Home > Podcast > AV Rant #567: Re-man-der Door-cast

AV Rant #567: Re-man-der Door-cast

November 24th, 2017

Our Listeners of the Week are Andre, James, and Tom for their donations, as well as our 33 Patreon Patrons, including Andy S., and James and Tom again. James completed the trifecta of AVRant Podcast support by talking us up to Accessories4Less when he ordered a pair of KEF LS50 speakers from them.

Rob quickly reviews Justice League and highly recommends watching the HISHE Dubs Batman V Superman – Comedy Recap if you’ve forgotten where the DCEU story left off.

In the news, SVS has a Black Friday sale on SB12-NSD and PB12-NSD subwoofers. LG OLED and Sony X900E 4K HDR TVs are also on sale. Karl R. sent us word that the Apple HomePod is delayed until 2018. And Joel N. is pleased that Microsoft has fixed the Xbox One X Ultra HD Blu-ray HDR issues, and a future Xbox One X firmware update will fix its Atmos problems, although HDTV Test still found some minor UHD Blu-ray color decoding errors.

Herb from Cross-Spectrum Labs made a small correction regarding USB measurement microphones that was brought up in our interview with Brent Butterworth. Adam K. reminds everyone to go directly to Intel’s website for integrated graphics drivers since the Windows 10 Update drivers don’t always properly support bitstream audio output. Tom K. warns that the new JVC projectors require extensive calibration in HDR mode, and he totals up how much Tom and Rob have “made” him spend. And David B. found an old Best Buy flyer that’s a clear reminder of how far home theater tech has come.

Matt V. wants to connect an Ultra HD Blu-ray player to his Yamaha Receiver for Atmos, and then feed a 1080p projector and a 4K HDR flat panel, so we mention that he might need an HD Fury Linker to make that work. David F. found a spiderweb inside his BenQ HT2050 projector and made matters worse with some compressed air, so we try to help, and we also recommend Aperion Intimus I6, KEF Ci160.2CR, or Outdoor Speaker Depot MK650 in-ceiling speakers as alternatives to RBH in-ceiling speakers. And Dave has a Receiver with YPAO, a Perfect Bass Kit, and a new measurement microphone with a miniDSP, so we discuss the order in which he should use them, and how the signals should be managed.

Francis A. wants to use SVS Prime Elevation speakers for Atmos, so we make some suggestions for mounting positions in his room. Dre wants to know what to look for in terms of an existing room for a theater when purchasing a house, and since he’s in Canada, we talk about his in-ceiling speaker options, such as: Paradigm CI Home H65-R, Paradigm Pro P65-R, KEF Ci160.2CR, Aperion Intimus I6, OSD ICE650, or Monoprice Caliber. And Aidan C. asks about mixing SVS Ultra and Prime Series speakers, whether Surround Backs are worth it, using Prime Satellites as ceiling-mounted Atmos speakers, and pairing a different subwoofer with his Rythmik FV15HP.

Joe K. has four subwoofers in a large room, but they aren’t playing as low as he’d like, so we suggest a pair of Power Sound Audio 15V. We nag him to install a door before anything else, but we also discuss putting black fabric on his ceiling, professional video and audio calibration, getting measurement equipment, building a seating riser, expanding beyond 7.2.4, and some other ideas for his theater. Jim B. took lots of subwoofer measurements across all three of his seats, so we help him sort through the results and understand which placement combo is best. And Daniel A. gets our list of online speaker vendors, including: Aperion Audio, SVS, and RSL for free 2-way shipping; Ascend Acoustics, Philharmonic Audio, and Salk Sound for RAAL ribbon models; HSU Research, JTR, Power Sound Audio, and Tekton for high efficiency models; ELAC, NHT, and RBH for neutrality; Outdoor Speaker Depot, and Monoprice for low-cost; Rythmik, and Legacy AudioAccessories4Less for Receivers, Focal, Pioneer, and KEF (also KEF Direct); and Amazon.

Dan C. isn’t satisfied with his sound quality, and he wants to know where he should focus in order to improve it, so we urge him to address his room’s acoustics, suggesting free-standing panels from GiK. Larry L. asks if he can use a mono in – stereo out adapter connected to a stereo extension cable, which would then feed a stereo in – mono out adapter for use with his setup microphone. And Benjamin B. asks if he can use his Onkyo TX-NR636 Receiver to power the last two channels of his 7.2.4 setup, or if there’s a way to use it to power his Front three speakers.

Christopher M. got a Sony Receiver from a co-worker, and now he wants a pair of speakers to go with it. He asks about Celestion and Def Tech, but also wants more <$500/pair options, so we suggest: ELAC Uni-Fi UB5, Aperion Intimus 5B, SVS Prime Bookshelf, Ascend CBM-170SE, RBH Impression, KEF and Focal from Accessories4Less. Don G. is placing his Monoprice Monolith amplifier about 8 feet away from his Marantz Receiver, so we recommend inexpensive 10-foot coaxial audio/video Monoprice cables to connect them. And Josh L. has no light control, lots of windows, and he wants a 75-inch display, so our top recommendation is the Sony XBR-75X900E for a bright image at a reasonable price.

Thanks for listening. Now, don't forget to:

  • Check out the AV Rant YouTube channel to watch our show videos.
  • Download Tom’s FREE superhero-themed ebook Bob Moore: No Hero.
  • Visit Tom's website for download links as well as links for the two full-length follow-ups -  Bob Moore: Desperate Times and Bob Moore: Hostile Territory.
  • Check out AVGadgets.com where Tom is the new Editor-in-Chief!
  • Download Tom's NEWEST book, Touch of Pain from Amazon now!

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  1. RAID5
    December 2nd, 2017 at 15:50 | #1

    Hi, Benjamin had a question if he could use his old Onkyo TX-nr636 to amplify two pair of speakers, you said he could power only one pair because in only has stereo line in. Is it not possible to use another stereo line in and use zone 2 to power the second pair?

    Thanks for a great podcast.
    Regards Peter a happy Sweed addicted to home automation.

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