CEDIA 2009

Pioneer has no new A/V receivers at the show, but it did announce that several Elite AVRs are now THX-certified. What's the big deal about that, you ask? These are the first products with Class D digital amplifiers to receive such certification. Also newly THX-certified is the BDP-09 Blu-ray player.

The continued flattening of video displays makes bulky premium HDMI cable look ever more like an anachronism. That's why Monster Cable has introduced the SuperThin HDMI cable. It's 75 percent thinner than Monster's usual HDMIs. A sexy swivel adapter further enhances its flexibility -- and, by the way, Monster's flat-panel screen mounts are now less than a half-inch thick. Another Monster product is billed as the world's fastest HDMI cable, carrying 21Gbps up to 50 feet, with the help of active circuitry from Gennum. Monster's Noel Lee: "Consumers need to be freed from the fear of obsolescence." After all, with analog cables, "you never had to worry about your cables expiring." More Monster news covered uninterruptible power supplies, powerline conditioners, high-end Turbine earbuds, and other headphone lines. They don't call this company Monster for nothing. Ever the party animal, Monster always throws a party at major shows, and this year's CEDIA party will be called "The Recession's Almost Over Party." That's the kind of attitude we like.

Look closely at the upper righthand corner of the Integra DTR-80.1 receiver back panel and you'll see a VGA input for your PC, a relative rarity. With nine amp channels (and 11 sets of binding posts) it's armed for bear. You might use those extra channels for width or height speakers, thanks to Audyssey DSX, or for height via Dolby Pro Logic IIz. Also shown were two other receivers and two preamp-processors. Integra products are sold through custom integrators only. See press release for pricing and further details.

JVC surprised me with the intro of a 3D-capable LCD TV. The 46-inch GD-463D10 uses circular polarization and passive polarized glasses to achieve the 3D effect, which uses alternate lines on the screen for each eye, effectively cutting the vertical resolution in half. It can also display 1080p at full resolution in 2D. The GD-463D10 is available now for $8995. I thought the demo looked pretty good, but not good enough to change my mind about preferring a good 2D image.

Aside from the DLS-RS4000 4K behemoth, no less than six new projectors were announced at JVC's press conference today—three in the Reference series from the company's professional division and three in the Procision line from the consumer group, all with HQV video processing. At the top of the heap are the DLA-HD990 and RS35, which feature hand-selected and -tuned optics, 70,000:1 native contrast ratio with no dynamic iris, inverse telecine back to 24fps with 96Hz refresh rate, and ISF and THX certification. Both will list for $10,000 and should be available this month. Stepping down the model ladder, we come to the HD950 and RS25, with 50,000:1 contrast and THX movie mode for $8000. The entry level is occupied by the HD550 ($5000) and RS15 ($5500) with 35,000:1 and 30,000:1 contrast, respectively. The demos looked quite good, especially because JVC always goes to great lengths to show its projectors in a darkened environment.

JVC is introducing a whole new range of its DILA projectors at the show. There are six new models, three from the consumer division and three essentially identical models from the pro division. The star of the six is the DLA0RS35 (pro, $10,000), available this month. It has a claimed peak contrast ratio of 70,000:1, adds JVC's 120Hz Clear Motion Drive, and is both THX- and ISF-certified. The consumer version is the DLA-HD990, at the same price.

Despite the economic hard times, lighting-control leader Lutron continued the tradition of honoring its best dealers at a big soiree, presenting its Excellence Awards in various categories. The event was held Wednesday evening at the Georgia Aquarium, said to be the largest in the world. After the ceremony, attendees were allowed to roam the exhibits, which are home to a huge variety of aquatic life, including whale sharks and beluga whales. The eel pictured here looked pretty happy to see all the visitors.