All of this stock is new, and all comes with original warranties.

Arcam
Solo Music System. One of the finest combined amplifier/AM-FM tuner/CD players on the market. RRP: $2,499. Demo model $1,899.

B&W:
HTM2 Centre speaker. RRP: $7,000. Demo model only $4,990
HTM4 Centre speaker. RRP: $2,500. Demo model only $1,699.
DS8 Rear speakers. RRP: $7,000. Limited stock $3,990.
ASW825 Subwoofer. RRP: $4,500. Demo model only. $3,499.
FPM Speakers. RRP: $999/pr. Demo model only $699.

Bose:
Bose LS48111 Home Theatre system. RRP: $6,499. Demo model $4,999.
Bose 151 Outdoor speakers. RRP: $499/pr. One pair only $399.

Marantz:
SR5001 A/V Receiver. RRP: $1,699. Demo unit only $999.

Musical Fidelity:
Not only do we have a lot of older models in stock, but so did the importer. Many of these units have never been switched on.
A3.2 FM Tuner. RRP: $1,799. One only $899.
X-Plora FM Tuner with TripleX power supply. RRP: $2,499. One only $999.
X-Pre V3 Pre-amplifier. RRP: $1,799. Limited stock. $899.
X-80 Integrated amplifier. Great sounding unit. RRP: $899. One only $699.
A-1 Integrated amplifier. Also a superb sounding amp. RRP: $2,499. Limited stock $1,699.
A-1 CD Pro CD player. RRP: $2,999. Demo model only $1,999.
A5.5CD Player. Great value. RRP: $3,999. 2 x Demo units only. $1,999.
A1008CD top loading CD player. RRP: $7,999. Limited stock $2,999. Amazing value.
X-Ray CD Player/X-T100 integrated amplifier/TripleX power supply combination. RRP: $5,498 the package. Limited stock $2,999.
KW-250s. This is a beast of a unit. It is a combined 250watt high current integrated amplifier with an AM/FM tuner and high quality CD player in one chassis. We have two demo units available at a very attractive price. RRP: $12,999. Sell $4.999.

NAD:
C315BEE integrated amp. Still current but due to be discontinued. RRP: $449. Limited stock $399.

Panasonic:
DMR-XW350 DVD Recorder with twin tuners and 250G hard drive. RRP: $879. Demo model $549

Pioneer:
DV220 DVD Player. RRP: $149. One unit only $109.
PDM427 Multi-disc CD player. RRP: $398. One unit only $299.

Richter:
Legend Rear Speakers. RRP: $699. Limited stock: $299
Legend Centre Speaker: RRP: $599. Demo model only. $299.

Revox:
Sound ‘S’ tower speakers. RRP: $1,999. Demo pair only $899.

Rotel:
RSP-1098 A/V processor. RRP: $4,995. Demo model only $1,999.

Sharp:
BD-HP20 Blu-Ray player. Now a couple of generations’ old, but very good value. RRP at time it was current: $749. Limited stock $199.

Yamaha:
NS-AW592 Outdoor speakers. RRP: $399/Pr. Limited stock. $299.
NS-AW392 Outdoor speakers. RRP: $299/Pr. Limited stock. $199. Both models of these outdoor speakers offer excellent value at their normal price, great value at these special prices.
DVD-S1700 DVD Player. RRP: $799. Demo unit only $299.
Plus we still have some stock of our Yamaha A/V receiver run-out.
RXV-1065. RRP: $1,899. Limited stock $1,099
RXV-2065. RRP: $2,499. Limited stock $1,499
RXV-3900. RRP: $2,999. Special $1,799. We are currently out of stock of this model, but will be receiving our last shipment in mid-August, and are taking orders. Amazing value.

Sony:
KDL46W5500 46” LCD TV. RRP: $2,199. Demo model $1,699.

Finally: Don’t forget our on-going Sennheiser HD650 headphones special. RRP: $899. Sell $499.

It seems that headphone amplifiers are all the rage, along with a renewed interest in headphones, as the release of the stunning Sennheiser HD800s and the surprising B&W P5’s attests.

Given that they were one of the pioneers of the category it is no surprise that Musical Fidelity is still considered to be the market leader. They are also about to consolidate this position with the re-release of the X-CANv8p.

This is a high quality, single ended, Class A triode headphone amplifier with ultra-low output impedance, capable of effortlessly driving any headphone. It has two headphone sockets, a normal line input plus a USB input. It also features a line-output so it can also be used as a single-ended Class A triode pre-amp.

Always considered to offer great value at $999 – the X-CANv8p has been re-released at $699.

Stock is available now, but quantities are limited.

OK – I am going to suggest something completely radical. If you are looking to buy a new flat screen TV, go out and have a good, hard look at the screens yourself. Try not to be swayed by anything other than what you, personally, need in a TV. Take the opinions of mass market reviewers but balance them with what you are thinking. And, most importantly, listen to the salesperson but don’t take their word as the final say. It’s not easy for me to say this. I’m writing in a well respected magazine as one of those reviewers. It’s filled with advertising from quality brands that have great products, and I have a store that supplies these products to you.

So why do I suggest this? In the forty years I have been in this industry I don’t think that I have ever seen any product category where the fortunes of the technology and the companies involved have waxed and waned for so many reasons, with precious few of them being performance of the products.

In the early ‘flat screen’ days the decisions were much easier, you only had a choice of plasma, or stay with the ‘old fashioned’ CRT. The fact that CRT was demonstrably better than Plasma in those early days mattered little – the new buzz was plasma, and that’s where the market went. Thankfully the rate of development was so rapid and it did not take manufacturers long to reach quality levels that justified the claims being made. If you jumped in to early you were stuck with a product that aged far more quickly than standard technology usually does.

Since then things have become very messy. LCD screens rapidly improved to a level where they could be considered to be an alternative to plasma. The LCD v’s Plasma debate quickly descended into a debacle. Suddenly LCD was the new ‘must buy’ product, based not on quality but on a lot of successful marketing campaigns However it was not long before plasma made a miraculous comeback. Did plasma technology suddenly improve in quality? No, its newfound popularity was based on a successful counter marketing campaign launched by plasma manufacturers. It was a convincing campaign and suddenly plasma was once again everyone’s flat screen of choice.

This isn’t to say that these waves of popularity are misleading or that the mass appeal is filling your head with lies. By the time plasma and LCD were really in their stride many of the products produced by the big brands were very good products. What it does say though is that no matter how good the other party was, it wasn’t the performance of the products that was leading the swing. This is why it’s so important to stay true to what you need and what you know about the products you’re after.

After plasma and LCD, along came LED. Firstly, an LED TV is not an LED TV. It is an LCD TV with backlighting (or in most cases edge-lighting) provided by LED lighting rather than the more traditional florescent method. This gives a very even spread of light, and it is brighter. It is going to be interesting if true LED TV becomes a commercial reality. Many people believe that they already exist, so how are companies going to market these?
Needless to say, being the new product on the block, LED is the current ‘must have’ product. I am fascinated by this. While I have seen some impressive LED sets, I have seen some well known brands marketing screens which puts the picture quality back where it was five years ago. Do they sell – of coarse they do. Is it because of quality – obviously not, it is just that the consumer has been convinced that this is the current technology, and so this is the one that they must have. Should you buy an LED? If it suits your needs then yes, absolutely. But do your homework. Look at the screens, read up on the technology and have a good hard think about it. The investment is large.

Now we are about to throw 3D TV into the mix. Not only do we have the plasma 3D v’s LCD 3D v’s LED 3D argument, but I believe there are currently nine different 3D standards. Heaven help the consumer. Looks like it’s back to the serious books.

Like I said at the beginning, if you are in the market for a flat screen, trust your eyes. It would be great if you could rely on everything that you are told and read. However in the real world this is not the case. Reviewers and store people don’t know what your exact situation is, where you live, the room environment and your watching habits, for example. They also have their own favorites.

So now that you are in the store, what do you look for?
Firstly you are already at something of a disadvantage; a retail environment is not the best place to be comparing screens. Showroom lighting, particularly fluorescent, gives a different effect to the lighting in most homes. Secondly most manufacturers know that their screens will be sold in a mass retail environment, and that you will automatically be attracted to the brightest screen, so their screens come out of the box ‘hot’ – that is with the brightness and contrast is turned up. It’s just part of the reality of a retail environment. The lights have to be fluorescent and the TVs have to be bright otherwise you won’t be attracted to them.

If you do your own detective work, there are a number of areas to pay close attention to.
From day one of the big issues with flat screen TV’s has been their ability to replay black. While this problem has been improving over the years a good number of screens still portray solid blacks as a dark grey. If you do find a screen that does display black blacks, also check that there is definition within that black.

In an attempt to overcome the inability of some screens to show black the manufacturers artificially enhance blacks, but end up without any definition. Check the screens with a night scene, or better still, with someone wearing a black or very dark suit. Can you still see the folds and creases in the clothes, or is it just a black blob? This will sort out the real deals from the fakers.
Another major downside of flat screens, in particular LCD, is motion artifacts. Again screens have come a long way in this respect, but have a look at some fast moving action on the screen. Is the action smooth, or does the image appear to move in a ‘jerky’ fashion.

Colour tones – are they natural. Almost every retailer uses animation movies to show off their screens. Why? – they are colorful, bright, attention grabbing, and most importantly, you have no way of telling if the colours portrayed are as they were initially intended. Possibly the best test for this is skin tones. Have a look at a row of screens in any retailers and you will find that you will naturally be attracted to the brightest, most colorful screen on display. Then have a look at a human face on that screen and the chances are very good that the skin tones are far more exaggerated than in reality (bright, ruddy complexion etc.) It doesn’t matter how much this screen appeals to you, either the screen calibration is wrong (making it difficult to make an educated choice) or it is a poor quality screen.

Have a look at depth of field. The better the screen the better the depth of field the more you can look ‘into’ the image.

Don’t be scared to walk up to the screen to have a close look at the image. A screen which gives a smooth image when you view it up close will always give a better picture from your watching position than one which is ‘blocky’ or jagged up close. However make sure that you do this on a good quality source, otherwise you may be looking at the failings of the material itself rather than the screen.

The importance of making your own decision will become greater if and when 3D takes hold. We are going to see a number of variations on the theme, and some will be better (more natural) than others. Again I repeat – trust your eyes. Does the image on the screen you are watching look natural? And most importantly, make sure you are viewing material where you can judge what natural should look like. Any good store will be able to sell you a good quality TV, but for the best set, trust your eyes and judgment to determine which one you choose. Good luck!

June Yamaha Specials:

We have a number of very attractive Yamaha A/V receiver specials for the month of June (or until stock is exhausted)

RXV-3900 $1,799 (save $1,200)
RXV-2065 $1,499 (save $1,000)
RXV-1065 $1,099 (save $800)
RXV-765 $999 (save $600)
RXV-665 $899 (save $500)

Additional $10.00 shipping anywhere in Australia.

The one due to create the most interest is the special we have on the Sennheiser HD650 Headphones. These are a fabulous headphone, with a retail of $899. We have purchased a quantity which we are selling for $499.

The other reduction of significance is the JVC DLA-HD550 projector. JVC projectors are something of an enigma, regarded by most people in the know as the best projectors in their relative price points, but still undiscovered by most retailers. The HD550 is an excellent unit, and something of a bargain at its normal price of $6,495. We are now offering these at $4,995. Drop in and have a look, we are confident that you will be more than impressed.

One of our very favourite amplifiers, the Musical Fidelity AMS35i Pure Class A integrated amplifier has been reduced from $13,995 to $11,995. Still a considerable investment for an amplifier, but worth every cent. Musical Fidelity have also reduced the price of their X-Cans V8P Class A Valve headphone amplifier to $799. This is a great match for the Sennheiser HD650 headphones mentioned above.

One of our most popular loudspeakers, the Orpheus Aurora 3.3, is being discontinued, and there will be an extended period before the replacement arrives. In the meantime the old models are being cleared at $2,399, down from $2,999 a pair.

Finally, it is that time of year when the TV manufacturers roll out their new models, and we have some existing stock to clear. Stock is very limited:
Panasonic TH-P42S10a 42” plasma. $999
Panasonic TH-P46G10a 46” plasma. $1,499
Sony KDL-46Z5500 46” LCD. $1,999
Sony KDL-46W5500 46” LCD. $1,699
Sony KDL-40Z4500 40” LCD. $1,499.

Many of you are aware that we have supported the last few CCEntertainment concerts. The next should be a beauty – ‘A Day in the Life’ – a Beatles retrospective of their music from 1967-1970, a period that many believe was their most creative.
The concert is at the Enmore in Newtown on Friday May 28th. It will feature a 16 piece band, and guest vocalists include Jack Jones, Steve Balbi (from Noiseworks), Simon Meli (Ooh La La), Evely Duprai (Paul Mac), Kevin Bennett (The Flood), Anthea White (The Hipstones), Spencer Jones and Miss Min (David Campbell) who will be reworking and reinterpreting some of the best pop/rock music ever written.
Some people I have spoken with have been of the opinion that these are ‘tribute’ concerts. This is not the case, while many of the songs are covered close to the original; others obviously have the creative hand of Joseph Calderazzo imprinted on them. For me a highlight of the concerts I have seen to date has been Charmaine Fords electric solo on keyboards doing a jazzed up improvisation of the Eagles ‘Heartache tonight’. If you were at the concert you will know what I mean.
A couple of years back around 8,000 people saw this concert at Olympic Park. This link will take you to one of their numbers on the night.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3N31lyPlxhM&feature=related.

I believe that the conclusion from a recent British review sums up the product very well:

‘Ken Ishiwata’s thirty year long tenure at Marantz has been a fruitful one, and the KI Pearl system shows why. These are sophisticated Hi-Fi separates, carefully designed, beautifully built, and very cleverly voiced to deliver the musical – as apposed to Hi-Fi – goods, regardless of what type of music you care to feed in. They’re excellent on their own, but I’d suggest that the whole of the system is greater than the sum of the separates; together the Pearls really fly. A wonderful combination to behold, and excellent value too, my only criticism is that they’ll not be around as long as their creator: those five hundred units are soon to go.”

I have also recently come across a video of Ken discussing the products in person – it’s worth a look.

If you are in the market for a very good quality amp and/or CD player, and if you (like me) appreciate both build quality and performance, these should be on your short list. These are products that will stand the test of time!

The KI Pearl amplifier and CD player sell for $4,999 each.

This is a subject that can create a lot comment, both positive and negative. We would be very interested in any feedback that you may have, and more importantly, we would welcome any tweaks which have improved the performance of your system. Particularly if those upgrades can be preformed inexpensively.

‘Super Sounds:
by Len Wallis

There have been a couple of serious distractions to traditional Hi-Fi over the last decade or so. Home Theatre has taken the emphasis off sound quality and moved it to vision. MP3, and in particular the advent of the Apple iPod, also took the emphasis from performance, instead highlighting both content and convenience. However there are changes afoot.

We are witnessing a trend back to performance, and with that a renewed interest in what we loosely term Hi-Fi. The difference now is that many consumers have discovered widely varying genres of music, and a great number of people, and that number is increasing, are listening to true digital sources. While the iPod may have been derided as the enemy of Hi-Fi for years (due to its poor musical quality) it has exposed most of us to music that we would never have previously considered. Along the way it has also become the ‘go-to’ source for that music. The irony is that this poor cousin to the CD has suddenly blossomed into a musical source that can, and does on many occasions, provide a level of performance that was unachievable on CD. More on this another day.

Now that you have discovered the joy of listening to music again (and by this I mean listening to the music, not the equipment), and you have shelled out your hard earned dollars on a good system, how do you get the most out of it? It may surprise you to learn that some very simple, and in most cases inexpensive, tweaks to your system can have a greater impact to the performance of that system than your choice of the components themselves.

While I am aware that in the real world not everything below will be possible or practical, you should follow as many of the following suggestions as you can.

The Room
The greatest impact on the performance of your system is going to be the room itself. Unfortunately it may also be the one factor that you have least control over. Room dimensions, construction and furnishings can make or break the enjoyment you will receive from a system, and generally the more cubic the room (i.e. the room is as wide as it is long as it is high) the worse the system will sound.
However don’t despair, there are some simple tricks that you can do to improve many rooms (partners willing!). One of the more common complaints today is that the system sounds too bright in the room – brought about by today’s trend towards glass, unadorned walls and stone or timber flooring. The trick here is to introduce some softer elements, rugs on the floor, paintings on the wall, etc.
The main problem with overly-bright rooms is reflections, and it is the reflection points that you need to work on. Imagine that the walls are mirrored – the spot where you would see the speakers in the mirrors on the wall is where you need some type of reflective or absorptive device. This can be as simple as a painting (no glass), a bookcase (better still), or you can go all out and purchase acoustic panels which are designed exactly for this purpose. Don’t forget the floors – the same rule applies, place a rug or mat at the reflective point.
On the other hand the sound may be dull and lifeless – if this is the case it is possible that the room is over furnished. Removing some of the clutter may just give that spark you are looking for.
Make sure that there are no items in the room which can rattle or resonate, particularly with lower bass notes. This can include light fittings, air conditioning ducts, ornaments and racks.

Equipment position
Positioning the system. Speaker positioning in particular can, and will, have a huge impact on the system’s performance. There are a number of rules that should be followed when positioning your speakers in your room.
Ø Don’t place the speakers against the side walls, and definitely not in the corners of the room – room corners effectively horn-load the bass and will cause it to boom. If possible also move the speakers off the wall, particularly if the speakers have a rear port.
Ø If you are using bookshelf speakers on stands the speakers should sit so that the tweeters are at ear height, and both speakers should be at the same height.
Ø Now comes the tricky bit. Your listening position should be at the peak of an isosceles triangle, i.e. you should be sitting equidistant from both speakers, and they should be situated as far from you as they are from each other. Ensure that you don’t sit too close to the back wall; make sure that you are at least half a metre away.
Initially face both speakers so that they are facing straight ahead, directly at the wall behind you. Have a listen to a piece of music you know well – you should find that you can hear music coming from both speakers, with a ‘hole’ in the music between the speakers. Now slowly angle the speakers in towards your listening position. You will find that as you do this the ‘hole’ in the middle is gradually filled with music. The system should eventually snap into place where you can no longer hear where the speakers are situated, but you are presented with a three dimensional musical image which extends not only from the outside of the left speaker to the outside of the right speaker, but which also has front to back depth. Each instrument and musician should have their own space, and you should be able to ‘hear’ the air around the performers. (Some recordings have done a better job of recording this spatial information than others, the better the disc the better the effect.) In most cases this will occur when the speakers are facing directly at, or slightly in front of, the listener.
Ø For the seriously keen there is a mathematical way of determining where you should initially position your speakers relative to the rear and side walls. Firstly multiply the height of the room by 0.618. This will determine the distance from the rear wall to the centre of the woofer. Then multiply the width of the room by 0.276 and this will give the distance that the centre of the woofer should be from the side walls. Then continue on as above.

One of the simplest and most effective improvements you can make to your system is to ensure that your speakers are solidly mounted. There are two important aspects of speaker performance that you need to know. The first is that they work by pushing air forward – if the speaker is unstable the force of pushing air forward can also cause it to slightly rock backwards, lessening the impact of the note. Secondly the speaker can store energy generated by the movement of the speaker cones. Energy from the floor, speaker stands, etc. can also be transferred to the speaker box. This energy has the effect of muddying the sound and blurring the musical image (the system’s ability to pinpoint the relative positions of musicians, etc.)
If you are using speaker stands ensure that they are firmly anchored to the ground, and this is usually done by spikes. These have a two-fold effect. The very small contact areas make the stands very rigid, plus they tend to draw energy away from the speaker boxes. Many stands can be sand or lead-shot filled, adding mass, and again dissipating energy. Most quality speaker stands will also have spikes between the top plate and the speaker.
Outside of the room acoustics, which many of us have little control over, and the correct positioning of speakers, I have found that ensuring your speakers are correctly and solidly mounted is the most effective single upgrade that you can do to your system. It is not expensive, and you will be surprised by the results.

Isolation of equipment.
Vibration has a detrimental effect on the performance of electronics. This effect varies from component to component, but valve and source components (CD players, turntables etc) are particularly susceptible, it is a lesser problem for amplifiers, tuners etc. For this reason avoid placing speakers on the same shelf as your electronics, the vibrations from the speakers will travel through the shelf and into your electronics. There are a large number of isolation platforms which will have a positive impact on the performance of susceptible equipment, and there are numerous specialty rack systems which do a good job of housing your system as well as isolating the system from vibration.
One very inexpensive suggestion is to cut some squash balls in half and use these as isolation supports – basic, but works well.
Whenever possible avoid stacking components on top of each other. Not only will this increase the chance of unwanted vibration being transferred between components, it also inhibits heat dissipation.
While we are on this subject, ensure that the components in your system have plenty of room to breathe. As the use of micro-processors in audio continues to grow, so does the heat that they generate, and the more susceptible they become to the effects of that heat. Ensure that there is plenty of space around your equipment.

The Cable Guy.
Without doubt the most contentious issue in audio is cable. Cables have different inductance, resistance and capacitance characteristics, and it is the relationship of these three characteristics that cause cables to vary in sound. These differences occur due to the variations in construction and the materials used. Yet there are many who can prove to you, mathematically, that cable cannot make a difference. At the same time most people who have been open minded enough to try better than the supplied zip-wire that comes with most systems have been more than impressed.
It is generally conceded that 10% of your audio budget should be spent on the speaker and interconnect cables.
Cable lengths should be kept as short as possible, and all connectors should be secure and tight. If you are particularly fastidious you may occasionally give the connectors a clean. Isopropyl alcohol (from you local chemist) will do the trick. If you are using bare wire instead of banana plugs on your speaker cables check occasionally for oxidation, and if necessary cut off the exposed section and strip back a new section. Never roll any excess cable into a coil; this introduces inductance, which will degrade your system’s performance.
Also ensure that you have isolated all power cables from the speaker and interconnect cables.

Super Cable:
Another hotly debated area of contention is the power supply. The power delivered to your system is anything but ‘clean’, and this will have an impact on the quality of your system. Noise is introduced into your power supply from numerous areas, both inside and outside of your home, and everything that we hear (and see) in our Hi-Fi (and A/V) systems starts out as raw AC power from the wall. The addition of a mains filter can have a very positive impact on your system.
If you are particularly keen you may also entertain the idea of taking a dedicated AC power feed from your electrical switch box to the system point. It is a safe bet that the existing power points in your room will also be servicing a number of other areas, and every power point along the way can contribute to the noise on the line.

The good wine.
Finally, if your equipment is new its sound performance will improve over time anyway. Most pieces of equipment that you own, in particular amplification and speakers, need to ‘burn-in’ with use. How long this takes will depend on the piece, for example Focal Utopia speakers need a minimum of 100 hours of use until they reach their peak performance. Most products also perform a little better when they are warm, this is particularly true of valve equipment.
If you are intending to have a quiet night in listening to music, turn the system on an hour or so prior.’

There is no doubt that the product in question is firmly aimed at the committed videophile. It does not seem that long ago that we moved up from the old 4:3 TV screen format to the now familiar 16:9 widescreen. This solved the top and bottom ‘black bar’ issue for many of the movies we watched on DVD, plus any recent material produced for TV. However it was not long before a growing number of film companies began releasing movies in true 2.39:1 format, as it was shown in the theatres. This is particularly so of Blu-ray releases. Welcome back to the black bars.
Philips have taken the plunge and released their 56” 56PFL9954H LCD screen in Australia. This 21:9 format screen is designed to display DVD and Blu-ray movies as they were intended – full screen width (just like the theatres) without the black bars. The reason we believe that this screen will only appeal to the true videophile if that its value rests with DVD and Blu-ray movies only. Free to air and pay TV sources will be at best only show in the 16:9 format. In fact if you are intending to watch TV on this screen you will need to add a set-top-box or similar. The Philips, in true monitor style, comes without a tuner. However if you watch a lot of DVD or Blu-ray movies and only a limited amount of conventional TV, this could be the screen for you.
There is also more to this screen than its shape. The most obvious feature is ‘ambilight’, a subtle lighting system on the rear of the screen that reflects from the wall behind the unit, giving the illusion that the screen is floating.
From a technical aspect this screen is also impressive. It boasts a 1 millisecond response rate, and has 2560 x 1080 resolution. It uses edge-lit LED lighting and 200Hz picture smoothing. The dynamic contract ratio is 80,000:1.
The Philips 21:9 screen sells for $8,999.

Another vision product is from an old (and much loved) projection company, InFocus. We had a very strong relationship with this company for many years, which only lapsed as they took their eye off the domestic market in favour of their commercial offerings. Well now they are back with a new model, the SP8602, which has been designed specifically for the Home Theatre market. This is an excellent unit. InFocus have always produced value for money, and this is exceptional. We have only just received our first unit, but straight out of the box we are impressed. It will be interesting to see how good it gets with a few more hours on it.
As I mentioned we have carried InFocus in the past, and sold hundreds of units. For a short time InFocus are offering and upgrade program. If you have an existing InFocus projector, irrespective of its age or model, we will offer you $1,000 trade-in on the SP8602.
The InFocus SP8602 sells for $5,699.

Finally, a product to lust after. The Focal Utopia 111 series of speakers have been a worldwide sensation. The Utopia range has always been something special, but this series is exceptional. The Utopia Grande 111 EM is the best loudspeaker that I have ever heard, at any price. The Scala Utopia, which at $45,000 is a tad more achievable, has been a surprisingly popular model. The larger Maestro ($69,000 a pair) lasted for less than a week on our floor before they were snapped up (we now have to wait two months before we will see another pair). We have just received the Stella Utopia EM, which is their penultimate loudspeaker, selling for $129,000 a pair. As you would expect these are superb loudspeakers.
However, currently there is only one pair of these available. If you are seriously interested in having a listen, phone ahead, just in case.

‘So here I was in the massive Melbourne convention centre, there is no doubt that you can see why Cedia is having it down here this year, great place.
It was 7.00 PM and myself along with about 400 other people were eagerly awaiting the sight of some 3D screens.
After about 30 mins of chat with the only other specialist retailer I could find we were eventually were ushered into a large hall and sat at various tables for dinner.
Where’s the 3D I asked, ‘it’s coming’ I was told not too long now !!!
The wine flowed and the crowd got louder !!,
Three hours passed broken up by a little food, why do I always sit in the wrong seat, I just don’t want the fish !!!
A very loud singer and the CEO of the AFL telling all about his life story in Aussie rules.
Bet they were happy they didn’t book the Storms Manager for a bit of motivational speaking given yesterdays shock news.
Still no product and at this stage, after 10.00pm I figured it had all been a ruse and that perhaps 3D wasn’t coming after all.
Just as I was drifting away there was a loud bang and down fell the large styrofoam walls that were in front of us to reveal all 32 of the new screens Panasonic have to offer.
There was a mad stampede towards the 3D booth and as I waited my turn I wondered was it all going to match the so called hype.
The noise was overpowering, people cheered as the glasses passed from hands to hands.
Nearly there, just a few minutes now, I thought as the clock ticked towards 11.00pm. This was about 3.00am in my little time zone so it was really going to have to be something special to wake me up.
‘Trevor’, your next a voice said.
My heart beat faster as I stepped forward, ‘I’m ready ‘ I said.
I grabbed the glasses,an active shutter design with built in battery.
You simply place them on your eyes and then press the button on the frame, within five seconds they sync with the screen and then the magic begins.
One word “STUNNING…….”
The picture was prefect in terms of colour, contrast and depth, and I could feel myself swaying as the sequence moved from side to side.
We watched a beach volleyball sequence and then a white water rafting piece and I just could not believe how good it looked.
I tried my best to find a fault and apart from the drunk guy standing a little too close to me in the booth I was in heaven !!.
All this from a $3299.00 screen and $599.00 Blu Ray player, just imagine what a high end manufacturer could do with this format.
Close to 11.30am I strolled back to the hotel with only one thing on my mind, how was I going to get a Sonos ZP90 into the equation !!!!!’