Anthem D2 or Arcam AV9?

[kennyt]

djeickme75,

Dual Servo 15's???

I have one of the Servo 15v2 and it floors my 16x28 room that opens onto the kitchen! I am a huge fan of multiple subs but even I might only use one of these! FWIW the D2 is really nice, is it worth the difference in price for you?? You should really compare the two in your system, and your dealer should allow you to do this. For my money, it is, but you mileage may vary.

KT

[Robinson_A]

While the video side of this industry is frustrating at best as we all wait for the dust to settle. I would hang onto your AVM20 at this point for I'm not sure the D2 is the end all be all any more. It's still quite remarkable, but with change coming so rapidly now may not be the time to jump in on the D2. Who knows what Anthem has in the works. I didn't catch anything at CEDIA however CES is right around the corner and with HDMI 1.3b seemingly the new standard I would expect Anthem to have some sort of answer soon. If it's an upgrade to the D2 or a whole new animal has yet to be seen. HDMI 1.3b does have its advantages over 1.1 and I'm sure with a little patients all will be revealed.

As for the audio, you have a KILLER setup.

[djeickme75]

I'm not so sure that Anthem is in any rush to update to HDMI 1.3. If you look on there website under the D2 (and probably under the AVM50 as well) they have an FAQ posted about HDMI 1.x. It actually reads more like a rant than an FAQ and it really gives you feeling that Anthem is going to bide its time and wait for the dust to settle a bit and see what true value there is the new standards before a redesign or an update.

At a certain point you just have to pick a time and pull the trigger. There is always something newer and better just around the corner. For example the JVC RS1 was the "big dog" so to speak in somewhat more affordable projectors for all of about 6 months before the JVC RS2 and the Sony VPL-W60 (among others shown at CEDIA this year) sent it down to the also ran category. I am sure it is still a killer projector but it certainly won't be getting any more hype. As home theatre has become more about computing power than anything else, it has taken on product cycles that are more in keeping with the computer industry than the audiophile industry that originally spawned the high end home theatre market. I certainly don't think we will ever see a Linn LP12 with a 20 or 30 year competitive life span or a Quad ESL57 with a 50 year competitive lifespan in the modern home theatre market. When you are talking about a $1200-1500 iMac or a $750 Dell PC you don't mind it being obsolete in 6 months or less and needing replacement in 2-3 years. When you are talking about a $6000-$7000 pre/pro or a $6000-8000 front projector, it would be really nice if they could last longer than a television season (and even those are getting shorter). At least Anthem has been quite good at providing upgrade options for there products over the years that they have been around.

I guess we can't stop the world from getting faster and more complicated but there I times that I would like to just get of the roller coaster for a while and relax.