After a busy CES 2008, the minions at MONSTER Cable hit the road again, this time landing in Vancouver, British Columbia. Lead by the “Head MONSTER” himself, Noel Lee, MONSTER Cable was out to spread the MONSTER gospel by telling the masses about their new HDMI cables, Power Line Networking ready Power Centers, and Screen Cleaning products. MONSTER also brought along some super secret sauce products that should be hitting the shelves in the very near future that have something to do with iPhones and Dr. Dre. Read on to get all the details!
The Need for more HDMI Speeds…
MONSTER preaches “Good, Better, Best”. But what does that mean to the inquisitive consumer? Is good, good enough, or do I really need best? Or is better…well…better? MONSTER attempts to eliminate the confuzzle with five different levels of HDMI cables that offer performance matched to the equipment that you own based on the cable’s data transfer capabilities. For example, if you’re hooking up a standard non-upconverting 480p DVD player, you obviously don’t need to splurge on their Ultra-High Speed M1000 HD cable. Instead, based on that combination, the Standard-Speed MC 550 would fit the bill because it supports up to 2.23 Gbps of data transfer, which will also work for standard HDTV (720p/1080i). Of course, if you are a chronic upgrader, having the higher end cable wouldn’t be such a bad idea because after you seal up that cable under the drywall, you really don’t to replace it again to support your new Ultra High Definition set down the road.
In order to flex their MONSTEROUS cable muscles, MONSTER dragged out their high dollar Eye Test Pattern machine to prove that their cables are the real deal. The Eye Test is an industry accepted performance test for HDMI cables and each MONSTER HDMI cable is pre-tested from the factory to make sure that it will perform. We had fun picking cables from different manufacturers to test against MONSTER’s own. The Eye Test Pattern visually shows how well a cable is able to handle the different signalling rates called upon it to transfer data between components. For example, this cable failed the test while this cable passed with plenty of room.
Just for fun, we asked them to take their lowest end standard-speed MC550 cable that runs between $59.95 to $149.95 depending on length and compared it against a high-end Canadian made ENERGY HDMI cable that retailed for around $350 bucks. Both of them were about 16 feet. For even more fun, we asked them to crank it right up to the 10.2 Gbps test (which the MC550 is NOT rated for). The MC550 still passed with room to spare and the more expensive ENERGY cable…just didn’t have the energy.
Of course, we were skeptical that the tests might be rigged. I mean, afterall, the equipment belongs to MONSTER. Just to prove their point, MONSTER hooked up two Samsung 1080p 120hz panels to two Playstation 3’s running at 1080p. They hooked up the MC550 to one and the ENERGY cable to the other. Because the ENERGY failed in the test, it also failed in real life, unable to keep a picture stable on the TV (right side). Because the MC550 passed the Eye Test, it also passed the test in real life (left side). Not bad. I expect sales for the bottom end MC550 to be brisk. However, if you do want to buck up for the high end MC1000, MONSTER will guarantee that this will be the last HDMI cable you will buy with a lifetime replacement if it ever fails to provide enough throughput for the latest technologies. The full line of cables should be available now.
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MONSTEROUS Power Centers Get Connected
MONSTER power centers come in all shapes and sizes, from standard surge protectors to ones with power conditioning technology. This year, MONSTER adds some unique features that really set their products apart from the crowd.
For starters, MONSTER’s new EPIR 2450 and EPIR 3650 power centers offer something that seems to be a first for any surge suppressor or power filtering product. MONSTER has equipped both new products with Power Line Compatible pass through ports that allow you to continue to use powerline networking systems. Wireless networks are great, but for gaming systems, latency is a bummer and nothing beats a wired network. These new power centers also use special digital filters that ensure that they don’t affect the frequencies that are required to operate the powerline networking technology because that would suck if it didn’t work.
The other really unique feature is the new Empowered IR infrared distribution technology that allows you to distribute an infrared signal to devices hidden behind closed doors, keeping things nice and tidy from the front. Although this type of technology isn’t brand new, it’s certainly a great feature to build in and set these products apart from the competitors. Of course, both products feature MONSTER’s lifetime connected equipment warranties, tri-mode surge suppression technologies with audible alarm and MONSTER Clean Power technology (Stage 2 for the EPIR 2450 and Stage 3 for the EPIR 3650).
The EPIR 2450 will start at $499.95 while the EPIR 3650 will start at $599.95 and should be hitting store shelves shortly if they aren’t already there.
MONSTER and that iPhone Thing
Canadians don’t have access to the iPhone…officially. For those that did manage to procure one, you’ll find both of these products very interesting.
Starting off on the left, we’ve got the MONSTER iSoniTalk. As most of you iPhone people know, the iPhone has no BlueTooth. Yes, that’s really sad and unfortunate for you folks that feel that you are very important and need to wear a headset all the time. Fortunately for you, MONSTER’s iSoniTalk gives you back that handsfree capability, albeit wired. The iSoniTalk combines one button operation with a clip microphone and allows you to use any set of headphones you wish thanks to the built in adapter. If you’re the type of person that enjoys listening to music with your own headphones and have discovered the joys of flushing people to voicemail, the iCableLink adapts the silly recessed iPhone headphone jack to allow you to use your favourite set of high quality headphones. The iCableLink should also help those users that want to use high end headphones with their shiny new MacBook Airs because they seemed to have screwed up the headphone jack on it as well.
The iSoniTalk is available for $24.50 while the iCableLink is available for $14.95. Both of which should be hitting stores shortly.
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MONSTER ScreenClean…Mini…
A couple years ago, I won a MONSTER Screenclean Kit for my HDTV, which I still have with plenty of cleaning spray left. It came with this wicked cleaning cloth that I use on pretty much everything. Unfortunately, the large size of the container and the cloth didn’t really travel well with my laptop. That’s why MONSTER decided to repackage them into smaller sizes with anti-microbial cloths so that you can clean off that skanky iPhone screen or laptop screen on the go. You’ll find it in three versions: Monster ScreenClean for Cameras and Camcorders, Monster ScreenClean for Cell Phones, and Monster iClean for iPhone and iPod. All of them are available for $14.95 each.
Dr. Dre Says MONSTER Beats Headphones are the Shizzle…
For the first time ever, Dr. Dre is putting his name behind a product. As a music mogul, Dr. Dre spends a lot of time behind a set of headphones so when it came time to creating a set of headphones, he took his sweet time. Two years to be exact.
The new “Beats by Dr. Dre” headphones were mutually designed by Dr. Dre and MONSTER Cable to produce remarkably natural sound, incredible transient response and rich, deep bass. They also incorporate powered noise isolation and a unique dirver technology that, according to MONSTER, turns these headphones into “Speakers for your ears”.
MONSTER had a prototype set at the show that I had a chance to molest thoroughly and I found them to be fairly comfortable and well put together…for a prototype. The extra wide headphone band folds up for easy storage while the glossy plastic and metal accents make for a very attractive looking set of headphones. The headphones also use a modular headphone cable so that you don’t go destroying them. I just really wish that I had a chance to listen to them but I guess I’ll wait for them to go into production. My expectations will be quite high because, afterall, Dr. Dre says “I spend a lot of time in the studio listening to my music through headphones…with Beats, people are finally going to hear it the way they should: the way I do.”
The “Beats by Dr. Dre” headphones will be available sometime this June and will come in a pimp carrying case with anti-microbial cleaning cloths so you can keep them shiny. They’ll come with a special Monster headphone cable, a mini-stereo to ¼-inch stereo cable adapter, as well as Monster’s iSonitalk for iPhones. They’ll be coming out at a bling bling price of $499.95.
For higher resolution shots of these and the other products we saw, check out our MONSTER Cable 2008 Canadian Road Show Photo Gallery.
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