LATEST ADDITIONS

Al Griffin  |  Mar 14, 2016

2D Performance
3D Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $3,999

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Very good brightness for the price
Excellent contrast
Fully motorized lens controls
Minus
Slight enhancement artifacts

THE VERDICT
JVC’s DLA-X550R continues the company’s streak of producing high-value projectors that deliver high-contrast images.

Most projector manufacturers refresh their product lines every fall like clockwork, but JVC opted to sit things out for 2014. The main reason (I suspect) was the state of flux surrounding the HDMI standard, which at that point was evolving to a new 18-gigabit-per-second version designed to accommodate a full range of 4K/Ultra HD bells and whistles, including 60-hertz frame rate, 4:4:4 color sampling, and high dynamic range.

SV Staff  |  Mar 14, 2016
If you’ve ever thought about building your own speakers and are looking for a little inspiration, here it is in the form of a speaker built by DIYer Mark in Latvia.
SV Staff  |  Mar 14, 2016
Sono Luminus has announced that Crossing Over, the new album by the Skylark Vocal Ensemble, is the label’s fifth release to be recorded and mixed in Auro-3D surround sound.
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.
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.
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.
Thomas J. Norton  |  Mar 11, 2016
Picture
Sound
Extras
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.

David Vaughn  |  Mar 11, 2016
Picture
Sound
Extras
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.
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.
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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