{"id":249709,"date":"2023-01-17T11:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-01-17T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ecoustics.com\/news\/stories-missed-early-2023\/"},"modified":"2026-10-22T20:51:50","modified_gmt":"2026-10-22T20:51:50","slug":"stories-missed-early-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ecoustics.com\/news\/stories-missed-early-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"Stories You Might Have Missed: CES 2023, Monoprice, Vinyl Prices & The Menu"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

CES 2023<\/a><\/strong> is finally in the rearview mirror and our intrepid team spent 4 days at the LVCC and 5 different hotels looking for groundbreaking technology; the reality is that they didn’t find very much of it when it comes to high-end audio or home theater technology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Naim <\/strong>and Focal <\/strong>introduced the New Classic<\/a> and Vestia<\/a> ranges and we did leave the show thinking that other high-end brands had missed the boat somewhat not having even static displays for the media to drool over. We do that a lot. Drool. It’s a tad unseemly sometimes — something I will get to further on.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Naim
Naim Audio New Classic Digital Music Streamer\/Preamp, Power Supply and Power Amplifier<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

CES is a dead show for high-end audio<\/a> and becoming one for home theater as well. Sony brought almost nothing worth writing about, Samsung and LG rebuffed our request to take photos in their respective suites, and we left Vegas feeling that something is amiss. Both brands announced a wide range of new models — they just didn’t have any on the show floor to show anyone. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hisense<\/strong> and TCL <\/strong>came to Vegas with some swagger and the overall consensus from the media (aside from just our team) was that both brands smell blood in the staff urinal at Best Buy and have some excellent new TVs and projectors to sell in 2023. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Hisense
Hisense 8K UST Projector at CES 2023<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Hisense<\/a> is going to be a problem for Samsung and LG; from a quality and pricing perspective and that doesn’t even include their new partnership with Leica who introduced the Cine 1 UST Projector<\/a> at CES 2023. The $8,295 Cine 1 is the most expensive UST so far — a distinction they won’t hold for very long with two 8K UST models coming from Samsung and Hisense later this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The industrial design stands out, but none of that will mean anything unless the Cine 1 is the best-performing UST projector in the 4K category. We suspect it won’t disappoint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Leica
Leica Cine 1 UST 4K Projector at CES 2023<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Smaller regional shows are the future for high-end brands which is probably a better scenario for consumers who can actually attend without having to spend $350\/night for a hotel room. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monoprice <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Do you know who had the most consistent lineup of affordable high-end audio and home theater products in 2022? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monoprice. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anyone who laughs at that needs to stop reading TAS<\/em> and Stereophile<\/em>. Who basically ignore this brand for some strange reason. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sound & Vision gave the Monoprice Monolith M518HT THX Home Theater System<\/a> a very solid review and after two months with it — I plan on buying it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Monoprice
Monoprice Monolith M518HT 5.1 THX Home Theater Speaker System<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Monoprice Monolith Series has evolved over the past few years into something that consumers should be excited about. Not only do the products offer comparable (or superior) performance to other high-end brands in the same categories — but they are more affordable. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The build quality on the M518HT THX is more than acceptable at the price point of $799.99<\/a> USD. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’m sure that some people are rolling their eyes at the mere mention of a HTiB (Home Theater in a Box) in 2023, but my experience so far has not made me long for any soundbar in its place; with the exception of the Theory Audio Design system that will run you an additional $14,000<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We know that soundbars provide a simple, no-hassle solution to improve TV sound<\/a>, but there is another straightforward option that can provide a full surround sound experience without spending a lot of money. That option is a pre-packaged 5.1 channel surround sound speaker system, in combination with an affordable home theater receiver.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monoprice is offering one-half of this solution with the Monolith M518HT THX Certified 5.1 Home Theater System<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The M518HT comes with 5 satellite speakers and a subwoofer. However, unlike most all-in-one speaker packages, the M518HT doesn\u2019t have a separately designed center channel speaker. Instead, you can use one of the five satellite speakers that are included. The remaining four satellite speakers are for the left front, right front, left surround, and right surround channels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How To Complete Your System<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
\"Denon
Denon AVR-S660H 5.2-channel A\/V Receiver<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

You do need a home theater receiver to go along with it. If you already have a home theater receiver, the M518HT is a great complement. If you are starting from scratch, you will need to purchase one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately, Monoprice doesn\u2019t offer a modest-priced home theater receiver to go along with this system, but there are several brands that offer 5.1 channel models that would be a good fit with the M518HT speaker system:<\/p>\n\n\n\n