Audio News for August 31, 2012

by | Aug 31, 2012 | Audio News

3D Without Glasses on Its Way – Stream TV Networks—makers of Ultra-D 3D without glasses—has teamed with Chinese TV maker Hisense in production of a line of TVs using its technology. The first product will be a 42-inch 1080p auto-stereoscopic 3D display, with plans for Ultra-D-enabled smart TVs, tablets and smartphones to follow. No prices yet available. More than 1000 Hisense stores have been established, and the firm has a presence in over 80 countries, including at Walmart and Costco outside of the U.S.  The TVs will be bundled with the SeeCube Auto Converter, which converts both 2D and standard 3D content into a glasses-free 3D format in real time. Ultra-D supports most video formats, Blu-ray signals, Xbox and PlayStation3 content, and streaming sites including Netflix, Hulu and YouTube. A Stream TV representative said “It will be a shot in the arm for 3D without glasses.” No word yet on distribution plans for the U.S.
Monster’s Headphones – Yet another new entry into the burgeoning headphone market is Monster Cable. They brought out an earlier series targeting toward the youth in their Beats By Dre. Now they have a new Inspiration headphone line, which starts at $299. The earcups are large and press snugly against the ears to avoid leakage. They have a leather-clad frame, and the bands of the phones are interchangeable so users can express their tastes thru choice of different colors and themes. Each pair comes with three different cables: one with inline controls for iPhones, one for Android devices, and one your standard audio cable with adaptors for mini or standard stereo phone plugs. Monster’s phones are not flat—they tend to favor the high and low notes for an animated, youthful sound.
Genelec Unveils SpeakerAngle App – Genelec—maker of active monitor speakers— and AudioApps—a mobile apps company—have co-developed SpeakerAngle, a digital tool which allows one to correctly set and match the toe-in angling of both stereo and surround sound speakers to ensure optimum audio fidelity. It is compatible with iPhone 4, iPad 2 and iPhone Touch 4th generation. Dedicated onscreen speaker icons move as the speaker is rotated, with the device atop the speaker.
A number box below each icon lets users know when their speaker is angled within industry recommendations by changing color. You start with the speaker facing straight toward your sweet spot, and you touch the corresponding speaker icon to let it know the selected speaker is currently at “zero-axis.” As you physically rotate the speaker, the speaker icon will move accordingly and the number box will indicate the angle. When the angle is between the recommended 20 to 45 degrees, the box changes color from red to green. The app will then let you set the other speakers to the same proper toe-in in a similar operation. The listener returns each time to the sweet spot to evaluate the sound quality. The app works on a single iOS device and ensures that all speakers are synced up angle-wise. The app is available at the iTunes App Store.

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