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Upgrade Time: Speakers then Receiver or Vice Versa?
Al Griffin  |  Mar 12, 2015  |  5 comments
Got a tech question for Sound & Vision? Email us at AskSandV@gmail.com

Q I plan to purchase a new AV receiver and a set of 5.1 speakers. What strategy will deliver a better all-around experience: spending more on the speakers or on the receiver? Should I splurge on speakers, with the idea that my receiver can be upgraded in a few years, or vice-versa? Simon Bolster / via e-mail

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Upgrade, No HDMI, Uniformity
Scott Wilkinson  |  Jun 16, 2009  |  4 comments
Big Budget
I currently have a 125-inch Da-Lite screen and a throw distance of around 25 feet. I am using a 5-year-old SIM2 Seleco HT300 single-chip DLP projector. I would like to upgrade but not spend over $30,000 to do so. I was wondering what projectors you would consider for this setup?
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Upgrading a 5.1.2 Setup that Has Bi-amped Front L/R Speakers
John Sciacca  |  Jan 30, 2023  |  11 comments
Got a tech question for Sound & Vision? Email us at AskSandV@gmail.com

Q I have a 5.1.2 setup based around an Onkyo TX-RZ840 receiver and a Monitor Audio Bronze speaker package using the Bronze 2 stand mounts. My left and right front speakers are bi-amped and I’m looking to upgrade to 5.1.4. I wish to add external amplifiers plus an AV receiver in preamp mode or a preamp processor. Would I get a worthwhile upgrade in audio quality choosing the preamp processor? —Dan Pinnock, via email

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UPS, MEMC, HTG
Scott Wilkinson  |  Dec 15, 2010  |  6 comments
Power to the People
I'm buying a new HDTV for my girlfriend for Christmas, but her neighborhood has more then a few power outages a year. What kind of protection do you recommend?

Ron

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Upscaling, DIY Repair, HDMI Handshaking
Scott Wilkinson  |  May 25, 2011  |  1 comments
Which device does the best upscaling? I want to replace the failing DMD chip in my DLP projector. My AVR has developed an HDMI handshaking issue with my cable box.
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Used Projectors, Dubbing VHS, Hiding Speakers
Scott Wilkinson  |  Feb 02, 2011  |  0 comments
Should I buy a used projector? Can you recommend a VHS/DVD recorder combo? Should I hide my speakers?
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Using an HDTV as an HDMI Switcher
Al Griffin  |  Oct 31, 2013  |  1 comments
Q My new TV has four HDMI inputs. Would I get better picture quality if I bypassed my receiver and hooked all the equipment up directly to the TV? I also plan to run a TosLink digital audio cable from the TV to the receiver for sound. Any issues there to consider? —Jose / Colorado Springs, CO

A Whether or not you’ll get better picture quality from your proposed setup depends on the video capabilities of the receiver you’ve been using to handle HDMI switching. A number of A/V receivers provide both high-quality video deinterlacing/scaling and an ability to pass-through 1080p signals with no degradation (this Marantz that Sound & Vision recently reviewed, for example). But some other models are known to reduce the chroma (color) resolution of signals passing through, or to clip above-white and below-black information at the extreme ends of the video brightness range.

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VCR Blues
Scott Wilkinson  |  Oct 21, 2011  |  0 comments
My home-theater system consists of a Sony STR-DB940 A/V receiver with 5.1 speaker setup, Sony KDL-52HX909 LED/LCD TV, Dish Network HDTV receiver, and Sony SLV-N71 Hi-Fi VCR. I have the VCR connected to the TV via composite video and L/R analog audio cables and the TV's audio output connected to the AVR via optical cabling (MD/DAT input). I have the Dish receiver's video connected to the TV via HDMI and its audio connected to the A/V receiver via optical (SAT/TV input). All of this worked great for about nine months until a few weeks ago.

The AVR's SAT/TV input works fine, but when I use the MD/DAT input for watching the TV or VCR, the sound only comes out of the left-front speaker. When I record something via the VCR's line in, the playback has the same audio problem. But when I play a tape recorded over a year ago, the sound does not have the audio problem.

Tony Santana

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VHS-to-DVD Conversion
Scott Wilkinson  |  Aug 19, 2011  |  9 comments
I have priceless VHS tapes of my kids growing up over the last 25 years. I was going to take them to a company that converts VHS to DVD, but I read that the quality of these conversion services isn't that good. I also read that the USB conversion programs like Roxio don't do the job either. I cannot find a PCI card solution with software. Is there a solution that you recommend? Can you shed some light on this?

Keith Brown

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Video Dynamic Range and Color Space
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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Blu-ray SetupAsk S&V
Video Oppo-timization
Al Griffin  |  Sep 23, 2013  |  8 comments
Got a tech question for Sound & Vision? Email us at AskSandV@gmail.com.

Q. I recently bought an Oppo BDP-103 Blu-ray player. A key reason for buying it was to connect a cable TV box to the Oppo’s HDMI input and tap the player’s superior video processing to improve TV picture quality. Will it be necessary to set the equipment up in such a way as to avoid the TV’s video processing? —Doug Crowley / Santa Monica, CA

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Video Processing
Scott Wilkinson  |  Jul 07, 2011  |  0 comments
I have a Pioneer VSX-33 A/V receiver that outputs HDMI to an Epson 8700UB projector (seen here). How do I know which component is doing the video processing? When my Blu-ray player or satellite receiver runs through the AVR and out to the Epson, does the AVR do all the processing, or does the Epson's video processor? I guess I would prefer to have the Pioneer do all the video processing since its Marvell Qdeo chipset has been so favorably rated.

Dan Theis

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Video Processing, LED Backlighting, Big Plasma
Scott Wilkinson  |  Nov 11, 2009  |  8 comments
Two For One
I have a Pioneer Elite PRO-111FD plasma with a Denon DVD-3800BDCI Blu-ray player, and I have two questions. First, should I set the Denon to output 1080p/24 manually or just leave it set to Auto? Second, a friend is encouraging me to get the DVDO Edge because, he says, its processing is probably better than either the Pioneer or Denon. Do you think this is true, or is my current gear sufficient?
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CES 2016Ask S&V
ViewSonic Streams the Light
Al Griffin  |  Jan 08, 2016  |  0 comments
CES isn’t much a platform for launching video projectors (that’s why there’s CEDIA), but one company not typically known for home A/V products did use the show to introduce a pair of models designed for home theater, rather than classroom, use.
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Welcome!
Scott Wilkinson  |  Feb 23, 2009  |  9 comments
Welcome to our new feature, "Ask Home Theater." Each week, I'll answer several reader questions here, and you'll have an opportunity to chime in with your comments and additions. I hope to build a real community with lively discussion, so don't be shy! Send your questions to me at scott.wilkinson@sorc.com, and please add your two cents to any answer I give. I look forward to hearing from you!
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