LATEST ADDITIONS

Ask S&V
What’s the Best Way to Get Hi-Res Audio from My iPhone to My Amplifier
John Sciacca  |  Mar 21, 2023
Got a tech question for Sound & Vision? Email us at AskSandV@gmail.com

Q I have a Yamaha WXA-50 amplifier, and I would like to play hi-res audio from Apple Music and get the full benefit through the amp. In my mind, I would buy a DAC capable of connecting through USB to my iPhone, then to my amplifier’s digital audio-in. Most DACs seem to only have RCA outputs, but it seems to me that the purest experience is to “stay digital” until the amplifier converts to analog. Is there something I’m not thinking about correctly? —Jeremiah Rogers

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Signals
The End of Another Era?
Ken C. Pohlmann  |  Mar 20, 2023
The year is 1964. Under a starry night sky, you are cruising down Route 66 in a new Mustang, listening to St Louis Cardinal baseball on KMOX-AM, the immortal Bob Gibson on the mound, throwing against the Cubs.

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4K TV Reviews
Samsung 77" S95C OLED 4K TV
Mark Henninger  |  Mar 20, 2023

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $4,500

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Impeccable HDR
Outstanding contrast
Wide viewing angle
Highly accurate
Minus
No Dolby Vision
Pricey for a 77-inch TV

THE VERDICT
The 77-inch S95C delivers a potent combination of quantum dot OLED vibrance, reference-level color accuracy, and hyperfast gaming.

The 2023 Samsung S95C offers unparalleled picture quality, owing to quantum dot OLED technology. Its pure RGB emissive pixels enable the delivery of remarkable brightness, contrast, and color, providing a viewing experience that truly honors the source material.

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Blu-ray Movie ReviewsUltra HD Blu-ray Movie Reviews
WALL-E
Chris Chiarella  |  Mar 17, 2023
Picture
Sound
Extras

Does anyone else miss the glory days of Pixar, when they were cranking out hit after hit, putting story and character above all? This was the era of WALL·E, a film of overwhelming visual and emotional beauty about the last working waste allocation load lifter assigned to Earth cleanup in the distant future. His endearing combination of kindness, a yearning for companionship and an eagerness to find value in all things set the stage for a memorable, nigh-wordless first act wherein he falls for the newly arrived EVE, a very different robot with a very different directive…

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The S&V Interview
Reviving a Classic: The Rebirth of KLH Audio
Bob Ankosko  |  Mar 16, 2023

15 Minutes with David P. Kelley, CEO of KLH Audio

The return of the KLH was big news at 2018 CES. Industry pundits and audio enthusiasts looked on with great interest and a little skepticism. Could the iconic brand cofounded by hi-fi pioneer Henry Kloss in 1957 be resurrected in a way that would pay homage to its founder? We recently caught up with David P. Kelley, who acquired the brand in 2017, to learn more about what the new KLH has accomplished since then and to get a preview of what’s on the horizon. Indeed, the future is bright as Kelley reveals plans for a new speaker built around the acoustic-suspension principles Henry Kloss made famous.

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SmartStream
Roku OS 12 Update - Live News, Sports and a Revamped Mobile App
Barb Gonzalez  |  Mar 15, 2023
Roku promises an enhanced user experience when it rolls out a new OS 12 update in the coming weeks. In addition to delivering a revamped mobile app, the update will expand access to sports and live TV and use advanced artificial intelligence (AI) to improve personalized viewing recommendations.
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Integrated Amp Reviews
NAD C 3050 LE Integrated Amplifier Review
Daniel Kumin  |  Mar 15, 2023

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $1,972

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Superb sonic quality, savory bass, audiophile-grade imaging
Dirac Live room correction
Streaming (and multiroom expandability)
NAD’s BluOS ecosystem and Bluesound iOS/Android apps
Front-panel meters are retro-licious
Minus
Full-bandwidth Dirac requires paid upgrade
Only one analog line input
No pass-thru for multichannel

THE VERDICT
A “simple” stereo integrated that commemorates NAD’s original designs but conceals considerable technological depths, including Dirac Live room correction, wired/wireless networking with app-directed streaming, and Class D power.

I love vintage. Of my four motorcycles, which included a beloved 1958 Triumph T20 Tiger Cub, the 1989 Honda NT650 is the newest. Of my dozen or so guitars, my 1964 Strat and 1966 D-18 are the undisputed stars, while a 1965 Fender Deluxe Reverb guitar amp is the apple of my ear. I’ll never part with any of these; just pile them upon my bier when the time comes. But vintage hi-fi? Vintage hi-fi?

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A/V Veteran
Hear Here
Thomas J. Norton  |  Mar 14, 2023
Most Audiophiles have a pretty fair idea of how the human hearing system works, but there are always new readers who take "obvious" things for granted. I myself also recently learned a few of the finer points while perusing websites on the subject. Here's what I learned...
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Audio Video NewsNew Products
Pioneer Unveils New Elite Flagship AV Receiver
Bob Ankosko  |  Mar 14, 2023
Pioneer today unveiled a new flagship AV receiver under the prestigious Pioneer Elite label.
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Music Reviews
John Cougar Mellencamp: Scarecrow – Super Deluxe Edition Box Set
Mike Mettler  |  Mar 13, 2023
Performances
Sound
John Mellencamp was making waves. Unfortunately saddled with the stage name “John Cougar” when he came onto the scene in the late-1970s, once he began climbing the singles and sales charts, he asserted his artistic identity much more forcefully by crediting his hit October 1983 LP Uh-Huh to John Cougar Mellencamp. He did so again on his full-artistic breakthrough album, August 1985’s Scarecrow, before dropping the Cougar moniker entirely when the ’90s rolled around.
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