Rotel really only comes out to speak to the press once a year, and it always seems to happen right around the September time frame as CEDIA draws near. This year, the high-end brand will be introducing a smattering of new products in the newly created 15 Series. For starters, we've got the flagship RSX-1560 7.1-channel AV receiver, which offers up 100-watts of Class D power per channel, four HDMI 1.3 inputs, 1080p / 24Hz Faroudja video processing and assignable 12V triggers to boot. It'll also be trotting out the RSX-1550 AVR, the RSP-1570 surround processor / preamplifier, the potent RMB-1575 amp and a number of other home components detailed in the read link. The whole crew should be available by Q4, and if you're scouting the stratospheric price tags, they're down there in the PDF as well.

If those other flat-panel concealers have left you wanting more, have a look at Stewart Filmscreen's alternative. The Media Décor deployment system "lowers a piece of custom artwork over a fixed Stewart projection screen (or flat-panel TV) when they are not in use," giving those with wall-hung sets the ability to see something other than a black expanse when glancing above the mantel. The device is available in sizes large enough to cover screens up to 110-inches diagonal, and of course, the entire thing can be remotely controlled for extra wow. If this sounds like just the thing to burn through that wad of disposable income you've recently happened upon, give Stewart a call to find out pricing details based on size. [Warning: PDF read link]

WirelessHD has finished its own content protection system, under the guise of Hollywood's big studios, Digital Transmission Content Protection (DTCP). The idea behind DTCP is establishing that content protected under another system -- like DVD's CSS or Blu-ray's AACS -- it will retain that same copy protection after it's transmitted, while still allowing streaming and copying from one device to another. Moving beyond simple wireless displays, this allows for easy wireless transmission of managed copies to DVRs, portable media players, etc. Ordinarily, we'd be rather averse to anything the MPAA has had a hand in, but we're cautiously optimistic if managed copy can actually become more than a theory. Punch the read link for a look at the specs and see if our trust has been misplaced. Of course, they also promised we'd be seeing hardware in 2008...we're running out of time while WHDI and UWB are calling.

Until now, if you were a "separates-only" sort of person with a yen for Anthem gear, the only way to get room correction for your audio was to spring for a Statement D1 or D2 preamp-processor. And wouldn't you know, the "Statement" name doesn't come with a budget price. But now the Anthem Room Correction (ARC) feature has come downstream to the AVM 40 and D50 preamp-processors. Granted, with Anthem gear "downstream" is a relative term, but we've to figure that if you're going the separates route then pricing isn't the biggest concern for you. One thing we do like seeing is that this new functionality is being made available to all AVM 40 and 50 owners as a retrofit. Now when was the last time your "future-proof" receiver got an upgrade like that?

One thing's for sure: DLO's pretty attached to its HomeDock brand, and evidently it could care less about just how confusing these naming schemes are to customers. Let's clear some cobwebs real quick -- this isn't the HomeDock Pro, nor is it the HomeDock HD. Rather, it's the HomeDock HD Pro, a glorious combination of the two (or something). Aimed at home theater enthusiasts and home installers alike, this upscaling iPod dock takes stored content to 720p or 1080i over HDMI, and you'll also find an HDMI extension socket, optical digital audio port, RS-232 control connector and IR output for supporting universal remotes. Expect this one to set you back $399 when it arrives this fall. Full release after the jump.

Cary Audio Design's Cinema 11v video processor was shown off at last year's CEDIA, but it's finally getting its debut party at CEDIA 2008 next week. Don't think the unit hasn't been busy, though -- in the interim, it's been doing some kind of sci-fi time travel shenanigans and picked up a "2008 Product of the Year" award. Leaving aside the issue of general availability, we thought there were plenty of days left in the year. The Faroudja DCDi-powered unit promises to be the "highest-performing video scaler/switcher/processor available," which we think the folks at Silicon Optix might take issue with. The Cinema 11v certainly looks a treat (in a simple way), and sports six HDMI 1.3 inputs and a pair of outputs that can pump out a 120-Hz, 1080p signal sourced from composite, component, RGB or HDMI inputs.

[Via Widescreen Review]

Read - Cinema 11v wins award [PDF link]

There aren't too many audiophile firms that really take a whole-systems approach, but Naim has been at it for years. The firm is adding new models to its whole-home audio systems, but sadly for us, the pricing is pretty much the same -- too expensive. New to the NaimNet music server lineup are the NS01 ($6,800), NS02 ($7,900) and the NS03 ($9,575). For your dollars, you get one-touch CD ripping, an easy-to-use UI, database information from AMG, support for six simultaneous streams and storage of your precious bits on mirrored 400GB drives. Oh yeah, and the system will offer up non-DRM'ed music files on your plebian networked or USB-attached devices, too. Having spent some time with Naim equipment, we're not complaining about the functionality or build quality, but these prices make us consider Sonos, Slim Devices, Apple, or even sprinkling dedicated PCs throughout the house.

Coaxial cabling has long since been viewed as a premiere option for passing along high-def content within the home. After all, in most places it's already neatly installed within the walls. The High-Definition Audio-Video Network Alliance (HANA) has announced its intentions to release a HANA Entertainment Box reference design based on the new (UWB-based) 1394 Over Coax standard; products based on said design will enable consumers to "download HD content from any broadband connection or HD cable set-top-box and watch it in any room in their home with a coax jack and a remote control." HANA is hoping to have the reference design and initial prototypes out the door in Q4, though we wouldn't hold our breath.

You know what time it (almost) is, so you'll be prepared to handle a whole new breed of TV mounts as well. With CEDIA upon us, Chief Manufacturing and Sanus are both rolling out the same automatic motorized tilt mount, though it'll be dubbed LT15 for Chief and CM8 for Sanus. Put simply, this was designed for folks who want / need to mount their set higher than eye level. Upon receiving a signal via optical cable that the set was turned on, it automatically tilts the unit downward in order to give everyone a better view. Surprisingly, the asking price on this is just $299, which -- all things considered -- isn't half bad.

These are primarily for the pros, so we'll keep it short and sheet. RTI is getting set to unveil a trio of new products at CEDIA, the first of which routes eight analog audio and eight composite video sources to eight individual zones. Needless to say, that's the A8 Audio Distribution Matrix Switcher we're referring to. The V6 Video Distribution Matrix Switcher can switch six component and composite video sources between six varying zones, while the CP-1680 Multi-Channel Audio Amplifier provides audio through 16 channels at 80-watts each. Pricing has yet to be divulged, but feel free to venture on past the break for the whole release.

As the run-up to CEDIA continues, the no-names are coming out in force. Avoca is looking to make a splash in the residential music control system sector with its VIP Music Edition. A stiff $3,990.00 (and up) will buy you a sleek VIP Music Player, a wireless VIP Music Companion (read: a remote) and the company's own Say it-Play it control interface, which enables you to simply speak what artist you'd like to hear and have it played back instantly. The integrated CD player can automatically rip and store lossless copies of your jams, and the on-screen interface enables you to sift through and find whatever you're looking for. The system is all set to snag some limelight in Denver, though prospective buyers can find it at dealers right now. Full release after the jump.

While it was Pulse~LINK winning the last (but obviously not final) round of this multi-year tiff, the tables have turned once more. Tzero Technologies has just announced that the US Patent Office "issued an office action rejecting all claims of US patent number 6,970,448 asserted in a lawsuit brought by Pulse~LINK against Tzero in June 2007." This decision, coupled with a stay issued by the district court, will evidently bring the lawsuit to a close "for the foreseeable future." We're told that the legal struggles between the two are now officially over, but we're admittedly hesitant to believe it.

Parasound certainly has a contingent of audio-only fans amongst its customer list, but even the 2-channel crowd must get curious about all this recent multichannel craze that just isn't fading away. And that must be who the new P 7 preamplifier is targeted at. Either that or the company just really, really wants to define a new product category. In the case of the P7, that would be the "7.1-channel, analog-only preamplifier" category. The back panel tells the story on this unit -- a gaggle of RCA inputs (seven L/R stereo pairs and two 7.1-channel sets), with XLR and RCA outputs. No digital audio goes in, and none comes out. Bass management is done the old fashioned way, in the analog realm. Might we suggest that you spend that $2,000 on a "lowbrow" AV receiver instead? Just put it off to the side of your audio-only rig, right next to the popcorn. Let's face it -- you're slumming it with multichannel anyways, right?