You know that audio goes along with THX logo. It’s called the Deep Note apparently and this guy set out to recreate the entire thing in the program SuperCollider. I have no idea what’s going on once he starts explaining the coding behind the creation, but the end result is astonishingly close to the real thing, which is even more impressive when you learn that the original score has never been released. Start at the beginning and listen to all six steps in order.

I know, I know. The VGA HD AV cable has been out for three years, but I was in between TVs and only had a monitor to game on. I’ll keep this review short and sweet.
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Today, the HT-S9100THX system was announced and it has its sights set on HD theater buffs across the country. The 7.1-channel system (130W/channel) includes THX’s Loudnes Plus technology and comes with four HDMI v1.3a ports. The more HDMI ports, the better, I say.

Audyssey and Faroudja handle onboard audio and video processing. Faroudja’s DCDi Edge technology bumps all component, composite, and S-video sources up to 1080i while Audyssey’s 2EQ automatically calibrates acoustical output for maximum eardrum popping. Moreover, Audyssey’s Dynamic EQ “algorithm adds moment-by-moment refinement of the receiver’s frequency response and surround levels in order to compensate for volume-dependent deteriorations in the listening experience, particularly at low volume levels.” Can anyone translate this into layman’s terms?

Additional info on the system can be found after the jump. The HT-S9100THX is available now for $1,099. Read More

The latest receivers from Intergra are now available, and wow are they spiffy. Both the DTR-7.9 and the DTR-6.9 sport the heralded THX Loudness Plus certification with the former earning the Ultra2 Plus cert. as well and the later the Select2Plus certification too. The big boy is equiped with five HDMI 1.3a – little guy gets four – and will upscale component video to 1080p through the Faroudja DCDi Cinema chip. The $1,300 DTR-7.9 rocks out at 130 watts-per-channel while the $1,000 6.9 pumps out 100 per channel. Not bad prices for a fully custom installable THX receivers and they are both available now.

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RS10
Announced just now from JVC are four 1080p projectors (DLA-HD750 and DLA-HD350) and two of them happen to be THX certified (DLA-RS10 and DLA-RS20) with 30,000:1 native contrast ratio. Said THX certified projectors have a THX movie mode that’s been pre-calibrated for DVDs, Blu-ray discs and regular broadcast television to bring the best cinema experience possible. All four feature HDMI v1.3 and will be available in November. The HD750 will retail for under $8,000 and comes in pearl black while the HD350 will be under $5,000 and comes in glossy piano black or glossy white. The RS10 also comes in under $5,000 and the RS20 is under $8,000 and both come in pearl black.

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Speaking of TiVo and DVRs, it looks like the company has begun shipping its HD XL DVR. The $600 device has a 1TB hard drive; off-the-shelf 1TB hard drives can be had for as little as $150 by my count.

As you might guess, TiVo is going to be pushing the HD XL at hardcore TiVo users, the high-end folk who need to record every single episode of Degrassi and whatever else it is people watch these days. It’s also worth noting that the HD XL is THX certified.

But, if you’re TiVo thorugh and through and need “more power,” as Tim Allen would say, then yeah, the HD XL would be the way to go. Hope your job pays well enough.
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This is first residential home theater dubbed Ambleside and it’s located in Hillsborough, CA. This is the type of setup that’s perfect for Serious Materials door. Ambleside is also rigged with QuietRock material from SM.

Attention serious home theater buffs:

The door of your dreams has finally arrived. Today, Serious Materials announced the world’s first THX certified soundproof door and it’s not one of those metal acoustic doors you see everywhere else. The QuietHome has an STC rating of 50 and is only 2.25-inches thick. If you’re really crazy then you can order two doors and put them back-to-back with a three-foot air gap for an STC rating of 80. You’ll likely be looking at a price tag of $2,500 for the THX certified model, but there is a lower end model, STC 44, that isn’t THX certified starting around $1,000. What makes these doors so special?

The new QuietHome Doors incorporate Serious’ proprietary viscoelastic polymer-based
constrained layer damped system, a multi-layer design and advanced seals throughout the
door edge.

The headline on my previous post regarding an interview with THX chief scientist Laurie Fincham was misleading. Fincham doesn’t actually state that Blu-ray is dead, rather, just that optical media, in general, is on a slippery slope.

Here’s what THX PR Manager Graham McKenna had to say,

“THX recognizes the quality and benefits that the Blu-ray HD format brings to the home theater experience. We are dedicated to supporting Blu-ray with new THX technologies and other initiatives. At its very core, THX is about advancing the quality of the entertainment experience, whether that is on optical disc, downloads or other emerging media. I believe Mr. Fincham’s comments reflect that broader goal.”

Some of you pointed out that inaccuracy because you read the quote correctly and for that you get a cookie. It’s in the mail, I swear. How long will optical media last? Would you carry around a USB drive to your local video store to get fresh new movies? Are you already on the DLC bandwagon or would you rather have an optical disk?

Guess what? One of THX’s chief scientists says Blu-ray is toast. Laurie Fincham was recently interviewed by Home Cinema Choice Magazine and when asked about HD DVD’s recent death he commented with this,
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If there’s one single gadget out there that I’ve been longing to review this year it’s the 2.1 speaker system from Razer. We caught a glimpse of them at last year’s CES and then there were teases that it would be out towards the end of last year, which never came about, but we’re getting much closer. You can pre-order now on Amazon and I’ve heard whispers that it’ll be another three weeks or so before they ship. Enough rambling, let’s get on with the review.
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That is if you have a Neural-THX AV receiver. In any case, this will be the first time the Super Bowl will be available with true 5.1 surround sound, which is pretty darn hot. If you don’t have a Neural-THX receiver then you’re pretty much screwed. Heh. Not really. You can still experience the ‘game’s soundtrack’ with existing surround sound formats.

Neural-THX Surround provides a revolutionary new approach to surround sound production and playback for live broadcasts. It enables broadcasters to create and deliver true, multi-channel surround sound experiences using minimal bandwidth over stereo channels. For the Super Bowl, the technology will let the NFL’s on-site broadcast teams produce the game in 5.1 surround sound then transmit the sound mix in a stereo format to audiences around the globe. Television viewers can then decode the 5.1 mix using any AV receiver featuring Neural-THX Surround.

We’ve covered the Mako speakers on more than one occasion, but now we finally have a set in the office to test out. I think the majority of the team saw, rather, heard these at CES and everyone was blown away at how good they actually sounded. We’ll run a few tests and see who we can piss off in the office in the next couple weeks. In the meantime, enjoy the pics.

Product Page

Even your parents can make it all work. Well, that’s if your mom and dad have an AV system going and you’re not around to set it up for them. What THX’s Media Director aka Blackbird does is basically turn all your content (games, movies, or music) into ’smart content’ that sends out its AV settings, which is then dynamically configured for the best playback experience. We’ve all encountered situations where the aspect ratio is not correct and the audio isn’t suitable for the content that you’re viewing, right? Well, Blackbird takes care of it all for you.
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Specs here. They sounded pretty good from what I could tell in the noisy hall, but they look freaky.

Mr. Biggs already informed you about the Mako speakers from Razer, but I gleaned a few more details over the weekend from some THX folks thanks to Don Julio. So, the Razer Mako 2.1 THX Certified Multimedia bi-amplified speaker system is hitting online retailers this December and brick & mortars in January. They may be labeled as a Razer product, but this is all THX’s work. It’s equipped with THX Ground Plane and THX Slot Speaker technologies and with its downward firing design allows the Mako to fill up an entire room with rich sounds and deep bass. I’m also digging the mushroom design and can’t wait to get this into the TC/CG office for review and bump some tunes. A few more details after the jump.

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THX Loudness Plus, an audio technology to be built into various AV receivers, including Yamaha’s upcoming RX-Z11 (more on that later), should help those of you who have to watch TV and movies *extra quiet* for whatever reason: baby in the next room, having a fight with the wife… The technology boosts bass, surround and ambient sounds so that you don’t have to turn the volume up of your entire rig. In other words, you’ll get surround sound, but without having to violate local noise ordinances.

Speaking of that Yamaha…

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