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Revel Concerta 5.1 Speaker System
Revel is the upscale speaker division of Harman International, which includes Infinity, Harmon Kardon, JBL and Lexicon. Revel has been making speakers since 1996 and makes the Ultima2 (~ $26K/pair) and Performa series from which the Concerta gets its lineage. The chief designer of these speakers is Kevin Voecks who also has had a hand in developing speakers for Snell and Mirage. With an audio testing facility built by Harman International in California, all Revel speakers go through a rigorous testing process for voicing and timbral accuracy.
Emotiva USP-1 Stereo Preamplifier
Emotiva's new USP-1 stereo preamplifier, at $399, sets a new standard in performance in low priced components. Besides the standard full range outputs, this preamp offers a split output where you can adjust the low-pass frequency for one (which goes to your subwoofer) and the high-pass frequency for the other (which goes to your main power amplifier). This allows you to essentially bi-amplify, and with the low frequencies removed from the high-passed output, your power amplifier will run more efficiantly, not having to waste power on low frequencies that your speakers cannot reproduce. And, they toss in a phono stage that has both MC and MM settings. This may mark the beginning of phono stages being a standard part of stereo preamplifiers, rather than having to purchase an outboard phono stage. Long live LP's! Oh, there's a headphone jack too.
Sony BDP-S5000ES Blu-ray Player – Benchmark
The Sony ES line has always represented the very best of what Sony has to offer. The ES stands for Sony's Elevated Standard and the BDP-S5000ES is Sony's premier Blu-ray/DVD player, offering a host of features targeted at the audiophile and videophile who is looking for the very best.
“Imagine” (NAD Blu-ray Player and Receiver, PSB Speakers)
Welcome to the inaugural Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity system review! We are planning to publish a series of similar reviews to highlight system packages in the Low (up to $2,500 MSRP), Medium ($2,501 - $5,000 MSRP) and High (over $5,000 MSRP) price categories. The systems will all include a source component, receiver (or prepro and amp), speakers and sub (optional). We will also evaluate products in the burgeoning soundbar category. We will strive to select balanced systems that will offer the best value in their respective price ranges. These reviews will be focused on helping readers select turnkey systems for new installations or upgrades.
NAD T587 Blu-ray Disc Player – Benchmark
The NAD T587 represents NAD's first foray into the Blu-ray arena. NAD started big by building the T587 to the Blu-ray Profile 2.0 spec. The T587 can also handle CD and DVD discs among other formats such as DiVX. It is not a universal player and will not spin DVD Audio or SACD discs. Its circuitry is based on the Broadcom decoder. A nice touch is that the player comes with auxiliary feet that closely resemble Vibrapods. This player is reviewed as one of the Imagine Affordable System components.
PSB SubSeries 6i Subwoofer
The PSB Subseries 6i subwoofer is a very unassuming-looking product, albeit a little on the large size by today's standards. It has a single 12" driver in a ported enclosure. There are two ports that exit at the bottom front of the cabinet. The volume and crossover controls are mounted along the bottom of the front part of the cabinet as well. This arrangement allows the 6i to be mounted inside a cabinet.
NAD T 747 AV Surround Sound Receiver
The NAD T747 AV Surround Sound Receiver is a 7-channel two zone receiver that is capable of decoding bitstream inputs of all the latest high-resolution audio formats. I like its understated styling a la NAD. The minimalist front panel has a simple two-line VFD display in the center of the panel. The characters on this display are about 3/8" high. This is a major improvement over the super small logos that are commonly found in so many of today's receivers and processors.
PSB Imagine B Bookshelf Speakers
The Imagine speakers are PSB's newest speaker line. There are four models in this line – The Imagine T towers, the Imagine B bookshelf speakers, the Imagine C center speaker and the Imagine S surround speakers. I opted to review the Imagine B's for the mains versus the much more common towers for two reasons – first, this is the inaugural Secrets system review and the point is to review affordable system and the bookshelf speakers are somewhat less expensive than the towers and secondly, my system works better with bookshelf speakers.
Flagship Home Theater – Part 2: Anthem Statement D2v Audio/Video Processor and Statement A5 Five-Channel Power Amplifier
In Part 1 of Flagship Home Theater, I covered the video side with Anthem's LTX-500 LCoS 1080p projector and the Black Diamond II screen from SI Screens. Now let's look at the other half of the home theater equation: the sound. To round out my Flagship Home Theater experience, I tested the Anthem Statement D2v A/V Processor and A5 five-channel power amplifier.
Earthquake Titan Telesto Floor-standing Speakers and Supernova MKVI 10″ Subwoofer
Earthquake Sound has just introduced the Titan Telesto floor-standing speakers. They are 50" high and have a unique horn-loaded tweeter as well as a conventional dome tweeter. Two 4" drivers handle the midrange, with a side-mounted 8" woofer dealing out the low frequencies. They are beautifully finished in black piano lacquer and are priced at $4,999 for the pair. Earthquake also sent their Supernova MKVI 10" subwoofer, because I had been so impressed with the 15" version, and I wanted to see how the smaller one performed. Well, it performed! And so did the Telestos . . . .
Ultrasone Pro 900 Over-the-Ear Headphones
Recently, I have started to put more of a focus on using headphones in my office instead of speakers. I enjoy listening to music while working, but my cubicle neighbors don't necessarily appreciate the same type of music that I prefer. When a pair of Ultrasone Pro 900 headphones became available for review, I obtained them to see how they would work in my setup and how they compare to my current reference headphones, the AKG K701's.
Sony VPL-HW10 LCoS Projector
This is the third in a semi-regular series looking at affordable front projector systems, particularly projectors that don't require a dedicated theater space. So far, we've looked at Sanyo and Mitsubishi projectors. Until recently, I had not considered Sony's SXRD front projectors as candidates, for a couple of reasons. First, Sony projectors were not what I would classify as "affordable," with MSRP's typically starting at $5,000. Plus, the Ruby and Pearl models were really designed for dedicated rooms; they have limited lens adjustments and are not known for exceptionally bright output.
Panasonic AG-HSC-1UP 3-CCD 1080p High Definition Video Camera
Panasonic's AG-HSC1UP High Definition Camcorder has 3 CCDs, records at 1080p in the AVCHD format, and comes with a portable hard drive to transfer your videos when you fill up the included SD memory card that holds about 1.5 hours of video recorded at the highest quality (13 Mbps). It has a 12x optical zoom, and is very compact.
Bryston 4B SST2 Stereo Power Amplifier
Bryston Ltd. is a Canadian company which has been designing and manufacturing audio equipment for over 35 Years. While there are many companies competing in their market, Bryston's gear is coveted by enthusiasts and professionals alike. They have earned the reputation of providing bullet-proof reliability, high performance and value. Byston's value is not due to a bargain basement price. It's the sound and their 20 year guarantee of high performance that can make a Bryston purchase a value. This remarkable warranty speaks to Bryston's confidence in their own quality standards, and it is definitely the exception versus the rule in the A/V industry.