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Strato S Discontinuing

TrackZ

TrackZ

Well-known member
Seeing this being discussed around. When current stock is gone, Strato S is EOL.

Seems pretty smart. A C + a Terra 6TB is a preferable buy likely for most folks, other than cost or if the single chassis is really desirable. Wonder how the S resale will go. I guess a used S can't get too close the cost of a C + Terra of the same size.

Anyone at K care to comment or confirm?
 
Well since it is now being discussed, I can confirm the Strato-6TB is discontinued. It can no longer be ordered for sale to consumers. The few that will remain at K will only be available to dealers to use as demo systems.. The decision to end Strato-6TB sales is based on the much faster download speeds of a Terra 6TB and Strato-C system. I expect an official announcement in the coming days.

Jim
 
The product discontinuation could have been made earlier, as a new customer of a Strato S 6TB that I only received 2 weeks ago, I am now disappointed to learn that I would have got the new entry-level Strato C and CTerra 6TB for almost the same money. And that after less than 2 weeks I already have a discontinued model.
 
Skynet Cinema said:
The product discontinuation could have been made earlier, as a new customer of a Strato S 6TB that I only received 2 weeks ago, I am now disappointed to learn that I would have got the new entry-level Strato C and CTerra 6TB for almost the same money. And that after less than 2 weeks I already have a discontinued model.
Click to expand...

It shouldn't matter, there is nothing wrong with owning a Strato-S, they are still excellent models, and fully supported by K per their warranty policy. Many of us still own these models, and people shouldn't equate this news to the release of a new projector, or new processor, or some other new device that upon its release makes the prior model obsolete or less attractive. The Strato-S and Strato-C have the same video performance, it is only in download speeds and the number of additional supported players allowed that makes the Terra/Strato-C system a better choice for some owners.

(Not sure how that info (Terra 6TB) didn't reach you before your purchase. I posted on the Terra 6TB more than a month ago, and the Terra 6TB w/Strato-C pricing was mentioned before your purchase.)

Enjoy your purchase, it will remain an excellent addition to your AV system for many years, IMO.

Jim
 
Just curious: I know that the Terra servers have better specs than the server part of the Strato S (4K movies download to my Terra in 20-30 minutes, compared to over an hour to my Strato S), but is there any difference in video or audio performance between a Strato S and Strato C?
 
No, there should not be a difference in audio or video, but as you noted the Terra servers have other benefits.

Jim
 
rbienstock said:
Just curious: I know that the Terra servers have better specs than the server part of the Strato S (4K movies download to my Terra in 20-30 minutes, compared to over an hour to my Strato S), but is there any difference in video or audio performance between a Strato S and Strato C?
Click to expand...
I am going to speculate here. There is no reason why a Strato S couldn’t download a movie file at the same speed as a Terra unless the movie data is encrypted while writing onto HDD and Terra’s beefier CPU can do the encryption on the fly faster.

Copy right concerns, specially formatted Kaleidescape HDDs that won’t work elsewhere, Kaleidescape systems not recognizing off the shelf HDDs, if you put the dots together, it makes sense that these drives are heavily encrypted. Perhaps this argument can go for why Premiere systems can’t surpass 150mbps download speeds with their antiquated CPUs (Although state of the art for their time) struggling with encrypting movie data coming any faster.

I am going to continue to speculate. Once the movie file is read from the HDD and decrypted, you don’t need a very powerful CPU to play the movie. Strato S chipset should be more than adequate to play any movie as well as a Terra + Strato C system. Yes the Terra would also decrypt faster but since you are not trying to watch a 2 hour movie in 12 mins, this is irrelevant and hence why Terra can serve 10 zones and Strato S can 2 only.
 
cinelife said:
It shouldn't matter, there is nothing wrong with owning a Strato-S, they are still excellent models, and fully supported by K per their warranty policy. Many of us still own these models, and people shouldn't equate this news to the release of a new projector, or new processor, or some other new device that upon its release makes the prior model obsolete or less attractive. The Strato-S and Strato-C have the same video performance, it is only in download speeds and the number of additional supported players allowed that makes the Terra/Strato-C system a better choice for some owners.

(Not sure how that info (Terra 6TB) didn't reach you before your purchase. I posted on the Terra 6TB more than a month ago, and the Terra 6TB w/Strato-C pricing was mentioned before your purchase.)

Enjoy your purchase, it will remain an excellent addition to your AV system for many years, IMO.

Jim
Click to expand...
If anything, the resale value of Strato S in the secondhand market might go up, especially after its warranty period. Some might think a single box might be less complex and less risky after end of its warranty. Time will prove them right or wrong.
 
Substance said:
I am going to speculate here. There is no reason why a Strato S couldn’t download a movie file at the same speed as a Terra unless the movie data is encrypted while writing onto HDD and Terra’s beefier CPU can do the encryption on the fly faster.
Click to expand...

The reason is pretty simple: there's a gigabit network adapter in the Terra but a slower adapter in the Strato.
 
rbienstock said:
The reason is pretty simple: there's a gigabit network adapter in the Terra but a slower adapter in the Strato.
Click to expand...
I am pretty sure all Strato (and even M series players) have gigabit adapters. 1000 mbps or approximately 125MB/s is well within any low end CPU‘s handling speed of the past 10 years and any HDD’s read/write speeds. Unless Kaleidescape bottleneck these in software on purpose, the only CPU demanding task is encryption/decryption.
 
I think it has been explained many times on this and other forums. It has to do with the internal architecture differences between the two. The Strato S has a player level chip that can’t handle any faster downloads (maybe because of what you are mentioning)…

www.avsforum.com

Kaleidescape Strato Movie Player 4K HDR

www.avsforum.com www.avsforum.com
 
Immigrator said:
Is there any indication of an upgrade path to trade a Strato S (12 GB) for a Terra?
Click to expand...

No specific program for Strato-S to Terra, but there is still a program that allows you to turn in the Strato-S in exchange for a 25% discount off of the price of any sized Terra Server. You can check with your dealer for additional terms and info. If you are not working with a dealer and want more info and pricing, send me a PM or email and I'll provide the details.

Jim
 
cinelife said:
No specific program for Strato-S to Terra, but there is still a program that allows you to turn in the Strato-S in exchange for a 25% discount off of the price of any sized Terra Server. You can check with your dealer for additional terms and info. If you are not working with a dealer and want more info and pricing, send me a PM or email and I'll provide the details.

Jim
Click to expand...
Thanks Jim. Do you know if adding the newer gear to the existing Strato S would provide any benefit, such as allowing an additional zone and more storage, or does the Strato S become superfluous at that point?
 
There are only 3 components that work together in what was referred to as the "Encore Line." These were designed to work only with the K Store (although K later added code that allowed physical disc playback from a Vault being controlled by an Alto or Strato).

Alto (SD and HD)
Strato (SD, HD, and UHD content)
Terra Server

All of the above can communicate and support playback and Storage together as a system. Obviously Alto and Strato's with storage can also function independently as self-contained storage and playback "systems."

To your question, you can add a Terra Server to an Alto system, or a Strato system to increase storage. It does not increase zone support, only additional players can do that, so if you add a Terra Server and also want additional zone support you would add a Strato-C Player (Alto's are no longer sold by K). Other benefits to having a Terra Server in a system is download speeds, they are much faster with Terra versus Strato-S, and additional zone support if you add more playback zones in the future.

If you are looking to upgrade to more storage and also add an additional zone, there are two options: (not including buying used online)

1. Purchase a Terra Server and a Strato-C (these would integrate into your current Strato-12TB system).
2. Trade-in the Strato-12TB, take the discount, purchase a Terra Server and two Strato-C's.

Obviously, as I mentioned, you can also look for used Strato models to increase storage and playback zones.

I'm sure you knew most of that, hope that answers your question.

Jim
 
cinelife said:
To your question, you can add a Terra Server to an Alto system, or a Strato system to increase storage. It does not increase zone support, only additional players can do that, so if you add a Terra Server and also want additional zone support you would add a Strato-C Player (Alto's are no longer sold by K). Other benefits to having a Terra Server in a system is download speeds, they are much faster with Terra versus Strato-S, and additional zone support if you add more playback zones in the future.
Click to expand...
Jim, to clarify what I think you're saying: adding the Terra won't expand the supported playback zones for any content stored on the Strato-S. However, if you add a Terra, anything you re-download to the Terra will support more playback zones (should you also add the players.)?
 
That’s too bad. I would not have become a Kaleidescape owner if the Strato S was not offered.
As much as I love the product, spending 50% more in a less convenient platform (2 chassis instead of 1) and not having Wi-Fi would have been a deal-breaker.
The move to the Strato C is just a way to raise pricing - offer less for more money.
Hopefully less expensive hardware will be coming.
 
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