Welcome to an AV Rant Special episode. Today, Rob H. and Joe Klusnick interview Michael Kobb, the Principal Engineer of User Experience at Kaleidescape. We learn a bit about Michael and his personal home theater. Then we dig into the new Kaleidescape Strato K Movie Player and its unique 8K and 4K Cinematic format capabilities. We dig into the nitty-gritty of 4:4:4 playback and how it might impact your setup and settings. And we satisfy some of our curiosity about mezzanine files and the rest of Kaleidescape’s hardware lineup. Enjoy!

0:00:00 – Intro

Rob and Joe welcome you to this interview episode.

– https://avrant.com/

– https://www.youtube.com/avrant

– https://www.kaleidescape.com/

0:02:40 – Welcome Michael Kobb

A bit about Michael and his position at Kaleidescape as Principal Engineer of User Experience.

0:04:16 – Michael’s Home Theater

We hear about Michael’s personal home theater, perhaps the most impressive one we’ve heard about yet from one of our guests!

– https://www.avsforum.com/threads/theater-build-mikes-money-pit.1351987/

0:11:03 – Introduction to the Strato K

– https://www.kaleidescape.com/strato-k-movie-player/

0:13:54 – The new Hardware in the Strato K

0:16:34 – Delving into Strato K’s Specs

– https://www.kaleidescape.com/strato-k-movie-player/spec

0:19:41 – Let’s Talk 8K

– https://8kassociation.com/

0:24:05 – The New 4K Cinematic Format

– https://www.kaleidescape.com/4k-cinematic/

0:30:11 – The 3 “Buckets” of 4K Display Types

We discuss the different ways your display might handle 4K 4:4:4 signals.

– https://support.kaleidescape.com/support/article/4K-Cinematic-and-8K-FAQ

0:36:00 – What if Your AVR/Pre-Pro limits 4:4:4?

0:38:01 – Dealing with 4:4:4 Settings in Displays

0:41:16 – Checking Your Full Signal Path

Via Kaleidescape Strato Players’ web interface, you can check signal input vs. output. Plus there are test patterns.

– https://www.kaleidescape.com/support/article/What-Is-Kaleidescape-Picturecheck

0:45:20 – Unique Calibration for 4:4:4 Modes

– https://www.kaleidescape.com/support/

0:47:16 – Are Most Kaleidescapes Installed by Dealers?

0:49:31 – Will Strato K Make Everything Look Better?

0:51:07 – 4K Cinematic on Smaller Displays

0:53:01 – External Video Processor Concerns

0:55:45 – Let’s Talk Prices

Strato K has an MSRP of $4,995. But what about 4K Cinematic and 8K titles?

0:59:13 – Mezzanine Files

1:03:23 – The Other Strato Player Models

– https://www.kaleidescape.com/strato-movie-players/

1:04:16 – Terra and Terra Prime Servers

– https://www.kaleidescape.com/terra-prime-movie-server/

1:05:44 – Using Strato K Standalone

1:07:23 – Get in Touch with Kaleidescape

– https://www.kaleidescape.com/company/contact-us/

– https://www.kaleidescape.com/find-a-dealer/

1:08:50 – Wrapping Up

Thank you, Michael. And thanks to Josh behind the scenes!

– Joe on AVS Forum: https://www.avsforum.com/members/jskmdwk.7537874/

1:10:26 – Outro

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