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Audio Video News
Sony announces its first 3D A/V receiver
SV Staff  |  Feb 18, 2010
It's even more news from the 3D front! Sony is joining the fray with its very first 3D-capable A/V receiver, the STR-DN1010 AV. The STR-DN1010 is a 7.1-channel A/V receiver with 3D HDMI 1.4 passthrough to allow 3D content to run from a source,...
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Premiere Design
NBS Universal Power Amplifier
Scott Wilkinson  |  Feb 18, 2010

<A href="http://www.nbscables.com">NBS</A> is perhaps best known for high-end cables&#151;its URL is nbscables.com, after all&#151;but this American boutique audio company also makes a few unusual speakers and electronic components. I'm especially intrigued by the Universal Power Amplifier (UPA), a unique monoblock that is truly universal in design and operation.

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Audio Video News
HD Deals: X-Men Trilogy, Origins on Blu-ray
SV Staff  |  Feb 17, 2010
If you're a fan of Professor X and the rest of the mutants on the X-Men, today's deal is what you've been waiting for. Get not only the original Trilogy, but also the latest film, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, on Blu-ray for only $50.99....
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Audio Video News
No More Analog High Def from Blu-ray
Scott Wilkinson  |  Feb 17, 2010

<A href="http://www.cepro.com/article/say_goodbye_to_analog_ports_on_blu_ray_play... Pro reported yesterday</A> that Blu-ray players made after December 31, 2010, will be required to downconvert high-def content to 480i or 576i for their component-video outputs. Who has the authority to require this? The <A href="http://www.aacsla.com/home">AACS Licensing Administrator</A>, that's who. This industry-wide organization develops and maintains the Advanced Access Content System, a critical element in the effort to combat piracy by managing how content can be viewed and copied.

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Ask S&V
Older AVR, Surround Placement, Audiophile Debate
Scott Wilkinson  |  Feb 17, 2010
HDMI-less
My father-in-law had a home-theater system installed a couple of years ago and would like to add a Blu-ray player. He asked me to hook it up, but I'm running into a problem with his system. The receiver is a Yamaha RX-V659, which only has component-video switching. I want to avoid running a separate HDMI cable to the TV and having him switch sources on the TV and receiver separately. Will connecting a Blu-ray player via component video cause the player to downconvert copy-protected disks to 480i? Do the majority of Blu-ray titles have HDCP?
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Coco Before Chanel
David Vaughn  |  Feb 17, 2010
This is an entertaining portrait of the early life of Gabriel Bonheur Chanel (Audrey Tautou), an orphan who would build a fashion empire. Known to her friends as Coco, she emerges from an orphanage to a mundane job as a seamstress and eventually ends up as a concubine for an eccentric French aristocrat.

I enjoyed the film, but I was particularly taken with the cinematography featuring lush settings, Oscar-nominated costumes, and the beauty of Audrey Tautou. The color saturation is slightly washed out in most scenes (intentionally), but the fine detail is mesmerizing in the 1080p encode.

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Audio Video News
Sony stops selling OLED screens in Japan
SV Staff  |  Feb 17, 2010
Remember when OLED technology was the future of HDTVs? That future is looking a bit hazy now. According to Engadget HD, Sony has decided to discontinue its XEL-1 OLED screen in Japan, citing low demand for the 11-inch, $2,000 HDTV. It's not...
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Audio Video News
PS3 3D Firmware Update Surfaces
Mark Fleischmann  |  Feb 17, 2010
Is the PlayStation 3 gaming platform about to go 3D? Not yet, but there's a sign that it will soon do so.
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Premiere Design
Naim Ovator S-600 Speaker
Scott Wilkinson  |  Feb 16, 2010

<A href="http://www.naim-audio.com">Naim</A> is a name well known to audiophiles. This British high-end company makes virtually all types of audio products, from CD players and hard-disk servers to preamps, power amps, speakers, and everything in between (except cables). New to Naim's speaker lineup is the flagship Ovator S-600, which has taken three years to bring to market and features some innovative elements.

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AV Receiver Reviews
Pioneer Elite SC-27 A/V Receiver
Fred Manteghian  |  Feb 16, 2010
Price: $2,200 At A Glance: MCACC room EQ makes it all good • ICEpower amplification is sweet, powerful, and dynamic • PQLS isn’t a gimmick; it really works

What? No 8-Track?

I’m convinced that at a subatomic level, my DNA has begun mutating me into homo gadgetus. My dad was an electrical engineer, so naturally, hooking up a two-channel stereo was instinctual, hereditary, and manifest from the moment my little fingers could grasp an RCA connector. But setting up a multichannel, HDMI-equipped, Internet-connected AVR was a challenge until recently. I don’t think manufacturers have gotten that much better at their hardware and software design. I just think that as a subspecies (male), we’ve become more adept at new forms of hunting and gathering.

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