Is the battle over? After the official release on the American and Japanese markets of Pioneer, Sony and Panasonic DVD audio players, JVC appears to have closed the ball game, by launching its new DVD Audio/Video player integrating the (progressive scan) de-interlacing technique.
All is full of sound, all around me…
For the Audiophile
For professional use only…
For the occasion of the CEDIA 2000, Philips presented, as a world first, their future touch screen remote control. Named the TSU2000 or Prontopro (the final version doesn’t yet have a definitive name) it opens the way for a whole new generation of infrared remote controls with LCD screens.
Alert the rear guard! The charge may be coming!The number of decoders able to reconstitute the sixth surround channel of EX and ES sound recordings and currently available on the market could easily be counted on the hands of a disabled war veteran (!), so it’s with the greatest enthusiasm that we announce the coming release of the CSE 6.1 ADDS (CSE for “Center Surround Expander”) from the manufacturer PARASOUND. This gift of the gods allows us, by being placed between the 5.1 processor and a supplementary power amp., to reach new sound horizons, completed by central rear channels. The only prerequisite is to already possess a multi-channel pre-amp or integrated unit with lines out for surround channels, an interface which should generally be labelled “6CH OUTPUT” at the back end of the machine, albeit in diverse formats (RCA plus, DB-25, etc.).While the CSE 6.1 does not possess a THX logo on the facade, it is unable to use the copyright “THX SURROUND EX” and thus contents itself to be labelled “MATRIX 6.1”. This limitation is at a first glance somewhat surprising, coming from a manufacturer that has never hesitated to submit a great majority of its power amplifiers to the draconian tests of the LUCASFILM laboratories.
Setup 2.1 Update
One month after the launch of version 1 of CineNow!, visitors who are mindful to detail will have noted a few changes: version 2 was effectively put on line on Tuesday of this week. Totally optimised, the new version is 70% faster than the old one in terms of download time, a little detail that people with 56K classic modems will no doubt find very worthwhile!At the same time, various improvements, notably in the graphic department, have been made. We’ll let you discover those for yourselves. In any case, the development of the site doesn’t stop there, with new things in the pipeline, such as the possibility for you to be able to set “preferences” for the home page of the site.CineNow! is on the web for YOU and our aim is to appeal even more… so please don’t hesitate to send in your suggestions and criticisms. They will be kept in mind in any future changes to the site.Click Here to send us your comments.
The Escalation Continues…
Episode 2As promised, today we bring you our second Wednesday News Special on the PSX2. On the programme this week: technical specifics, with some great photos of the innards of the machine.The PSX2 is a concentration of multimedia technologies, with most of its components coming from the computer world. There are three processors responsible for the respective management of graphics, video and sound, as well as a modem (specifics aren’t known). In addition, the operating system is a version of LINUX, specially developed for the occasion.Main Processor: system and graphicsWith a memory capacity of 32 megabytes the main processor (or “chip”) of 128 bits EE (Sony Emotion Engine) runs at 300 MHz. It is placed in the motherboard of the system, and is backed up by two co-processors (FPU and VUO), guaranteeing a speed of information processing in the order of 150 million pixels per second, as well as the management of 20-million polygons/second. It thus takes charge of graphic decompression, leaving the second processor to take care of video decompression.Video DecompressionAlso placed on the mother board, the Graphics Synthesiser disposes of a cache memory of 4 Mb. Running at a speed of 150 MHz, it’s sole task is that of graphic decompression, linked with games or DVD. The image reaches around 18.75 million colours, while the TV display output handles PAL and NTSC formats for a maximum definition of 1280 x 1024 pixels.Sound ManagementThe sound is handled by an SPU2-type processor with a memory capacity of 2 Mb, developed by Sony. It can process up to 48 channels in two dimensions, as well as the decompression of analogue streams – plus digital ones, games (stereo) and those of analogue and digital sound streams stemming from DVD’s (Dolby Digital / DTS). The sampling rate can be fixed at 44.1 or 48 kHz.Storage (ROM)As opposed to the X-BOX (which utilises an integrated hard disc of 8 Giga associated with a memory chip of 8Mb), the storage capacity is limited to a slot-in memory of 8Mb. PlayerThe built-in player is CD-ROM 24X, and DVD-ROM 4X compatible, and also supports formats such as DVD-ROM PlayStation 2, DVD Video, CD-ROM PlayStation, CD-Audio, and CD-ROM Audio, while still being able to use games from the “old” PSX.InterfacingThe interfacing, complete and innovative, is composed of a digital optical output (for Audio/Video amplifiers etc.). Two USB ports and an IEEE1394 port allow for the connection of plug and play peripheral devices (printer, mouse, web-cam etc.). Other specific connectors are dedicated to joysticks (4 ports available), as well as the TV output.Next Week: a comparison with other consoles (including the X-Box and the Cube)Photo Sourcewww.play-france.com
In the month of September, Yamaha unveiled, with great ceremony, their new audio/video amplifier: the DSP-AX1, a top-line integrated unit disposing of Dolby Digital/DTS, Matrix 6.1 and DTS ES.
The CHORUS Range