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Media Server Reviews
NuVo Technologies Wireless Audio System
Rob Sabin  |  Dec 13, 2013

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $1,277

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Simple setup
Intuitive, engaging, easy interface
Excellent sonics when mated with good speakers
Minus
Limited streaming music options
No desktop controller

THE VERDICT
Though its wireless system isn’t as built out as the popular Sonos system, NuVo delivers a worthy competitor and a foundation for the future.

Back in Sound & Vision’s July/August 2013 issue, my colleague John Sciacca favorably reviewed the NuVo Technologies Wireless Audio System, a multiroom music solution that goes after the popular Sonos system head on, delivered by a company with an even longer history in distributed audio. (Read John's review here.) About 10 years ago, when Sonos didn’t exist and companies like Russound dominated the multiroom industry with traditional pushbutton wall pads that blindly operated hidden CD players, radio tuners, or other analog sources using flaky infrared signals, NuVo had another way.

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Enter the Dragon
Chris Chiarella  |  Dec 13, 2013
Picture
Sound
Extras
Interactivity
By 1973, the marital arts genre was nothing new, but Bruce Lee took it to new heights with what would be his final completed film, Enter the Dragon. The movie gave a worldwide theatrical audience a glimpse of his genius as a true star and as an action hero second to none, performing feats that boggle the mind even in today’s jaded milieu of wire-enhanced stunts and computer-generated effects. Lee starred as, well, “Lee,” a gifted Shaolin martial artist recruited by British intelligence to compete in an exclusive tournament staged by the suspected opium lord, Mr. Han.
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New Products
Let's Get Vertical: Artison LCRDM-MK2 Speakers
Bob Ankosko  |  Dec 13, 2013
In a world increasingly populated by horizontal soundbars, Artison has taken a different approach with the high-performance Masterpiece LCR DualMono MK2 speaker system, which produces three front channels from two cabinets flanking the TV.
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Headphone ReviewsTech2
Super Awesome Happy Headphones
Geoffrey Morrison,  |  Dec 12, 2013
All other headphones bow to these. All other headphones are NOTHING compared to these. These are, to put it simply, a collection of the greatest headphones on Earth.

One of them even looks like bacon.

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Ask S&V
The Pros and Cons of TV Calibration
Al Griffin  |  Dec 12, 2013
Q What are the pros and cons of having a 2013 Panasonic plasma TV such as the TC-P55VT60 professionally calibrated? And what should I look for in a calibrator? —Scott Oakley / via email

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SmartStream
Ten New Apps You Can Stream to Chromecast
Barb Gonzalez  |  Dec 11, 2013
Another ten mobile apps can now stream to Google's Chromecast dongle. Find out if it's time to add the Chromecast to your home theater.
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Sweepstakes
Cambridge Audio Minx Air 100 Wireless System Sweepstakes
SV Staff  |  Dec 11, 2013
Register to win a Cambridge Audio Minx Air 100 Wireless System ($449.95) we are giving away.

According to the company:

Benefiting from Cambridge Audio’s vast Hi-Fi expertise, Minx Air 100 is designed to deliver stunning audio quality from stored tracks and streaming services. Patented BMR (Balanced Mode Radiator) speakers create a rich sound that’s more room-filling than similar-sized traditional speakers.

[This Sweepstakes is now closed.]

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Soundbar Reviews
Sony HT-ST7 Soundbar System
Mark Fleischmann  |  Dec 10, 2013

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $1,299

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Well made metal bar
Wireless sub, Bluetooth
Solid performance
Minus
Pricey for a soundbar

THE VERDICT
A high-performing soundbar with HDMI connectivity and lossless-surround support.

Like a pilot fish feasting on a shark’s leftovers, the soundbar has occupied a secondary role since its inception. You might imagine a TV without a soundbar but never a soundbar without a TV. Even so, secondary doesn’t necessarily have to mean second-rate. What if your soundbar were as good at producing audio as your TV is at producing video? What if it were better than your TV?

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Ask S&V
How Do I Equalize Volume in My Streaming Setup?
Al Griffin  |  Dec 10, 2013
Q My friend uses an iPod touch to stream Pandora Internet Radio over a speaker system at his outdoor tiki bar but is having a problem with some songs playing louder than others. I have gone into his iPod’s General Settings menu and activated the Sound Check button, but that feature only seems to work for tracks played in iTunes. Is there an in-line device with 3.5mm connectors that can hook up to the iPod’s headphone jack to level the audio output?—J. Glemming / Calabash, NC
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Grace Notes
Rule Britannia, Rule Sony
Leslie Shapiro  |  Dec 09, 2013
“When Britain first, at heaven's command, arose from out the azure main, this was the charter, the charter of the land, and guardian angels sang this strain: Rule Britannia! Britannia rule the waves!”

Those lyrics, set to rousing music by James Thomson in 1740, declared that Great Britain was the emerging world superpower. Fulfilling the patriotic acclaim of the song, Britain did indeed soon rule the waves, and in fact, the sun never set on the British Empire. Similarly, Sony Corporation ruled the waves of consumer electronics....

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