A/V Veteran

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A/V Veteran
Will the Lockdown Change A/V as We Know It?
Thomas J. Norton  |  Apr 21, 2020  | 
Ah, the good old days. Happy crowds coming together in joyful celebration, shopping together for a new TV on a lazy Saturday afternoon. Seems like only yesterday. Oh, wait, it was. But in the greater scheme of things, how the current Wuhan Virus pandemic will affect our small world of consumer audio-video isn’t a big topic on the nightly news. Nevertheless, that’s our gig here, and it’s important to consider the possible consequences. Will this be the end of the A/V world as we know it?
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A/V Veteran
Wizards and Witches
Thomas J. Norton  |  Apr 05, 2010  | 

The final installments of my Blu-ray players saga are coming soon to a computer monitor near you. They will cover the analog outputs of the Oppo BDP-83 Special Edition and the Pioneer BDP-320. Also coming is a listen to all of the players from their digital outputs.

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A/V Veteran
Wooo Hooo
Thomas J. Norton  |  Oct 08, 2006  |  First Published: Oct 09, 2006  | 

Hitachi's Premier designs in Japan are part of the Wooo line. Wooo Hooo!

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A/V Veteran
World War II in HD
Thomas J. Norton  |  Nov 27, 2009  | 

Last week the History HD channel broadcast the multi-part documentary </I>World War II in HD<I>. Most of the footage was in color, dredged in an exhaustive two-year search from private collections or the back shelves of dusty museum storerooms. (Rumors to the contrary, it was not found in an Area 51 warehouse next to a crate with an ark in it.)

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A/V Veteran
Y4K: Is Super D-Cinema In Your Future
Thomas J. Norton  |  Jul 08, 2006  | 

A few years back everyone was wondering if our civilization would come crashing down around our keyboards. All of our computers stored the year as a two-digit number, and 00 did not compute. Best case: Aunt Ellie wouldn't get her airline reservation in time for that visit, or better yet might end up in Sri Lanka. Worst case: an extinction level event.

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A/V Veteran
Yes, We Have No Bananas
Thomas J. Norton  |  Mar 01, 2011  | 
Actually, I do have bananas. A whole bunch of them, in fact. Not the edible variety, but rather banana plugs, those handy little devices for connecting your speakers to you’re A/V receiver or amplifier(s).
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A/V Veteran
Zulu on Blu-Ray
Thomas J. Norton  |  Nov 22, 2022  | 
At the height of European colonial ambitions in Africa, two of Great Britain's key colonies there were Cape Town, at Africa's southern tip and, north of there, Natal. The latter abutted Zululand. The Zulus, a powerful warrior nation, was created from local tribes conquered earlier in the century by the iconic Zulu chief, Shaka. )...This superb 1964 film Zulu...depicts ...the battle of Rorke's Drift...It can still be viewed via streaming, but instead I seriously recommend the 50th anniversary Blu-ray release (in the red jacket shown above). The stereo audio on this disc is satisfactory though underwhelming. But its widescreen videos is exceptional...
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A/V Veteran
’Tis the Season for Christmas Movies
Tom Norton  |  Dec 21, 2022  | 
Christmas! Chestnuts roasting on an open fire (hopefully in a fireplace). Jack Frost nipping at your nose. And lots of Christmas movies. Here are a few of my favorites.
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A/V Veteran
“I’m Sorry Dave, I’m Afraid I Can’t Do That”
Thomas J. Norton  |  Mar 12, 2024  | 
Since the early days of primitive computing, humanity has pondered the possibilities of advanced computers ultimately taking over and rendering their creators irrelevant. Most of you will recognize the quote in the headline as originally spoken in the 1968 film, 2001: A Space Odyssey. It seems more relevant today than ever.
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