ESSENTIAL PRODUCTS

Bolton-based Mitchell & Brown has unveiled details of its expanded 2021 TV line-up, offering residential and commercial installers an exclusive range of TVs. Backed up by Mitchell & Brown’s seven-year warranty, UKbased call centres and robust margins; this year’s range is designed to offer installers a high performance, high quality alternative TV brand with “unrivalled customer support”, says the maker. The company sells direct to installer and commercial markets direct through partner company TVDB2B.

Building on the success of its 2020 range, the new line-up boasts 30 new models covering 4K/Ultra HD, Smart, DVD Combi, Full HD and HD Ready TVs, offering a modern aesthetic with design cues that extend across the range.

“We have continually improved and refined our TV line-up over the last five years and now offer our strongest range to date, ideally suited to UK living rooms, bedrooms and kitchens,” says Dan Brown, Director of Operations at Mitchell & Brown. “With the market for installers buoyant and spending on the home at an all-time high, it is the right time for us to focus on brand awareness. As a proudly British brand focused on quality and service, we are perfectly aligned with the unique benefits of installers and our expanding network of independent retail partners across the UK.”

The hero of the 2021 line-up is Mitchell & Brown’s UHD18114KBL 4K Smart NearBorderless series, available in 43in, 50in and 55in screen sizes. The design offers a super-slim bezel surround, Freeview HD and a range of WiFi connected services, including Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, FreeviewPlay, YouTube and Alexa voice control. The Ultra HD screens use the latest Dolby HDR (High Dynamic Range) LED technology for strong visual performance and will smoothly upscale standard definition sources to make the most of its 4K resolution screen. The image is backed by a premium sound system, with a built-in subwoofer in the two larger models.

Michelle & Brown/TVDB2B tvdb2b.com

Residential or commercial installers interested in the Mitchel & Brown range should contact distributor TVDB2B

LILIN RELEASES IVS2.2 HUMAN & VEHICLE DETECTION

BLUESOUND LAUNCHES NEXT GEN NODE AND POWERNODE

LILIN UK is pleased to announce the release of IVS2.2, available on the new 2 and 3 series camera ranges to upgrade the standard IVS capabilities including Tripwire and Tamper Detection.

IVS2.2 provides both human and vehicle detection features, which can be used simultaneously or independently of the other to refine and reduce the frequency of motion alarms to specific scenarios.

IVS2.2 can be configured in a multiple-ways, providing the client with plenty of flexibility to customise the solution to their requirements. Impose further limits on when an alarm is received, by using lines to create a zone in your scene or with your home automation system to only receive notifications between scheduled times.

For example, a person approaching the front door in the day might not need to trigger an alarm- but it would at 2am!

Combine IVS2.2 with a home automation system to turn on lights, sound alarms or send push notifications to a mobile device.

The upgrade is available on all P2/Z2 and P3/Z3 cameras purchased after May 17, 2021- just request IVS2.2 at the time of placing your order.

LILIN meritlilin.com

New functionality from LILIN

The Bluesound NODE and POWERNODE have received a significant upgrade Bluesound has announced a new generation of its best-selling NODE Wireless Hi-Res MultiRoom Music Streamer and POWERNODE Wireless Hi-Res Multi-Room Streaming Amplifier. The upgrades include new DAC designs, more powerful processors, and touch panel controls with pre-sets and proximity sensors, while the POWERNODE also receives substantially more power. Both feature an easyto-clean satin finish in either black or white. In the UK the prices are Node: £549 SRP inc VAT, Powernode: £849 SRP inc VAT. Supply in the UK is from Anatech Distribution.

The new NODE and POWERNODE also feature a powerful ARM Cortex A53 Quad-Core chipset that processes audio eight times faster than previous generations of Bluesound architecture.

The NODE features a new audiophilegrade DAC design with improved performance that not only supports 24-bit/192kHz audio processing, but also MQA for studio-quality listening. Powerful, user-friendly software features like tone controls and subwoofer crossover optimisation allow the customisation of listening preferences in detail. It is also equipped with an array of digital and analogue inputs and outputs for versatility.

The POWERNODE is described as the Hi-Fi amp reinvented for the streaming age. Source, control, and amplification come packed into the compact and minimalist POWERNODE. With an audiophile-grade amplifier that features 80W per channel of zero-distortion power, the product is tested in real-world listening conditions and not just in a lab. A high-grade DAC delivers up to 24-bit/192kHz of hi-res, studio-quality music, including support for FLAC, MQA, and other popular file formats. Access all the music ever recorded through the BluOS Controller app, connecting to popular streaming services like Spotify, Tidal, Qobuz, SiriusXM, and dozens of others, or from a user’s own music library through Apple AirPlay 2, aptX HD Bluetooth, or even a network-connected drive or USB hard drive.

Bluesound bluesound.com

ROAM FURTHER WITH FLEXSON FOR SONOS

STORMAUDIO ANNOUNCES NEW PRODUCTS, FUNCTIONALITY AND A FIVE-YEAR WARRANTY

Known for its range of mounting solutions for Sonos, Flexson has announced the launch of the brand-new SR-MTC Mountable Travel Cover for Sonos Roam. Designed to optimise the Sonos Roam’s portability without compromising the sound quality, the Flexson Mountable Travel Cover has been created to offer rugged protection and multiple mounting and hanging options.

The bespoke protective shell guards the speaker against any knocks and bumps that can occur both around the home and while out on adventures. The cut outs are positioned to ensure that the sound quality is not compromised by the casing, while also allowing connection to a charging dock, without the need to remove the case.

The travel cover comes complete with a range of mounting options including a carabiner clip, ideal for attaching to backpacks when out exploring, two loop-holes for accommodating Velcro straps as well as sliding spine fittings for attaching to a wall or a bike frame. The Mountable Travel Cover for Sonos Roam is designed in the UK and is available in black.

Flexson flexson.com

Sonos is receiving further support from Flexson

This year, the company will launch key new products and features that will be available to all customers through upcoming software updates. In addition to this, effective immediately, the entire StormAudio MK2 line-up is now covered by a five-year warranty.

Beyond natively decoding a large number of channels, with the multiple formats available on the market and their different recommended speaker placements, it is not uncommon to have silent speakers when playing certain content. StormAudio has been working on this challenge and developed a proprietary engine called StormXT that works hand in hand with existing up-mix algorithms to extract relevant audio signals from nearby speakers and redirect them to silent speakers. This new feature will be coming to the ISP platform free of charge in 2021.

In many installations, due to physical constraints of a room or because of the differences between different codecs’ placement recommendations, speakers might not be positioned in their ideal location. StormAudio has been working on its own proprietary solution to solve these challenges and will offer this to its customers as a software upgrade on the ISP platform. More information will come later this year.

Until recently, AoIP was used in the professional audio and video industry, and its complexity made it difficult to be implemented in custom installation devices. To make the ISP platform universal and compatible with professional and residential applications of AoIP, StormAudio created an optional module to add full compatibility with the AES67 / Ravenna protocol on 32 inputs and 32 outputs. This technology will be included in two new models, the ISP.32 Digital AoIP and the AoIP Upgrade module. Both models are currently being tested with various sources and end-points and they will be released at the end of Q2 2021. StormAudio is also developing a new HDMI card fully compatible with the HDMI 2.1 / HDCP 2.3 protocol. The intention is to offer this new card as an update to all MK1 and MK2 owners in late 2021. UK distributor for StormAudio is Pulse Cinemas.

StormAudio stormaudio.com pulsecinemas.com