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Audio Video News
LG OLED Pricing and Availability
Scott Wilkinson  |  Apr 02, 2012
When LG announced the EM9600 55-inch OLED flat panel at CES last January, its price and availability were not included in the press release, leading to unbridled speculation. Well, it seems that speculation can now be put to rest. According to an article from Korean outlet MK Business News, LG plans to stage a big launch event at the Cannes Film Festival in May, moving its timetable up from the second half of the year to take advantage of the demand that will surely accompany the 2012 Olympics this summer. And the price? Approximately 9 million Korean won, which is right around $8000.

Thanks to reader johnnyd for sending me the link to the story on techbargains.com, which led to the primary source at MK Business News.

Tech2
For a Song: The $59 Headphone Roundup Page 3
Brent Butterworth  |  Apr 02, 2012

I had always assumed that all $59 headphones sound about as refined as Ski Johnson. That is, until I happened upon a marketing crew from House of Marley at my local Fry's Electronics. Encouraged by our experience with the company's $149 Exodus, I tried the $59 Positive Vibration - and was shocked to hear that much of what I loved in the sound of the Exodus was evident in the Positive Vibration, too.

Which got me wondering: Are there other good headphones available at this price point? Could those who have only three Andrew Jacksons to their name actually get a decent set of cans?

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Tech2
For a Song: The $59 Headphone Roundup
Brent Butterworth  |  Apr 02, 2012

I had always assumed that all $59 headphones sound about as refined as Ski Johnson. That is, until I happened upon a marketing crew from House of Marley at my local Fry’s Electronics. Encouraged by our experience with the company’s $149 Exodus, I tried the $59 Positive Vibration — and was shocked to hear that much of what I loved in the sound of the Exodus was evident in the Positive Vibration, too.

Which got me wondering: Are there other good headphones available at this price point? Could those who have only three Andrew Jacksons to their name actually get a decent set of cans?

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Headphone Reviews
Celeb Bait: Lirpa Labs Celebrity Headphones
Geoffrey Morrison  |  Mar 31, 2012

NOTHING in consumer electronics is more popular right now than headphones. Pick a price and you’ll find no fewer than a billion different offerings (source: Wikipedia). Recent surveys indicate that many consumers look for celebrity endorsements to decide what to buy. Because celebrities and corporations have one thing in common — desire for money — all the A-, B-, and C-list celebs have already paired up with major ’phone manufacturers.

These trends have not escaped the keen eyes of Dr. Loof Lirpa. After making trillions from the incredible Liberty Freedom 1776 A-FY tower speakers covered last year and proudly not paying taxes on any of it, Lirpa has turned his gaze on a whole new market.

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Vote
Do You Buy HT Gear Online or In-Store?
Scott Wilkinson  |  Mar 30, 2012
Yesterday, it was reported that Best Buy plans to close 50 stores and eliminate about 400 jobs over the next year due to mounting losses in the face of competition from online retailers. Of course, online buying is the ultimate in convenience, but then you have nowhere local to go for service. Also, a store provides at least the possibility of seeing and hearing a demo before you buy, though TV demos in big-box stores are typically useless because the TVs are not set up properly and the environment is nothing like any room in a home.

This news leads me to wonder about where you buy your home-theater gear—online or at brick-and-mortar stores? Why do you shop online or in-store?

Vote to see the results and leave a comment about your choice.

Do You Buy HT Gear Online or In-Store?
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Ask S&V
Pioneer AVR with B&W Speakers
Scott Wilkinson  |  Mar 30, 2012
I have the following system:
  • Pioneer VSX-1021 A/V receiver
  • B&W 600-series speakers (683 front L/R, HTM61 center, 685 bookshelf surrounds, ASW610 subwoofer)
  • Oppo BDP-93 Blu-ray player
  • Sonos wireless audio system
  • Sony 55-inch XBR TV
All in all, the sound is outstanding, and the image of Blu-ray discs is also amazing. However, a friend says the overall setup is not balanced—in particular, the receiver is cheap compared to the other elements. I do not have much space for a higher-end receiver, so is there any other solution? Is this setup really unbalanced, since it sounds great to me?

Ricardo Monnerat

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
David Vaughn  |  Mar 30, 2012

September 11, 2001, is a day that I doubt anyone in the world will ever forget. For young Oskar, it was the day he lost his best friend—his dad. Based on the bestseller by Jonathan Safran Foer, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close is an emotional rollercoaster about a preteen trying to cope with the loss of his father in his own unique way. I enjoyed the film a lot and was especially impressed with the AVC video encode with its outstanding level of detail and rich color saturation. The enveloping DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack is no slouch either and features crisp dialog and pinpoint imaging.
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Audio Video News
Happy Trails to (and From) Yamaha's Doan Hoff
Doan Hoff  |  Mar 30, 2012

After 33 years, Doan Hoff, Yamaha's veteran manager of advertising and public relations is retiring today. We wracked our brains trying to come up with something to say that would capture how much we've enjoyed working with Doan (and how much we're going to miss him), but we ended up turning to the man himself.

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Tech2
The Things I Said, and the Things I Said I Said
Geoffrey Morrison  |  Mar 30, 2012

Between the words I think and the words you read, there are several stages of editing. The first takes place within my brain. The last, at the hands of a copy editor [hah! - Ed]. In both cases, this is a good thing.

But sometimes, a great line gets pulled that I don't think should have been cut.

So here, for your perusal, are some choice lines of mine, from various articles, someone deemed unworthy for mass consumption.

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Ask S&V
Upconverting S-video to HDMI
Scott Wilkinson  |  Mar 28, 2012
I need a new A/V receiver to replace my non-HDMI Denon AVR-3805. Among my source devices are two JVC S-VHS VCRs, so I hope to find an AVR with at least one S-video input that is upconverted to HDMI. What would you recommend for under $1000?

Stan Sexton

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