LATEST ADDITIONS

New Products
Denon Announces 110-Year Anniversary Special Edition Products
SV Staff  |  Sep 08, 2020
Denon has announced four new Special Edition products developed to honor the 110-year anniversary of the brand. The quartet consists of the AVR-A110 8K AV receiver, PMA-A110 integrated amplifier, DCD-A110 SACD player, and DL-A110 phono cartridge, with each unit featuring a distinctive silver-graphite color scheme and 110 Anniversary front panel logo. Furthermore, the new Special Edition products, which are manufactured at the company’s factory in Shirakawa, Japan, have been “meticulously tuned by Denon Sound Masters to set them apart from their standard counterparts” and come with a five-year warranty.
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Blu-ray Movie ReviewsUltra HD Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Flash Gordon
Chris Chiarella  |  Sep 04, 2020
Picture
Sound
Extras
Star Wars imitators were both inevitable and plentiful in the late 1970s. The Buster Crabbe science fiction/adventure serials of old were a strong influence on that blockbuster, and whereas Buck Rogers was destined for a television reboot, mega-producer Dino De Laurentiis had already acquired the movie rights to Flash Gordon years prior. And so the space-faring hero returned to the big screen, reimagined in a lavish international production.
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Audio Video NewsNew Products
New Gear for Late Summer
Bob Ankosko  |  Sep 03, 2020
New products keep the world of home entertainment moving forward. Though the pace of introductions slowed to a trickle this spring as America was forced into pandemic lockdown, A/V makers are regaining their footing as supply chains slowly return to normal. The last full month of summer saw introductions from the likes of Rotel, Marantz, and many other familiar brands. Here’s the skinny on a dozen recently announced products — from headphones and AV furniture to more cool gear from McIntosh, NAD, and Bowers & Wilkins.
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Tower Speaker Reviews
Magnepan LRS Loudspeaker Review
Michael Trei  |  Sep 02, 2020

Performance
Build Quality
Value
PRICE $650/pair

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Extraordinary sonic transparency
Large, well-focused soundstage
Bargain-priced exotica
Minus
Requires adequate amplification
Finicky about placement
No deep bass

THE VERDICT
Magnepan's latest entry level speaker can be demanding, but it delivers compelling performance when set up properly and matched with the right gear.

Imagine that Ferrari introduced a new mid-engine sports car that sold for only $30,000. Sounds like a killer deal, but would you jump at the opportunity? The answer to that question will probably depend on your life situation. For a single person who just wants to head out and have fun, then maybe. But if you have three kids who need rides to school and soccer practice, probably not.

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A/V Veteran
Living With Outlaw Audio's Latest Seven-Channel Amp
Thomas J. Norton  |  Sep 01, 2020
Outlaw Audio has been in the amplifier business for over 20 years. I reviewed their first entry, the 5-channel Model 750, in the late ‘90s for the long-departed Stereophile Guide to Home Theater. It’s still here, now serving to drive my four Atmos speakers with one channel to spare. Many Outlaw amps have passed under the bridge since then, with many (perhaps most) made by ATI in California, so I was intrigued when Outlaw sent me their latest 7-channel amp — the 7220 — to have a look and listen.
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New Products
Marantz Unveils Next-Gen Integrated Amp, Digital Audio Player
SV Staff  |  Sep 01, 2020
Marantz today announced the Model 30 Integrated Amplifier ($2,500) and SACD 30n Network Audio Streamer & SACD Player ($2,500). The offerings are the first to launch with the brand’s striking new industrial design, one that celebrates and updates the signature elements of Marantz products from hi-fi’s golden age.
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Audio Video News
Audio Advice Launches Interactive Home Theater Design Tool
Al Griffin  |  Aug 31, 2020
A/V retailer and e-commerce site Audio Advice has introduced Home Theater Designer, an interactive 3D design tool that lets consumers model a virtual home theater system. Users simply enter their room’s dimensions, and the tool helps them to create a three-dimensional visualization of an optimized A/V space complete with speakers, TV or projector, and seating. The Home Theater Designer is available for free on the Audio Advice website.
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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Metallica & San Francisco Symphony: S&M2
Mike Mettler  |  Aug 28, 2020
Picture
Sound
Extras
Composer Michael Kamen had a vision. Back in April 1999, he convinced Bay Area metal overlords Metallica to team up with the San Francisco Symphony in Berkeley, California, for S&M, a 2.2-hour concert wherein classical music met aggro-rock head-on. Not only that, but Kamen's skilled orchestral re-arrangements of 20 Metallica classics also revealed how many of the band's subversive originals were perhaps more progressively inclined than others may have previously thought.
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Audio Video News
Best Gear of Summer 2020
Bob Ankosko  |  Aug 27, 2020
We spotlight 13 products that made Sound & Vision’s Top Pick list over the past three months, starting with affordable noise-canceling earbuds from an unexpected source and ending with a super-refined speaker system for enthusiasts seeking the very best in music and movie reproduction. In between, you’ll find an eclectic mix of soundbars and speaker systems, affordable 4K TVs, and a home-theater amplifier that delivers an insane amount of power from a surprisingly compact chassis.
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Soundbar ReviewsSurround Sound System Reviews
Savant Smart Audio WiSA Soundbar System Review
Rob Sabin  |  Aug 26, 2020

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $3,000 (system bundle, minus installation; $4,000 as tested)

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Superb sonics
WiSA wireless connection for surrounds and sub
Integrated Savant automation platform
Control via app or touchscreen remote
Minus
No Dolby Pro Logic or other stereo surround mode
No HDMI-ARC connectivity
No processing for lossless surround formats

THE VERDICT
Savant's smart soundbar may be a gateway to home automation, but it distinguishes itself first through its excellent sound quality.

Sound & Vision readers will know Savant as one of two upstarts that, along with Control 4, arrived in the early 2000s to challenge Crestron and AMX in the emerging home automation market. Today, some 15 years after its founding by tech entrepreneur/billionaire Bob Madonna, Savant continues to expand its Mac-based smarthome solution, and with some recent acquisitions, to broaden its market reach. Most notable is the high-profile purchase this year of GE Lighting.

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