LATEST ADDITIONS

CEDIA 2009
Wisdom L100i/C150i Redux
Scott Wilkinson  |  Sep 10, 2009

After blogging about these in-wall speakers before the show, I was eager to hear them for myself. The demo consisted of some CD selections in 2.1 (using the new SCS subwoofer, about which more in the next post), multichannel audio from DVD concert videos, and a clip from <I>Monsters, Inc.</I> shown on a Screen Research ClearPix2 woven, acoustically transparent screen. The system controller provides Audyssey MultEQ XT and several memories for different setups&#151;music, movies, speakers behind a screen or not, etc.&#151;and the result sounded great, with deep, clean bass and excellent imaging.

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CEDIA 2009
Projectiondesign Quantum
Scott Wilkinson  |  Sep 10, 2009

I hadn't heard of the Quantum before the show. This is Projectiondesign's "entry level" projector, which should be shipping next month for roughly $11,750, depending on the selected lens. It's small but mighty with a 220W UHP lamp and high-quality optics.

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CEDIA 2009
Projectiondesign Helios Redux
Scott Wilkinson  |  Sep 10, 2009

The demo of Projectiondesign's 3-chip DLP Helios was mighty impressive on a 2.35:1, 11-foot-wide Da-Lite Affinity screen. The clip was from <I>10,000 B.C.</I>, an eminently forgettable movie that was chosen because it was color-graded on a Projectiondesign projector. The dual-lamp Helios was at its minimum lamp and iris settings to accommodate the screen, which means it can easily fill a screen up to 16 feet wide. Like the Kroma, the Helios produced very natural skin tones and razor-sharp detail.

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CEDIA 2009
Projectiondesign Kroma Redux
Scott Wilkinson  |  Sep 10, 2009

I blogged about this LED-illuminated DLP projector before the show, but now I've seen a demo, which looked great on a Da-Lite Affinity screen (0.95 gain), even with some ambient light. The LEDs are claimed to have a 100,000-hour lifespan, which corresponds to 12 or 13 years of normal use. Colors looked quite natural thanks to the advanced calibration process that assures an accurate color gamut and grayscale.

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CEDIA 2009
Pioneer THX-Certified Architectural Speakers
Scott Wilkinson  |  Sep 10, 2009

Completing Pioneer's THX story at CEDIA is the newly announced certification of its Elite EX series of architectural speakers. As a result, the company now offers THX-certified products that encompass the entire signal path from Blu-ray player through A/V receiver to speakers.

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CEDIA 2009
Pioneer THX-Certified Class-D AVRs
Scott Wilkinson  |  Sep 10, 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.

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CEDIA 2009
Pioneer Project ET
Scott Wilkinson  |  Sep 10, 2009

Atlantic Technology isn't the only company with a concept product at CEDIA. Pioneer is showing its Project ET (Entertainment Tap), a networking paradigm that could be incorporated into a real product by next year. The Linux-based box being demonstrated at the show holds a 1TB (terabyte) hard disk, optical drive that can read Blu-ray, DVD, and CD as well as burn DVD and CD, HDMI I/O, and USB and RS-232 ports; in fact, up to 128 USB devices can be connected, including more hard disks.

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CEDIA 2009
Monster Makes HDMI Thin and Fast
Mark Fleischmann  |  Sep 10, 2009
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.
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CEDIA 2009
Trufig Makes Custom Fixtures Almost Disappear
Mark Fleischmann  |  Sep 10, 2009
Trufig is a new brand from the founders of Sonance. Its job is to make touchscreens, lightswitches, and other custom installable goodies practically disappear into the wall, as you can see in the pic -- old-style fixtures at right, disappearing ones at left. It was inspired by the after-the-fact design process that's been taking place when Sonance's architectural speakers come up against the wishes of architects and interior designers. The things being made to disappear are not actually Sonance or Trufig products but things like Crestron touchscreens and Lutron light fixtures. Starting at $300 for a single-gang fixture, Trufig is not cheap, but it will presumably find its way into the high-end custom install market.
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CEDIA 2009
Integra Receiver Is PC Savvy
Mark Fleischmann  |  Sep 10, 2009
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.
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