rAVe HomeAV Edition Volume 4, Issue 20 – October 30, 2007

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Editorial

It's the End of the World as We Know It…
By Aldo Cugnini
Insight Media

AnalystAs is now becoming more widely known, U.S. broadcasters will be required to terminate analog broadcasting on February 17, 2009, as dictated by Federal law. In anticipation of the analog cutoff, the Federal Communications Commission has required manufacturers to stop building analog-only sets as of March of this year, and retailers to post warning messages on all remaining analog sets in inventory.

The move by Best Buy is said to be one to help boost awareness of the analog cutoff. In practicality, it was also prompted by lagging sales of the units, together with a conservative attitude to avoid fines – the Commission having already issued more than $3M in fines or citations to more than 150 companies including Wal-Mart, Radio Shack, Fred Meyer, Syntax-Brillian and Maxent.

Best Buy said it was the first electronics retailer to publicly announce an exit from analog sets. "The majority of people don't know about (the analog cutoff)," Mike Vitelli, Best Buy senior vice president of electronics, said in an interview, and Vitelli estimated that 25 million to 30 million households with analog TVs would be affected by the change. "The analog TV portion of our assortment has been dwindling each year," Vitelli said, adding, "Customers can now be sure that any television they purchase at Best Buy will be fully compliant with the digital television transition. And for customers who aren't in the market for a new television, we can help you find the best solution to meet your needs."

Both Best Buy and Circuit City have announced their intent to stock shelves with DTV converter boxes (needed to prevent the obsolescence of existing analog TVs), and to honor the $40 coupons that will become available from the NTIA starting in January. It is not known when the boxes themselves will first become available, although manufacturers such as LG (Zenith) and Thomson (RCA) have suggested it will happen early in the year.

The decline of the analog TV follows that of analog sound and video recording devices, with one big difference: a government mandate has made the difference between a slow and a relatively rapid transition. (Perhaps the last holdout will be that of radio broadcasting, and with no sunset date on the books, the takeoff of digital radio services may take some time.) Although VCRs may soon be supplanted by DVD recorders, the former devices are still being used to play vast home libraries of VHS tapes, and will continue to do so for some time. It may be these and game consoles which retain additional use for existing analog sets.

Also consider that an interesting side problem now looms as many owners scrap their analog TVs for digital ones. Will there be a glut of new pollutants at refuse and land fill sites? Perhaps there's an opportunity here for someone to start a reclamation/recycling business for old lead-laden analog TVs.

In the meantime, one potential source of consumer confusion appears to be fading out, and that should be good for DTV sales. As R.E.M. put it, "And I Feel Fine."

About Insight Media: Insight Media (www.insightmedia.info) is a leading market and technology research firm providing its unique Opportunity Analysis for manufacturers and resellers of electronic displays and their components. Opportunity Analysis evaluates technology, market data, competitive factors, user applications, business and distribution elements and combines them into an integrated strategic operational guide. Insight Media also provides timely newsletters, detailed assessments, global market reports, focused industry conferences, and tactical consulting.

You can request a free sample of ProjectionMonthly by clicking here: http://www.insightmedia.info

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Rhapsody Digital Music Service Now Available on TiVo

Available via a broadband-connected TiVo, the music service lets TiVo subscribers search for music directly from their TiVo box and instantly play anything from Rhapsody's four-million-song music catalog. Users can browse charts of Rhapsody's most popular, artists, albums and songs, check out weekly lists of new releases, or listen to thousands of radio stations. TiVo users can also use the famous peanut remote's Thumbs Up and Thumbs Down buttons to rate their favorite music, then Rhapsody provides recommendations based on their ratings, personal music tastes and listening habits.

To kick it off, TiVo subscribers have access to a free 30-day trial of Rhapsody. Consumers can choose to continue their Rhapsody service beyond the trial period for $12.99 per month. Current Rhapsody subscribers who have broadband connected TiVo DVRs can access their existing Rhapsody music libraries (including artists, albums, playlists and channels) via their television at no extra charge.

For more information, go to http://www.tivo.com/mytivo/domore/rhapsody/index.html

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Chief Files for IPO

I am not qualified or licensed to make any sort of recommendation about an IPO or stock offering, but just so you know, I AM BUYING. Unlike with AMX went public and many of the other public offerings recently, Chief is NOT about hype. They make a solid product, one that people can understand and relate to, and have some great people on board. And, even though every mount in my house is Premier, I will be buying some of their stock!

To read an article about it, go to http://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/stories/2007/09/24/daily34.html

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Brubaker Named Vice President of Sales at Da-Lite Screen Company

Blake Brubaker, with Da-Lite Screen Company for 14 years, was promoted to the newly-created position of Vice President of Sales for its North American operations. As well as heading the direct sales force for the U.S. and Canada, Brubaker will manage the company's manufacturer's representative sales group who call on the home theater market.

Brubaker was most recently Systems Display Manager that included calling directly on audio visual consultants, account management, plus business and market development. He joined Da-Lite in 1993 as an Internal Sales Partner and was then promoted to Inside Sales Manager then in 1997, became Director of Marketing. In 1999, he took over the role of Director of Home Theater Sales.

Brubaker is the author of Da-Lite's Angles of Reflection, a new series of industry white papers frequently published in rAVe.

Congratulations, Blake!

For more on Da-Lite, go to http://www.dalite.com/

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New From Hitachi: Very Short Throw Distance Projector

This projector is specified at 2500 ANSI lumens, XGA resolution and 400:1 contrast ratio. It has monitor-out and is networkable. It can also be placed vertically or horizontally. It comes with security features.

For more information, go to http://www.hitachi.us/supportingdocs/forhome/DisplayTechnologiesGroup/news/HALCP-A100ser.pdf

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Runco's New Outdoor Weatherproof LCD TV

A 2006 study performed by Quixel Research1, profiling the viability of the outdoor display landscape in the U.S., provided compelling analysis that the outdoor display segment is on track to quadruple between 2007 and 2009. Quixel's most recent study found that significant outdoor living spaces, as well as complementing amenities, have become commonplace in the planning processes of luxury custom home builders, designers, architects and CEDIA professionals.

MSRP is $8,995 and it will be available in November.

For more information, go to http://www.runco.com/wp-42hd.html

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New High Res 19-Inch Samsung Monitor Marketed for Business and Home

The 942BW monitor features Samsung's proprietary Magic technologies for enhanced performance and image quality: MagicTune, MagicBright3 and MagicSpeed. MagicTune is an on-screen interface that allows users to control all of the Magic Technology picture adjustments by using their mouse. MagicBright3 automatically optimizes brightness, contrast and gamma correction, based on the specific application, such as Text, Internet, Movie, Game, Sports, Custom and Print View modes to help ensure the best picture quality. MagicSpeed provides for the ultra-fast response time.

The 942BW monitor carries an MSRP of $249.99.

It doesn't appear to be on the website yet, but you can see it on Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-SyncMaster-Widescreen-Monitor-Adjustable/dp/B000WEFRWA

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Accell Introduces UltraRun HDMI 1.3a Cables

The company says the UltraRun HDMI 1.3 cables support rich 48-bit deep color, 340MHz (10.2Gbps) high-speed bandwidth, up to 1440p resolution, and Dolby True HD and DTS-HD audio formats.

For more information, go to http://www.accellcables.com/

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Progressive Scan Live Image From WolfVision

It has 4:3 native aspect ratio but the camera also outputs native 720p HD with 1280 x 720 pixels in a widescreen aspect ratio of 16:9.

This is available now for $ 4,295.

For more information, go to http://www.wolfvision.com/wolf/cameras_eye10.html

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Nine New Wall-Mount CAT-5 Balun Models From Niles

Normally used in pairs, each balun in the series is designed with a specific signal application in mind, i.e., analog audio, digital audio, composite video, S-video, cable TV, component video and VGA signal distribution. Niles wall-mount and component baluns use passive circuitry so they can be mixed and matched to provide solutions for virtually any installation. For example, a component balun can be used to send high definition video signals from a cable/satellite receiver to a wall mount balun that is installed behind a flat panel display.

All new Niles CAT5 balun models are now shipping.

For more information, go to http://www.nilesaudio.com/press/090607_Niles_CAT5.htm

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RocketGUI Digital Jukebox Music Server Claims $400 per Zone

The Digital Jukebox touch panel interface allows users to browse and search their music collections by Cover Art, Artist, Genre, and Song Title, and to create custom Playlists as well as access Internet Radio stations. The system supports up to eight independent zones of audio output with individual control of each zone.

For more information, go to http://www.rocketgui.com/

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New ELAN Multi-Room AV Controllers Provide Eight Inputs, Six Zones

There are two models — the S8.6AV and S8.6AVP. The S8.6AV model has an integrated 12-channel x 40 WPC amplifier that pumps power you need to speakers in every room. The S8.6AVP model is the PreAmp-only version of the S8.6AV and offers the flexibility to customize

the power delivered to each room. There are seven ELAN amplifiers to choose from, encompassing both analog and digital technologies, so the S8.6AVP can be matched with a wide range of channel and power options.

Compatible with all of ELAN's interfaces, the S8.6AV and S8.6AVP can be controlled from any room with the user's choice of volume controls, basic keypads, and the family of Olé Film Interactive Touchpads, or a selection of in-wall, tabletop, under-cabinet, and wireless color touch panels.

The S8.6AV and S8.6AVP carry MSRPs of $2,000 and $1400.

For more information, go to http://www.elanhomesystems.com/product/control/sseries/s8.asp

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Old-Style Jukebox Delivers New-Style Digital Music

This jukebox is made of handcrafted solid walnut and die cast metal. It can be used as a stand-alone jukebox and has built-in 360W amp, speakers and subwoofer. It can also be used as a multi-zone music management system with four outputs to let users enjoy different playlists in different zones simultaneously. Each zone can be independently controlled with separate playlists, playback and volume control. The company says the jukebox easily integrates with existing home networking and control systems such as such as AMX, Crestron and others. It includes iPod transfer, CD burning, web browsing and automatic Internet updates so users can stay ahead of every new technology as it arrives.

Adding new music is quick and easy: insert CDs into the QJB110 CD-ROM drive. The system automatically stores them on the systems 500GB hard drive and retrieves the albums' cover art, musician, title, genre, reviews and track information by accessing All Media Guides vast database of descriptive music content. Users can create multiple, individualized play lists for every mood and occasion.

It also has a built-in interface to the MusicGiants Store so users can buy new music from within the jukebox interface.

For more information, go to http://www.qsonix.com/Documents/Qsonix_Jukebox_QJB110_Release_10-11-07.pdf

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New Pragmatic TV/CATV Tuner

The tuner receives all standard VHF/UHF broadcast frequencies and standard 99-channel cable TV frequencies. The multi-channel stereo switcher can accept up to 2 additional audio signals and contains digital preamplifiers with computer-controlled volume, bass, treble, and balance controls. Display Partner is also manageable through standard infrared remote controls and has an auxiliary IR input port provided on the rear of the unit to connect remote IR sensors. The unit has two 24 watt high efficiency mono-block power amplifiers built-in to drive speakers with a front panel LCD to display TV channels.

Display Partner fits in a one rack mount unit.

For more information, go to http://www.pragmatic1.com/displaypartner.htm

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New Tannoy Loudspeaker Line Targets Commercial and Home Applications

There are three Behind Screen models which use a single Dual Concentric driver. Tannoy's point source technology with high power handling and even dispersion characteristics. The Behind Screen models are available with 165mm, 200mm or 300mm (6.00", 8.00" or 12.00") driver sizes.

The in-wall iw63 DC uses Tannoy's 165mm (6.50") Dual Concentric driver coupled with two 165mm (6.50") high output woofers. The iw63 DC is designed to be used in any L, C, R or surround application, and the company says it will blend discreetly and seamlessly for "an invisible home theatre environment."

The Tannoy Definition iw60 EFX is a multipurpose, high-end solution. It is configurable between two modes of operation — ‘Cinema Mode', where the two optimally aligned 100mm (4.00") Dual Concentric drivers create a wide and even flow of acoustic energy over a large area, creating a diffuse room filling ambience; and ‘Music Mode' where the 165mm (6.50") constant directivity Dual Concentric driver produces a more localized and focused sound. Both in-wall models use an isolation system for reducing speaker to wall vibrations.

The two DS subwoofers are constructed around either a 300mm or 380mm (12.00" or 15.00") professional drive unit and yet the company says they are compact enough to integrate into modestly sized room.

For more information, go to http://www.tannoy-speakers.com/s.php?news=1

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Phoenix Gold Introduces 2-Way, Three-Model Weather-Resistant Speakers

The ATO42/52/62 speakers are an upgrade to Phoenix Gold's ATO5 indoor/outdoor speaker systems and also include an improved one-inch aluminum dome tweeter, a complex premium phase compensating asymmetrical crossover design, an aluminum grill, metal brackets, exclusive cabinet design, a cosmetically painted baffle (white speaker version), and these are available in black or white.

Phoenix Gold's ATO42 (4-inch) has a MSRP of $139.99, the ATO52 (5.25-inch) has a MSRP of $159.99, and the ATO62 (6.5-inch) has a MSRP of $189.99.

For more information, go to http://www.rodinaudio.com/pgHome/pdf/pressReleases/PG_ATO_indoorOutdoorSpeakers_CEDIA07.pdf

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