The climbers are three-quarters of the way to their £2,000 goal but would be delighted to receive further donations to help them reach it. If you would like to make a donation go to www.justgiving.com/3peaksNW

Featuring a freesat-sponsored front cover, HCD is your essential industry news, views and features fix. Articles include special reports on freesat HD and Freeview HD, ahead of the World Cup, an interview with CEDIA chairman Robert Hallam, and our in-depth CEDIA Home Technology Event (aka Expo!) show preview.

Product profiles include B&W’s sexy new loudspeakers, Sharp’s LED range and LG’s OLED sets. We also check out 3D amps.

Regulars include news, products news, CI news and products, opinion from our regular columnists – this  month (as ever!) our own Editor/Publisher Jamie Carter, Dan George, Editor of Hi-Fi Choice, Steve May, Editor-in-Chief of Home Cinema Choice (amongst others!) and CEDIA’s Wendy Griffiths – plus our essential contacts and back issues pages.

Our ever-popular SmartHome section features all the latest news and training from the CI industry, as well our extensive CEDIA HTE preview.

Click here to go straight to the digital edition, and don’t forget to subscribe if you’re yet to do so.

The next edition of HCD is our summer issue, which will include a full report from the CEDIA HTE.

Pulse’s Mike Beatty and Andy Jones joined seven other climbers, including CEDIA’s Matt Nimmons, in climbing three of the UK’s highest mountains - in just 24 hours!

The feat took in the mountain scenery of Ben Nevis (1344m), Scafell Pike (978m) and Snowdon (1085m) - a challenge comprising in excess of 11,000ft of climbing, over 20 miles of walking, plus over 500 miles of driving!

Every penny raised is going to Edukid, a special children’s charity, One Voice, an anti slavery charity, and the Teenage Cancer Trust. Pulse Marketing contributed towards costs for the trip (car rental, petrol, subsistence), as well as promoting the recently built group charity website (www.nothingandeverything.co.uk) to the press.

Contributions are still being sought via sponsorship of the nothingandeverything.co.uk website, set up by a group of nine cause-conscious friends - many of them from the AV industry - to raise money for worthy causes while at the same time ‘pushing the individuals involved beyond what they thought possible’. The friends visited Uganda last year, as part of the Edukid programme, and are asking for donations from companies or individuals to support this year’s climbs, and the three charities - in return for which all sponsors will appear on the site.

“We’re asking the industry to help us all to reach our target for these really deserving charities, while we push ourselves to go beyond what we first thought was possible!” said Beatty ahead of the climb. “Pledge what you or your company can afford and we’ll put your name or company name and logo in the sponsorship area on nothingandeverything.co.uk. Thanks!”

You can donate via Virgin Giving on the nothingandeverything website.

Offered in four quality tiers, ‘Ultimate’, ‘Best’, ‘Better’ and ‘Good’ - including an ultra-thin Slimline HDMI - the range is intended to offer a connection solution to multiple end-users, with the ‘Ultimate’ Omega heading up an HDMI range which uniquely provides HDMI 1.4 specification from a premium £149.99, to a super-affordable £39.99 from the ‘Better’ Delta.

“The Peerless AV Connectivity range is just what the market has been waiting for,” says Gordon Dutch, Managing Director of Peerless-AV Europe. “A range of top-to-bottom cables which suit all types of end-users, and provide - with the Ultimate and Best options - the last-word in cable technology for today’s high-end screens and source products, particularly the up-and-coming 3D launches and super-slim LED TVs.”

Omega has been designed to offer the ultimate performance from high-end home cinema equipment, in particular the forthcoming 3D Blu-Ray and TV displays coming from companies such as Panasonic and Samsung, and is available in 1 and 2 metre lengths, at £129.99 and £149.99.

Pictured here, Sigma (’Best’) complements Omega as a more affordable high-end solution, with HDMI, stereo RCA, digital coaxial, digital optical and Scart. The Sigma HDMI costs £69.99 for 1 metre and £89.99 for 2 metre lengths.

The ultra-thin, 2 metre Slimline (’Specialist’) is intended for connecting to wall-mounted super-slim LED TVs. It has been specially tooled with a 90 degree connector at one end that only projects 14mm from the rear of the screen once fitted, and has a low profile 3mm flat cable. Designed to complement the HCD award-winning Peerless Slimline wallmounts range - enabling screens to be positioned closer to the wall than ever before - it is also HDMI 1.4 and costs £59.99.

The Delta (also ‘Better’) series is intended for those wanting to up the ante on performance - with a mid-range, superior upgrade within reach of the typical consumer. Delta is available in 1, 2 and 5 metre lengths across nine different cable options, including HDMI 1.4 (also available in 3 metre lengths), component, Scart, digital coaxial and digital optical - 17 product options in total. The HDMI option costs £39.99 for 1 metre and £49.99 for 2 metre lengths.

Alpha (’Good’) is the ideal ‘first upgrade’ cable, a represents a significant improvement from cabling generally supplied with AV equipment. There are 25 cable options in total, including HDMI, component, Scart, digital coaxial and digital optical, at 1, 2 and 5 metre lengths. All Peerless cables and interconnects make extensive use of easy-to-understand icons to allow the consumer to choose the right cable for them, showing clearly which AV component can be connected to another.

www.bbg.eu.com

AWE will be selling directly to installers in the UK and is looking to appoint distributors throughout Europe to serve their local territories.

“For some time now, we have been looking to create our own range of installer-friendly products and I am delighted that we can now introduce Kinetik Labs as a new name into the CI marketplace” says Stuart Tickle, Managing Director at AWE Europe.

“To become a Kinetik product, the piece of equipment must meet our stringent quality criteria which is set out and assessed by experienced AWE people. This team is made up of front line technical and sales staff, including ex-installers who really know their stuff.”

“We know dealers want products that do what they say on the tin, no fuss, no smoke and mirrors, just well priced decent kit with all the essential accessories included. It must also have a very attractive dealer margin backed by great technical support and a solid market strategy…..all things that AWE has become renowned for over the years. In celebrating our 75th anniversary in 2010, we are really excited about this new landmark in the history of AWE. It will give our customers exactly what they want”.

With the Kinetik Labs brand, AWE will be able to provide its dealers with access to a wider range of high quality CI products and complement the scope of the existing brands it supplies to the sector. Initial Kinetik products will cover infra-red receiver kits and CI speakers, where the emphasis will be on reliability, quality build, affordability and CI friendly features and benefits. Specific product range details will be announced shortly.

For further information on Kinetik Labs visit www.awe-europe.com, email sales@awe-europe.com or call 01372 729777.

There’s never been a more informed awards roundup in any trade magazine. Having worked all around the industry, and for some of the UK’s best-selling AV and hi-fi magazines for decades, the editorial team at Home Cinema Digest (HCD to its friends!) has unrivaled industry knowledge, and the magazine hosts regular contributions from some of Europe’s best known AV, Hi-Fi & CI editors, journalists and commentators.

As a thank-you for helping us decide where these prestigious Awards will be going, all *complete entries went into a hat to win **£1,000 worth of free D&G promotional service plans, and full staff training for your store on how to maximise service plan sales.

There were some tricky choices to be made. How do you choose between Sky+HD, the Humax Foxsat-HDR Freesat recorder and  Panasonic’s DMR-BS850 Blu-ray recorder? If you think Best Digital TV Box is tricky, how about Best High-End Display? Philips’ stunning Cinema 21:9 goes up against Panasonic’s  65-inch custom install plasma, Sharp’s 108-inch LCD TV and Loewe’s marvelous Reference system.

Thank you for your time and effort with these awards.

Overall winners:

Best LCD/LED TV
LG 42SL9000

Best Plasma TV
Panasonic TX-P46Z1

Best Freesat HD TV
Panasonic TX-L37V10

Best High-End Display
Panasonic TX-P65VX100

Best Projector Under £3,000
Epson EH-TW2900

Best Mid-Range Projector
JVC DLA-HD950

Best High-End Projector
Runco Q750i

Best Blu-ray Player
Pioneer BDP-LX52

Best High-End Blu-ray Player
Pioneer BDP-LX91

Best Projection Screen
Screen Research ClearPix2

Best Blu-ray One-box Home Cinema
Samsung HT-BD8200

Best In-Wall Speakers
KEF CI9000ACE

Best On-Wall Speakers
Artcoustic DF100-75 X2

Best Architectural Speakers
Stealth AX3 Invisible

Best High-End AV Speakers
Monitor Audio PL300 AV

Best DAB Radio
Pure Evoke-3

Best AV Amplifier
up to £1,000
Denon AVR-2310

Best AV Amplifier
up to £2,000
Pioneer SC-LX82

Best High-End AV Amplifier
Yamaha DSP-Z11

Best Two-Channel Amplifier
Yamaha A-S700

Best CD Player
Marantz CD6003

Best Compact & iPod Hi-Fi
Yamaha TSX-130

Best TV Wallmounts
Peerless SlimLine range

Best AV Furniture
Peerless Manhattan

Best Cinema Seating
Fortress

Best Media Server
Imerge MediaServer MS1

Best Lighting Solution
Lutron GrafficEye

Best Touchscreen Solution
Philips Pronto TSU-9600

Best Digital TV box
Humax FOXSAT-HDR

Best Audio Innovation
Artcoustic Superstar

Best Video Innovation
BBC iPlayer

Best cinema install
Finite Solutions – Hidden Cinema

Best Trade Event
ISE 2009

Nomination-free awards:
Best Distributor: Retail
Armour Home
Best Distributor: Install
AWE Europe
Best Training: Manufacturer
Crestron
Best Training: Distributor
AWE Europe
Best Initiative: Manufacturer
Alphason ViewSmart
Best Initiative: Distributor
AWE Europe (CI dealer agreement)

Highly Commended nominees:

Best LCD/LED TV
Loewe Individual
Compose
Philips 32PFL9604

Best Plasma TV
LG 50PS7000
Samsung PS50B850

Best Freesat HD TV
Sony KDL-40Z5800
LG 42LF7700

Best High-End Display
Philips Cinema 21:9
Sharp Aquos LB 1085
Loewe Reference

Best Projector Under £3,000
Panasonic PT-AE4000
Optoma ThemeScene HD82

Best Mid-Range Projector
Cineversum Blackwing 1
Sony VPL-VW85

Best High-End Projector
Sim2 Grand Cinema C3X
Meridian 810 Reference

Best Blu-ray Player
Panasonic DMP-BD80
Sony BDP-S760

Best High-End Blu-ray Player
Panasonic DMR-BS850
Denon DVD-3800BD

Best Projection Screen
Beamax X-series Dellegno
Stewart CineCurve

Best Blu-ray One-box Home Cinema
LG HT954PB
Panasonic SC-BT205

Best In-Wall Speakers
Monitor Audio 300 Series
Triad Gold/6 LCR
Current Audio WS804

Best On-Wall Speakers
Procella Audio P-18B
KEF CI2002QR

Best Architectural Speakers
Amina AIWX
Sonance Architectural Series

Best High-End AV Speakers
B&W Nautilus
Monitor Audio PL300 AV

Best DAB Radio
Vita Audio R2i
Roberts Revival RD60

Best AV Amplifier
up to £1,000
Yamaha RX-V1065
Onkyo TX-SR607
Harman Kardon HK990

Best AV Amplifier
up to £2,000
Denon AVR-3310
Sony STR-DA5400ES

Best High-End AV Amplifier
Denon AVC-A1HDA
Audio Control AVR-1
Arcam AVR600

Best Two-Channel Amplifier
Marantz PM6003
Cyrus 6XP

Best CD Player
Yamaha CD-5700
Roksan Kandy K2

Best Compact & iPod Hi-Fi
LG FA163DAB
Yamaha M-430

Best TV Wallmounts
Vogels EFW 8000 range
Chief Fusion range
Sanus VisionMount range
Vivanco Titan range

Best AV Furniture
Alphason Iconn
Spectral Brick

Best Cinema Seating
Wharfeside
D-Motion

Best Media Server
Kaleidescape Mini
DF Solutions BASE

Best Lighting Solution
Niko Nikobus
Dynalite

Best Touchscreen Solution
Opus WCU600
Apple iPhone

Best Digital TV box
Panasonic DMR-BS850
Sky+HD

Best Audio Innovation
Yamaha AirWired
Q Acoustics Q-TV
Pure Sensia

Best Video Innovation
SkyPlayer on Xbox360
3D

Best cinema install
Custom Sight & Sound – Pan Peninsula
Imagine This – Forest Drive

Best Trade Event
CEDIA UK 2009
Bristol Sound & Vision

* Only those who voted in all categories were eligible for the D&G prize draw.

** Promotional warranties are a feature-limited version of D&G regular service plan products and can only be used as ‘free’ promotional sales incentives. Offer open to both existing D&G retailers and those new to retailing D&G service plans. Retailers that do not hold a current D&G account will be required to open a no-obligation account to activate the promotional warranty offer and receive staff training by one of D&G experienced sales training merchandisers.

The MCC tour ran from 18th February to 2nd March, and took in matches against Emirates Palace Gentlemen, Abu Dhabi XI, UAE, Sharjah Invitational XI, Fly Emirates, All Omani XI and Oman.
All seven matches were victories for MCC.

A pro cricketer for 12 years, domestic honours-winning Middlesex and Somerset all-rounder, and one time England 12th man, Dutch captained a youthful but strong MCC tour side which included five current professionals. This was Keith’s third MCC tour, following trips to Canada and Central & East Africa.

Keith has been with BBG for 6 years and is directly responsible for high profile accounts such as Harrods, Selfridges and John Lewis. He was also recently promoted to Director of Sales for the newly re-structured Pro-AV division.

“The UAE/Oman tour was a huge success for MCC and all involved,” says Keith. “We couldn’t have hoped for a better results across the seven games. If I can captain similar success with the new Pro-AV division at Peerless – which is my intention, of course – I’ll be a very happy cricketer indeed!”

Peerless is the number one mounts supplier for the hospitality, digital signage and education markets in the US and Keith’s mission is to replicate that dominant position in the UK. He will be supported in this task by a full range of over 3,600 professional mounting products, further complemented by a UK custom design and manufacturing service for bespoke projects.
www.bbg.eu.com

Jill was one of the three winners in the promotion.  Second place was won by Josh Butler, buyer at Panavision in Guildford who wins 3 nights in a 5-star hotel in New York. Gardiner Homecare in Bristol scooped third prize - a 5-star break to Paris on Eurostar.

The Smart Get Away promotion was launched to celebrate the first anniversary of Alphason’s award-winning and hugely successful Viewsmart initiative to increase attachment sales. It ran over the last three months of the year and was a great success attracting hundreds of entries. Retailers needed to spend £1,000 on Alphason product to qualify for entry, and winners were drawn at the company’s production facilities in Wigan recently.

Comments Alphason’s Sales Director Paul McCarthy: “Alphason retailers who have adopted the Viewsmart initiative are already winners as they are enjoying significant increases in attachment sales. However, we thought it would also be appropriate to celebrate Viewsmart’s incredible success and thank our customers for their support with a promotion giving them a chance to win one of three exciting 5-star travel prizes.”

Pictured here drawing the winning entries is retra Chief Executive Bryan Lovewell (left) with Alphason’s Sales Director Paul McCarthy.

Viewsmart was launched exclusively to independent retailers at the Euronics Show in 2008 as an innovative way of adding much needed attachment sales. The concept was to create a clear, concise and eye-catching range of accessories which can effectively be sold along with Alphason’s range of award-winning furniture that are simple for consumers to buy and easy for retailers to sell. The Viewsmart concept won HCD’s Best Manufacturer Initiative 2010 in the recent Awards.

“This agreement with DF Solutions is excellent news for the whole CI marke,t” says AWE’s Managing Director Stuart Tickle. “It will provide an immediate boost for existing DF Solutions customers who are looking for sales support, service and training. The strengthening of our relationship and the extra resources that we will put behind the DF Solutions brand will undoubtedly help us grow the UK media server business for the benefit of all CI dealers.”

“AWE has done a great job since our initial agreement at the start of July” adds Jon Alway, Sales Director at DF Solutions. “Now, it’s time to take things to the next stage. We are certain that with AWE providing award-winning training and support, availability from stock and the provision of credit facilities, our customers will see immediate trading benefits and increased awareness and demand for our products”.

Effective from 2nd November 2009, the distribution agreement sees AWE take responsibility for all new and existing DF Solutions authorised dealers, providing them with support and DF Solutions’ Base Media Server and Link Client products directly.
www.awe-europe.com

The successful applicant will be responsible for the sales and business development of our AV product range within a specific geographic region, utilising resources in order to achieve set sales targets and long term objectives.

To be considered for this role the applicant must have a relevant sales background and be able to communicate effectively at all levels in a confident and knowledgeable manner. He or she will also need to have a flexible attitude as regular UK travel is a requirement of this role.

A current knowledge of the AV and Hifi market, together with experience in field sales of AV/Hifi equipment and a high level of product knowledge is essential. Applicants should also have a good working knowledge of Microsoft Office.

In return, the successful candidate will receive a competitive salary, company car and the usual company benefits.

Apply in writing by emailing a comprehensive CV demonstrating job suitability together with a covering letter which should include an indication of salary expectation to: recruitment@gmx.yamaha.com

The closing date for applications is Thursday 31st December. No agencies.