Enter to Win: Velodyne EQ-Max 10 Subwoofer!!!

[Tom Andry]

Velodyne wants you to win!

Velodyne is offering you the chance to win one (1) Velodyne EQ-Max 10 Subwoofer to one (1) eligible forum member! The award winning EQ-Max is the first subwoofer line to offer remote controlled, one-touch Auto-EQ and maximum bass performance at an affordable price. Made possible only by Velodyne’s 28 years of subwoofer innovation, EQ-Max’s rich feature set and advanced technologies combine to deliver high performance bass, simply and affordably. This contest represents a $579 value!

​

Features

• EQ-Max’s digitally controlled five-band equalizer automatically measures in-room woofer performance and adjusts the subwoofer’s response to deliver optimum bass performance via remote control at the touch of a button.
• The included remote control allows users to control all functions with visible feedback on the sub’s front panel, including system presets, “Night” mode, volume control, light control and phase adjustment.
• Newly-designed “Class D” amplifiers, four custom designed “Extended Excursion” drivers and Velodyne’s exclusive Distortion Limiting System to deliver deeper, dynamic bass performance.

To be eligible to win, you must:

1. Be a registered Audioholics forum member
2. Have USA Residence
3. Answer the following questions in the thread below

Questions

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?

• Online
• Specialty Retail Store
• Custom Installer

2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?

3. What is your most treasured audio component?

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?

NOTE this contest ends on December 31st, 2011. The winner will be drawn shortly thereafter.

Have fun and good luck!

 

[audioholic212]

Questions

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?

• Online
• Specialty Retail Store
• Custom Installer

Online - Best bang for the buck.
2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?

Google TV - It has potential
Samsung Galaxy Nexus with Android ICS - Best phone in the world.
OPPO Blu-Ray - Need I say anymore?


3. What is your most treasured audio component?

My Dual HSU VTF2-MK3s

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?

Video

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?
Online

Best prices and easy to find reviews

2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?

a)Galaxy Nexus b) 4G/LTE Cell network c) any alternatives to HDMI

3. What is your most treasured audio component?

easy - my Onkyo TX-SR805 Receiver

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?

A/V Media, Control and Home automation integration with Android devices

 

[Alex2507]

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?

Online - convenience and low prices.
Specialty Retail Store
Custom Installer


2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?

1. Bigger cheaper bang for the buck plasmas like the 7000 Sammy - - because its bigger.
2. Oppo Blu-ray player - because it does everything the two players I use now do and more for not like a ton of cash.
3. Current rec'rs like the Denon 4311 - that unspellable Audyssey thing for room correction equalization has me a little tingly.

3. What is your most treasured audio component?

Denon DVD-1920 - because it plays DVD-A, SACD and has some nice user features ... plus I think it does better with DVDs than my Panny Blu-ray player. That may be tied with a Carver Model C-500 amp because I think it may be capable of launching drivers into orbit.

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?

Affordable in home installation, set up and calibration of gear using easily understood instructions and equipment. Manuals the size of phone books written by foreign MIT theoretical physics students just piss me off.

 

[jcl]

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?
Online
Specialty Retail Store
Online for pricing, convenience, selection, customer service.
Specialty Retail for ease of return, in person audition, and to get something immediately.

2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?
Wireless technology. I have several rooms where running wires is difficult due to slab foundation, cathedral ceilings, and an uncompromising spouse.


3. What is your most treasured audio component?
Von Schweikert VR3 speakers

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology
Consumer video display calibration. Speaker calibration systems like Audyssey are common, why not display calibration?
Wireless speaker technology. What's out there still leaves a lot to be desired.
Home Theater PC / media hub. One to rule them all. All the parts are there are people on their own are assembling them. So far the products I have seen from such as Sony have been weak - overpriced and underperforming. It will probably take apple to nail the feature set, but then it will be several times more expensive than windows based machine.

 

[collegeaudio]

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?

I purchase online, simply because there is not much in terms of specialty stores around me. Best buy is about the closest I can get to auditioning products and they have a very limited line. Online is often the only option. In my opinion, free or discounted return shipping is one of the best things a retailer can offer. I know that I have hesitated on many purchases due to the cost of return shipping, regardless of the fact that I am 99% positive I would have kept it! It's the reassurance that is so essential. If you make a good product, the sales increases from offering that service will offset the costs IMO.

2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?

1) The current generation of high-end DSLR's is simply unreal. 1080p video ability while utilizing some of the best optics ever made. As this continues to improve and drop in price, cinematography will begin to blend seamlessly with photography, which holds huge potential for everything from advertisement to wedding photography. And, as a result, will further push the HD movement.

2) Game consoles. I can only image the next generation processing power and therefore the ability to make some spectacular games. Look at Skyrim. When they make the next powerful console, that can only get more impressive.

3) Cell phones. While I don't need to mention specific models, the rapid increase in cell phone technology is staggering. We have gone from clunky original Blackberry's to iPhone and Android devices that keep me constantly in the loop. Communication is efficient and convenient and that leads to some incredible opportunities.

3. What is your most treasured audio component?

Although lacking in many ways, my 160gb iPod Classic is essential (but probably not for much longer). Carrying 160gb of music means I can keep the last 5 years of my music preferences with me at all times, constantly switching back to artists I haven't listened to in a long time, in a very convenient package.

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?

The idea of cloud storage has HUGE potential in A/V technology. I'm excited about the first company to make a wifi cloud-enabled receiver. With FLAC capability, you would never need a music source again. I'm sure HD video is still a long way off, though. Wireless is the current movement, the potential for this is huge.

 

[Junior19]

Questions

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?

Online, mostly due to the ability to check pricing, and research on my own time the products and compare prices to make my decisions.


2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?

4G/LTE smartphones - with the new technologies today, faster speeds, its amazing what these phones can do, and the door is just beginning to open for more.

Sonos - finally a system made to fully integrate an Ipod or music, throughout the house, wirelessly, effectively.

Microsoft XBOX - 6 year old platform that still continues to impress, Xbox live continues to get bigger, and offer more entertainment variety.

3. What is your most treasured audio component?

My Onkyo TX-NR809 audio receiver, performs tons of functions well, and is the cornerstone of my home theater.

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?

Whole house audio systems that function and integrate well. A few manufacturers have systems, that integrate somewhat well, but none are very reliable, or very user friendly, I think with the new technology available today, this area of the market could greatly be improved to be both functional AND reliable.

 

[its phillip]

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?

• Online
• Specialty Retail Store
• Custom Installer

Online! Convenience and price

2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?

Non-specific answers here:
Video game consoles. Why? Because I'm a nerd
Smartphones! It's pretty crazy what you can do on a phone nowadays.
4K/higher resolution projection and displays. I dunno why it takes so long for things like this to come to market. 1600p displays have been available in the computer market for quite some time (and unfortunately still cost a pretty penny). I'll be very happy when ultra-high res displays come down in cost so the average person can afford them.

3. What is your most treasured audio component?

Um, I'll just say my old Yamaha RX-V795...just for nostalgia reasons. It was the first quality receiver I bought back when I was a kid and I still use it to this day.

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?

Home servers for streaming audio/video to individual rooms or displays. I'm not one to pay for downloaded music or movies - I don't mind ripping my own, and it's a lot more convenient playing from a computer than actually getting the discs. I've seen a few prohibitively expensive units offered, or crappy little nas units that don't really offer any expansion. I really don't know if these will ever take off though. Since they're just computers, they will always be much cheaper to build yourself.

 

[dalumberjack]

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?
It seems lately that I have been buying online our through a private authorized seller that ships to me. Store just don't sell the brands I want or they are too over priced.

2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?
1. The new Pioneer Elite LCD TV's. Can't wait to see the benchmarks on these TV's
2. Samsung Galaxy Nexus... Should be the best phone on the planet
3. The new Intel Ivy Bridge CPU's!

3. What is your most treasured audio component?
My AVR, it does everything I want and need.

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?
Low cost home integration. I think everyone could benefit from a "SMART" home but it costs too darn much.

 

[jthomp27]

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?

Online - for quality used equipment, mostly
Custom Installer - higher end items (TV, Receiver, Speakers) - better service, no hassle...plus, my installer has great taste and calibrates for free


2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?

3D - better immersion in movies
high-res blu-ray audio / digital downloads - hope to deliver on the promise of SACD, but with a much larger catalog
Cell phone/remote integration - one less device I need to charge and worry about having on hand


3. What is your most treasured audio component?
My BMW CDM NT speakers

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?
Quality Wireless audio solution (wire-free)

 

[WaterDrinker]

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?

A mix between Online and the Retail Store I work at. My discount makes higher end components more readily available to someone like me who is on a limited budget, and Online gives me access to products I cannot get a hold of at work.

2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?

Sonos- I have always wanted to have a Sonos system in my house since the first day I saw them.

Lutron- It seems lighting control is often an afterthought to HT setups, but the Price and ease of integration of Lutron allows for it to become part of the plan.

4k Projectors- To me a projector is the defining part of a true Home theater setup. With 4k upconvert projectors we are beginning to see the next generations of displays.

3. What is your most treasured audio component?

The Denon 3310 I scored at work on an incredible deal. To me this is the story of how so many people get into this Hobby, Finding incredible steals that get them hooked into the community.

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?

Home Automation- With everything being network capable today, it still seems that no one has produced a cheap, reliable Automation system that is able to take advantage of this. Everyone seems to still view home automation as something only the 1% can afford, but I feel the technology is there to make it available to the masses.

 

[arbeck77]

1. Online. Mainly due to convenience. Why go out and fight parking and crowds when the nice man will just bring me what I want?

2. Affordable LED projectors, DVR's that don't suck, High Quality Streaming. These three things will give me a cinema quality experience plus all the content I could want.

3. Why trusty Klipsch speakers.

4. IP control. Every device now has IP control built in for control by a proprietary iPhone and/or Android app. But none of the companies seem to be standardizing or publishing the specs for it. If the IP control was open there would be a giant leap forward in home automation and remote controls.

 

[Slats]

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?

Online - Quality direct sellers such as emotiva, aperion, SVS


2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?

HDbaseT, I have my whole house wired with cat 5e already.

USB DACs/AMP, Keep one on you and no matter what computer your office tosses at you ...

XBMC, I know it isn't a consumer product but it has made my life worlds easier.

3. What is your most treasured audio component?

My 2ch amp for music only listening

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?

A proper media streaming device. We have so few options for a good consumer level device that handles all media formats let alone automatic metadata tagging, library art, etc.

 

[gholt]

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?
Online
Specialty Retail Store
Custom Installer

For the High end suff I really like to go to a speciality retail store so that I can look and listen to it personally, but I do like to buy some items on line that I don't need to listen to and hear like a dvd player,.

2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?
I really like the Vudu boxes and they are able to show the HD content over the internet.

I lke the android smart phones and some of the apps that can lend to audio / whole house control.

I like the direction that projectors are going to get the LED projector bulbs that can last 20,000 hours.


3. What is your most treasured audio component?
My most treasured audio component is my speakers. They make great music to my ears and can sometimes make bad reconding sound better than they orginally would.

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?
I think both offer potential to new tech. Video is progressing to more and more HD and the audio speaker design and delivery is always expanding.

 

[alphaiii]

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?

• Online
• Specialty Retail Store
• Custom Installer

2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?

3. What is your most treasured audio component?

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?

1. Online, since I tend to find the best deals that way.

2. a) Wireless A/V products (when the tech is more mature and fine tuned) - because who doesn't want to clear up cable/wire clutter?
b) Affordable USB DAC's, not only for their use in my desktop system to avoid using the PC's internal sound card, but also for their portability/versatility to use in multiple systems - for example, connecting a laptop to an AVR to enjoy my FLAC/MP3 audio collection away from my desk.
c) Wireless streaming audio devices - for the same reason as b) above, without the wires...

3. Probably my Energy RC-10 speakers.

4. Wireless A/V - As mentioned above, the tech is still a little new and immature, but has major potential if true quality wireless can be acheived.

 

[notyac]

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?

• Online
• Specialty Retail Store
• Custom Installer

I buy most of my high end audio productions online. It is easier, no pressure, no tax and is usually cheaper.

2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?

1. Game consoles. Another form of entertainment that is all about audio and video.
2. iPad. Being able to go anywhere and have such an intuitive mobile device.
3. 4K tv's. The higher the resolution the better.

3. What is your most treasured audio component?

Emotiva XPA-5

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?

Video. I think that there is a lot to improve with video technology, resolutions, efficiency, etc.

 

[ahazra]

Questions

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?

Online
Specialty Retail Store
Custom Installer

For smaller (cheaper) electronics I prefer online eg USb drives, cables, etc. However, for any larger ticket item I prefer to audition and buy it from a speciality store.​

2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?

Online streaming products - tremendous value and growth potential
Home automation and security: With the prices of automation coming down, more people are/will be excited to enjoy the benefits of automation around the house while saving more energy.
Smart phones - More and more people are relying on their smart phones to be their personal assistant, media player, organizer, etc.​

3. What is your most treasured audio component?

Audio Video receiver​

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?

Common basic standard for all audio/video decoding. Currently we've a plethora of a/v formats and no serious attempt has been made to combine all of them and come up with one uniform format that works on every device (once adopted as the std format)​

 

[cwall99]

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?

Online
Specialty Retail Store
Custom Installer​

Kinda sorta all three. For instance, I bought my Oppo disk player online (after researching it pretty thoroughly online both here at Audioholics and at other venues).

I bought my subwoofer, an EarthQuake Super-Nova MkV-15, at a warehouse sale that AudioAdvisor was having... Not sure how to catalog that one since they don't have a retail store, but do have a web site and direct-mail catalog. But, I drove up to Grand Rapids to attend the sale, and that's where I found the beast.

Still, when I have some idle time and no pressure to go anywhere or get anything done, there's nothing I love more than browsing through a specialty retail store. I like being able to browse the products, listen to them, turn their dials, flip their switches, and that's how I bought my B&W speakers, my NHT speakers, and my Pioneer Elite AVR.

The main reason I include the customer installer option is because the specialty shops where I've bought gear also do double-duty as customer installers.​

2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?

1. Oppo BDP-93: It's universally regarded as a great piece of equipment and it's very close to something I can afford as a BDP / universal disk player.
2. The evolving nature of Smart Phones because someday soon, I hope, I'll be able to control my AV system more easily through my phone than with the current crop of affordable universal remotes.
3. The Emotiva UMC-1 pre-pro as I think that's the most affordable route for me to upgrade my system. Now if they'd only update it so it can handle HDMI 1.4a.

3. What is your most treasured audio component?

Probably two components because speakers, general come in pairs, but its my B&W DM603 s3s as they sound incredibly good and I could afford them. My system jumped light years ahead of where it had been when I bought them.​

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?

I think that projection television systems and their ability to project images that dwarf even the largest LCD/LED and plasma displays is on element that hasn't caught on with the general public yet. perhaps because of its sensitivity to light.

Another area that has yet to kick in is the return of an interest in high quality audio. Given that we're no longer downloading files over 56 kbps modems (and haven't been for a long time) and how cheap storage is getting, I think the world is ready for a return to high quality digital audio and the systems that play them.​

Thanks for the opportunity.

Chris Wall

 

[kini]

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?
Online-
Specialty Retail Store
Custom Installer

Answer- Online
Why- Because where I live there are ZERO retailers that carry anything I want or may want.

2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?

1. 80" Sharp TV- because its success will have other manufacturers making similar size sets and so prices will come down.

2. Game consoles current and future- because currently they do a pretty decent job as a media hub. Future models will certainly be much better at this making my life easier

3. Nikon 1 system cameras- because the technology built on to its tiny sensor bodes of nothing but spectacular capabilities of Nikon's next generation DSLRs.

3. What is your most treasured audio component?

My Audio-technica noise canceling headphones

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?

The streaming of true uncompressed HD video AND audio.

 

[Marshall_Guthrie]

1. How do you buy your high-end audio products today? Why?

Online
Specialty Retail Store
Custom Installer

I buy wherever they have the best prices, and that's usually online. I might buy from a Retail Store if they carried anything worth listening too, but Best Buy doesn't cut it. Congrats if you live somewhere that you can actually listen to good equipment.


2. What three consumer electronics products in the market today are you most excited about and why?
1) Affordable Projectors with Flexible Placement like the Epson 8350. With 61" being the new 50" in flat-panels, the jump to 80"+ is the next natural step.

2) Digital/Streaming content. I love my netflix/Hulu/WMC/Plex/IR Remote combo. The days of tuning in at a specific time and place, or planning ahead for shows that you might be interested in are over. Want to start watching Breaking Bad, but didn't plan 5 years in advance to DVR it, and don't want to wait 2 days for the DVD? Hello HTPC/Roku.

3) ID Subs. In retail channels, you either get cheap and horrible, or expensive and mediocre. SVS, HSU, Rythmik, ED, Emotiva, Outlaw, and countless others (including Velodyne, I guess) are redefining the rules of the market. My first sub was a Sony. I envy anyone building their first HT today.


3. What is your most treasured audio component?
HTPC...hands down. I no longer have to power up/down components as I change formats/content sources. One box does it all with no restrictions.

4. What areas of the consumer electronics industry (specifically audio/video) do you feel are untapped and offer the most potential from new technology?
More digital content. Pay cable's days are over, bring me Pay Internet...the convenience of a DVR without the limitations. Blu-ray...looks and sounds awesome. Give me DD+ audio and slightly more compression with no crappy extras in a package half the file size with a world more convenience.