Sigma's new DP1 compact digital camera has the same large Foveon sensor as in the SD14 DSLR, yet it can fit in your pocket. Read Secrets exclusive, detailed bench test report to see how it compares with its larger SLR cousins.
With the TX-SR806 Onkyo further pushes the bar of what can be done within a $1100 Reciever: THX Ultra2 Plus certification, 1080 line video processor, and the full suite of audio processing. Did they give anything up? Our Brian Florian investigates.
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (Blu-ray), Knocked Up (Blu-ray), Dawn of the Dead (Blu-ray), Land of the Dead (Blu-ray), The Incredible Hulk (Blu-ray), The James Bond Series (Six Films) (Blu-ray) . . . more coming!
Torus Power makes as wide an array of isolation transformers as I have ever encountered. The 100 amp version (RM-100) would be a great addition for supplying isolated AC to an entire home theater in custom install situations, but a small one like the RM-10 is useful especially for digital sources and projectors, the total power of which does not exceed 10 amperes.
CEDIA 2008 is meeting in Denver, Colorado from September 3-9. Our show report will be a running commentary as Secrets staff uploads their comments and photos here.
Baby Mama (Blu-ray), Point Break (Blu-ray), The Love Guru (Blu-ray), Pirates of the Caribbean Collection (Blu-ray), Leatherheads (Blu-ray), Forgetting Sarah Marshall (Blu-ray), The Godfather Trilogy (Blu-ray), Kill Bill: Volumes 1 and 2 (Blu-ray), Iron Man (Blu-ray), Hulk (Blu-ray), Speed Racer (Blu-ray), The Thing (Blu-ray), Casino (Blu-ray)
The Sony PMW-EX1 is a Prosumer HD video camera that is quite affordable ($7,499) when you take into account that it will record 1080p30. That's right. Remember how we have all been talking about the day when HDTV programs might begin broadcasting in 1080p instead of 1080i? Well, if it isn't actually part of program broadcasting yet, you can have it for all your home videos. Those birthday parties, daughter's wedding, trip to Europe . . . . you can record them in 1080p30 with a camera that is reasonably portable (it comes with its own small suitcase).
No, it's not one of the pocket sized HD cameras, but you can carry it around without too much difficulty. And, as you will see, the image quality is vastly superior to any consumer HD camera of the past. It's studio quality, affordable to the aficionado.
Chrysalis by Velodyne is a new line of affordable subwoofers that you will be able to find in electronics supermarkets, likely at discounted prices. They utilize the renown Velodyne technology, which means they deliver prodigious deep bass.
When attending CES and Rocky Mountain Audio Fest over the past couple of years, I noticed that turntables are starting to be the majority of sources for exhibit rooms. We all have heard about the vinyl renaissance, but I just did not realize how strong it is. I mean, LPs are being played everywhere at hi-fi shows.
Hannah Montana and Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert (3-D, Blu-ray), Nixon (Blu-ray), Camp Rock (Blu-ray), Only the Valiant (SD DVD), The Forbidden Kingdom (Blu-ray), Rolling Stones: Shine a Light (Blu-ray), Transformers (Blu-ray), Smart People (Blu-ray), Meet the Browns (Blu-ray)
I really don't know what else to say here. The F80 is a very simple, very elegant, and fantastic way to play incredible sounding music from your favorite FM stations as well as CDs and iPod, all from an enclosure not much larger than a shoebox.
I found both video and audio quality of the TViX M6500A to be exceptional, and over the last few months, some of the firmware updates have already made this unit significantly more stable and better than its previous versions. Given that DViCO has been quite adamant in providing support for existing products and continually improving them, I have no doubt they will succeed in turning this unit into an ever more powerful item over the upcoming months.
With no reservation, and by every standard, this is a world class subwoofer. It has massive output, low distortion, and all from a mid-sized enclosure. The price might put some consumers off, but I never heard anyone complain about investing money in a good subwoofer. Save your pennies, and do it.
The Ruins (Blu-ray), Drillbit Taylor (Blu-ray), Mad Men (Blu-ray), Batman: The Movie (Blu-ray), The Bank Job (Blu-ray), Patriot Games (Blu-ray), Belly (Blu-ray), High Noon (SD DVD), Clear and Present Danger (Blu-ray), The Sum of All Fears (Blu-ray) . . . more coming.
Editor-in-Chief Emeritus. John E. Johnson, Jr. founded Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity in 1994, shortly after publishing a hardcopy book of the same title. He served as Editor-in-Chief of Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity until 2022. John has been involved in audio and video for more than 50 years, having built radio transmitters, amplifiers, turntables, and speakers from scratch. He was also one of the founders of the Northern California Audio Video Association, now The Bay Area Audio Society.
John holds four university degrees, including a Ph.D. in Neuroscience, and has published numerous scientific books, along with dozens of scientific articles on biomedical research topics as well as imaging technology. He was the founder and Editor-in-Chief of two medical/scientific journals for 20 years. John holds several patents, including one on high resolution image analysis and one on a surgical instrument. He has been affiliated with NASA, The National Institutes of Health, The Johns Hopkins University, Stanford Research Institute, and The University of California at Berkeley. He is President of the consulting firm Scientific Design and Information, Inc., which is based in Redwood City, California.
John resides in the San Francisco Bay area with his wife and multiple kitties! His daughter, Cynthia, who was an integral part of SECRETS for many years, resides in San Francisco.
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