Hisense 2026 UX, U7, UR8, and UR9 Series TVs are the first to get Dolby Vision 2 Max. Marantz Cinema Series 2 Receivers arrive. And Klipsch Reference Premiere III Series speakers and subs get prices and release dates.

Pictures shown in this episode: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjD2cK4

00:00:00 – Intro

Weather, and back-to-school chat.

00:06:39 – Unexpectedly Good Purchase

Rob grabbed the cheapest version of a household product from a dollar store just because it was convenient. But it turned out to also be the best.

00:10:11 – What We Watched

Rob watched H is for Hawk. Tom watched Ex Machina. And Tom also went out to an IMAX with Laser theater and saw Spider-Man: Brand New Day!

00:40:53 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are our 119 Patreon Patrons.

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Jon, Stefan, Dale, Michael, and Gurinder. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:43:18 – News: Hisense Gets Dolby Vision 2

A fresh firmware update is bringing Dolby Vision 2 Max support and features to 2026 Hisense UX, U7, UR8 & UR9 TVs: https://tinyurl.com/3w6k4bh4

00:48:33 – News: Marantz Cinema Series 2

Marantz has started to refresh their AV Receiver lineup to match their Denon counterparts: https://tinyurl.com/akn762us

00:54:45 – News: Klipsch Reference Premiere III

Klipsch Reference Premiere III Series speakers and subwoofers get official model numbers, prices, and release dates: https://tinyurl.com/25sfph33

Comments:

01:03:17 – Comment: Nathan – HushFrame Raft

IsoStore’s drywall decoupling product can save a lot of space if the bays of your walls are basically empty. But we still need to consider the price: https://tinyurl.com/34pmkvv5

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AV Rant #999.9q: Rob is All Channels Driven

Emotiva Nostala FT12 Subwoofer. KEF LS LUXE Wireless Speakers. Rob is mad at YouTube.

Emotiva Nostala FT12 Subwoofer joins the Emotiva Nostala LB12 Speakers to create an Emotiva Nostala Series. KEF LS LUXE Wireless Speakers fit in between the KEF LS50 Wireless II and LS60 Wireless Towers in the KEF Wireless LS Series lineup.

Pictures shown in this episode: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjD1LuR

00:00:00 – Intro

Rob is mad at YouTube. And if our channel ever disappears without warning, now you’ll know why.

00:17:49 – Tom’s Improv at Comic Con

Did you know our very own Tom Andry does Live Improv? Wanna see for yourself?

In addition to his current show with Spitfire Comedy House, Tom will be at Tampa Bay Comic Con in September: https://tinyurl.com/4h5wmsar

00:22:25 – What We Watched

Tom has been watching Le Tour de France Femmes. Rob watched The Super Mario Galaxy Movie.

00:39:04 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are our 119 Patreon Patrons.

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Steve, Martin, Leighton, Jason, and David. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:40:31 – News: Emotiva Nostala FT12 Subwoofer

A 12″ sub with some interesting features joins the Emotiva Nostala LB12 Speakers to create an Emotiva Nostala Series: https://tinyurl.com/yhaw7etm

00:49:51 – News: KEF LX LUXE Wireless Speakers

Some very rounded, $4,000/pair Wireless Speakers join the KEF Wireless LS Series: https://tinyurl.com/573a324f

Comments:

00:56:02 – Comment: Gurinder – Amazon Fire TV Sticks Walk Away

His Fire TV Sticks keep disappearing somehow. So perhaps a new Apple TV 4K will be better at staying put.

00:57:14 – Comment: Bill – WiiM Coming to A4L

Accessories4Less appears to be preparing to start selling refurbished WiiM products at nicely discounted prices: https://tinyurl.com/dbs9dxus

00:57:52 – Comment: Martin – Upward-Firing Atmos Modules Work

Some clarifications about which speakers he’s going to buy, and that his particular implementation of upward-firing Atmos Modules has been successful.

– https://avgadgets.com/best-placement-of-up-firing-dolby-atmos-enabled-modules/

01:05:23 – Comment: Karl – IMAX 70mm vs. IMAX GT

Karl has seen The Odyssey in both 1.43:1 IMAX formats, and he compares the experiences.

QUESTIONS:

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Dynaudio is leaving North America, but they’ve made it clear they will honor warranties. It just isn’t clear…how. Roku is not immune from RAM and storage price increases, so they’ve made price hikes. And Paramount Skydance has hit a roadblock in their quest to buy Warner Bros. Discovery.

Pictures shown in this episode: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjD1eiY

00:00:00 – Intro

00:06:34 – What We Watched

Tom finished watching the Tour de France. Rob watched Mortal Kombat II.

00:27:53 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are our 120 Patreon Patrons, as well as Infinite Gary for sending a Movies Anywhere code for Tom to test.

Thanks to Stefan for giving Tom permission to use his photos on https://avgadgets.com/

And we appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Jack, Patrick, Greg, James, and Stefan. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:29:44 – News: Dynaudio Will Honor Warranties

Dynadio is still going to leave the North American market, but they’ve explicitly said they will honor warranties…somehow: https://tinyurl.com/4km4m2rr

00:34:02 – News: Roku Price Hikes

Roku hardware gets sizable price increases due to RAM and memory shortages: https://tinyurl.com/hd5rp5jz

00:38:09 – News: Lawsuit Blocks Paramount Skydance

Paramount Skydance won’t be able to buy Warner Bros. Discovery until they either settle a new lawsuit, or wait a year and pay a $1.7 billion penalty as a result: https://tinyurl.com/ydt673s7

Comments:

00:46:37 – Comment: Jack – 17 Pages of AI Instructions

Apparently, if you want good results from Copilot, you need to give it a lot of instructions beforehand.

00:51:57 – Comment: Patrick – Random Thuds Solved?

He started getting random thuds from his speakers. Turns out, he had plugged in a fridge nearby.

00:53:21 – Comment: Dan – FeinTech HDMI Switches

They’re focused on the European market, but FeinTech has HDMI switch and splitter solutions to rival HD Fury at lower prices: https://tinyurl.com/2s4j5s2s

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AV Rant #999.9o: We Fight Diminishing Returns

Value Electronics’ new King of TVs. The Odyssey in 70mm Film IMAX Review.

Value Electronics crowned their new King of TVs for 2026. Rob saw The Odyssey in 70mm Film IMAX and shares his review. And if you missed it last week, check out our interview with Michael Kobb from Kaleidescape that we posted as a Special extra episode.

Pictures shown in this episode: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjCZANk

00:00:00 – Intro

00:09:53 – Kaleidescape Interview

We posted an extra episode last week in which Rob and Joe Klusnick interview Michael Kobb from Kaleidescape to discuss the new Strato K Movie Player, 8K, 4K Cinematic, 4:4:4, and more!

– https://avrant.com/av-rant-special-interview-with-michael-kobb-from-kaleidescape/

– https://youtu.be/10KtbZQFyzM

00:18:09 – What We Watched

Tom watched What If…? S.3. Rob watched The Running Man, and The Odyssey.

00:56:20 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are Steven and Dan for their PayPal donations, plus our 120 Patreon Patrons, as well as Ilango for talking us up to HSU Research.

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Steve, Bill, Martin, and Karl. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:58:18 – News: Brand New King of TVs

Value Electronics’ 25th annual TV Shootout tested OLEDs and RGB-backlit LCDs this year, and they crowned a new King of TVs for 2026: https://tinyurl.com/yj3anusj

Comments:

01:04:12 – Comment: Infinite Gary – Trinaural Speaker Selector

Watching The Food That Built America reminded him he has a vintage Speaker Selector in his basement.

01:06:28 – Comment: Greg – Plush Toy Wall Panels

Last week he found a way to turn plush toys into standing corner bass traps. This week, he found a solution to make plush toys into hanging wall panels: https://tinyurl.com/4af2pj5y

QUESTIONS:

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Welcome to an AV Rant Special episode. Today, Rob H. and Joe Klusnick interview Michael Kobb, the Principal Engineer of User Experience at Kaleidescape. We learn a bit about Michael and his personal home theater. Then we dig into the new Kaleidescape Strato K Movie Player and its unique 8K and 4K Cinematic format capabilities. We dig into the nitty-gritty of 4:4:4 playback and how it might impact your setup and settings. And we satisfy some of our curiosity about mezzanine files and the rest of Kaleidescape’s hardware lineup. Enjoy!

0:00:00 – Intro

Rob and Joe welcome you to this interview episode.

– https://avrant.com/

– https://www.youtube.com/avrant

– https://www.kaleidescape.com/

0:02:40 – Welcome Michael Kobb

A bit about Michael and his position at Kaleidescape as Principal Engineer of User Experience.

0:04:16 – Michael’s Home Theater

We hear about Michael’s personal home theater, perhaps the most impressive one we’ve heard about yet from one of our guests!

– https://www.avsforum.com/threads/theater-build-mikes-money-pit.1351987/

0:11:03 – Introduction to the Strato K

– https://www.kaleidescape.com/strato-k-movie-player/

0:13:54 – The new Hardware in the Strato K

0:16:34 – Delving into Strato K’s Specs

– https://www.kaleidescape.com/strato-k-movie-player/spec

0:19:41 – Let’s Talk 8K

– https://8kassociation.com/

0:24:05 – The New 4K Cinematic Format

– https://www.kaleidescape.com/4k-cinematic/

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