Wow House 2026 Shows Smart Home Tech Vanish Into Design

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Your next client might not need a full rebuild, they might just need the right upgrade in the right place. We kick off with real-world install updates, including a bespoke media wall build with hidden speakers behind fabric, a tight-but-mighty 3.1 approach, and the kind of practical design constraints integrators deal with every day.

Then we head to the Chelsea Design Centre for WOW!House 2026, and it’s a genuine turning point: technology that’s finally led by interior design instead of fighting it. We talk through what stood out, how immersive video and audio can feel “there” without being in-your-face, and why lighting control and discreet integration are showing up across more rooms than ever. If you work in luxury smart home integration or home cinema, this is a must-see signal of where client expectations are heading.

On the industry side, we push two big actions: complete the CEDIA market survey so the UK channel has better data, and get yourself to the AWE Expo for proper hands-on time with brands and reps. We also run through the latest gear and business news, including the Hisense XR10 laser projector for big, bright outdoor viewing, Sony’s Bravia 9.2 and 7.2 true RGB TVs and what that could mean for OLED, an AI-driven Remote 3 approach built around Home Assistant, a Trinnov team move, and Denon’s refreshed X-Series AVRs with HEOS and optional Dirac Live upgrades.

If you enjoyed the mix of project talk and AV news, subscribe, share the show with an integrator friend, and leave us a review.

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Transcript

Birthday Catch-Up And Summer Travel

SPEAKER_00 0:09

Hi, and welcome to Inside CI Podcast for the 9th of June 2026. I'm your host, Stuart Burgess, and with me as always is my co-host and birthday boy, Mr. Simon Gregory. Happy birthday. Thank you very much, Stuart. Much appreciated. How are you? I am very, very good. How are you?

SPEAKER_01 0:26

Yep, no, all good. Uh well, it's half-term last week, so uh we had a nice time off with the family, and the weather was gorgeous. So um and you did you stay in the UK or did you go abroad? Didn't need to get abroad. It was 33, 35 degrees. So uh I stayed stayed here and uh yes, had a lovely time uh with family. Uh and you've been away, I hear.

SPEAKER_00 0:49

Yeah, I I I sort of traded my photography skills with a certain Mr. Ian Morrish uh to do some photographs of his uh family sort of uh apartment out in the French Alps in return for a little week stay with uh the family. So we just went over there during the half-term week, um, basically chilled out. You know, I still looked after inside CI and HCA whilst I was out there, but you know, reading a book on the balcony, my daughter's got her mock exams at the moment, so she was revising. But luckily, when we went down into the town, it was about 34 degrees. But then when you obviously went back up into the mountains, which is I think it was about 270 metres above sea level, it was a just a nice balmy 25 degrees. So it wasn't sweltering.

SPEAKER_01 1:40

Did you have some internet up there?

SPEAKER_00 1:42

Oh, yeah, actually, I've got to say, it's not two and a half gig like I get here, but um, I I think I did speed test it at some point, and I think he was getting about 20 or 30, so it was enough to upload the videos that we've just put up of the CD Tech Summit, but unlike them uploading in about 30 seconds here, they took about an hour and a half. So it wasn't the end of the world, and I I did a a zoom call whilst I was out there, but uh, but no, it was it was just relaxing, chilling out, and just like trying to get away from the world for a few minutes, and I think we uh dodged a bullet because of the heat over here. I don't think I could have survived in this house with it being that hot.

SPEAKER_01 2:21

It was pretty it was pretty intense, but we were on the coast, it wasn't too bad, and then uh come here and uh yeah, luckily we've got aircon. Uh so the aircon on it in the office and uh in the house and uh yes, cooled down nicely.

SPEAKER_00 2:32

Excellent.

Current Installs Media Walls And Fabric

SPEAKER_00 2:33

So, what have you been up to apart from so before we you went away for half term, what have you been up to job wise?

SPEAKER_01 2:38

Yeah, so before that, uh we are doing a bespoke media wall uh with a client who uh previously uh uh has dealt with us, um, and they've got a lovely cinema room in the in in the end of the garden, basically, so it's a dedicated room that they've got in there, um, so it's all singing, all dancing. Um, and they have a little extension in their house. So uh there's a beer uh bespoke media wall being built, um, and that's just gonna have uh Samsung uh TV in there, so one of the new ones they've got coming out, um, and also some art cousin speakers because he's got Arccoustic in the cinema room as well. So it's kind of a continuation uh from that, so he can watch normal TV and then he wants to go and watch a movie uh into uh he'll go into the cinema room. But that's so that's a really nice kind of setup. Uh we're just waiting for that tool to be finished, and uh then then we'll all the all the speakers are there, so we'll just wait till the media wall to be built. Um, and then it's all gonna be behind fabric, and uh so that all the speakers can be hidden and the TV's gonna be nicely reset. So a standard media wall, but uh yeah, that'd be a really nice little setup. It's only a five uh is it five. No, it's three point one. So we we we we couldn't really do uh 5.1 um and we didn't really think it was necessary because as I mentioned, he's got the cinema room uh at the bottom of the garden, so a nice little 3.1 system uh with some small RQ6 speakers centre left and right, and then uh two sub twos, so two subs to give a bit of a kick. Um, and uh yeah, no, that would uh fill fill his that room uh very nicely. It's kind of like an orangey room, it's got like a bit of glass to the right hand side, so it's on a on a bit of a wall, then he's got glass on the right hand side fully as well as another part of the wall, so we couldn't really put side speakers on the on the glass, but uh maybe maybe some waterfall speakers would have uh worked quite well now uh now we know people who do those, but um yeah, so that's a nice little system we've got coming up as well. What about yourself?

SPEAKER_00 4:30

Uh so I mean uh the integration wise, uh I'm I've pretty much finished all the well no, I have. I've half finished the project in Beckenham, so all of the walls have been done in Roddy's fabric. Um I can't remember if we said it on the last pod, but he came up with a genius idea of doing the ceiling. So uh uh so that's sort of waiting now. I'm waiting on the integrator that we're working with, or the Crestron integrator that we're working with, and waiting for him to get involved with it again to do the projector and the screen and whatever because he wants to be there when we're doing it. So my integration stuff has been pretty much non-existent, which is good because it's given me time to focus on inside CI and the HCA. But uh I've been to a couple of little events, I'll say little. We were at the peerless showcase at the Lord's Cricket Ground, which was really good insight into the more commercial side of our industry, because I think I feel that the commercial and residential side of our industry is definitely fusing together with you know big format LED screens, maybe Dante and things like that. I think we're we're seeing a bit more of fusing between the two brands. So went up to that at the Lord's Cricket Grounds, and then um I've been putting up uh and there should already be up a podcast of interviews I did at the CDA Tech Summit in Edinburgh uh recently, and then literally as this podcast goes out, I'll be in Bristol doing some more videos because we got the the Bristol um T C Dia Tech Summit today, as you'll listen to this. Um, and uh but the main thing was I was in London yesterday at the Chelsea Design Centre.

Wow House 2026 Tech Meets Design

SPEAKER_00 6:08

Yes, I had to go to Chelsea, I had to go past that horrible football ground. Um but uh I was I had to go I went to the Chelsea Design Centre because Wow House 2026 uh is now officially open. Nice. It opened on the it opened as we record today on the 2nd of June. And um I was invited to the press morning uh because this year we've got quite a few integrators involved, and more importantly, we have Cedio involved in it this year as a technology partner of the whole event.

SPEAKER_01 6:38

Yeah, fantastic. About about about about time too, but uh so they they they they they're they're key position to do that. So uh I I've only seen obviously the concept art that's been uh going around. So is it is it the same as last year, different, better? What what's your thoughts?

SPEAKER_00 6:54

Uh so I so I I was like, how are we gonna top last year? Or how are they gonna top last year? Because last year, so uh but to put it in context, I was up there last year doing some videos with uh Dagesh from Nucleus. He did um the one of the the little rooms with I think it was Alex Steeley, I think the designer's name was. Um this year he's involved uh again. He's this year they've done, I mean, the room is stunning. They've done a they've got a new um uh designer apologists, I can't remember his name now, but uh they've done a a full 28 speaker um L Acoustics hype uh system in there, IRA system in there or high-rays system in there.

SPEAKER_01 7:33

Yeah, I saw I saw Nick talking about that uh earlier. So that that that looked a beautiful room and all the speakers completely hidden as well, aren't they?

SPEAKER_00 7:39

So uh Yeah, it is they've got like a if anybody remembers the sort of circular sofas they used to have in the demo room, they've done this big sofa with a bit that moves out in the middle. I'll try and put a picture up because I've got loads of pictures. I'll try and get some pictures up on the uh video now. But basically, they've they've what they've done is in their room is brilliant because they've sort of put a big screen in front of you which will play content, but then what Dagesh has done is let's say for instance it's playing Dune, so it's playing Dune, but then what they've done is above them we they've put I think it was two 85-inch TVs on the ceiling, but then put it behind some fabric, uh some some of Roddy's fabric. Then behind you, as if you're sitting at it, there's another screen which looks like it's behind a window type of thing, and then they've worked with an artist to recreate the scenes. So if there's one scene where the designer's walking his dog, so what they've done on the ceiling, they've recreated a blue sky, and then behind you, they've recreated like a field. Then when you're watching Dune, the sky is like the sky you would have in Dune, and then behind you is the scene of a massive sort of dune with sand off of it, and it just it's not like fully immersive sort of like LED walls around you, but it just it just adds a little bit to the room and takes away from it being such a a technology-based room.

SPEAKER_01 9:07

So it's not it's not in your face as much as a video wall, but still gives you that immersive kind of kind of feel. But I I do think that that will be the future, just giving you that more immersive feel um with literally a video wall surrounding you, but uh that sounds a bit more sort of a bit more discreet and a bit more uh uh Chelsea Harbour friendly.

SPEAKER_00 9:25

Yeah. Well, and that was it. It's very interior design. I mean, you can't really see anything. So I mean, so Dagesh has done that room. Um Rako have also been heavily involved across the project in a number of rooms doing lighting um with John Cullen. Uh you've also got uh James and at home play, he's got involved in. I think it was the kitchen with the lighting and the background audio. Again, I think John Cullen were involved in that. So there really is, there really is a lot of integrators and a lot of technology in this year's one. Where last year it was like if you didn't think of technology, you got a Bluetooth speaker to put in the corner. So it is when I walked into it as part of the the press day yesterday. Honestly, I was like, how are they gonna beat this? How are they gonna beat this? And you sort of walk into the first room and it was it was good. And then as you start walking into the wow house this year, I mean, honestly, it puts on wow house. Uh yeah. Well, I actually said, Oh my, but anyway, we won't say that word on a podcast. But um, but no, I mean it it is good. I mean, and as you listen to this, it would have been open for a week, so it is open till the 2nd of July, I think. So if you are an integrator, if you are a fan of interior design, if you just want to go out at the weekend with the the the wife, um, and you want to just go somewhere which just shows some really, really intricate design and just you know, some if you like watching location, location or grand designs, it's definitely somewhere you click on the link in the description of this podcast or this video. Um sign up and go along because it it really is it is wow, it really does put the wow in wow house, it's amazing. But we are going to go up there, not uh as we as we uh as this goes out this coming weekend. I'm up there with Dagesh doing a 360 tour again, doing videos, um you know, recreating or or trying to immortalise that room like we did for the one last year, which is still up as a 360. So uh so no, that it is really good.

CEDIA Market Survey And Tickets

SPEAKER_00 11:31

And then the other thing that we've been involved in is uh Cedia have uh just released the size of the market survey, which is something they do periodically. Um, so if you are an integrator, listen to this podcast, please click on the link in the description, or I'll put a QR code up on the screen now. If you are an integrator in business in this industry, in the UK, I think it is only, uh go and complete the survey. It basically takes, I think it was about 10-15 minutes to complete. Um, and it just asks you like out of 100%, what percentage are you doing of home cinema, of lighting, of multi remordia, and bits and pieces like that. Um, but it just helps integrators, it helps fellow professionals, and it also helps our distributors and manufacturers gauge what people are talking about buying and doing so they can make sure that they're on the right path to help us integrate in more projects.

SPEAKER_01 12:27

Yeah, it just I I I I filled out the uh the form the other day. I think it was about 15-20 minutes actually, it was a bit longer than I thought, but uh it was quite quite interesting trying to get the percentages right. So obviously you've got to get to 100%. And at one point I was like 114%. I was like, hang on, because that's 50%, 20% of that, a little bit of lighting, a little bit of unify. Rang on, that's only 4%, not 5%, but trying to work it out, it did say a rough estimate, so uh you don't have to be spot on. But um, yeah, that's quite uh a key key aspect for uh for doing that for a CDO and the warehouse, how do you get tickets for the warehouse? Is a QR code you could uh to sign up for?

SPEAKER_00 13:02

Or so I'll put a link in the description and I'll put QR code up on the screen, which if you're watching this on a TV or whatever, just scan the QR code and it just goes straight through. But fundamentally, if you just search uh design centre or Chelsea Design Centre or search Wow House um 2026, it will take you to their website and then you just register for tickets and yeah, you just walk through. I think there's there's I think they limit the amount of people to go in it so it's not like a you know home build and renovating show where it could be really crammed or uh you know like a big sort of event like ISE. So I think they limited the amount of people that go through it. So I would say register early and it's open, I think, yeah, I'm pretty sure it's Monday to Saturday and then closed on Sundays because Sundays is the day where people go in and make changes or people like me go in and do the media side of it because then there's no one around.

SPEAKER_01 13:56

Nice. I will have to uh get a get a ticket. I've I've not been back to Chelsea Harbour. I think I told you earlier that we should have a concession down there in like 2003, 2005. Um, so uh I've not been there, been there since. So we'd like to go down there and uh and have a look. But so I think the guys have done uh done an amazing job from what I uh can see and uh what you've just told me.

SPEAKER_00 14:15

Yeah, I mean it I mean it is literally considering it is there for a month and then it gets you know deconstructed, recycled, used, you know, the kitchens get sold on. I mean, it is amazing to think of the amount of uh money and effort that goes into that. So and yeah, it it is it is a real wow. Right. So what else have you been up to? You've been up to anything else or so, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 14:37

We've

Upgrading Old Cinema Rooms With TVs

SPEAKER_01 14:38

uh one of our first ever clients actually is uh is due an upgrade. So um his room it's literally gone through the whole family. So it's a room we did in 2009 when we first started Cinema Rooms Limited. Um, and uh he described it as the best room in the house. If you could sleep in there, he would. So we've always uh uh used that phrase to uh to promote what we do, uh, and obviously the room that that he had. So um he's he's kind of gone off projectors. We had a JVC projector in there. Uh I said it's pretty old, it's done its time, kids have grown up, moved out, dogs have moved in, kicked out. Um, and he used to really like gaming, but obviously, as you know, with gaming, uh the older you get, the less time you get to do do gaming, unless your name's Stuart and you've got a podcast that uh dedicated to gaming, you have to. So we're gonna try and move away from uh projector and go for a larger TV screen. Now, larger TV screens, as we all know, are very expensive and some of them still are, but so we're thinking about putting the new HiSynth uh TV in there, 188Synths uh TV, which is only three and a half thousand pounds. They do do a cheaper one, but I'm not sure of the quality. But for three and a half thousand pounds, um we've already got the speakers, so depending if we we use the speakers who wants to change that and have a fabric track system, we might remove those and maybe just do a sound bar um because he just wants to fall in love again with that room, was his exact words. So we want him to do that. Um I think a simple change of like the just changing the car pill, a bit of liquor paint or a fabric track system would really bring that room back to life, um, and then get one of the new denon amplifiers that have just come out again. That's that's a nice little basic amplifier for about a thousand pounds, would give you a nice uh Dolby Atmos around sound setup with a hundred inch uh high sense TV and away you go. So um we're actually doing that very soon, so that'd be a nice little project to uh to do without going crazy.

SPEAKER_00 16:33

Uh this has made you laugh. So all of last week, I mean, so one of the things I was trying to do when I was out at Ian's was I was gonna put a 50-inch high sense TV up for him. Um the problem is we changed the car just recently and I couldn't get said 50-inch TV in the new car and our luggage and all this lot.

SPEAKER_01 16:50

You could have got rid of your luggage, kick, kick, kick, kick the wife's luggage out.

SPEAKER_00 16:55

Not with two ladies in the car, no way. And also we we knew because it was obviously the French Alps, it was gonna be expensive for food. So I did a massive Tesco shot before I left. So half of the boot was full of food. But so the whole the whole week I spent uh playing games on my ROG uh gaming handheld machine or watching TV on a 32-inch TV. So when I came back on Saturday night and turned my 77-inch TV on, it was like, oh my god, how big is that TV? So all I'm gonna say is if anybody out there has got a big TV, so 65, 77, 83 or something like that, and they're thinking of upgrading and they're thinking it's too small, go and stay somewhere for a week and just live with a 32-inch TV. I guarantee when you come back, you'll look at your old TV or your current TV and go, yeah, that's that's plenty big enough.

SPEAKER_01 17:45

That's that's the cheapest, cheapest upgrade I've ever heard.

SPEAKER_00 17:49

It's brilliant. And you know me, I'm not shy spending a few quid. No, you're not. Um, but no, uh but especially swapping the projector over in circus uh certain circumstances like that. Yes, swapping the projector over because large format TVs like the Hisense ones are not cheap, but they are so cheap compared to the you know the £15,000, £20, £25,000 they were a couple of years ago.

SPEAKER_01 18:12

Yeah, I mean we we might we might sort of go up a level to I don't want to when you say a hundred inch TV, people are expecting hundreds of thousands and and and close to that, but obviously they've come down quite a lot that might be from one extreme to the other. So I think we're gonna start there and then see what the quality's like and see if it fits in the room, etc. etc. I think it's got about 110, 120-inch projector screen system at the moment, so big enough, but I don't want it to look as you've just said from a 32-inch to a 75-inch. It's it's we don't want it to go that small. So I think a hundred-inch TV would work beautifully well in there, and um, yeah, it can uh fall in love with that room all over again. But that's a say a good way to upgrade with clients, not uh if it's an older room, um, which they don't really use that much anymore because of different various circumstances, it's a nice way to get back into that and uh and upgrade a system, um, whether it's a projector or a large uh format TV.

SPEAKER_00 19:06

Well, and even from the so is this the one where we're looking at changing the fabric in as well?

SPEAKER_01 19:10

Yeah, maybe he's got very nice wallpaper, so he might not want to do that, but uh we we we we'll see what the the state of of all that is. So uh once we've worked out exactly what we can do, but yeah, a simple fabric track system going around that room would finish it off nicely and uh it will uh really complement the room with uh with with that and make it a simple, simple upgrade, really.

SPEAKER_00 19:30

Well, that I mean what it's what I would say, you know, as being an integrator or been an integrator for 20 years is that you know certain things like fabric, you know, if you did a if you did a cinema, I mean I'm talking to one of my clients of the sort of the biggest job we ever did. Um I was talking to him today about some Lutron Blinds, and you know, and I even mentioned to him about changing the fabric in the room because and he he sort of looked at me and said, Well, is that possible? I said, Well, yeah, I said all we do is remove the old fabric, we keep the exact same track in, and then we just fabric it. So actually, in certain ways, it's easy on a wallpaper because you don't have to spend a week with a steamer trying to get the old wallpaper off. We literally just pull the old fabric off, the places where we've re-edged or we've edged, we re-edge and then we put the new fabric up.

SPEAKER_01 20:14

So we we've just done that actually with a client. Uh with a client uh went from a nice blue fabric uh and uh a screen was in front of that to a black fabric from uh from Roddy from uh Cinema Build Systems. But um yeah, that was fairly simple, but yeah, very black.

SPEAKER_00 20:31

I think just yeah, I think just look at some of the old jobs that you've done and just think, oh, can we upgrade the projector? Could we add something? I mean, if it's a certain level of install, can we add Mad VR? Could we update one of the you know to the new denon amplifiers or Trinov or something like that? So if you are finding it you know hard at the moment and jobs are drying up, I think you know oh flip back the Rolodex, open the uh you know the old uh diary up and just call some of those old customers up and go back and do a service call, do some software upgrades and get back in the door and just see if you can upgrade to a projector because I think you know upgrading some of the you know £25,000 projectors from 10 years ago, what you're getting at £25,000 10 years ago, you might be getting at six or seven thousand pounds now. It's a little bit like cars. So, um, and then also on the docket you've got bullet point fixing amps exclamation mark.

SPEAKER_01 21:28

Yes.

Outdoor Audio Repairs And Replacement Choices

SPEAKER_01 21:29

So we obviously I think I spoke to you on the the last podcast about some garden audio we've been doing and uh ants attacking certain speakers and cabling and junction boxes, um, and the amplifier uh obviously had been outside uh in this outbuilding, so it was undercover and everything, but obviously it gets pretty cold out there in the winter and pretty hot in the summer. Um but I got no light from it, so I brought it back to the office, put it on the bench, and I quite like doing that kind of thing. I've been doing it since I was in retail and since nineteen ninety eight. So I like to have a good look. But it's turning on okay. Um it's uh uh uh a Crix uh uh amplifier, power amplifier, um 500 watt two-channel power amplifier. So big, big beast. Um but yeah, couldn't get it working. So I took it all about changed the fuses um because the guys at um indigo recommended doing that. Um and yeah, still still got no sound of it out of it, but it was still turning on because I could hear it, there's no lights, and it was getting warm. So uh I spent the day trying to do that and get that working, but unfortunately I failed miserably. So then what do I do? Do we do we do we because it is he's got a a Sonos uh pre-amp, like a connect, so it's it's old school kind of scenario. Um so do we upgrade to a Sonos amp or do we upgrade to another another power amplifier that's got the the power to drive the outdoor garden speaker sat subsystem? Um so yeah, we're just waiting to to to do that ready for ready for summer. But uh yeah, I tried.

SPEAKER_00 23:00

Well, all you can do is try and try and fix the problems, but yeah, sometimes the easiest solution or the best solution for the client is to to get something new in there. And uh again, like like we just said with the TVs and the projectors and that, there's so much choice out there now of bits and pieces you can get which are relatively small form factor, um, all the way up to you know larger power amps.

SPEAKER_01 23:24

So uh it's a shame I couldn't fix it because I was gonna try and give it to uh uh together for cinema and giving back tech. Um so they could have used it for some something powering some speakers, whether it's in the actual cinema room or some outdoor garden speakers or something like that. But uh yeah, unfortunately I didn't do that. But uh it did there was a um a little podcast a webinar that uh Ian did the other day, which I think both of us were on, and uh it may give me a bit of a kick up the arse to add some stock that we've got lying around on the on the website. So we only added two items, but filling out the forms for that was very simple, very easy to do, and fairly quick. Uh if they're not on there, then just create it. I I got some stock photos. I think I took a photo of one uh one item that I had up there, but uh it was only like a a video kind of matrix thing um for businesses that I put up there. Um and uh yeah, hopefully that helps uh the uh giving back tech.

SPEAKER_00 24:16

You know, as the the year or so that I've been doing the videos for Ian, I mean I'm as we record this on one tomorrow in Luton, I think it is, but uh yeah, the you know, the giving back to tech as taking those projectors out that maybe are still working but the client wants an upgrade rather than if the client doesn't want to sell it on eBay or maybe just say to the client, look, you know, you'll probably get a hundred quid or two hundred quid on eBay, but would you like to donate it to charity? Because we can give it to givingback.tech. I can list it as an integrator, and then any charities that might want a project a stroke TV, stroke amplifier for their little media room or their little presentation area as a registered charity uh might benefit out of it without having to spend any money out of the donations they get. So it is a great platform.

SPEAKER_01 25:02

Yeah, I think if you tell clients that, then uh they're more than happy to do that and sort of send up a link to to the um actual um website so they say you have done it, but uh yeah, and I think it's a great, great thing to do. So if you're upgrading projectors from like lamp to to lasers, for instance, uh laser projectors, then that's a good uh well, especially if you can't really get the lamps anymore.

SPEAKER_00 25:21

Once they've gone, they've gone because of the new regulations. So uh no more mercury.

AWE Expo Preview And Why Attend

SPEAKER_00 25:27

It's a good opportunity, and we're gonna get onto lamps in a minute, but uh before we get on to the news, uh we have been talking with the guys at AWE because so from June the 30th to July the 1st, AWE are holding their 2026 Expo, which last year they didn't do it, but the year before and the year before that they did. So, what they're gonna be doing is over those two days, they're basically upgraded the AWE show apartment, and this year it features a new format. It's gonna be small sessions like they did recently when I went to an Octoma event. Uh, it's gonna be live demonstration, hands-on access to the latest home cinema, lighting, networking, audio, and smart home solutions, uh, plus direct time with industry experts and the brands who are there talking about their products. Um, they do always do an amazing lunch. So if you just want to go to Epsom for a lunch, is it gonna be the hog roast, Stuart?

SPEAKER_01 26:25

That if it's the hog roast, I'm gonna be there.

SPEAKER_00 26:27

I spoke to James at the summit, uh, and he could not confirm nor deny that it was gonna be a hog roast.

SPEAKER_01 26:33

So you've got to go and you have to find out on the day.

SPEAKER_00 26:36

It's gonna be street food in some way, but what I would say is, you know, spaces are limited, so make sure you register early to get in it because it's not a free-for-all. They are doing smallish sort of sessions and a whole day format, but only over the two days. So use the link on the screen now, use the link in the um the thingy, but register and then keep an eye on uh AWE's website and communications you'll get from the team at AWE. But spaces are limited, so sign up and uh pop along. I mean, I go pretty much every year they do it, and it's always a fantastic event. They've always got you know, you've got Bowers, you've got uh, you know, Denon, you've got Marantch, you've got URC, um, you've got Sony, you've got Optoma, you've got so many different brands that are there that it's a really good day. And also the representation representatives are there. So if you want to speak to Sony, Sony are there. If you want to speak to Panasonic, Panasonic are there. So, you know, I've had some great conversations with them down the years. I've given them my feedback as an integrator, and I have seen that. You know, when I think Panasonic did the speaker-free top-of-the-range TV a few years ago, a lot of that was because the integrators are saying, look, we want a 77-inch top-of-the-range OLED with the master panel on it, but we don't want all the Atmos speakers around it because we install an Atmos Cinema around it or an Atmos surround sound around it. So that was as a result of people telling Panasonic to do that. So it's definitely worth registering.

SPEAKER_01 28:08

Yep, no, definitely worth registering and going, I've got fantastic facilities down there, and as you quite rightly mentioned, the reps, if you want to speak to a representative of that particular brand, they are there and they listen. We had a similar situation to you, uh, Sony were there, um, and they had a great feature on their TVs, Sony. So when you press TV button, you could assign it to an HDMI input. This new range, when I was there last, did not do that. I was like, well, how'd you get to the HDMI one to watch Sky or Virgin or whatever? You press TV and you go straight there. Oh, we've taken that off. Spoke to the Sony representative, the next uh next incarnation of uh new model T Sony TVs, it was back on there and it said it today. So just proves they listen.

SPEAKER_00 28:48

Yeah, and it is, I think they do, and I think you know, as an integrator, please do go to these events. You know, when these distributors and manufacturers hold these events, please do go to them and the CDA Tech Summits because you you do get one-on-one time, you know, as we recall this as I said, Bristol's on, and Bristol's a good tech summit to go to because it's not as busy as London. So you can have a 20-minute conversation with you know order systems or with you know 1AV or AWE or KEF or someone like that. So you can have a proper conversation where and give them your feedback and your views because as an integrator, if you don't go to these events and you don't let your views be known, things won't change. No one's gonna know your opinion. So uh please, please register for it. Please go along on uh the 30th of June, 1st of July, and see some awesome tech, get an awesome lunch, and you know, give some feedback to them.

SPEAKER_01 29:46

Yeah, these things aren't cheap to put on, and uh the guys do it for you. So uh yeah, definitely sign up and uh head on over. You won't you won't regret it.

SPEAKER_00 29:53

Excellent, right? So

How To Support Inside CI

SPEAKER_00 29:54

we're gonna get on to the news now. But before we get on to the news, please comment, review, and subscribe to the podcast, the video, wherever you're watching this. Please leave us a comment. It's free, it doesn't cost you anything, but it really helps the podcast out. And Simon, before we get onto the news, if you've watched my gaming podcast, you'll know that I got myself a new toy. So now we have a jingle for the news. You ready? I have bought myself news a sound machine. Yeah, by the way, that ring doorbell sound is not mine, that's Simon's. But um, but no, I now have I now have a little Yeah, I now have a little sound machine, so I could do my or I could do my so we're we're fully sounded up now.

SPEAKER_01 30:47

Beautiful, beautiful uh sound effects, Stuart.

SPEAKER_00 30:50

I could even get it wrong and forget which podcast I'm on and play the other podcast as Theme Tune. So, but obviously we don't want to do that, so um, but right, so getting on to the news, your first story is uh funny enough, it's with your brand ambassador shirt on for Heisence.

Hisense XR10 Laser Projector Spotlight

SPEAKER_00 31:07

It is.

SPEAKER_01 31:07

Well, basically, the World Cup is coming, as we know, hence I've gone World Cup crazy, got the shirt on, got the uh other bits and bobs per surrounding me and getting ready for the World Cup, which is only uh, well, by the time this comes out, uh literally days away. So looking forward to that immensely. Uh, and obviously the best way to uh watch a game on the big screen is via a projector or a TV system, but most importantly at the moment is a projector to get that really big, big feel. Um, so you know, projectors are big and bulky and black, or sometimes you can get them in white. There's some new cool high sense laser TV projectors. Uh there's one particularly called the XR10, uh, which raises the bar as a 4K uh liquid cooled long throw laser projector as terminology that they use, but it's rather sexy, it's very small. In fact, um I did write down how small it was. Uh 292 by 272 millimeters, and it's only 213 was that height, do you reckon, or depth? One of those. Um so a really small projector only weighs just just over ten and a half kilograms as well. Um, but it it actually it looks gold. It looks gold in uh in in in nature. Um it can go up to do you know how many inches it can go up to? I want to give you a guess.

SPEAKER_00 32:29

I do because I looked at it, but but but surprise me, surprise me.

SPEAKER_01 32:33

300 inches it can go up to, which uh is pretty impressive. So 100 inch, 200, and 300. I'm sure you can go in the middle somewhere, but um it uh it looks a rather sexy little projector, um, nice and discreet, obviously comes with a nice stand. Comes about 6,000 pounds, so not cheap. Um the only reason I know about this is because um uh one of the distributors we deal with uh into A V are doing that. And also um a client wanted one for his garden. So we've uh specified this projector uh to put out in his garden, but it might be a bit excessive but putting one of those on a on a on a on a bed sheet, but uh it uh will look look amazing because it is actually stupidly bright, but uh it it's a really good little system.

SPEAKER_00 33:23

I saw that it's 6,000 ANSI Lumens, so that is a very bright little boy, and and considering that is our is England's first match at like 10 o'clock at night or something like that.

SPEAKER_01 33:33

So 10 o'clock at night, yeah um, and yeah, it's uh it's very bright, as you say. It lasts because it's laser, uh 25,000 hours, which hey, it's about 10 years, maybe a bit more, but uh yeah, 6,000 to 1 contrast ratio, uh HDR 10, Dolble Vision, HDR 10 plus, HLG as well, which is very important. Um, and uh yeah, that looks uh pretty pretty pretty impressive. So we'll uh we've been specifying those, and there that looks a nice little projector that's just come out.

SPEAKER_00 34:05

Yeah, and looking at the website, it's uh it's got the traditional type of apps that you would have built into it, but it's also got um I'm gonna butcher this, it's Devulay, it's got Devulay sound in it. So the French Devulae French. So like what Alpine using their cars, and I know for a few years when I was looking after Lerva in Harrods, they had a concession in Harrods, and I always used to go past. But no, I mean it's a really cool looking thing. First of all, when I opened the web page up to look at it, um it I thought I was looking like a GoPro because the lens on the front of it was very reminiscent of like the big lens you get on an action camera, and it's sort of the same ratio. So it sort of when I looked at it, I thought, is that is that a GoPro or is is that a microwave? Oh, is that a microwave? And then it's like, no, no, it's a projector.

SPEAKER_01 34:53

Yeah, it's yeah, a big old lens on there, that's for sure. But yeah, it's a it's a it's a extra large GoPro, best way to describe it in gold. If you're not watching and just listening.

SPEAKER_00 35:05

So no, I think I think we're obviously right in the midst of it, we're we're gonna start seeing more and more garden audio, garden uh video, especially say with the World Cup coming up, and hopefully, if we've got the weather like I've got here today, uh, which is nice and sunny all day apart from a little bit of rain this morning, people are gonna be outside. There seems to be something very British and football about, as you say, putting up a bed sheet, like during COVID, putting up a bedsheet, chucking a projector outside or wheeling the TV out, and then just sitting outside in the garden and watching the football. But uh, it does make me wonder how many noise complaints we're gonna get this year with uh people cheering as England score a goal at 11 o'clock at night.

SPEAKER_01 35:45

It's only it's only every four years, so it doesn't matter.

SPEAKER_00 35:47

Exactly, exactly. And then obviously the the middle year is Euros, so it's a bit more on our time type of thing. So uh right, so my next story is almost sort of following on from what I think we talked about on the last podcast, which was uh the Sony Bravia RGB TVs. So

Sony Bravia True RGB TVs Explained

SPEAKER_00 36:05

um uh there's a news story up on uh guess which website? Guess which website it's on? Uh InsideCI. It's on the Inside CI website written by Steve May. Uh so it's Sony Bravia so Sony Bravia 9.2 and Sony Abravia 7.2 usher a true RGB TV era. So just reading from the article, Sony has expanded its cinema, it's coming home with strategy with the launch of the tr first true RGB televisions, the flagship Bravia 9.2 and the more accessible Bravia 7.2. The models feature next generation RGB LED backlighting coupled with Sony's proprietary RGB Blacklight Master Pro technology, which independently controls red, green, and blue LEDs by precisely managing each primarily colour to the source. Sony says the new TV achieves previously unseen colour volumes with reduced blooming, improved gradients and improved viewing from many multi-wide angles and an even brighter living space experience. I mean, I've watched a couple, I mean the full article Steve written goes into a lot of details, including pricing and bits and pieces like that. Um, but I've watched a few videos. I I think Vincent did the video on it, and I think uh maybe Linus Linus TechDips did a video on it when they went out to Sony, and it was very, very interesting to uh watch the just where this technology was going. I think they had a few TVs which they almost like just showed you the individual individual LEDs behind it and uh and showed you the brightness and the contrast and the picture, the quality these were given out. So it's gonna be very interesting with these RGB TVs coming through and how they compare to you know the other models we've got. Have you seen any of the videos sort of showcasing them?

SPEAKER_01 38:00

Yeah, obviously we spoke about this uh a couple of podcasts ago and the technology behind that and what actually they're doing. So Sony actually did the first uh LCD TV in 2004. Um, so they've got a good back record of this, and uh yeah, that their their philosophy is um yeah, capture to display, as we know. So they've obviously from their cameras um and the the same technology is in their professional monitor that they use, which I think is about 30,000 pounds, so pretty expensive. So they've tried to use the technology that's built in into that and bring that to the mass market in the sevens and the nines. So not cheap, um, but it is true RGB, so they have all the red, green, and blue chambers that actually change colour um rather than a sort of a blue light. So LCDs used to be a notorious blue light filter coming through. Um, and depending on your eyesight, you uh you were you had to turn the blue down if you you were professionally getting that calibrated. Um so yeah, no, the brightness levels are uh are unbelievable. Saying about that projector a minute ago, these TVs are up to 4,000 uh knits, which uh is very bright. Some say were too bright. I think we did a I think I told you a Sony OLED the other day, and compared to my old old Sony OLED, it was almost too bright for me in in his room. Obviously, you can turn it down and get it professionally calibrated. Um, but uh at that brightness, that is really bright. I mean the colours look phenomenal. It does look like a stunning, stunning TV. Um, does it replace OLED? Again, as we spoke in the last podcast, it is it will be more cost-effective and would be cheaper to to do that than OLED, so maybe they're gonna get rid of those. There are new no OLEDs this year for 2026 that Sony are bringing out. It's still the last year's model, from what I can understand um from their report. I've actually got a webinar tomorrow for the UK, as usual, quite behind the rest of the world. And I think all the YouTube videos you and I have been watching, it's uh it's a bit behind uh for for uh for the UK market, but we will find out a little bit more. But yeah, so no OLEDs, from what I can understand uh for the UK market 2026. They are pushing these true RGB colour TVs.

SPEAKER_00 40:13

Yeah, I mean, just looking at the bottom of the article here, it was uh from an installation perspective, Sony has clearly targeted premium living spaces and dedicated media rooms. The Bravia 9 is available in 65, 75, 85 and 115-inch sizes, whilst the Bravia 7 spans from 50 through to 98 inches. Both employ a slim industrial design with texture bezels and discrete uh stand system. Pricing uh as of the website is Bravia 9 starts at a pound short, 3,500 for the 65, rising up to, which I don't think this is actually that bad. I know this sounds weird, but just shy of £23,000 for the £115 inch. I remember doing a 100-inch LED TV probably about five years ago, and and that was about £15,000, £16,000 then. So to get this new technology for okay, only £8,000 more, but it just does show how these prices are coming down. And then the Bravia 7 begins uh just a pound shy of 1900 for the 50 inch and topping out at 7,000 for the 98 inch.

SPEAKER_01 41:27

Yeah, that they're good prices for the sevens. I say it's um it's more uh you you still got the same technology, uh say true RGB, true RGP in those TVs. Um, but the the nines are are the pinnacle. Does say they're not cheap. Uh was it three and a half thousand for was it the the entry level sixty-five inch is that?

SPEAKER_00 41:47

Uh I just moved it up. So uh three and a half thousand for the entry for three and a half thousand for the Bravia nine sixty-five inch and nineteen hundred for the Bravia seven fifty inch.

SPEAKER_01 41:58

So does that replace their OLEDs? I assume it would do eventually. Um it will go to that market. But what is a shame, um, and as we know it's from from from their uh their background of doing the the the filming, um it's the last one before they they join next year, TCL.

SPEAKER_00 42:14

Yeah, that's true, isn't it? Yeah, yeah, no, that is very true.

SPEAKER_01 42:18

So we know these these TVs are captured to display. TCL would then take over that from next year and do distribution and I would assume make the their TVs for them.

SPEAKER_00 42:27

Well, I mean I I had a couple I had a word with or a conversation with Sony which was uh was basically along the lines of it's a joint venture between the two brands. So it's almost like I know, it's almost like Cinema Rooms Limited and Immersive Cinema Rooms Limited setting up another company. So it's it's it's yes, they are sort of taking over it, but Sony are still heavily involved financially into it, and they are still very much involved in it. It's just like a like we see with I mean my wife's just bought a new car, it's uh uh it's a uh Volvo EX30. Yeah, it's a Volvo, but it's made in China as part of Volvo's parent company. So Volvo still oversee it, Volvo still make it, and it still is very much a Volvo, but it's just made by I think it's Geely, I think it is, but it's just made by the the French owners of Volvo with Volvo overseeing it. So I'm hoping this is what Sony are gonna do, which is it's TCR making it, but Sony are still gonna oversee it and give it their rubber stamp in the same way as you know, THX or ISF may look at a calibration of something. But talking of calibration, if you do want your TV calibrated, get in touch with our new HCA member, Ricky from Calibrate.

SPEAKER_01 43:48

You need to press your button, uh Stuart, for clapping.

SPEAKER_00 43:51

For clapping. Oh, second. New HCA member, Ricky from Calibrate, does go on a Little bit long, so I'll stop it. Uh, but yeah, Ricky, we've all known Ricky for years. Ricky does a lot of calibrating of projectors, of uh TVs, of amplification. We're using them on quite a few of our jobs, and so I know do a lot of other HCA members. So uh thank you to Ricky for jumping on board with the HGA and uh any integrators listening to this who want a projector or TV or uh audio calibrated, I'll put Ricky's details in the link and uh he might pay me a commission or pay his membership either way. I doubt it. So next next story is uh about a remote control, and it's with you.

SPEAKER_01 44:37

Yeah,

AI Remote Control And Home Assistant

SPEAKER_01 44:38

so again, this all transpired from uh the previous client I spoke about who's having the media war and uh has a cinema room uh out the back of the garden. Um it's a unique uh prospect. It's called Remote 3 uh by uh Unfolded Cycle. Oh circle? Unfolded circle. Circle, yeah. Um, which um if you look at it, it looks like an Ava.

SPEAKER_00 45:01

It looks like a remote control. It's it's got it's got Ava, stroke, control four, stroke, savan. It's got a bit of everything. I'm gonna quite. Was it Neo that control four? Neo, yes. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 45:13

So you combine all those remote controls together, you've got this remote three, I think they called it me, I'm not quite sure. But uh it uses AI. And that is the biggest buzzword as we know at the moment. Um, so uh the client has told me more about this than I could possibly understand because he's actually started programming it and he's using AI Home Assist. So basically you tell AI Home Assist, from what I understand, uh what you wanted to do. So turn the projector on, turn TV on, turn the amp on, and that kind of stuff, and then upload it to this uh remote control from uh unfoldedcircle.com and they will it will work and away you go. You just turn the lights on and it will do all that. Um but it is more AI-based. Um, I think it's about 500 or euros, I think I saw. And once you add all the bits of it, the docking station and the cabling and that kind of thing. But it looks a rather sexy kind of remote control. And of if you are into AI, like most people seem to be nowadays, it's a really good little product to get involved with and uh and have a go at that.

SPEAKER_00 46:19

Yeah, I mean they've got it for pre-order on their website at 419 euros.

SPEAKER_01 46:25

Euros, so yeah. So by the time you added everything up, I think it got to uh about 500, 550 euros. So uh yeah.

SPEAKER_00 46:33

I I'm pretty sure it's the same remote control that Seth was talking about on Home Tech.fm podcast. So it's very heavily reliant on um home assistant so and uh integration with home assistant products. So I would say it is one of those products where uh I mean I've got uh someone who uses Home Assistant quite a lot and uses you know Apple Home Kit quite a lot. So I think if it if it's something that you are a bit of a tinkerer, I mean I suppose the way I can the way I can sort of analogise it is maybe if you're you look at something like um uh Zapiti or Kaleidoscape, if you're happy to take your DVD collection and burn it yourself, put it on a NAS and put it into a cupboard on a uh, you know, so it plays back through your Plex or through your Apple TV or something like that, then I think in my opinion, some of these remote controls are like that. If you're more of a colliderscape person where you just want to download it from a store, play it, and you don't want to mess around with ripping or things like that, then that's more of your you know, your crestron, your control for your Alan and RTIs and plays play platforms like that. But it it does look like it'd be interesting. It would be interesting to get my hands on one. Uh yeah, that's that's what I thought to be fair.

SPEAKER_01 47:54

Have a have a have a play. Whether reliability is there, I'm not too sure how it can do time delays and that kind of stuff. We've all been there with remote controls, and you go to turn something corner, it doesn't work because the the time delay is not quite correct. Um, so how that works, that'd be very interesting to see. If not, then obviously then yeah, stick, stick with the uh the remote the manufacturers and the remote control guys that we that we know out there um that uh that work well and are reliable. So uh but no, I thought it was quite a nice little project uh product. Um and if you want a project then uh then uh yeah go for go for this AI remote control. Um but uh yeah it looks quite a sexy remote.

SPEAKER_00 48:31

No, it does, it does look like a nice remote control, and uh as I say, it it might be worth having a play with one and see what the you know the customer support is like, if just in case you do have an issue, because obviously for us as integrators, that is the key, is if when it inevitably will go wrong, we want to be able to pick up the phone. Yeah, I mean we can pick up HDMI leads from AliExpress for peanuts, but when that you put that HDMI lead in the client's wall and five years later that goes wrong, you've got no comeback for it.

SPEAKER_01 49:01

So yeah, watch this space, I think.

SPEAKER_00 49:03

Which it will be interesting to see how it unfolds.

SPEAKER_01 49:07

I like that.

SPEAKER_00 49:08

Do you get it? Right. So the next the next story is we've had another another big name in the industry move. So

Trinnov Hire Plus New Denon AVRs

SPEAKER_00 49:20

we have just had the announcement through uh yesterday as we record this that uh um uh Ian, once of Envision and CYP, has now moved to Trinov Audio, which is a uh a big move. Um he's moved there as residential sales and technical specialist uh and moved yeah to the to the fantastic team there. I mean, he's he's not new to Trinov. He dealt with and did Trinoff training and supported Trinov and sold Trinov in his previous employment for years. So uh um yeah, I mean that's a that's a brilliant move. I spoke to David um the day it was announced, and uh he was more than happy that Ian's come on board because with the launch of the CI and the new software rollout that we obviously discussed on our ISE video, um they uh Trinov are a busy, busy company now. So to bring another experienced person in to help them and help the integrators is is a win-win.

SPEAKER_01 50:18

Yeah, no, it's a great acquisition uh for Trinov there and uh saves David doing all the all the work. I think David's here then everywhere, and obviously got the new showroom opening up as well later on this year in uh in Paris. So uh yeah, Ian did my uh my training with me, so uh got me to level one and level two. So um he's really uh on board. I think Mel is overjoyed that uh he's got a job. Um now he's built his cinema room and he's out of the house. So uh yeah, it's uh it's it's uh it's good news all around.

SPEAKER_00 50:49

Yeah, and I think it's he was always very passionate about Trinov. And I know I mean I never I didn't do my level two in the end because obviously moving more into this side of the world, uh, I was like, well, shall I do it? And I think something cropped up, but I mean I did level one with him and David, and you know, he's been a fountain of knowledge. I think my first Trinov Altitude 32, I had both him and David at my client's house in Tunbridge Wells, in uh Merton, and uh we were calibrating it and they were running me through the calibration and uh yeah, and I think Ian's gonna fit in really, really well to Trinov, and obviously, you know, it's a product that I know he likes and he enjoys using. So yeah, uh many congratulations on your new job, mate, and uh uh we'll catch up on a podcast or something soon, and uh you can discuss how you're getting on there. Right, so the next story or the last story is just a quick one, but it's um Denon Expands X-Series AVR's uh AVR line. Um now this is an article on the Inside CI website, so it's actually a very long article written, well not hugely long, but it's actually a very interesting article written by Steve. Um, Steve was uh invited out to Denon um and in Japan, and they basically had a hands-on briefing and a hands-on day or two with these new amplifiers. So, what Denon have done is following on from the one that we talked about the other week, which was the AVR S980H, um, they've upgraded the brands that a lot of us use every day. So they've upgraded the um 2800 to the 2900, and they've upgraded the 3800 to the 3900. So it's got a lot of new technology on it. It basically is also taking the software, or we'll take the software update from uh the HEOS, so you can utilize the HEOS systems within the receiver like we discussed on the um S980. Um, yeah, I mean they've sort of focused on the the 2900 and the 3900. I'm assuming there may well be a you know a 4-5 and a six at some point. But uh yeah, I mean, do you use denon much? I mean, we've used them because they they are a good price, they're a good integration level for us, not necessarily a starter system, but they give really good integration to control systems like control four for me. They're touch wood, they're generally bulletproof and uh and they come with Heoth built-in, Spotify, cube bars, uh, you know, tune in, airplay, and and you know, and the the 2900 starts at 899 with the 3900 start at um 1300.

SPEAKER_01 53:39

Yeah, but hit the down the head there, Stuart. It's uh they're a great product and uh yeah, really reliable. We actually specified one for uh a quote we did this week for uh a dedicated cinema or media room, sorry. Um yeah, for a thousand pounds roughly, I think, plus that. Um I think that sorry, uh for 2900. Uh it's yeah. It's a 5.2.2 system, isn't it? I believe. So um hasn't got lots of channels, but for a media room or small cinema room, I think the uh 2900 is is is is perfect for for that. And obviously if you want more channels and it to do more, you can uh you can go up to the one above that.

SPEAKER_00 54:15

So 2900 is 5.1.2, so you know it's a nice little uh little cinema system or little lounge system, and then the 3900 is a 5.1.4. So we know we'll give you a little bit more on your Atmos channels, and then I think what's quite good, and what I quite like about um, I mean, fundamentally what I quite like about the way that Dan on writes it up, but also AWE do put on their website where it does say this will do an 11.4 system, so you can use these type of setups. So on a Sunday when you're sitting at home trying to do your quotes and you're thinking, oh, you know, I need an amp to do a 5.1.4, what can I get away with, or what can I get budget-wise that's gonna be good, but you know, allow me to spend a little bit more money here and a little bit more money there. I think Denon are really good for that, and uh uh they're quite easy to set up, they're quite easy to integrate with, and uh, and again, I'm gonna regret saying this, but very rarely do I ever have any of them go wrong on me. I think I'm running one downstairs, which is it might be a 6700, so it's the one I used to use at the exhibition. So, what's that? That's two generations old, so it doesn't pass through 4K 120, which is annoying for my Xbox. But it it if I want it to, it would support Atmos, and it's a great little amplifier. And apart from the occasional having to reboot, like you do with most electronics, uh it just works perfectly, which I'm really gonna regret saying that when I go downstairs in a minute.

SPEAKER_01 55:47

Probably it will break. But no, so that the the the uh they're they sound great, they they they work really well, they're really reliable. Um, obviously, you can upgrade to the Dirac Live as well. Um, so do all the base management on there, that makes a massive difference. So I know it's a little bit more money, but if you've got a dedicated room, it is worth upgrading that, whether you do it as a freebie for the client or say incorporate that as part of your quotation. But the uh the uh base management on that is pretty pretty impressive. The fact you've got the HEOS built in, which is, in my opinion, one of the best um sort of multi-room aspects uh systems out there, nice and reliable. The web the uh app is really, really good and nice and intuitive for the client. And obviously, now they can do those up uh the wireless speakers that we spoke about in the last pod. I think that could uh that could make a massive difference as well. So uh yeah, no, for the money, I don't that's what we quoted for that with the high sense 100 inch TV, that and uh and the 2900 for uh for not shy of a bit shy of five grand, that's uh not including speakers, obviously, but that's a really nice big system that you can get that sounds good for about 10k, I reckon.

SPEAKER_00 56:56

Yeah, no, definitely. And it's uh it's got here also gaming support hasn't been overlooked either. Expanded HDMI connectivity with 1440p pass-through with AMD free sync compatibility. So even for us gamers, it's pretty good. So uh so yeah, so right that's the main

Inside CI Site Highlights And Wrap-Up

SPEAKER_00 57:12

news. Um but also don't forget that you can pop over to the Inside CI website where we have loads of articles. We have the loads of articles, loads of stories. There's uh something on there from Steve talking about the new Samsung TVs in the news articles. We're talking about Moon has added some new power amp and network players to their compass collection. Uh Roku have released their or are releasing their first projector, uh, which is a 1080p model. Um, Dirac Live Room Correction lands on Blue Sound PowerNode Streaming Amps. Uh, there's some new speakers from Wharfdale and NAD brings or NAD or NAD brings direct live bass control to Blue OS amplifiers. So do pop over to insideci.co.uk and uh check out the news stories that almost pretty much go up every day, if not every other day. I do, I do look at my so the way it works is Steve, as the editor of the website, he does the editorials, he does the articles, he does the news, and then I handle the social media side of it and then the podcast and things like that. And quite often, as I'm sort of getting in after a long day, and I you know press the app on my phone to bring it up. I'm like, Steve's putting a new story up, and I'm like, right, okay, need to do the social media posts.

SPEAKER_01 58:25

So I'm not I'm not sure there's always this much news, or just the fact that you're putting it out there more regularly for us all, which uh we all appreciate and uh it look looks great. But uh surely it can't be another pair of speakers or another new lot of telly or whatever wolf tails just come out of the woodwork kind of thing. But uh no, it's uh it's really good to be kept up to date and uh yeah, no, doing a good job. Keep it up.

SPEAKER_00 58:47

Thank you. And I no, there is that much news. There are, I have started getting so many press releases now, but obviously we are inside CI, so I do get uh press releases for sometimes for headphones. Uh they got a press release from the European Space Agency yesterday, which is like okay, I quite enjoyed reading it, but uh it's not going up on the Inside CI website. So no, do do obviously we release the newsletter every Monday morning or Tuesday morning if it's a bank holiday, so that's the easiest way to keep up to date. But you know, you can find us on Inside CI, you can find us on all the social media platforms. I've even just created a Substack page as well to sort of because Substack quite nicely allows you to put up articles and it goes straight into your inbox as well. So um look at you. So but that's it. So that's it for the podcast for this week. Um, I think we are all we've just rolled over an hour, so I can edit that out properly. Um, but uh Simon, so where can people find you on the interweb?

SPEAKER_01 59:46

You can find Cinema Rooms Limited on Instagram and all the socials. We're on LinkedIn as well. I'm on there personally, and uh Cinema Rooms. We've also got a YouTube account, so you can have a look on that. And obviously we've got a website which we're uh we regularly update on news and things like that. So yeah, you can find Cinema Rooms Limited that way.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:03

Excellent. Well, for me personally, you can find me as uh at Mr. Stuart Burgess on most social medias. Um if you're a gamer and you fancy a bit of Call of Duty or a bit of Ford Horizon 6, my gaming tag is General Letdown uh on uh on Xbox. And uh and yeah, and for Inside CI, um just Google Inside CI or if you're on social media, LinkedIn, generally we're inside CI News uh or inside CI. But uh, you know, do join up, keep up to date with the news, and uh uh we'll try and get some more podcasts. Do you know? I tried to do a solo podcast the other day.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:38

Was it like talking to yourself, going a bit crazy?

SPEAKER_00 1:00:41

Well, I just decided because there is so much news that and obviously I don't want to put the burden on you having to do a podcast with me every week. Plus, also I do when I'm not doing this podcast, I'm doing a gaming podcast. It just so happens this week, I'm doing this one today, and then tomorrow we're doing a Xbox predictions podcast for this weekend for the showcase, which would be if you listen to this. So um, so I just thought on the Sunday the girls had gone out and I created this lovely background. It's this is not real, by the way, this is not my office. Uh, but I created this lovely background and I just sat here and I thought, right, I've got two things that are going on. Because I thought what I'll do is I'll do like welcome to the Inside CI weekly podcast, um, you know, a quick cast type of thing, as someone else I listen to does. And I thought, right, what's going on this week? And about five news stories, just to keep it 20 minutes or so. Two and a half hours later, I decided, and and like one or two news stories in, I decided, yeah, I don't like this, and I look like an idiot. So at some point you might see a solo podcast from me, but not quite at the moment because I didn't like it.

SPEAKER_01 1:01:49

So left your own devices. Everybody knows you do like to talk Stuart, but left your own devices. How the heck did you carry on for two and a half hours? I've no idea, but no, happy to do a podcast. It is great, and uh yeah, no, it goes down really well, and everybody likes it, so she's good.

SPEAKER_00 1:02:02

Excellent. Well, look, thank you for uh not making me do a solo podcast today and making me have someone to talk to.

SPEAKER_01 1:02:08

You're more than welcome. And on my birthday, unbelievable. I'm gonna go off and celebrate and cheer on England.

SPEAKER_00 1:02:14

10 pm in a few days. We're playing Croatia, so hopefully, uh hopefully we'll get a good start.

SPEAKER_01 1:02:20

Hopefully you can stay awake as well.

SPEAKER_00 1:02:21

Yeah, I'm not I'm this will probably be the first World Cup that I won't actually watch until about like seven o'clock next morning when I get up.

SPEAKER_01 1:02:27

You you get up about four o'clock, so you'll probably watch it no problem.

SPEAKER_00 1:02:30

I go to bed about nine o'clock and get up about four o'clock. So I'll just watch it before I go off. Yeah, goodbye. But but no, thank you for your time, Simon, and uh thank you for everybody to who's watching or listening to this. Uh to say, please uh comment, give us your questions. Um, on all the platforms, there's ways you can comment and get in touch with the podcast or leave a message and things like that. So please let us know where you're watching in the world. Please let us know if you have any questions. And uh thank you for listening.

SPEAKER_01 1:02:56

Cheers, guys.