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Headphone Reviews
Sony MDR-Z1R Headphones Review
Steve Guttenberg  |  Mar 07, 2017

Performance
Build Quality
Comfort
Value
PRICE $2,300

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Remarkably transparent
Fine, handmade build quality
Very, very comfortable
Minus
New-gen balanced cable may not fit current headphone amps/sources

THE VERDICT
$2,300

Sony has a long history of making reference-quality headphones, starting with the limited-edition MDR-R10. That was in 1989—and at $2,500, it was the most expensive headphone in the world. A couple of years ago, I had the pleasure of spending a few hours with an MDR-R10, and it was the most beautiful-sounding headphone I’d ever heard. No wonder the cognoscenti dubbed it the Stradivarius of headphones and scooped them all up years ago. MDR-R10s rarely come up for sale, but when they do, they go for at least $6,000!

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Portable Player Reviews
Sony TA-ZH1ES Headphone Amp/DAC
Steve Guttenberg  |  Mar 07, 2017
Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $2,200

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Solid as a brick build quality
Handles ultra-high resolution 768-kHz/32-bit PCM, and DSD native (up to 22.4 MHz) files
Variety of single-ended and balanced headphone outputs
Minus
Not the most transparent sounding headphone amp

THE VERDICT
The Sony TA-ZH1ES is beautifully designed and built, though it doesn’t quite bring the MDR-Z1R headphone to its full potential.

Not content with just launching a new flagship headphone in the MDR-Z1R, Sony simultaneously launched the TA-ZH1ES headphone amplifier/DAC; like the MDR-Z1R, it’s intended to be a statement of Sony’s best technology.

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Signals
Worshipping at the Altar of Brick and Mortar
Ken C. Pohlmann  |  Mar 07, 2017
I remember it like it was only yesterday, but in reality it was probably more like 30 years ago. I walked into my favorite hi-fi store—the one on Dixie Highway. The owner greeted me by name. He was very active as a recording engineer for classical-music groups, and a trusted name in audio. His inventory was pretty high-end and a little spendy for a lowly college professor like me, but we had done some critical listening together and I greatly respected his opinions.
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Audio Video News
Netflix Households Surpass DVR Households
SV Staff  |  Mar 07, 2017
New research from New Hampshire-based Leichtman Research Group (LRG) found that the number of Netflix households has outstripped those with DVRs for the first time.
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Remotely Possible
Aera Smart Home Fragrance Device is Heaven Scent
Darryl Wilkinson  |  Mar 06, 2017
“I’d rather be a smart feller than a fart smeller,” or so said an old co-worker of mine whenever it was even vaguely appropriate to the conversation at hand. Of course, it’s a low-brow spoonerism that you don’t often hear in “polite society”. On the other hand, you have to agree that the basic sentiment is legitimate: it is, after all, much better to be smart than to sit around smelling…um…bad smells. That’s the train of thought that chugged through my brain late one day during CES2017; and it was set in motion by a sign proclaiming that the new product on display, Aera, was a “Smart Home Fragrance Device”.
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Audio Video News
Sound & Vision Tech Tidbits March 2017
Mark Fleischmann  |  Mar 06, 2017
Sony Projectors got firmware updates to add HDR contrast to the picture menu, add an HDR indicator to the information menu, and automatically select the BT2020 color gamut. Affected models include the VPL-VW5000, VPL-VW665, and VPL-VW365; the VPL-VW675 already has these features...

Dish Network’s NBA Team Pass lets you follow your favorite team for $119 per season. The NBA League Pass, which covers the whole league, is still available for $199...

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Audio Video News
FCC Seeks Comment on Next Gen Broadcast TV
SV Staff  |  Mar 06, 2017
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is seeking comment on a proposal announced last year that would allow TV broadcasters to use the “next generation” ATSC 3.0 transmission standard on a voluntary, market-driven basis.
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Headphone ReviewsGrace Notes
BEEM D200 Headphones with Lightning Jack
Leslie Shapiro  |  Mar 06, 2017
When Apple chose to remove the headphone jack from their latest iPhones, many people (myself included) freaked out. Would I forever be forced into listening to a downgraded Bluetooth signal? Luckily, BEEM United came quickly to the rescue with the BeMe D200 wired headphone with a Lightning jack.

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New Products
March 2017 New Gear
SV Staff  |  Mar 05, 2017  |  First Published: Mar 03, 2017
A new Onkyo receiver, a remarkable window TV, NFL-inspired workout headphones, and more.
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3D Blu-ray Movie ReviewsBlu-ray Movie Reviews
Finding Dory
Chris Chiarella  |  Mar 03, 2017
Picture
3D-ness
Sound
Extras
The mind reels at the creativity needed to craft a sequel to Finding Nemo, once the most popular Pixar movie of them all. The results pick up a year after clownfish-dad Marlin went on a quest to locate his missing son, and now traveling companion Dory is the one in need of finding. The lovably forgetful blue tang (voiced by Ellen DeGeneres) is on her own mission now, to reconnect with her parents, but soon enough she’s “trapped” at a marine biology theme park, reunited with some chums of her youth and aided by some new aquatic allies.
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