need a speaker set at all.What there isn't in the Game Theater XP software bundle, is a decent audio record-and-edit package. You do get Sonic Foundry's ACID XPress, but that's another free-to-download package, and it's not a general purpose audio manipulator - it's for making loop-based music.If you're buying a Game Theater XP as a cheap-ish way into semi-pro PC sound editing, you'll therefore have to drop some dollars on Cool Edit, Sound Forge or whatever other audio editor takes your fancy.There also aren't any bundled games - well, not full versions, anyway. Which is a good thing, if you ask me. The games that come bundled with many pieces of brand name hot gamer hardware are, often, quite good. But they're seldom very new, which means the nutty gamers that are paying for the hardware will either already have them, or not want them. Better to keep the frills to a minimum and the price down.You do get the Gameloft multiplayer game-finding package, which seems to me to just be the GameSpy you use when you're tired of the popular option.The Gameloft package gives you some game demos, as well - Tachyon: The Fringe, Rayman 2, 10SIX, Thief 2 and, wait for it, Daikatana.And Nvidia's Quake 3 Arena level.These are all free downloads too, of course. And not particularly new, in the great tradition of bundled game-stuff.The bundled XP utility that gamers are likely to use is Sensaura's "Virtual Ear", which lets you tweak the XP's positional audio to suit the oddities of your listening environment and/or cranium. Not every Sensaura-supporting sound card comes with Virtual Ear, and it's not a free download.MIDINo serious electronic music person's going to use a consumer sound card as a MIDI sound module, and MIDI background music for games is also now pretty much a thing of the past. But decent MIDI music capabilities are still a nice thing to have if you want to do composition on the cheap, and the Game Theater XP has a perfectly all right eight megabyte set of General MIDI samples by default.Yamaha's Soft Synthesiser can do a heck of a lot more, by making the PC do the mixing work and letting you download very large sample sets. It's still no substitute for standalone MIDI gear, but it's darn good for the money.CPU useThe Game Theater XP is probably the least CPU-intensive of all the current high-end consumer sound cards. In most intensive multi-audio-stream tests, it seems to beat the Sound Blaster Live models by a factor of two or so.This is almost completely irrelevant.If you've got an old, slow processor, then the amount of CPU time a sound card takes up can matter, if you're playing games that use a lot of positional audio.But if you're shopping for a Game Theater XP, you probably don't have an old, slow processor. You can get a 900MHz Duron, with a CPU cooler, delivered, for less than $AU240 these days. An 800MHz Celeron's only about $AU15 more. Both of these processors need less than 10% of their power to play 32 simultaneous DirectSound streams through a Sound Blaster Live. The XP should have less than half of the CPU penalty, but you're not at all likely to notice the difference.A sound card with little or no ability to do positional audio in hardware - your standard yum cha $AU30 board - will either drop the job on the floor and just revert to plain stereo panning for some or all of the positional channels, or the drivers will hand the task off to the CPU. In the first case the game stays fast but sounds unexciting; in the second case the game takes a substantial frame rate hit, even if you've got a fast CPU.But all of the high-end cards have a lot of 3D audio muscle on board, and so CPU utilisation on vaguely recent processors is low for all of them.The XP also does hardware MPEG 1 Layer 3 (MP3) decoding. Well, it can do hardware MP3 decoding, provided your MP3 playback software asks it to. Your MP3 playback software won't ask, if it doesn't use the DirectShow MP3 decode routines, which most don't.On a modern faster-than-1GHz PC, you can realistically expect playback of a single stereo MP3 stream without hardware accelerated decoding to take up only about 2% of your CPU power. This is therefore not a big deal. Even if you've got, say, a mere 400MHz Celeron, you still ought not to need more than 10% of your CPU grunt for MP3 playback, unless you're using some particularly inefficient codec. Which means it's not going to have much impact on anything.More and more games have MP3 background music and effects, because the super-compressed format lets the programmers fit a ton of sound on a CD. But even when the sound's being played in real time, it doesn't hurt performance much on any somewhat recent PC.OverallWhat's bad about the Game Theater XP? Well, not much, except that most people don't need it.If you ask me, the whole idea of using a PC as the core of your home theatre system is a bad one. It's a good solution if you're short of money and/or space and want a top-notch solution, technically speaking, without adding lots more boxes to your life. The six analogue outputs on the XP rack let share-accommodation dwellers easily set up a home theatre in their room so they can watch what they want in multi-channel glory while the hoi polloi consort in the common room. If that's what you want, this is the product for you.But as a replacement for a "blackgoods" DVD player, PC DVD solutions are all clunky. Even the ones with a remote control still make you put the humming PC somewhere fairly near the TV if you're not satisfied with the size of your monitor (of course, you need a video card with TV output to do this at all), and the XP doesn't have a remote anyway.If you've already got a DVD-ROM drive then this is a nice extra, I suppose, but if you're considering taking the PC-DVD route, I suggest you price some cheapie standalone DVD players instead.If you're a game hound, the lack of full 5.1 channel output for games is a bit of a pain, but it's not as if games actually have a 5.1 channel soundtrack. When an SBLive feeds game sound to a six speaker system, it's just filtering and mixing for the two extra speakers, and the result sounds no better than would a couple of three-piece stereo-input sub-sat systems of similar quality tot he 5.1 speakers plugged into an XP.If you're the ninja-gamer type and want positional audio for tactical reasons as much as entertainment ones (knowing which way to turn, and how far, to shoot the guy you hear walking up behind you, is a handy thing), then you're going to be playing with quality headphones anyway and this issue goes away. Yes, positional audio works with headphones. It works better than it does with multiple speakers. Trust me, I'm a trained professional.Overall, given the XP setup's spectacular show-off appearance, plethora of ins and outs and reasonable price compared with top-end Sound Blasters, it's a definite winner.If you just want decent vanilla four channel positional audio for games then there are various cheap options - the entry-level SBLives, and Yamaha-chipset boards like the AOpen one I review here, just to name a few. The AOpen card's less than $AU70 now.But if you've got a use for the extra features of the Game Theater XP, or just dig its over-the-top presentation, it's great. Recommended.

Review: Hercules Game Theater XP

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The Final WordThe J9906s vary in cost, depending on which country you live in. I found the J9906s in Russia for around $160 USD, $200 USD in Australia, and a low $100 USD in Korea (based on current exchange rates). They produce a fairly balanced soundscape, but the subwoofer could use more presence. The subwoofer aside, the J9906 are a good value for 5.1 speakers and are definitely worth checking out.The DE007 Digital/ProLogic decoder’s asking price is nearly as much as the J9906 speakers but as of now, the Mac has no hardware decoding capabilities. It costs almost as much as a budget home receiver, but they rarely pack pre-amp outputs needed for powered speakers. If you’ve been dying to use a set of powered analog 5.1 speakers with your Mac, DVD player or game console, then the DE007 will do just that for 1/3 of the price of a receiver with preamp outputs. The DE007 opens up a world of 5.1 computer speakers previously only available by impractical means to the Mac user and console gamers alike.The Good• True center channel• Pleasant soundscape• Single wire connectivity to the DE007• DE007 decoder can be used for many purposes.

IMG Review: Jazz Speakers J9906

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Beware the ideas of Sony.While it might seem unfair to single out one company in this discussion, it's hard to ignore the number of times Sony has gone ahead and shot itself in the foot with new format introductions. Certainly Sony has been a key player in the development of many of the most successful formats including CD, 3.5-inch floppy discs, and to a certain extent DVD, but when you go to check out the list of failed Sony's formats, it starts to read more like a novel. In addition to the previously discussed Betamax and SACD and MiniDisc, Sony has been behind several formats that never really caught on like UMD, Video8/Hi-8/Digital8, and Memory Stick, plus a bunch of outright failures like MicroMV, HiFD, and Elcaset.Sony's eagerness to develop formats in-house is probably rooted in wanting to have a format as successful as the audio Compact Cassette, invented by Philips in the early '60s. Looking at all the formats that Sony has thrown into the marketplace, it's clear the company sees format licensing as an important potential profit center. It's interesting to note, however, that the most successful formats have been those that Sony developed in joint collaboration with other manufacturers. Blu-ray falls into this camp too, having been developed in collaboration with Samsung and Philips, so there are reasons to be optimistic. ConclusionHDTV is in about the same position today as color television was in the late 1950s — a special new technology used for only a few selected broadcasts, and available to a relatively small percentage of households. But just as color quickly became the de facto standard for all television, within a few years HD will be the norm for all video, with standard definition seeming like something from a prior era. With that in mind I have no doubt that HD video discs will succeed — it's just a question of which one. Right now, Blu-ray has the edge in terms of disc capacity and movie-studio backing, while HD DVD promises lower costs for both disc manufacturing (nice for studios) and HD DVD players (nice for you and me). But it looks like HD DVD has had a more successful first strike with Toshiba's introduction of the $500 HD-A1 (must have taken many sleepless nights to come up with that name) — especially considering Samsung's just-arrived BD-P1000 player sells for twice that price at $1,000. Still, Toshiba's machine can't output 1080p (at least not without an upgrade) while Samsung's can. But does anyone care? Unless you absolutely feel the need to slam dunk the Joneses yet again, my inclination at this point would be to wait a few months for things to settle down. Stay tuned.— Michael Trei

True hifi for all for music and cinema at your home theater

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On Sunday, the war between the new high-definition-disc formats officially began. Sure, HD DVD has been available since May, but as of June 25th, Samsung's BD-P1000 Blu-ray player is now available in stores for anyone who wants to buy it. With the opening battles of this format war now raging, we invite the generals behind the two factions to take a look back at previous conflicts before planning their next attacks.

While most of the people on the planet are familiar with the major types of media used throughout the world like CD, DVD, and even their predecessors, the audio cassette tape (formally called the Compact Cassette) and VHS, the route to a successful format is littered with the remains of long-forgotten attempts that had a lot of promise, but failed to capture the public's imagination. How many people have even heard of Elcaset, DCC, or SelectaVision, never mind having seen or used them? Yet these formats along with many others were foisted onto the market with plenty of fanfare by major electronics companies, only to flounder and eventually fail. There are specific reasons why they failed, and the backers of HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc would do well to heed them if they want to avoid creating yet another white-elephant format. What follows are some of the most important lessons to be learned from the Ghosts of Formats Past.

 

SCI FI Tech

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11 July 2006 0:46 by DelaRicoh component is key to HD DVD / Blu-ray combo playersJapanese electronics giant Ricoh has developed a component that could bring the prospect of HD DVD and Blu-Ray compatible hardware being developed by manufacturers to life. The component in question is a diffraction plate. The component sits between the laser and the lens and adjusts the light beam so it focuses on the proper potion of the disc. The company claims it will allow both reading and writing to the disc formats.The data layer on a Blu-ray disc resides 0.1 mm from the surface, whereas HD DVD's data layer is 0.6-mm deep. "This diffraction device is the first one that is ready for four formats, including BD and HD-DVD," claimed a Ricoh spokesman. "It will make it possible to build players and recorders ready for all formats, which will benefit consumers,"Indeed it would benefit consumers, as the format war has put most consumers off the idea of investing in either HD DVD or Blu-ray due to fears the hardware will be obsolete in the near future. The war could be much worse than the VHS-Betamax situation, as with HD DVD and Blu-ray, you don't just keep movies in mind, you have to consider the issue even when buying a PC.Ricoh will show the optical device at the International Optoelectronics Exhibition '06 outside Tokyo on July 12-14. The company intends to offer the device to OEMs by year's end.

Ricoh component is key to HD DVD / Blu-ray combo players

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HD DVD Survey by IPSOSIpsos-Vantis has asked households either owning or intending to buy a High Definition TV about their interest in HD-DVD / Blu-ray.HD-DVD or Blu-ray?HD-DVD or Blu-ray?By Henning MolbaekIn a national online survey among households either owning or intending to buy a High Definition TV, we asked respondents about their purchase interest in High Definition movie systems. To qualify, respondents had to have an active role in the decision making process when purchasing new electronics products for the household.The final sample of 469 was screened from 1,341 respondents. The survey was conducted in two cells of approximately 235 each, which tested these scenarios: 1) All major Hollywood studios equally supporting both formats; and 2) Major studio support split between the two formats (i.e. today’s situation). In each of these scenarios, respondents were properly educated as if they would be making a purchase decision (e.g. title key art, pricing, quantities, player compatibility).The survey was conducted from June 28 to July 2 by Ipsos-Vantis, a company that specializes in forecasting demand for new products and sizing emerging categories. They have evaluated over 1,200 new consumer electronics products worldwide and have successfully predicted the size of the overall market and the individual platforms in emerging categories including DVD. Ipsos-Vantis forecasts have been tracked extensively against in-market sales, and have consistently produced a level of accuracy that is unmatched by any other firm in the world.1. In response to the question “Which statement best describes how likely you would be to buy an HD DVD player,” respondents were over seven times more likely to buy an HD DVD player vs. a Blu-Ray player when all studios support both formats.a. 57% would definitely or probably buy an HD DVD player vs. 8% for Blu-Ray.b. 25% would definitely buy HD DVD vs. 2% for Blu-Ray.2. Purchase interest in HD DVD remains three times higher than Blu-Ray -- even without HD DVD studio support from Disney and Fox.a. 56% of respondents would definitely or probably buy an HD DVD player vs. 18% for Blu-Ray.b. 20% would definitely buy HD DVD vs. 6% for Blu-Ray.3. The main reason consumers prefer HD DVD over Blu-Ray is its superior value.a. In response to the question, “Which statement best describes how you feel about the value of an HD DVD player,” nearly 57% of respondents indicated that HD DVD was a “very good” or “fairly good” value vs. 14% for Blu-Ray.b. Conversely, 68% indicated that Blu-Ray was a “somewhat poor” or “very poor” value vs. 19% for HD DVD.4. In the 4th quarter 2006, the quantity of titles in the HD DVD format is assumed to be two times more than Blu-Ray (200+ for HD DVD vs. approximately 100 for Blu-Ray).

HD DVD Survey by IPSOS - DVD Town

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Let us introduce you to what could turn out to be the most desirable piece of consumer electronics kit launched this year - the Toshiba RD-A1 combined high-definition DVD/hard-disk recorder. This pairs an HD DVD recorder with a 1Terrabyte (unformatted) hard disk and is due for launch in Japan on July 14. If it ever reaches the UK, expect the price to be upwards of £2,000.As you can see, it's no marvel of Japanese miniaturisation. Dimensions are 457(w) x 159 (h) x 408(d) mm and weight a whopping 15.2kg. But, it's reckoned to be able to record and store up to 130 hours of HD broadcasts on its giant hard disk and, courtesy of its HD DVD recorder, record up to 230 minutes of HD content on a 30GB dual-layer optical disc. Recording time on a single-layer 15GB disc is said to be 115 minutesToshiba RD-A1 combined HD DVD HDD recorderThe RD-A1 can record to conventional DVD, too - including DVD-RAM, DVD-R DL (Dual Layer) and DVD-RW - but, strangely, not any DVD+ media.As you'd expect, it can output at a range of HD resolutions via HDMI, up to the highest 1080p standard and can up-convert HD and SD content to 1080p as well. Like an expensive hi-fi separate, the RD-A1's chassis is said to be designed to isolate the player from vibration to "optimise the video and audio performance of its high-grade components".Among the the other features that make the RD-A1 so hot are:* Integrated digital tuners covering the "full range" of HD off-air sources - terrestrial, broadcast satellite (BS) and communications satellite 110° (CS) broadcasts - along with another tuner for analogue broadcasts* Ability to record two broadcasts at once - one digital broadcast, one analogue* Down-converting HD TV program for recording to DVD-RAM/-RW/-R discs at standard definition* Support for next-generation surround-sound formats - Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD, L-PCM 5.1* Use of a "high-speed, high-performance" 297MHz/14bit video encoder, that's said to make it possible to deliver HD via analogue component outputs* Internet connectivity via Net de Navi that allows recordings to be programmed remotely - via e-mail or an on-line progamme-guide* Home networking for interactivity between the RD-A1 and Toshiba's REGZA Z1000 HD LCD TV sets and the Toshiba Qosmio G30 AV notebook PC.Toshiba RD-A1 combined HD DVD HDD recorderClick for larger imageSpecs* Hard disk　 - 1TB built in* Optical recording media - HD DVD-R (HDVR mode), HD DVD-R DL (HDVR mode), DVD-R (Video mode; VR mode), for General/1x-16x (recording speed 8x), DVD-R DL (Video mode; VR mode), for General/4x (recording 4x), DVD-RAM VR mode 2x-5x (recording 2x), DVD-RW (Video mode; VR mode), 1x-6x (recording 4x), CD-R, CD-RW (CD-DA)* Video recording format　 - MPEG 2　* Audio recording format - Dolby Digital (2ch), L-PCM (2ch), AAC (5.1ch),* Audio output - Dolby Digital (5.1ch)Dolby Digital Plus (5.1ch), Dolby TrueHD (2ch), DTS-HD (5.1ch)L-PCM (5.1ch)*Output format depends on content.* Video DAC - 14bit, 297MHz* Audio DAC　 - 192kHz, 24bit* Broadcast channels - 　Digital terrestrial (000 - 999ch), CATV path through, BS digital (000 - 999ch), 100 degree CS digital broadcast (000 - 999ch), analogue terrestrial VHF (1 - 12ch), UHF (13 - 62ch), CATV (C13 - C63ch),* Video/audio inputs - S-video x3 (rear x2, front x1), composite video x3 (rear x2, front x1), 2ch analogue audio x3 (rear x2, front x1), D1 video x1, DV (FireWire) input x 1 (front)* Video/audio outputs - D1/D2/D3/D4 video x1, component video (Y, CB, CR) x 1, S-video x3, composite video x3, 5.1ch surround-sound analogue audio x1, 2ch analogue audio x3, Co-axial digital audio x1, optical digital audio x1, HDMI x1, FireWire four-pin (i.LINK) for D-VHS dubbing x2* Antenna terminals - digital terrestrial input/output, BS/100degree CS digital input/output, VHF/UHF input/output* Other terminals　 - LAN xl, Sky Perfect continuous xl, phone circuit x1, extension terminal x3 (front, 5V 500mA)* Power consumption　 - 133W (BS antenna supply:144W), Stand by mode 6.5W (power-save:4.0W),* Dimensions - 457(w) x 159 (h) x 408(d) mm* Weight　 - 15.2 kg　* Accessories 　- remote control, battery for remote control (AAA cell battery x2), power cable, coaxial cable, video/audio connecting cable, user manual, B-CAS card, modular splitter, phone cable

HEXUS.lifestyle : Headline : Toshiba RD-A1 HD DVD/HDD recorder - 2006's most desirable CE kit? : Page - 1/1Let us introduce you to what could turn out to be the most desirable piece of consumer electronics kit launched this year - the Toshiba RD-A1 combined high-definition DVD/hard-disk recorder. This pairs an HD DVD recorder with a 1Terrabyte (unformatted) hard disk and is due for launch in Japan on July 14. If it ever reaches the UK, expect the price to be upwards of £2,000.

As you can see, it's no marvel of Japanese miniaturisation. Dimensions are 457(w) x 159 (h) x 408(d) mm and weight a whopping 15.2kg. But, it's reckoned to be able to record and store up to 130 hours of HD broadcasts on its giant hard disk and, courtesy of its HD DVD recorder, record up to 230 minutes of HD content on a 30GB dual-layer optical disc. Recording time on a single-layer 15GB disc is said to be 115 minutes

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Sony has already specified that all Sony/MGM BD releases will in fact contain multichannel uncompressed linear PCM soundtracks. The best digital sound I have ever heard in a movie theater, by several orders of magnitude, is discrete multichannel uncompressed linear PCM (I heard this in an early digital projection presentation, played back from hard drive.) The sound had seemingly limitless dynamics, and yet was full-bodied and entirely effortless. There was striking clarity, and yet no hint of glare or brightness. Having this kind of sound at home will undoubtedly improve the sound of both movie soundtracks and music videos/concerts dramatically.406hdfeature.last.jpegIn addition to uncompressed PCM, Dolby and DTS will be doing what they best, licensing a variety of new surround sound flavors to take advantage of the bigger bit buckets of the new formats. These will begin with lossy formats that aren't as highly compressed as current DTS and Dolby Digital, and both companies will offer "lossless"codecs with bit for bit reconstruction of the original signal.

Ultimate AV: HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc 2006: An In-Depth Report

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Dolby TrueHD, from Dolby Laboratories, is an advanced lossless audio codec based on Meridian Lossless Packing. The codec is mandatory for HD DVD and optional for Blu-ray Disc media. It supports 24 bit, 96 kHz audio channels at up to 18 Mbit/s over 8 channels (HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc standards currently limit their maximum number of audio channels to eight). It also supports extensive metadata, including dialog normalization and Dynamic Range Control. TrueHD streams are supported in the HDMI standard. The first movie to utilise TrueHD was the HD DVD release of The Phantom of the Opera, released April 18, 2006.

Dolby TrueHD - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Toshiba Consumer (TV/DVD/etc) HD DVD PlayerHD DVD Player. Features built-in multi-channel decoders for Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD (2 channel), DTS and DTS-HD.MODEL- HD-A1 VENDOR- TOSHIBA CONSUMERFEATURES- HD DVD PlayerThe HD-A1 HD DVD player delivers outstanding resolution, bright,vivid colors and stunning sound from the next generation DVDstandard adopted by the DVD forum. The HD-A1 is backwardscompatible with standard DVDs and allows you to enjoy your existingcollection of DVDs.The HD-A1 offers Video Up-conversion via the HDMI interface whichscales the standard DVD video to output resolution of 720p or1080i, matching the output to the resolution of your HDTV. Andwith the built in multi-channel decoders for Dolby Digital, DolbyDigital Plus, Dolby TrueHD (2 channel), DTS and DTS-HD, the HD-A1will bring improved fidelity and sonic realism to your DVD moviesoundtracks.* VIDEO- HD DVD PlaybackHigh Definition video requires a tremendous amount of space on adisc, thus a new Blue laser (versus a Red Laser for DVD) is utilizedfor HD DVD. The blue laser, with its shorter wave length, allows forinformation to be stored more densely on the disc, thus improvingstorage capacity by about over 3 times compared to that of a redlaser technology. Additionally, more accurate and efficient videocompression like MPEG-4 AVC and VC-1 (based on Microsofts WindowsMedia) compress information to achieve file sizes that are less thanhalf of those of the current standard DVDs MPEG2.- High Performance Disc DriveHD DVD not only provides a deliverable HD media format to the home,but does so with the potential of greater performance than you haveexperienced with HDTV. The HD-A1 disc drive has an astounding36.55Mbps transfer rate. To put that in perspective, standard DVD hasan average bit rate of less than 10Mbps and HDTVs maximum rate is24Mbps.- Backward CompatibilityEnjoy backwards compatibility and play your collection of standardDVDs on the player. In addition, via the HDMI interface, the HD-A1scales the standard definition DVD output to a resolution of 720p or1080i to match your HDTVs performance. Not only does this output thevideo in HD standard resolutions, but because the conversion takesplace in the player, the signal remains free from excessive digital-to-analog conversion artifacts.- Built-in Multi-Channel DecodersThe HD-A1 has built-in processors to handle the multi-channeldecoders for Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD (2 ch),DTS and DTSHD. It employs the use of four DSPs to decode the multi-channel streams of the wide array of audio formats. These 32-bitfloating-point DSPs are world renown for their high accuracy and areemployed in many high quality audio solutions in the home theatermarket.- 11-bit/216MHz Video Dac- Video Up-Conversion for SD DVD (720p/1080i)- Enhanced Black Level (0IRE/7.5IRE Selection)- Letterbox/Pan & Scan Support- Disc Playback: HD-DVD/HD DVD-R/DVD/DVD-R/DVD-RAM/DVD-RW/CD/CD-R/CD-RW* AUDIO- WMA & MP3 PlaybackPlay recordable Compact Discs (CD-R & CD-RW) with music stored ineither the Windows Media Audio or MP3 file formats can be enjoyed.- Built-in Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, DTS and DTS-HD DecodersBuilt-in Multi-Channel Decoders The HD-A1 has built-in processors tohandle the multi-channel

Toshiba Consumer (TV/DVD/etc) HD DVD Player - SHOP.COM

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soundberry .N1 ww HIFI site per la musica ed il cinema in casa.Home theater.

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soundberry .N1 ww HIFI site per la musica ed il cinema in casa.Home theater.

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The ProMedia DD-5.1 allows you to connect virtually any audio input sources such as: * Game Consoles with Digital Connectivity (With Toslink optical cable or RCA S/P-DIF) Xbox, PlayStation 2 * Computer Soundcards with Digital Connectivity (S/P DIF; RCA or Toslink jack) * DVD Players, LD Player, CD Player with Digital Connectivity (S/P DIF; RCA or Toslink jack) * Analog 2-channel (stereo RCA) sources such as TV, VCR, CD Player * 2-channel Miniplug Sources will need an adapter to RCA plugs. (PC soundcards, laptops, or analog 2-channel Game Consoles: Nintendo, Sony PlayStation) * This unit includes Bass Management, but the optimum mode is to set all channels to Large Mode (RED LED) so the ProMedia system can accurately channel the bass information to the subwoofer. * 2-channel, 4-channel, and 5.1-channel modes for your specific ProMedia system. This is especially helpful to allow digital connectivity to all of our products. It is up to the user to decide the facility for a ProMedia 2.1 application, but the 4.1 and 5.1 benefit significantly with this unit. * This unit includes Five Channel Equalization for fine tuning the frequency curve of your system

ProMedia DD 5.1: Digital Surround - Xbox

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Speaker ModeBy pressing CEN Button, center channel will be switched on/off, and LCD will displayfollowing information:D o l b yD i g i T a IC oS P KCO ND o l b yD i g i T a IC oS P KCO F F

ProMedia DD-5.1

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March 18, 2002 - I first heard about the DD-5.1 at this year's CES. It was big news because it was to be the first piece of electronics to bear the Klipsch name. Although they didn't have one at the show, the description, and Klipsch's excellent reputation, was enough to pique my interest. I've now had the DD-5.1 a little more than one week and the experience has been extremely positive. The device works perfectly, and although it has a couple of limitations, I recommend it to anyone in need of a stand-alone decoder. And while I looked forward to Klipsch-branded electronics before using the DD-5.1, the prospect is now all the more exciting.The DD-5.1 is a set-top pre/pro. For the uninitiated, "pre/pro" is short for preamp/processor, which means that the box decodes signals, provides a small amount of amplification, and then routes them to a power amplifier. The amp could be an older receiver with six-channel inputs but no decoders or a powered speaker system, such as the ProMedia 5.1s. Klipsch would obviously love it if you paired the DD-5.1 with their speakers, and the results would be terrific, as that's what I used for this review, but you could use it with any system with the appropriate inputs.As you can see in the inline image, the DD-5.1 is a somewhat small component - small and simple. The front panel has only one button: power. In the middle of the faceplate is the LCD, which is, of course, backlit. Though the display is small, the screen is very well organized and the text very sharp, so legibility isn't a problem unless you have the DD-5.1 set across a big room, in which case you might have a little difficulty reading it. To the right of the LCD are six LEDs: L, C, R, SL, SW, and SR. The lights glow in one of two colors while the unit is working. Red means that a given channel is reproducing its natural range plus sub frequencies (20Hz to 120Hz). Green means that the given channel is not handling any sub frequencies below 120Hz. You'll also find an IR port on the front. Since there are no controls on the unit itself, you use the remote for everything, so don't lose it. Click image to enlarge. One look around back will tell you that Klipsch tried to make the DD-5.1 as flexible as possible. The I/O scheme will accommodate all of the current audio interfaces. In addition to the digital optical and coaxial ins, there are three pairs of analog RCA inputs. I would have liked to see an additional optical jack, but for most users one will do the trick. And if you are connecting your PS2 or Xbox, then you can leave it hooked up while a DVD or CD player goes into the coaxial.As for output, you have two choices. To the far left is a single G9 out. (G9 carries all six channels through one cable.) As most of don't have a G9-equipped component, the six-channel analog outs will be more commonly used. Each channel gets its own single RCA out. Klipsch bundles three Y adapters with the DD-5.1 so that you can use it with a standard 5.1 multimedia system. Such a configuration entails three inputs: front channels, rear channels, and a sub/center channel. Installing the DD-5.1 is a snap, and the manual includes diagrams for a couple setup scenarios for you technophobes.As far as processing power, the DD-5.1 has built-in Dolby Digital, DTS, and Pro Logic decoders. Unfortunately, Klipsch skipped DPLII, which will no doubt piss off you Nintendo fans. (The GameCube works with Pro Logic, but optimally you'd use the newer, and much more sophisticated, Pro Logic II.) I understand that for DVDs, PS2, and Xbox you only need the two included decoders, but I was greatly surprised by the lack of DPLII processing. Klipsch obviously wanted to keep the price down, but it seems that this choice cuts out a whole lot of consumers, especially since the company markets this for gaming as much as home cinema. I only hope that a future version includes DPLII. Click image to enlarge. In addition to the straight decoding, the DD-5.1 has a handful of sound modes. I'm not a big fan of these DSPs -- they're generally too dramatic to use for more than a minute -- but their continued presence in HT components means that a lot of people disagree with me. In the DD-5.12 you'll find the ever-popular Hall, Theater, Stadium, Club, and Church reverb options. They sound "good" I suppose, but I doubt you'll use them very often.For such a small device, there are plenty of additional tweaks, most of which will help tailor the sound to fit the environment. The most basic adjustment is simply turning on/off certain channels. You can easily disable the sub, center, or surround channels. This is especially useful when used in combination with the bass management system, which is quite sophisticated for such a small device. All told, there are four settings: * Configuration 1: All sound below 120Hz gets routed to the sub. None of the satellites gets any bass. * Configuration 2: Frequencies below 120Hz are routed not only to the sub, but also to the front speakers. * Configuration 3: Frequencies below 120Hz are routed not only to the sub, but also to the front and rear speakers. * Configuration 3: Frequencies below 120Hz are routed to all six channels. In terms of straight sound quality, Configuration 1 is the best, as the sub takes all the bass, relieving the satellites of the difficult work. However, depending on your room, a different setting might do the trick.The balance mode allows you to attenuate each of the six channels by up to -12dB. You are also able to calibrate the delay in the surround channels by up to 15 ms and in the center channel by up to 5 ms. A built-in five-band EQ lets you adjust areas of sound by up to +/-10dB. The manual doesn't say where the frequencies are, or how wide of a band you're tweaking, but the spread covers the spectrum neatly. You can save up to four EQ settings and load them at any time thanks to four user-defined slots. Lastly, Dynamic Range Compression can be set to squeeze the digital signal in one three settings: uncompressed, half compressed, or fully compressed.All functions are carried out with the remote. It might not look like much, and it feels a bit cheap, but it is smartly laid out and very comfortable. I prefer a larger volume control, but the central location puts it directly under your thumb.As for sound, it really depends on your choice of speakers and source, as the DD-5.1 doesn't add it's own flavor to the audio, unless, of course, you opt for one of the goofy DSPs. For the review I ran a DVD player, Xbox, and PS2 through the DD-5.1 and it came up aces every time. It immediately recognized the source and interface and then engaged the appropriate decoding mode. (You can always override the automatic choice with Pro Logic, but I rarely use this processing.) For speakers, I used the ProMedia 5.1s, with which you really can't go wrong. Click image to enlarge. In both DD and DTS the sound was terrific. The decoding was fast and accurate and produced a very pleasing environment. Transitions between channels were handled smartly and even complex passages ran smoothly. The rig made for an awesome Xbox sound system. I played Halo, Gotham, and RalliSport and each was awesome. Sound placement was dead-on and reliable and the overall experience was very engaging.The only performance problem I had stemmed from the lack of DPLII decoding. I got to play Rogue Leader, but only in Pro Logic, which is hardly a substitute for its predecessor.ConclusionI would confidently recommend the DD-5.1 to anyone except Nintendo fans, who will just have to pray for a second-generation model with a wider array of decoders. If you have an older receiver, one that has six-channel inputs but no decoders, then the DD-5.1 would make an excellent companion. And if you a set of 5.1 multimedia speakers, then this would be the ticket to terrific DVD and gaming surround sound.The big draw of the DD-5.1 is the price. For $169.99 you get a very smart, very able decoder. What it lacks in format support it more than makes up for with excellent decoding for DD and DTS.Highly recommended.IGN's Ratings for Klipsch ProMedia DD-5.1Rating Description out of 10 9.0 PerformanceOutstanding decoding in both DD and DTS. DPLII would make it much nicer, though, as well as please Nintendo fans. Neat remote.9.0 Build QualityJust what you'd expect from Klipsch. Well designed and very sturdy.8.0 FeaturesSolid array of ins and outs, useful remote, tons of tweaks. Now just add DPLII!8.5 Ease of UsePlug and play. Just don't lose the remote! Auto-detect works very well.7.5 ValueKlipsch priced it just where they should have. Afordable enough to bring any system up to date.8.5 OVERALL(out of 10 / not an average)

IGN: Klipsch ProMedia DD-5.1 Review

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IGN: Klipsch ProMedia DD-5.1 Image

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Optoma EP719 719 2500:1 Contrast Ratio 2000 Lumens MSRP (USD) : $ 1,499 Brightness (Lumens) : 2000 ANSI Contrast (Full On/Off) : 2500:1 Variable Iris: No Audible Noise: ** Eco-Mode: 28.0 dB Weight: 2.1 kg Size (cm) (HxWxD) : 9.4 x 22.9 x 21.0 Throw Dist (m) : Optoma EP719 Projection Calculator 1.1 - 9.7 Image Size (cm) : 63.5 - 624.8 Lens: Focus: Manual Zoom: Manual, 1.10:1 Optional Lenses: No Digital Zoom: ** Keystone Correction: Fixed Lens Shift: No Networking: Wired: No Wireless: No Warranty: 1 Year Performance: H-Sync Range: 15.0 - 100.0kHz V-Sync Range: 56 - 85Hz Compatibility: HDTV: 720p, 1080i EDTV/480p: Yes SDTV/480i: Yes Component Video: Yes Video: Yes Digital Input: DVI-D (HDCP) Personal Computers: Yes Display: Type: 0.6" DLP (1) Color Wheel Segs: ** Color Wheel Speed: ** Native: 1024x768 Pixels Maximum: 1400x1050 Pixels Aspect Ratio: 4:3 (XGA) Lamp: Type: 200W UHP Life: 2000 hours Eco-Mode Life: 3000 hours Quantity: 1 Speakers: 2.0W Mono Max Power: 265W Voltage: 100V - 240V FCC Class: ** Special: ** Status: Shipping First Ship: Aug 2005 1450 euro A few weeks ago, we reviewed the excellent Optoma EP716 in the SVGA shootout. Now, following closely on its heels comes the Optoma EP719, an XGA business projector that retains the EP716's small form factor and low weight. At street prices around $1000, the EP719 offers a lot more resolution for a small price increase, and is an attractive option for both education settings and portable presentation use. Specifications. 2000 ANSI lumens, 2500:1 contrast, native 4:3 format 1024x768 resolution DLP chip with a 2x rotation speed color wheel. Compatibility. HDTV 1080i, 720p, 576p, 576i, 480p, 480i, and computer resolutions up to SXGA+ (1400x1050). Full NTSC / PAL / SECAM. Lens and Throw Distance. 1.10:1 manual zoom/focus lens. Throws a 100" diagonal image from 12.9 feet to 14.2 feet. Lamp Life. 2,000 hours, 3,000 hours in eco mode. Connection Panel. One composite video, one S-Video, One VGA-in port, one VGA-out port, one 1/8" audio-in, one DVI port with HDCP, and one RS232 port for an external control. Installation Options. Table mount, rear shelf mount, ceiling mount. Warranty. Two years. General Impressions / Feature Set The Optoma EP719 is a tiny projector. Weighing in at under five pounds, the EP719 can easily be transported in carry-on luggage. The EP719 also comes with a sturdy zip-up soft carrying case with a shoulder strap and plenty of room for cables and other accessories. This is one projector that is perfect for the presenter on the go. In this case, a small size comes at the expense of another feature. The EP719's 1.10:1 zoom range does not allow for much flexibility in placement. For any given diagonal screen size, there is about one foot of leeway in throw distance from the screen. The remote control for the EP719 is built solidly, and buttons were easy to locate after using the remote for a short while. While the remote is not backlit, buttons are large and widely-spaced, which should prevent any errant presses after you familiarize yourself with it. The menu system is clean and easy to use, built around a tab-based system that separates adjustments into categories. We found this easy to navigate quickly and after a little bit of familiarization the menu system of the EP719 will feel like second nature. The EP719 is nearly silent, and even more so in eco-mode. From only a few feet away it was not easy to pick up any fan noise from the EP719. The lack of fan noise is remarkable, given the EP719's small form factor and high light output. Monitor pass-through allows you to display a computer's image on both the projector and a computer monitor simultaneously. This is a vital feature for education use, as it allows a teacher to face the class and control the image from the computer monitor, rather than having to constantly turn to the screen. Also included is a locking port for a Kensington lock, which is a must for any projector left unattended. Whether it be in a classroom or a conference room, the EP719 can be securely locked to a desk or cart, which keeps your investment secure. The Optoma EP719's 2x speed color wheel is perfectly acceptable for data presentations and still graphics, as people affected by color separation artifacts seem to be bothered by them less often when viewing stills. However, keep in mind that the EP719's 2x speed color wheel may limit its usefulness as a full time home theater projector. Performance Rated at 2000 ANSI lumens, our test sample produced 1465 ANSI lumens with settings tailored to presentation. When tuned to settings more favorable for balanced colors and better quality video, lumen output was still 417 ANSI lumens. This highly adjustable output means that the EP719 is adaptable to many different situations and audience sizes. Brightness uniformity is 72%, which is about average. There is no obvious hotspotting to create any distracting unevenness in the illumination of the image. Contrast, rated at 2500:1, is easily good enough to display text, powerpoint presentations, and spreadsheets that are easy on the eyes. When used for video, the EP719 can crush the low end of the grayscale if not calibrated carefully. However, once adjusted, the EP719 can display video admirably. The EP719 has a mild upward throw angle - around 10% of image height. This means that for a 100" diagonal image, the bottom edge of the picture will be 6" above the centerline of the lens. This is an ideal upward angle for placement on a conference table, and should keep setup very simple indeed. Edge-to-edge sharpness on the EP719 is excellent. With native signals, every pixel is equally crisp and sharp. Even text documents using very small font sizes are easily legible. Non-native data signals are compressed or upscaled very well, with very little loss in image quality. Video scaling results in a slight loss of image sharpness, so video detail is not quite as razor sharp as it would be on a comparable home theater projector. Deinterlacing is not comparable to home theater quality either; artifacts and jaggies appear in quite a few scenes that are displayed cleanly on home theater projectors. However, both are good enough as to be acceptable for occasional home theater use. Keystone adjustment is an important feature for portable projectors and the EP719 handles it well. When keystone adjustment is applied, a text document or financial spreadsheet retains much of its detail and sharpness. As with most projectors, the effect of keystone adjustments on graphics and video is hardly noticeable. So what makes this projector worth the extra $300 over an otherwise comparable SVGA projector? The obvious - and best - answer is resolution. XGA is at this time the most common resolution in use with personal computers and laptops. And in order to get the best possible image from your projector, you should always try to match your computer's resolution to the projector's native resolution. Chances are your computer is already displaying 1024x768, and will feed a signal to the projector in its native format. And due to the dramatic difference between native XGA and XGA compressed on an SVGA projector, it is an upgrade worth a few hundred dollars. Conclusion The EP719 is a very small, very bright XGA projector. Nearly nonexistent fan noise and monitor loop-through make it ideal for mobile presentation or classroom use. The EP719 is a bargain that you shouldn't miss.

soundberry Optoma EP719

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Tannoy's new Precision monitors bring their celebrated dual-concentric driver and Supertweeter technology to the project-studio market.Paul Whitetannoy precision.sPhotos: Mark EwingThe Precision series sees Tannoy reverting to the dual-concentric designs they're well known for. However, seemingly in contradiction to this, there is still a separate tweeter, but in this design it is a so-called Supertweeter that extends the upper frequency range from where the centre horn of the dual-concentric driver leaves off, pushing the frequency response well beyond that which accepted wisdom would have us believe is adequate for reproducing music to humans. In this range of speakers, the response doesn't tail off until after 50kHz, but Tannoy claim that listening tests confirm that this does make a subjective difference when listening and also ensures greater transient accuracy. Two cabinet and driver sizes are available in the range, with the Precision 6 being reviewed here being the smallest. Where a little more level and low-end extension is required, the Precision 8 should fit the bill.In designing this range, Tannoy's engineers made extensive use of advanced measuring equipment (laser scanning interferometry, acoustic CAD simulation, and so on) as well as conducting numerous listening-panel tests to see if adding those extra-high frequencies really made a difference. Their aim with the Precision, as with any good speaker, was to deliver wide bandwidth, low distortion, smooth frequency response, accurate phase control, and high sensitivity. Certainly extending the high-end response should improve the phase accuracy at the top of the audible range, so that's probably the main reason for any subjective improvement.Tannoy's unique selling point has always been their dual-concentric driver design, which has the clear advantage of presenting a point source across the frequency spectrum. The tweeter unit is neodymium powered and ferrofluid cooled, and is positioned on the back of the low-frequency driver so that the sound emerges in the centre of the woofer cone rather than from a separate location. A practical benefit of this is that you get a wider sweet spot than with conventional speakers, but there are a lot of design challenges to get a dual-concentric speaker sounding right. It is intriguing, therefore, that they have combined their dual-concentric approach with a separate Supertweeter. How well this works remains to be seen, because coincident positioning of the drivers becomes more important at shorter wavelengths (higher frequencies) and it's clearly not practical to put the Supertweeter at the centre of the main horn.Today it seems there is an appetite for active speakers, but with passive models such as these you at least get a choice of which amplifiers to use. With a frequency response of 64Hz-51kHz and a sensitivity of 91dB/W at 1m (no maximum SPL is specified), the Precision 6s don't need a huge amount of amplifier power to generate plenty of sound, but in order to allow adequate headroom for the handling of transients, an amplifier of between 60W and 120W continuous-sine-wave rating is recommended. My tests used a rather nice 100W per channel AVI integrated amplifier, and you need a decent amplifier because, although the speakers have a nominal 8(omega) rating, they are actually closer to 6(omega) in practice.Top of pageConstructionThe Precision 6s are a departure from Tannoy's usual restrained cosmetic styling and feature an oval brushed-aluminium plate inset in the baffle. A nice grey textured finish is used for the baffle, which is also sculpted to avoid the 'box' look and to help reduce cabinet edge diffraction. The reflex port is located on the back panel, along with the chunky connection terminals (no bi-wiring options) and both the dual-concentric driver and the Supertweeter are set flush into the baffle and secured with cap-head bolts. The dual-concentric driver is a nominal six inches in diameter and uses a paper-pulp cone. Flux control rings are fitted to the LF driver section with eddy-current damping provided via copper pole caps.At the centre is a one-inch titanium-dome tweeter feeding the horn and the coverage is specified at 90 degrees in both the vertical and horizontal planes. The Supertweeter is also one inch in diameter and uses a titanium diaphragm. In traditional Tannoy fashion, the cabinet is very solidly built and well braced with a massively thick (40mm) front baffle and proper tongue-and-groove joints securing the front and rear panels. Lossy coupling, (which I take to mean some kind of resilient gasket arrangement) is used to prevent speaker vibrations making their way into the cabinet structure through direct contact. The crossover frequency is quoted as being 2.5kHz, but there's no mention of a second crossover frequency between the dual-concentric horn and the Supertweeter, so it's not entirely clear what if any frequency division is employed between the two tweeters. Magnetic shielding is provided for the benefit of those users who haven't yet given their 'glass and copper' CRT monitors to the science museum, and the overall size is just 272 x 440 x 287mm. The sturdy construction is reflected in the weight of almost 10kg per speaker.Top of pageSession ImpressionsCorrectly mounted and positioned, the Precision 6s deliver a fairly well-balanced sound with plenty of transient detail, though for my taste the high end gets just a little too splashy and forward sounding at higher listening levels. This isn't serious, but I also found the bottom end to be a little weak at normal listening levels, with little real punch or depth. I expect the 8s to be better in this respect, but with today's technology it should be possible to get a reasonably satisfying and solid low end from smaller speakers without compromising too much on accuracy. Of course the method of mounting and the position within the room will also affect the low end performance, so if you have a room that normally produces an overblown bass sound, these monitors might suit it very well. If not, I'd go for the Precision 8s, which go down to 56Hz and are a couple of decibels more sensitive. Stereo imaging is good, and the dispersion characteristics of the speaker provide a usefully wide sweet spot. The sound can get a bit confused when the speakers are driven very hard, but at sensible nearfield monitoring volumes the level of clarity and detail is good.I don't know how much influence the Supertweeter has on the subjective sound, as there's no way to turn it off, but to my ears, the Precision speakers have more of a conventional two-way character about them, while retaining the wide sweet spot and even dispersion of classic Tannoy dual-concentric designs. My observations regarding the forward sound of the titanium tweeter are personal, as I know many people like their tracking monitors to sound slightly larger than life, but to get a properly balanced low end in my studio I'd probably opt for the Precision 8s or add a subwoofer to the 6s. In other studios, they may well work fine as they are with some careful positioning.I've never been a huge fan of dual-concentric speakers, but I didn't feel the Precision 6s had the somewhat recessed mid-range that I've noticed on some dual-concentric models. In this respect they probably combine some of the best characteristics of both design philosophies, which makes them well worth investigating for applications where you need a wider-than-typical sweet spot and a good tonal balance across the important mid-range and high-end frequencies. Of course, performance also has to be balanced against price, and the Precision 6s aren't unduly expensive in the UK, yet they are very well engineered. Compared with similarly priced passive monitors, the Precision 6s actually stand up very well and only the lack of low-end weight works against them, especially for those working on dance music where the low end is critical. In all, the Precision 6s turn in a very good performance within their size and price range — as long as they're teamed with a decent amplifier with adequate power to spare.Published in SOS August 2005

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JUNGSON JA-88D Class-A Integrated AmplifierH. Richard WeinerThe Jungson 88D ($1,500USD) looks terrific, sounds great, and costs a third of what you'd expect. This may be the best electrical value in hifi since the NAD 3020.I. Cave DrawingsChinese electronics do not come with the baggage of American and European gear. No long-winded papers on how the product has the only circuit that runs faster than light; no tedious inventories of exotic components; no lengthy reports of performance. There is no biography of the designer, who modestly admits that he invented the Internet while working as a concert pianist. The Chinese products arrive without a manual, quality control documentation, or letters telling the consumer how astute he is. The box contains an amp and a power cord: you figure how to put them together.The audio critic writing about these products, therefore, doesn't waste his time or yours on a recitation of the product's innards ("cryo-treated perfect crystal goulash wire" and "rhodium-plated pure kryptonite transducer"). The situation is analogous to the art critics who analyzed the cave drawings of Western Europe: since the primitive images of men and animals were over 20,000 years old, it was impossible to write about the artists' influences, where they studied, or their early struggles and later successes. Writing about art instead of the artist led to the New Criticism, which swept a bunch of vacuity off the library shelves. If nothing else, the Chinese gear will get us to focus on the sound, instead of the story.II. Beauty is only deep skinThe first thing you appreciate about the Jungson 88D is mass: about sixty pounds of it. The next thing, as you heave it onto your amp stand, is that it's a lot better looking than average. It's not flat black or champagne gold (for which I am grateful), and the front fascia plate sits about a quarter inch forward of the dual VU meters. The power switch is in the center of the plate, with smaller buttons to adjust power level and input selection flanking it. The amp selects the active input automatically, so there's no mode switch. One button allows you to turn off the meters, turn off the lights, or illuminate only the power level (which reads 0-99). Late at night, the display is remarkably attractive. I know you don't listen with your eyes, but this is one amp that doesn't look like it was born and raised in a lab run by antiaesthetic technogeeks. At this point you would be justified in guesstimating the price of this unit above $4,000; and you don't know about power output or class of operation.The back of the unit has one balanced and three single-ended inputs, a power cord receptacle and two pairs of the largest wire terminals I have encountered on gear intended for home use: so large that my Harmonic Tech spade lugs couldn't fit around them. If you're using DeWulf/Lowe's wire, just run the naked end in and turn the heavy knurled knob tight.The remote control is a slender piece of cherry wood which is contoured to rest comfortably in your hand. It's nice to have something warm and organic instead of coldly industrial - and it looks more expensive than a reprogrammed garage door opener.III. Adventures in the solid stateAt my house transistor amps are treated about the same as digital sources: convenient but not top-level performers. Solid state amps, even at their best, tend to sound a little hard in the upper octaves and a little more forceful than real life in the lower range. Some designs relieve the treble irritation with a touch or haze or darkness. Transistors often sound dramatic early on, but tend to be tiresome after an hour: I think this is what reviewers call 'listener fatigue.' The Jungson proves that I should always keep an open mind.The sound of a fresh Jungson is a bit dry and dynamically compressed, improves steadily over the first thirty hours, and ultimately becomes smooth, accurate and harmonically rich.[H. Richard Weiner, MD]This is one transistor amp that I could listen to for hours. I think the designer has managed to preserve solid state's strength in rendering detail without going too far and exaggerating detail. I never had the familiar sense that the Jungson was showing me new aspects of familiar performances at the cost of musical wholeness -- that sort of performance invariably ends in listener fatigue.Although it renders the lower octaves faithfully, the amp did not produce "solid state bass": the initially impressive but unrealistic portrayal that audiophiles crave and music lovers get sick from. The midrange and treble are faithfully reproduced with commendable openness. Again, this is a unit that does not impose much upon the music. My criticism, and it's minor, is that the Jungson did not bloom as tube units do: but that is the fundamental difference between the two methods of amplifying signal.Permit me to dilate here for a moment. Marty spent the last issue demonstrating how reasonably priced components, chosen for sonic neutrality and compatibility, can produce an extraordinary result. I call this DeWulf's Law: that everything, from the polarity of the power cords in the wall to the siting of the loudspeakers in the room, contributes to the final effect. Too often we buy a component because it sounds good in the store or because some authority figure praises it; then we plop it into our systems and hope that it will make magic. Alas, too often the result of adding a new, much-praised component is worse sound, disappointment, and a retreat to home theater. My heartfelt advice is to identify how you want music to sound on your system; then spend a lot of time choosing components consistent with those parameters, and yet more time dressing the wires, removing ground loops, getting control of standing waves and all the picky little stuff that makes such an enormous difference. Only by taking time to understand your priorities and to work with your equipment will you keep your toys out of Audiogon, and get back to the music.The Jungson JPOC-03 cable [H. Richard Weiner, MD] which comes standard [H. Richard Weiner, MD] with the 88D is substantially better than a Radio Shack power cord. I used the JOPC on some other equipment and can recommend it as a very good deal for $100, the single unit price. You can make the amp sound [H. Richard Weiner, MD] still better with the MPC-01, which is about $250 and sounds competitive with the Synergistic power cable priced around $400. [H. Richard Weiner, MD] Although the Jungsone JPOC-03 is quite good, I strongly recommend the MPC-01 as a highly cost-effective option. It makes the amp slightly faster and a bit richer.The unit is rated at 80 watts operating in class A. The unit operates more coolly than other class A amplifiers of my experience, which may result from placing a vast array of heat sinks on the inside of the chassis box. On my stacked Quad 57s, an extremely difficult reactive load and about 85 dB (in)efficient, I achieved high pressure levels with the output at 33 (of 99). I don't know how many watts this puppy can produce, which is one of the advantages of not being bombarded with manufacturers' literature: I have to listen rather than read.It might seem silly to use this powerhouse amp on the (100 dB efficient) Edgar Slimlines, but it's a good test of musical properties, high frequency harshness and noise. I found the Jungson to be reasonably quiet for a transistor amp, but not as quiet as the Pass Aleph series. Again the Jungson proved to be pleasant, and never induced listener fatigue. I turned the display off so that only a faint violet glow came from the face - just the thing for late-night listening.With the modified Cizek One, a sealed-box with a stable four Ohm impedance, the Jungson defied the stereotype which says that solid state amps generate unnaturally taut bass but cast a dark haze over the midrange and treble. The soundstage was broad, with a good sense of rhythm.IV. Exchange rateOn the basis of performance, features and construction quality, the logical comparison would be to the KorSun V8i, which also comes from China. If you have trouble finding one, Red Rose Music (http://redrosemusic.com) will sell you an Affirmation amp - which certainly resembles the V8i - for $7,000. (Of course, Mr. Levinson avers that he adds 47 secret herbs and spices to justify this cost.) I think the Jungson is substantially more attractive. You could also consider Jeff Rowland's (http://jeffrowland.com) Concerto integrated [H. Richard Weiner, MD] ($5,900) and Gryphon's (http://www.gryphon-audio.dk) Callisto 2100 ($7,000).The importer has decided to price the Jungson, with improved power cord and delivered free in the U.S., for $1,500. What can you buy for that amount of money? The Creek 5350SE (http://www.creekaudio.com), Arcam DiVA (http://www.arcam.co.uk/) and Bryston B60 (http://bryston.ca) are the competition: [H. Richard Weiner, MD] all competent units praised for their sound and value. I'll give you a minute to make the same calculations I did. I expect you'll come to the same conclusion.

JA-88D Review

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