LATEST ADDITIONS

Tower Speaker Reviews
Revel Performa F50 speaker system
Chris Lewis  |  Jul 14, 2003  |  First Published: Jul 15, 2003
Revel with a Cause: Innovative drivers are the core of Revel's next Performa generation.

A successful loudspeaker is, of course, the sum of all of its parts. As important as the cabinet, crossover network, and other elements are, though, drivers are the foundation. It's hardly surprising that the quest for the perfect driver began even before the debut of the first loudspeaker. The ultimate goal, for dynamic drivers at least, is getting the cone to act like a pure piston, preventing the diaphragm from changing form in any way as it moves in and out. Cone material is vitally important in several ways, not least of which is walking the fine line between having the low mass and speed necessary to respond to even the most subtle electrical cues and having the strength to endure punishment and the stiffness to avoid distortion-inducing cone breakup.

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Other Source Component ReviewsSurround Processor Reviews
Lexicon MC-8 Pre/Pro and RT-10 universal disc player
Chris Lewis  |  Jul 14, 2003  |  First Published: Jul 15, 2003
Lexicon's next generation arrives with a bang.

You can't please everybody, especially in the home theater world. Lexicon came close in 2000 with the release of the MC-12, an end-all pre/pro that carried on the company's tradition of performance but also addressed the few issues that people had with earlier Lexicon controllers like the MC-12's direct predecessor, the MC-1. Almost everyone, myself included, loved the MC-1's sound, tweakability, and just about everything else. As with any high-profile piece, though, people did raise questions about the MC-1—some legitimate, some not. The MC-12 directly addressed the important issues, like the lack of analog bypass and a six-channel input. (Remember that, when the MC-1 debuted, SACD and DVD-Audio were still just a twinkle in the audiophile's eye.) Even many of the peripheral issues, such as aesthetics, got some attention on the MC-12. The only remaining issue was price, as the MC-12 cost a few thousand dollars more than the MC-1. True, but Lexicon didn't replace the MC-1 with the MC-12; they simply provided the MC-12 as another option.

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Projector Reviews
Marantz VP-12S2 DLP projector
Kevin Miller  |  Jul 14, 2003  |  First Published: Jul 15, 2003
One giant leap closer to CRT.

Marantz's VP-12S2, the company's top-of-the-line one-chip DLP projector, has a native resolution of 1,280:720 and utilizes the latest Texas Instruments HD2 Digital Micromirror Device (DMD) chip. This new chip offers a significant increase in contrast ratio and black-level performance over last year's VP-12S1 model. The VP-12S2's video processing also incorporates Faroudja's proprietary DCDi deinterlacing for video-based sources and 3:2 pulldown for film-based material. In fact, Marantz uses the full Faroudja chipset, which includes the video decoder, the video enhancer, the 2D comb filter, and DCDi. The latest Marantz DLP offering is definitely one of the top performers in its category.

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Audio Video News
Added to the Archives This Week
 |  Jul 13, 2003

Michael Fremer provides us with a primer on ribbon drivers in his review of the <A HREF="http://www.guidetohometheater.com/showarchives.cgi?133">Piega P5 LTD surround speaker system</A>. Noting that the Piega is the latest in long line of neo-ribbon designs, Fremer says, "whether or not these are true purist ribbons, pseudo-ribbons, or a hybrid isn't important. What's important is the sound."

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Audio Video News
Runco's New Plasma Display Panels
 |  Jul 13, 2003

<A HREF="http://www.runco.com">Runco International</A> has begun shipping two new widescreen plasma display panels (PDPs) incorporating the company&rsquo;s "Vivix" video-scaling technology. The 43"-diagonal CW-43MC and the 50" CW-50MC feature inboard processing cards with Runco's highly regarded scaling and image processing capabilities. The CW-43MC sells for $9995 and the CW-50MC for $13,995.

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Audio Video News
Discovery HD Theater Expands
 |  Jul 13, 2003

<A HREF="http://www.discovery.com">Discovery HD Theater</A> is celebrating its one-year anniversary with 25 hours of new high definition productions this season.

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Power Amplifier Reviews
Outlaw 950 & 770-preamplifier-processor & 7-channel power amplifier
Fred Manteghian  |  Jul 12, 2003

Yippie-i-o-ki-ay, separates-lovers! The Outlaw Model 950 preamplifier-processor is the good five-cent cigar every home-theater bandito has been craving, and the 7-channel Model 770 amplifier is fit to be corralled, cable-tied, and hauled to your mountain hideout as well. The Model 950, in particular, shuns any of the boutique-brand weirdisms you might expect from a mail-order-only outfit like Outlaw. On the contrary, its pleasingly simple front panel conceals a wealth of features that's not a single, solitary letter shy of the latest list of home-theater acronyms. This li'l dogie's got it all!

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
Thomas J. Norton  |  Jul 12, 2003

<I>Kirk Douglas, James Mason, Paul Lucas, Peter Lorre. Directed by Richard Fleischer. Aspect ratio: 2.55:1 (anamorphic). Two discs. Dolby Digital 5.1, THX. 127 minutes. 1954. Walt Disney Home Video 27853. G. $29.99.</I>

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Power Amplifier Reviews
Audio Refinement Pre-2DSP & Multi-5 preamplifier-processor & multichannel power amplifier
Robert Deutsch  |  Jul 12, 2003

For the benefit of those who find it difficult to keep straight all the different manufacturers whose names begin with "Audio," Audio Refinement is the brand name of YBA's affordable line of electronics. YBA itself&mdash;if you're really out of the loop&mdash;is probably the best-known manufacturer of audio equipment in France. YBA is a family business, the initials standing for the name of the designer, Yves-Bernard Andr&#233;, whose wife, Ariane Morin, is the company's CEO.

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, The Complete First Season
Wes Phillips  |  Jul 12, 2003

<I>William L. Petersen, Marg Helgenberger, Gary Dourdan, George Eads, Jorja Fox, Eric Szmanda, Robert David Hall, Paul Guilfoyle. Various directors. Aspect ratio: 4:3 (full frame). Dolby Digital 2.0. Six discs. 999 minutes. 2000. Paramount/CBS Video 87165. NR. $89.99.</I>

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