Build a bonkers home cinema

It’s a curious fact that when you ascend into the rarefied atmosphere of specialist hi-fi, products transform into creations of often astounding beauty. Do the same with home cinema, and they usually mutate into the unapologetically hideous. This is doubtless a consequence of hi-tech Darwinism. Top class AV gear sits unseen in …

[Kevin7]

Complete fucking shit for brains? Check.

Lottery winner? Check.

Watched too many episodes of Cribs? Check.

Reckon you can make sense of your meaningless fucking life through shopping? Check.

Then has The Reg got a page for you...

[Lamont Cranston]

It's all very nice but,

unless it can rise up from a small box at the end of the bed, I don't care. Cribs FTW!

[JEDIDIAH]

Mush for brains...

To top it all off, this article includes a device that has has been declared illegal.

The Kaledescape is in a bit of legal limbo right now.

The whole lot seemed to be a total fantasy completely divorced from reality or requirements of any sort beyond being really expensive.

[Homer 1]

Alternatively...

Just buy an all-in-one home cinema system for 200 squid, and a cheap HD telly for another 200 squid. If you want to really push the boat out, you could spend another 20 squid on one of them little media player box thingies, so you can play all those 1080p MKVs with AC3 audio that you downloaded from the Pirate Bay legally purchased.

Job done.

You can now take the money you would otherwise have wasted on obscenely expensive junk that has no purpose other then pose-value, and spend it on "luxuries" like food and utility bills.

[thenim]

Drool..

But, can we PLEASE get an article that has kit that an average regtard can afford?

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Drool..

I think we should force them into a competition where we can win all the items listed.

[Marvin the Martian]

Re: Drool..

Or in this case, explain how the thingymajiggies work?

I mean, first we start with a device that can take "16 different video inputs", so I'm hopeful it will end in a kind of Cablethulhu nightmare of interconnected devices, but then at the end we just have one input, from the video equivalent of a jukebox. So what of the other 15 dust-gathering entry points?

At least sell us a whole lot of gold-plated rhodium-finished antistatic noise cancelling dust excluding yet decorative valves or so.

[Eponymous Cowherd]

Crapping Hell!!!

The Register is turning into Top Gear for IT!!!!

All we need now is a "Star using a reasonably priced Server" and a Smart Phone "Cool Wall" and we'll be there....

Oh, add in some silly challenges. Create a data centre using Raspberry Pis, Send a Playmobil character into space, that sort of thing..................oh....wait......

Particularly like the "sheet of cloth in a box" for £23.5K

Actually.........

Can we have the "cool wall", please?

[Danny 14]

Re: Crapping Hell!!!

Ikea roller blind works well, its a silvery beige colour and works well as a projector screen.

[Bassey]

Re: Crapping Hell!!!

I know it LOOKS like self-indulgent nonsense (and, frankly, what's wrong with that?) but keep in mind that today's high-end is tomorrow's main stream. Okay, I'm not saying any of this particular kit will ever become even remotely affordable but there are a few new technologies in there that I wasn't aware of but sound like the sort of thing many of us will be using in a few years.

Lets face it, hollywood is trying to convince us "The Cloud" (via UV) is the place where all our films will be stored - because they can control it. However, the tech companies are telling us 4K is the new black. But the two don't work together unless you have a whopping great fibre connection and a VERY low contention ratio. That media server, where the presence of a physical disc is used as your DRM license to allow access to a digital copy, seems like a brilliant solution to me.

Hollywood are happy as you are still buying media from them. Sony et al are happy because a server is capable of pumping out bits at a rate that will feed their new 4K systems so that everyone can go and buy a new telly - again.

[Andy Fletcher]

Re: Crapping Hell!!!

Wonder who'd get to be the STIG. Running overclocked rigs at insane speeds but still managing to render 3D video without crashing (too often).

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Crapping Hell!!!

Forget the cool wall, I would pay for a subscription to "Star using a reasonable priced Server". Not the other way around, mind you. Though that might be entertaining too... Paris, for obvious reasons.

[karakalWitchOfTheWest]

What I really love about this article...

....is the cute "Buy from amazon" button underneath every piece...

[Chris Miller]

I'd like to know ...

... what actual cinemas use. Does their kit cost anything like as much (or even more)?

[GettinSadda]

Re: I'd like to know ...

Oh a whole lot more - you would be amazed!

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: I'd like to know ...

I'm interested to. Any pointers?

[Anon E Mus]

Disc vault?

"While discs can be ejected from the Vault’s carousel at anytime, you’ll not be able to access the digital copy when they’re AWOL."

Urrm, guys. I can self build a machine that can do that for £300. How could you fail to get it working on a machine that costs £30000? Must try harder.

[VWDan]

Re: Disc vault?

I doubt it was accidental...

[Alan 6]

Re: Disc vault?

"How could you fail to get it working on a machine that costs £30000? Must try harder."

I'm thinking it's a feature rather than a fault, to stop you ripping shed loads of discs from Love Film...

[Annihilator]

Re: Disc vault?

"Urrm, guys. I can self build a machine that can do that for £300. How could you fail to get it working on a machine that costs £30000? Must try harder."

You can self-build a 42TB storage array for £300? I want your disk supplier please! :-)

[JEDIDIAH]

Re: Disc vault?

$30K buys a lot of NAS. That's getting into Netapp territory. Kscape fans even like drawing that kind of comparison to make their kit seem less absurdly priced (I kid you not).

The OP is probably talking about something that is an open solution that doesn't keep you paid for media trapped and in the exact same format as it came on (from the physical media).

For $600 I could have a bespoke tower PC ready to accept a SATA RAID cage more than capable of doing the same job as a $30K Kscape array. It's like Macs. You don't fixate on the specs. You concentrate on what you need to get the job done.

Such a server would allow ANY device to partake. I would not need a $3000 thin client decoder.

Plus I could take anything with me wherever I go.

[Homer 1]

Re: Disc vault?

"You can self-build a 42TB storage array for £300?"

42TB of storage is worthless if I'm not allowed to use it because of "DRM". Frankly I'd be better off with 2TB on a self-built system that lets me rip and keep digital copies.

And that's exactly what I did, for that and many other reasons.

I also got sick of having to transcode music and video to suit the myriad of proprietary devices I had that supported one format but not another, or claimed to support a particular format but only did so if I transcoded it using specific settings.

Then there's those systems that let you buy or record media, but then it's permanently welded to the device you bought or recorded it on (DRM), which really sucks when that device dies or is no longer supported. Forget about refunds. Bruce Willis has my sympathy.

Another thing I discovered is that buying expensive "esoteric audiophile" (or even "videophile") equipment is no guarantee of longevity and robustness. The laser in an expensive CD/DVD/Blu-ray will die just as easily as a cheap one from Tesco, but will of course cost much more to repair/replace. Expensive amps and decoders are also just as prone to exploding caps and dead boards as the cheap stuff. The last "high quality" system I bought barely lasted the length of the statutory warranty, before the sub died (stone cold dead), the AV amp's surround decoder developed a stutter, the DVD stopped recognising discs, and the phono amp developed incurable feedback hum.

Makes me wonder why I bothered.

So now I don't. I just buy the cheapest, filthiest, nastiest junk I can find, and treat it like "disposable Hi-Fi". Even so, it's still managed to outlive all of my former expensive equipment, and the difference in sound and video quality is minimal at worst.

Ironically, the "cheap" stuff also tends to have more features. I spent a small fortune on a plasma "smart" TV that plays video files of just one type, standard definition DivX. Less than a year later I bought a TV for my bedroom at 1/8th of the price, and that plays 1080p h.264 video with ac3 5.1 audio in Matroska containers, amongst many others.

As far as I'm concerned this whole "high-end system" nonsense is just a scam.

[Anonymous Coward]

A steal at just £16,000.

I can recall a time a couple of decades ago when just the lamp for a professional video projector (GE) cost £15,000. If you were taking one abroad the spare would get its own seat on a plane.

We really need a Four Yorkshiremen icon.

[Dan Price]

Yeah, great...

This is all well and good for the Euro-Millions winners among us, but how about an article on building one on a budget smaller than what the average joe earns in a decade?

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Yeah, great...

an article on building one on a budget smaller than what the average joe earns in a decade http://www.richersounds.com/information/home-cinemasystems

there, fixed that for you

(I don't work there but I have previously bought and enjoyed their budget line of speakers built by prisoners in Dartmoor, allegedly, and as a shop they are rather more helpful than Dix*ns...)

[Robert E A Harvey]

richersounds ... rather more helpful than Dix*ns..

When it comes to IT the oxfam shop is rather more helpful...

[Arctic fox]

I, in common I suspect with most here, could find better things to do with 250 k..........

............if I had it lying around, which I don't! Ok, there is no reason why RegHardware can't do a comedy special every now and then - it should be read it that spirit, LOL!

[Matt Bucknall]

£23,592?

I'm in the wrong business.

[Anonymous Coward]

Kaleidescape

I think XBMC would put the Kaleidescape interface to shame.

[blcollier]

Re: Kaleidescape

XBMC puts most "media centre" interfaces to shame; it can be stunning when you take the time to set it up. The metadata really makes it for me though: cover art, fan art, synopsis, reviews, director/producer/etc name, actor names. For a project that started it's life as homebrew software for modded Xboxes (original Xbox, not Xbox 360) it's an incredible achievement.

Alright the Kaleidescape *does* have 42TB of storage, but if I had £32k to spend I could match that too. Hell, if I had £32k to spend on hard drives I could get a whole hell of a lot more than 42TB!

[Matt_payne666]

Re: Kaleidescape

my thoughts exactly... as for media serving, XBMC scores a lot of win... the kaleidescope is a lovely bit of kit, but i expect you will find limitations pretty soon if you deviate from just original disks... I know if i had that amount of cash 320 BR's would be used up in an instant! between me and one of my friends (who isnt a gazillionaire) we have almost 300.

42TB is a nice amount of storage, but certainly achievable for lot less!

But loving the projector, processors, speakers (4 21inch subs please!) screen, hell... id have all of it! but you guys have missed the vibrating chairs.....

[JEDIDIAH]

Re: Kaleidescape

I call bullsh*t on the 42TB storage.

I tried pricing out my own setup based on what little information I could tease from support forums online. A mere 30K is not going to get you 42TB of Kaledescape storage.

I already have a 2000 disk jukebox setup.

You can build an entire commodity based multi-room system for what Kscape will try to charge you for one thin client decoder.

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: Kaleidescape

Methinks the gude mr. Matt checked the online price of 21x 2TB disks and compared that to "42TB of storage". Which is what my dear company bean counters also try to convince me of, though I've been able to hold them off so far without the old sock-and-a-half-brick. Which is a good thing, the missus would give me hell if I came home with a damaged sock.

I'll have to agree with Matt on the vibrating chairs though, for that home cinema experience (especially the "connoiseur" cinema kind) you can't beat a decent vibrating chair...

[J. Cook]

Re: Kaleidescape

+many on the '30K for 42 TB'- It might be possible if they are all consumer rated drives, but you don't want those in a RAID (and most vendors won't honor the warranty if you do!)

IIRC, my company just dropped something like 80-100K on a new dual head filer with about 40 TB of storage, and it takes up about half a standard 42U rack.

[JEDIDIAH]

Re: Kaleidescape

...except this is a DVD jukebox. It's not some mission critical Oracle database. The "enterprise" requirements just aren't there. RAID is a means to exploit low cost disks. A 3TB disk pack simply doesn't need to be $1400 for what a Kscape system is doing with it.

I can build 2 arrays capable of doing the job of the overpriced kscape one (due to compression) and still come out ahead by an order of magnitude.

I can also avoid the "packages" that average $28 per DVD too.

That markup likely has nothing to do with the actual hardware and is likely just a means to pay for the "wipe your arse" level of service that you get with a device like this.

[Davidoff]

Consumer drives

"+many on the '30K for 42 TB'- It might be possible if they are all consumer rated drives, but you don't want those in a RAID"

Why not? The only real drawback of desktop drives is that they have very low IOPS numbers (which isn't an issue in media streaming applications at home), and that some RAID controller may declere them as failed more quickly because of their firmware. We are using cheap desktop drive in large data storages for many years, and if used in areas where their lower IOPS performance doesn't matter then they are perfectly fine. The lower MTBF ofdesktop drives isn't a problem as any hard drive can fail any time anyways (that's why there is RAID and regular backups), and in my experience the generally reliability of 10k or 15k SAS drives isn't really that much better.

"(and most vendors won't honor the warranty if you do!)"

That's nonsense. None of the hard drive manufacturers will care if a desktop hard drive has been used in a RAID setup.

[Tom 7]

For that money you could make your own films.

Its about time somebody started again...

[hugo tyson]

Better things to do

...with £250k you could, for example, not go to work for 10 years.... unless you have silly expensive hobbies....

[Trollslayer]

Guys - it's El Reg

So stop stressing and enjoy the occasional silliness!

[Badvok]

Active Shutter Projector for how much?

Hmmm, if I really had that sort of money to spend on a system I think I'd avoid anything that needs me to wear stupid heavy active shutter glasses for 3D.

[Anonymous Coward]

Truly BOFH specs for new kit.

Enough said. If it is running on company money, that's the conference room for the discerning BOFH among us out there.

[Anonymous Coward]

"If there’s a better way to spend £100k in a darkened room, we haven’t found it."

Well played Reg, well played :)

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: "If there’s a better way to spend £100k in a darkened room, we haven’t found it."

Il give you the number from my PIMP.

[Old Cynic]

Sounds expensive

and I doubt if all that equipment would work so well in a smallish room - no doubt amazing in a large room.

My ~£6k setup has most of the features mentioned apart from a disc ripper (mine is a 3TB NAS that holds a few HD movies dowloaded, ahem ripped by myself).

I'm not an audio/video-phile but I honestly can't tell any difference between being at home and being in the cinema. Even now the cinemas have gone 4k, you're such a distance from the screen, I don't see how anyone will appreciate it.

The sound is probably the only area where there's much of a difference but I think that's got a lot to do with the size of the room. However, in my dedicated room at home, there are no interruptions from arseholes coughing, rustling, talking, or lighting up there bastard phones. And I've got a (silent) beer fridge at hand ;)

[Citizen Kaned]

Re: Sounds expensive

i find my B&W system sounds better than the cinema to be honest. i think its because i set it up specifically for my seat (the wife doesnt care too much). in the cinema its all too much and never sounds that great.

i do want a bigger screen though. 42" doesnt feel that big but im only 5feet from the screen. i will await reasonable 4k projectors and glasses free 3d :)

to the people above, sure, XMBC will work. but i find gfx cards cant compare with dedicated players, especially high end players, which are silent and also have better audio than PC soundcards.

i enjoyed this. if i was a millionaire i would blow a fortune on home cinema as its a passion of mine. im on my 3rd full setup now and it does mount up.

unless you have heard high end (or even mid range) you might think your HTPC with logitech speakers sounds good. its like comparing a smart car to a formula1 car with this setup.

[blcollier]

@Citizen Kaned, Re: XBMC/HTPCs

The issue with using an HTPC, or standard PC hardware, isn't that the quality isn't as good good or they can't cope, it's the stupid framerate used for movies: no graphics manufacturer has really been able to nail 23.976fps yet. Most come very close (some come that close that it's debatable whether or not it's truly noticable to the human eye), but no one has *truly* nailed it. Though if you ask me that's a failing of the movie industry for relying on an antiquated framerate - down with 23.976fps!

On the subject of sound cards, all you really need is something that passes-through the unaltered digital sound. In fact it's not even that much of a consideration, as most modern graphics cards support HDMI audio; a ~£25 Raspberry Pi can do that. Once you've got a digital audio signal coming out, it's over to your AV receiver/processor; the PC doesn't need to modify, alter or even touch the signal.

It's perfectly possible to build a silent HTPC; hot everything needs dirty great fans and spinning hard drives... A low/mid range passively-cooled graphics card, SSD and an underclocked or low power CPU can make for a system with no moving parts at all. Of course you need somewhere to store all that data, but that needn't be in the same room.

Plus XBMC *really is* that good. I've yet to find any other software or dedicated player that can match its flexibility or functionality. Not saying that any home-built HTPC will compare to the gear in this article, but you don't need to spend £250k to enjoy movies at home.

[Citizen Kaned]

Re: @Citizen Kaned, XBMC/HTPCs

blcollier - i agree. my setup is ample for my needs as is my car, not that it stops me wanting a Ferrari :)

i still prefer a full separates system over a HTPC. my HC can do everything a HTPC can do and the mrs can work it :) (well, the internet isnt great on any of my devices but i use the PC for that which i have hooked up to the HC via ethernet baluns - or will when i buy them, office is still a dumping ground after moving in at xmas)

[Field Marshal Von Krakenfart]

Re: Sounds expensive

and I doubt if all that equipment would work so well in a smallish room

I doubt that equipment would work in anything other than a room specifically designed for (very) Hi-Fi. If the room height is 8ft (96in) the the ideal room dimensions would be 12.775ft x 15.2083333R ft, imagine asking the typical builder to build a room to those dimensions. On top of that you have to consider the furnishings, the position of the listener/viewer, how the room is decorated and possibley consider adding "corner absorbers" across the diagonal of corners to prevent bass standing waves.

For those of interested in such things have a look at http://www.acoustics101 or http://forum.studiotips.com/index.php

Of course if you are going to do that or if you just want to piss off your favourite Hi-Fi over-enthusiast, tell them that (1) you're not listening to the music, you're listening to the Hi-Fi and (2) All as you are doing is reproducing the guitarists distortion accurately.

Paris, definitely not Hi-Fi

[Great Bu]

Clearly Sir has not included popcorn.....

"roughly equivalent to around 4,000 visits to the local cinema by an average family of four"

If they don't want any drinks or popcorn, if you include drinks, popcorn, nachos, hot dogs, ice cream and pick and mix it's the equivalent of 1.7 visits to the cinema.......

[Alan Edwards]

How much better?

An idea for a future article - how much better is this stupid-expensive kit than high-ish end standard stuff?

Put that audio processor and amps up against a top-end Denon AV amp, for instance. Compare that projector with the 4K-resolution Sony, or a top-end Panasonic.

I reckon there has to be a point where you're spending money for the sake of it, and not getting *that* much higher performance.

[Citizen Kaned]

Re: How much better?

you will always hit a point of diminishing returns. depending on people's hearing and eyesight.

some people cant differentiate 1080p to 720p. others dont appreciate surround. is 11.2 really better than 5.1/7.1?

etc.... all i can say is that each time i have upgraded there has been a noticeable improvement. although im not sure how much i would have to now spend to double the quality again. around £20k i would assume

its the same with cars. you can get an insanely fast car for £50k and then spend £1m and its not 20x faster (or even close)

[Scott Mckenzie]

Diminishing Returns

You're right of course, but trust me, having heard some similar things - that would sound quite a lot better.

Of course one thing not mentioned in the cinema paradiso is the actual room - that can play as much of an effect as the equipment - mediocre equipment, setup right in a well designed room can sound absolutely stunning, whereas really high end gear in a crap room sounds worse than an all-in-one system!!!

[Citizen Kaned]

Re: Diminishing Returns

agreed. i think this system would blow mine out of the water.

agree on rooms too. there was an ultra home cinema setup on AVForums and masses of expense went into the room acoustics and bass traps etc. plus the wall of speakers made these look like a £50 ipod dock.

there are things to help with your room such as bass traps and things like antomode, which i have, that really do help with bass issues. since our house has hard floors we needed to put in various items to stop the bass going mental. unfortunately we ran out of cash to extend the lounge was we wanted, so we had to make do.

i cant find the page now.... :(

[ukgnome]

Sigh

reading this has made me a sad bunny.

too poor to score :-(

[Roger Kynaston]

£250K to burn

New engine for boat - £8K

New working jib - £1.5K

new lightweight Genoa - £1.5K

replace worn teak in cockpit (denuded rainforest included) - ~£1k

replace knackered radar £800

Some other odds and sods - ~£1k

Sail over horizon for duration - less than twelve grand and the other £230K for funding.

Spend another £25K on house and we can rent it for nearly the cost of keeping boat going - ergo go cruising for rest of my life or until inflation eats into savings too much.

Just a different and cheaper sort of geekiness.

Beer because beer would be drunk in various locations.

[Matt_payne666]

Re: £250K to burn

£1.5k for a light weight No1 Genoa? that would be nice.... that would cover about 1/3rd of ours :(

[Anonymous Coward]

Re: £250K to burn

Good heavens, it's a bit steep, and why is it light, less cherries or nuts in it? ;)

[Steve I]

I need to upgrade...

My home cinema was (gulp) about £4k back in 2003. Only upgrade is using a PS3 for disc playback instead of an Xbox.

But - as anyone in the know will tell you - a projector in a dark room blows away a TV.

Not bad for gaming, too.

[Citizen Kaned]

Re: I need to upgrade...

depends on the projector to be honest ;) some are bloody awful with terrible contrast and <1080p resolutions. im not sure these days i wouldnt prefer a 4k 70" OLED TV to be honest as i only sit 5' from the screen. saying that, i have designed my lounge to allow a projector for a later date and run some more ethernet to the back wall (all my cables are in the floor/skirting).... wanted to hedge my bets :)

arent TVs generally more sharp as its pixel mapped? plus, you need a dark room to benefit, which isnt always that helpful in a lounge rather than dedicated cinema room.

[Naughtyhorse]

progress...

So now all those audiophile fuckwits have pretty pics to look at - given they'll pay 10 grand for a speaker lead, just imagine what they'll fork out for an hdmi cable!

[Chris Stephens]

People who are not professionals in this field should not do it.

The biggest problem with my high end AV industry is that about anybody ( or any company ) thinks they magically know what they are doing when in reality this gear at this price range is highly complex and each piece must be chosen carefully. This combo of gear is horrible. At least it would have been good to consult a professional when writing the story. This is like deciding to create a server farm and never asking a experienced pro how to do it or what hear to buy and just buying the most expensive boxes you can... F A I L.... While this system has been upgraded since I did this vid, its a good idea how to do this correctly http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3HWSC2yVH-A

[integr8d]

All wrong!

The audio processor is a poor choice. No one is using DTS anymore. Dolby is the winner and the CP750 is perfectly suited to DCI playback and consumer digital formats.

The projector is overpriced and soon to be outdated. The smallest Barco DCI unit is Series 2, 4K upgradable, and plays back high frame rate content in 2D or 3D (hello Hobbit). Most importantly, it has the TI software needed to maintain the encryption link and to provide perfect calibration. It also hits full XYZ Zenon color space (for you UK'ers, think Fiat 500 (REC 709) vs. Airbus A380 (XYZ)). Price with top shelf lens is around $40k USD.

Since you'll need a server for content, Dolby or Doremi have you covered for far less than the questionable Kaleidescape (though they serve two entirely different markets). And since you'll be dropping all this cash, you'll have no problem joining the Bel Air circuit for access to all the latest movies. For consumer content, even the biggest directors in Hollywood are running Blu-ray discs. I was shocked to see it firsthand.

Amplification by QSC for each discrete channel. And cinema JBL for reproduction (not the prosumer stuff mentioned in the article).

Screen by Stewart.

3D by Xpand.

The above IS what the pros use.

[Anonymous Coward]

Loving the scratch- ... oops "SLOT" - loader :P

[Robert Grant]

How's this for an actually useful article

I want:

A RAIDed NAS

A nice HDTV

A way to rip my DVDs to the NAS

A way to record TV to the NAS, while watching something else live or recorded

A remote control that lets me browse the NAS content and set recordings and volume, on off etc

A way to stream content from iPlayer, 4OD, iTunes, Zune (or whatever it gets called), UV etc

A way to stream the same content to multiple devices, e.g. more than one TV, my phone etc

A way for the system to remember where I watched to, and maybe even differentiate per household member

A way to retrieve audio and photos in the same way from the NAS, and an easy way to store them

A way to stream this content over the internet to selected devices (e.g. phones)

A way to cache content on a mobile device so I can finish watching while on the go etc

How cheaply can you get me all that? :)

[Another Justin]

Forgive me for asking a stupid question but...

"While discs can be ejected from the Vault’s carousel at anytime, you’ll not be able to access the digital copy when they’re AWOL"

If the disk needs to be in the player in order to play the digital copy, then what exactly is the point of taking a digital copy in the first place? Why not just play the disk directly?

Also while I'm here, 320 disks really isn't that many. If I'm the sort of person who has £30k lying around to spend on a Blu-Ray player then I'm going to have a lot more than 320 disks, and after forking over £30k I'm definitely not going to be happy about having to stand up to change them over whenever I want to play a disk that isn't in the vault.

[integr8d]

Re: Forgive me for asking a stupid question but...

It has to do with how Kaleidescape deals with copyright issues. The physical media has to be present, in order to play back from the server and also satisfy Hollywood. Silly. But that's what's considered legal.

[Wilseus]

Pedant alert!

I've a slight issue with one of the points made here. Reference level for movie playback is 115dB not 105dB. The main speakers only have to manage 105dB but the LFE (low frequency effects) channel, which would typically be handled with a subwoofer is 10dB higher.

It's also worth noting that there are plenty of pretty affordable subwoofers available these days that will play at, or close to, 115dB in a typical living room. Mine I believe is capable of getting pretty close and cost less than £600.

I'm also fairly confident that a DIY IB subwoofer system would wipe the floor with this kit (at least in bass performance) for a couple of grand all in.

[integr8d]

Re: Pedant alert!

Cinema audio is set to 85dB for L/C/R, 82 for surrounds and 87 for LFE... 115dB would make you deaf in short order.

[Imsimil Berati-Lahn]

Well sir, we saw you coming.

Usual prerequisites apply, we presume.

5000 sq ft floor space, plenty of anechoic panels, a honking great aircon to pump out the 8 odd kilowatts of heat this kit generates, personal substation and medical grade power filter system.

... and now, sir, might I interest you in our autumn line of acoustically inert furniture.

You can be assured of the best seat in the house with our FugBeeGon5000 range.

...extended warranty, sir?

[Anonymous Coward]

"most anything"

Those two words are mutually exclusive. Making a phrase by putting them together cannot have any logical sense or meaning.

We'd find communication worked much more smoothly if we actually thought about the words that we use.

[Anonymous Coward]

AWOL discs...

"While discs can be ejected from the Vault’s carousel at anytime, you’ll not be able to access the digital copy when they’re AWOL"

Now that's a bit of hacking to do right there. 'Fix' this thing so it plays even without said discs, and I would buy it. Something in the "Alcohol 120%" range perhaps?

BTW, Alcohol worked wonders for my oldish DRM-locked games that required the original disc in a CD-ROM tray. Or my gaming notebook for boring trips.

[Lozsta]

Why?

So the majority of us do not have the money to be able to spend on this tat. Why waste good space in the reg with this toss!

My home cinema system works perfectly well, both of them do. Would you like me to review that...