Audioholics 2007 Product of the Year Awards

2007 proved to be another great year of product advancements in the A/V world. 1080p went beyond just being a buzz word with inclusion into most of the new flat panel displays. Blu-ray and HD DVD continued to slug it out over dominance of the peanut gallery division. A/V receivers have gotten packed with enough processing power to run a 3^rd world country or even be operated from an iPhone. With such a constant and steady fast evolution, it’s challenging to know who offers class-leading products since there are so many good solutions out there - all suited to specific market demands and client needs. With that in mind, we selected gear in each category that really stood out via our personal experiences, reviews or demo's as well as the market trends  set based on performance, features, and value.

Award: Flagship A/V Receiver

Yamaha RX-Z11 11.2CH A/V Receiver

As if 7.1 channels weren’t enough, Yamaha stepped up to the plate with 11 all packed into one oversized chassis that will certainly have you breaking a sweat to install. The new RX-Z11 sports all of the latest processing features and connectivity including THX Ultra2 Plus, HDMI 1.3a, Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD decoding, deep color and 1080p 24fps. Yamaha completely revamped their YPAO system to include an 8 point calibration system to ensure every seat is a good seat in the theater room. Weighing in at over 70lbs and with 11 channels of high current amplification, the RX-Z11 certainly has enough brawn and brains to serve as the center piece of even the most sophisticated home theater installations. As a bonus to all of you Macintosh lovers, you can even operate the entire receiver off of your iPhone.
MSRP: $5,499 | Buy It Now

Award: A/V Receiver

Onkyo TX-SR805

Onkyo appeared to be in deep hibernation but it’s clearly evident with their launching of their new receiver line this year that they awoken with full force from their nearly 10 year hibernation cycle. The TX-SR805 packs all of the features of today’s flagship receivers at roughly ½ the price. In fact, there isn’t a receiver on the market today at this price offering HDMI 1.3a, Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD decoding, deep color and 1080p 24fps and THX Ultra2 certification. With a boasted amplifier section rated to 130wpc x 7 and weighing in at nearly 50lbs, the Onkyo TX-SR805 sets the standard for others to follow in this price class. Don’t let the price of this product fool you. This is a near flagship type receiver at HTIB pricing.
SRP: $1099 | Locate an Onkyo Dealer Online

Award: Stereo Power Amplifier

Emotiva RPA-1 Stereo Power Amplifier

What do you get when you take two amplifer modules from the venerable MPS-1, double its power supply capacity, throw into a sturdy yet compact chassis and slap on some nifty blue power meters? An audiophiles dream amplifier at bargain based pricing. The RPA-1 stereo mono block power amp truly delivers the goods, capable of driving 200wpc into 8 ohms and 300wpc into 4 ohms of clean power ensuring that you can squeeze out all of the performance of you speaker system.
MSRP: $699  | Buy it Now Direct from Emotiva

Award: HD DVD Player

Toshiba HD-A2 HD DVD Player

Sure the Toshiba HD-A2 has some serious shortcomings such as:

• lack of 1080p support
• lack of DTS HD Master decoding
• slow transport
• flakey Ethernet port
• cannot pass blacker than black

But when Walmart decided to blow out these players for $99, they became the bargain of the century and put a blip on the map for high definition. If the HD camp and retailers continue to push the hardware this aggressively, there may be a future after all for HD players. If not, you can enjoy your handful of HD DVD’s and the above average upconversion capabilities for DVD on this player at a price that you would normally pay for an off name brand flimsy Chinese DVD player.
MSRP: $99 | Buy it Now

Award: Budget Floorstanding Loudspeaker System

RBH Sound TK-5CT Floorstanding

The under $1000/pair price category is wide open for tower speaker systems both for direct to consumer (internet) and brick and mortar (retail) speaker systems. You typically find the best deals online at this price class but RBH Sound recently bucked this trend with the introduction to their TK-5CT tower speaker system that certainly redefined our expectations of what a sub $1000 pair of floorstanding speakers should sound like. The TK-5CT it a 3 way tower and sports a 1” silk dome tweeter, dual 5 ¼” fiberglass midbass drivers and a side firing 8” pulp kraft cone bass driver. Don’t be fooled by their average aesthetics, as they more than make up for it in the sound quality department and can give competitor products at significantly higher prices a run for their money.
MSRP: $950/pair | Buy It Now

Award: Budget Loudspeakers

Usher Audio S-520

Who would have thought another brick and mortar type loudspeaker product would beat out the competition in value and performance? The Usher S-520s sound as good as they look. Their sexy piano gloss cabinets and silky highs make them an audiophile delight. Though they are prone to bottoming out if run full range at loud listening levels, they blend very well with a good sub and are at their best when bass managed. These speakers are ideal for small to medium sized rooms and deserve quality electronics.

Award: Architectural & Outdoor Speaker System

Boston Acoustics RK6T2 Rock Speakers

A rock speaker getting an award, are you kidding? Nope, these rocks truly do ROCK out the house, well outdoors at least. Getting great sound outdoors without being obtrusive is not always an easy task. Reviewing the Boston Acoustics RK6T2 rock speakers was a refreshing experience. These speakers rocked both figuratively and literally in every conceivable way an end user would expect them to. Not only did they exceed my expectations from an aesthetic standpoint, but their fidelity and linearity simply blew me away. The RK6T2’s are a versatile, high value product that will dress up your patio, porch or other outdoor function area with unprecedented sound quality that will be a hit at your gatherings and the envy of your neighbors. Boston Acoustics truly sets the benchmark for others to follow in this speaker genre.
MSRP: from $599/pair | Buy Now from Boston Acoustics

Award: Subwoofer

JL Audio Fathom f112

The JL Audio has produced a very serious subwoofer in the Fathom f112, the second smallest sibling in their home audio line.. This is a powerful sub capable of prodigious deep bass output. Make no mistake; if you have loose objects in the house, this sub will locate them and point them out. Also, be prepared to find interior partition walls complaining into adjacent rooms. For the best possible listening experience, find all loose items and secure them. For those who have not experienced a subwoofer capable of generating bass to the limits of human hearing, one with substantial output capabilities down into the subsonic range, the JL Fanthom f112 with acquaint you nicely. Add this sub to your auditioning shopping list if you are after ultra high performance, reasonable box size and cost.
MSRP: $2,700 (satin black), $2800 (gloss black) | Find a JL Audio Dealer

Award: Projector Screen

Carada Masquerade Masking System

To say that this is an industry-changing product (at least in terms of price to market) would be an understatement. Sold for the price of some competitors' fixed wall screen systems (just $2499 for a 110" diagonal) the Masquerade offers full horizontal masking up to 2.70:1, meaning that all of your widescreen movies can now be watched without those often annoying black bars.
MSRP: $2,499 | Buy it Now

Award: 1080p Front Projector

Epson Pro Cinema 1080UB

We got an up close and personal look at the new Epson Pro Cinema 1080 UB projector at the 2007 Audioholics State of the CE Union event in Clearwater Beach, Florida. The "UB" stands for Ultra Black and by the looks of what we saw on the screen, the designation is not given lightly. While DLP insists on providing a color wheel and holding out its 3-chip designs for only the most high-end models, Epson and other 3LCD manufacturers are cleaning house in terms of bang for the buck. This under-$5000 projector features a healthy amount of lens shift (almost 100% vertical and 50% horizontal), two HDMI 1.3 inputs, Deep Color (x.v.Color) support, and a 2.1x zoom, ceiling mount and a spare lamp.
MSRP: $4,999 | Buy it Now