LATEST ADDITIONS

Mark Henninger  |  Apr 02, 2024  |  0 comments
When Apple first announced the Vision Pro mixed reality headset, it set off a chain reaction of responses and predictions. Its extremely high-resolution OLED display holds promise for entertainment experiences like movie watching, but can a personal device visually surpass what’s achievable with a traditional TV screen or projection system?
Bob Ankosko  |  Apr 01, 2024  |  1 comments
Noble Audio, the Texas-based company specializing in high-performance in-ear monitors (IEMs) with exotic finishes, is once again embracing silicon-based microspeakers in its latest wireless earbud model.
Ken C. Pohlmann  |  Apr 01, 2024  |  4 comments
When I saw the press release, I couldn't believe my eyes. I thought it was some kind of joke or, as they say — misinformation. But I checked and double-checked and even placed a call to a high-ranking official in Washington. They confirmed that it is true. Starting in 2025, sales of turntables will be banned in the United States.

Mike Mettler  |  Mar 30, 2024  |  3 comments

Bruce Soord, guitarist, vocalist, and founder of the British post-prog collective The Pineapple Thief, caught the surround-mixing bug well over a decade ago, and he’s yet to shake it—something that’s quite good news for those of us who admire his learned approach to the 360-degree soundfield. Soord’s recent Atmos forays include The Pineapple Thief’s evocative new album It Leads to This, as well as current albums by Jethro Tull and Big Big Train—and he’s not done yet. During a recent Zoom interview across the Pond to Paris, music editor Mike Mettler and Soord discussed how he first got into surround mixing, what mistakes he made along the way, and why he strives for achieving a “natural feel” in his Atmos mixes. . .

Brandon A. DuHamel  |  Mar 29, 2024  |  1 comments
Picture
Sound
Extras

An esteemed doctor on the run (Harrison Ford), a dogged U.S. marshal (Tommy Lee Jones) on his trail, a one-armed killer, and… F. Lee Bailey? These disparate elements all come together to form a delectable whole in Andrew Davis’s thrilling crime drama, The Fugitive, which has been brilliantly restored in 4K.

Bob Ankosko  |  Mar 28, 2024  |  1 comments
Last October, S&V’s man about town and all-around tech expert Ken Pohlmann wrote about a government-sponsored cybersecurity labeling program designed to give consumers peace of mind that TVs and other smart products they buy are essentially hack-proof. On March 14th, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted to approve the program.
Greg Tarr  |  Mar 28, 2024  |  1 comments

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $3,500

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Ultra bright picture for an OLED display Wide natural color gamut coverage Impressive matte anti-reflective screen Low input lag and high refresh rate for gaming
Minus
No ATSC 3.0 NextGen TV tuner
Slight blooming from anti-glare technology
No Dolby Vision HDR
No Google Assistant voice support

THE VERDICT
This series greatly improves Quantum-OLED tech's brightness game. It has an excellent reflection-reducing screen that sets it apart from other Quantum OLEDs we've seen. It's worth the extra cost over a 2023 S95C close-out. But you will likely find a better deal if you wait for key sales events later in the year.

Samsung's 77-inch QN77S95D TV is the third version of its OLED TVs, which combine quantum dots and blue OLED light. This technology is called "Quantum-OLED" by Samsung Electronics and "QD-OLED" by Samsung Display, the company that makes the screens. It uses quantum dots to change blue OLED light to red and green light for its RGB pixels.

Bob Ankosko  |  Mar 28, 2024  |  3 comments
Long-time U.K. audio specialist Cambridge Audio has introduced wireless earbuds that support high-quality listening for up to 10 hours even when active noise cancellation is turned on.
Mike Mettler  |  Mar 27, 2024  |  0 comments
Performances
Sound

Frank Zappa was a master at creating musical Venn diagrams. What do I mean by that? Well, Zappa’s compositional talents stretched well beyond the rock music idiom, so many of his releases would offer a keen intersection of doo-wop, classical orchestration, avant-jazz, progressive jams, country funk, and pure pop sensibilities (for starters). Sometimes he would even incorporate all his artistic powers into all 20-plus minutes of an album side’s lone track.

Bob Ankosko  |  Mar 27, 2024  |  0 comments
Bowers & Wilkins today introduced a new series of speakers that aims to push its already excellent 700 Series up a notch on the high-fidelity scale.

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