Multichannel McIntosh
McIntosh makes a good point in its literature for the new MHT300 home ‘theater’ (they’re American) receiver. “Don’t be fooled by high watts per channel specs listed by many other AV receivers on the market,” the Binghamton NY company says. “Many times the fine print will show that those power ratings only apply to just two channels driven.”
That’s absolutely true, and of course the quoted grunt may decline significantly if the available power is then spread across seven or more busy channels of sound. McIntosh, then, quotes power ratings measured with all seven channels of the MHT300 being driven, so you can be sure an eight-ohm speaker will get 120W, or a four-ohms one 150W.
The seven channels can be used for 7.2 (the two subwoofer outputs are genuinely discrete, not mono), or 5.2.2 with height speakers. However the receiver also has unusual pre-outs for additional height, so with an additional two channels of external amplification the receiver can output 5.2.4.
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Indeed all channels have line-level preouts (and inputs) so that other further power expansions are also possible.
The MHT300 can decode Dolby Atmos and DTS:X, and is compatible with signals up to 8K/60Hz or 4K/120Hz, and with High Dynamic Range in Dolby Vision, HDR10+ and HLG flavours. The HDMI output includes eARC functionality, while there are four HDMI inputs, two coaxial and two optical digital inputs, though nothing analogue at all, other than control signals and the onboard FM tuner. Every channel gets its own 32-bit DAC for conversion.
There are also McIntosh’s regular technologies, such as Power Guard signal overload protection, Sentry Monitor shortcircuit protection, and also Dirac Live Room Correction to adjust for room acoustics.
And of course, the desirable McIntosh teal aesthetic is fully applied here, the MHT300 looking as massive as we suspect it sounds. Pricing is $16,995, and the MHT300 is due here in April. More: www.synergyaudio.com
The largest AV systems integration show in the world is Integrated Systems Europe, or ISE, an annual four-day event which now takes place in Barcelona, Spain.
The 2023 event saw South Australia’s Krix collaborating with Trinnov, Sony and Officina Acustica on a 13.16.6-channel
home cinema built within the Fira de Barcelona exhibition centre.
And yes, you read that right — 13.16.6, the most remarkable number there being the 16, indicating 16 subwoofers. The system had Krix’s MX-40 LCR modules behind the screen alongside eight Cyclonix 18-inch subwoofers, with an additional eight of these subs on the rear wall. Sixteen Krix Hyperphonix 45 speakers were used in surround and overhead positions.
This monster bass complement enabled demonstration of Trinnov’s latest innovations in bass management and steering,which includes using fewer but better controlled sources to reduce wave interferences, and making optimal use of loudspeakers as active absorbers.
Krix is also showing more attention to subwoofers with the launch of its first-ever electronics: a standalone subwoofer amp. While Krix’s consumer subs are active — the Volcanix and Seismix 1 or 3 (the last is one of our Sound+Image references), the new subwoofer amplifier is designed for Krix’s custom passive subwoofers. Hence the
new KA-1100 subwoofer amplifier (above) features built-in preset modes for the company’s MX-5, MX-10, Cyclonix 11 and Cyclonix 12 subwoofers. It uses ICEpower Class-D amplification, which allows a fanless and so silent design, while it’s fully customisable via a 24-bit signal processor board allowing low/high pass filters, soft limiting, signal phase inversion, signal sensing, 12V trigger input, single/dual input modes, over-current and overtemperature protection. A choice of modes supplies up to 700W RMS per channel. The KA-1100 is priced at $2195. Info: