Audio News for August 7, 2015

by | Aug 7, 2015 | Audio News

Pioneer Has New Affordably-Priced AVR –  The VSX-530-K Receiver ($280) has a suprising feature-set including five-channel discrete 140w amps, 4K/60p/4:4:4/24-bit video support with HDCP 2.2 technology, Bluetooth and support of hi-res audio, including most Dolby and DTS surround formwats best suited to a wide variety of available entertainment sources. A thumb drive on the front plays back MP3, WMA and AAC audio files, and the intelligent ECO Mode analyzes sources, adjusts power consumption to meet your needs, or you can set up specific power-saving settings. Pioneer’s Phase Control technology eliminates phase lag in processing the low-frequency signals for the subwoofer.

Ultra HD Blu-rays Expected for the Holidays – The Blu-ray Disc Association will begin licensing the Ultra HD Blu-ray format starting August 24, and anticipates product announcements from various firms as the 2015 holiday season is approached. Ultra HD Blu-ray discs will be available at the time of player shipments but it is not certain that players will be available this calendar year. Although streaming and broadcast-TV services won’t be able to fill the demand for UHD content even as sales of UHD TV sets have taken off, the new Blu-ray format will provide an immediate, tangible way to watch UHD content that bypasses service provider and bandwidth-based variables. The new format will significantly expand the range between the brightest and darkest parts of a picture and give a more life-like viewing experience. It will also deliver expanded color range, higher frame rates, and resolution up to 3840 by 2160. Object-based sound formats will also be delivered. The HEVC codec used in the UHD Blu-ray players is 40% more efficient that the present Blu-ray video codec. There will also be HDCP 2.2 copy protection, support of 100Mbps peak video rates, support of BT.2020 color gamut (exceeding the capabilities of today’s displays), and a bit depth of not 8 but 10 bits to deliver smooth color gradations.

Kenwood Enters Headphone Market – Kenwood has made a significant shift in their product philosophy and introduced three headphones: an $80 in-ear set inear set, a waterproof sport headphone, and a third $200 model which has an over-the-ear fold-flat design and four ports which are each tuned to specific frequencies. Its four-foot flat cord is detachable.

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