LATEST ADDITIONS

Media Server Reviews
Elac Discovery DS-S101-G Music Server Review
Al Griffin  |  Feb 15, 2018

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $1,100

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Free app from Roon Labs
Wired and wireless multiroom playback options
Impressive sound from built-in DAC
Minus
Track count limited to 30,000
Requires wired LAN connection

THE VERDICT
Elac’s Discovery provides a simple, elegant option for adding a networked music server with Roon to an existing audio system.

Before diving into a review of Elac’s Discovery DS-S101-G music server, it seems apt to ask: What is a music server? In the past, it was a standalone audio component with a built-in hard disk that stored and played a ripped CD collection while connecting to the internet to fetch metadata. While products that fit this description still exist, a music server can also be something as basic as a software application running on a computer or on a network-attached storage (NAS) appliance. The server application, wherever it may reside, acts as a librarian for your digital audio files, sorting and retrieving them, and then routing the data to a USB DAC or a networked audio component that translates the ones and zeros into music.

Continue Reading »
Ask S&V
What Receiver Should I Use for an Atmos 7.1.4 System?
 |  Feb 15, 2018
Got a tech question for Sound & Vision? Email us at AskSandV@gmail.com

Q What receivers can power a Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 home theater? I plan to pair the receiver with a tower-based Definitive Technology BP9000 series speaker system and use that company’s A90 Atmos Enabled speaker modules for overhead effects. —Waymon French 

Continue Reading »
SmartStream
Exciting New Ways to Watch the Olympics
Barb Gonzalez  |  Feb 14, 2018
This year’s Olympic coverage can satisfy just about any way that you might like to watch the games.
Continue Reading »
Music Reviews
Def Leppard: Hysteria: 30th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition
Mike Mettler  |  Feb 14, 2018
Performance
Sound
When the phrase “beast mode” entered the vernacular, it was intended mainly as a descriptor for a singularly focused level of energy and drive as exhibited by certain football players. But it just as easily could have been used to describe the laser focus Def Leppard displayed in the face of innumerable odds while recording the 1987 juggernaut known as Hysteria. It may have taken them 34 months of on/off studio time and a hefty price tag of 2 million pounds to get to the finish line, but the ensuing album sold over 25 million copies worldwide and became the defining sonic template for the scores of pop-metal crossover hybrids that followed.
Continue Reading »
Audio Video NewsNew Products
HiFiMan Unveils Shangri-La Jr. Electrostatic Headphone/Tube Amp System
SV Staff  |  Feb 14, 2018
HiFiMan today introduced a slimmed down version of its $50,000 flagship Shangri-La electrostatic headphone system that “maintains the predecessor’s wide, natural soundstage in a leaner and lighter package.”
Continue Reading »
Audio Video News
Vizio Adds Alexa Voice Control to 4K SmartCast Sets
SV Staff  |  Feb 14, 2018
Amazon’s popular Alexa voice service continues to make the rounds. Its latest stop: a selection of Vizio 4K Ultra HD displays.
Continue Reading »
Audio Video News
Roku Aims to Broaden its Appeal
SV Staff  |  Feb 14, 2018
Roku is making moves to encourage makers of soundbars, smart speakers, and other audio systems to license its streaming platform and become part of the Roku ecosystem.
Continue Reading »
Audio Video News
Virtual Reality Heads for the Airwaves
SV Staff  |  Feb 13, 2018
Virtual reality via antenna? Yup. It’s almost here.
Continue Reading »
Headphone Reviews
Audeze LCDi4 In-Ear Headphones Review
Steve Guttenberg  |  Feb 13, 2018

Performance
Build Quality
Comfort
Value
PRICE $2,495

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Extraordinary sound quality
Planar magnetic in-ear
Open-back design
Minus
Doesn’t block external noise

THE VERDICT
The Audeze LCDi4 sound like no other in-ear or full-size headphones. Audeze has once again radically changed the way we hear music.

I’m going to come right out and say it: The Audeze LCDi4 are hands down the best-sounding in-ear headphones I’ve heard. They’re the most transparent and open, have the flattest tonal balance, and the bass—OMG—is deeper and faster than any other in-ears on the planet...

Continue Reading »
A/V Veteran
A Reality Check on 'Brighter Projectors'
Thomas J. Norton  |  Feb 13, 2018
At CES 2018 Philips demonstrated its ColorSpark HLD LED (High Lumen Density) technology, which appeared to have the potential to considerably enhance the light output of projectors, among other applications. While we didn't attend their demonstration, several business and research-related companies did, including Insight Media and Display Daily. A link to the latter's article may be found here.

One significant issue is that this lighting technology isn't new...

Continue Reading »

Pages

X