Scott Wilkinson

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Inexpensive Projectors
Scott Wilkinson  |  May 21, 2012  |  0 comments
I purchased a Sony VPL-HS20 in 2003, and I have enjoyed the picture quality until recently, when the projector started intermittently turning off without notice. I figure it's time for a new projector, although I can no longer afford one in the $3000 range. I live in Canada, and the Epson PowerLite Home Cinema 8345 (similar to the 8350) is around $1250. Also, if I wanted 3D (not urgent), the Epson 3010 is around $1400 on Amazon.

I currently project onto a 119-inch screen with some light control, although it is not perfect during the day. If I purchased a budget projector such as one of the Epsons mentioned above, will the quality be at least as good as what I've seen from my Sony? If not, can you recommend something else for me?

Paul Barnick

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Matching Front and Surround Speakers
Scott Wilkinson  |  May 16, 2012  |  12 comments
I've heard you say, "Make sure your surround speakers are the same brand as the fronts." I have Hsu Research speakers for the front left, right, and center, Axiom dipole surrounds, and a JBL 12-inch subwoofer. I've been told by lots of audio geeks that I don't need to match the surrounds to the fronts. But after I heard what you said, I got confused. Help!

Mark Hudson

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Home Theater Geeks Podcast
Podcast 111: Juergen Herre
Scott Wilkinson  |  May 15, 2012  |  0 comments
Juergen Herre, chief scientist at Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits and professor at Erlangen University in Germany, discusses the development of the MP3 audio format (technically called MPEG-1 Layer 3), how lossy audio codecs work using psychoacoustics, how higher bitrates yield higher audio quality, constant versus variable bitrates, more recent audio codecs such as MPEG-2 AAC and surround MP3, 3D audio, object-oriented audio, answers to chat-room questions, and more.

Run Time: 1:02:14

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Large TV for Well-Lit Room
Scott Wilkinson  |  May 14, 2012  |  12 comments
I would like to buy a TV with a 65-inch or larger screen. My budget is $3000 to $4000. Unfortunately, the room it will be in is very bright with a 15-foot floor-to-ceiling glass window behind the set facing east. I watch a few DVDs, but mostly just cable TV in HD when available; 3D is not important to me. Obviously, I am concerned about light reflection off the screen. What do you suggest?

Orrin

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Display Setup for Newbies
Scott Wilkinson  |  May 10, 2012  |  6 comments
I just bought a Mitsubishi WD-Y657 65-inch DLP rear-projection TV in perfect condition for $300. I've tried to find the best picture settings online, but I can't find anything for this model. Can you provide any help or suggest a good setup disc? Hopefully something easy to use, as I'm fairly new at this.

Cody Lacroix

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Home Theater Geeks Podcast
Podcast 110: Avner Ronen
Scott Wilkinson  |  May 08, 2012  |  0 comments
Boxee co-founder and CEO Avner Ronen talks about the new paradigm of online video delivery, image and sound quality versus bandwidth, integrating and unifying various online sources, the importance of the user interface, the trend toward encrypting basic cable channels, the founding and evolution of Boxee, the Boxee box and remote, online delivery of 3D and 4K, answers to chat-room questions, and more.

Run Time: 1:00:21

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AVR with Digital-Audio & Component-Video Outputs
Scott Wilkinson  |  May 07, 2012  |  13 comments
My Pioneer VSX-35TX A/V receiver just died. I'm looking for a new receiver in the $500 range, but I'm having a hard time finding any that have, among other things, a digital-audio output. Why is that important? I have a Pioneer TRE-D800 wireless headphone transmitter that does 5.1 audio, and it can accept either optical or coaxial inputs. Another consideration is that my Pioneer Elite PRO-510HD RPTV has no HDMI inputs, so I need a component-video output. I want a receiver that can grow from here, so 3D pass-through is a must, and 7.1 audio would be a bonus.

I'm interested in the Pioneer VSX-1122, but it doesn't seem to have all the outputs I need. The Pioneer Elite VSX-52 has exactly what I'm looking for, but it's $400 out of my range. What other brands of receivers should I be looking at, or am I just plain screwed at my current budget?

Chris Friebus

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Choosing a 3D Projector
Scott Wilkinson  |  May 04, 2012  |  6 comments
I have a 140-inch, 2.35:1 screen, and I'd like to replace my existing projector with a 3D model. I've narrowed my choices to the Epson PowerLite Pro Cinema 6010 and the JVC DLA-X30. What do you think?

Kamarul Ariffin

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Setting an AVR for Large or Small Speakers
Scott Wilkinson  |  May 02, 2012  |  26 comments
I have an Onkyo TX-SR805 A/V receiver driving Paradigm Monitor 11s (front L/R), CC-390 (center), Mini monitors (surround L/R), and PW-2100 powered sub. I found a page on the Audyssey website that recommends setting the speakers to "small" after running the auto setup and letting the sub do the so-called heavy lifting. But the Paradigm dealer and everyone I have ever talked to about this says you should always set the speakers to "large" regardless of their actual size/low-frequency response.

What do you think about setting full-range speakers to small as Audyssey recommends? The SR805 does not have a "Large/Small" setting; it lets you specify each speaker as "full-range" or set a crossover frequency between 40 and 200Hz. Where should I set the crossover for the speakers? If the speaker cutoff is (for example) 80Hz, should the sub lowpass be set to the same frequency? If I set the Monitor 11s to 80Hz, does that mean information below 80 Hz will be sent to the sub? Does the amp still send full power to the speaker even though it is set to small?

Kevin Hoeft

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Home Theater Geeks Podcast
Podcast 109: Steve Guttenberg
Scott Wilkinson  |  May 01, 2012  |  0 comments
Steve Guttenberg, a regular contributor to Home Theater and Stereophile as well as the author of the Audiophiliac blog on cnet.com, questions the validity of blind ABX testing and the value of objective audio measurements, especially as a predictive factor for user preferences and an indicator of how a device will sound in various real-world environments. He also talks about the differences between audio and video gear—for example, how many people seek out old audio products but not old video displays—answers to chat-room questions, and more.

Run Time: 1:06:32

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