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So what does this product do to facilitate Strato and DV700 users to make appropriate use of the DV700?? If nothing, will the product to be announced at CEDIA address it?
Nothing and my understanding is No it won't.
Co-Star!
If you own Premiere, and a Strato, this Switch will put a smile on your face, and if you don't yet own a Strato, now is the time to make the purchase!!
Jim
Sounds great!! I do have a question -- I have 9 TVs and both an Encore system and a Premier system. All 9 currently have a directly connected Strato-C (so, 9 Strato-Cs). I will only have space to add an M300 to 4 of those TVs (I also have 2 M300s that are currently shared across all the TVs using a video switching system).
I assume I will be able to buy 4 Co-Stars and connect them to both an M300 and Strato-C for the 4 TVs where I have space, and will then continue to have a local Strato-C and use the shared M300s for the other 5 TVs.
Do you see any issues with this setup?
Also -- is the Co-Star available for purchase now? If not, do you know when it will be available?
So what does this product do to facilitate Strato and DV700 users to make appropriate use of the DV700?? If nothing, will the product to be announced at CEDIA address it?
If you are correct (sure hope you are not), then basically, K has sold $5000.00 boat anchors (aka DV700's) to quite a few people who purchased the Strato/DV700 combination based upon what turns out to be totally false promises.
That would just really, really, really suck. I am just having difficulty actually believing K is that kind of company and would just leave those folks hanging. From a company that prides itself (and rightfully so) in providing top of class products, to abandon those users is completely classless - regardless of their past (our current) financial issues.
Let's just hope that they come through.
Will the switch work with an Alto/Premier combo?
Kevin D.
First, there are only a few (not "quite a few") people that bought the Vault to use exclusively with the Strato, and K has plans to address the concerns of those few people, so they are not being abandoned. There will not be a Strato/Vault integration like the Alto/Vault. Too many hurdles get past, and resource allocation is currently focused on improvements that affect all/most systems.
I get that a few people are still frustrated, but it needs to be remembered that K indicated they were working on the integration back when they had many more engineers than they do now. The restructuring resulted in a shifting of priorities, and K had to decide which projects provided the best overall support to owners. Although they indicated they were still working on it after the restructuring, it was never a given that it could be done, especially given the current contracts and other legal requirements.
The "false promises" comment reminds me of my children. Whenever I tell my children "I'll try," they interpret that as a promise. I never make promises unless it's guaranteed, and I can say for certain that K operates the same way. They did not, and would not ever, make a promise that a certain technology would be made available. They always say the same thing in this regard, "we are working on it." If someone has a specific name at K that "promised" them the Strato/Vault was coming, then please provide the name (second request, didn't get a name the first time I asked). If a dealer promised it was coming, that's on the dealer. (but K is still willing to work with those few affected).
Also keep in mind that orders are placed on the Extranet by dealers, this is almost completely automated, and with the number of daily orders, it is not possible for K to call dealer's to confirm how the component is being used, they leave that to the dealers. In the end, this will all be moot, because those few people will be taken care of going forward.
Jim
When time allows perhaps Jim could explain exactly what the switch will do? For example, will it allow a Strato to play Blu-ray recordings from a 3U server or will it only allow you to play a physical disk stored in a vault?
The Switch has two HDMI Inputs and one HDMI Output. It is designed to accept a Premiere (M-class) player in one HDMI Input, and the Strato in the other HDMI Input. Alternatively, the Switch can also work with the Strato on one HDMI Input and an Alto/Vault on the other Input (this is for those owners that have a Vault connected to an Alto, and a Strato, that also want access for BR playback from the Vault. There is still a question about which component (Alto or Strato) is used during Vault/disc playback, but it should be the Alto. In any case, doesn't matter because playback is essentially seamless.
Blu-ray content on a 3U can only be played back using a Premiere M-Class Player, so in a typical situation where an owner has a Premiere system with M-class player(s), and a Strato, the BR content on the 3U plays thru the M-Class player.
Jim
No, it requires a Strato because the Strato controls the OSD.
Jim
If you don't mind me continuing this line of questioning, my setup is as follows:
Strato
3U Server
M500 Player
M700 Vault
DV700 Vault
At present, I'm not using the Strato at all because it means I can't play Blu-ray content stored on the 3U. So how would this switch work with my system if at all? The UK distributor doesn't seem anywhere near as clued up as you guys and I think any info would help my installer as well before I make a decision to jump on the switch or not.