Krell just announced the Krell Automatic Room Equalization System (ARES) for the Evolution 707 surround preamp/processor. Developed entirely in house by the Krell Engineering team, the new firmware optimizes the performance of the Evolution 707 in any listening environment. This new upgrade is free of charge to the hundreds of existing Evolution 707 owners and will be included in new units shipping from the Krell factory.

Additional Resources
• Read more AV preamplifier news from HomeTheaterReview.com.
• See a review of the Evolution 707 AV preamp on HomeTheaterReview.com.

"For high performance sound, a generic chip based solution is never an option." said Bill McKiegan, Krell's Director of Global Sales and Marketing, "We design and build the Evolution 707 processor's hardware and software to operate at the highest level and now with ARES, we have developed a specific tool to help guarantee that performance is realized in our customers' homes."

Simple but not simplistic, ARES does not require a computer but uses on screen prompts to guide the user through the automatic setup and equalization process. ARES analyzes the speakers' capability, position, phase and distance relationships to determine ideal crossover points, delay, and volume settings. Listening room surfaces, speaker positioning and construction play a pivotal role in the overall sound quality of a system. ARES measures these effects against the inherent performance of the system's speakers and corrects for irregular surfaces, problematic speaker locations, and unusual floor plans.

A 32 bit dual core DSP running at 1.8 giga operations per second computes equalizer filter coefficients and applies individual curves to each of the 8.4 output channels. A trio of user system memories provides greater flexibility and personalization than other systems on the market. Instead of an averaged result from various listening positions, three individual listening positions may be measured and optimized rather than compromised by an averaging-style system. Alternatively, system memories may be used for different speaker configurations so that one memory can be optimized for two channel listening with full range front speakers, a second memory for movie playback with a crossover and subwoofers engaged, and a third for casual, full range, all-speaker music listening. After each system memory corrects for room anomalies, an optional music or movie curve can be added to the corrected response for an enhanced listening experience.

The ARES operational range can also be limited to low frequency correction where a majority of sonic irregularities occur. Settings for operation below 63 Hz, 80 Hz, 125 Hz, and 250Hz provide correction in the most troublesome low frequency range while leaving, unaltered, the upper frequency range that helps define a speaker's individual sonic characteristics. Shipped with an ultra-linear condenser microphone used for measurement and recording applications, existing Evolution 707 units require a firmware update that can be installed in the field via a computer by the owner's dealer.

About the Evolution 707
Based on award-winning preamplifier technology, the Evolution 707 includes twelve output stages with two center channel and four subwoofer outputs, in an 8.4 channel configuration. All channels feature Evolution CAST™ circuitry for the most stunning reproduction of today's high-resolution movie soundtracks. Balanced outputs and single ended outputs are also included for use with conventional amplifiers. Preamp mode bypasses all digital circuitry and routes the analog input, stereo or 7.1 multi-channel, directly to the 16-bit balanced resistor ladder volume control for the purest signal path possible.

Via the four HDMI 1.3 compliant inputs, the Evolution 707 is the first high performance surround preamp/processor to decode Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD Master Audio lossless surround formats.

Suggested Retail Price: $30,000 MSRP 

Additional Resources
• Read more AV preamplifier news from HomeTheaterReview.com.
• See a review of the Evolution 707 AV preamp on HomeTheaterReview.com.