European Custom Installer

System Integration for the Connected Home

Home Theater

Onkyo Intros Mid-Range TX-NR676E

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Onkyo announces the TX-NR676E-- a 7.2-channel network AVR featuring next-generation A/V support, app-based streaming and multi-room audio capabilities.

Onkyo TX-NR676ERated at 160W per channel, the TX-NR676E supports HDMI HDCP 2.2 and is compatible with Onkyo FireConnect wireless speakers. Connectivity comes through x6 HDMI inputs on the back, as well as a front HDMI input and x2 HDMI outputs. Also included are a phono input, x3 digital audio inputs (x2 optical/x1 coax) and x6 analog audio inputs.

On the wireless side the AVR offers dual-band wifi, Bluetooth, Apple AirPlay, Chromecast and DTS Play-Fi casting from supported apps and devices. Customers can also share audio to speakers in another room via powered zone 2 speaker outputs, and support for Spotify, Tidal, Deezer and TuneIn streaming is included. Onkyo Controller allows users to select music from connected NAS and USB sources.

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Panasonic Presents Soundbars, OLED TVs

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Panasonic takes on home theatre with the announcement of a pair of soundbars-- the SC-HTB488 and the SC-SB1 "soundbar concept"-- together with two OLED TVs, the EZ952 and a 77-inch version of the EZ1002.

Panasonic soundbarThe SC-HTB488 is a soundbar featuring 2 independent speakers and 200W total output. It pairs wirelessly with a subwoofer to add more bass to home cinema viewing, and also plays audio from mobile devices via Bluetooth connection. Customers can either wall-mount it or leave it free-standing, and it fits neatly beneath TVs without obscuring the view.

Meanwhile the SC-SB1 "soundbar concept" also has Bluetooth connectivity, as well as an HDMI connection with 4K pass-through. It offers 40W total power through 3-way speakers and "strong" bass via slit at the front, and measures just 43 x 5 x 12cm, making it a compact audio solution.

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Panasonic Intros 4K Blu-ray Players

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Panasonic sets to take advantage of the growing 4K market with the CES 2017 launch of a trio of UHD Blu-ray players-- the DMP-UB400, UB310 and UB300.

Panasonic UB300All models feature dual HDMI outputs, 4K Netflix streaming support and compatibility with high-resolution audio formats such as WAV, FLAC, ALAC and DSD (5.6MHz/2.8MHz). The UB400 also includes vacuum tube listening modes with 96kHz/192kHz upsampling. All players feature wifi connectivity except for the UB300.

Powering the players is the HCX (Hollywood Cinema Experience) processor, a 4K image engine developed by Panasonic Hollywood Labs. It upsamples native 4K/24p 4:2:0 Blu-ray discs to 4:4:4 4K/60p with 4:2:2 colour upsampling. Panasonic says colour accuracy remains high during upsampling, since it uses a "multi-tap process" to compare a number of pixels in additional to those in the upper and lower positions, creating optimal pixels.

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James Loudspeaker Presents Modular Home Theatre

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James Loudspeaker announces the Modular Indoor/Outdoor Theatre-- an innovative take on adding surround audio formats to any environment featuring a high-performance, customisable free-standing form factor.

Modular theatreThe theatre consists of a built-to-size aluminium structure installers assemble onsite. It houses all required loudspeaker components for any surround format, and is compatible with an array of subwoofer options depending on the decor and acoustic requirements of the space in question.

It can be used with all 3 immersive audio formats-- Dolby Atmos, Auro3D and DTS:X-- as well as conventional 5.1 and 7.1 speaker configurations. As a customisable free-standing solution it delivers cinematic performance in an existing room without need for modifications to the space, making an ideal turnkey theatre for clients in rental properties or any temporary scenario.

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Meridian Teams Up With Cinema-ATS

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Meridian Audio continues turning into a quasi-dealer through a partnership with Cinema-ATS allowing it to add the latter's acoustic treatment solutions to its home cinema product portfolio.

Meridian cinemaCinema-ATS offers a range of acoustic treatment solutions promising to address the three acoustic "R's," or the most common problems found in home cinema audio-- resonance, reverberation and reflection. One such solution is Cinema-ATS Complete, combining scattering panels to optimise reverberation and reflection with the Multipanel, a dual-purpose absorber tackling resonance.

The panels are just 50mm deep, allowing for installation in a wider range of projects.

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The Remix IO Android-Powered Home Theatre PC

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Jide Technology claims the Remix IO is 3 devices in one-- media streamer, PC and games console-- although one can also describe it as an Android-powered home theatre PC designed for use with the latest TVs.

JRemix IOThe device supports 4K and HDR content, and is powered by an octa-core CPU promising 4K@60 video output. It also features 2GB RAM and 16GB of internal storage (expandable via microSD card) and runs on Remix OS, a modified version of the Android operating system. As such it should be able to handle most, if not all, Android and Android TV apps.

Interestingly, the Remix IO offers dual use modes-- a TV mode complete with larger app icons and IR remote compatibility, and a Windows-style PC mode ideal for mouse and keyboard use. Wired connectivity comes through HDMI, VGA, x4 USB 2.0 and ethernet ports, while wifi and Bluetooth handle the wireless side.

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The Future of Home Theatre: Entertainment Pills?

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Netflix CEO Reed Hastings has a far reaching vision for the future of home entertainment-- one revealed at the Wall Street Journal's WSJD event to include "pharmacological" alternatives. Pills, in other words.

Happy Pills"Movies & TV shows will be like the opera & the novel," Hastings says. "There will be substitutes." What kind of substitutes? A "pill that entertains you" is one such example, although there is no indication Netflix plans to substitute media streaming servers with chemistry sets, at least for now.

Of course, talk of entertainment drugs is pure science fiction-style speculation, even if human history is rife with the imbibing in weird substances in the search for the ultimate high. However, putting talk of drugs aside, installers still need to keep an eye out for the future. After all, the situation can change at any moment's notice, and it wasn't too long ago that VHS was the media format of choice before it was replaced by DVDs and Blu-rays. And even then, streaming media appears set to kill physical media, or at least further limit sales.

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