Thanks for the detailed walkthrough of the interface! Something that's on the radar, but I don't think I'm ready to bite the bullet based on the current pricing model. Waiting to see what the next generation of HW and SW brings and also would like more warm and fuzzies around the digital licensing and guaranteeing access to movies you purchased.
Like what Kaleidoscape brings to the home theater, but I'm convinced the cost/benefit is worth the squeeze over buying 4K HDR blue rays, or streaming dolby vision / Dolby Atmos content via my 1 GB internet service to a 7.4.4 home theater. I'm putting my $$ elsewhere in my system. Thanks for the video and the info ...
Bit to bit 4k blu-ray rip on your Nas run via zappiti or zidoo does not look far from K. Most of instants both looks same But GUI, no ripping stress and favorite senses bit are best features of K. Audio/video wise both looks same tbh. There is no ‘wow’ difference between k, 4k blu-ray and bit-to-bit rip of 4k blu-ray via zappiti/zidoo. But K GUI software there is no competition.
That price is ridiculous . 9k all in for 6TB drive that costs about 170$ on Newegg 🤣🤣. And the strato c player is just a simple player. They need to price this like 1500$ max
How much is all in? $9k? Really not that expensive when you are talking about 4k laser projectors and full audio setups. I need a new projector, but I have all the supporting audio for something like this. Been using a buddies plex server and that buffering takes forever initially.
Thanks for the video! Can you please comment on the experience of using the Kaleidoscope vs the Zappiti (once the disc is already ripped on to the Zappiti) - in terms of user interface, image quality, etc? Thanks!
The image quality you get with Zappiti is going to be dependent on how you rip the file. But Kscape is going to be higher quality in most circumstances. The UI on Kscape is a bit more sophisticated but Zappiti is a good 2nd.
Thanks for the really good video, but the point that I don‘t get is why Kaleidoscape shall provide better quality than the physical disc - especially when the disc is already 4K and the device chain is high quality, too.
The source file for Kaleidescape is larger/less compressed that what they put on the physical optical disc. Not for every movie, but for most of the new items coming out.
Jiles, Thank You for Kaleidoscape information. I do concur with you that 4k disc are slowly decreasing over time. However, I’m like you not rich but looking for quality. I am literally stuck between two New devices for my Home Theater. The Kaleidoscape 6TB/22TB or MadVR Pro. I have a Sony 5000es 4k laser. What would you recommend,Sir? Always looking forward to your informative UA-cam channel. Thank You 😊
@@JilesMcCoy Appreciate the Advice, Sir. No aspect ratio issues. The same company projector screen as yours with manual masking panels (16x9, 110”). Thank You.
It's a nice system no doubt, albeit expensive. I may look into it at some point as a supplement to Plex. But unfortunately it has the inherent problem that plagues all digital -- licensing. If a studio decides to pull their catalog from the Kaleidescape service for whatever reason, you lose access to those movies and likely won't be refunded for them. Also, since the studios are involved, you'll be subject to whatever official digital version they happen to want to provide -- which isn't always the best version. Lots of streaming versions of movies out there still using sorely-outdated 2K scans with tons of sharpening and DNR applied despite the fact that superior 4K remasters of them exist.
Totally agree with your point, Tom. The streaming app Movies Anywhere got to experience this when they lost licensing rights from a few studios. Also, if and when this device gets Dolby Vision. Can it be done via update, or will you have to purchase a new device?
@@troystevens9506 I'm guessing it will be a new device since Kaleidescape has always presented their wares as a super-luxe premium service for those whom money is no object. Back to Movies Anywhere, I really like their service as they seem to always use the best master when available. But with Paramount and Lionsgate not coming to the party, VUDU remains my main streaming service. Problem is, they tend to use older scans for a lot of their movies.
@@JilesMcCoy DV is not hardware dependant unless you have severely outdated hardware that can't provide adequate processing power (which is definitely not a consideration here). DV requires a licensing fee, though, which may be the sticking point for now. Plenty of devices that became DV-enabled through software updates.
@@JilesMcCoy :) but I like the UHD menu I think so much better as UHD 4K Isn’t it and Im Germany not available And Dolby Vision is for many a must have but for projector is it very good
I’ve noticed that most movies are around the same size. Imo it seems like anything by Disney is where I see the bigger variations in size. Seems like they are trying to save money by compressing long movies, like Avengers Endgame, onto a single 66GB disc. 3 things keep me from buying atm. Licensing (if a studio pulls out) , the somewhat steep cost of entry and the lack of Dolby Vision. After seeing DV I can’t go back
@@JilesMcCoy yeah they are getting up there. 98” would make a decent theatrical experience in a small/medium size room. I still prefer the lack of reflections of a pj plus there’s just something that a pj picture provides that I can’t describe. Once TV’s get to the 105”-110” mark at a reasonable price I will start to consider one. That may not be in my lifetime though lol
The price of the hardware and no Dolby Vision will always be a sticking point. Roon sells their own ridiculously priced hardware but at least there a multiple ways to use Roon. Cheaper 3rd party hardware would make this enticing but not in its current structure.
After seeing dv there’s no way I’m going back. It’s just too good. Once tvs get close to the size of my projection screen at a decent price I’m dropping my pj like a hot potato for a tv with dv
@@MrBonger88 with HDR it would be more about contrast and max brightness than size. Which your projector won't compete. Otherwise it's about the meta data providing the right light intensity. Without proper brightness you might as well use a 8bit image. Because the banding won't be visible.
I will be selling mine since (Strato S) i plan to retire outside of the USA. Was informed by Kaleidescape that you need a physical USA address to keep buying movies....
@@JilesMcCoy If you invest thousands into discs, you're more or less guaranteed to be able to use them for the foreseeable future as players are not bound to any DRM sign-in or similar, and even if a few discs are damaged, you still have the rest of your films. If Kaleidescape goes under, every film you've bought is inextricably locked into one device that may not last ten years.
@@theladyfingers___ I am totally ok with that. I'm confident that the Kaleidescape service, or whatever picks it up down the road, will be with us for the long term. It is the service of choice for high end theaters. Its not going anywhere. I get what you are saying about disc though. If you like collecting discs there really isn't any replacement for it.
I really think at this price Kaleidescape will not be replacing blu ray 4 k players anytime soon, who's gonna drop 5 to 8 or more thousand of dollars for this, not many people gonna be able to do this, I'm keeping my blu ray
@@JilesMcCoy there are a couple instances where 4k are region locked. But 99.9% of 4k movies are region free. But blu ray and dvd are region locked which region free 4k players come in.
Discuss Here: hometheaterfanatics.com/community/kaleidescape/
Thanks for the detailed walkthrough of the interface! Something that's on the radar, but I don't think I'm ready to bite the bullet based on the current pricing model. Waiting to see what the next generation of HW and SW brings and also would like more warm and fuzzies around the digital licensing and guaranteeing access to movies you purchased.
Thanks for watching!
Like what Kaleidoscape brings to the home theater, but I'm convinced the cost/benefit is worth the squeeze over buying 4K HDR blue rays, or streaming dolby vision / Dolby Atmos content via my 1 GB internet service to a 7.4.4 home theater. I'm putting my $$ elsewhere in my system. Thanks for the video and the info ...
Glad it was informative! Thanks for watching.
Bit to bit 4k blu-ray rip on your Nas run via zappiti or zidoo does not look far from K. Most of instants both looks same But GUI, no ripping stress and favorite senses bit are best features of K. Audio/video wise both looks same tbh. There is no ‘wow’ difference between k, 4k blu-ray and bit-to-bit rip of 4k blu-ray via zappiti/zidoo. But K GUI software there is no competition.
Correct.
Ridiculous price tag, and no Dolby Vision, that alone says if you've got money to throw away, that product's for you.
Its designed for projectors that don't support Dolby Vision.
That price is ridiculous . 9k all in for 6TB drive that costs about 170$ on Newegg 🤣🤣. And the strato c player is just a simple player. They need to price this like 1500$ max
They are charging for the software...
Agree, get a NAS!
How many UHD movies can I buy for the cost of one?
For the cost of 1 movie you can buy 1 movie
The price, lol nope.
Thanks for watching!
How much is all in? $9k? Really not that expensive when you are talking about 4k laser projectors and full audio setups. I need a new projector, but I have all the supporting audio for something like this. Been using a buddies plex server and that buffering takes forever initially.
Thanks for watching and the comment.
If you really want to get in with a Strato S player you can look at 4.5K.
Thanks for the video! Can you please comment on the experience of using the Kaleidoscope vs the Zappiti (once the disc is already ripped on to the Zappiti) - in terms of user interface, image quality, etc? Thanks!
The image quality you get with Zappiti is going to be dependent on how you rip the file. But Kscape is going to be higher quality in most circumstances. The UI on Kscape is a bit more sophisticated but Zappiti is a good 2nd.
Thanks for the really good video, but the point that I don‘t get is why Kaleidoscape shall provide better quality than the physical disc - especially when the disc is already 4K and the device chain is high quality, too.
The source file for Kaleidescape is larger/less compressed that what they put on the physical optical disc. Not for every movie, but for most of the new items coming out.
@@JilesMcCoy thank u, Jiles
As an aside, when I say that its better that isnt just referring to the video and audio quality... its the whole process of watching movies too.
Jiles, Thank You for Kaleidoscape information. I do concur with you that 4k disc are slowly decreasing over time. However, I’m like you not rich but looking for quality. I am literally stuck between two New devices for my Home Theater. The Kaleidoscape 6TB/22TB or MadVR Pro. I have a Sony 5000es 4k laser. What would you recommend,Sir? Always looking forward to your informative UA-cam channel. Thank You 😊
If you need a solution for significant aspect ratio problems get the madVR first. If not get the Kaleidescape first.
@@JilesMcCoy Appreciate the Advice, Sir. No aspect ratio issues. The same company projector screen as yours with manual masking panels (16x9, 110”). Thank You.
It's a nice system no doubt, albeit expensive. I may look into it at some point as a supplement to Plex. But unfortunately it has the inherent problem that plagues all digital -- licensing. If a studio decides to pull their catalog from the Kaleidescape service for whatever reason, you lose access to those movies and likely won't be refunded for them. Also, since the studios are involved, you'll be subject to whatever official digital version they happen to want to provide -- which isn't always the best version. Lots of streaming versions of movies out there still using sorely-outdated 2K scans with tons of sharpening and DNR applied despite the fact that superior 4K remasters of them exist.
Totally agree with your point, Tom. The streaming app Movies Anywhere got to experience this when they lost licensing rights from a few studios. Also, if and when this device gets Dolby Vision. Can it be done via update, or will you have to purchase a new device?
@@troystevens9506 I'm guessing it will be a new device since Kaleidescape has always presented their wares as a super-luxe premium service for those whom money is no object. Back to Movies Anywhere, I really like their service as they seem to always use the best master when available. But with Paramount and Lionsgate not coming to the party, VUDU remains my main streaming service. Problem is, they tend to use older scans for a lot of their movies.
I am pretty sure DV is different hardware.
Thanks for your thoughts!
@@JilesMcCoy DV is not hardware dependant unless you have severely outdated hardware that can't provide adequate processing power (which is definitely not a consideration here). DV requires a licensing fee, though, which may be the sticking point for now. Plenty of devices that became DV-enabled through software updates.
Do you can play the menus from the Blu-ray’s or only direct the movie?
It has its own set of menus.
@@JilesMcCoy :) but I like the UHD menu I think so much better as UHD 4K Isn’t it and Im Germany not available
And Dolby Vision is for many a must have but for projector is it very good
when i buy/download a movie to my server..... is it there till i delete it? if Kaleidescape goes away, i _still_ have my movies, right?
Yes
@@JilesMcCoy , please and thank you
Be careful they don't have some rotating encryption key that could look you out even tho the file is on your hardware.
They need to drop the prices to be affordable outside of the top 1% of the population!!
Lower prices would be awesome for sure. But the tool is super amazing.
I’ve noticed that most movies are around the same size. Imo it seems like anything by Disney is where I see the bigger variations in size. Seems like they are trying to save money by compressing long movies, like Avengers Endgame, onto a single 66GB disc. 3 things keep me from buying atm. Licensing (if a studio pulls out) , the somewhat steep cost of entry and the lack of Dolby Vision. After seeing DV I can’t go back
DV is solidly in the TV world. Not really a thing for home projection theater.
@@JilesMcCoy true. I’m assuming there are owners w large TV’s as well
@@MrBonger88 The biggest TV generally available is 98” today.
@@JilesMcCoy yeah they are getting up there. 98” would make a decent theatrical experience in a small/medium size room. I still prefer the lack of reflections of a pj plus there’s just something that a pj picture provides that I can’t describe. Once TV’s get to the 105”-110” mark at a reasonable price I will start to consider one. That may not be in my lifetime though lol
Can I Add subtitle on it? Like Arabic subtitle as " srt" or another type i download them online?
I dont know of a way to add subs.
4k Blu-ray can operate at a 128mbps. Kaleidoscope says 100 or higher. So, saying it's better is questionable.
Thanks for watching and your comment!
The price of the hardware and no Dolby Vision will always be a sticking point. Roon sells their own ridiculously priced hardware but at least there a multiple ways to use Roon. Cheaper 3rd party hardware would make this enticing but not in its current structure.
Remember, this is designed for dedicated theaters where there is no Dolby Vision.
Kaleidoscope is not the best video quality, if it can't do Dolby Vision HDR
After seeing dv there’s no way I’m going back. It’s just too good. Once tvs get close to the size of my projection screen at a decent price I’m dropping my pj like a hot potato for a tv with dv
It’s getting closer. A 120” screen from panels is probably 10 years out in a consumer capacity.
Hopefully they do scope aspect.
LOL.
@@MrBonger88 with HDR it would be more about contrast and max brightness than size. Which your projector won't compete. Otherwise it's about the meta data providing the right light intensity. Without proper brightness you might as well use a 8bit image. Because the banding won't be visible.
Problem: The whole Vinegar Syndrome, Arrow, Severin etc etc. are only on Disc.
Those are ones to get on disc for sure!
If you have movie files on a hard-drive by a zidoo it's a lot cheaper and movies look great on it
Its a great player! Ripping the files is no fun though.
Except it's inferior to 4K Blu-Ray.
Only for the pickle people.
Why is it projected based vs a tv
I don't follow. You can use this with any display type.
I will be selling mine since (Strato S) i plan to retire outside of the USA. Was informed by Kaleidescape that you need a physical USA address to keep buying movies....
You can always keep a P.O. Box. But your point is taken. It’s tough for Kaleidescape outside of the US.
Not strictly true. There are ways to access the US store outside the US
A major downside to streaming is choice. There is a lot of content that just isn't available.
I look at streaming as a huge source of choice. So many things I’d never be able to see if I had to buy disc.
Problem with this is that it's a single point of failure.
What is a single point of failure?
@@JilesMcCoy If you invest thousands into discs, you're more or less guaranteed to be able to use them for the foreseeable future as players are not bound to any DRM sign-in or similar, and even if a few discs are damaged, you still have the rest of your films. If Kaleidescape goes under, every film you've bought is inextricably locked into one device that may not last ten years.
@@theladyfingers___ I am totally ok with that. I'm confident that the Kaleidescape service, or whatever picks it up down the road, will be with us for the long term. It is the service of choice for high end theaters. Its not going anywhere. I get what you are saying about disc though. If you like collecting discs there really isn't any replacement for it.
I really think at this price Kaleidescape will not be replacing blu ray 4 k players anytime soon, who's gonna drop 5 to 8 or more thousand of dollars for this, not many people gonna be able to do this, I'm keeping my blu ray
I agree that Kaleidescape is at the super high end, but that will change over time.
Omg....the price they charge for a movie??????
Your living in dreamland?.....
Same as disc. Much less than collector discs.
This sounds impressive but I'll Always prefer my 4k players especially my region free 4k player
Aren’t 4k all region free?
@@JilesMcCoy there are a couple instances where 4k are region locked. But 99.9% of 4k movies are region free. But blu ray and dvd are region locked which region free 4k players come in.
Robotech ... NICE!
I love my Robotech!
Ultra hd kaleidecape strato c
Its nice!
Not interested I will stick with physical media
I have a nice 4k player review coming for you soon!