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Dual Center-Channel Speaker Setup
Al Griffin  |  Oct 10, 2013
Got a tech question for Sound & Vision? Email us at AskSandV@gmail.com.

Q I wish to place center-channel speakers above and below my projection screen. I know the distance from the two speakers to the seating position at ear level will not be the same, and I would like to know how to calibrate or compensate for this difference. I have a 5.1 surround setup with an Oppo BDP-105 Blu-ray player, a six-channel amp, and a powered sub. I am patient enough to do the onscreen setup from the Oppo, but I’m at a loss over the dual center speaker issue. —Dale Kay / via e-mail

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Audio Video News
Bose Introduces the SoundTouch Family of Wireless Music Systems
Bob Ankosko  |  Oct 10, 2013
Bose today introduced the SoundTouch family of self-contained wireless music systems, marking its entry into a field dominated by Sonos. Designed for “effortless” ease of use, three systems are being offered initially: SoundTouch 30 ($699), SoundTouch 20 ($399), and SoundTouch Portable ($399).
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Audio Video News
Polk Kicks Off “Listen to the Music” Talent Contest
SV Staff  |  Oct 10, 2013  |  First Published: Oct 09, 2013
To commemorate its 40th anniversary, Polk Audio has launched the “Listen to the Music” competition inviting independent musicians of all genres to reinterpret the Doobie Brothers rock classic of the same name. Contestants will submit performance videos to vie for a chance to win an all-expenses-paid trip to Las Vegas to open for the Canadian pop-rock band Walk Off the Earth and John Legend at the Hard Rock Cafe in early January.
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Home Movie Theaters
Escapes: Secret-Entry Theater
Kim Wilson  |  Oct 09, 2013
Photos Darin Cunningham

Out-of-the-box thinking among the homeowner, Donny Hackett Designs, and Jacob Abbott of Visual Concepts turned a less than appealing home theater into a magical masterpiece that can only be entered if you know the secret.

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Music Reviews
Tedeschi Trucks Band: Made Up Mind
Mike Mettler  |  Oct 09, 2013
Performance
Sound
The potent combo of married co-bandleaders guitarist/vocalist Susan Tedeschi and slide-guitar maestro Derek Trucks and nine (or so) of their closest friends hits its stride on group album number three, Made Up Mind. Mind shows how TTB has finally forged the right blend of improv interplay prowess and gutbucket roots rock.
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Music ReviewsThis Week
This Week in Music, October 8, 2013: Taking Miley Cyrus Seriously
Ken Richardson  |  Oct 08, 2013
Whatever you think of Miley Cyrus these days, she does have you thinking. In other words, she got your attention. Which, in the current era of Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, and elder shockwoman Britney Spears, is the first order of business, and I do mean “business.”

The thing is, what if she’d gotten our attention another way?

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Ask S&V
Suggested TV Settings
Al Griffin  |  Oct 08, 2013
Got a tech question for Sound & Vision? Email us at AskSandV@gmail.com.

Q. I recently purchased a Samsung 6420 LED TV. I contacted both Samsung and TweakTV looking for suggested calibration settings, but they were of no help. I am not satisfied with the set’s current picture and was wondering if you had some suggested settings for this model or could direct me to other Websites that might help. —Cannon / via e-mail

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Headphone Amp/DAC ReviewsIntegrated Amp Reviews
NAD D 3020 Hybrid Digital Integrated Amplifier
Daniel Kumin  |  Oct 08, 2013

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $499

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Fine performance and sound
Elegant looks
Clear value
Minus
No mute control
Limited detail in volume readout

THE VERDICT
As an integrated amplifier/DAC combo for serious listeners, the D 3020’s audio quality and value are unmistakable.

Audio types old enough to have viewed Chevy Chase’s pratfalls live rather than on demand may remember an unprepossessing integrated amplifier from an unfamiliar brand. The NAD 3020, despite a power rating laughably modest even in 1978 (20 watts per channel) and next to no features, gained notice because, as the lore went, “it sounded great.” And it did—thanks to intelligent amplifier design, a conservative power rating, and the value—widely underappreciated, then and now—of dynamic headroom.

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3D Blu-ray Movie ReviewsBlu-ray Movie Reviews
Rise Of The Guardians
Thomas J. Norton  |  Oct 08, 2013
Picture
3D-ness
Sound
Extras
Interactivity
When boogeyman Pitch Black schemes to plant fearsome nightmares into the minds and hearts of children throughout the world, it falls on the Guardians to derail his plans. When they attempt to convince Jack Frost, a free-spirit prankster, to join them, he agrees only when things turn truly grim.
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Remotely PossibleCEDIA 2013
CEDIA 2013: A Few of My Favorite Things
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Oct 08, 2013
Shortly before CEDIA 2013 kicked off in Denver last month, I wrote a post about some of the things I was looking forward to seeing at this year’s EXPO. There certainly wasn’t anything earth-shattering or paradigm-shredding introduced within the confines of the Denver Convention Center. But that doesn’t mean there weren’t a few standout products and super-slick demos hidden amongst the hundreds of crowded EXPO booths. We covered a lot of them.
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