Al Griffin

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New Products
2020 TV Review Preview
Al Griffin  |  Apr 13, 2020
Many of us stuck at home have been watching lots of TV lately (too much!), but some may also be wondering about buying a new TV. Spring is when the new sets show up, and while you might not be able to wander into a Best Buy or other store to browse them at present, you’re probably itching to check out the reviews. To that end, here are the models Sound & Vision currently has in the review pipeline, along with the sets we anticipate testing as they arrive in the months to come.
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Top Picks
2021 Top Picks of the Year
Al Griffin  |  Jan 04, 2022
Looking back on 2021, I can honestly state that it represented an improvement over 2020, though it didn't end up being the full-scale return-to-normal everybody was looking for. A/V consumer and trade shows such as CEDIA Expo in Indianapolis were gutted. Supply chain logjams delayed the arrival of new gear, particularly in core categories like speakers and A/V receivers, both of which ended up underrepresented in our 2021 Top Picks of the Year list compared with previous years. But even with all the challenges, the wheels of industry continued to grind, with much fantastic gear coming in for us to test and recommend.
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3 Faces of HDTV
Al Griffin  |  Aug 26, 2004

After half a decade of struggling to attract eyeballs, high-definition TV (HDTV) has turned the corner at last. A lot of people have moved beyond wondering if they should spring for an HDTV to asking themselves, "Which one should I buy?" If you've been pondering the same question, it's time to get a grip on the different types of big-screen HDTVs.

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6 Easy Pieces
Al Griffin  |  Aug 24, 2003
Photos by Tony Cordoza You've got to give credit to the guy who invented the six-pack. What a concept: six bottles, all strapped together in a bundle that can be easily toted from your local 7-11 to your fridge. Although not as portable as a bunch of brewskis, many home theater speaker systems adhere to a similar model.
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Audio Video News
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Lands on Disney+
Al Griffin  |  May 04, 2020
Viewing fantasy epics turns out, unsurprisingly, to be a fine way to pass time while social distancing. Over the past few weeks I’ve binged both The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit film trilogies and am now working my way once again through Game of Thrones. What to view next? Some good news today for Star Wars fans seeking to ingest the full suite of films based on George Lucas’ original space opera: Disney+ has added 2019’s Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, the latest entry in the series, to the list of titles available to stream on the service in 4K with Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos sound. May the Fourth be with you!
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Wide Angle
A 3D Audio Update from SRS
Al Griffin  |  May 16, 2012

SRS, a company best known for audio processing used to improve the sound of on-board TV speakers — and one that was recently acquired by movie sound bigwig DTS — has been steadily promoting its Multi-Dimensional Audio (MDA) concept over the past two years, demoing the audio creation/distribution platform to movie studios, music labels, and journalists alike. This spring saw the establishment of version 1.0 of the MDA spec, along with the release of MDA Creator, a plug-in designed for a range of popular audio workstations that enables sound mixers to store audio in the MDA format. Now, the company has added the MDA Director app to its list of new things for 2012.

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Other Tech
A Camcorder Christmas
Al Griffin  |  Nov 23, 2003
Photos by John Wilkes Viewscreen images by Al Griffin The holidays are a time for giving, but they're also very much a time for receiving. And if you ask me, there's no better gift to get than a digital camcorder, especially when it's delivered to your office by a Santa-type figure dressed in a FedEx uniform.
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Blu-ray Movie ReviewsUltra HD Blu-ray Movie Reviews
A Quiet Place
Al Griffin  |  Aug 31, 2018
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Directed by John Krasinksi (star of TV’s “The Office”) and produced by action film director Michael Bay, A Quiet Place is a curious mashup of sci-fi/horror and family drama. The world is under siege by alien creatures who are blind but have powerful hearing capability, which they use to locate human prey. To survive, a family at the story’s center of needs to remain completely silent at all times— not something that’s easy to do when the clan includes young children.
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Editor's Eye
A Visit to Danish Speaker Manufacturer DALI
Al Griffin  |  May 14, 2019
DALI (Danish Audiophile Loudspeaker Industries) was founded in 1983 by Peter Lyngdorf, who is also the founder and owner of high-end audio company Steinway Lyngdorf. The company currently employs 300 people, with the bulk of its manufacturing carried out in a 220,000-square-foot factory located in farm country midway between Aarhus and Aalborg. DALI produced 250,000 speakers in 2018, and exported products to 70 countries.
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Other Tech
Accell UltraAV 2-1 HDMI Switch
Al Griffin  |  Dec 05, 2006

Accell's UltraAV HDMI 2-1 Switch The good thing about HDMI is that it reduces the wire tangle in an A/V system by carrying digital high-def video and multichannel audio signals on a single cable. The bad thing is that many HDTVs sold over the past few years have only one HDMI input.

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