In recent weeks, talks have been rife about the impending launch of HDMI 2.0 and while new technology is usually received with open and welcome arms, especially when HDMI 2.0 would usher in a whole new era of video, it could also open Pandora’s box and create handshake issues as HDMI 1.0 did before.
HDMI 2.0 is said to not only go beyond 1080p like the current HDMI 1.4 spec does. It will also support Ultra HD at higher frame rates and support increased bit color, be it 10- or 12-bit color. While an increase from 8-bit to 10-bit color doesn’t seem like such a big deal, it actually means an increase of billions of colors that the untrained eye will be able to see and appreciate. Add that to the “four times the resolution of 1080p” that Ultra HD offers and the increased frame rate and you will see a significant step up in performance that would have people wanting to upgrade their HDTVs and equipment.
Yet another key upgrade that the grapevine seems to have paid attention to is the move from H.264 to H.265 which is said to allow for better image quality from a much more compressed file. This is big news for cable and satellite providers who are unwilling to sacrifice any single channel to make room for Ultra HD channels.
With all that said, there is really no need to fear HDMI 2.0. HDMI 2.0 is more for those who want to make the move to Ultra HD and it is still too early to say what HDMI 2.0 will bring to the table.
New Kid On The Block : Sherbourn SR-8100 AV Receiver
There is a new kid on the block in the audio visual industry – Sherbourn. Sherbourn, a Jade Design company and sibling to the Emotiva brand, recently released a series of home theater gear with the goal of bringing professional performance to consumers. The Sherbourn SR-8100 AV receiver might be a new kid in this highly competitive industry but it sure is no shoo over.
Sherbourn SR-8100
The Sherbourn SR-8100 is a multi-channel receiver with the requisite power for driving 7 full sized speakers. It sports a balanced subwoofer connection, 7 channels of amplification with a switchable back/height/front biamp/zone 2 option, a 7.1 analog audio input, 4 HDMI inputs, 1 HDMI output, 2 trigger outs and a whole bunch more.
Considering it is sibling to Emotiva, this machine sure doesn’t disappoint with its great performance. While its appearance seems dwarfed and incompetent before most full-sized receivers like the Onkyo TX-SR706, this AV receiver is not one to be trifled with. Folks looking for a solid av receiver with a high performance processor can certainly consider the Sherbourn SR-8100.
HDMI 2.0 : Is It Here?
In recent weeks, talks have been rife about the impending launch of HDMI 2.0 and while new technology is usually received with open and welcome arms, especially when HDMI 2.0 would usher in a whole new era of video, it could also open Pandora’s box and create handshake issues as HDMI 1.0 did before.
HDMI 2.0 is said to not only go beyond 1080p like the current HDMI 1.4 spec does. It will also support Ultra HD at higher frame rates and support increased bit color, be it 10- or 12-bit color. While an increase from 8-bit to 10-bit color doesn’t seem like such a big deal, it actually means an increase of billions of colors that the untrained eye will be able to see and appreciate. Add that to the “four times the resolution of 1080p” that Ultra HD offers and the increased frame rate and you will see a significant step up in performance that would have people wanting to upgrade their HDTVs and equipment.
Yet another key upgrade that the grapevine seems to have paid attention to is the move from H.264 to H.265 which is said to allow for better image quality from a much more compressed file. This is big news for cable and satellite providers who are unwilling to sacrifice any single channel to make room for Ultra HD channels.
With all that said, there is really no need to fear HDMI 2.0. HDMI 2.0 is more for those who want to make the move to Ultra HD and it is still too early to say what HDMI 2.0 will bring to the table.
A Modern AV Receiver At Last?
AV receivers are known to be somewhat out of sync with modern technology and are always bulky and hard to use.
Sony has recently announced the Sony STR-DN1040, one of the most feature-packed AV receivers available for a most affordable price. Packed with built-in Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, AirPlay support, and eight HDMI inputs, what more can we ask for?
If you are a lil shocked by its price and still find it too expensive despite its undeniably nice package of features, have a look at the Sony STR-DN840 which also maintains the wireless connectivity but is a fraction cheaper.
New Denon AV Receivers Announced
Denon has announced 5 brand new AV receiver models for the year, ranging from the entry-level Denon AVR-X500 to the high-end Denon AVR-X4000.
Other than the entry level AVR-X500, all the new Denon receivers feature iOS and Android control apps that users can use to control every aspect of the amps and an on-screen setup assistant that will guide users through every step of configuration. They also feature support for a range of streaming services like Apple Airplay, Spotify, vTuner, Last.fm.
While the AVR-X500 lacks the network-enabled features found in its superior counterparts, it has the same convenient front HDMI input and three rear HDMI inputs.
The Denon AVR-X1000 is an affordable model that features and Ethernet port, a Texas Instruments PCM-1690 DAC and support for a wide range of network services including remote control from Android and iOS devices and a front USB port which allows you to play music files directly from a USB stick or MP3 player. It also has screw terminals rather than the X500’s basic spring terminal connectors for your surround sound speakers. Read the full Denon AVR-X1000 review.
Look Out For Yamaha’s RX-V ’75 Series AV Receivers
It is now AV receiver season and we are seeing all sorts of upgrades on all lines of AV receivers. The Yamaha AV receivers have received an update and you should keep an eye out for the Yamaha RX-V375 and Yamaha RX-V475.
For a really affordable $300, the Yamaha RX-V375 is a 100-watt driven receiver that boasts discrete amplification and high quality 192 kHz/24-bit Burr Brown DACs. There are two sets of 5-way binding posts for the main speakers and includes four HDMI inputs and one output, two component video inputs and one output, and three composite video inputs and one output.
The Yamaha RX-475, on the other hand, supports Deep Color (30/36 bit), x.v.Color, 24 Hz refresh rate and auto lip-sync compensation. It also includes HDMI Standby Through which allows you to pass the audio and video from your sources to your display when the receiver is powered off.
Read the full reviews here.
Pioneer’s Latest Elite AV Receivers Get Top-Notch Amplification At An Affordable Price
Pioneer Elite SC-72
The audio-visual industry has been abuzz with news recently as manufacturers announce their new releases. Pioneer has also done the same with the introduction of two brand new AV receivers, the Pioneer Elite SC-71 and SC-72. Both these receivers offer 7.2-channel surround sound, Class D amplification, 4K Ultra HD upscaling and HD audio playback.
Both receivers support multiple audio file formats for playback and high-res AIFF and Apple lossless files. They are also DLNA 1.5 certified, own built-in Ethernet ports and AirPlay support. The only downside is that there isn’t any built-in Wi-Fi.
These receivers will be launching in June so look out for the full reviews!
Marantz Surprises With Ultra-Slim AV Receivers
Just when you thought that AV receivers could not get any better, Marantz surprises us with its space-saving ultra-slim NR1604 and NR1504 AV receivers.
Designed to pack the same audio quality as its bulkier counterparts, these AV receivers have been found to be really easy and simple to use. They include features such as AirPlay, Spotify and DLNA for audio streaming and certainly do not shortchange you on the connectivity options. With 7 HDMI inputs on the Marantz NR1604 and 6 HDMI inputs on the Marantz NR1504, all with 4K support, you can be ready to be wowed with them!
Keep a look out for the full reviews!
Onkyo Goes All Out With The Onkyo TX-NR929 and Onkyo TX-NR828
Onkyo already has a wide range of AV receivers under its belt and it continues to strive to do better all the time. This time, Onkyo seems to have pulled out the stops on features in its latest duo of AV receivers – the Onkyo TX-NR929 and Onkyo TX-NR828.
Not only do they feature built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, they are also THX-certified and 4K-compatible. These receivers can upscale to 4K with its Marvell Qdeo video processing technology.
The high-end Onkyo TX-NR929 is a 9.2-channel network AV receiver that comes with Audyssey’s MultEQ XT32 room acoustic equalisation, 9 HDMI inputs and 2 HDMI outputs. Its cheaper counterpart, the Onkyo TX-NR828, features Audyssey MultEQ, 8 HDMI inputs and 2 HDMI outputs, amongst many other features.
Read the full reviews to find out more and grab one quickly! The Onkyo TX-NR929 is already out of stock on Amazon.com
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Monster ISF Certified HDMI Cable Tells You Signal Resolution
New technologies such as 4K Ultra HD in HDTVs, projectors and Blu-ray players put new demands and high video bandwidth on cables. But how do you know if your home theater equipment is outputting the highest signal resolution? Well the latest Monster latest line of ISF Certified ‘Smart’ HDMI cables have glowing signal indicators that show you if the cable is sending a standard definition, HD, or 4K video signal. This innovative feature eliminates guesswork when connecting your 4K capable components together.
Monster Smart HDMI Cable with Signal Indicators
But these cables do not come cheap. The top model costs more than most blu-ray players! They are priced from $60 to $350 in varying lengths between 5 to 75 feet with three transfer speeds: ISF 2000 (21 Gbps), ISF 1250 (17.8 Gbps); and the ISF 750 (14.3 Gbps). They are supposed to give you the best signal quality and solve one of the most pressing issues in video signal transfer over a poorly hatched HDMI standard. So Monster came out with their proprietary solution in the form of a V-Grip connector that increases the retention force of the HDMI cable for a more reliable connection. Bear in mind that HDMI cables do not like being bent as signal timing is critical. If you have a long cable run, twists and turns can degrade performance.
So the big question is do you need to spend this much for cables? Well it depends on your system setup and budget. If you have a 150 inch screen in a dedicated home theater room with high-end equipment you may want to give this a serious consideration as Monster has a lifetime guaranteed for whatever technology that comes along in future as well as cable failure. It’s the only guarantee of its kind in the industry we’ve heard off. This in itself is worth the price of entry.
New AirPlay Network AV Receivers From Harman Kardon
Harman Kardon AVR 3700
Harman Kardon has launched two brand new AV receivers and they are the Harman Kardon AVR 2700 and AVR 3700. Powered by the Harman Kardon high-current, ultra-wide bandwidth amplifier and boasting 8 HDMI inputs with 3D compatibility and Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio decoding, these AV receivers look attractive, to say the least.
The AVR 2700 is a 7.1-channel av receiver that delivers 100 watts per channel. It also features built-in DLNA-certified 1.5 Ethernet connectivity and Apple AirPlay, and most of all, 4K video pass-through and upscaling.
On the other hand, the AVR 3700 is a 7.2-channel network AV receiver that chucks out 125 watts per channel. On top of the features found in the AVR 2700, this AV receiver also offers multi-zone functionality and allows for the use of external power amplifiers with its full preamp outputs.