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Audio Video News
RIP: Keith Emerson, Founder and Keyboardist of ELP
SV Staff  |  Mar 12, 2016
Another icon of the rock generation has departed this world: Keith Emerson, founder and keyboardist extraordinaire of the influential progressive rock band Emerson, Lake & Palmer, a.k.a. ELP, died Thursday night at his home in Santa Monica. He was 71.
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The S&V Interview
Remembering Sir George Martin: Producer Way Beyond Compare
Mike Mettler  |  Mar 11, 2016
Sir George Martin passed away at the age of 90 in Wiltshire, England on March 8, 2016. Best known for his indelible, enduring, and daringly innovative studio work with The Beatles from 1962–70, Martin also produced a wide swath of artists including Peter Sellers, Gerry and The Pacemakers, Shirley Bassey, Ella Fitzgerald, The Bee Gees, The Mahavishnu Orchestra, America, Jeff Beck, and Cheap Trick. (The list could indeed go on and on and on...) Perhaps ELO mastermind Jeff Lynne (and onetime latter-day Beatles producer himself) said it best: “His productions were brilliant. He created his own sound.” I reached out to a number of musicians and producers to get their impressions of Sir George’s legacy from behind the board, as a trusted collaborator, and as someone who forever changed the way we listen to pop and rock music.
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Tech2
NERVANA Headphones: "I'm gonna get you high today, 'cause it's Friday."
Lauren Dragan  |  Mar 11, 2016
After CES, about a dozen people forwarded me some version of this story concerning a pair of headphones that claim to make you feel psychologically and physically better just by listening to them. Okay, technically, most of the articles stated the headphones “get you high,” but that’s more or less the same concept. Needless to say, I was initially convinced that Lirpa Labs was somehow involved.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Aladdin
Thomas J. Norton  |  Mar 11, 2016
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Aladdin was released theatrically in 1992, during a renaissance in Disney’s hand-drawn animation that also gave us Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King. But its release on DVD didn’t happen until 2004, and this is its first time on Blu-ray. It’s been too long a wait.

You know the story. Street rat Aladdin finds a magic lamp, he rubs it, and a genie appears to grant his new master three wishes. It’s a tale of redemption, growth, love, treachery, and—oh, forget all that. Its Boy meets Genie, Boy loses Genie, Boy gets Genie.

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
The Fifth Element
David Vaughn  |  Mar 11, 2016
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Korben Dallas, a New York cab driver, is just trying to get through another day when a fare drops into his cab unexpectedly, and before he knows it, he’s responsible for saving the galaxy from an intergalactic feud that happens every 5,000 years. The fare is the Fifth Element, who, when combined with earth, wind, fire, and water, becomes the perfect weapon to save the human race from destruction—if Korben can keep her safe until she fulfills her destiny.
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Audio Video News
DPL Labs Certifies the First Optical HDMI Cable for 18Gbps Throughput
SV Staff  |  Mar 11, 2016
Tributaries has introduced an active fiber optic HDMI cable that has been certified by DPL Labs to transport HDMI signals at data rates up to 18Gbps over cable lengths up to 98 feet. The cable is said to be the first to receive such certification.
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Audio Video News
DirecTV Tees Up New 4K Channel with Masters
SV Staff  |  Mar 11, 2016
AT&T and its new subsidiary DirecTV are putting golf fans “on the green” at the 2016 Masters Tournament with the first live 4K Ultra High Definition (UHD) broadcast in the United States.
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Throwback Thursday
Flashback 2001: Introducing DVD-Audio
SV Staff  |  Mar 10, 2016
DVD-Audio was the big story in our February/March 2000 issue, which devoted more than a dozen pages to the launch of a promising new multichannel music format hailed by Neil Young and other artists as audio’s second coming. Things didn’t quite turn out as planned.
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Audio Video NewsNew Products
LG’s Announces ‘Super UHD’ TV Pricing, Availability
SV Staff  |  Mar 10, 2016
LG today announced pricing and availability for the Super UHD TV series it previewed at CES 2016 and said all models will support the HDR10 and Dolby Vision high-dynamic range (HDR) formats. Dolby Vision will be added via a firmware update in Early April.

The 2016 lineup, featuring IPS 4K Quantum display technology, 10-bit color processing, and LG’s webOS smart TV platform, comprises nine models with 55- to 86-inch screen sizes. Models with 55-, 60- and 65-inch screens from the UH7700 and UH8500 series will be available later this month at prices ranging from $1,800 for the 55UD7700 to $3,000 for the 65UH8500.

LG said 65- and 86-inch models in the flagship UH9500 series will be available later this spring at $4,000 and $10,000, respectively. The 75-inch 75UH8500 is also slated for later introduction at $5,000.

The company said it is working with Amazon Video, Netflix, and VUDU to offer HDR content streaming via its webOS interface.

Most major studios have announced support for Dolby Vision and Dolby estimates as many as 100 titles could be available by the end of 2016.

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Ask S&V
Setting Up an AVR for Multichannel DSD Playback
Al Griffin  |  Mar 10, 2016
Got a tech question for Sound & Vision? Email us at AskSandV@gmail.com

Q I own a Sony BDP-BX57 Blu-ray player that can play SACDs. I also own a Pioneer VSX-820-K AV receiver that can only decode two-channel DSD signals from SACDs via its HDMI inputs. To get the best performance when playing multichannel SACDs, should I set the HDMI output on the Blu-ray player to bitstream? Also, which of the following listening modes on the AVR should I choose: Auto Surround, Direct, or Pure Direct? —Chris Murphy / via e-mail

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