SV Staff

Beyond an abundance of turkey and great Black Friday deals, the month of November produced a handful of Sound & Vision Top Picks, starting with two state-of-the-art audio components — one a processor for home theater enthusiasts in search of the very best surround sound has to offer, the other a high-performance integrated amp that will leave audiophiles drooling. From there, we move on to audiophile-caliber headphones that can be had for far less than you might expect and Sony’s latest and most affordable take on native 4K video projection.

The Halloween ghouls and goblins are gone but they left behind a delightfully eclectic mix of road-tested AV gear to ponder, ranging from an amazingly versatile amp/DAC to a 65-inch TV that will make you rethink what you should pay for a top performing 4K set. In between we had the pleasure of reviewing a new top-line TV from Sony and two stellar home theater speaker systems — one a reference-quality setup from a respected name in audio, the other a unique system from a company you’ve probably never heard of.

Three of the five audio products that achieved Sound & Vision’s Top Pick status in September prove that you don’t have to empty your wallet to get great performance. Among them is a soundbar that earned our new Top Value designation for combining an impressive set of features with authoritative sound at a price that’s hard to believe. At the other end of the spectrum is a reference-grade 4K Blu-ray player and a power amplifier reserved for listeners who will settle for nothing less than the best. When you’re finished here, be sure to visit our Top Picks page for more recommendations.