Carmen
II is ideal for both movie lovers and music lovers, and offers an extensive
array of features, all at an affordable price. Theta redesigned and enhanced
virtually every internal component of the original Carmen, equipping Carmen II
with a new DVD board and drive, new audio and video circuits, a new power
supply, and a new front-panel display.Carmen II can handle digital audio at 44.1, 48, and 96 kHz with resolutions of 16, 20, and 24 bits. An advanced drive mechanism with twin laser diodes-650 nm for DVD and 780 nm for all CD formats-makes it compatible with just about any disc or format.
What's Under the Hood?
The drive mechanism has special low-jitter digital servo circuits to control motor speed, laser tracking and focus. It automatically selects the proper laser for the type of disc being played, enhancing read-out precision and keeping errors to a minimum. Errors introduced by fingerprints, dust and warping are corrected by parametric statistical analysis circuits.
Carmen II has a massive, shielded, 65-watt main DC power supply. It is highly filtered at both the input and output stages to keep unwanted noise from degrading the power used by the signal processing circuits. CD and DVD sections are addressed separately, with interaction between the circuits kept to a minimum.
Separate, extremely low-jitter clocks for both the CD and DVD playback dramatically reduce digital noise that can degrade sound and picture. The audio and video circuits are also isolated from each other. Multiple regulated subordinate power supplies are dedicated to each section.
Each power supply and circuit has integral RF suppression filters to prevent interaction between the stages of each independent circuit, and between the audio and video sections. Audio and video reproduction both benefit, allowing the finest details to be seen and the smallest nuances to be heard.
Sound:
Carmen II reproduces sound staging with a sure sense of width, depth, height and layering to achieve a truly three-dimensional presence. Dynamic range and tonal subtleties; all the nuances of a sound's texture come through. Symphonic music or ballads, everything sounds natural. And on movies - from the slightest rustling of leaves to the impact of a meteor hitting the Earth, Carmen II delivers all the action.
Video Specifics:
Theta's new Digital Direct Ultra-Sync II Progressive Scan System de-interlaces the video signal in the digital domain before it is converted to analog. Theta-designed discrete video filters and high-speed video amplifiers -- with 108-mHz, 12-bit video digital/analog controllers -- are now coupled with Faroudja Laboratories' acclaimed DCDi deinterlacing technology, assuring a superbly rendered 480p picture, free from the motion artifacts one sees using mundane players containing off-the-shelf progressive scan solutions. All this is standard on Carmen II, while the Ultra-Sync System was a costly option on the earlier unit.
Theta's proprietary ultra-low jitter video re-clocking circuits and video correction software complete the picture, for clarity, true-to-life colors and impeccable video performance.
Video outputs includes Composite on RCA, two S-Video connectors, three Component Video / RGB Video (Y, Cr/Pr, Cb/Pb) connectors on BNC, and a 15-pin "D" connector [VGA] for the special Ultra-Sync II 480p Progressive Scan output. These accommodate Component Video with Sync on Green (H/V Sync. can be added to Sync. on green), and RGB with either Sync. on Green or H/V Sync.
Carmen II's digital audio outputs include RCA, BNC and AES/EBU connectors able to accommodate a broad variety of formats, including Dolby Digital, PCM, DTS, MP3, CD-R, and CD-RW (CD Audio and Video CD formats); as well as MPEG1 and CD-ROM (for which some format restrictions apply).
Other outputs include a single-direction RS-232 control port, and a rear IR input connector for added remote control capabilities. Front-panel controls on Carmen II cover Motion (using Faroudja DCDi processing), Film, Animation, RGB/Component, and H/V Sync.
A 4:2:2 Serial Digital Interface (SDI) for Video, to keep the signal in the digital domain, is available as an option. Keeping the signal in the digital domain, rather than subjecting it to further conversions to analog and back again, avoids major sources of degradation, which can be particularly noticeable in high definition video systems. The picture quality on flat-panel plasma screens and digital video projectors is particularly revealing of the performance advantages of SDI's purer digital signal. A Digital Video Interface (DVI) will be available at future date.
Carmen II is 480mm w x 89mm h x 33mm d
weight is 23 lbs/10.5 kg
Available in Silver or Black in standard and rack-mount configurations.