Fred Manteghian

I just watched a short high definition demo on SIM HT 3000. That's their new 1920 x 1080 7 segment color whell DLP projector. With dual HDMI inputs and a 1.5-2.0 lens (a 2.0-3.0 lens is coming soon as well). The picture on a large screen was excellent and the unit's bluer than gunmetal finish was attractive as well. Price will be around $16,000.

We saw several studios within JVC's Aoyama facility. Each has its own unique acoustical properties and features. This one, studio 401, has a wood floor and the top of its two story high walls are also adorned in wood.

When you’re young, life is exciting and you're full of verve, or diet-verve at least. Then you get older and start noticing how crappy things really are. And so goes the TV season. Way back in early November, I penned a blog called <A HREF="http://blog.ultimateavmag.com/fredmanteghian/110805slyfi/" Target=New> Sly-Fi </A> about three new shows, all of them available in high definition, that fell, albeit broadly, into the realm of science fiction. The fact that I originally trashed the shows is no reason to assume I'd stop watching them. Here's the late season prognosis.

Denon's DVP-602CI is playing to a small marketplace, but they're playing. This 6-in, 2-out HDMI unit may look like a simple switcher, but it can scale as well, up to 1080p. Why I'm showing you the business end of this unit instead of the face plate, is so you can see the two component (one RCA style, one BNC) inputs and the s-video and composite inputs that make this Denon capable of feeding everything to your video display via a single cable. Like I said, it's a niche player, but if you're in the market and have $2,499 to spare, look no further.