Meridian Unplugged - Powered by MrTechGuy.co.uk Forums Discussion Meridian - Streaming Lots of Sooloos stuff on the way

Meridian are apparently being very tight lipped about what's coming, but supposedly the new products will make Sooloos "a lot easier to sell".

I'm guessing that we may be able something like a standalone core which can access a 3rd-party NAS, but that is pure speculation. Obviously, I'm hoping that the entry cost - for those of us with existing infrastructure - will come down.

I am very keen to see what they come up with, but are we talking weeks, months, or end of 2011?...

I was told DVD-Video support for the Sooloos by the end of this year.

What I'd really like to see is a high quality single zone source which allows a digital connection to the 861/808 in combination with an iPad application. While the Control:10 is a nice solution, it's not made to be moved around and used in my listening spot. Porting the control application 1:1 to the iPad would be the ultimate solution for me.

I think we are talking later this year. My guess would be an announcement at CEDIA in September, unless there's a trade show before that.

My guess is CEDIA as they made non-detailed announcements at the opening of the Manhattan showroom a few weeks back and had even hoped to have samples there. That makes it seem likely that CEDIA will not be too soon.

Kal

I would consider buying an ID40 card for my new 861V6 if I could run a 'minimal' Sooloos infra - too happy with Sonos everywhere else in the house ... My 2 pence.

How would all this new stuff play with the 861v4?

From what I have heard a new product is due for release quite soon, think that the dealers or at least some of them, have been briefed in some detail.

David

I expect there would be an small (ish) external Sooloos Zone Box - with network (RJ45) in and digital out (SPDIF) to connect to the v4.
I don't see M ever producing an equivalent ID40 card for the v4.

Regards,
Carl

DVD video ?? is that not from the previous age ?

But people have loads of them taking up space...

As I understand it, to rip DVD means either illegally ignoring the licensing restrictions, or keeping the rip in a secure environment and not allowing it to be moved outside the system. This is of course something M understands very well from the encrypted DVD-A hires audio connections it has designed for licensing reasons. And the sealed system they already support for resilience reasons.

If DVD ripping is really coming (and I recall that info came from the German distributor) doesn't that suggest that the system will remain closed, proprietary and "turnkey" - and that therefore generic NAS would be disallowed?

And is DVD ripping a USP for such a system? Does SB, Sonos or anything else offer this? (I suspect not for the reason above.)

DVD in an M context has always implied decoded multichannel output (I hope that includes DVD-A), which perhaps is also a USP for such a system?

HDMI output would be necessary, and if the audio is on the output, would allow easy apodising and video switching through HD621.

The other concrete thing mentioned here by a dealer was Source 15 with a disc in the box. My concern about that is disc noise. (And what about the wireless Source 20, of which a working prototype was shown on video around the time M bought Sooloos?)

I am sure Kal and others know exactly what's coming, but fully expect them to respect M's announcement schedule.

Other companies have tried to legally rip DVDs and store them secured, but they all failed due to legal action. Reason: the CSS license does not permit it. In reality this is no problem, since ripping a DVD is not difficult at all (lots of tools available) and putting them on your NAS can't be a dealbreaker. I do not think M should enter the DVD ripping business, they should just concentrate on playback.