or many of us, the urge to customize is irresistible. From our car wheels to the buttons on our blazers, we simply cannot leave well enough alone. We demand that last little bit of performance—and we insist that our possessions precisely meet our needs.

Video enthusiasts rank among the most fervent customizers. For example, even though most modern video displays—digital projectors, flat-panel TVs—incorporate a video scaler, video enthusiasts often customize their systems with an outboard scaler. A scaler converts low-resolution video signals, such as those emitted by VCRs and DVD players, into the high-resolution video advanced displays require.

Why add a scaler to your system when the display already has one? First, to improve the picture. With a good scaler, you see fewer jagged edges bordering onscreen objects, less jitter in the picture and less of the blocky look that fast-moving video can produce on some TVs. The second reason to use an outboard scaler is versatility. Scalers allow you to connect more video sources (such as DVD players and satellite receivers) than some TVs can accommodate, and to interface high-end video gear equipped with exotic video outputs that most TVs cannot handle.

State-of-the-art scalers from such companies as Runco and Faroudja are great for large home theaters, but they may be overkill for plasma and LCD TVs, or for small projectors used in family rooms. Enter the Focus Enhancements Center Stage CS-1.

The CS-1 offers many types of video inputs and outputs, including Digital Video Interface (DVI), which is becoming the new standard for video connections. The CS-1 also has an RS-232 port, to allow for a Crestron or AMX touchscreen remote control. (Focus Enhancements includes a simple remote for those who elect not to use a touchscreen.) The RS-232 port also allows your installer to connect the CS-1 to a computer to tailor such functions as resolution and color adjustments to your system. So not only does the CS-1 customize your system, it too can be customized to your needs.

You control most of the CS-1’s functions through a menu that appears on your TV screen. The menu offers many options, but may prove daunting for the non-techie; you may choose to ignore the menu and let your installer perform most of the adjustments for you. The only function you are likely to use on a day-to-day basis is selecting the picture format, such as regular or widescreen. In this case, though, there are only three options and it is easy to tell if you have chosen the wrong one—if people look too skinny or too fat, or the picture is encircled with a black frame, try another picture format.

Additionally, the CS-1 offers a large variety of resolution options, so it can match practically any video display, including the new very high-resolution D-ILA projectors sold by JVC and others. I was able, after some adjustment, to match the CS-1’s output to the unusual 848-by-600-pixel resolution of the Plus Piano HE-3200 DLP projector, as well as the more conventional 1,024-by-768 resolution of the DreamVision CinemaTen Pro projector. The CS-1 also works with a wide variety of source devices; I can match it with ordinary DVD players, progressive-scan DVD players and even the rare RGB video output found on the Theta Digital Carmen II DVD player. As I play my collection of hard-to-handle DVD scenes, I see that the CS-1 produces few of the annoying picture flaws visible with some other scalers I have tested.

The video for most DVDs is originally shot on film and transferred to video, but some DVDs include material that originated as video. The difference between the two—film is generally 24 frames per second, while video in the U.S. is 30 frames per second—can give many video scalers fits. However, the CS-1 handles both quite well. It includes a feature called 2:2 pulldown, which improves its picture with 30-frame-per-second material. This is an unusual feature that even many very high-end video scalers lack.

I do encounter one problem with the CS-1: My first sample dies the moment I power it up, the second after only three months. Focus Enhancements said it would evaluate my samples to find out what went wrong and forward us the results for publication on this site, but we have yet to receive a response from the company.

The CS-1 is not the best video scaler I have seen, but its above-average performance, impressive flexibility and vast customization options make it a sensible choice for use with plasma TVs and modest video projectors. Anywhere the video screen measures 10 feet or less diagonally, the CS-1 does the trick.

DESCRIPTION
Video processor/scaler. Converts conventional NTSC video into high-resolution video for display on video projectors, plasma TVs, etc. Converts component HDTV signals to RGB.

DIMENSIONS
3.5 x 19 x 9 inches (hwd).

CONNECTIONS
Video inputs: composite, S-video, component video, RGB (HDTV/PC pass-through), DVI. Video outputs: DVI, RGB on DB-15 connectors and HDTV component video. RS-232 port for external control, minijack for 12-volt trigger.

OUTPUT RESOLUTION
4:3: 852 x 480, 800 x 600, 852 x 576, 960 x 540, 1024 x 768, 1024 x 1024, 1280 x 768, 1280 x 960, 1280 x 1024, 1365 x 1024.
16:9: 1280 x 720, 1365 x 768, 1920 x 1080 interlaced, 1920 x 1080 progressive.

PRICE/CONTACT
PRICE: $1,995
CONTACT: (408) 866-8300
www.focusinfo.com