Focal-JMlab
Hang on to your socks; Focal-JMlab's new Sub Utopia Be subwoofer could quite possibly blow them right off your feet. This sub delivers a true 20 hertz with 120 decibels of sound pressure, the company reports. The 16-inch sandwich composite cone offers more than 10 times the rigidity of other materials, while the alloy basket supports a multi-ferrite magnet assembly that includes 18 magnets, measures 3 inches thick, and weighs more than 17.6 pounds. The Kapton voice coil is ventilated to limit the dynamic compression from the heat that the 1,000-watt BASH amplifier generates. For $6,000, this sub will rattle your bones.
Focal-JMlab
(800) 663-9352 www.audioplusservices.com
JBL
Getting 7.1-channel sound in your home theater is easy with JBL's new SCS300 7.1-channel loudspeaker package. The satellite and center-channel models offer dual 3.5-inch PolyPlas woofers and 0.75-inch titanium-laminate tweeters. The system's sub utilizes a high-excursion 10-inch woofer and 200-watt amp in a tuned-port enclosure. The sub's back panel features volume control, LFE and line-level inputs, and speaker-level ins and outs. An auto power-on/-off function automatically turns the sub on when an audio signal is present and switches the sub to standby when there's no signal. For $650, you'll get the sub, the center, six satellites (with mounting brackets), and the necessary cables.
JBL
(516) 496-3400 www.jbl.com
DVD: The Cat in the Hat—Universal
Video: 5
Audio: 5
Extras: 2
It's always dangerous to remake a classic, yet director Bo Welch and company evidently had little fear of (or much respect for) the original Dr. Seuss tale in which a mischievous cat with a mysterious-but-colorful hat magically enters the lives of a brother and sister who need a lesson about balance in their lives. Although the DVD case claims that "the Classic Book Comes to Life," sadly, the childlike wonder and simple beauty of Suess' well-hewn prose and intriguingly alluring drawings are regularly shortchanged in favor of Mike Myers' antics and strangely out-of-place, off-color humor.
Intrigue
The newest addition to Intrigue's line of Harmony remote controls is designed with your basic TiVo needs in mind. The Harmony SST-688 provides extra navigation buttons specifically for use with digital video recorders. Like the rest of its Harmony brethren, the SST-688 is PC- and Mac-compatible, and it features designated activity buttons like "Play DVD" and "Watch TV," which make the remote a breeze to operate. You configure the SST-688 online; simply answer a series of questions about your A/V equipment and then download the necessary programming into the remote via the included USB cable. The $225 remote control can operate all infrared devices, such as A/V components, gaming consoles, MP3 music servers, and lighting control.
Intrigue Technologies
(866) 291-1505 www.harmony-remote.com
DVD: Good Boy!—MGM/UA
Video: 2
Audio: 3
Extras: 3
What if dogs really came from another world and were sent on a mission to Earth to domesticate humans and assert their superiority? That's the premise of this fetching family film, whose writers never met a canine joke they didn't like. The gimmick of talking dogs—especially when the voice talent includes Carl Reiner and Cheech Marin—carries the movie up to a point, but it runs out of steam about the time the Greater Dane arrives from the planet Sirius to inspect her minions. Still, the visual jokes and awwww-inspiring moments will engage most young viewers and their parents.
Sharp has introduced what it claims is the largest LCD high-definition flat-panel now available. The company is the market leader in LCD televisions, according to a 2003 report from DisplaySearch, an Austin, Texas-based market research firm.
Outlaw Audio is now shipping its affordable high-performance subwoofer, the LFM-1. The $579 powered sub won high praise at introduction late last year, causing an unexpected demand. The Easton, MA-based manufacturer has completed production runs and should be able to fulfill all orders, according to a recent news posting.
Primedia, the leading targeted media company, announced March 30 the newsstand arrival of its recently launched Connected Guide To The Digital Home. Part of Primedia's Home Technology & Photography (HT&P) Group, Connected is the first consumer magazine dedicated entirely to adopting and integrating audio, video, information, telecommunications, security and other personal and home technologies.
DVD: The Final Countdown—Blue Underground
Video: 4
Audio: 4
Extras: 4
This B-grade time-travel yarn about a modern aircraft carrier thrust back in time to the day before the attack on Pearl Harbor has earned a devoted following. However, aside from a rush job on DVD last year from Pacific Family Entertainment, it has never seen a disc worthy of fans' attention. Blue Underground has rectified this, affectionately producing a limited edition (100,000 copies), two-disc set after picking up the floundering rights.
HT Staff
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