CEDIA 2012

The CEDIA Expo is supposed to be a showcase for custom home theater, multiroom sound, and home automation, but this year a lot of manufacturers didn’t seem to have read the rules. Instead of focusing on in-wall speakers or 12-channel amplifiers, they showcased wireless audio systems, desktop systems, and even headphones.

Both Sony and LG had 84-inch edge-lit LCD TVs on display at CEDIA. What distinguishes these sets from other oversized TVs from companies like Sharp, etc. is that they have a resolution of 4K (actually, 3,840 x 2,160, or “Quad Full” HD).

At the 2012 CEDIA Expo today, KEF introduced a product that should have appeal for a great many real world audiophiles - the new X300A desktop powered speaker system.

New CEDIA, new JVC projectors. Seven, in this case. As we’ve come to expect, the new models offer a little better performance and new features at lower price point.

Starting at $3,499, and perhaps most interesting, JVC’s 4K e-shift technology will now be available at $5,000.

All the info and more images after the jump.

Even though soundbars were pioneered by midline speaker companies like Definitive Technology and Polk, TV companies such as Samsung and Vizio kinda took over the category with ~$300 self-powered models that you didn’t have to connect to a receiver.

In a sign of the times, Sony and Control4 announced today that a pair of Sony's top-of-the-line ES receivers (the $2,099 9.2 channel STR-DA5800ES and the $999 7.1 channel STR-DA2800ES in particular), would include Control4 automation right out of the box (single-room, entertainment-center-specific flavor only), with upgradability to a full Control4 Activation License available for $300 through your friendly neighborhood system integrator.

Under-TV speakers should have taken off years ago. They give you all the benefit of a soundbar but they’re a lot easier to install. Just place one  under a flat-panel TV, connect a cable or two, and you have a reasonable facsimile of home theater sound in a matter of minutes.