Home Theater

Can Digital Audio Ever Be Indistinguishable From Analog?

Filed Under: Vote

By: Scott Wilkinson • Posted: Jun 24, 2011 • Published: Dec 31, 1969 • 12 comments

As digital-audio resolutions increase from 44.1kHz/16 bits to 96kHz/24 bits to perhaps even 384kHz/32 bits, I wonder if there's a point at which digital becomes indistinguishable from analog. After all, the human hearing system is not infinite in its discrimination, so there must be a digital resolution beyond which we can't hear the effect of increasing it further. If that's the case, is digital audio at that resolution indistinguishable from top-notch analog, or is there some quality that will always allow us to identify it as digital?

Those who prefer the sound of analog will probably vote that digital will always be distinguishable from high-quality analog, no matter how high the resolution is, and I'd really like to know why you believe that. What is it about digital audio that will always allow humans—at least those with trained ears—to identify it as digital?

Vote to see the results and leave a comment about your choice.

How Well Can You Control Ambient Daylight In Your Home Theater?

Filed Under: Vote

By: Scott Wilkinson • Posted: Jul 08, 2011 • Published: Dec 31, 1969 • 4 comments

As you probably know, controlling ambient light is one of the most critical factors in creating a high-quality home-theater experience. The darker you can make the room, the more you will be drawn into the story on the screen. Also, a dark room prevents any distracting reflections from a plasma or LCD TV with a shiny screen. And a front-projection system absolutely requires a dark room to look good unless you have a special ambient-light-rejecting screen, and even then, a dark room is better.

Of course, any room can be made dark at night simply by turning off the lights. But if you watch during the day in a room with windows, sliding glass doors, skylights, or other transparent/translucent openings to the outside world, you need black-out shades or other coverings to darken the room, which might or might not be practical for one reason or another.

I'm curious to know if this is a big problem among our readers. How well can you control the ambient daylight in the room you use as a home theater? I'd also love to know how you control ambient daylight. Blackout shades? A windowless room? If you have a front projector, do you use an ambient-light-rejecting screen?

Vote to see the results and leave a comment about your choice.

What Will You Do in Response to Netflix's Rate Hike?

Filed Under: Vote

By: Scott Wilkinson • Posted: Jul 15, 2011 • Published: Dec 31, 1969 • 10 comments

As you probably know by now, Netflix just announced a change in its rates for online streaming and physical discs by mail. Instead of charging one monthly fee for as many of both as you want (one disc at a time), you must now pay a separate fee for each medium—$8/month for streaming and another $8/month for DVDs by mail or $10/month for Blu-rays, a 60-percent increase for both services together.

In his excellent blog on the subject, Home Theater editor Rob Sabin points out that Netflix's streaming library is missing lots of current, desirable titles, and the A/V quality of its streaming content cannot match that of Blu-ray. For now, he recommends sticking with Blu-ray rentals and waiting for the streaming library and quality to catch up.

What do you plan to do in response to the Netflix rate hike? If you're already a Netflix subscriber, will you keep both options or dump one or the other—or both? If you're not yet a subscriber, does this development encourage you to choose one or both, or will you stay away?

Vote to see the results and leave a comment about your choice.

Runco D-73d 3D DLP Projector, Part 4

Filed Under: 3D Technology, Ultimate Tech

By: Scott Wilkinson • Posted: Apr 05, 2011 • Published: Dec 31, 1969 • 1 comments

What Device Do You Mostly Use to Stream Video?

Filed Under: Vote

By: Scott Wilkinson • Posted: Aug 05, 2011 • Published: Dec 31, 1969 • 20 comments

Last week, I asked, What is your favorite video-streaming source? Now, I'd like to know what type of device you use to watch most of your streaming. Until recently, there was one choice—a computer. But most modern TVs, Blu-ray players, and game consoles now offer apps to stream content from providers such as Netflix, Hulu, Vudu, YouTube, and many others. Then there are dedicated set-top boxes from the likes of Roku and Boxee.

So what device do you mostly use to stream video? As before, if you select "Other," please leave a comment telling us what type of device you use. And in any case, I'd love to know why you use a particular device as opposed to something else.

Vote to see the results and leave a comment about your choice.

What Is Your Favorite Music-Streaming Source?

Filed Under: Vote

By: Scott Wilkinson • Posted: Aug 12, 2011 • Published: Dec 31, 1969 • 8 comments

While we're on the subject of streaming (see the last two poll questions here and here), I'd like to turn our attention to music-streaming sources, of which there are two types—on-demand subscription and Internet radio. As you might imagine, on-demand services let you select anything from their library at will, usually for a monthly fee. With Internet-radio services, you specify the type of music you want to listen to, and they deliver it at their discretion, allowing you to skip only a certain number of tracks per hour, at least when you access the service for free.

Do you listen to music-streaming sources? If so, which one is your favorite? Don't forget to leave a comment about your preference, especially if you selected "Other."

Vote to see the results and leave a comment about your choice.

What Are You Most Interested In From CEDIA?

Filed Under: Vote

By: Scott Wilkinson • Posted: Sep 02, 2011 • Published: Dec 31, 1969 • 2 comments

Right after Labor Day, the consumer-electronics industry converges on Indianapolis, Indiana, for the annual CEDIA (Custom Electronics Design and Installation Association) Expo, which focuses on high-end home theater and other custom-installation products. Of course, we'll be there to cover all the home-theater announcements, but I'd like to know which type of products you are most interested in learning about from the show.

As always, I encourage you to leave a comment with more details about your choice. What brands are you especially interested in? Are you thinking about hiring a custom installer, or are you a DIYer? If you picked "Other," what are you referring to? Let us know so we can provide exactly the coverage you crave.

Vote to see the results and leave a comment about your choice.