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April 28, 2009
Epson Ensemble HD Movie System
Do you want to put in a projection AV system, but don't know where to start? Epson recently launched a prepackaged system that includes:
- projector,
- 100" motorized screen,
- AV controller,
- surround audio system with subwoofer,
- and a universal remote control.
(See more high-end theaters at HGTVPro's 4th Trade)
The front speakers -- left, right and center -- are in the motorized screen housing, and the surround speakers are mounted in a cradle that holds the projector. The zoom lens on the projector allows installation anywhere from 11 to 19 feet from the screen.
The subwoofer is a separate component. All of the speakers are made by Atlantic Technology; you may not be familiar with this brand, but they have been making quality loudspeakers for years.
Epson includes all of the wires and cables that are needed to connect the various components -- along with a cable management system to conceal the wires. Just add sources such as:
- game system,
- DVD player,
- either cable or satellite.
There are thee choices for projectors; prices range from $4,699 to $7,999 for the complete kit. The $4,699 system has a 720p projector (Epson PowerLite Home Cinema 720p), the top two systems have higher-resolution 1080p projectors (Epson PowerLite Home Cinema 6100 or 6500UB)
I have not tested this system or even seen one in action, it just recently started to ship, but I have had positive experiences with other Epson home theater projectors and with Atlantic Technology speakers.
If you want a projection home theater system without the hassle of picking all of the components, you might want to check out the Epson Ensemble HD.
Posted by Bob Gatton at 9:08 AM
April 26, 2009
Red 2 Blue - Do you own any HD-DVDs?
Last year Toshiba quit marketing HD-DVD players - Blu-ray won the war for the next generation of DVDs.
I have an HD-DVD player and about 40 HD-DVD titles. The player still works and the movies look great, but this is a dead format.
Warner Bros., a producer of many HD-DVDs, recently launched a program where you can get Blu-ray copies of the HD-DVD titles that you own. Here is how it works:
- go to red2blu.com,
- select the HD-DVD titles that you own and you want a Blu-ray copy,
- mail in the cover art of the HD-DVD title (you keep the original HD-DVD movie),
- pay $4.95 per title plus $6.95 shipping and handling,
- receive you Blu-ray movies in about a month.
The fine print:
- the $6.95 shipping and handling charge ($8.95 for Hawaii, Alaska and Puerto Rico) is for all of your movies, not per movie,
- there is a limit of 25 titles per household,
- and if you own multiple copies of the same title you can only redeem one.
I can't think of any other maker of a canceled format offering to let you get copies of the your titles in another format. Did Sony offer to let you get discounted VHS copies of your Beta movies when Beta died? Nope. I would like to see the other makers of HD-DVD movies follow Warner Bros. lead. I am mailing in eleven HD-DVD movies today.
Posted by Bob Gatton at 6:35 PM | Comments (1)
April 10, 2009
Settting up a Surround Sound System
I am not an acoustical engineer, but I consider myself a serious hobbyist. I have spent too much time reading books, attending seminars and playing around with test tone CDs and sound pressure meters learning about how sound and rooms interact. You can buy some great audio equipment and the results can be poor because the room has a huge impact on how the quality of sound.
(Note: For more info on this topic, check out HGTVPro's feature on Home Theaters and Home Automation.)
It used to be whenever I was evaluating a new audio video receiver that I spent an hour or two adjusting levels, delays and other setting trying to get the best possible sound in the room. But many folks either didn't know how to do this or didn't take the time to get a good sound in the room. Too many setups just didn't sound that good.
A few years ago several companies started to include automatic room calibration in their av receivers. Though the technology involved varies, they all had the same basic process. After you installed the receiver, the set up process includes:
- connect the microphone (included) to the receiver,
- place the microphone in the primary listening position,
- with the remote, you selected the 'auto room calibration mode'.
The receiver then send various test tones to the speakers in the system and the microphone would pick up the sounds after they bounced off of the walls, ceiling, floor and furnishings in the room. The receiver would then anilyse and correct the various setting try to optimize the sound for room.
When this feature was introduced on a few receivers several years ago, the results were OK. The sound was better than if you did nothing, or only spent a few minutes trying to adjust the system, but usually fell well short of getting the set up truly dialed in.
Recently I have had the opportunity to try two receivers with much improved automatic room calibration - the Yamaha RX-V3800 (since replaced by the RX-V3900) and the Marantz SR-8003. The 3800 uses their proprietary Yamaha Parametric Room Acoustic Optimizer - YPAO, while the Marantz uses Audyssy's calibration technology.
When I was setting up each of the receivers I went through my set up with test tones and a sound pressure level meter. When I got the settings to my liking, I then stored them in the receivers memory. Next I did the auto room calibration and stored it. In both situations the auto set up sounded as good or better than my set up that took at least an hour.
Now it is easy for anyone to properly set up their receiver. Have you tried a receiver with automatic room calibration? What do you think?
(Note: Audyssy is auto calibration is available on Denon, Onkyo, NAD and Marantz products. Pioneer also has a proprietary auto calibration system MCACC, but I have not had the opportunity to test it)
Posted by Bob Gatton at 9:09 AM | Comments (3)
