Jun 02

Panasonics Home Theater Goes Wireless

Posted in: Panasonic, Today's Chili

SC-ZT2-500.jpgWant to cut the cords? Panasonic lets you set up a rich home theater experience without running cords all over your living room. The SC-ZT2 is Panasonic’s first fully wireless home theater audio system, and it’s made for full HD 3D. It produces the lifelike ambiance of a 7.1-channel system with only two speakers. Each speaker houses four one-inch tweeters. These are vertically aligned and emit sounds parallel to the floor, allowing listening from anywhere in the room.

The two speakers also boast an integrated long-stroke woofer. It uses Down-Fire structure which draws on the floor as an acoustical reflector to produce dynamic base that’s surprisingly robust. The SC-ZT2 is available now for $995.95.

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May 25

Bose simplifies surround sound setup with Lifestyle systems, charges dearly for it

Posted in: audio, expensive, Today's Chili, video

So, you’ve got a few options here. Do a little research and piece together your own surround system, hire a voyeur from Geek Squad to do it for you, or just hire a live-in technician to handle both present and future issues. Whatever you settle on, you can pretty much rest assured that it’ll be cheaper than forking out for one of Bose‘s hilariously overpriced Lifestyle systems. In typical Bose fashion, the company is introducing a new trio of 5.1 rigs (the V35, V25 and T20), each of which utilize a new “Unify” technology that is said to make “connecting speakers and sources, programming remotes, and accessing content easier and faster than ever before.” And by that, they mean “we’ll show you pictures of the connectors on your television screen.” Each setup comes with a handful of tiny, cube-like speakers and a surely unimpressive Acoustimass bass module, and if you’re hoping to find detailed specifications — you know, things like RMS, impedance, frequency response range and other vital audio statistics — we wish you the best of luck. Oh, but here’s a few figures that are being handed down: $3,299, $2,499 and $1,999. Yeah, those are the MSRPs in order of mention, and amazingly, we aren’t kidding.

Continue reading Bose simplifies surround sound setup with Lifestyle systems, charges dearly for it

Bose simplifies surround sound setup with Lifestyle systems, charges dearly for it originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 May 2010 22:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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May 25

Bose Intros Two Easy Home Theater Systems

Posted in: audio, Today's Chili

Lifestyle_V35_system.jpgAttention audiophiles, Bose has introduced two home theater systems that combine proprietary 5.1 surround sound with the new Bose Unify intelligent integration system. Intelligent integration is the company’s technology for cutting through the complexity in setting up home theater systems. It makes connecting speakers and adding remotes easier.

The new Lifestyle V-Class and T-Class systems were designed to evolve with the owners needs, and can accommodate up to six HD sources. The Lifestyle remote can operate with nearly any entertainment device. Setting up the systems should be especially easy, and all parts and instructions are in plain English.

“Many of today’s home entertainment systems are feature-rich, but if an owner can’t access those features, they don’t offer any real value,” said Doug Lankford, director of home theater product marketing for Bose. “The new Lifestyle systems deliver what’s been missing in the market — a truly simplified, high-quality home theater system.”

The V35 lists for $3,299.95 and the T20 for $1,999.95.

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May 14

Integra Ships 3D-Ready Receiver

Posted in: Today's Chili

IntegraDTR.jpg

We’re all going to hear a lot more about 3D home video this year, and Integra is ready for the revolution. It has introduced two 3D-video-ready THX Select 2 Plus certified home theater receivers. They allow home theater owners to take full advantage of that extra dimension in video and sound.

The Integra DTR-30.2 and the DTR-20.2 use HDMI 1.4a A/V, so they can pass 3D signals from the player to a 3D video display, while simultaneously extracting uncompressed full-definition soundtracks using Dolby True-HD or DTS-HS Master Audio. They’re compatible with 3D broadcast formats, and have five rear HDMI inputs and one output. The DTR-30.2 also has a front panel HDMI input. They’re available now for $800 and $600.

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May 13

The Best $250 Blu-ray Players, Reviewed [Battlemodo]

Posted in: blu-ray, feature, LG, Panasonic, review, samsung, sony, Today's Chili, top

I’ve argued that a Blu-ray player could soon be your only set-top box. These $200-$250 models, the four fullest-featured you’re likely to buy, all strive to be Swiss Army-like in their utility, but only one comes closest to the promise. More »

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May 04

Electronic House crowns 2010 Home of the Year award winners

Posted in: luxury, Today's Chili
It’s that time of the year again, when the folks from Electronic House recognize the most impressive and downright jaw-dropping homes and home theaters they’ve seen since the last awards were handed out. While the categories cover everything from more modest home theaters to the best kitchens and outdoor spaces, the standout has to be the award for best home theater over $250,000, which this year went to the theater pictured above put together by First Impressions Theme Theaters. While the exact price doesn’t appear to have been disclosed, the home theater was apparently four and half months in the making, and centers around a 174-inch screen (which can be adjusted for scope ratio) and a TITAN 1080p-250 Pro Series projector that itself weighs in at 200 pounds. That, of course, is just the beginning — the room also includes a Crestron automation system that automatically adjusts the lighting and changes the sky on the ceiling when folks enter, sound-proofing that lets you “hear your heartbeat,” a completely concealed Genelec surround sound system, a custom dog bed, and Italian leather CineLounger seats complete with LED-lit glowing cup holders, to name just a few standout features. Hit up the source link below for the complete details, and the rest of the award winners.

Electronic House crowns 2010 Home of the Year award winners originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 May 2010 07:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apr 27

Denons New A/V Receivers: Now You Can Afford One

Posted in: Today's Chili

AVR391BK.jpg

Denon Electronics is celebrating 100 years of operation (what kind of A/V gear was it selling in 1910?) with a blowout line of products. It’s also hoping that, after a recessionary year of low spending, people are ready to shop again. At a press event in New York City, Denon unveiled a line of nine audio/video receivers.

The big news, for this cheap geek, anyway, was the addition of the AVR-391 (above), the company’s first sub-$300 A/V receiver. This model will list for $249 when it debuts in July. It won’t have all the extras of the higher-priced models, but it’s a five-channel model that includes Denon’s high audio quality.

All of the new receivers will include HDMI v1.4a repeater inputs with 3D, Audio Return Channel, and CEC (Consumer Electronics Control) support. All models except the bargain-prices AVR-391 include analog-to-HDMI conversion and HD Audio decoding from Dolby. Many of the models include multi-zone networking. Additionally, all models include iPod connectivity.

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Apr 22

Sony magically adds third dimension to new soundbars, 5.1 sound system

Posted in: audio, sony, speaker, speakers, Today's Chili

The 3.1 channel HT-CT350 and HT-CT150 soundbars a) don’t require special glasses to use and b) look fairly flat to us, but — along with the 1,000 watt HT-SF470 5.1 surround system — but the magic is in their HDMI repeaters (three inputs, one output) capable of 3D and standby passthrough just like Sony’s latest higher end equipment. The 400 watt HT-CT350 steps it up by shipping with a mounting bracket that affixes it to bottom of select 40-inch (and up) 2010 BRAVIA HDTVs, while the 340 watt HT-CT150 attaches to select 32-inch sets. You’ll also find LPCM support via HDMI and BRAVIA Sync compatibility, and if you’re drinking the Kool-Aid, you can find the 40-inch CT350 on sale next month for $400, the 32-inch CT150 retailing for around $300 and the 5.1 SF470 hitting shops in June for $550.

Gallery: Sony HT-CT350, HT-CT150 and HT-SF470

Continue reading Sony magically adds third dimension to new soundbars, 5.1 sound system

Sony magically adds third dimension to new soundbars, 5.1 sound system originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 22 Apr 2010 08:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apr 20

DTS, Pantech Partner for Smartphone Audio

Posted in: audio, MP3 Digital Audio, Smartphones, Today's Chili, video
Pantech_Impact.jpg

Pantech and DTS have announced a joint initiative to bring DTS digital surround audio decoding to Pantech smartphones.
Since the average cell phone doesn’t come with a 5.1 surround system and a powered subwoofer, clearly there’s something different going on here: Pantech said that at launch, each of the company’s new smartphones will include a DTS Legacy decoder with 2-channel analog and 2-channel PCM output through a mini HDMI port.
That means users should be able to stream content from their phones to external sources while preserving the DTS encoding. It should also go a long way toward ensuring that audiophiles won’t be shortchanged, even when moving their HD content to mobile devices–something that seems sort of niche now, but could conceivably catch on later as flash memory falls in price.
So far, Pantech has only announced plans to launch a series of DTS-compatible phones in South Korea beginning later this month; no word yet on U.S. devices.
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Apr 14

Bang & Olufsen announces BeoLab 11 subwoofer for mid-May

Posted in: audio, speakers, Today's Chili
Not getting enough “sub” with your “woofer”? Tweeters tweeting all over the place, ruining your enjoyment of the low-end? Finding yourself unable to fully appreciate your King Tubby LPs? We hate that! And so does Bang & Olufsen, fine purveyor of home audio equipment we can’t afford. The company’s newest, the BeoLab 11 subwoofer, is vaguely pornographic looking, albeit in a surreal way (please try and control yourselves in the comments, people). This bad boy promises superlative bass quality in a “strong sculptural presence.” At the very least, the designers here are trying — which is more than we can say for almost every other subwoofer on the market (though we really did like the Rubik’s Cube). Composed of two 6.5-inch drivers facing each other in an aluminum shell, this bad boy will handle the low frequencies (below 300Hz) and push 200W of bass in yo’ face. Available in North America by mid-May 2010 in silver anodized aluminum or white; black, dark gray, red, blue, and golden anodized aluminum should be available shortly thereafter. Prices begin at $2,000. PR after the break.

Continue reading Bang & Olufsen announces BeoLab 11 subwoofer for mid-May

Bang & Olufsen announces BeoLab 11 subwoofer for mid-May originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Apr 2010 12:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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