| Page 1170 | Sound & Vision

Scott Wilkinson | Sep 26, 2011

I'm in the market for a high-quality plasma TV, and I have narrowed the choices to two: Samsung PN64D8000 and Panasonic TC-P65VT30. I have gone to three high-end A/V stores in New York City and was told that the Samsung ranks better than the Panasonic. But I was in a Best Buy store today and was told that nobody comes close to the Panasonic, especially since it is THX-certified. How do you rate these two models?

Michael Quinones

Tech2

HTPC Update #2: Of Mice and Mousepads

Geoffrey Morrison | Sep 26, 2011

If you've been following my progress integrating an HTPC into my theater, you'll recall my frustration with getting fluid and precise control.

Blu-ray Movie Reviews

The Conspirator

Corey Gunnestad | Sep 26, 2011

On the evening of April 14, 1865, President Abraham Lincoln was shot and killed in Ford’s Theater in Washington, D.C. Twelve days later, his assassin John Wilkes Booth, perished while barricading himself in a barn rather than surrender to the Union Army. In the tumultuous weeks following the assassination, a web of conspiracy was uncovered, and a number of Booth’s accomplices were arrested and put on trial.

The conspirator of the film’s title is Mary Surratt (Robin Wright), the woman who owned the boarding house where the accomplices met in secret and whose son was closely tied to Booth. Blinded by revenge and an unrelenting desire to put the matter to rest, the American State Department completely disregarded the rule of law and Surratt’s constitutional rights in their fervor to secure a conviction. James McAvoy deftly plays Frederick Aiken, the attorney assigned to defend Surratt and who ends up fighting overwhelming opposition from the seats of power in his quest for a fair trial.

Vote CEDIA 2011

What Are You Most Excited About from CEDIA?

Scott Wilkinson | Sep 23, 2011

CES may be the biggest consumer-electronics trade show of the year, but CEDIA often includes more important product announcements for home theater specifically, and this year was certainly no exception. We saw and heard lots of super-cool toys in Indianapolis earlier this month, as we reported in our extensive coverage.

Now it's your turn to tell us what you found most exciting from CEDIA, whether you were there in person or followed our posts from the show. For this poll, I've listed a few of our favorite items, but of course, there was far more to pique the interest of any home-theater buff, so if your fave isn't here, click on "Other" and let us know what it is in the comments.

Vote to see the results and leave a comment about your choice.

What Are You Most Excited About from CEDIA?

Choices

Sharp Elite PRO-X5FD 3D LCD TV

4K projectors from JVC, Sony

3D projectors from Epson, JVC, others

JVC DLA-RS45 D-ILA 3D projector ($3500)

Epson 61000 3LCD Reflective projector

Atlantic Technology H-PAS PowerBar 235 soundbar

GoldenEar Aon bookshelf speakers

Totem Acoustics Metal floorstanding speakers

Definitive Technology StudioMonitor bookshelf speakers

Harman QuantumLogic Surround sound processing

Other

Leave this field blank

Ask S&V

New BDP, Old AVR

Scott Wilkinson | Sep 23, 2011

I read HT's review of the Oppo BDP-93 Blu-ray player, which was very helpful. I have an older AVR (Pioneer Elite VSX-43TX, 96/24 capable, but no HDMI or DTS/Dolby HD decoders), so if I get the BDP-93, the review suggests that I connect HDMI from the Oppo to my new Panasonic TC-P65VT30 plasma and use analog outputs to the AVR. But what about using either coax or optical out from the BDP-93 to the AVR? At least that would cut down on the cabling and clutter. Also, will I hear the benefits of Dolby or DTS HD audio via analog or digital audio from the Oppo, since the Elite is 96/24 capable?

Peter Kukiel

Grace Notes

Netflix: Diabolically Clever

Leslie Shapiro | Sep 23, 2011

Netflix customers are hopping mad, and the company predicts it will lose a million customers. Its stock price has tanked. Has its CEO, Reed Hastings, lost his mind, or is this merely a speed bump along the path of a much grander strategy?

Signals

The Sound of One Battery Clapping

Ken C. Pohlmann | Sep 23, 2011

Ah, the irony. Unwanted traffic noise is a bane of modern existence. Countless engineers have spent entire careers laboring to reduce vehicle noises from engine, exhaust, tires and aerodynamic turbulence. Most drivers and passengers prefer quieter cars; for starters, it makes it easier to listen to music.

Tech2

Haters Gonna Hate

Geoffrey Morrison | Sep 23, 2011

I don't understand some people. Ok, a lot of people. Internet people, mostly. The type of people with the need to proselytize their views about meaningless crap.

You know, like what I do. Only, not paid.

These malcontents have a passion for posting vitriol wherever their sensibilities about good and bad companies/products/technologies are impugned.

To which I say, WTF?

AV Receiver Reviews

Sony STR-DN1020 A/V Receiver

Mark Fleischmann | Sep 23, 2011

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value

Price: $500 At A Glance: iPhone/iPod dock and USB cable included • iDevice remote control app • Mixing studio listening modes

There are two hard-wired options for integrating content from an iPod or iPhone into a receiver-based home theater system. The A/V receiver might have a Made for iPod–compatible USB jack, allowing you to plug the device right into the front or back panel. Or the iPod can fit into an accessory dock. But wouldn’t it be great to have both options?

Blu-ray Movie Reviews

The Killing

Fred Kaplan | Sep 23, 2011

Stanley Kubrick’s The Killing is a nifty film noir with brisk dialogue (by noir novelist Jim Thompson) and brushstroke characters. It features a taut narrative within a daringly fitful structure (the plot starts over and over, charting the events from different points of view, leading up to the climax) and an ending straight out of O. Henry. The story line is fairly conventional—a racetrack heist, the mastermind who devises it, and the gang of misfits who try to pull it off. But the theme—human foibles trumping the best-laid plans—anticipates many Kubrick films to come, notably Paths of Glory, Dr. Strangelove, and 2001: A Space Odyssey. This is also the first film where Kubrick, just 28 years old, displays a master director’s touch: a keen visual sense, both for the composition of the frame and for the fluid camera motion (it seems to be moving almost constantly). The acting is a bit outsized, but so it is in most Kubricks, and as with most, it fits the movie’s mood. This one marks his first association with Sterling Hayden, who’s very fine as the methodical planner: mordantly witty, slow-burning with desire to break through life’s trappings, and in the end stoic about his prospects.

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