Scott Wilkinson
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The Dark Knight Rises
The Big Picture
Scott Wilkinson • Jul 23, 2012 • 38 comments
Last week, I was invited to see a private preview screening of The Dark Knight Rises, three hours before the long-awaited midnight showings on July 20, 2012. The next morning, of course, I awoke to the news of a horrific shooting at one of those showings in Aurora, Colorado, in which 12 people were killed and nearly 60 were wounded, some critically. I have no idea how the movie figured into the gunman's plans—if at all—but the event has certainly cast a pall over what would have otherwise been just another Hollywood mega-blockbuster opening.
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Will You Watch the Olympics in 3D?
Vote
Scott Wilkinson • Jul 20, 2012 • Published: Dec 31, 1969 • 15 comments
As I report here, the 2012 Summer Olympics start in one week and will include some 242 hours of 3D coverage available to nearly 80 percent of US households from providers such as AT&T, Verizon, DirecTV, Cablevision, Comcast, and Time Warner. Unfortunately, the 3D programming will be delayed by one full day in relation to the 2D coverage, but even so, this is an historic development that could bring 3D broadcasting more into the mainstream.

I'll be watching the 3D coverage—will you? If not, is it because you choose not to or that you don't have a 3D display or broadcast source?

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

Will You Watch the Olympics in 3D?
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Olympics in 3D
News
Scott Wilkinson • Jul 20, 2012 • 0 comments
The Games of the XXX Olympiad will begin in London, England, a week from today with what is sure to be a spectacular opening ceremony. And for the first time in Olympic history, a goodly portion of the entire two-week event will be available in high-definition 3D to subscribers of MVPDs (multichannel video programming distributors) reaching nearly 80 percent of US households.
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Projector Lamp Longevity
Ask Home Theater
Scott Wilkinson • Jul 20, 2012 • 11 comments
Do you have any idea why the colors of an InFocus projector have turned green-blue (or rather lost red) after only 250 hours? Is this an indication of lamp aging?

Sotiris Filippakopoulos

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Podcast 120: Dave Duncan
Home Theater Geeks Podcast
Scott Wilkinson • Jul 17, 2012 • 4 comments
Dave Duncan, Business Manager of DLP Cinema for Texas Instruments, explains the technology of Digital Light Processing, including the impossibly tiny moving mirrors on the surface of a Digital Micromirror Device (DMD) chip, 3-chip versus single-chip designs, and switching speed. Other topics include the transition from film to digital projection in commercial cinema, 2K versus 4K, 3D, high frame rates, alternative illumination sources such as lasers and LEDs, answers to chat-room questions, and more.

Run Time: 57:12

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Do You Prefer Subscription or Pay-As-You-Go Streaming?
Vote
Scott Wilkinson • Jul 13, 2012 • Published: Dec 31, 1969 • 18 comments
Based on previous poll questions, I know that most readers of HomeTheater.com strongly prefer the quality of Blu-ray over the convenience of online streaming. I share this preference, but I still find streaming to be useful for non-critical watching or things that aren't available on disc.

Streaming services provide content using one of two business models—a flat subscription fee for unlimited access to their entire library (e.g., Netflix and Hulu Plus) or paying for each title you watch (e.g., Vudu and iTunes). Which approach do you prefer, and why?

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

Do You Prefer Subscription or Pay-As-You-Go Streaming?
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Video Dynamic Range and Color Space
Ask Home Theater
Scott Wilkinson • Jul 11, 2012 • 1 comments
I recently read HT's review of the Panasonic TC-P55ST50 3D plasma TV. (Good review, by the way.) I noticed that the display was calibrated using a brightness range of 0-255. My understanding is that digital video (Blu-ray, DVD, digital TV) is encoded in YCbCr with a video brightness range of 16-235, and one should set the source component to output YCbCr and set the display to accept the brightness range of 16-235 to preserve the signal and avoid processing and interpolation. Just wanted to get your thoughts and reasons if one way is better than the other.

Stephen Lin

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Podcast 119: Bob Heil
Home Theater Geeks Podcast
Scott Wilkinson • Jul 10, 2012 • 0 comments
Live-sound pioneer and microphone maven Bob Heil returns to talk about his mic designs, new USB mic preamp/EQ, and headphones as well as his work with The Grateful Dead, The Who, Joe Walsh, and other rock legends, and his association with Paul Klipsch and organist George Wright, whose recordings helped launch the entire field of high-fidelity audio. Plus, answers to chat-room questions and more.

Run Time: 1:00:04

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Setting Lip-Sync Delay
Ask Home Theater
Scott Wilkinson • Jul 09, 2012 • 4 comments
Is there a test disc with content that helps you dial in audio delay so the video and audio are in sync? My receiver and my Blu-ray player both have this adjustment, but it's very difficult to get it right just watching people talk. My old TV never had this issue, but my new Vizio TV seems to have an inherent delay. What do you advise as a solution?

Craig Weinheimer

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How Many Separate Subs in Your System?
Vote
Scott Wilkinson • Jul 06, 2012 • Published: Dec 31, 1969 • 17 comments
Most home-theater sound systems include one or more subwoofers that are separate from the main speakers. In fact, I generally recommend using separate subs at least for movie soundtracks, which often include lots of low frequencies, because the best placement for bass drivers in a room is often not the same as the best placement for the drivers that reproduce the rest of the audio range. And the judicious placement of more than one sub can significantly smooth out the bass response of most rooms so that everyone can enjoy the same great bass no matter where they sit. On the other hand, many audiophiles prefer to have full-range main speakers, claiming that the sound is more integrated than it can be with separate subs.

How many separate subs do you have in your system? Or do you use full-range main speakers without a sub? What led you to your decision in this regard?

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

How Many Separate Subs in Your System?
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