Gadget Gary

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Gadget Gary

Should I Override My Audyssey Auto-setup?

Al Griffin | Apr 24, 2014 |

Got a tech question for Sound & Vision? Email us at AskSandV@gmail.com

Q I have an Integra DHC-80.3 preamp/processor

So here are my questions. My speaker system

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with Audyssey MultEQ XT32. Reading the manual, I learned that I should set the speaker crossover to 80 Hz because “Audyssey recommends that speakers are ALWAYS set to Small when there is a subwoofer in the system.” This apparently allows for proper bass management and more headroom in the receiver or amplifier. is based around full-range B&W CM10 towers (powered by 250-watt mono amps) and includes a single subwoofer. Do I still need to choose an 80 Hz crossover point for my setup? Also, is there a point in upgrading to speakers with more powerful bass if I do cross them over at 80 Hz? —Bill Wong / via email

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Gadget Gary

Tune Up Gary Dell'Abate | May 29, 2012 |

I just rewired my home audio/video gear — for the entire house. Wait a minute, you say. Didn’t I read in this very magazine 6 years ago that you built a house and wired it to the hilt?

Gadget Gary

For What It's Worth Gary Dell'Abate | Jun 07, 2013 |

Yes, I readily admit it: I I am a TV junkie. I watch a ton of shows, and I go through different phases of what I'll binge on.

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Best in Show Gary Dell'Abate | Apr 22, 2013 |

I now consider myself a veteran of CES. The good news is that I know exactly how to navigate the floor. The bad news is that it gets harder each show for me to be wowed by anything.

Gadget Gary

Mike'd Up

Gary Dell'Abate | Feb 13, 2013 |

I've been working in radio for close to 30 years now, and I have access to all kinds of recording equipment, including some great microphones. Most of the gear I can get my hands on is pretty high-end stuff that uses XLR connectors and would require elaborate equipment that I just don't have at home. So I was really interested when the MXL Studio 1 USB microphone ($130) landed on my desk. It's a portable condenser microphone that connects to your computer via USB. MXL boasts that it's plug-and-play, and that's not a joke: No installation discs. No drivers. No preamps, mixers, or extra gear. Nice.

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Hurricane Gary II

Gary Dell'Abate | Dec 25, 2012 |

It seems like it was only yesterday that I was writing this very column about Hurricane Irene for our November 2011 issue. And now we’ve just lived through Hurricane Sandy, which came with huge warnings and delivered much devastation. Me, I was without power, landline phones, Internet, and cable for 6 days.

Gadget Gary

Gifting Gary

Gary Dell'Abate | Nov 20, 2012 |

I'm trying to get my holiday shopping done early this year. I have my wife, my kids, and the gang at work to shop for, so I need to make sure everyone gets exactly what they need. My 18-year-old is probably the easiest. He's the one away at college (I wrote about him in November), so for him, I'll get the Slingbox 500 ($300).

Gadget Gary

Gearhead University

Gary Dell'Abate | Oct 16, 2012 |

My wife and I sent our oldest son off to college this fall. On the ride up, she and I laughed as we told him that when we first went to campus back in 1979, there was no Internet, no cellphones, no e-mail, no fax machines, and Federal Express was an overnight service strictly for businesses and rich people.

Gadget Gary

Wi in the Sky

Gary Dell'Abate | Sep 18, 2012 |

I remember preparing for a flight to Los Angeles in the late ’90s. I was packing my carry-on and laboring over what books to bring. I didn’t want to carry more than two. Then I packed my portable DVD player. I also packed an extra-bulky battery because the one that the DVD player came with only lasted 2 hours. Finally, I threw in a pile of magazines.

Gadget Gary

Start Time

Gary Dell'Abate | Aug 14, 2012 |

I live in Connecticut, just about 30 miles from my daily gig in New York City. That technically makes me a New Englander. I mention this because New England winters can be brutal. (I know it’s still late summer, but bear with me. The weather will change soon enough.) For a guy like me who leaves for work at 4:30 a.m., early-morning temperatures can sometimes be in the single digits.

Gadget Gary

FLO TV

Gary Dell'Abate | Apr 01, 2010 |

Figuring out how to watch TV while I’m out of my house has always been a challenge. I got a black-and-white Sony Watchman as a gift for Christmas in 1985 that worked pretty well for the time; I took it to the pool to watch Mets baseball and to my son’s basketball games to watch Jets football.

Gadget Gary

Seen at CES: The New Goodies

Gary Dell'Abate | Mar 26, 2012 |

I hate to say it, but there were no real “wow” things this year. What gear and gadgets caught my eye? These items:

Gadget Gary

Drobo Cop

Gary Dell'Abate | Jan 30, 2012 |

I recently mentioned how much I really dig my network-attached storage (NAS) hard drive and how I like to keep all of my music, photos, and videos on it so I can feed the whole house with media via Apple TV or Roku. Since I have a huge investment of both time and personal memories stored on this drive, I really need to protect it properly — and that’s why I’ve recently moved to a RAID drive.

Gadget Gary

Remote Harmony

Gary Dell'Abate | Dec 06, 2011 |

Logitech is a cool company. It took all of the top aspects of its best-selling universal remote control and made it so that you could control your TV, set-top boxes, music systems, and other home gear on your iPhone or iPad. My kinda thing.

Gadget Gary

Contour Score

Gary Dell'Abate | Sep 19, 2011 |

My 13-year-old son is an avid skier, skateboarder, and longboarder. From time to time, he’ll document his activities with a Flip camera.

There are two issues with the Flip, however. First, you have to hold it in your hand. Second (and more important), Flip is out of business.

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