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Headphone Reviews
NAD Viso HP30 Headphone
Steve Guttenberg  |  Mar 23, 2016

Performance
Build Quality
Comfort
Value
PRICE $229

AT A GLANCE
Plus
A crisply styled, downright elegant design
Sweet balance takes edge off harsh recordings
Hinged headband allows for compact storage
Minus
Highish ear pad pressure, comfort issues

THE VERDICT
The NAD Viso HP30 on-ear headphone’s plush midrange and punchy bass supply a visceral kick beyond the reach of most on-ears.

NAD rocked the audiophile world in the late 1970s when it introduced its astonishing 3020 integrated amp. That amp eventually became one of the best-selling of all time and established NAD as the brand that prioritized performance over superfluous features and glitzy styling, at affordable prices. That “sound quality first” ethos continued over the decades, and NAD recently scored another direct hit with its Viso HP50 over-the-ear headphones. So, I was eager to check out their new Viso HP30 on-ear model.

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Audio Video News
New 4K Smartphone Processor Packs DTS Headphone:X
SV Staff  |  Mar 23, 2016
It looks like 3D surround-sound headphone listening may be heading to smartphones. DTS recently announced that its DTS Headphone:X technology is included in the new Helio X20 flagship smartphone processor from MediaTek, a Taiwan-based semiconductor company that makes chips for wireless communications.
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Audio Video News
Netflix Announces 2016 “Recommended” TVs
SV Staff  |  Mar 23, 2016
Netflix has announced the first round of 2016 TVs to qualify for its updated, more stringent Netflix Recommended TV program.
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A/V Veteran
Do it Yourself...Or Not?
Thomas J. Norton  |  Mar 22, 2016
A recent posting here on Sound&Vision showed a very ambitious do-it-yourself speaker built by a skilled audio enthusiast in Latvia. The finished product was originally found by us here and originated on one of the most exhaustive and impressive loudspeaker DIY websites, troelsgravesen.dk.

One question in the posting’s comments section suggested that the roughly $5000/pair cost that would go into building such speakers (not including time and labor) might be better put into buying a finished pair of $5000 speakers...

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Audio Video News
NY Luxury Technology Show Opens Tomorrow
SV Staff  |  Mar 22, 2016
The Luxury Technology Show, the first of three such events, opens tomorrow in New York City at the Metropolitan Pavilion.
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Audio Video NewsNew Products
Vizio Launches App-Controlled, 4K/HDR TVs
Bob Ankosko  |  Mar 22, 2016
Today marks the official launch of Vizio’s four-model P-Series lineup of high-dynamic range-enabled HDTVs at prices ranging from $1,000 for a 50-inch model to $3,800 for a 75-inch model. But that’s just part of the story.
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Grace NotesAudio Video News
Sony Shows Off Concept N: Headphone-less Headphones
Leslie Shapiro  |  Mar 21, 2016
Sony’s Future Lab made some waves at South By Southwest by debuting an entirely new concept in personal listening. The Concept N device doesn’t go on or over the ears at all - instead, it hangs comfortably around the user’s neck with multi-directional drivers aiming up towards the listener, allowing outside sounds to still be audible. Extremely directional speakers direct the sound to the listener’s ears while preventing other people from hearing the sound very clearly. In a slightly noisy environment, other people around the listener can’t hear what is being played over the device.

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Audio Video NewsNew Products
Origin Acoustics Launches Landscape Audio
SV Staff  |  Mar 21, 2016
Spring is in the air and it’s time to start prepping those landscape beds for new flowers, shrubs…and maybe a few outdoor speakers.

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Audio Video News
4K Streaming Trial Opens Door to Future Events
SV Staff  |  Mar 21, 2016
Recent success with streaming trials of live 4K sporting events, including the first live North American soccer broadcast in 4K by Univision Deportes on February 10, will lead to more live 4K streaming events through the summer, according to Sony. The game/test event, which took place at Marlins Park in Miami, was streamed live to audiences in Florida, New York, and California via late model Sony HDR-capable 4K Ultra HD TVs, which have NeuLion’s 4K streaming platform integrated.
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Projector Reviews
Sony VPL-VW665ES 3D SXRD 4K Projector Review
Kris Deering  |  Mar 21, 2016
2D Performance
3D Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $14,999

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Native 4K imaging chips
HDR10 compatible
Minus
Lacks full HDMI v2.0a capabilities
Less than perfect focus uniformity
Careful setup needed for best results

THE VERDICT
Sony’s mid-cycle refresh of the VPL-VW600ES offers decent bumps in dynamic contrast, brightness, and features. While it still lacks some key future-proofing and has a few niggling issues, its compelling native 4K imagery is some of the best we’ve seen from front projectors on the market today.

Here we are now a full four years beyond Sony’s debut of the VPL-VW1000ES, the first consumer-level native 4K projector. And yet the bounty of 4K content that was promised at that time is really now just coming to fruition with an assortment of streaming options and a new Blu-ray format springing forth. In late 2015, Sony did what I’d call a mid-cycle refresh on one of our previous Top Picks, the VPL-VW600ES (May 2014; review at soundandvision.com), adding a few new features like HDR capabilities and improved contrast and brightness. But is the VPL-VW665ES the projector to buy as we head into the land of Ultra HD and all its promises?

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