Product Review - Bang & Olufsen BeoVision Avant
32 DVD Home Cinema System - March, 2002
Andrew Jones
|
Specifications: BeoVision Avant 32" Widescreen (16x9) DVDDVD-Video, Video CD, CD-A, CD-R, CD-RW Dolby Digital, Dolby Surround Pro Logic 2x21-pin for AV and Decoder (AV includes S-Video In/Out), 3x RCA Jacks (Video In/Audio L-R In)S-Video (Y-C 4 Pin Socket) TV Size (cm): 84 (W) x 110 (H) x 62 (D) TV Weight: 86 kg System Includes Two BeoLab 6000 Speakers, Two BeoLab 1 Speakers, One BeoLab 2 Subwoofer MSRP: £12,350 (incl. VAT); About $16,000 USA |
Bang & Olufsen A/S, Peter Bangs VEJ 15, DK-7600 Struer, Denmark; Phone +45 96 84 11 22; Web: http://www.bang-olufsen.com |
Introduction
It was a bright and breezy morning in Manchester. As a matter of fact it was very bright indeed. All of a sudden, from out of the blue, appeared a monolith. It was mainly black and symmetrical in shape, I reached out with one hand to touch it. And then, it gave out the most amazing sound. Well, that was until the Bang & Olufsen Salesman turned the volume down on the remote control I was fumbling with . . . .
I guess it's no coincidence that I've always associated B&O equipment with futuristic art. Almost like something out of the late Stanley Kubrick's "2001 A Space Odyssey" epic. Their timeless designs and basic forms along with their shiny surfaces imply cleanliness and solid build quality. However, not being one to judge a book by its cover, I took it upon myself to review a current B&O Home Cinema system.
Product Evolution
From first impressions, it seems that the B&O Avant DVD Players, released last Christmas, are a direct descendant of the BeoVision AV series with the top loading disc drawer, used for playing compact discs.
Since the Avant series' introduction in 1995, when B&O's partnership with Philips unfortunately gave birth to such problems as the ill-fitting ‘Paolina' VTR unit, it seems that the ever stylish Avant's shell is way too cool for school!
You may notice that the propensity of inaccessible flat and shiny surfaces doesn't bode well for fitting additional components such as a video player and so on. Consequently, you should see the place where an external Satellite decoder is supposed to live. Well, it gets strapped to the back of the TV like a spare parachute, that's where!. Not to be seen in public with the Avant I presume. An optional Set-Top Box controller must be purchased in this case.
Form & Function
Try to spot the curved surfaces on the Avant TV. Not many are there? Well, its base is circular, but I suppose that's just so it looks cool whilst rotating 35 degrees left and right with the help of its motorized turntable. Then again, you would probably need this function to try and compensate for the screen's poor anti-reflection coating, by spinning the screen away from strong external light sources.
If I remember correctly, the old Toshiba Black-Line sets had a similar
problem, where the actual tube face is set back some way from the front glass
shielding.
What is quite unique with the Avant is the channel display perched on the top right of the
screen, which notifies the user, along with the current viewing channel, other
basic statistics like the AV input selected.
Overall, I rate the aesthetics of the set very highly, along with the
magnificent surround sound speakers and subwoofer, since they all exude modern
living style and a sense of luxury. Available in black, silver, red, green and
blue, the Avant TV and its associated surround sound speakers will suit any
contemporary interior design and reflect dust for years to come.
Usability
The first thing I had noticed when I grabbed hold of the Beo4 remote control
was the protective cap on the end of it. Probably not to protect me from
harmful infra-red rays, but actually as it happens, this cap was to prevent
the whole shop from turning into Blackpool illuminations when you hit the
power switch, as many devices will respond to this common function of the
remote.
The protective cover over the end of the remote was intended to sharpen the
IR beam produced by it, and limit the number of devices responding to what is
directly visible in front of the user. I don't know if this ingenious device
is supplied to the general public.
The
strange piece of control engineering aside, the BeoVision Avant has an
excellent set-up screen facility. Upon a press of the menu button on the
remote, the frame of the film you are watching shrinks into the bottom right
hand corner, whilst the relevant text appears on the other side. This worked
very well. The on-screen functions are quite simple, clear, and steady, and to
add to this, the teletext system has Wide Screen Signalling (WSS) and Fastext
facilities.
Click HERE to go to Part 2 - Performance
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Copyright 2002 Secrets of Home Theater & High Fidelity
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