CEDIA 2003: Theta Digital has announced its first universal player – the Compli – at CEDIA today.
The only details we have so far are in the press release issued by Theta’s PR Agency, J. B. Stanton Communications:
The Compli plays material formatted for more than 15 popular audio, video, image and content formats. These include DVD-Audio, DVD-Video, DVD-R, DVD-RW, SACD, Audio CD, Video CD, CD-R, CD-RW, Photo CD, DVD-RAM, DVD-ROM and CD-ROM. The Compli is also compatible with CD-R/RW, DVD-R/RW and MP3 formatted material, with some restrictions.
The Compli features six-channel analog audio outputs, and digital outputs for PCM, DTS and Dolby Digital. It comes equipped for RS232 control, and with Composite, S-Video, Component and 480p video outputs.
Also available is Theta’s proprietary, encrypted, high-speed digital interface, designed for Theta’s two-channel Generation VIII Digital-to-Analog Converter, and necessary for DVD-A and SACD playback. In keeping with Theta’s approach to product development, the Compli has been designed to soon be compatible with future Theta processors and controllers.
Options for Compli include a Serial Digital Interface (SDI) and Theta’s Ultra Sync II 480p output board using Faroudja Labs’ Directional Correlational Deinterlacing® (DCDi®) technology. The SDI keeps the signal in the digital domain, rather than subjecting it to further conversions to analog and back again. This avoids major sources of degradation, which can be noticeable in high-definition video systems. SDI’s purer digital signal is especially effective in enhancing picture quality on flat-panel plasma screens and from digital video projectors.
The Ultra Sync II option uniquely eliminates the staircasing or jagged edge artifacts often visible along the diagonal edges in video generated by conventional upconverters. It does so by adjusting each pixel in each moving edge in a scene to align with the movement, instead of crossing it. The result is a smoother, more film-like, more engaging image.
The Compli will be available from Theta dealers in October 2003 with an MSRP of $4,200.
Once the show is over we will try to find out more details from the manufacturer. Theta
