HDTVs, projectors, and surround sound systems.
Home Theater
Do I really need a cable box for every single TV I have?
Episode 1104
David from
David's cable service went out, so he got the cable company to come out and fix it. Now they're suddenly requiring every single TV have its own set-top box, and they'll charge $7 a month for each one. Leo says that when we went digital several years ago, the federal government opened the door for this kind of shake down.
Scott Wilkinson and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Episode 1103
Scott saw Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and he says it's great. Fantastic motion capture performances by actors who played the apes and then filmmakers digitally replaced their bodies with CGI apes that looked incredibly realistic. And because motion capture does just that, capture the actor's movements, the performance gets mimicked by the virtual actor. Especially with small cameras pointing at his face in order to capture the emotional tone of this face and then apply that to the digital character. Amazing.
Why won't my Amazon Fire TV work with my AV receiver?
Episode 1102
Joe from
Joe got an Amazon Fire TV, but when he plugs it into his Denon AV receiver it doesn't work. Leo says he likes the Denon AV receiver and can't imagine why it wouldn't work. Everything in the chain is "HDCP" complaint for copy protection. So it should work just fine.
Leo thinks it may be a bad port or bad cable. Make sure the settings from the Fire TV and the TV itself are matched. If one is 1080i and the other is 1080p, then the handshake could fail. Turn everything off and unplug it. Then plug each thing in one at a time, ending with the TV.
Scott Wilkinson
Episode 1101
Scott had a guest on Home Theater Geeks this week named Michael Fremer. He is a pure audiophile and enjoys it because of his "golden ears" (being able to pick up on subtle musical cues). He says that high resolution audio is a great development. Leo says that paying more for HiRes audio is a subjective thing. Most won't be able to really enjoy it like someone with golden ears, but if it sounds better to him, then it's worth it.
What's wrong with my Vizio TV?
Episode 1100
Don from
Don bought a Vizio E Series TV, but some of the content doesn't look very good, even after calibrating it. Leo says the E Series is Vizio's "economy" model. He's watching TV over FiOS, and everything looks washed out and hazy. Don wonders if it's because this is a 60Hz TV, as opposed to the M Series which is capable of 120Hz. Leo says that won't improve anything. All television is 60Hz, but 120 and 240 hz TVs will interpolate the signal to compensate for it, which can make it look plastic-like.
How can I rip my DVDs to a hard drive?
Episode 1099
Joe from
Joe wants to rip his DVD collection and put it on an external hard drive. How big of a hard drive will he need? Leo says that regular DVDs have 4.7 GB of space, if he wants to keep all of the data from the DVD. But if he just wants the movie itself, then it won't take up as much space.
Joe should get Handbrake and VLC Media Client. Then if he encodes the movie and strips out everything else, he'll have a movie at about 1 GB. He could store a lot more movies that way.
Scott Wilkinson
Episode 1099
Scott is back to talk about Vizio's new 70" LED LCD screen. Scott likes it because it's great value for the money and offers local dimming through back lit zones which allow for more accurate blacks and colors on the screen. Vizio has also officially killed 3D as an option on their screen. Scott says if you look at the model number that ends in the letter "A," it's a 2013 model, and "B" is a 2014 model. And 2014 models will be back lit, not edge lit. So look for "B" models. Also, 70" TVs are ideal for viewing at 10 feet. If you can afford it, that's what you should get.
If money were no object, what 60-65 inch LED TV would you get?
Episode 1098
Roger from
Scott says he would get the Sony X950B 4K TV. Roger says that one won't work for him. David adds in that if money were no object, he'd get an OLED TV, but that would be a curved screen. Scott says he might opt for the LG 77" for $30,000, but Roger apparently is at least a little price conscious. Scott thinks that at 77", a curved screen might be ok. LG's screens also are only slightly curved, not as curved as Samsung's displays. The Vizio Reference Series will be making a 65" display, and both Scott and David recommend waiting for that one.
Should I hard wire my Roku box?
Episode 1098
Jonathan has DSL internet, and is wondering if there's an advantage to hard wiring his Roku rather than having it wireless. Scott says yes, hard wire is better because of the possibility for interference in the Wi-Fi spectrum. David says that if he's not having video dropouts, hard wiring won't improve the video quality. It'll just give him a more consistent stream. He also has an A/V receiver wired to his speakers.
What soundbar should I buy?
Episode 1098
Roger is eager for the Vizio Reference Series. Scott says that everyone is looking forward to that new line of 4K UHD TVs with high dynamic range. But he thinks it'll be towards the end of the year. Roger also bought a Panasonic VT60, but the sound is terrible.
