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Blu-ray Movie ReviewsUltra HD Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Baywatch
David Vaughn  |  Feb 09, 2018
Picture
Sound
Extras
A dangerous crime wave hits the beach as legendary Lt. Mitch Buchannon leads his squad of lifeguards on a mission to prove you don’t have to wear a badge to save the day—despite being told to keep away from the trouble by both the police and his boss. Along for the ride are a trio of new recruits including former Olympian Matt Brody, who made the cut because of the positive PR he will bring to the team. To find the mastermind, the team must break some rules, go undercover, and put their careers in jeopardy to keep the beach safe from nefarious business interests.
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Blu-ray Movie ReviewsUltra HD Blu-ray Movie Reviews
The Mummy
Brandon A. DuHamel  |  Feb 09, 2018
Picture
Sound
Extras
Forget about the Mummy movies starring Brendan Fraser, which kicked off in 1999 and launched their own spinoffs. This version of The Mummy is in fact a reboot of Universal’s vaunted Classic Monsters franchises of the 1930s onward. Although it is meant to be a horror flick, this Tom Cruise vehicle directed by Alex Kurtzman—known more for his writing on TV series like Hawaii Five-0 than for directing—is less about horror than it is about big action set pieces.
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Audio Video NewsNew Products
Integra Expands 2018 Lineup with HDBaseT Receivers
SV Staff  |  Feb 09, 2018
As a follow-up to last week’s Research Series announcement, Integra continues to fill out its 2018 lineup, this time with two HDBaseT-enabled receivers.
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Audio Video NewsNew Products
HomePod Is Here
SV Staff  |  Feb 09, 2018
Have you seen those hipster TV spots welcoming HomePod? Apple’s long-time-coming smart speaker hits stores today...
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The Connected Life
Installing In-Wall/Ceiling Speakers: Part 2
John Sciacca  |  Feb 09, 2018
Last month’s blog detailed the first part of the process of installing new speakers. Since planning before cutting is a massive part of retrofitting new speakers, I focused on making sure you could actually install speakers where you want. This involved determining the best wiring route to the new speakers and ensuring the route was clear of any obstacles like wall purlins.
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New Products
February 2018 New Gear Part 1
SV Staff  |  Feb 08, 2018
A smart speaker with a screen, a matchbox-size headphone amp, a serious ceiling speaker, and more.
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Audio Video News
Sony Announces Pricing for New 4K HDR HDTVs
SV Staff  |  Feb 08, 2018
Sony today announced pricing for the X900F and X850F series of high dynamic range (HDR)-enabled 4K Ultra HDTVs it previewed at CES 2018 in January.
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Audio Video NewsNew Products
Acurus Announces 20-Channel Upgrade for ACT 4
SV Staff  |  Feb 08, 2018
Indy Audio Labs (IAL), owner of the high-performance audio brands Aragon and Acurus, has announced plans to expand the immersive audio capabilities of it ACT 4 preamp/processor to 20 channels.
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Ask S&V
Which Dolby Atmos Speaker System Should I Buy?
Al Griffin  |  Feb 08, 2018
Got a tech question for Sound & Vision? Email us at AskSandV@gmail.com

Q I have a home theater system based around a Sony STR-DN1080 7.2-channel receiver and I’m on a quest to pick up new speakers to use for Dolby Atmos. What’s the best speaker match in the $1,000-to-$2,000 range? Also, how would I hook everything up to optimize the system for Atmos? —Ernest Walker / via e-mail

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AV Receiver Reviews
Yamaha Aventage RX-A2070 A/V Receiver Review
Daniel Kumin  |  Feb 07, 2018

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $1,600

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Impressive dynamics and clarity in both stereo and multichannel
Quick-response onscreen interface
Four-zone multiroom capability plus wireless MusicCast
Excellent, responsive streaming-audio client
Minus
Remote control is crowded and not illuminated

THE VERDICT
Fully competitive with other flagship AVRs in basic performance, the Yamaha RX-A2070’s proprietary DSP music listening modes are an added attraction that could win over even the most serious listeners.

Once, receivers used to receive (radio waves), and amplify, period. They still do, but those are almost beside-the-point functions. Receivers nowadays are more concerned with decoding, casting, wireless-connecting, virtualizing, surround-formatting, multi-room-extending, auto-analyzing, and more. In fact, I don’t know why we still call these things “receivers,” but, whatever.

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