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SVS is preparing to release a set of budget speakers to compliment their stellar budget subwoofer, the PB10-ISD. The speaker set consists of sealed bookshelf speakers for fronts and surrounds which include a 1in Clearsilk tweeter and a 5.25in polypropelene woofer; the center uses the same tweeter with two 5.25in woofers. Both speakers share a nominal impedence of 8ohm and a frequency response of 75hz-20khz. The bookshelf speakers have a sensitivity of 85db while the center has a sensitivity of 87db.
SVS News page
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Here are some pictures from a DIY event held at Adire Audio on October 15th.
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A member of the audiocircle forums has posted a comparison of two squeezebox 2 mods; one done by Vinnie Rossi of Red Wine Audio and the other done by Wayne of Boulder Cable. The Red Wine Audio unit was powered using a 12v SLA battery while the Boulder Cable unit was powered by an A/C adapter; both units were evaluated using the spdif output of the SB2 into a TacT 2.2x preamp.
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Red Wine Audio mod info
Boulder Cable mod info

A member of the AV123 forum has posted a preliminary review of Onix’s newest budget speaker, the X-LS, designed by Danny Ritchie of GR-Research. The X-LS is a 2-way rear-ported speaker with a 1in fabric dome tweeter crossed over at 2khz to a 6.5in treated paper cone woofer. For a price of $199 this looks like a serious contender in the budget category.
Review on AV123 forum

Apple has just released the 5th generation iPod that can play video on its QVGA (320×240) color display. It is available in either 30 or 60gb versions for prices of $299 and $399 respectively. Supported video formats include H.264 (320×240) at up to 768kbps and MPEG-2 (480×480) at up to 2.5mbps. iTunes 6 was also released along with the updated iPod adding support for downloading music videos and tv shows.
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Danny Ritchie has introduced a product that minimizes speaker enclosure resonances that is significantly cheaper than Blackhole 5. The pad is comprised of a thick layer of damping material that is treated with PSA and a 1″ thick layer of open cell foam with a textured surface which is designed to absorb standing waves. Danny still prefers Blackhole 5 in subwoofer applications and ported low frequency enclosures but recommends No Rez for small speakers in sealed enclosures. No Rez costs $38 for a 24″ x 27″ sheet while the same size sheet of Blackhole 5 costs $51.
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NHT has updated their website with information on their new Classic Line of Speakers and Subwoofers. The new line consists of the Absolute Zero (a compact 2-way bookshelf speaker with a 5.25in woofer and 1in aluminum dome tweeter), the Two (uses the same tweeter as the Absolute Zero but with a larger 6.5in woofer), the Three (an acoustic suspension design that uses a 6.5in aluminum woofer and a midrange/tweeter assembly that includes a 2in aluminum dome midrange and a .75in tweeter), the Four (a floorstanding version the Three with a sidefiring 10in woofer), the Two C (a 3-way center using the same mid/tweeter assembly as the Three with two 5.25in woofers), the Three C (a 3-way center using the same mid/tweeter assembly as the Three with two 6.5in woofers), the Ten (a subwoofer that features a 10in aluminum cone woofer with a 150w amplifier), the Twelve (a subwoofer that features a 12in aluminum cone woofer with a 250w amplifier).
MSRPs
Absolute Zero – $400/pair
Two – $500/pair
Three – $800/pair
Four – $1800/pair
Two C – $450/each
Three C – $600/each
Ten- $600/each
Twelve – $850/each
NHT Classic Series Info
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Mark Schifter has leaked some information regarding their X-series line of products which consists of budget-minded speakers, subwoofers, and electronics. The product line will include the xempower (a 50w/ch integrated amplifier with two inputs and an optional remote), xamp (a 125w monoblock amplifier), the xhead (a class-A headphone amplifier), the xhub (a remote controlled preamplifier with 4 inputs and a 24/192 DAC), and the xtone (an equalizer). All of the components will feature machined aluminum faceplates, powder coated steel rear panels, and an elegantly modern design that seems to be inspired by the xbox 360.
MSRPs
xempower – $99
xamp – $249
xhead – $199
xhub – $299
xtone – $199
View AV123 Forum thread

Brad, a member of the audiocircle and av123 forums and a fellow blogger, has posted some pictures and detailed impressions of some of the rooms at RMAF.
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Brad’s RMAF Conclusions

Brian Bunge of RAD Home Theater has posted some pictures of 3 Exodus Audio LCR speakers that he built for a customer with Bird’s Eye Maple veneer and magnetic grills. The crossovers are housed in external boxes that are also veneered which provides an easy transition to an actively tri-amped setup.
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