LATEST ADDITIONS

Soundbar Reviews
Vizio VHT215 Soundbar
Lawrence E. Ullman  |  Mar 08, 2012
Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
Price: $320 At A Glance: 2.1 channels with effective virtual surround • Wireless subwoofer • HDMI 1.4a connectors • Easy to set up and install

If Star Trek's Lt. Cmdr. Montgomery "Scotty" Scott was handed one of today's ultra-thin flat-panel HDTVs and warned, "You have eight minutes to get decent sound quality out this thing or the Enterprise is going to burn up in the atmosphere!," he might take one look at it and once again utter those immortal words: "I canna change the laws of physics!"

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New Products
New Gear: Harman's Dock+Go Personalized Dashboard
Leslie Shapiro  |  Mar 08, 2012

Who says Switzerland is known only for chocolates, cheese, and watches? There's plenty of exciting news coming from the 2012 Geneva Motor Show.

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
The Town: Ultimate Collector's Edition
David Vaughn  |  Mar 07, 2012

When The Town came out on Blu-ray in December 2010, I was blown away by the presentation. It was one of my favorite films of the year due to the non-stop action, believable characters, and some of the most realistic bank heists ever to hit the silver screen. In this Ultimate Collector's Edition, the reference-quality audio and video from the original release are still present with fabulous detail, surround envelopment, and dynamics, plus the alternate ending gives better closure to the story.
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Signals
Would You Like a Rolex With That?
Ken C. Pohlmann  |  Mar 07, 2012

Michael Jackson is back in the news, and as usual, not in a good way. This time, at least, it’s no fault of his own. Rather, it’s his employer, Sony, who assumes the blame. It was imprudently careless with the keys to Jackson’s bank vault.

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Subwoofer Reviews
Review: Velodyne EQ-Max 8 Subwoofer
Brent Butterworth  |  Mar 07, 2012

Some home theater enthusiasts see automatic equalization as a sonic savior. They believe it guarantees great sound. But it doesn’t.

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Tech2
The Schroeder Frequency: A Show and Tell, Part 2
Brent Butterworth  |  Mar 07, 2012

In part 1 of this article, we discussed the Schroeder frequency — a frequency above which your listening room works primarily as a sound reflector and diffuser, and below which your room works primarily as a resonator.

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Home Theater Geeks Podcast
Podcast 101: The Chat Room
Scott Wilkinson  |  Mar 06, 2012
With a last-minute guest cancellation, I spend a pleasant hour answering questions from the chat room, including how I got my start in home theater, what it might take for an Apple television to be successful, tips for speaker placement, what to consider when converting a basement to a home theater, where the best seat in a commercial theater is, motion blur on LCD TVs, video processors, RF universal remotes, HDMI Audio Return Channel, whether or not 3D is a passing fad, using two identical projectors to display 3D, and much more.

Run Time: 1:05:07

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
A Masterful Game of Thrones on Blu-ray
Mike Mettler  |  Mar 06, 2012

“Winter is coming.” That ominous mantra hangs heavy over the full arc of the inaugural 10-episode season of Game of Thrones, one of the best-looking and best-sounding shows on broadcast cable TV. And it’s even more fulfilling on Blu-ray — yet another high-water mark for HBO, undisputed kings of desirable packaging, high-def visual presentation, and fully engaging surround soundtracks.

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Audio Video News
Samsung 2012 TV Briefing
Scott Wilkinson  |  Mar 06, 2012
Today, Samsung revealed more details about its 2012 TV lineup at a press conference in New York. Seeing as how Tom Norton and I are based in Los Angeles, the company was kind enough to bring us up to speed at its QA Lab before the NY event, placing the info under embargo until now.

Actually, most of the info is not new—it was first presented at CES in January. But there was one bit of real news not available at CES—pricing and availability.

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Music Reviews
Bruce Springsteen Revitalizes the Promised Land with Wrecking Ball
Mike Mettler  |  Mar 06, 2012

Bruce Springsteen has always been a preacher at heart. Ever since he greeted us from Asbury Park back in ’73, he’s been spreading the good word of the healing power of rock & roll far and wide, testifying many a time and many an hour across the live planks, guitar slung back over his shoulder as he stomps, kneels, prays, pleads, and ultimately cajoles the enraptured to follow him down the open road.

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