Anthem's AVM-series home theater audio preamp/processors are considered among the best - if not the best - for the money. An enthusiastic review in these pages back in November 2004 made much of the AVM 30's THX Ultra2 certification, multichannel analog input with full bass management, and extensive list of surround modes.
Video front projectors have always been the best way to watch movies at home, and now that new 1080p models capable of unveiling all the detail in high-def sources have arrived, there's even more reason to get keyed up about the category.
Over the past 2 years, new flat-panel LCD TVs with 1080p resolution have turned up in stores regularly, causing plasma-TV enthusiasts like me to wonder: Where are all the 1080p plasmas? A number of such sets have been announced, but the one I've been waiting for is the Pioneer Elite PRO-FHD1 50-inch 1080p plasma monitor.
Aside from a huge, costly flat-panel TV, the easiest way to put a big video image up on your wall is to buy a front-projector/projection screen combo. And with good high-rez front projectors now selling for as little as $2,000, that option can be particularly budget-friendly.
The ongoing iPodification of audio has generated a huge number of products designed to sync up with, amplify, and otherwise expand the possibilities of Apple's ubiquitous player. Many first-wave iPod add-ons got the cosmetic part right (white plastic cabinet? check!) but failed to impress when it came to music reproduction.
After it was introduced in the middle of the last century, the TV set remained basically unchanged for decades.
While there were minor design variations along the way, it wasn't until flat-panel plasma and LCD sets arrived that manufacturers finally gave us a new take on the tired old tube.
I'd been eagerly looking forward to the arrival of a Blu-ray Disc player at Sound & Vision since - well, ever since the rival HD DVD format launched last April. But our first round of Blu-ray movie watching ended with executive editor Rob Sabin and I walking away disappointed and confused.
If forced to list common traits of the many new flat TV-friendly speaker systems that have crossed my path of late, I'd document them as follows: slim form factor, two-grand price point (approximately), generous application of shiny metallic and gloss-black surfaces in the cabinet design. The components of the new JBL Cinema Sound speaker system fit into that mold perfectly.
