Scott Wilkinson

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TV Reviews
Panasonic Viera TC-P50S30 Plasma HDTV
Scott Wilkinson  |  Nov 28, 2011  |  1 comments

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
Price: $1000 At A Glance: Beautiful color • Sharp detail • Reasonably good blacks • Outstanding value

Panasonic is well known for its high-quality, high-value plasma TVs, but how good can its $1000 50-incher be? Really good, as it turns out. The TC-P50S30 offers nearly identical performance to the highly rated TC-P50ST30—the only real difference is that the S30 has no 3D capabilities. If you're looking for a 50-inch flat panel with only $1000 to spend, look no farther.

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Ask S&V
Panasonic ST30 vs. S30
Scott Wilkinson  |  Nov 28, 2011  |  4 comments
Are the blacks visually better on the Panasonic ST30 plasma compared with the S30? And do I really need to pay attention to the Moving Picture Resolution spec? Are there any models you would consider other than these? I'm not interested in 3D, but I understand that it will be included with the better TVs.

Dave Butler

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Other TechAudio Video NewsNew Products
2011 Black Friday Home Theater Deals
Scott Wilkinson  |  Nov 24, 2011  |  1 comments
As the song says, it's the most wonderful time of the year—or the most dreadful, depending on whether or not you plan to join the buying frenzy on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving and the traditional start of the holiday shopping season. Many stores open at an ungodly hour and offer seemingly outrageous deals on certain products to get people in the door, hoping that they'll buy more than they bargained for and put the store's accounts in the black for the year, which is why it's called Black Friday—either that, or it might be due to all the black eyes resulting from fights over the last remaining $40 Blu-ray player.

Scanning some of the myriad Black Friday websites—my favorite is bfads.net because you can search by product category from multiple retailers—I found a few great deals on home theater gear. In many cases, however, these products are already available at less than the MSRP (manufacturer's suggested retail price), so the savings I cite here might not be as great as they appear. I've included links to HT's reviews of the same or similar items if available, so let your mouse do the clicking before you venture forth to battle the hordes.

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Ask S&V
Home Theater in a Game Room
Scott Wilkinson  |  Nov 23, 2011  |  0 comments
I have a $15,000 budget (display, speakers, components) for a home theater in a 11x14 section of a 16x25 game room. However, I am limited to ceiling-mounted surround speakers. Does anyone make in-ceiling rear speakers that tonally match a killer set of front towers and center channel? I read all the in-ceiling reviews and the Top Picks, but I can't figure out how to blend a system. Also, I've read your reviews of the Marantz components; the AV7005 looks awesome, but maybe it's overpowered for my dual-use game room and home theater? I love the Ask Home Theater column; please send some help this way!

Joe Boyle

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Ultimate Demos' New Look
Scott Wilkinson  |  Nov 23, 2011  |  6 comments
If you have a home theater, you probably enjoy showing it off to your family and friends. But which Blu-ray titles are best for demonstrating the audio and video capabilities of your system? That's easy—they're listed in HT's exclusive blog called Ultimate Demos, which identifies Blu-rays of superior technical quality and calls out specific scenes, right down to the chapter and time-code second, that let your theater really shine.

And now, Ultimate Demos are new and improved, with icons that let you instantly see which titles have exemplary video, audio, or both. If the stylized eye is red, you know that disc provides exceptional visual imagery, while a red ear icon indicates outstanding sound. If either icon is orange, the corresponding content is very good, but not quite up to reference quality, while a gray icon means there's nothing special about that part of the presentation.

Keep in mind that Ultimate Demos are not movie reviews—they will always provide top-quality audio and/or video, even if the movie itself doesn't measure up to the disc's technical merits. So if you've been looking for Blu-rays that kick some serious home-theater butt, look no farther than HT's Ultimate Demos.

Home Theater Geeks Podcast
Podcast 88: Eisuke Tsuyuzaki
Scott Wilkinson  |  Nov 22, 2011  |  0 comments
Eisuke Tsuyuzaki, CTO of Panasonic North America, talks about the importance of online apps in TVs and other consumer electronics products for content delivery and social interaction (including Skype, which he used on a Panasonic Viera VT30 during the podcast), the success of 3D in its first two years, issues surrounding 4K, the importance of mobile content, ultra-premium flat panels, answers to chat-room questions, and more.

Run Time: 58:11

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Ask S&V
Plasma Break In
Scott Wilkinson  |  Nov 21, 2011  |  7 comments
You've convinced me not to worry about future 3D technology and to just get a 3D TV now. I'm finally about to go to the store, but instead of getting the Samsung UA46D7000 LED LCD, I'm going to get the Samsung PS51D8000 plasma, a cheaper yet larger and higher-end model. My one concern is that, since the PS51D8000 is a plasma, do I need to break it in? I know you do it all the time for reviews, but I've read that Samsung has said that it's unnecessary anymore. So should I break it in, just be careful for the first 100 hours, or not worry at all?

Nik in Gladstone, Queensland, Australia

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Ask S&V
Center-Channel Problem
Scott Wilkinson  |  Nov 18, 2011  |  15 comments
I have a problem with my dedicated home theater—my center channel doesn't always sound clear. I've heard other systems whose dialog is crystal clear, but mine isn't. My system includes Klipsch speakers (RF-83 fronts, RC-64 center, RB-81 rears), two Velodyne DD-15 subwoofers with SVS AS-EQ1 equalizer, Anthem Statement P5 5-channel power amp, and Integra DHC-9.9 pre/pro. I've attached a photo of where my center-channel speaker sits, plus another one of the front of the theater. Any advice would be appreciated.

Rick Audinot

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The Big Picture
Passive Aggressive 3D
Scott Wilkinson  |  Nov 17, 2011  |  0 comments
The daily deluge of news into my inbox included a very sad item yesterday. Insight Media, a display-industry analysis firm, reported that Samsung will not be making so-called "active retarder" 3D LCD TVs in collaboration with RealD. This approach places an active polarization-switching layer over the LCD layer, much like the polarization switcher placed in front of a projector lens in a commercial RealD theater. The viewer wears standard passive glasses, and the TV quickly alternates the polarization in sync with the alternating left and right images on the screen.
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Ask S&V
Energy Take Classic 5.1 vs. Pioneer SP-PK21BS
Scott Wilkinson  |  Nov 16, 2011  |  0 comments
I have a Samsung 46-inch LCD TV, Onkyo TX-NR509 A/V receiver, and KLH HT-60 speakers. I just got the Onkyo, and now I'd like to upgrade my speakers. I am considering the Energy Take Classic 5.1 system as well as the Pioneer SP-PK21BS speakers, but the Pioneers seem a bit large for my room (25x14 feet with a viewing distance of 10 feet). Also, the Pioneer's center speaker is so high, it would block the bottom portion of my screen.

Michael J. Leone

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