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New ProductsPremiere Design
Akoustic Arts A Directional Speaker
Bob Ankosko  |  Jun 16, 2016
The Akoustic Arts “A” is one of the more unusual-looking speakers you will encounter, with its honeycomb of mini transducers (200 in all). But looks aren’t the only thing unusual about this speaker. Rather than spray sound in every direction like a conventional speaker, the A projects sound in a focused beam. As the Paris-based company likes to say, it’s “the speaker that only you can hear.” And it appears to be off and running. By mid-April, Akoustic Arts had raised more than $200,000, exceeding its Indiegogo funding goal by 662 percent in less than a month. We spoke with founder and CEO Ilan Kaddouch to learn more.
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Audio Video News
3DTV Fades Away
Mark Fleischmann  |  Jun 16, 2016
First 3D was the next big thing in television. Then it was a feature, not a category. Now it may be turning into an absent feature and a dead category.
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Ask S&V
Which Home Theater Upgrade Should I Invest in Now?
Al Griffin  |  Jun 16, 2016
Got a tech question for Sound & Vision? Email us at AskSandV@gmail.com

Q I have a substantial amount of money invested in my home theater. With the arrival of object-based Dolby Atmos/DTS:X audio and High Dynamic Range video, not to mention the forthcoming ATSC 3.0 Digital TV standard, I’d like to know which components in my rig should I replace first? Also, how much should I plan to spend for each upgrade? —R. Hill / Chattanooga, TN

Q The first component I’d recommend upgrading is your A/V receiver. Why? New 2016 receivers from Onkyo, Denon, Marantz, Yamaha, Pioneer, and Anthem are equipped to provide Dolby Atmos and, in some cases, DTS:X processing (either out of the box or via a firmware upgrade). Along with offering the latest advancements in home theater audio, 2016 receivers should all be outfitted with HDMI 2.0a connections. Why is that important? Because HDMI 2.0a, the latest HDMI version, accommodates a range of new video technologies including 4K/Ultra HD resolution, 10-bit color, and High Dynamic Range (HDR). Plan to spend $500 and up for a new HDMI 2.0a-equipped receiver with object-based audio support.

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Music Reviews
Phil Collins: Take a Look at Me Now – Retrospective Reissue Series
Mike Mettler  |  Jun 15, 2016
Performance
Sound
Phil Collins required rehabilitation, and stat. Not only did the noted drummer/vocalist have to deal with a bout of sudden deafness, a lingering hand injury, and recover from back surgery, he also needed to tend to the state of his image. No one could fault the man’s acuity behind the drum kit—a reputation initially forged by his creative deployment of odd time signatures with progressive rock giants Genesis and the fusion improv collective Brand X—but his level of ubiquity on the charts as a solo artist in the ’80s and beyond ultimately served to tip his musical-reputation scales in a not-so-favorable direction.
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4K TV ReviewsTV ReviewsOLED TV Reviews
LG Signature OLED65G6P OLED Ultra HDTV Review
Thomas J. Norton  |  Jun 15, 2016

2D Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $8,000

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Excellent HDR in both Dolby Vision and HDR10
Blacks to die for
Solid off-center viewing
Minus
Expensive
Careful setup critical for best results
Menus tedious to navigate

THE VERDICT
Our brief time with LG’s flagship OLED for 2016 suggested it’s not perfect (what is?), but apart from the fact that LCD sets still go brighter than OLEDs, it’s unlikely that any other new HDR-equipped Ultra HDTV will be able to match or exceed the performance of this one.

While this article is structured as a Test Report, in fact it’s a good bit short of a full-fledged evaluation. The combination of the cost of LG’s flagship OLED and the limited supply of review samples in early April prompted the company to set up a couple of displays at a venue in New York City, then shuttle in groups of A/V journalists to lay hands on the set—so to speak.

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Apptitude
TouchTunes Redefines the Jukebox
Michael Antonoff  |  Jun 15, 2016
Now that we never need to dismount from the barstool to drop quarters in the jukebox, it just seems wrong to call TouchTunes a mobile app. Pushing through a crowd to reach an illuminated cabinet required actual mobility, also called walking. But that was then. Today no one with a smartphone is budging. In the battle of the bulge, beer wins, waistline loses.
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Audio Video News
Wide Color Gamut TVs Gaining in Popularity
SV Staff  |  Jun 14, 2016
Source: IHS

As competition in the display market intensifies, TV manufacturers are seeking new and emerging technologies to differentiate their offerings from competitors, which is leading to increased production of wide color gamut TVs.

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Sweepstakes
The Meze 99 Classics Headphones Sweepstakes
SV Staff  |  Jun 14, 2016
Register to win a pair of Meze 99 Classics Headphones ($309.00 Retail Value) we are giving away.

According to the company:

"What is it that discards the superfluous, the gimmicky, the flashy, the questionable, the overly fragile, the misplaced? The obvious answer would be time. And this is also the riddle of good design: very few objects achieve such a rarefied consistency of qualities. This is our aim with the Meze 99 Classics, the anti-fragility of a classic, with a sound on par with the design. Pure, natural sound in a timeless body."

[This Sweepstakes is now closed.]

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Audio Video News
Philips Ultra HD Blu-ray Player to Ship with Creed
SV Staff  |  Jun 14, 2016
P&F USA, the exclusive North American licensee for Philips video products, has announced that the Ultra HD (UHD) Blu-ray version of Creed will be bundled with the Philips BDP7501 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray player, which will be available later this month for $400.
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Signals
An Apocalyptic Day for Physical Media
Ken C. Pohlmann  |  Jun 14, 2016
Do you hate the silvery sound of CDs? Then you can rejoice because a bunch of them just got crushed. Do you think LPs are just scratchy pieces of plastic? Then be happy because a load of them just got crushed too. In fact, a misunderstanding between two bands with automotive-inspired names recently resulted in an apocalyptic day for physical media.

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