Any Polk news from CEDIA?

[fireshoes]

Paul or other Polk employees, any tidbits for us from CEDIA? New product developments, etc.? The only thing I found was about the IP-addressable LCi's. (http://www.polkaudio.com/home/partners/press/release.php?category=21&id=45)

["Polk" Paul DiComo]

Why of course.
We showed the new RM Series publicly for the first time and that seemed to be well received. The stuff looks so dang good and sounds great too. Anyone looking for spouse pleasing, stylish speakers with good sound will be attracted to them. I have my eyes on the RM7300 for front LCR to replace the stock satellites in my DS7200 system. They are going to look so cool next to my silver colored LCD TV.

We did a cool demo – LC265i in performance enclosures with PSW450 compared to a pair of LSi25s. The LSi25s won – but not by that much. Very convincing demo that in-wall when done right can approach free standing speaker performance.

We showed the XM tuner and custom installers flocked to that. they liked the performance and styling but the price point wowed them. The custom install multizone XM tuners cost an arm and a leg.

The best thing we showed was a prototype of an powered (tri-amped) IP–addressable in-wall speaker. It is based on a LC265i platform. I will copy the text from the press release below. At CEDIA Matt Polk did dealer training sessions on IP networks and compared this speaker with a standard pair of LC265i in performance enclosures. The difference made people fall off their chairs. When I demoed them for people in the booth they looked for the hidden subwoofer and were shocked to find there was none. Looks like we leapfrogged the industry on this idea.

Speaking of IP – I finally had the light bulb over my head turn on to its full 25 watt brightness and I now understand IP systems and why they are so cool. We had a 5 zone NetStreams DigiLinx IP distribution system installed in our mini-house-like booth display. It delivers full fidelity uncompressed digital audio to an unlimited number of zones. But what's really cool is that the IP/TCP protocol of the system makes it so easy to install and configure – even I could do it. It is also very easy to use and less buggy than some other systems I have used. And it is real hi–fi, not MP3 garbage. Also ultra cool are the digital music bank (music servers) like the Audio Request unit we had in the booth.

I'll see if anyone took snaps of the booth and I'll post them next week.

Here's the press release:
Polk Audio Announces World's First IP Addressable Loudspeakers for NetStreams Digital Audio
Distribution System

Indianapolis, IN – September 9, 2004 – Today at CEDIA Expo 2004, loudspeaker manufacturer Polk Audio announced the first IP (Internet Protocol) addressable powered loudspeaker systems for the NetStreams DigiLinX™ digital whole house audio distribution system. The products are flush-mount speakers based on Polk's existing LCi Series in-wall/ceiling models. Digital amplifiers, electronic crossovers, DSP circuitry and TCP/IP control modules are built into the speakers to deliver a wealth of demonstrable convenience and performance benefits.

The speaker's integrated TCP/IP module allows the NetStreams distribution system to "find" the speaker set on the network and deliver uncompressed, full-fidelity digital audio signals from any source on the network. The built-in digital amplifiers and crossovers bi-amplify (or tri-amplify in the case of the three-way LC265i-p) the loudspeakers for more accurate, lower distortion audio performance while integrated Digital Signal Processing (DSP) electronics provide sophisticated sound tailoring to optimize the performance of the speaker for the room and speaker locations.

"We can do things with an amplified speaker that you just can’t do with a passive speaker and external amplifier" said Polk Product Line Manager Al Baron. "With the NetStreams system and our IP addressable speakers you now can have loss-less, noise and distortion-free 96/24 digital audio transmitted anywhere in the house all the way up to the inputs of the individual drivers in the speaker system. The performance will knock you out."
While the Polk LCi-p Series speakers provide the greatest functionality when used within a NetStreams DigiLinX™ system, they can accept inputs from any analog distributed audio system and still deliver a host of performance benefits.

NetStreams' DigiLinX is comprised of IP-based audio products networked to distribute audio and control signals over an Ethernet or wireless network, using TCP/IP. Using internationally accepted standard protocols allows easy and instant interface with a wide variety of systems and products, and control via any web browser equipped device (in addition to keypads). Examples of interfaces that NetStreams believes will become popular with its customers are PDAs, web tablets, and PCs as well as NetSteams' TouchLinX high resolution in-wall touch pad controllers.

Polk Audio's four LCi-p Series model feature technologies such as advanced ring radiator tweeters and Aerated Polypropylene cones. These are the same technologies used in Polk's critically acclaimed LSi Series loudspeakers to deliver the performance of stand-alone models. The rectangular models feature Polk's patented Power Port technology and available Performance Enclosures for consistent, high performance bass response. Polk expects to deliver the LCi-p products in the spring of 2005 at USA suggested retail prices ranging from $2500 to $4500 per pair ($3500 to $6000 in Canada).

“Polk’s new IP-based speaker marks an exciting development in our industry. The product sounds fantastic and the easy integration with the NetStreams DigiLinX IP-based home network will provide unprecedented customization by the custom installer,” remarked Herman Cardenas, NetStreams CEO.

Polk Audio will demonstrate the LC265i-p IP Addressable Powered Loudspeaker with the NetStreams DigiLinX™ system in booth #745 of the CEDIA Expo. Polk Audio will conduct Dealer Training on the new IP addressable speakers and whole house network in Ballroom D of the Marriott Hotel on Thursday September 9 at 9:00 AM and Friday September 10 at 10:30 AM.

Polk Audio is an international manufacturer of home and car loudspeakers, with headquarters in Baltimore Maryland. Polk Audio are The Speaker Specialists®, designers and manufacturers of loudspeakers for home, car and office. Founded by Matthew Polk and George Klopfer in 1972, Polk Audio holds over 45 patents for advances in loudspeaker design and technology. Polk products are distributed the US and Canada and in over 50 countries. Consumers can reach Polk Audio by phone (800) 377-7655, by email polkcs@polkaudio.com and on the web www.polkaudio.com.

NetStreams, Headquartered in Austin, Texas, provides sophisticated networked audio leading the marketplace in technological innovation. NetStreams utilizes advanced digital technologies to ensure superior performance. NetStreams is committed to utilizing state-of-the-art human engineering to create home entertainment products that are truly user-friendly and future-compatible. NetStreams is creating the future of home entertainment – today. www.netstreams.com

[Steve@3dai]

Originally posted by "Polk" Paul DiComo
not MP3 garbage

While most MP3s sound like crap, if ripped properly and encoded well, they can sound quite good.

Do I need to send you a disc Paul? ;)

[nadams]

Will we be able to adapt those IP speakers to a wireless network?

[Steve@3dai]

Originally posted by nadams
Will we be able to adapt those IP speakers to a wireless network?

In wireless's current state, I think it's bandwidth limited. Sure, you can do it now, but only up to about 48khz/16bit, 96kHz/24bit would require more bandwidth.

["Polk" Paul DiComo]

OK I admit to being a bit harsh on MP3. They can sound good. Hey, I'm a writer, I have license to be melodramatic!:)

[outerlymitz]

Originally posted by Steve@3dai
In wireless's current state, I think it's bandwidth limited. Sure, you can do it now, but only up to about 48khz/16bit, 96kHz/24bit would require more bandwidth.

What you can do to ensure total wireless bandwith is dedicate a 54g wireless router to each speaker. You can achieve this by filtering MAC addresses to make sure that each speaker gets the full bandwith from a dedicated 54g wireless router. Expensive but dooable. But hey if you can dish out 2.5-4k for the speakers why not round home for the score. :)