What gear would you get if you were building your dream home theater? Let's say you had an unlimited budget for video and $100,000 for audio. What speakers, amp, preamp, projector, and screen would you get? Also what would your surround configuration be? 7.1, 9.2, 11.4? Where would you put the speakers? Would you utilize the back surrounds or front height and width channels?
I love your Home Theater Geeks podcast; I listen every week. But I can't find a way to download older episodes. They are all available at twit.tv/htg, but when I follow the link to download them from iTunes, all I can see are the most recent 20 shows. I am trying to download episode 25 but cannot because of this.
According to the brochure for the Hiato 2-channel integrated amplifier from Plinius Audio, "Benefiting from our tranquil location in the inspirational natural environment of New Zealand, the Plinius design team brings you products that faithfully reproduce the emotional touchstones of your favourite music. The holistic integrity of nature's designs inspire Plinius to combine wonderful sound, superb finishes, and technical excellence to delight the senses." Sounds good to me.
I have often seen products with "Reference" in the name, such as "Professional Reference Speakers." Exactly what does that mean? Is it a standard or just hype to sell a product.
Even though hotel rooms are not the best environment to show off high-end audio products, some companies managed to achieve a mighty impressive sound at T.H.E. Show in Newport Beach, CA. Among them was MBL, which set up two systems in adjoining rooms. My first stop was the room with the flagship Reference system, including two 101E MkII speakers ($70,500/pair, profiled here) and two 9011 monoblock power amps, which generate 750 watts per channel and cost a staggering $53,000 each.
I read somewhere that HDMI only provides 2-channel audio from a Blu-ray player or other source device to an A/V receiver. This implies that the coax digital output from the player must be used for 5.1-channel audio to the A/V receiver. Is this true? If so, does the same apply to the digital out of a satellite receiver?
It's been almost 30 years since Steven Spielberg brought tears to the eyes of moviegoers with E.T.: The Extraterrestrial. Now, J.J. Abrams tells a very similar story for a new generation in Super 8, which opens today. This movie is being shown in 2D only, and like X-Men: First Class, I didn't miss 3D at all.