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CEDIA 2013
Focal Goes to Great Lengths
Thomas J. Norton  |  Sep 30, 2013
Focal has a whole new line of loudspeakers slotting in just below the company's Electra range. The Aria series' signature feature is the use of cones consisting of a layer of flax sandwiched between layers of fiberglass. The result is said to produce a diaphragm that's stiff, light, and less time consuming to produce than the layered cones used in Focal's more pricey designs. There are currently five models in the range, shown here with the flagship 948 ($5000/pair) in front. The Aria CC 900 center is not shown, but somewhat disappointingly it's a conventional two-way woofer-tweeter-woofer design and not a 3-way with a centered, vertically-arrayed midrange and tweeter.
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CEDIA 2013
Sony's Big 4K
Thomas J. Norton  |  Sep 27, 2013
In the market for a movie-theater size home theater with a projector to match. Sony has your number. This 4K giant is based on Sony's pro theater projectors, modified to be suitable for home theater, including HDMI inputs, of course. It can be yours for only $125,000. The lens is extra!
CEDIA 2013
Sony's Highlights Curved LCD HDTV
Thomas J. Norton  |  Sep 27, 2013
Passersby wondered if this was an OLED set (no luck there&mdashSony showed no such product) or a 4K HDTV (despite Sony's clear 4K leanings, it wasn't that either.) Nor was it an XBR; all Sony XBRs are now 4K.

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CEDIA 2013
First Impressions
Thomas J. Norton  |  Sep 27, 2013
Companies hoping to sell you their high-priced home theater recliners were, as usual, all over the place at CEDIA, but none of them could match the little number at the lower left for sheer Victorian chic.
CEDIA 2013
Vicoustic Acoustic Treatment
Thomas J. Norton  |  Sep 27, 2013
Vicoustic USA is a company new to me in the field of acoustic treatment. They offer a wide range of products, including some unique absorbers and diffusers, for that application. Many of them are less expensive, in my experience, than many of the similar devices currently available. They begin as low as $75 each for an approximately 2-foot square panel (but only available in a package of 10), though the prices can escalate rapidly when you get to premium products such as all wood diffusers.
CEDIA 2013
Da-Lite Does 4K Screens
Thomas J. Norton  |  Sep 27, 2013
Any screen can be used for 4K projection, but unless the screen surface is sufficiently smooth and free of roughness or graininess, those tiny 4K pixels can be degraded. Da-Lite features a wide range of screen materials that it argues are 4K-ready.
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CEDIA 2013
Future Automation Does Fireplaces
Thomas J. Norton  |  Sep 27, 2013
Mounting a flat screen HDTV over the fireplace is a favorite trick of decorators everywhere. It's also a terrible idea, unless you don't mind a sore neck from looking up. But it doesn't have to be that way.

Future Automation isn't the first company to offer a mounting bracket that moves the TV out then down to a more comfortable position, but such devices are still not common. And this one isn't cheap. At about $3000, $4000 for a model that also swivels, it costs more than many HDTVs! And you obviously shouldn't use it in the down position with a fire in the fireplace!

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CEDIA 2013
Oh Joy, Carpets
Thomas J. Norton  |  Sep 27, 2013
For the adventurous home theater, Joy Carpets & Co, offers a range of carpets, from conventional to truly wild.

Not to be a party pooper, but the best carpet for a darkened home theater using a projector and screen is as close to jet flat black as you can manage. Black walls and ceilings, too. Just sayin'.

I think a hundred or so interior decorators were just administered CPR.

CEDIA 2013
JVC Pro Does Ultra HDTV
Thomas J. Norton  |  Sep 27, 2013
In addition to its full lineup of new eShift3 projectors, and impressive demonstrations of them in its booth at the Denver Convention Center and at an off-site location, JVC also announced an 84-inch, 4K monitor at $13,500. The set was shown only at that off-site location, and as it is apparently intended for the pro market, it was not shown on the CEDIA show floor.
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CEDIA 2013
Planar's Writable 4K UltraHD Display
Thomas J. Norton  |  Sep 27, 2013
Planar showed an 84-inch UHD set available in a variety of configurations: a straight display, a somewhat brighter straight display, a display with a writable surface (shown here) and more. It can also show four standard HD programs at the same time in opposing quadrants of the screen. Pricing was a little confusing, but plan on at least $20,000 and up, depending on the version you choose.

Planar is the company that bought out Runco a few years back, but if they are still making projectors they weren't showing them this year. The passing of Runco as a distinct entity is notable in the annals of CEDIA EXPO. That company nearly always had one of the largest booths at the show.

ADDENDA: In scoping out the Wisdom Audio demo (discussed elsewhere here) I noted that it was using a 3-chip Runco DLP projector. Under Planar, Runco projectors are indeed still available.

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