Onkyo Introduced New Budget Home Theater

This just in!
http://news.digitaltrends.com/news/story/16431/onkyo_intros_new_budget_home_theater_sets

HT-S4100 and HT-S3100 will cost $479 and $379 respectively.

In case someone does not know, Onkyo is a very good brand when it comes to home theaters. Apparently, they finally decided to capitalize on their growing reputation.

Leading the group of new systems is the HT-S5100, offering 7.1 channel surround count, three HDMI inputs (with 1080p pasthru), and an iPod dock that lets users plug in (and, of course, charge) their personal media players. The S5100 also includes Audessey 2EQ room correction technology that can automatically adjust sound characteristics and delays for each speaker relative to active listening locations and accommodate low-level listening. The S5100 also sports Dolby and DTS surround sound, a 130 Watt per-channel amp (with a 290-watt subwoofer), and seven satellite speakers. The system is also ready for Sirius satellite radio, and integrates optimizer technology to make MP3s and AAC files compressed for headphone use sound better over a legitimate audio system.

Next up, the HT-S4100 and HT-S3100 dial back to 5.1 surround sound, but still offer DTS and Dolby Digital surround sound processing. The S4100 offers a 200-watt subwoofer and an iPod dock; the S3100 powers its subwoofer off the main amp and lacks an iPod dock.

The manuals are not available yet, but here is where they will be:

http://www.onkyousa.com/download/own_manuals.cfm?cat=Systems

Panasonic SC-BT100 Blue-ray Home Theater System

Panasonic SC-BT100 Blue-ray Home Theater System

As it often happens, one starts with a simple question: "Does this sort of thing actually exist?"
In this case, the likelihood that someone already started making Blue-ray home theaters at an affordable price was fairly high. Indeed, here it is:







The price tag of this SC-BT100 is going to be just under $1000:

http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9906766-7.html

It's certainly no the best that is out there, but it will do for some folks. I am still looking for a manual.

Bionic marvel: what do Bose Wave systems and whooper swans have in common?

If you ever saw Bose infomercials about their Wave music systems you probably remember the well-illustrated explanations of how the Waveguide system actually works. To summarize these principles, I will use a few quotes from the company’s site:

“They realized that by mounting a loudspeaker in a tube, the motion of the loudspeaker would act as a waveguide, effectively transforming a small amount of input (air) into a large amount of output (sound). Drs. Bose and Short discovered that a waveguide could match the mechanical properties of a loudspeaker for efficient operation over a wide range of notes.”

“Additional analysis and measurements revealed that the tube could be folded into intricate patterns with no ill effect on sound quality. This discovery eliminated any concerns about the length of the waveguide and proved to be an extraordinary breakthrough.”




Now, here is the amazing connection. For centuries there was a belief that swans are capable of producing most melodious songs only when they are about to die. All this despite the fact that ordinarily swans are not known to be particularly inclined to sing well or to sing at all! This legendary trait, however, has been surprisingly confirmed in the nineteenth century for whooper swans (C. cygnus), one of the two species that were observed, but not distinguished between, in antiquity. Because of the “remarkably shaped trachea, convoluted inside its breastbone” the whooper’s expiring breath produces soft tones, similar to a flute (see Arnott, W. G. 1977. “Swan Songs.” Greece & Rome 24:149–153). It is possible that the legend about swan songs goes back to one very observant hunter a few thousand years ago who, after shooting a swan, heard these soft tones (which also may have happened to be even more sonorous than usual). It seems, without too much simplification, that the Bose Waveguide system uses the very same acoustic principle!