Scott Wilkinson
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LG OLED Pricing and Availability
News
Scott Wilkinson • Apr 02, 2012 • 7 comments
When LG announced the EM9600 55-inch OLED flat panel at CES last January, its price and availability were not included in the press release, leading to unbridled speculation. Well, it seems that speculation can now be put to rest. According to an article from Korean outlet MK Business News, LG plans to stage a big launch event at the Cannes Film Festival in May, moving its timetable up from the second half of the year to take advantage of the demand that will surely accompany the 2012 Olympics this summer. And the price? Approximately 9 million Korean won, which is right around $8000.

Thanks to reader johnnyd for sending me the link to the story on techbargains.com, which led to the primary source at MK Business News.

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Pioneer AVR with B&W Speakers
Ask Home Theater
Scott Wilkinson • Mar 30, 2012 • 6 comments
I have the following system:
  • Pioneer VSX-1021 A/V receiver
  • B&W 600-series speakers (683 front L/R, HTM61 center, 685 bookshelf surrounds, ASW610 subwoofer)
  • Oppo BDP-93 Blu-ray player
  • Sonos wireless audio system
  • Sony 55-inch XBR TV
All in all, the sound is outstanding, and the image of Blu-ray discs is also amazing. However, a friend says the overall setup is not balanced—in particular, the receiver is cheap compared to the other elements. I do not have much space for a higher-end receiver, so is there any other solution? Is this setup really unbalanced, since it sounds great to me?

Ricardo Monnerat

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Upconverting S-video to HDMI
Ask Home Theater
Scott Wilkinson • Mar 28, 2012 • 7 comments
I need a new A/V receiver to replace my non-HDMI Denon AVR-3805. Among my source devices are two JVC S-VHS VCRs, so I hope to find an AVR with at least one S-video input that is upconverted to HDMI. What would you recommend for under $1000?

Stan Sexton

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Podcast 104: Carlos Angulo & James Kittle
Home Theater Geeks Podcast
Scott Wilkinson • Mar 27, 2012 • 1 comments
Vizio product marketing manager Carlos Angulo and product engineer James Kittle talk about Vizio's soon-to-be-released 21:9 CinemaWide flat-panel TVs, including size considerations, LED edgelighting and backlighting with Smart Dimming, Vizio Internet Apps, scaling 2.35:1 movies to the panel's native 2560x1080 pixel resolution, and passive 3D. They also discuss Vizio's upcoming Google TV implementation, its 4K technology demonstrations at trade shows, answers to chat-room questions, and more.

Run Time: 51:18

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Upgrade Dilemma
Ask Home Theater
Scott Wilkinson • Mar 26, 2012 • 14 comments
I currently own a Yamaha RX-V661 A/V receiver, and I play DVDs and Blu-rays on a PS3. My receiver is only compatible with HDMI 1.2a. Is it true that the PS3 decodes Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio and sends them losslessly to my receiver? I ask because I just bought a new house, and I am setting up an entry-level home theater with a projector. I am stuck between buying new surround speakers or a new AVR such as the Pioneer VSX-1021 or Onkyo TX-NR609. I currently have some outdated Bose speakers that I use for surrounds and rears, and I would like to upgrade them to match the Klipsch speakers I have for my front left and right, center, and powered sub.

Jerry VanOort

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THX Certification
Ask Home Theater
Scott Wilkinson • Mar 23, 2012 • 16 comments
I understand that THX certification is a high honor for home-theater gear, but how important is it? I often see reviews of speakers, receivers, and TVs with very high ratings, but they don't have THX certification. (GoldenEar's Triton Two tower speakers come to mind.) Is this because the product isn't quite up to THX standards, or is something else going on?

Mark Nott

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LED Backlighting vs. Edgelighting
Ask Home Theater
Scott Wilkinson • Mar 21, 2012 • 7 comments
I hear you talk about LED backlighting and edgelighting in LCD TVs, and I can't seem to find which one my Samsung UN60D7000 uses. I thought it was backlit, but hearing you talk about it made me wonder if I was right.

Joe Souders

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Mitsubishi HC4000 DLP Projector
Projector Reviews
Scott Wilkinson • Mar 20, 2012 • 3 comments
Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
Price: $1,495 At A Glance: Many advanced features • Superb detail and color • Deepest blacks we've seen at this price level • Poor shadow detail

A front-projection system is usually the display of choice for serious home-theater enthusiasts. But such systems are more expensive than most flat panels and rear-projection TVs, especially when you consider the cost of a good screen. So finding a low-cost projector that performs well is the Holy Grail for those who want a true home cinema without breaking the bank.

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Podcast 103: Bob Schulein
Home Theater Geeks Podcast
Scott Wilkinson • Mar 20, 2012 • 0 comments
Audio-product designer Bob Schulein talks about his long and distinguished career, including microphone design and his pioneering work on multichannel matrix encoding and decoding for broadcast and music recordings. He also explains his current project called ImmersAV, in which he shoots high-def video and records binaural audio to create a more immersive A/V experience. In addition, he discusses his extensive headphone measurements and how they relate to perceived sound quality, answers chat-room questions, and more.

Run Time: 1:05:46

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Separate vs. Integrated Subwoofers
Ask Home Theater
Scott Wilkinson • Mar 19, 2012 • 3 comments
I have a couple of questions:

1. Should a home-theater speaker system have separate subwoofers instead of subwoofers in the main front towers?

2. Should an amplifier's power-output rating match the power-handing rating of a speaker system?

Bob Spencer

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