Vista, Calif. — Directed Electronics shipped a second-generation Sirius home tuner that adds second-zone capability, integration with multiroom-audio systems, video outputs to display metadata on a TV and recording capability.
The $349-suggested Polk Audio Designs SR-H1000, which replaces a model sold out in late 2007, features a Toslink digital output, as did its predecessor. In the new model, the analog outputs and DACS were designed by Directed-owned Polk Audio, said John Durbin, Sirius product development director at Directed.
Although the component-size H1000 incorporates only one Sirius tuner, it can be converted into a two-zone tuner by connecting an optional palm-size SiriusConnect Home Tuner at a suggested $49.00 or by connecting a $49.99 SUHC1 home dock, which docks with the latest transportable dock-and-play tuners. A connected SiriusConnect or dock-and-play tuner will operate as a slave to the H1000, and they can be controlled from the H1000’s front-panel controls and supplied IR remote. When connected to a multiroom-audio system, the main tuner and slave will stream separate programs simultaneously to different zones.
In April or May, Directed will make a running software change to the SUHC1 home dock so it can dock with the Sirius Stiletto headphone tuner, Durbin said.
To simplify integration with custom-installed multiroom-audio systems, Directed added a back-panel IR port and RS-232 port. Also new: a low-voltage trigger port for automatic turn-on.
Other new features include an instant replay feature that stores the last 44 minutes of a program for playback in case of interrupted listening. A composite-video output, also new, enables the display of metadata on a connected TV. A menu-accessible volume control lets installers match the tuner’s output to the output of other sources to prevent big changes in volume levels when consumers switch sources.
The H1000 was originally slated for late-2007 shipment.
