LATEST ADDITIONS

PRICE $4,499

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Effective, easily configured room correction
Flexible bass-management
Powerful stereo amplifier
Extensive phono input settings
Minus
No built-in network streaming capability

THE VERDICT
ARC room correction on Anthem’s STR integrated amp makes it a must-audition option for anyone putting together a high-performance stereo system.

Anthem AVM series preamplifier/processors have been part of my home theater toolkit going back as long as I can remember. Though they perform A/V switching, audio processing, and video upscaling as well as anything else on the market, the main feature I’ve come to depend on is the company’s proprietary ARC (Anthem Room Correction), a Windows and iOS/Android app that lets you measure the effect of your listening environment on your speakers using either a calibrated microphone or the one built into your phone or tablet.

In line with Roku’s goal of keeping entertainment simple, the company is turning its sights on adding better quality audio to Roku TVs. This month, Roku is releasing wireless stereo speakers that work in conjunction with any Roku TV.

As a year packed with wonderful new high-definition and 4K discs comes to a close, we’ve selected ten standout box sets that are certain to bring a smile to the home theater buff in your life. Each box is special in its own way: some are hefty with gravitas, others have actual heft. All are sure to deliver ample audio/video pleasure plus a bounty of bonus features to enjoy through the new year and beyond.

Black Friday used to be a big deal. Die-hard shoppers waited with great anticipation to see what kind of crazy deals retailers would come up with the day after Thanksgiving. These days you have to wonder about the fate of The Big Sale Day considering how retailers have been invoking Black Friday” in their advertising for months now. Black Friday is certainly not what it used to be.