HDTV and Home Theater Podcast

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Podcast #1121: 5G Broadcast can Challenge ATSC 3.0 Oct 20, 2023

Show notes

On this week's show discuss the new Pro-Ject Dark Side of the Moon Turntable and talk about five mistakes to avoid with your earbuds. We finish up with a discussion about 5G Broadcast. Can it do what ATSC 3.0 can. We also read your emails and discuss the week's news.

News:

Other:

Aqara Smart Video Doorbell G4

The Dark Side of the Moon Turntable

The Dark Side of the Moon album is recognized for its artwork almost as much as the music. It shows an enigmatic prism that reflects beams of light into space. It's a magical and mystical theme that illustrates the band's complex sound pallet. For us, it was a no-brainer to create a turntable based on this concept & image.

The result is an extraordinary turntable unlike any the audio market has seen. With high-quality materials were able to implement the core aspects of the artwork. The plinth is made of MDF- a dense, sturdy, resonance-absorbent material. The stainless steel axle of the heavy aluminum sub platter rotates in a bronze bushing. An AC motor drives the sub-platter & platter with a silicon drive belt.

The low-resonance tonearm is a completely new design. It's definitely one of the highlights of this turntable. The combination of black aluminum & acrylic parts is an eye-catcher to say the least. The supplied Pick it PRO Special Edition MM phono cartridge delivers the rich sonics you would expect from Dark Side of the Moon turntable. With the addition of the LED-backlit rainbow, the turntable looks even more impressive in low light.

As with all Pro-Ject turntables, The Dark Side of the Moon Turntable is handmade with care in Europe! Pre-order with November Delivery $1999.00

5 wireless earbuds mistakes you're probably making

Get the best performance and user experience from your wireless earbuds by avoiding these common mistakes. Full article here…

Don't skip the ear fit test - using the correct ear tip size for your ear canal is paramount to achieving optimal audio performance and the best noise-canceling experience.
Don't leave Active Noise Canceling on - The processing power required to analyze ambient noise levels and cancel them out has a big impact on energy consumption of your wireless earbuds, and can shorten battery life significantly.
Check Audio Settings - make sure you're connected via the highest wireless audio codec over Bluetooth that your earbuds can support from a similarly codec compatible playback device.
Take better care of the charging case - Keeping your earbuds on charge overnight might feel convenient but it could be detrimental to the lifespan of the charging case's internal battery. Longer than necessary recharges can put a strain on the battery, degrading the battery cells and significantly shortening capacity.
Download the app and use it periodically - companion apps provide numerous ways to enhance the listening experience through features like adaptive audio, noise canceling modes, and adjustable EQ settings. You will also need the app to upgrade firmware.

What is 5G Broadcast?

5G Broadcast is a one-to-many technology where all mobile device viewers receive the live event through the 5G network. As the devices are effectively passive, adding more devices doesn't affect the network at all. Therefore, all users have the same high-level quality of experience and service.

Although live video distribution is very important, 5G broadcast/multicast does not necessarily mean mobile TV. In fact, 5G is bringing new broadcast and multicast capabilities to the whole ecosystem. These can include software updates over the network to cars, phones, and other wireless devices

What are some applications:

Live events (sporting, festivals, and breaking news) are suitable for the one-to-many distribution model over 5G.
Public safety messages are one of the basic 5G broadcast tasks. Think Weather, Flood, Fire etc
Automobile manufacturers can update software and firmware as well as media and entertainment systems. 5G Broadcast can help with OTA real-time traffic and V2X delivery. V2X is a system under development that allows vehicles to communicate with each other.
5G multicast can enhance the fan experience in new ways and also bring benefits for MNOs. Venue casting can bring the live experience to the home.
5G can help improve the VoD experience by helping offload 35% of the traffic on mobile networks.

Do we need this?

Podcast #1120: HDR Formats Compared Oct 13, 2023

Show notes

On this week's show Ara orders Holiday lights that he plans on leaving up year round. We also compare the HDR formats and explain terms to help you understand what it all means. We also read your emails and take a look at the week's news.

News:

Other:

Canceled TV program "Turn On"

Matter Smart Holiday String Lights

Get festive with Nanoleaf Smart Holiday String Lights ($199 Pre-order)! The perfect decoration for your tree, or throughout your home to bring out the holiday spirit. Customizable color palettes and lighting animations set the Christmas mood in an instant, with just the touch of a button or a simple voice command. Sync with your favorite holiday songs to watch as your lights dance to the beat. Designed for both indoor and outdoor use.

250 Addressable LEDs | 20m

16+ Million Colors and Tunable Whites

Use with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, or Matter over Wi-Fi
Control with Attached Controller, Nanoleaf App or through a Smart Home Ecosystem

Requires a Matter compatible smart home hub and iOS/tvOS 16.5+ or Android OS 8.1+ to connect to a smart home ecosystem.

Differences Between HDR10, HDR10+, and Dolby Vision - RTINGS.com

I was reading an article (Differences Between HDR10, HDR10+, and Dolby Vision) over at RTINGS.com to see which HDR format they thought was the best. In the article they did an excellent explanation of what HDR is and what terms like bit depth and tone mapping are. We throw those around all the time but have never really explained what they are and why you should care. So this week we do that!

Podcast #1119: AppleTV is the Best? and the Tablo OTA DVR Oct 06, 2023

Show notes

On this week's show we discuss a video where Caleb Denison of Digital Trends, says the AppleTV is the best at streaming your video and we have a review of the Tablo TV Over the Air DVR. We also read your emails and take a look at the week's news.

News:

Other:

Dolby Atmos FlexConnect

How You Stream Matters

We received a couple of emails (one from Stan and one from John) this week pointing us to an article and video stating that how you stream your content affects what you see. The article is from Dark Horizons and the video is on Youtube (Apple TV Best for Netflix? Right Time To Buy a TV? | You Asked: Ep. 7).

The video host, Caleb Denison of Digital Trends, says the AppleTV is the best, although he prefers using Google TV. So how did he come to this conclusion?

Some TVs or set top boxes limit color bit depth to 4:2:0, which means more color banding just because you are watching on that particular platform. Many platforms may have that setting as the default so check to make sure you have an option to change it. Without going into a ton of detail, 4:4:4 is 100% of the chroma information, 4:2:2 is 50% and 4:2:0 is 25%. If you have Dolby Vision enabled on an AppleTV you will not have an option to select a Chroma setting. It will be 4:2:2 by default.

Some platforms do not allow buffering. As a result you will never achieve the full 4K you are paying for. Caleb does not say which platforms do this. But if you have 4K with a slower data rate it won't be difficult to determine if your system is buffering or not.

Another issue is with frame rate. Some will not give you 24 fps but will instead convert it to 30 fps.

So why the AppleTV? According to the host, "It's the one with the least amount of questions and just enough controls available. It also comes with the fewest number of headaches, and for that I'm willing to pay a little extra. It's not perfect, but it is the least flawed and sadly I think that's where we're at right now with streaming."

Tablo TV Over the Air DVR

Over the years we have had a chance to review a lot of personal DVRs. Most of which have come and gone. Some had stand alone hardware and others required a PC. Some had built-in tuners and others required an external tuner. Today we take a quick look at a DVR that is a stand alone box no bigger than an AppleTV or Roku streaming box with two built in ATSC 2.0 tuners. That device is the Tablo 4th generation that goes for about $110.

Features:

Watch, pause and record live broadcast TV from your antenna.
Record 50+ hours and never miss a moment with 128GB of onboard recording storage. Can expand up to 1000+ hours with an external hard drive
Tablo lets you watch TV anywhere in your home on any smart device.
Record and watch live TV, subscription-free (Internet service is required).
Quick and easy setup.

Setup

Plug in power, Ethernet, and an antenna and you are ready to scan for channels. I initially had issues with the Tablo giving me location errors and stopping the install process there. I contacted their Customer Support and they acknowledged the error and informed me of a server issue they were experiencing. Once those were resolved the process resumed without a hitch. The only complaint I had was that it took too long to download the channel guide. But I was being impatient.

Performance

Once you complete the install and setup you can start watching TV and recording programs. I won't go into the details on how to do this because it's very intuitive and you've all done this before. In addition to the channels you receive over the air, Tablo has some FAST channels that include news, sports, old TV shows, and more.

You watch on your Tablet or phone and on Set Top boxes. Currently Roku, fireTV, android TV, GoogleTV, iOS and Android are supported. AppleTV, Samsung TVs, WebOS, and Vizio TVs are coming soon. Two devices can watch/record live TV simultaneously and up to six can watched recorded or streamed content simultaneously. Picture quality is good, but we are talking 1080i or 720p OTA, so don't expect the same as 4K HDR content you get from AppleTV or Netflix.

The user interface is very intuitive and easy to navigate. Setting up recordings is simple. Recorded programs are grouped together based on series. Guide information is available and I haven't been prompted to pay for it which is a big plus over other DVRs.

There is no way to watch your content when you are away from home so consider that when making your buying decision. Also, a pleasant surprise is that you can record FAST channels and skip commercials. I'm not sure other devices let you do that.

In all, this is a great device if you are looking for a DVR like you used to have back in the day. You can watch anywhere in the house and, soon enough, on any device. If you want to stream your content outside your home, this product is not for you. Perhaps someday that capability will be added, but not today.

Podcast #1118: The History of Dolby Laboratories Sep 29, 2023

Show notes

On this week's show we take a look at the history of a company that is synonymous with home theater, Dolby Laboratories. We also read your emails and take a look at the week's news.

News:

Other:

Hisense Smart Short Projector Renewed

The Dolby Laboratories History Story in Chronological Order

1965 - Dolby Laboratories is a longtime innovator of developing electronic devices and systems to improve recorded sound. Founded by Ray Dolby in 1965, the company's first development was Dolby A-type noise reduction. It was basically a specially designed electronic circuit contained in a compact metal case. It was not a recording machine, but it could be attached to a recorder to improve its sound.

1966 - Dolby creates first product to reduce noise in music recordings.

1968 - Ray Dolby next developed a consumer version of the Dolby A system at the urging of Henry Kloss, an American audio pioneer and president of KLH Research and Development Corporation. The result was the 1968 introduction of Dolby B-type noise reduction, intended for home tape recorders. Following a relocation of the company from London to San Francisco, Dolby B was released into the world. Designed primarily for cassettes, it went on to completely alter the way music was both recorded and received world-over. It was simple and cheap, and by the mid-70s it was the standard for all cassette tapes – and is the type of noise reduction and is still used to this very day. Yes – people still like their cassette tapes!

1971 - The first film with Dolby sound was A Clockwork Orange (1971), which used Dolby noise reduction on all pre-mixes and masters, but a conventional optical sound track on release prints.

1974 - Callan was the first film with a Dolby-encoded optical soundtrack.

1975 - Dolby Laboratories introduced Dolby Stereo, a product aimed at motion picture producers and theaters. Dolby Stereo was used with existing 35-mm optical soundtracks, but with important changes. At the studio, stereo soundtracks were recorded using Dolby equipment. At the theaters, a Dolby unit and new loudspeakers were added to the existing projection equipment. The result was much higher sound quality.

1976 - The first true LCRS (Left-Center-Right-Surround) soundtrack was encoded on the movie A Star Is Born in 1976. In less than ten years, 6,000 cinemas worldwide were equipped to use Dolby Stereo sound. Dolby reworked the system slightly for home use and introduced Dolby Surround, which only extracted a surround channel, and the more impressive Dolby Pro Logic, which was the domestic equivalent of the theatrical Dolby Stereo.

1977 - Star Wars opens with Dolby Stereo®.

1982 - the company was receiving $6 million annually in licensing fees from approximately 125 audio equipment manufacturers. With circuits in about 70 million different consumer products, Dolby had a monopoly in the consumer noise reduction field. In the 1980s, virtually all pre recorded cassettes used Dolby B.

The first major threat to Dolby's positioning began quietly in 1980, when dbx--a Newton, Massachusetts company--sold its system to several audio manufacturers, including the major Japanese company Matsushita Electric. In April 1982, the competition began to look more serious. Dbx pulled ahead of Dolby, developing the first miniature noise-reduction circuit for Walkmen, which at this time represented the fastest-growing consumer audio segment. Dbx, which had been developed in 1971, was a serious threat to Dolby because it reduced background noise by 40 decibels, a considerable improvement over Dolby's 10.

Initially, high prices had made dbx unfamiliar to consumers, but the system was favored by recording professionals. By 1982, dbx had already far overtaken Dolby and held 70 percent of the commercial recording equipment market. In response to the threat posed by dbx's competition, Dolby introduced an upgraded version of its system, Dolby C, as well as a portable product.

1986 - Dolby Spectral Recording (or SR) worked on magnetic soundtracks for film as well as music cassettes, producing digital clarity from an analog sound system. Dolby SR used the same basic principle as Dolby's original circuit, monitoring the sound signal and adjusting frequency boost to suit the loudness level, with different signal levels boosted at different amounts. The result was a system that was dynamic and almost infinitely flexible. The system was used by many professional studios instead of digital recording, and in 1988 Dolby SR was in use at movie theaters showing the films Robocop and Space.

1992 - Dolby achieved $40 million in revenues, with a third from royalty payments that headed straight to the bottom line. Dolby sound reduction was now featured on approximately 380 million tape players, boom boxes, headphones, and car stereos, as well as a few billion audio-cassette packages.

Dolby developed a digital surround sound compression scheme for the cinema. Dolby Stereo Digital (now simply called Dolby Digital) was first featured on the 1992 film Batman Returns. Introduced to the home theater market as Dolby AC-3 with the 1995 laserdisc release of Clear and Present Danger.

The format did not become widespread in the consumer market, partly because of extra hardware that was necessary to make use of it until it was adopted as part of the DVD specification. Dolby Digital is now found in the HDTV (ATSC) standard of the United States, DVD players, and many satellite-TV and cable-TV receivers. Dolby developed a digital surround sound compression scheme for the TV series The Simpsons.

1998 - First live HDTV broadcast with 5.1-channel Dolby Digital audio.

1999 - Star Wars: Episode I—The Phantom Menace debuts in Dolby Surround EX.

2007 - Dolby announced the arrival of Dolby Volume at the International Consumer Electronics Show.

2010 - Dolby introduced Dolby Surround 7.1, and set up theaters worldwide with 7.1 surround speaker setups to deliver theatrical 7.1 surround sound. The first film to be released with this format was Pixar's Toy Story 3 which was later followed by 50 releases using the format. About eighty percent of films released are mixed in Dolby Surround 7.1 by default.

2014 - Dolby introduced its Dolby Atmos, a new cinematic technology adding overhead sound, first applied in Pixar's motion picture Brave. In July 2014, Dolby Laboratories announced plans to bring Atmos to home theater. The first television show to use the technology on disc was Game of Thrones.

Dolby launches Dolby Vision™.

2019 - Dolby adds Atmos to hundreds of newer songs in the music industry.

Podcast #1117: Network TV Scrambles to Fill Out Their Schedules Sep 22, 2023

Show notes

This week we discuss how the network TV programmers are dealing with the SAG and WGA strike. We also give you some alternative ways to deal with the strike. Plus we read your emails and take a look at the week's news.

News:

Other:

LUBA AWD 5000: Perimeter Wire Free Robot Lawn Mower Owner Quick Review

LUBA AWD Series is the first and only Perimeter Wire Free Robot Lawn Mower that can handle complex lawns up to 5000 ㎡ (1.25 acres) with 75% slope (37°). MSRP $2,599

Since you guys talk about home automation, I figured I would tell you about my new toy. I bought a Mammotion Luba robot lawn mower and it is awesome! You don't have to bury a line for your perimeter. It uses GPS/RTK technology and you drive it around the perimeter of your lawn so it knows the area. Then it mows. It does straight lines and not just the random all over thing and you can alternate what direction it goes. When it gets down to 15% battery, it just automatically goes to the dock and recharges and then continues where it left off after. It has a motor on each wheel so it is all wheel drive and durable and heavy so it can climb up to 37 degree grade of a hill. It also looks like a formula one race car. If it starts raining it will go back and wait too. It is pretty sweet! It mows my lawn 3 times a week while I am working and so no more allergies. I do the edging and weed eating once every other week and that is it. Automation! Love it!

Jason Petty

The SAG and WGA strike continues

The SAG and WGA strike has been going on for a couple of months now. Have you noticed anything missing? If you haven't, you're not the only one. Negotiations broke down shortly after the strike started but this week they have started up (Writers Guild Says Negotiations Set to Resume Wednesday). In the meantime networks have come up with a strategy to get you through the TV season and we have some ideas as well. This show is in place of our yearly new Fall TV preview.

Bill Maher was slated to bring his show back without the writers but has since put that idea on hold since negotiations have started up. Good idea? Should he just go for it? (Bill Maher Becomes First Host to Make Late-Night Return Without Writers)

CBS decided to start broadcasting its premier episode of Yellowstone. It originally debuted on the Paramount Network back on June 20, 2018 and got 6.6 million viewers for CBS. When you consider that brand new episodes of The Equalizer, wish was in the same time slot last year, garnered 6.47 million viewers last season. This may not be a bad idea!

Disney announced that 10 Monday Night Football games will be broadcast on ABC and ESPN. ABC had planned to run two hours of Dancing With the Stars from 8 p.m. - 10 p.m. on Mondays, with new reality spinoff The Golden Bachelor airing at 10 p.m.

The network has decided to pair The Golden Bachelor with nine-year-old sibling Bachelor in Paradise to fill Thursday primetime, while DWTS will move to Tuesdays, starting September 26.

The MNF average audience was 22.6 million viewers across ESPN, ESPN 2 and ABC for its season-opening matchup. Which was a record.

ABC's entire Thursday night lineup consists of game shows: "Celebrity Wheel of Fortune," "Press Your Luck" and "The $100,000 Pyramid." The ABC has no new scripted programming on its fall schedule. On Fox Gordon Ramsay will work double shifts with shows airing on two nights.

Survivor and The Amazing Race moving to 90-minute episodes this fall

If you are missing late night hosts, they have created a podcast for you. Jimmy Kimmel, John Oliver, Seth Meyers, Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Fallon. They are planning to release 12 episodes with the guys talking about their time in Hollywood with some comedy bits thrown in. .

Three streamers are in good position to weather the strike according to Forbes from the article:

Discovery+ (Now Max)

Which one is in the best shape? That appears to be Discovery+ (which recently merged with corporate sibling Warner Bros.' HBO Max to become the megastreamer Max), and that makes sense. Before the merger, Discovery+ was known for its unscripted content, reflecting the Discovery family of cable brands from TLC to HGTV to Food Network, which is relatively cheap to produce and easy to make a lot of. Ninety-five percent of Discovery+ content is unscripted, according to Parrot's research.

Peacock

Ranked second is NBCUniversal's Peacock—40% of its content is unscripted. With rights to Bravo hits like the Real Housewives franchise and Vanderpump Rules, Peacock is well situated to thrive without new scripted content. To wit, the recent Vanderpump season 10 reunion part one drew 514,000 households when it was released on Peacock on May 25, according to Samba TV, with a Bravo audience of 1.1 million households. So there's clearly an appetite for such shows even well into their runs.

Paramount+

Paramount+ had the third-highest level of unscripted fare, 35%. Fully a fifth of its viewership comes from unscripted programs, driven largely by mega-hit RuPaul's Drag Race, which also airs on Hulu, and CBS programs such as Survivor.

What about the Emmys?

The Television Academy and Fox TV, which was scheduled to air the show this year, initially kept the original Sept. 18 show date in place, with hopes the strikes would end quickly. But with no realistic prospects for resolution, Fox and the academy decided in mid-August to change the show date to Jan. 15, 2024

The new date looked a long way off when it was scheduled, but Emmy organizers may have to face the prospect that the strikes could still be going on in January. Writers have currently been off the job for 4 1/2 months, the actors for two months. The stoppages spilling into next year would make them historically long, and go well past initial predictions. Prolonged strikes could mean another Emmys postponement, or a show transformed into a glorified news conference, as happened with some awards during the pandemic.

Our Picks for rewatching or watching for the first time if you missed it.

Community - Six seasons of gut busting laughter! If you only watch a couple of episodes don't miss the paintball episodes
Bosch - Seven seasons. A crime procedural based on the best selling novels by Michael Connelly.
Chuck - Five Seasons. When a computer geek inadvertently downloads critical government secrets into his brain, both the CIA and the NSA assign an agent to protect him and exploit his newfound skills.
White Collar - Six seasons. A white-collar criminal agrees to help the FBI catch other white-collar criminals using his expertise as an art and securities thief, counterfeiter, and conman.
Castle - Eight seasons. A suave, best-selling author teams up with a strait-laced detective to solve crimes in New York City.

Podcast #1116: CEDIA 2023 with DJ from Bright Side Home Theater Sep 15, 2023

Show notes

This week DJ Briggs from BrightSideHometheater.com joins the show to discuss what he saw at CEDIA. We also read your emails and take a look at the week's news. News: Hisense upstages TCL by adding a gigantic 100-inch mini-LED TV 2023 CEDIA Expo Best of Show Winners Last week the Custom Electronic Design And Installation Association better known as CEDIA had their annual show in Denver CO. On today's show we will discuss some of the awards that were given out. CEDIA is the global industry association and central touch point for smart home technology, provides members with cutting-edge education, develops standards to ensure the highest levels of professionalism, and is the industry's only certifying body. CEDIA furthers collaboration with architects, designers, builders, and homeowners to deliver technology solutions that allow families to experience their best moments in life in the comfort of their own homes. Below are the awards from Residential System, TWICE and What Hi-Fi. We are not going through the entire list but we pick products that we feel our listeners not only are interested in but can afford to buy (well some of them anyway). We also have a bonus section where DJ Briggs of BightSideHomeTheater.com gives us his list of five things he thought were super cool. Check out his podcast to find out why he felt that way. Residential Systems entries were judged through the lens of the residential integrator, while TWICE based theirs on a consumer electronics retail view and What Hi-Fi? from the home entertainment enthusiast perspective. Residential Systems Best of Show Awards Winners AWOL Vision AWOL Vision 150" 4K 3D RGB Laser Projector LTV-3500 Pro $6000 All the AWOL Vision laser projectors have been officially Dolby Vision certified by Dolby Lab The Dolby Vision feature can be activated by updating the incoming September 2023 version firmware wirelessly regardless of when you bought it. True 3500 ANSI Lumens, the LTV-3500 UST projector is the brightest, triple-laser 4K UST projector on the market. Cinematic 3D Display With high enough brightness even during the day, LTV-3500 4k laser projector is the best choice for you. Paired with our ALR Day light projector screen, LTV-3500 delivers bright and sharp details even under high ambient light, no need for blackout curtains. The AWOL VISION UST 4K projector covers 107% of the top BT 2020 Color Gamut. It reaches 147% of DCI-P3 used for digital movie theater projection, giving you superior contrast and color accuracy. Epson America, Inc. Epson EpiqVision Ultra LS800 4K PRO-UHD Ultra Short-Throw 3-Chip 3LCD Smart Streaming Laser Projector $3500 Picture sizes up to 150" in 16:9 Modern Low Profile Design 4K PRO-UHD Resolution¹ 3-Chip 3LCD Technology 10-Bit HDR Color 4,000 Lumens of Color & White Brightness² Over 2,500,000:1 Dynamic Contrast Ratio 2.1 Audio System by Yamaha Three HDMI 2.0 Ports (1 ARC) 16.7ms Input Lag – Ideal for Gaming Built-In Android TV³ Easy Setup App for iOS & Android 2-Year Limited Warranty Available in Black or White Ethereal 8 Meter Velox Passive HDMI Cable $240 Supports up to 48Gbps, 4K/120, 8K/60 & Dynamic HDR Advanced features in metallurgy, topology, dielectric and shielding 3mm Shield Strip-back - helps to reduce 6G jitter 100% Copper Shielding - reduces EMI Bypass ground - provides better return loss Conductors direct solder to connector Audio Return Channel (eARC and ARC) Grip-Lox™ terminal Furrion Aurora 2.1 Outdoor Soundbar Speaker with Wireless Subwoofer $770 Six speaker system with bass radiator for powerful sound output 130W of explosive, high-definition audio Wireless 8" subwoofer to add more bass Speaker Frequency response: 200Hz-18kHz Subwoofer frequency response: 16Hz-256Hz Multiple equalizer settings for customized audio tuning Bluetooth® 5.0 enabled for easy pairing with TV and other mobile devices HDMI and optical inputs for connecting devices IP45-rated weatherproof housing to protect against the elements Weatherproof remote control, HDMI ARC cable and mounting brackets included Furrion Aurora Sun 4K UHD LED Outdoor Smart TV with HDR10 starting at $3000 Smart platform powered by webOS Hub allows for streaming your favorite apps, movies and shows 4K ultra-high definition HDR10 Technology Anti-glare, 1500-nit LED screen RangeXtend™ external antennas for stronger WiFi signal IP54 rated, weatherproof housing Works with Furrion Aurora Soundbar, mounts & covers XtremeShield™ IK08-rated impact-resistant screen for protection against collisions and scratches Connects to Furrion soundbars via Bluetooth, HDMI or optical inputs HD Anywhere uControl Smart Remote uControl is a smart home system that focuses on the things you do in your home everyday. From enjoying your favorite TV shows, immersing yourself in music or effortlessly changing the lighting to suit your mood, all from one unified, universal and unintimidating interface. PSB Speakers Alpha IQ Powered Speakers $1300/pr A simplified approach to audio, the Alpha iQ comes equipped with a built-in digital amplifier and BluOS streaming so you can access and control everything from streaming services and digital music collections to EQ settings and multi-room speaker management. A versatile addition to any home audio system, whether in a stereo set-up, home theater, TV speaker or as bookshelf speakers. ¾" (19mm) Aluminum dome tweeter with ferrofluid neodymium magnet 4" (100mm) Polypropylene mid-bass driver with steel basket and rubber surround Tuned port and DSP-enabled bass extension Built-in network streamer based on BluOS platform Audiophile-grade DAC supports resolution up to 24-bit/192kHz Supports Apple AirPlay 2, Bluetooth, Spotify Connect and Tidal Connect Sony Electronics BRAVIA XR 65" Class A95L QD-OLED 4K HDR Google TV $3500 65" $5000 77" Sony Electronics STRAZ5000ES Premium ES 11.2 CH 8K A/V Receiver $2100 Sony Electronics STRAZ7000ES Premium ES 13.2 CH 8K A/V Receiver $3300 Sony Electronics VPL-XW6000ES 4K HDR Laser Home Theater Projector with Native 4K SXRD Panel $12000 Sony Electronics VPL-XW7000ES 4K HDR Laser Home Theater Projector with Native 4K SXRD Panel $28000 StormAudio ISR Fusion 20 AV Receiver Based on the award-winning ISP Elite MK3 platform, the Immersive Sound Receiver Fusion 20 is a 20-channels processor integrating 16 channels of the latest Edge amplification technology from Danish based ICE Power, exhibiting extremely low noise and distortion levels with 150W (8ohm) per channel, and up to 500W (8ohm) when bridged. TWICE Best of Show Awards Winners AWOL Vision AWOL Vision 150" 4K 3D RGB Laser Projector LTV-3500 Pro $6000 - see above Ethereal 8 Meter Velox Passive HDMI Cable $240 - see above Hisense 100″U8K $10,000 See News Story Samsung 77" Class S95C OLED 4K TV $4200 Samsung 98" Class Neo QLED 8K TV (QN990C) $40000 Samsung 85" Class The Terrace 4K TV (Outdoor TV Full Sun) $20,000 Samsung HW-Q990C Soundbar 11.1.4 ch. Wireless Dolby ATMOS Soundbar $1600 Sony Electronics BRAVIA XR 65" Class A95L QD-OLED 4K HDR Google TV $3500 65" $5000 77" Sony Electronics VPL-XW6000ES 4K HDR Laser Home Theater Projector with Native 4K SXRD Panel $12000 Sony Electronics STRAZ7000ES Premium ES 13.2 CH 8K A/V Receiver $3300 Sony STRAZ3000ES Premium ES 9.2 CH 8K A/V Receiver $1700 Sony STR-AN1000 7.2 Channel 8K A/V Receiver $700 What Hi-Fi? Best of Show Winners Hisense L9H TriChroma Laser UST Projector ($5500 - $6500) Trichroma™ Triple-Laser Light Engine 4K Resolution 25,000 hour lifespan Reaches over 1 billion colors (107% of BT.2020 color space) New Ambient Light Rejecting (ALR) Screen 3000 ANSI lumens brightness 2,000,000:1 Dynamic Contrast Ratio Google TV Dolby Vision / Dolby Atmos 3 HDMI (2 x 4K@120hz,1 x eARC) Smooth Motion and MEMC Game Mode ATSC 3.0 Wi-Fi 6e Wi-Fi 6e 40-Watt Built-in Speakers Sizes: 100" and 120" Availability: Summer 2023 Sony HT-S2000 3.1ch Dolby Atmos® Soundbar $300 The HT-S2000 soundbar delivers high-quality audio and an upscaled cinematic surround sound experience for all your content. Built for the Sony ecosystem, this soundbar solution is compatible with Sony SA-SW3, SA-SW5 subwoofers and SA-RS3S rear speakers and integrates fully with BRAVIA XR™ TVs. DJ Briggs CEDIA Wrap Top 5 Room Experiences (5) JVC (8 New Projectors 6 8K and 2 4K) Amazing 8K Picture Amazing 4K HDR Stewart Screen Great Next Gen (2) tone mapping (4) Sony 7000 Projector and 7000 Receiver Fantastic Overall Experience No Amps 4 ohm Kef Speakers No Video Processing 180" firehawk 1.3 gain Stewart Screen $68K for EVERYTHING in the room (3) SVS No roof PB 16 Ultras ($2900) ROCKED the Media Floor Bang & Olufsen right next to them and they were drowning them out and they were IN A ROOM and B&O was in the open 🤣 (1B) Trinnov Custom built room in Italy Perfectly curated Home Theater Experience 24 subs WaveForming!! Barco MadVR Seamore Excellence AT screen Amazing Bass Equalization (1A)Grimani Anthony Grimani/Storm Audio/Seymore Excellence/Row One Seating Perfectly curated Home Theater Experience Grimani Speakers Barco MadVR Seamore Excellence AT screen Future Tech we can all look forward to!! WINNER 🍿

Full show notes at the publisher

Podcast #1115: Should IPTV Streamers be Treated like Cable Companies? Sep 08, 2023

Show notes

This week look at what would happen if Instagram and TikTok allowed 10 minute short video clips. Also, we breakdown why local network affiliates are trying to convince the FCC to start treating IPTV Streamers like cable TV providers. We also read your emails and take a look at the week's news.

News:

Other:

A New Paradigm in Immersive Audio Design Excellence

Instagram is internally testing the ability to create Reels up to 10 minutes long

By increasing the time limit on Reels from three minutes to 10, Instagram would be aligning its short-form video product with TikTok, which expanded its maximum video length to 10 minutes back in February 2022. The change would also put Reels in competition with YouTube. Full Article Here…

Local ABC, CBS, FOX, & NBC Owners Demand The FCC Reclassify YouTube TV, Fubo, DIRECTV STREAM, & More As Cable TV Companies

In a nutshell - A bunch of affiliate stations are asking the FCC to treat IPTV streamers like cable companies. Which would force the streamers to negotiate directly with the TV station owners.

If local TV stations win, Fubo, Hulu, and others wouldn't be able to strike deals directly with Paramount for all CBS stations. Instead, they will need to go to each individual owner of each local TV station.

For the record - CBS owns 14 stations throughout the US.

California — Los Angeles — KCBS
California — San Francisco — KPIX
California — Sacramento — KOVR
Colorado — Denver — KCNC
Florida — Miami — WFOR
Illinois — Chicago — WBBM
Maryland — Baltimore — WJZ
Massachusetts — Boston — WBZ
Michigan — Detroit — WWJ
Minnesota — Minneapolis — WCCO
New York — New York — WCBS
Pennsylvania — Philadelphia — KYW
Pennsylvania — Pittsburgh — KDKA
Texas — Dallas/Fort Worth — KTVT

The net result would mean that live TV streaming services would need to pay a $1.23 fee per subscriber every year for the FCC regulatory fee imposed on cable TV companies. It's our take that the amount would start at $1.23 and go up very quickly.

So Nexstar Media Group, Sinclair, E.W. Scripps, and Gray Television want to cut out the big networks and negotiate directly to bring their locals to streaming services. They hope to get better deals than what the parent companies have agreed to. They argue that the current situation is unfair to local station owners.

The argument is that the deals as they exist today don't give local stations enough money to produce local news.

For now, it looks like local station owners are ready for a long fight to get what they believe will be a better deal for them.

Thoughts on the situation:

I never understood why any local network could charge for cable access? What did they do before cable? We could barely watch some channels in the 70s. After cable they all came in clear. If anything, they should have been paying the cable companies to carry the channels.
Let's say Hulu and the rest of them just say forget it! What happens? - The only real impact that I see is with the NFL
Why wouldn't Nexstar just tell the networks that they want a bigger cut and have one big voice when negotiating? Sounds like the networks screwed the affiliates.
What do local stations provide? In the old days they would provide weather traffic and sports. Now I get real time traffic on my phone as well as weather and sports scores. For breaking news, I follow my affiliate and if something big is happening locally I jump on their news stream. Maybe they should cut their budgets and have one newscast in the morning and evening.
Are they really locally owned when a company like Sinclair owns multiple stations across the US?

Podcast #1114: Where to Watch College Football Sep 01, 2023

Show notes

This week is the start of the college football season and we help you find where your favorite team's games can be watched. We also read your emails and take a look at the week's news.

News:

College Football - Where can you find it?

It's probably the best time of year. You have Baseball wrapping up, the air is cooling down, and it's college football season. There are so many games and leagues but where can you watch your favorite team? We have done the research and this is where you can find the leagues and games for free.

Conference Networks

Many conferences have their own 24/7 network that carry more than just football. But on Saturdays in the fall they are all about football! Here is where you will find four of the most popular conference networks

Pac - 12 - Spectrum, xfinity, Cox, dish, SlingTV, Frontier, Fubo, Vidgo Full List can be found here.

Big Ten - Fox Sports App with TV provider credentials. AT&T U-verse, Cox, DirecTV/DTV Stream, Dish, Frontier, Fubo, Google Fiber, Hulu Live, Filo, Sling, Virgo, Youtube TV

SEC - AT&T U-Verse. Cox. DIRECTV/Stream, DISH, Spectrum, Xfinity, Verizon Fios. Streaming on Hulu, Sling TV, YouTube TV

ACC - Youtube TV, Hulu, Spectrum, DIRECTV/Stream, Dish Network, Sling TV, Cox

Broadcast Networks

In addition to their own networks, the conferences have contracts with the broadcast networks to air the biggest games of the week.

ABC: ACC, American, Big 12, Pac-12, championship games (ACC, American, Big 12 and Pac-12 in odd-numbered years), Citrus Bowl, LA Bowl and Las Vegas Bowl

CBS: SEC, Big Ten, Mountain West, SEC Championship Game, Commander-in-Chief's Trophy games (include Army-Navy) and Sun Bowl

Fox: Big 12, Big Ten, Mountain West, Pac-12, championship games (Big Ten, Mountain West, and

Pac-12 in even-numbered years) and Holiday Bowl

NBC: Notre Dame, Big Ten

The CW: ACC

Cable Networks

The cable networks get in on the action as well!

CBS Sports Network: Army, C-USA, MAC, Mountain West, Navy, UConn, C-USA Championship Game and Hula Bowl

ESPN networks (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNews, ESPN3 and ESPN+): ACC, American, Big 12, Big Ten, C-USA, MAC, Pac-12, SEC, Sun Belt, UMass, championship games (MAC and Sun Belt) and most bowl games including the entirety of the College Football Playoff

Fox Sports 1: Big 12, Big Ten, Mountain West and Pac-12

Fox Sports 2: Mountain West

Peacock: Notre Dame, Big Ten

If your team is involved in a huge game (or playing Notre Dame) look for them to be on the broadcast networks or ESPN. If you went to a less competitive major conference school, their games will be on the networks overflow channels like FS1, Peacock, Espn the Ocho , etc, Unless they are playing Notre Dame. Then they will be on display for what inevitably will be the smaller schools' Superbowl.

IPTV Services

DirecTV Stream

FuboTV

Hulu Plus Live TV

Sling TV

YouTube TV

Base price

$75 per month for 75-plus channels

$75 per month for 100-plus channels

$70 per month for 90-plus channels

$40 per month for 30-plus (Orange) or $45 for 40-plus (Blue) channels

$73 per month for 100-plus channels

Free trial

Yes

ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC channels

Yes, in many markets

ABC, Fox and NBC only in select cities (Blue only)

Yes, in many markets

Simultaneous streams per account

20 (in home, 3 outside of it)

10 (in home, 3 outside of it)

2 ($15 option for unlimited)

1 (Orange), 3 (Blue)

3 ($20 adds unlimited plus 4K streams)

Family member/user profiles

Yes

Cloud DVR

Yes (20 hours, unlimited for $10 a month)

Yes (1,000 hours)

Yes (unlimited)

Yes (50 hours, 200 hours for $5 a month)

Yes (unlimited)

Fast-forward through or skip commercials with cloud DVR

No (yes with $15 option)

Yes

Podcast #1113: Vintage Stereo Gear Aug 25, 2023

Show notes

This week a listener asks if his separates from the 80s are as good as his more modern home theater equipment. We also read your emails and look at the week's news.

News:

Other:

Vintage vs Modern Gear

We received the following email from Chris asking us to take a look at Vintage vs Modern Gear:

In your latest episode, you were discussing receivers. And I got to thinking:

Are the receivers of today drastically better than the component stereo systems of the 80s?

So if today, you put a component system from the 80s in the same environment as a receiver from the 2020s, could you tell the difference?

We have seen the resurgence of the turntable, will we also see the resurgence of the component stereo? Separate tuner, amp, equalizer, etc.

Can you explain a little in layman's terms the way the music is delivered today via compression and frequency reduction (Spotify, XM, Apple Music, etc)?

Meaning does the vinyl LP for example, go from -20 kHz to +140 kHz whereas streaming compresses to -10 kHz to +80 kHz, so you could get a better audio experience with vinyl?

Vintage Gear

Size and Weight - Vintage amplifiers are heavy by today's standards. In their heyday, owning one that weighed fifty to one hundred pounds wasn't unheard of. A majority of that weight came from the massive transformers housed inside. Those large transformers let the amplifier drive demanding speakers with ease and let the system run at a higher current.

Most vintage receivers used Class A/B amps, which were more efficient and ran cooler than their Class A counterparts.

Power - During the "power wars" of the '70s and '80s, manufacturers kept increasing how much power their amps could output, really pushing the limits of the amplifier technology of the time. For example, the Pioneer SX-1980 from 1978 cranked out an astonishing 270 watts per channel.

Electronics - a majority of amps were hardwired and didn't have an over-reliance on a circuit board, meaning they were more user serviceable if you knew what you were doing, and often cheaper to fix if you didn't.

New Gear

Performance - Class A/B amps sound better today than ever, given the significant improvements in transformer technology and component circuitry. Modern amplifiers have less distortion than older ones, and you get better performance for a lot less money.

It's a digital world - With modern amplifiers and receivers, you're gaining modern connections. From HDMIs to optical and coaxial connections, having digital inputs on your amplifier means you can hook up your TV, gaming consoles, CD player, and more. The sound quality is clearer and more precise. You can also use Bluetooth or Wi-Fi and an app-based interface to stream your music for extra convenience.

Which one sounds better?

Ready for our non-answer? It depends. There are certainly receivers from the 70s and 80s that sound better than receivers built today. But you are talking about the high end products. For example, the classic Pioneer SX1980 is rated at 0.03% THD and back in 1980, it would cost you $1,295 to pick one up. That's about $5,450 in today's dollars. Yamaha's A-S501 is rated at 0.019% THD, and can be had for $549.

Vinyl vs Digital

Frequency response - Both can reproduce sound that is beyond what a human can hear.

It comes down to how the digital music is sampled and in some cases compressed. Low quality mp3 and AAC files throw away much of the recording so you are not getting all of the original. Let's put that aside because none of us listen to low quality music. There is a debate, however, about high quality mp3 and AAC (anything greater than 256Kbps sampled at 44.1KHz) vs lossless. I personally can't hear the difference and have done many blind A/B tests with those who claim that they can hear the difference only to conclude that none of my self proclaimed audiophile friends can hear the difference either. I won't say that no one can hear the difference reliably, but I will say that the number of those who can is very small.

When it comes to vinyl it's a preference for the sound. I prefer the clean sound of high quality digital. It's easy to take my entire library with me everywhere I go. Braden loves his vinyl. It's warmer and more nostalgic. One is not better than the other, it's a personal preference.

I am happy that I can now have an audio experience that was only available to people with deep pockets back in the 80s. Today, everyone can have a system that my 20 year old self only dreamed about. And you can take it on the go!

Podcast #1112: Listener Speaker Configurations Aug 18, 2023

Show notes

This week Braden tells his Soundbar saga and Ara bought an Airpod Max. We also have early results of our Listener Speaker Configuration Survey. Plus we read your emails and the week's news.

News:

Listener Speaker Configurations

On the last show we asked you to tell us what type of speaker configurations you are listening to. This week we will give you the results and provide you some resources for getting the most out of your setup.

Atmos 32%

7 Channel 32%

5 Channel 32%

Soundbar 2 channel 26.5%

6 Channel 6%

9 Channel 3%

Dolby Speaker Setup Guides

Small Den/Bedroom ~250 Square feet Soundbar or 2.1

Family/Bonus Room up to 300 square feet 5.1

Greater than 300 square feet 7.1 - Consider seating as well. 7.1 systems need space behind the seating positions to be properly configured.

Atmos

There is an option in all of the above scenarios for Atmos. The question is whether it's worth it or not. Ask yourself the following questions:

Are you more concerned about sound effects vs sound quality. If the answer is yes, put more of your budget towards Atmos capability.
Is your room big enough to fully utilize Atmos speakers? While you can put Atmos anywhere, do you need it? A 5.1 system in a small room will provide you with a dynamic experience that can overwhelm the senses. Is there someplace else you can put resources to improve the experience like room treatments or better front speakers?
How much content do you watch that has Atmos? Of course this can change as more movies and TVs are mixed for Atmos.
Do I have a good subwoofer? You will get more bang for your buck improvement in your theater with a properly sized and configured subwoofer than by adding Atmos.

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