SHERWOOD NewCastle (part 1)

6.1 in Top Form!...

After its presentation at the beginning of the year 2000 during the last CES in Las Vegas, followed by a public launch in the US in the month of March 2000, the new range of Home Cinema products from Sherwood have finally arrived in Europe, under the impetus of the exclusive distributor - FVS.

Long months of waiting and patience were thus needed before being it was our turn to discover this range of three integrated Audio/Video amplifiers.


Sherwood R-956R :

A very attractive integrated amplifier positions itself as the leader of the new Newcastle range of the manufacturer. Moreover, the presentation doesn’t leave any doubt as to the origins of the machine: sober and tasteful looks, magnified by a superb "Titanium" finish, typical of Sherwood.

As far as signal decoding and digital processing go, the R-956R brags of being able to handle, all by itself, virtually all multi-channel formats currently available on the "tormented" cinema sound market. On the programme - the decoding of the eternal Dolby Pro-Logic, Dolby Digital and DTS, the latter now being an obligatory option on all amplifiers worthy of the name, proposed by the manufacturer at a retail price of more than 450 Euros (3,000 French Francs)…

While we’re on the subject, it’s interesting to go back over the first steps of DTS in the domestic context, as well as the commercial arguments put forward at the time for its promotion: presented in the beginning as a superior quality format, consequently requiring a utilisation within a system meeting a certain number of criteria, both qualitative and acoustic (size and frequency response of speakers, a high performance subwoofer, etc.). Since then, DTS has become somewhat more accessible to the average consumer.

Point noted… but at what price?!? To think that this same technology, previously elitist, that we find today in almost any machine: from the PC kit to the TV with integrated DVD player and cordless speakers!... The difference (subjective) between DD & DTS formats occasionally being difficult to discern even on top of the line systems made-up of components with irreproachable fidelity, one could ask the question as to what the utility might be in using such a format on "economy" systems, unless it be a purely commercial strategy!

It’s true that the red logo with those three little consonants has an incredible tendency to push sales of late, both in Hardware and Software terms.

It’s not that the consumer is really concerned with the argument of less compression, with 20 bit definition, thus superior precision and dynamics… No way! Most buy simply under the effect (well kindled) of fear! Fear that their new equipment will be incompatible with new discs and thus a rapid obsolescence of their investment.

Benefiting from these concerns and the lack of information given to consumers in order to peddle their wares, this could be seen as a total lack of respect for those who don’t hesitate to fork out more than 500 Euros for a system and place their confidence in the professionals (manufacturers and distributors).

What we are trying to convey to you, dear "freshman" home-cinemaniacs, is that you shouldn’t let yourself be lulled by the song of the mermaids, lest you find yourself grounded on a rather spiky reef. You should know that the sales representative who "flogs" you the benefits and superiority of DTS on a mini hi-fi system at 1200 Euros or a TV with front-face speakers directly integrated into its plastic moulding is either totally incompetent or a shark. In either case, he certainly doesn’t deserve having his commission fattened at the end of the month thanks to you surrendering your hard-earned cash to him!

Getting back to our 6.1 legged sheep…

Because YES the R-956R is 6.1 compatible, splendidly assuring the de-matrixing and amplification of the sixth channel (rear central) present on programmes mastered in Dolby Surround EX or DTS ES Matrix formats… a channel which, we remind you, does not possess an individual digital stream for its supply, and for which the term 6.1 is thus a well deserved success.

On the other hand, NO, the R-956R does not have the "Surround EX" sign plastered on its face-plate, for the simple reason that its "mater" did not judge it appropriate to put the machine through the trials of fire imposed by THX in order to obtain the ULTRA or SELECT labels. Indeed, a successful passage through the THX labs is always indispensable in order to use the official "Surround EX" logo on a system.

Sherwood had, for their part, preferred to integrate "Circle Surround" technology developed by the SRS laboratories in their "lil’ lovely". It’s 6.1 compatible alternative – both for Dolby and DTS, offering increased spatialising and precision compared to the Surround EX trademark (see our "PARASOUND 6.1" article of 22nd October 2000). The different processes relative to the sixth channel are totally digitally controlled and a management of the low frequencies (Bass Management) is also offered to the lucky purchaser.

The other decisive advantage of this technology is that it can also be applied on stereo signals passing through the Sherwood, offering something akin to Dolby Pro-Logic 2 or DTS NEO-6. Good stuff for re-discovering your CD library in a new light, in true/false 5.1.

Of course this process could even be applied to Dolby & DTS sound tracks un-matrixed in Surround EX or ES, the "Circle Surround" algorithm reconstituting a central rear channel in this case, with the results being variable depending upon the source.

The R-956R may not carry the THX insignia, but that doesn’t prevent it from picking up on some of the major principles of the label. Thus, it’s extremely pleasant to find, in the setup of the OSD configuration, a cinema re-equalisation mode, destined to overcome all aggressiveness in the front channels. An "audio direct" mode is great in the case of purely stereo listening, offering the economy of a signal passage via the numerous DSP and other digital processors in the pre-amplifier section.

Oh yes, we almost forgot: the Sherwood also accepts digital input in the "famous" MPEG 2 multi-channel format, so indispensable that one is wont sometimes to overlook it… accidentally!

On an altogether different scale we could have preferred to announce compatibility with DTS ES Discrete 6.1 format, but one has to keep in mind that the R-956R is more than 10 months old in its home country, and ten months ago, DTS ES Discreet 6.1 didn’t exist yet, or at least not in its domestic version. That being said, it should have already been invented!

With a view to having total compatibility with the highly timorous DVD audio in multi-channel mode, the Sherwood has been equipped with Digital/Analogue converters in true 24 Bits/96 kHz form right through the six channels. The reproduction of coded stereo signals in 24 Bits / 192 kHz should, on the other, hand be handled by the D/A converters equipping your (future???) DVD Audio Player in order to be best able to exploit their possibilities (144 dB signal/noise ratio, 120 dB of dynamic range and almost 100 kHz bandwidth!).


MANUFACTURER’S TECHNICAL CHARACTERISTICS:

Stereo Output: 2 x 120 W / 8 Ohms
Surround Output: 6 x 140 W / 8 Ohms
Harmonic Distortion: 0,05%
Signal/Noise Ratio: 95 dB
DTS, Dolby Digital, ProLogic, MPEG-2 Decoder, 6.1 "Circle Surround" Mode
4 DSP modes (Theatre, Hall, Stadium, Church)
Automatic Format Detection
Direct 6.1 Input, with composite and S-Video Input
6 Digital Inputs (2 Coaxial and 4 Optical)
1 Digital Output (1 Optical)