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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Joe
Anthony Chiarella  |  Oct 10, 2014
Picture
Sound
Extras
Hard-drinking, chain-smoking ex-convict Joe (Nicolas Cage) frequents hookers, instigates deadly dog fights, and makes his living managing a gang of day laborers charged with deforesting a Texas backwater—hardly a soft-hearted guy. Yet, when 15-year-old Gary (Tye Sheridan) comes looking for a job, hell-raising Joe quickly befriends the boy and eventually risks his life to save him from his violent, alcoholic father, Wade (Gary Poulter, who died shortly after the film’s release). Heralded as Cage’s return to serious dramatic roles, Joe is primarily a character study of its hero, portrayed with a gritty realism that magnifies the brutality of the film and the desperation of its subjects.
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Audio Video News
Will Sony PlayStation TV Be Your Media Hub?
Mark Fleischmann  |  Oct 10, 2014
Sony’s PlayStation TV is a set-top box that partners with the new PlayStation 4 console to play games on a secondary TV. But it’s not just a gaming hub—it also bids to be a media hub by accessing movies and TV shows through the PlayStation Store. It plays PS3 titles through the PlayStation Now service, which made its debut on July 31, as well as older PS2 and PS1 titles. Price is $99 for the PlayStation TV itself or $139 for the box with controller, 8-GB memory card, and digital download code for a game based on The Lego Movie.
Audio Video News
SVS Launches Prime Series Speaker Family and ‘Powered Cylinder’ Subwoofer
SV Staff  |  Oct 10, 2014  |  First Published: Oct 08, 2014
SVS is introducing an affordable series of speakers and a new “powered cylinder” subwoofer at the 2014 Rocky Mountain Audio Fest (RMAF), which opens today at the Marriott Tech Center in Denver, CO and runs through Sunday.
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Audio Video News
Meridian to Demo Flagship DSP Speaker at Live Event in Dallas
SV Staff  |  Oct 10, 2014
Marking the 25th anniversary of the introduction of the world’s first digital loudspeaker, Meridian will demonstrate its Special Edition DSP Digital Active Loudspeakers at a live event in Dallas, Texas.

The event will take place at Dallas Sight and Sound on Tuesday, October 14 from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Visit meridian-audio.com for more information on Merdian’s Special Edition Series of DSP Digital Active Loudspeakers.

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SmartStream
“Feeln” Like Streaming a Classic Movie?
Barb Gonzalez  |  Oct 10, 2014
This small streaming subscription video-on-demand service offers classic films from Gandhi to Ghostbusters for less than the price of a single HD streaming rental.
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Ask S&V
How Do I Separate HDMI Audio From Video?
Al Griffin  |  Oct 08, 2014
Got a tech question for Sound & Vision? Email us at AskSandV@gmail.com

Q I just bought a Roku 2 streaming box that only has one output type: HDMI. My Adcom preamp-processor lacks HDMI switching, however, so I am forced to connect the Roku to an HDMI input on my Samsung TV and use its optical digital output to route audio signals to the Adcom. My problem is that the Samsung TV only passes two-channel audio through its digital audio output. Is there a reasonably priced device that can separate 5.1 digital audio from the HDMI signal, or am I stuck forever with two-channel sound? —Joe Simone

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The S&V Interview
Deep Purple Drummer Ian Paice Celebrates the Legacy of Late DP Keyboardist Jon Lord
Mike Mettler  |  Oct 08, 2014
Photo by Neil Lupin
“Souls, having touched, are forever entwined.” It’s a lyric penned by vocalist Ian Gillan in honor of his dear friend and late bandmate Jon Lord, the original keyboardist for Deep Purple who pioneered merging rock music with classical themes. Jon Lord, Deep Purple & Friends: Celebrating Jon Lord (earMusic/Eagle Rock), recorded at The Royal Albert Hall this past April 4, showcases the breadth of Lord as both composer (“All Those Years Ago,” “Pictured Within”) and rock legend (“Soldier of Fortune,” “Perfect Strangers,” “Hush”). Here, Deep Purple drummer Ian Paice, 66, and I discuss the challenges of getting great sound in such a storied venue, how he adapts to working with different bass players, and what the future might hold for Deep Purple. After listening to and watching all that went into Celebrating Jon Lord, there’s one word in the Purple canon that one absolutely cannot use to describe Paice’s energy and tireless work ethic: “Lazy.”
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AV Receiver Reviews
Pioneer VSX-1124 AV Receiver
Mark Fleischmann  |  Oct 08, 2014

Audio Performance
Video Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $600

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Outstanding sonics for the price
HDMI 2.0 interface
Roku Ready via MHL
Minus
HDCP 2.2 DRM not included
Bluetooth, Wi-Fi cost extra

THE VERDICT
The Pioneer VSX-1124 delivers sterling sound, though with a slightly reduced feature set, at a highly competitive price point.

The phrase “believe in miracles” is a powerful one in pop music. It turns up in songs by the Bee Gees, Jefferson Starship, Pearl Jam, Slade, and others. It appears prominently in the Hot Chocolate hit “You Sexy Thing,” covered by everyone from David Bowie to Barry White. Perhaps the most poignant use of the phrase is in “I Believe in Miracles” by the Ramones: “I used to be on an endless run/Believe in miracles ’cause I’m one.” One of the ongoing miracles in my life, besides the fact that I’m still walking around, is the audio/video receiver.

Let me remind you that the AV receiver—especially at the $600 price point—is one of the great miracles of consumer electronics...

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Audio Video News
Classé Launches Sigma Series
SV Staff  |  Oct 07, 2014
Classé has announced the availability of its new Sigma Series, featuring the Sigma SSP 7.1-channel surround sound preamp/processor ($5,000) and a pair of amplifiers, the AMP2 ($3,000) and AMP5 ($5,000), rated at 2 x 200 watts and 5 x 200 watts into 8 ohms, respectively.
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Remotely Possible
CEDiA Expo 2014 Wrap-Up
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Oct 07, 2014
CEDiA 2014 is over and done, but its effects will linger on in the form of first impressions, developing trends, and new technologies. By the numbers, it was a great convention with more than 480 exhibitors and well over 18,000 attendees who made the trek to Denver from 82 countries around the world. But those are the dry statistics. What’s much more exciting was the stuff we saw and heard, as well as the trends we noticed and how they’re going to affect the industry. (By the way, CEDIA didn’t officially change the organization’s name. I did, but I’ll get to that later.)

Dolby Atmos was still too new to have been everywhere on the Expo floor. In those booths where it was being demonstrated, though, it was...

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