Al Griffin

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Wide Angle
Streaming Deathmatch: Spotify Premium vs. MOG
Al Griffin  |  Jul 19, 2011

Sometimes the mere fact of something being inaccessible can enhance its value — a lot. Take Spotify, for example. For years we’ve wondered when music labels would finally allow the European online music service to make its supposed 15 million-track library available here. That day has finally arrived.

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Ask S&V
Suggested TV Settings
Al Griffin  |  Oct 08, 2013
Got a tech question for Sound & Vision? Email us at AskSandV@gmail.com.

Q. I recently purchased a Samsung 6420 LED TV. I contacted both Samsung and TweakTV looking for suggested calibration settings, but they were of no help. I am not satisfied with the set’s current picture and was wondering if you had some suggested settings for this model or could direct me to other Websites that might help. —Cannon / via e-mail

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Super-Size HDTV
Al Griffin  |  Mar 31, 2005

Here's a question to wrap your mind around: What's the best home-entertainment deal going? If you answered, "a Windows Media Center PC," you're way off track. If you thought, "a $49 progressive-scan DVD player," you're closer, but still no cigar. But if you blurted out, "an LCD front projector," you're absolutely right.

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Suspiria
Al Griffin  |  Apr 01, 2019
Picture
Sound
Extras
It was a bold move for Luca Guadagnino, director of the 2018 Academy Award-nominated, Call Me by Your Name, to undertake a remake of Suspiria, the 1977 film from Italian horror auteur Dario Argento, as his next project. Buoyed no doubt by the critical acclaim Call Me by Your Name had received, Guadagnino, an avowed Argento fan, likely felt he could do Argento's cult classic justice.
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Audio Video NewsCES 2022
SVS Unveils New Prime Wireless Pro Speakers, SoundBase
Al Griffin  |  Jan 07, 2022
SVS was among less than a handful of audio companies haunting the halls of the Venetian hotel’s north tower at CES 2022, but the trek over there was worth it to see the company’s new Prime Wireless Pro Speakers. An evolution of the company’s current Prime Wireless model, the new version has a bigger cabinet for deeper bass, an HDMI eARC input, and—in response to user feedback—a remote control.
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Tannoy Arena Home Theater Speaker System
Al Griffin  |  Oct 03, 2005

Audiophiles and musicians alike will recognize the name Tannoy from the pro-sound world - the company's speakers are used in recording studios around the globe. So I was surprised to see speakers from such a serious outfit show up in a funky, fun package like the Arena system. The Arena's podlike satellites owe a debt to 1970s sci-fi style: think rounded, organic, and amoeboid.

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Other Tech
Targus SoundUP iPod Sound Enhancer
Al Griffin  |  Apr 03, 2006

The compact Targus SoundUP iPod sound enhancer plugs into any third- or fourth-generation iPod or iPod photo and is said to "recreate studio-quality sound" from digitally compressed music. That's a big claim for such a little device - one we had to check out.

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CES 2020
TCL Adds Mini-LED to Budget 6-Series Sets
Al Griffin  |  Jan 09, 2020
A highlight of Thomas J. Norton’s recent review of TCL’s 75-inch 8-Series LCD UHDTV was that set’s “class-leading local dimming.” The deep blacks and punchy HDR performance delivered by the 8-Series model was made possible by its mini-LED backlight, a feature found only in the company’s 8-Series TVs for 2019. In 2020, TCL plans to expand mini-LED backlights to its 6-Series, a more valued-oriented line that also features the same built-in Roku streaming platform found in the 8-Series.
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New Products
TCL Announces Pricing, Availability for 2020 Roku TVs
Al Griffin  |  Aug 11, 2020
TV maker TCL today announced that its 5-Series Roku models for 2020 are now available, and that pre-orders are being taken for the new 6-Series Roku sets it expects to ship later this month.
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CES 2017
TCL Delivers Dolby Vision for Under $500
Al Griffin  |  Jan 05, 2017
Best known for its affordable TVs with built-in Roku streaming capability, TCL is showing three new UHDTV lineups at CES, including the company’s top-of-the-line P Series sets.
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