Mark Fleischmann

Denon's receiver demos made good use of Dynamic Volume technology licensed from Audyssey. If the dynamics of action movie soundtracks are too much for you, you'll like the way Dynamic Volume keeps voices constant but curbs the more brutal excesses of effects -- by monitoring the signal, not just the room. If you watch TV programs via your receiver, it'll help tame those blaring ads too. Dynamic Volume is available as a firmware upgrade for some existing models. New models shown by Denon included the two-zone/two-source AVR1909, 90 watts times seven; the AVR989, 115 watts; the AVR889, 100 watts; and the AVR789, 90 watts. All have onboard decoding for Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD.

B&W has extended its CM Series with the floorstanding CM9 ($1500/each), floorstanding CM7 ($1000/each), and CM5 monitor ($750/each), so may I change the subject now? I somehow became fascinated with the chunky CT7.3LCRS (pictured, $1500/each) and its smaller siblings, the CT7.4LCRS ($1000/each) and CT7.5LCRS ($600/each). The big one has two eight-inch fiber woofers, a six-inch Kevlar midrange, and a one-inch soft dome tweeter. These three speakers can muster up to 94, 93, and 92 decibels respectively and are designed for use with front-projection systems or maybe (yuck) cabinetry. The new CMs are coming in November and the CT7s have been shipping for the past couple of months.

My reference receiver since 2001 has been the Rotel RSX-1065, so you can imagine the genuine excitement I felt at learning Rotel is about to drop its successor on an unsuspecting world. There are two of them, actually. The RSX-1560 has seven channels of Class D amplification for $2599, while the RSX-1550 has five channels of Class AB amplification for $1999. Both out in October. Please be advised that my longtime position on 7.1-channel surround (incidentally, both models process 7.1 channels) is that it's for idiots, clowns, suckers, and people who incorrectly believe that an average home theater needs more surround coverage than two speakers can provide. Other new Rotel models include a surround pre-pro, five- and two-channel amps, and (hmmm) no seven-channel amps.

Sony shattered the quasi-content-free tradition of pre-CEDIA press events with an awesome exhibition of exhibitionist tendencies. The Bravia Internet Link will host the premiere of the blockbuster Sony Pictures film Hancock with Will Smith and Charlize Theron. The Blu-ray release of same will have Digital Copy. Wait, there's more. Sony attacks lazy liquid crystals with 240Hz Motionflow, which quadruples the refresh rate and interpolates three new frames. Blu-ray has gone from 18 to 32 manufacturers in a year, including Sony of course, which will bow the BDP-S5000ES (pictured) in November for $2000. It has an HD Reality Processor that selectively enhances sharpness in areas of the picture that need it -- not unlike what Toshiba is doing. With rigid frame & beam construction and isolated circuits, this will be the Blu player to beat. Oh, and when the floor opens tomorrow, Sony will be showing a prototype of a 400-disc BD mega-changer to make its debut in 2009. Two new ES receivers will have Faroudja video processing. SACD not dead, judging from intro of XA5400ES player. Huff, puff. If other manufacturers have this much news, I'll be dead by the end of the show.