HOME THEATER GEEKS PODCAST

Podcast 77: The Chat Room

Scott Wilkinson  |  Aug 16, 2011

In this episode, I fly solo, answering questions from the chat room about everything from plasma versus LCD to tonally matching the front speakers to my opinion of various specific makes and models of AVRs, TV, and speakers, and many things in between. Plus, for those who watch the video, I show you around my new podcast set and point out some of the interesting items that appear behind me as I do the show each week.

Run Time: 1:06:51

Click here to listen to this podcast.

Scott Wilkinson has enjoyed over 20 years as an author and editor in the home-theater arena. He currently serves as online editor of HomeTheater.com. He also hosts a weekly podcast called Home Theater Geeks, in which he interviews top industry technologists. HTG was recognized as one of the best audio podcasts of 2010 on iTunes. In addition, Scott can be heard each Sunday morning discussing home theater on Leo Laporte’s nationally syndicated radio talk show, The Tech Guy.

Previous positions include writing and editing for Home Theater and Stereophile Guide to Home Theater magazines, both of which he helped launch, as well as The Perfect Vision, Audio/Video Interiors, Connected, and etown.com. He also hosted the product-review section of DVD Preview with Leonard Maltin.

As a professional musician, Scott plays many different wind instruments, such as tuba, trombone, didgeridoo, conch-shell trumpet, recorder, ocarina, and various ethnic flutes. He can be heard on the soundtracks of the movies Gladiator, White Squall, and Mystic India as well as the video games Myst 4 and Uncharted. Scott has also recorded two albums with his avant-garde trio Many Axes and one with his wife, singer-songwriter Joanna Cazden.

Here's the YouTube video of this podcast:

COMMENTS
Jarod's picture
Submitted by Jarod on August 17, 2011 - 2:02pm

Loved the podcast! Thanks so much for mentioning me on the podcast this week about my UN40D6000 and its issues. It was an honor! Thought I would update. After reading your glowing review again it gave me just enough oomph to try one more time and return the 40D6000 for another go. I crossed my fingers this time. Out of the box I had one dead pixel in the lower left unfortunately :(, but the uniformity is night and day better and now my wife and I have been finally enjoying the set. I must say the pic quality is great now without such uneven backlighting (still not perfect but what edge-lit LED is) with nice deep blacks and great colors once I popped in Spears and Munsil and changed settings. Streaming is still off. Vudo works perfectly but not Netflix. Dropouts still but less frequent maybe. Still Im much happier with this than the other sets before. Im still worried about dead pixels showing up. I can live with one dead pixel since its just a bedroom set but Im praying that more dont show up. Thanks again Scott and I love it when you dedicate a podcast to answering questions!

2orque's picture
Submitted by 2orque on August 18, 2011 - 1:02pm

I would like to thank you for having a great show every week. I enjoy the shows that you do where you answer the chat room questions. Also you have done some shows on video calibration but can not remember you having anyone on to talk about audio calibration. I would like to hear someone talk about the details of setting up the audio part of a home theater system. Also have you ever seen the Runco ultra high end TVs. I was wondering if they where worth the price just in case I ever win the lottery.

utopianemo's picture
Submitted by utopianemo on August 19, 2011 - 9:42pm

Hey, Scott,
Love the podcast. A note on custom earplugs: I found that custom fitted plugs need to be replaced at least every two years. I used to have them but I'd find that by two years my ear canals no longer matched the plugs tightly, and noise was filtering through the gaps. Working in a factory, I found this to be a common occurrence with others who chose to go the custom earplug route. 

Scott Wilkinson's picture
Submitted by Scott Wilkinson on August 19, 2011 - 10:45pm
I'd not heard that before. I've had mine for many years, and they still fit just fine. I have heard of some plugs deteriorating over time, but mine were made by Sensaphonics, which uses a special material designed not to degrade. And it hasn't in my case.

I'm really glad you take the trouble to wear custom earplugs and get them redone as needed if you work in a factory. You're protecting your hearing in a major way, and I applaud you for it.

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