Definitive Technology Announces World’s Thinnest

Definitive Technology Announces World’s Thinnest

High-Performance On-Wall Home Theater Loudspeaker



1.5-inch-thick Mythos® XTR®-50 speaker complements ultra-slim TVs

and delivers big-speaker performance





BALTIMORE – March 22, 2010 – Home audio company Definitive Technology announced it has developed the world’s thinnest high-performance on-wall home theater loudspeaker: the 1.5-inch-thick Mythos® XTR®-50. The new patent-pending product is today being offered through an exclusive online agreement with Amazon.com and Crutchfield.com. In the coming weeks, Definitive plans to make the Mythos XTR-50 available online and in stores through additional retailers, including Magnolia Home Theater, Best Buy’s high-end store within a store; Sixth Avenue Electronics; Abt Electronics; OneCall; Ultimate Electronics; Vann’s; and elsewhere.



Conventional LCD and plasma televisions typically have an installed on-wall depth of 4 to 6 inches. The latest generation of premium, ultra-thin LCD flat-panel televisions uses LED-backlit technology for a better picture, with an installed on-wall depth of 1.75 inches or less.



Next to these super-slim televisions, yesterday’s “made for plasma” on-wall speakers, typically 4 to 5 inches deep, look thick and out of place. Definitive developed the Mythos XTR-50 to look great on a wall or shelf next to an ultra-thin television, with no sacrifice in sound quality. The Mythos XTR-50 offers the audio definition, detail, bass and dynamic range performance of traditional larger speakers.



“Ultra-thin TVs do a wonderful job displaying realistic, high-definition images, but they need external speakers to provide equally high-quality sound,” said Dave Peet, executive vice president of Definitive. “Previously, the only choices customers had were finding space in the room for full-sized speakers or cutting a hole in the wall to hide them, with only the grille showing.”



Shipments of LED-backlit LCD ultra-thin televisions in 2010 are expected to grow fivefold over 2009, according to figures released late last year by television maker Samsung. Definitive designed the Mythos XTR-50 to complement the demand for and aesthetic of today’s ultra-thin televisions.



The company accomplished the Mythos XTR-50’s thin profile through innovative engineering of a variety of materials, including naturally strong, but lightweight aluminum. This metal has the added advantage of quickly dissipating heat.



Speakers produce sound by moving air with a “diaphragm.” Most manufacturers form them into a cone shape from materials such as paper, plastic or woven fibers, but Definitive instead developed an aluminum dome that both produces sound and partly houses other components, such as a voice coil.



Voice coils typically contain lengths of wound copper wire, which is an excellent signal conductor but at the trade-off of being heavy. The Mythos XTR-50 uses lighter copper-clad aluminum-core wire to offer the advantages of both.



Another secret to the Mythos XTR-50’s thin profile and superior performance is its aluminum cabinet. By specially shaping the enclosure and incorporating stiffening ribs and channels, Definitive achieved a strong, rigid housing that produces no unwanted resonance. Additionally, magnets used for driving the speakers protrude through, but flush with, the rear wall of the cabinet, to minimize depth and conveniently dissipate heat throughout the enclosure.



Other product components are made from polyimide film, another strong, lightweight and heat-resistant material used in spacesuits and the Apollo Lunar Module.



The Mythos XTR-50 cabinet measures 27 inches high, 6 inches wide and 1.5 inches thick, the perfect size for televisions measuring 46 to 55 inches. The product comes supplied with a wall-mounting bracket that allows either vertical or horizontal orientation, with a total on-wall depth of only 1.6 inches. Also supplied are stands for vertical tabletop use and horizontal shelf placement.



In January 2010, a prototype of the product was selected as the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Design and Engineering Best of Innovations 2010 Awards winner in the High-Performance Audio category. Products entered in the program were judged by a panel of independent industrial designers, engineers and journalists, to honor outstanding developments within 36 product categories. There was only one Best of Innovations winner in each category.



More than 2,500 companies shared information about nearly 20,000 products at the 2010 CES in Las Vegas, Nev. Held each January, CES is one of the largest technology trade shows in the world.



Each Mythos XTR-50 is $699. High- and low-resolution images of the product are available at http://www.definitivetech.com/HighResImages/XTR50_Press.aspx.





About Definitive Technology

Definitive Technology has been committed to building superior-sounding home audio and home theater loudspeakers since 1990, when the company was founded by three lifelong audiophiles and experts in speaker design and acoustics. Definitive Technology® loudspeakers are among the most positively reviewed and honored high-performance loudspeakers on the market. Based in Baltimore, Maryland, Definitive Technology is part of the DEI Holdings family of consumer-electronics brands. Audio/video specialty retailers throughout the U.S. and in over 30 countries around the world proudly sell Definitive Technology loudspeakers. For more information and the location of your nearest Definitive retailer, visit www.definitivetech.com, or call us at (800) 228-7148 (U.S. and Canada). Outside of North America, call +1 (410) 363-7148.



Any trademarks, service marks and trade names appearing in this release are the property of their respective owners. Definitive has not independently verified any of the data from third-party sources contained in this press release.

Vincent Audio Debuts PHO-8 MC/MM Phono Preamplifier

Vincent Audio Debuts PHO-8 MC/MM Phono Preamplifier



Vincent PHO-8 Phono Preamplifer. High resolution photos avilable here.

GRAND RAPIDS, MI (3/30/10) - Vincent Audio has introduced a high quality, affordably priced, two-piece phono preamplifier designed to extract the ultimate sound quality from high end moving coil (MC) and moving magnet (MM) phonograph cartridges. The Vincent Audio PHO-8 phono preamplifier consists of two matching, but separate components -- one a very high quality phono preamplifier section, and the other a physically isolated high performance, low-noise power supply.

When dealing with the vanishingly small signal levels generated by today's high performance moving coil phonograph cartridges, the high-gain signal preamplifier circuits can be extremely vulnerable to noise, especially from the power supply circuits, and this problem is solved by housing the power supply in separate chassis and carefully shield both the power supply and the preamplifier.

The Vincent PHO-8 power supply has a large transformer, large filter capacitors, and a precision voltage regulator that completely eliminate power line ripples. This carefully filtered DC is delivered to the phono preamplifier stage over a shielded cable and a five-pin DIN plug.

The precision phono stage preamplifier uses only the highest quality parts throughout in order to achieve extremely low noise operation. The MM section delivers a greater than 84 dB signal-to-noise ratio, while the MC section delivers greater than 71 dB ratio, with total harmonic distortion of less than 0.02 percent. The preamplifier chassis has two RCA inputs and a ground connection, and two RCA outputs. A two-way front panel switch is used to select MC or MM gain levels. It uses a detachable IEC-style power cord, and is offered in either black or silver finish.

The Vincent PHO-8 is currently available at a suggested retail price of $399.95.

Vincent Audio manufactures high-end audio components that use vacuum tube and hybrid tube/solid-state technology to produce sound that is powerful, accurate, and texturally satisfying. The brand's exclusive North American distributor is WS Distributing, LLC, of Grand Rapids, Michigan. For more information about Vincent Audio, visit WS Distributing's web site at www.wsdistributing.com.

# # #

Vincent Audio PHO-8 Phono Preamplifier Specifications:

· Frequency Response: 10 Hz - 20 kHz +/- 0.5 dB
· T.H.D.: < 0.05 % (20 Hz - 20 kHz)
· Input Sensitivity: MM 58 mV; MC 6.8 mV
· S/N Ratio: MM > 83 dB; MC > 70 dB
· Input Impedance: MM 47 k Ohm; MC 100 Ohm
· Output Impedance: 250 Ohm
· Max. Voltage Output: 8 V (per channel)
· Amplifier Gain: MM 40 dB; MC 60 dB
· Power Consumption: 10 W
· Weight: 3.3 lbs (power supply); 2.6 lbs. (preamplifier)
· Dimensions: 4.5" wide, 2.3" high, 5.4" deep

WS Distributing, 3427 Kraft SE, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49512 · Dealer Contact: Tom Myers 616.885.9809 · tmyers@wsdistributing.com Fax: 616.885.9818 · Toll-Free/Alternate: 866.984.0677

Headphone Shoot-out Part 1.

As many of us were enjoying the craziness of March Madness and working on our brackets, I thought I would do a little bit of the same. In the spirit of March Madness, it is time for a headphone shoot-out. I included a few lower brackets in the $100 range. The models include over the ear, IEM's, and active noise cancelling. To be more subjective, the shoot-out will be split into two parts. Part one will be for the over the head models. Part two will be for the IEM's.

The over the ear models shooting it out today will be six different models from Audio-Technica, Koss, Shure, and Sennheiser. Starting off is an Audio-Technica's ATH-ANC27 for $119.95, with active noise cancelling. Next is Shure's SRH840 for 199.95, Audio-Technica's ATH-M50 for $199.95, ATH-AD700 for $259.95, Koss QZ900 for $249.99 and finally, last but not least, is Sennheiser HD600 for $519.95. For testing, I threw an arsenal of different music types at them. The testing tracks included- Bachbusters: Tocatta and Fugue in D Minor, Eagles: Easy Peaceful Feeling, Blue Smith: Raindance, Fresh Aire I: Chocolate Fudge, FutureSex: SexyBack, Dead or Alive's Album Rip It Up: You Spin Me Round, Star Wars Trilogy: Throne Room and Finale, Very Best of Erich Kunzel: Sing, Sing, Sing and Sonic Overload for their test tones. Now with all that said, it's time for the Shoot-out!

We will start off with Audio-Technica's ATH-ANC27. It is an over the ears closed back dynamic design active noise cancelling headphones. The fit and finish is of good quality overall. The ear cups had a soft leather pad that felt good. The cable was detachable and came with a nice semi-hard zippered case. The active noise cancelling circuitry was run off a single AAA battery. The battery door was conveniently designed on the exterior of the headphone, making it easy to change the battery which was good for up to 40 hours. I was surprised at the functionality. Without the noise cancelling turned on, the headphones sounded ok. Bachbusters sounded good, with nice base extension and output. The Eagles sounded slightly muffled, but fairly smooth. Blue Smith sounded clean and smooth with a good sound stage and natural sounding drums. It sounded about what I expected for active noise cancelling at that price point, remembering that alot of the cost goes toward that circuitry. But when you turn on the noise cancelling feature, to my pleasant surprise, the active noise cancelling did more than it's job as advertised. It also seemed to act a bit like an amplifier and yielded cleaner and crisper highs and mids. At the slight expense of a AAA battery, I would listen to them with the active noise cancelling always on.

To finish up the active noise cancelling headphones in the shoot-out, we go to the Koss QZ900 for $249.99. Doing the review also in the order of sound quality, the Koss QZ900 is next in line. While it has a higher cost than some of the other models, a large part of the cost is in the active noise cancelling design. So the end resulting sound quality is about where I expected it. The quality was good with nice leather cups that surrounded the ears, had a detachable cable with in-line volume control, and nice semi-hard zippered case for storage. One potential downside is the battery compartment design. In order to change the battery, which is good for up to 50 hours, you need to take off the ear pad. On Backbusters the crescendo is difficult to produce very well and was just a tad shaky very well. But it had a good sized sound stage, well articulated high frequency harmonics, with a nice extension and low end presence. Fresh Aire I showed a natural sounding piano with a very clean sound, nice bass extension, and good resolution and harmonics. FutureSex provided a nice low bass extension cleanly, a nice sound stage, and natural clean vocals. The test tones on Sonic Overload showed drop off around 35-30hz with usable output to around 18hz. The active noise cancelling did extremely well, and appeared to eliminate the noise around 90%, and had no degradation to the music. Kudos.

Shure produced a fine product in the SRH840. It also features a closed back dynamic design. It features a partly collapsing design for easier storage. Everything is of excellent quality, even the packaging which included a nice users manual, leather pouch, and even an extra set of leather ear cups. They even had a detachable cable. Impressed with the look and build quality, I was curious if it sounded just as good and I was not disappointed. Fresh Aire I: Chocolate Fudge provided a natural sounding piano, extremely crisp percussion, very nice upper range harmonics, but fairly flat bass. Justin Timberlake's: FutureSex had excellent mid and high details and vocal transparency, and subdued bass. The Star Wars Trilogy had a great sound stage and dynamics, lots of resolution, and was very natural sounding. Erich Kunzel: Sing, Sing, Sing, was light and airy, had a great sound stage, great resolution, and very clean sounding. I was impressed. For a closed back dynamic design, they sounded airy, and had great resolution. Sonic Overload's test tones showed what I seemed to hear. Base extension dropped off at around 35hz, and usable to around 28hz. I tend to like more bass. If you don't like a lot of bass these could be great for you. It did provide bass extension, it was just a little subdued compared to others.

Next up is the Audio-Technica ATH-M50. They are another excellent quality in build and material set of headphones. Although at this price point, they all should be. A closed back dynamic circumaural design like the Shure's, and like the the Shure's the fit was very comfortable. I also liked the metal end with a screw on for the also metal 1/4" adapter. It also came with the traditional leather pouch. Blue Smith had a nice big sound stage, great resolution, natural sounding drums, and clean sax. Fresh Aire I showed very crisp percussion, very natural sounding piano, better bass extension and output, and good resolution. Rip It Up had nice bass output, nice sound stage, clean vocals, and good resolution. Star Wars Trilogy was very clean sounding, gave a big sound stage, lots of resolution, great dynamics and fairly smooth sounding. They weren't quite as light and airy sounding as the Shure's but had much more low end extension and output. It was supported by Sonic Overload's test tones, that showed drop off at around 26hz and usable output to around 20hz.

The Audio-Technica ATH-AD700 is an Open Air dynamic design. Again, the build quality is great, with soft velvet pads, high end cable with titanium sheathing and a nice metal connector. It also uses a unique 3D wing support that makes them feel light when you wear them. Tocatta and Fugue in D Minor did not have as much oomph in the low end. But it did have very crisp highs and nice big sound stage. It had great resolution but bass output was subdued. Rain Dance was nice and detailed with lots of resolution, very smooth sounding sax, and large sound stage. The tambourine was very crisp. Chocolate Fudge also provided very crisp percussion, excellent resolution, and an airy sound. The bass was again subdued in output, but the sound stage was large and the piano was very natural sounding. You Spin Me Round had crisp percussion, good bass extension however subdued, and great resolution. Sing, Sing, Sing provided excellent resolution and dynamics, a large sound stage, and was very clean sounding. These Audio-Technica's had a great sound. Bass output was subdued like the Shure's, but it did provide better extension. Test tones showed the same, with drop off around 34hz and usable to around 26hz. They had a more wide sound stage and airy sound than the Shure's, but the open air design also means you can hear more easily the environment around you. But if you like the design, the sound is great.

Last but not least is Sennheiser's HD600, which is another Open Air Dynamic Circumaural Design. Build quality is extremely good in a marble type finish, very comfortable velvet pads, and detachable cable which surprisingly are on both cups (most current headphones have the cable on only one side). Instead of a leather pouch the headphones are stored in a black vinyled fiberboard box with a cutout foam interior for a custom fit. Bachbusters had a big sound stage, very smooth and clean highs. They provided lots of resolution. I did notice that the drivers were not as efficient as there a noticable drop in volume output at the same volume setting of my player. When listening to Blue Smith there was a wide sound stage, crisp tambourine, great pitch definition and low level dynamics. The drums sounded natural. Rip It Up had excellent resolution, very crisp and clean sounding, nice bass extension, and clear vocals. Erich Kunzel shared excellent detail and resolution, was light and airy with excellent dynamics, provided very clean harmonics and good bass definition. The sound was amazing and took things to a whole new level. However, at it's price point, it was expected. Bass out put was just slightly subdued, but again I prefer a lot of bass. Everything else sounded amazing. Sonic Overload test tones showed dropoff around 30hz and usable down to 20hz.

All in all, part one of the sound-off would go to Sennheiser. But the two Audio-Technica's and the Shure would follow in a very close 2nd, 3rd and 4th place. And just like a lower tier team can pull an upset by a last second shot at the buzzer, we all have our personal preferences. Bottom line, all of these great products are a good value, especially when two of the models also include active noise cancellation. For more info and complete specs, please check out the manufacturer's website, listed below. If you are in the market for high quality headphones, you will want to give these some attention and a listening to. Enjoy. I sure did!

http://www.audiotechnica.com/, http://www.koss.com/, http://www.sennheiserusa.com/, http://www.shure.com/.

Patriot’s New Bolt USB flash drive series offers 256-bit AES Hardware Encryption

Patriot’s New Bolt USB flash drive series offers 256-bit AES Hardware Encryption

Fast and affordable hardware encrypted solution


Fremont, California, USA, March 30, 2010 - Patriot Memory, a global pioneer in high-performance memory, NAND flash and computer technology , today announced the immediate availability of its new Bolt secure USB flash drive. This small USB flash drive offers security for your data with its durable aluminum housing and data encryption.
Patriot’s Bolt series features hardware based 256-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) with a 512/2048-bit RSA engine for user authentication. Designed for consumer and small to medium-size business users, Patriot’s Bolt Series comes in a durable, yet compact metal casing. 256-bit AES hardware based encryption is widely recognized as a standard for data privacy, and with this feature built into the Bolt, users are comforted with the knowledge that their data is secure even from attempts to dismantle the drive to gain access to individual NAND flash chips.
“USB flash drives are a staple of daily use to transfer and transport data. Their small size and large capacities allow users to carry a great amount of personal information with them,” declared Les Henry, Vice President of Engineering at Patriot. “Our Bolt USB flash drive secures data from prying eyes, preventing the loss of personal or business data and providing users with reassurance that their portable data is safe and secure wherever they take it.”
With both a durable aluminum housing and a built in password lock, on top of the hardware based encryption, personal data is secure from abuse, damage and unauthorized access. Patriot’s new Bolt USB flash drive incorporates a data wipe mode where all data on the drive is erased in the event of unsuccessful access to the drive after 10 failed attempts. Beyond data security, Bolt offers fast read and write speeds of up to 30MB/s read and 12MB/s write, besting similar devices in the secure USB flash drive segment. The Patriot Bolt is offered in capacities from 4GB to 64GB ,carries a 5 year warranty, and is available immediately from Patriot’s authorized partners worldwide.

For more information about Patriot’s products and solutions, please contact your Patriot Sales Representative or visit http://www.patriotmemory.com/.About Patriot Memory:
Patriot Memory designs, manufactures and markets high performance, enthusiast memory modules, flash products, and computing technologies. Patriot products have become world renown for their extreme performance, reliability and innovation. Patriot Memory sells its products through original equipment manufacturers , retailers, e-tailers and distributors throughout the world with operations in North America, Asia and Europe. Patriot Memory’s parent company, PDP Systems, Inc., was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in Fremont, California, USA.

All company and/or product names may be trade names, trademarks and/or registered trademarks of the respective owners with which they are associated. Features, pricing, availability, and specifications are subject to change without notice.

New NHT Absolute Tower Announced

NHT MAKES AN “ABSOLUTE” RETURN TO PRODUCT DESIGN
WITH THE NEW ABSOLUTE TOWER SPEAKER

-- Absolute Tower is Company’s First New Model in Four Years --

BENICIA, CA, March 16, 2010 – NHT today announced that, following a year of steady growth, the company will soon ship the Absolute Tower, a tower version of the best selling Classic mini-monitor, the Absolute Zero.

Building on the acclaimed sonic and aesthetic design of the Absolute Zero, the new Absolute Tower adds "another way" to the two-way Zero to produce a three-way, four-driver acoustic suspension design that extends dynamics and low frequency response beyond what is expected of speakers at this size or price.

“Not only is the Absolute Tower our first product of the decade,” commented Chris Byrne, NHT’s Co-Founder and Co-Owner. “For us, it represents unfinished business, too.”

Continued Byrne: “The Super Zero and the Absolute Zero, which was the SZ’s successor, are hands down our most successful products. To this day, we still get tons of messages from end-users who say that the Zero models are their favorites.

“We also receive a steady stream of requests for an affordable tower loudspeaker, so it made sense to us to combine the two concepts into one unbeatable model. Anybody who loves great audio will appreciate the way this tower matches the Absolute Zero and Absolute Center to create a seamless, highly affordable music and home theater system."

The Absolute Tower is a sleek, floor-standing three-way speaker that joins the Absolute Zero’s 1” aluminum dome tweeter and 5.25” polypropylene cone midrange with two (2) 5.25” woofers. Its acoustic suspension design presents music and movie soundtracks with the clarity, neutrality and substantial power-handling that are typical of the brand’s most revered models. Like all NHT Classic Models, the Absolute Tower features NHT’s luxurious 10-coat gloss-black finish.

Each Absolute Tower measures 36”H x 5.7”W x 7.25”D, and weighs 40 lbs. The base measures 10.63” W x 12” D.

Although usable in-room response is 43Hz (-6dB), the frequency response is rated at 58Hz – 20kHz, with impedance rated at 8 ohms average, 4 ohms minimum. Sensitivity is 86dB.

The NHT Absolute Tower will be available on April 1 (no fooling) at an introductory special price of $495 each (including a complementary matching Absolute Center channel speaker with the purchase of two or more towers) through NHT’s on line store as well as select retailers.

Additional information regarding availability can be found at www.nhthifi.com

Vibe Audio CBR 12 Evo Loaded Car Subwoofer Review

I enjoy innovative electronics. Innovations do not occur very often in speakers. At least changes do not happen as often or as fast as with electronics, such as surround sound receivers. But they do happen. Up for review is a loaded car subwoofer box from Vibe, their CBR Evo 12.

The subwoofer is a 12" aluminum cone long throw driver in an innovative enclosure. The box design is one I have seen in the home audio environment. But I do not recall seeing a similar design in the car audio environment. The design features dual ports with port plugs, such as with SVS home subwoofers. For maximum SPL, you can keep both ports open. Or you can opt for a sealed design and plug in both of the port plugs.

I love the design. It gives the user a lot of flexibility. If you are not sure if you want a sealed or a ported design, there is no need to buy separate boxes and switch out your subwoofer. In fact, you can even make changes on the fly. With the design, it is very easy to change the sound to your liking, in less than 10 seconds.

The rest of the box is very solidly built, made with MDF and tuned for the lowest bass possible within the woofer's specs. The box is tuned to 45hz ported or 35hz sealed. The ARBSS (Anti Resonant Bass Support System) protective rubber gasket edges on the outside allows for issolation between the box and vehicle floor for less rattle or distortion from the vehicle, and the 4 gripper feet on ARBSS help keep it from moving around. The box is very solidly built, and appears to be able to handle the wattage printed on the box itself. The enclosure showed it can handle 1000 watts RMS, and 3000 peak watts. The enclosure is also fairly small with measurements of 14.6" tall by 20.3 inches wide by 16.3 inches deep, and built in handles for easy handling.

The subwoofer itself is very well built, and very solid. It features a 3mm aluminum cone with aluminum voice coil former that acts as a built in radiator to dissipate heat from the voice coil. The surround is a multi layer heavy foam surround for cone speed and excursion control. The drivers are available in 12" and 15" sizes, and in 2ohm or 4ohms, in a high performance machine cast alluminum basket.

So we know the build quality of the box and the sub are good. But it was not designed to just look good. So how does it sound? I can tell you that I was impressed. It seemed to live up to it's specs, and outpaced my Kenwood amp which managed to shut down a couple of times. And that was with my amp putting out 1200 watts RMS.

The reference system I used consisted of a Kenwood Excelon KDC-X991 deck, Kenwood Excelon XR-S17P 6.5 inch components up front, and Rockford Fosgate Fanatic HPC1206U 6.5 inch coaxials in the back. A Rockford Fosgate P4004 powered the component and coaxial speakers, and a Kenwood X1200M Class D monoblock powered the Space driver. I threw an arsenal at it, from "Toccatta" in Fresh Aire III, to Justin Timberlake's "Bring Sexy Back" to "Lover Come Back to Me" in Dead or Alive's Album Rip It Up. It stood up to my barrage of music fairly well. And I really liked to be able to pull the port plugs, or toss them back in depending on the music. "Toccatta" from Fresh Aire III was clean, and very musical. The natural air suspension of a sealed enclosure when using the port plugs seemed to help with the quick beats of Dead or Alive's "Lover Come Back to Me." Pulling the plugs again yielded more output, but slightly muddied the sound of the quick beats. For a 12 inch aluminum cone driver it kept up pretty well, moving a lot of air with no flex from the stiff cone. Justin Timberlake's "SexyBack" sounded great with lots of punch both plugged or unplugged. As I cranked up the volume the Vibe Space driver just seemed to ask for more, bringing a smile to my face. If you can't tell, I really liked the option of the port plugs. I could have both a sealed enclosure that came out a little more musical and a little more accurate, or have the port plugs open for higher output. But either choice yielded excellent dynamics. Throwing some test tones at it confirmed the boxes tuning. While there was usable output down to 20hz, there was steep rolloff at the tuning frequency.

When it comes to subwoofer and enclosure design, there are always compromises. It appears that the right decisions were made. The Space 12 is a solid driver, and the enclosure is well made. A larger enclosure would have yielded deeper extension. But this enclosure is small enough to mover around and let you have some trunk space, and sound good at the same time. Good job, Vibe. If you are looking for a good sub, Vibe deserves some attention. It sounded great with all types of music. These Brits have some skill. For more info and complete specs, check out their website at www.vibecaraudio.com.

HTC Announces First 3G/4G Android Phone HTC Evo 4G

HTC EVO 4G offers one of the most robust multimedia experiences

on a wireless phone today; features Android™ 2.1, one of the industry’s largest touch-screen displays, 8.0 MP camera, HD video capture, HDMI output, Mobile Hotspot capability and HTC Sense™


Pre-registration begins today at www.sprint.com/evo


LAS VEGAS – March 23, 2010 – Sprint (NYSE: S) and HTC Corporation today announced summer availability of the world’s first 3G/4G Android handset, HTC EVO 4G exclusively from Sprint. HTC EVO 4G delivers a multimedia experience at 4G speeds that is second to none, making it possible to download music, pictures, files, or videos in seconds – not minutes – and watch streaming video on the go with one of the largest pinch-to-zoom displays, at 4.3 inches, in the wireless industry.


Sprint 4G offers a faster wireless experience than any other U.S. national wireless carrier, and Sprint is the only national carrier offering wireless 4G service today in 27 markets. Sprint 4G delivers download speeds up to 10 times faster than 3G1, giving HTC EVO 4G the fastest data speeds of any U.S. wireless device available today.


"Sprint continues to lead the 4G revolution as we introduce HTC EVO 4G to give our customers an experience that is unlike anything available in wireless to date," said Dan Hesse, Sprint CEO. "Not only is this feature-rich device incredible on our Sprint 3G network, but Sprint 4G speeds will take mobile multimedia, including live video streaming, gaming and picture downloads, to a whole new level.”


Customers will be able to purchase HTC EVO 4G through all Sprint channels and through national retail partners, RadioShack, Best Buy and Walmart, this summer. Pricing will be announced at a later date. Pre-registration begins today at www.sprint.com/evo.


A device beyond compare
HTC EVO 4G delivers a robust list of features, including a 1GHz Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ processor ensuring a smooth and quick user experience. With dual cameras – an 8.0 megapixel auto-focus camera with HD-capable video camcorder and a forward-facing 1.3 megapixel camera – HTC EVO 4G unleashes the ability to create, stream and watch video that far surpasses expectations of what is possible on a phone today.


With built-in mobile hotspot functionality, HTC EVO 4G allows up to eight Wi-Fi enabled devices to share the 4G experience. Users can easily share an Internet connection on the go with a laptop, camera, music player, game unit, video player, or any other Wi-Fi enabled device.



With integrated HD video capture and 4G speeds, HTC EVO 4G makes slow uploads and grainy video a thing of the past. Now, it is possible to post high-quality video to YouTube™ or Facebook, or share moments in real time over the Internet live, via Qik. After these videos have been captured, it is easy to share them on an HDTV via an HDMI cable (sold separately).


The custom Web browser is optimized for HTC EVO 4G’s large display and Sprint 4G speeds to deliver a full, no-compromise Internet experience. Adobe Flash technology ensures that rich Internet content, such as embedded video and animation, are displayed the way they are meant to be seen. Pinch-to-zoom and automatic text reflowing provide easy Web page views.


HTC EVO 4G features the newest version of the highly acclaimed HTC Sense user experience. Along with all of the HTC Sense features first introduced on HTC Hero, HTC EVO 4G adds a number of new features, including Friend Stream, which aggregates multiple social communication channels including Facebook and Twitter™ into one organized flow of updates; a “Leap” thumbnail view to easily switch between home screen “panels;” the ability to download new, interactive widgets; and a “polite” ringer, which quiets the ringing phone once lifted up.


“HTC and Sprint have a strong history of working together to bring consumers technologies and advancements that make their lives easier,” said Peter Chou, CEO of HTC. “We believe that the HTC EVO 4G represents the best of Sprint and the best of HTC working together to bring an unmatched device to the U.S. This combination of HTC and Sprint innovation will allow people to do even more while on the go, faster than ever on the Sprint 4G network.”


Experience Android at 4G
HTC EVO 4G, the world’s first 3G/4G Android handset, features the latest iteration of the increasingly popular Android platform. Leveraging the Android 2.1 platform, HTC EVO 4G can deliver a wide array of useful new features:

•Android 2.1 enables a new way to search with pictures instead of words. Google Goggles™ works with everything from books, DVDs and barcodes to landmarks, logos, artwork and even wine labels. A picture taken of the Golden Gate Bridge returns all of the information anyone would need to know about the structure. By just taking a picture of several restaurant options, HTC EVO 4G will provide restaurant reviews to ensure the best choice.
•Text messaging and email composition feature built-in voice-to-text technology. By simply pressing a microphone button on the screen, messages can be composed by just speaking, making keeping in touch faster and easier than ever.
•Through Android Market™, HTC EVO 4G users have access to thousands of useful applications, widgets and games to download and install on their phone, with many more to come.

In addition to today’s Android apps, the performance of which will be enhanced by 4G speed, application developers will be introducing new apps that take advantage of 4G power in new ways – games and communications tools and other apps that bring together video, presence and location simultaneously, and capabilities that haven’t yet been imagined. For example, an application developer might create an app that allows a customer to simultaneously watch a streaming sporting event while pulling down stats and conducting a video chat with a friend.

A Sprint 4G developer guide is available today from the Sprint ADP Web site http://developer.sprint.com. The Sprint 4G developer guide explains how to develop on an Android 2.1 handset and how to take advantage of 4G and unique hardware/software capabilities, including how to use a forward-facing camera in an app; how to use HDMI output; and how to build in network detection (3G, 4G or Wi-Fi) to optimize quality of data in an app. The Sprint 4G developer also will include sample apps and source code that highlight these features. It will supplement the Android 2.1 SDK. As a charter member of the Open Handset Alliance™, Sprint is actively engaged with the Android community. Sprint has employed an open Internet approach, and the Sprint Application Developer Program has been providing tools for third-party developers since Sprint first launched the Wireless Web on its phones in 2001.




“Sprint and HTC have come together to propel the Android platform into the 4G world with the introduction of HTC EVO 4G,” said Andy Rubin, vice president, mobile platforms at Google. “The Android platform was developed to give people unmatched mobile connectivity to the Internet. By combining this vision with the promise of Sprint’s first-to-market 4G technology, HTC EVO 4G makes accessing thousands of applications from Android Market, using Google™ services like Google Goggles, Google Earth™ and the all-new Gesture Search, or simply browsing the Web faster, easier and more enjoyable than ever before.”


Blazing trails with Sprint 4G
As the first national wireless carrier to test, launch and market 4G technology, Sprint made history by launching 4G in Baltimore in September 2008. Today, Sprint 4G covers more than 30 million people and expects to have up to 120 million people covered by the end of 2010.


Sprint currently offers 4G service in 27 markets, including Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, Portland, Ore., San Antonio and Seattle. Following is a comprehensive list of markets by state where Sprint 4G is currently offered: Georgia – Atlanta, Milledgeville; Hawaii – Honolulu, Maui; Idaho – Boise; Illinois – Chicago; Maryland – Baltimore; Nevada – Las Vegas; North Carolina – Charlotte, Greensboro, (along with High Point and Winston-Salem), Raleigh (along with Cary, Chapel Hill and Durham); Oregon – Portland, Salem; Pennsylvania – Philadelphia; Texas – Abilene, Amarillo, Austin, Corpus Christi, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Killeen/Temple, Lubbock, Midland/Odessa, San Antonio, Waco, Wichita Falls; Washington – Bellingham, Seattle. For more information, visit www.sprint.com/4G.


In 2010, Sprint expects to launch service in multiple markets, including but not limited to, Boston, Denver, Houston, Kansas City, Minneapolis, New York City, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. Sprint is harnessing the power of 4G as the majority shareholder of Clearwire, the independent company that is building the WiMAX network. Sprint is the only national wireless carrier to offer 4G services on the Clearwire WiMAX network.


About Sprint Nextel
Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including two wireless networks serving more than 48 million customers at the end of the fourth quarter of 2009 and the first 4G service from a national carrier in the United States; industry-leading mobile data services; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. The company’s customer-focused strategy has led to improved first call resolution and customer care satisfaction scores. For more information, visit www.sprint.com.


About HTC
HTC Corporation (HTC) is one of the fastest growing companies in the mobile phone industry. By putting people at the center of everything it does, HTC creates innovative smartphones that better serve the lives and needs of individuals. The company is listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange under ticker 2498. For more information about HTC, please visit www.htc.com.

Sony Bravia VPL-HW15 SXRD 1080P Projector Review

Bigger is not always better, but when it comes to TV’s, it is almost always better. Many of us may enjoy our 40 inch flat screen TV’s. But what if the picture was twice the size? With a front projector, it can be. Up for review today is the Sony Bravia VPL-HWI5.

Sony is known for making good products. The Sony Bravia VPL-HWI5 is no exception. The projector itself is a rather large yet elegant looking gloss black case. The measurements are 16 1/8 x 7 1/8 x 18 3/8 and has a weight of over 22lbs. All of the connections are on the left side and consist of two HDMI, and one each for VGA, composite, S-Video, and component. There is also a connection for controlling the projector via a computer. There are controls on the top to adjust the lens shift up, down, left, and right. There is a control panel on the side opposite of the connections, that consists of buttons for power, input, menu, and navigation buttons for left, right, up, down, and enter. The exhaust vents are on the front corners and front bottom, and intake vents in the rear, with airflow going from rear to front. One of the features that I also like, living in a dusty desert, is the sealed light path. At times, LCD’s can develop dust blobs that can be seen on your screen. But with the Sony’s sealed light path, there’s no way that dust blobs can get on the panels. The Sony has a 1.6x manual zoom lens, which will allow you to have a 100” image from 121 to183 5/8 inches away. This gives you a good amount of installation flexibility. The projector can also be used on a table top, or ceiling mounted.

The Sony used an SXRD which stands for Silicon X-tal Reflective Display. This is Sony’s version of LCoS, which is Liquid Crystal on Silicon. LCoS technology has some qualities that are an improvement of LCD. One of which is the lack of a screen door effect. LCoS also has better native black levels. In addition, the picture tends to be more film-like.

Another unique feature of the Sony Bravia VPL-HWI5 is panel adjustment. Just like LCD projectors, the Sony is a 3 panel system with 1 panel for blue, red and green. These panels are lined up with each other to present the beautiful picture we want to see. But if the panels are not lined up correctly, the color will appear off. On LCD projectors, if this occurs the projector will need to be sent in for adjustment, as they are not user adjustable. On the Sony VPL-HW15, however, they have a pixel adjustment feature that allows adjustment of the color panels in 1/3 pixel adjustments.

The GUI is fairly simple and straight forward. The adjustment screens are fairly simple and well laid out. When you enter the menu, there are screens for Picture, Advanced Picture, Screen, Setup, Function, Installation, and Information. There is quite a bit of adjustments that can be done. The remote control is also fairly well laid out, with backlit buttons for use in a light controlled room.

So, the projector Bravia VPL-HWIS is a well built tank of a projector with some great features. But how does it all come together? The picture is beautiful! One thing that I enjoy about Sony is that they know how to do video very well. I would expect nothing less than Sony, and they delivered.

Out of the box, picture was great. The colors were all very well saturated, and not overly saturated. Lumens were evenly projected corner to corner. Contrast was very good, with the blacks looking just that – black, with great shadow detail. The sharpness was also excellent. With good source material, the image had a lot of depth to it! And synonymous with LCoS technology, the VPL-HW15 picture had zero screen door effect, no matter how close you sat to the screen. The image had a very nice film like look to it, and more elegant looking than I am used to with LCD. I included a few screenshots, which using a digital camera are difficult to give it justice.

With the Sony Bravia VPL-HW15, I was not surprised with its performance. No matter what source material I fed it – DVD, HDTV, Blu-Ray, with film, sports, or even animation, it all looked excellent with a lot of snap! And as I previously mentioned, the pixel adjustment can be preformed for each individual color. Going into the settings, I noticed the panels were of less than a pixel off, and I was able to get it dead on. The picture however did not have a noticeable improvement.

For those of you who are intimidated with adjusting the settings, not wanting to foul anything up, you can rest assured. Picture quality right out of the box was very good. There is always the option of getting it professionally calibrated. But the extra cost may not be worth it for you, based on how well it looks right out of the box. Throwing a 100” 16x9 image from 11 feet away in Cinema mode, in a light controlled room, provided a bright image. It even looked good with a little ambient light. Just keep in mind that while the image is viewable, the more ambient light there is, the more washed out the image can get. Of course, the type of screen used, the amount of ambient light, and location of where the light is coming from can all be a factor to the image quality.

It’s gloss black finish had an elegant look for any décor. There was zero light leakage. And the fan was inaudible, even sitting directly under it. It was also very solidly built. While there are plenty of connections for any type of device, that was one area that I would have liked to see changed. The connections are all on the side of the projector. With it being in my dedicated theater room, I would have preferred to see the connections at the rear instead.

The Sony Bravia VPL-HW15 is a serious projector. It is basically an entry level projector when it comes to LCoS, but there is nothing entry level about the picture it throws. At an MSRP of around $3,000 it gives a big bang for the your buck. If you are in the market for a front projector, I would highly recommend it being on your short list to check out. With a good price, excellent performance, and backed by a 2 year warranty, the Bravia VPL-HW15 is a great product. For more info and complete specs, check out their website at www.sony.com.

Laptop Bag Review

Laptops are getting more popular, and many people are even replacing their desktops with a laptop. Being smaller, and portable, you can now bring all your files with you. The question for many is how to transport your laptop. Some bags are more convenient than others. Targus tried to make a bag that was more convenient, even for traveling.

The Targus Zip-Thru Air Traveler did just that. The bag has a very convenient and rather inventive design with a zip through section. Here, there is a middle section that unzips to open the bag into two halves, with printed icons for each side. One side is for the laptop and the other side is for you folders, keys, electronic accessories, and anything else. This feature makes it convenient for the air traveler. Just unzip the middle and let it go through the X-ray machine. No need to pull you laptop out of the bag. The X-ray operator can clearly see you laptop on one side, and all your other stuff on the other side. With its dual file storage compartment, and zip down workstation compartment with pockets for business cards, pens, keys, external drives and accessories, it can also be your portable office on the plane. The build quality is also excellent. It will be able to provide years of service, in a traditional all black look.

However, not everyone is looking for traditional. For those of you looking to make a more personal designer statement, take a look at Speck. They are great for those of you that are pocket friendly- meaning you love lots of pockets. They have zipper pockets that reveal a water bottle holder, key ring holder, handle strap, and sternum chest straps. There are also pockets for cell phone, digital camera, and mp3 player with a hole to allow headphone access. The extra plush padded laptop section allows access to you r laptop through the main compartment, or success through the back under the shoulder straps. The Speck Aft Back allows you to also make a personal statement with designer looks. The design provided looked kind of like a checker board, in grayscale, called Restart Greyscale Pixel. It looked pretty cool.

One warning, is to make sure the size is right for your laptop. My 17.3” HP laptop fit great into the Targus Air Traveler, but the AftPack, which fits laptops up to 17” was too small for my 17.3” laptop. It would fit in the backpack, but the zipper would not fit around it, so it would stick out the top. So as long as your laptop will fit, Specks bag will work great and it is also built very well. You can enjoy carrying your laptop, and look good doing it.

Fore more info and complete specs, check out their websites at:

http://www.targus.com/ and http://www.speckproducts.com/.

Onkyo Introduces the new 3D-Ready THX Certified TX-SR608 Receiver

Onkyo Introduces the World’s First THX Certified 3D-Ready A/V Receiver
The Onkyo TX-SR608 THX-Certified A/V Receiver is one of several HDMI v1.4, 3D-Ready A/V Receivers and Home Theater Systems that will ship in March and April.

Onkyo TX-SR608 (left) an Onkyo HTX-22HDX (right). These and other photos available on-line. (TV not included.)

UPPER SADDLE RIVER, NJ, (3/9/10) -- Onkyo USA has announced March deliveries of its first 3D-Ready home theater receivers and home theater in a box (HTiB) systems. The new models consist of three A/V receivers and three HTiB systems ranging in price from $299 to $599, and all of them support the new HDMI v1.4 connectivity standard for new 3D video displays and Audio Return Channel capabilities. All are exceptionally well equipped to provide a superior music, home theater sound and video experience, with high build-quality and offering excellent value.
For Onkyo, a name that translates roughly to 'sound harmony' in Japanese, sound quality is preeminent. All these new receivers and HTiBs now decode lossless Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio bitstreams, and include new 192-kHz/24-bit Burr-Brown PCM1690 DAC's that are highly resistant to clock jitter and provide a remarkable 113-dB dynamic range. The lineup includes Onkyo's new easy-to-setup overlaid onscreen graphical display that lets the user watch the program in the background while using the function menus. Additionally, all 2010 HDMI v1.4 models include a new feature call HDMI Thru. HDMI Thru allows content to pass through to the TV when the receiver is in a standby state.
The new TX-SR608 7.2-channel THX-Select2 Plus certified receiver has new power amplifier section that uses three-stage inverted Darlington output topology, and a power boost from 90 to 100 watts. Audyssey DSX dimensional sound processing has been added to its predecessor's Dolby PLIIz capabilities. Additionally, all video sources, including those using the new PC input, and regardless of source resolution, can be upscaled to big and beautiful 1080p via HDMI and Faroudja DCDi Cinema™. The TX-SR608 will also include a front HDMI input, a feature first introduced by Onkyo in 2009. The TX-SR608 will be available in April at an MSRP of $599.
The 5.1-channel TX-SR308 and 7.1-channel TX-SR508 round out this initial announcement of A/V Receivers from Onkyo. The TX-SR308 will be available in March with an MSRP of $299, a followed by the TX-SR508 in April for $399.
The HTiB package systems, which each consist of a receiver, speakers and a subwoofer, are the 5.1-channel HT-S3300 and 7.1-channel HT-S5300; the latter also includes an iPod dock. Thanks to the HDMI interface and the use of advanced Dolby and DTS codecs, all of these receivers and systems are also capable of decoding lossless Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio. The HT-S3300 will ship in March with an MSRP of $379, followed by the HT-S5300 in April for $599.
A third packaged system departs from the traditional HTiB form factor and uses a combination subwoofer and 3D Ready A/V receiver plus two front speakers. It uses Onkyo’s own Theater-Dimensional processor to create an immersive and convincing surround effect through just 2.1 channels. The HTX-22HDX has three HDMI v1.4 inputs, handles HD audio formats from DTS and Dolby; offers four distinct audio modes for gaming; and outputs for additional speakers. The HTX-22HDX will ship in May with a $349 MSRP.
"Onkyo's 2010 entry-level product line represents a significant jump over last year's line," said Paul Wasek, Onkyo USA's marketing manager. "We are excited to deliver this first wave of 3D capable products. By upgrading to 1.4, even on the least expensive HTiB, we have eliminated all HDMI pass-through products and allowed HD audio formats to be used across the line. The fact that consumers can now buy a THX-Certified receiver with 1080p upscaling, Burr-Brown DACs, PC input and more for under $600 shows Onkyo's clear commitment to delivering performance and value to consumers."
All of Onkyo's receivers offer exceptional connectivity options with as many as six HDMI inputs, plus component and composite video, numerous stereo input jacks, optical/coaxial digital inputs, and the popular front-panel connections on many models. Two models include Sirius Radio connections, and all these receivers incorporate Onkyo's proprietary Universal Port (U-Port) connector which simplifies connections to optional HD Radio tuners and iPod Docks (included with the HT-S5300).
Since 1946 Onkyo has been passionately committed to developing audio products that deliver uncommon performance, quality and value. Bundling proprietary technologies and innovations with other sound-enhancing exclusives, Onkyo continues to created award winning products that are lauded by many of the industry leading audio publications. The company's philosophy is to deliver products that are superbly designed and built to a consistently outstanding standard of excellence. Today, Onkyo is at the forefront of the home theater and digital revolutions. For more information about this and other fine Onkyo products, visit http://www.onkyousa.com/ or call 800-229-1687.