One issue which is not very clear to me concerns the Realiser Exchange site :
https://realiserexchange.com/Home#
The key question is this: in what state of readiness should one reasonably expect that site to be at the time the A-16s ship? If it is meant to be fully functional by the time the A16s are in the hands of customers, then its present state should be really discouraging to all of us..., as it is extremely rudimentary at best, with only a set of banners sliding on the page in a looped formation, and a few miserable links that seem to lead nowhere... I frankly find it hard to understand the that sloppiness of the site at this stage in the A-16's development, since it is a website whose development should be largely independent from that of the A-16 itself, given that the website's development does not require any of the factors that have delayed the progress of the A-16 itself, such as Dolby certification and whatnot, in order to keep up its own progress.
One can assume that the Smyths have had all the time in the world to oversee the construction of that site, and yet, if you ask me today whether the site looks convincingly like one which the Smyths are expecting to go into full operation even in about 3 months from now, I will have to say no. But why is that the case? In the absence of the A16, the site (with all bells and whistles in place) could have been one excellent opportunity for the Smyths to generate even more interest in the A-16, whet the appetite of their existing customers, while courting new ones, even as everyone awaits shipping. That is the very least one would normally expect from any serious 21st century business in this industry. So again why this sloppiness? More importantly, why this apparent lack of concern on their part as to how their Realiser exchange site is looking or functioning if they are indeed planning to ship out the A-16 units soon?
I have to say that I do not find the present state of that site to be encouraging at all, as a prospective owner of an A-16, who (rightly or wrongly) expects the A-16s to ship out soon.
I think I've written here a hundred times that the A16 is just a big, expensive boat anchor without customer support and software. As to why the Realiser Exchange site is in such a rudimentary state, maybe it's because they' re under capitalized and lack the resources to support this product in the field by recruiting PRIR room providers, employing a CSR staff to provide the technical support to fix poorly recorded PRIRs, customize BRIRs, and just answer customer questions about one of the most complex consumer audio products ever made.
That's one of the reason's why hung back on getting in on the kick starter, and pre-order.
There are other reasons, however. For one, I have to wonder about the need of a greater than 7.1 channel virtualizer--especially over headphones. I think that there's a real question of how something like Dolby Atmos or Auro 3D could ever be anything other than a niche format for movie soundtrack reproduction. And it's not hard to see why this could be the case if you think about it. For one, how many people will set up a room with a 16 channel receiver, and 16 discrete speakers--especially 4 height channels. Not many, I'd wager. So that means headphones are perhaps the best possible venue for popularizing these formats. But what's the most viable (potentially) method of virtualizing? Why, it's the $4000 A16 Realiser, of course.
See the problem? On the one hand you can get 16 channel movie reproduction by buying a 150 lb 16 channel Home theater receiver, 16 speakers, and setting apart a dedicated room, while keeping yourself out of divorce court in the process. On the other hand, you can buy a $4000 piece of equipment, a $1-4k flagship headphone, and maybe a fancy headphone amp, and then you're good to go.
You and who else? Who else is about to make the financial commitment in the kind of numbers that will motivate content providers to make gobs and gobs of Atmos/Auro/DTX movies? I would think very few people, which will make these formats an ultra niche product unless and until there exists a way for consumers to enjoy this technology for a small fraction of its current price of entry.
That why, at best this feels the the roll out of HDTV in the mid 90s. I remember going in to one of my favorite High End Dealers in 1996 and seeing a $4k 48in rear projection tv, and I had to practically break my arm to keep it from reaching for my checkbook. (It was like that final scene in Dr Strangelove, believe me). My higher brain functions prevailed in that case, and I bought my first HDTV (a $1500 Sony RPTV in 2004), and, I was glad I restrained myself because I paid 1/3 the price, got a much larger screen, and had program material I could actually watch and enjoy, and money in my 401k.
I think the A16 Realiser is like that 48in $4k RPTV that sold in 1996 when there was no HDTV on cable, satellite or broadcast TV. By making this a niche product which requires the support of the mass market to fully enjoy, the Smyths have made something which won't develop the very market it seeks to piggyback upon.
Makes a lot more sense, I think to wait for the development of the content market, and a better, cheaper product to enjoy that content.
It has been six business days since they announced that they had been certified, but no reports of shipping notices, AFAIK. (And no response to questions about it on Kickstarter, naturally.)
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