Ed's AV News & Blog
Links to recent blogs:
The Dave Grohl
Speech
It's a Matter
of Scale
It's a Good Year
for AV
Sales &
Referrals
8K Magic or
Hype?
More listed @ the bottom of this page.AV NEWS
|
Graphene
OLED TV?
Graphene
could replace Indium-Tin-Oxide as
the transparent electrode layer of
OLED TVs. ITO is brittle,
scarce, expensive.
Graphene
is flexible, abundant, and
cheap. Select this LINK
to Graphene-info.com for the
story.
Sony
QD-OLED TV
Sony's
2022 lineup includes two types
of LED TVs, OLED &
QD-OLED. Sony sources OLED
panels from LG.
They
source QD-OLED panels from
Samsung. The LG panel
color-filters LED light.
The Samsung panel stimulates
quantum dots with blue LED
light. It will be
interesting to watch the
comparisons between sets once
they start shipping. In
addition, Samsung Micro-LED TV
will also enter the scene in
2022. Micro-LED eliminates
color filtering and quantum
dots. Select this LINK
to The Verge for more
information.
8K
Association Updates Specs
UHD
8K TV shoppers will benefit from
new 8K Association certification
specs.
Updates include new requirements for 8K streaming, new image metrics, & a game mode. The
8K Association is also pioneering
Ambient Contrast Ratio (ARC) to
ensure a good picture in various
light conditions.
Eighty
8K TV models are already
certified, and more to come.
Check out
this story @ TVTechnology.com
Prime Video Primes 8K Pump 8K TV
streaming may not be ready for
prime time.
Content providers are still getting a grip on UHD 4K. Nonetheless, 8K is coming. Amazon is helping to forge a road map for 8K. Select
this TechRadar.com
link for the story.
Rev-up for Rooftop Antennas The
times are a-changing.
Off-air NextGenTV can now
reach nearly 50% of U.S.
households.
It's
time to revisit an old
audio/video stalwart.
Checkout
this story at tvtech.com
Most
Popular Physical Music Format
After near evaporation in the 90s, vinyl has made a crazy comeback. New-vinyl sales have continually increased for 15 straight years. Vinyl is the most popular physical music format. Select this Link to The Hustle for the story. LG Wins
War?
Samsung
discontinued LCD panel production
last year. Now their QNED
cutting edge TV technology is
delayed. In
addition, their new
QD-OLED TV may have production issues. Therefore their 2022 lineup will feature OLED TVs built with LG panels and QD-LED LCD TVs with Sharp LCD panels. Select this WhatHiFi Link for the story. Drone Filled Skies? How did the public respond to early maned-flight filling the sky? Roadways governed horseless and horse-drawn carriage traffic. But the sky? Well, air
traffic control quelled
concerns. But what about
drones?
Dronelife.com reports on the announcement of a drone-air-space management demonstration. Select
this Link
for the story.
It's
just a misleading headline. But
will hydrogen do?
An
Australian company and the
University of Adelaide's
thermo-photocatalysis process uses
the sun's radiation
and thermal properties to convert water into hydrogen and oxygen. Select
this Link
to GrapheneInfo.com for the story
TV
Screen Size War?
Reminiscent of 1980s rear-projection TV sales, manufacturers are again competing with screen size. An industry analyst reports that 75 inch-plus models grabbed 14.6 percent market share. LG has shown a 97-inch OLED TV, while Samsung offers their 99-inch micro LED. It
appears we're heading toward
100-inch sets.
Select this LINK to What Hi*Fi for the story. Neil Young @ Carnegie Hall 1970 Neil
Young's solo career rebooted
with his first exit from Crosby,
Stills, Nash, & Young in
1970.
A bootleg of a solo concert appeared in many record stores. I still have my copy. Analog
Planet.com reviews the official
release of his 1970 Carnegie
Hall performance.
The
song list includes Down by the
River, Cinnamon Girl, Nowadays
Clancy Can't Even Sing,
and many
other Young classics.
Select this Link
for the story.
How the Maestro Got His Hands Back Bionic
gloves allow a world-renowned
pianist to play again.
This story
at GQ.com reveals how high-tech
and music joined hands.
Select this
Link
for the story.
Paul McCartney
cherry picked a bunch of artists to
rethink the songs of his most recent
record, McCartney III Imagined.
The bunch includes Beck, Radioheads Ed O'Brien, Anderson Paak, Robert Naja. Select this AudiophileReview.com
link for the the story.
A French team
has built a prototype graphene
artificial neuron.
The aim is to
prove that this system can learn and
implement algorithms to serve as the
basis for electronic memories.
Select this Graphence-Info.com
link for the story.
Nikola
Tesla Would Like This
Wireless
delivery of power to drones while in
flight.
Bluetooth
& WiFi may transmit data.
This wireless
technology delivers power
Select this link
to dronelife.com for the
story.
All
Things Must Pass
All things
must pass, and he did. But
George Harrison's music lives
on.
Jim Potts where are you? I always enjoy your audible musings on Harrison's gift, craft, genius. Select this Link
to Stereophile's review of the
Golden Anniversary Super Deluxe
Edition of All Things Muss Pass.
As a
gray-haired listener, this
announcement caught my
attention. I bet you have
customers and friends who can
benefit from the digital processing
and well-thought-out convenience of
these wireless headphones.
Select this WHAT
HI*FI link for the story.
Sam
Runco Sighting
Home theater
icon Sam Runco speaks at Azione
Unlimited Nashville meeting.
Select this Link to CEPro for the story. Micro-LED
TV
Micro-LEDs are
nearly invisible to the naked
eye. Micro-LED TVs, ranging
from 81 inches to a wall-sized 1000
inch TV, promise up to 5000 nits of
brightness, blowing past the
brightest OLED and exceeding LCD
sets. Given an LED can produce
absolute black, Micro-LED will
achieve new levels of contrast
ratio. Select the following
Tom's Guide Links for more
information.
NextGenTV Set-top Box NextGen is
coming. This set-top box
deliver over-the-air NextGen
broadcast & Internet
streaming.
Get ready to install roof-top antennas. Select this Fierce Video link for the story. Akamai
Technologies predicts NextGenTV
over-the-air broadcast delivery of
Internet audio & video content to
homes and mobile devices.
Akamai is one of
the world's largest content delivery
networks. Check out this story @
tvtech.com.
Wienermobile Ride This story
brings back memories for this
gray-haired hot dog eater.
Little Oscar's Wienermobile visit to our elementary school. The rush to
claim the Wiener-whistle included in
the hot dog package.
Little Oscar's
frequent appearances on L.A.'s
noon-time Sheriff John show.
Select this Link
for this c|net story.
Last year it was
reported a Samsung quantum-dot OLED TV
would arrive in spring 2021. Well,
COVID delayed progress.
WHAT HI*FI now
reports that we should see the new
Samsung TVs at CES 2022. Select
this Link
for the story.
I know, who knew
any were still lit?
This story from HACKADAY.com
explains why any were still up.
The security
industry is pressuring AT&T to
postpone the shutoff of the 3G cellphone
network.
They are asking for more time to convert their fire alarm and intrusion systems based on 3G. Select this Link
to CEPro for the story.
Well before Cheech
& Chong's 1st movie performance,
cruising was a teenage weekly Friday
night pilgrimage.
Audiophile
Review.com has reviewed the Record Store
Day release of Lowrider Love.
It includes classics such as War's 1975 Lowrider, plus 1960's Doo Wop, soul & rock. Turn off the TV,
jump in your car, roll the windows down,
and insert your 8-track tape.
Then a take a slow
main street ride. Select this LINK
for the story.
Sound
Proofing Screw
This simple spring-loaded screw adds 9db of sound reduction to a typical sheetrock wall. This corresponds to halving loudness. Check out this story at Interesting Engineering.com. The University of
Bath has developed a graphene
oxide-polyvinyl alcohol aerogel that
reduces aircraft engine noise by up to
16 decibels.
Its future use may
include soundproofing a home theater or
home music room. Select this LINK
to Graphene-info.com for the story.
Turn off the news.
Listen to some music.
Audiophile.com
reviews Alex Chilton & Hi Rhythm
Section live small club concert of rock
and soul.
Select this LINK for the
story.
Will their in-ear
headphones morph into hearing
aids? Is this a niche to
exploit?
Select this link
to Twice magazine for the story.
Home
Theater's Big Comeback
Nearly 2 years
of chaos has vaulted home theater
demand
above home networks and learn from home systems. Select this CEPro Link to download their special report. HDMI
Get's Active Device Boost?
Jeff Boccaccio of DPL Labs outlines how HDMI devices such as active cable may be getting some assistance. Select this Link to CEPro for the story. Byrds, Burittos,
& Desert Roses
Chris Hillman is a legendary musician. I just finish his book 'Time Between". Great read about a storied time. This Links to his The Absolute Sound interview. What
is Liquid Paper?
Musician Michael Nesmith, of the 1960's Monkees, solo work is very impressive. But that's a story for another time. This story is about his mother Bette Nesmith Graham. It's a story that pops up every decade or so. Select this Link to 'The Hustle'. Good Guy Gets Good Press This AudiophileReview.com
story highlights the expert skill of
Stirling Trayle.
I met Stirling back in the 1990's in his stint with T+A audio. People like
Stirling inspire the rest of us to
reach higher.
Keith Yates has
been a local Northern California legend
since the 1980's.
This CEPro story
presents his latest award winning
installation. Check it out.
Electrostatic
Graphene Speaker
GraphAudio's CEO outlines how graphene will lead to a more efficient "low" cost electrostatic speaker. TV Screen
Resolution Limit?
Your brain can interpret an image beyond 8K resolution. That's the claim of this story at EFTM.com AI
Upscaling
This story from techradar outlines the history of upscaling lower resolution video to display on HD, UHD, and 8K televisions. The recent addition of artificial intelligence is also explained. Select this link to techradar. Grounding This CEPro story discusses the importance of good grounding. Although the focus is on a higher-end installation, much of this discussion can also apply to more modest projects. Select this link
to CEPro.
Read this CEPro story.
What is QNED? Is this say goodbye to QD-LED before it reaches the retail floor? Maybe not -- but QNED will substitute QD-LED organic LEDs for inorganic LEDs. The story doesn't refer to the new 'Nano-Rod' LEDs as inorganic. Check out this story at IANDROID.EU. Goodbye OLED? The better take is goodbye LCD. In any case, Samsung's QD-LED will take us to the next generation of television technology. Check out this Tom's Guide story. HDMI Guide Audioholics the online AV magazine has published an HDMI 2.1 guide. Check out this story at Audioholics.com. HDMI 2.1 Link Training Your HDMI cabling may trigger Link Training, which downgrades video resolution. DPL Labs recommends you prepare customers for probable required upgrades. Select this LINK for the story. H.265/HEVC A new video compression standard is officially on its way. VCC reduces data requirements by around 50%. VCC will provide faster video transmission. But you will need to upgrade your video source devices. Select these links for more information: Fierce Video and TVTechnology. Another NextGenTV Launch Pittsburgh joins Las Vegas. The ATSC goal is 40 markets by the end of 2020. Keep NextGenTV on your radar. Select this LINK to TVTechnology for more informatiopn NextGenTV Lauches ATSC 3.0 branded as NextGenTV goes live in Las Vegas. This IP based over the air broadcast television can be integrated with 5G and other internet networks. Oh yeah, it delivers UHD TV broadcasts too. Read the story at FierceVideo. "Cocaine & Rhinestones" If your music interest lie in Country, Americana, Folk, Rock; then you have to check out this podcast. Tyler Mahan Coe's "Cocaine & Rhinestones". It's described as a history of country music. But the podcast is more than history. It's back stage almost abandoned true stories told by the son of country musician David Allan Coe. These are stories that extend way beyond popular documentaries. Here's the Link. Goodbye LCD TV. Hello Quantum Dot OLED. Samsung is discontinuing LCD production and switching to Quantum Dot OLED. This is not the LG color filtered (stacked RGB LED) white light technology. QD-OLED uses a blue LED layer to illuminate red and green quantum dots; blue light passes as is. Some refer to this as color by blue. QD-OLED offers brighter and even more accurate color. Select the following links, AnandTech & TechSpot, for the story. UltraHD Dobly Atmos Home Theater Demos Sean Killebrew of HomeTheaterReview offers a his list of his go to home theater demos. Check it out. Home Network Guide Integrating streaming audio/video sources with the AV system via a computer network router has become common. Wireless WiFi is the 'buzz'. Yet hard wire connection is often more reliable. This HomeTheaterReview story offers an introductory network qualifying guide. 5G vs NextGenTV? This Audioholics story outlines how NextGenTV ATSC 3.0 may become an internet streaming alternative. FCC Changes Off-Air Channels Frequencies This story will affect many markets. Some will view this as a negative situation. But this an opportunity to show why your customers need you. Select this Link for this CEPro story. Thorens Reel to Reel If your of my vintage, you're going to like this story. And apparently reet-to-reel and cassette recordings are having a successful run. Check it out at this link CEPro. 8K TV -- So What? 8K is here, no doubt about it. And UHD (4K) has pushed HD to the back of the retail floor. But the real story is the value offered by the array of TV's with HDR and its huge color space. This story by Jerry Del Colliano at hometheater review explains. HD TV Antenna? The big box and many on-line offerings can be amusing. There is no such thing as an HD TV antenna. This story at TechHive is just a reminder. If you're looking for an off-air "TV" antenna, then return to old stalwarts such as Winegard.com. IMAX DTS Certification The once ubiquitous THX symbol seems to have disappeared from home theater shelves. Will the new IMAX DTS certification and licensing program become their successor? Select this Link to FierceVideo for the story. Rare Elements Found Rare elements found in the mud off Japanese island. This find may impact the supply, access, and the price of materials needed for electronic manufacturing. Check out this story from the Consumer Technology Association. Cool Vinyl Story Louisville record store adds another 280,000 LPs and 45s purchased from a Texas dealer. What Every Blank Audio Cassette Needs In a follow up to the news regarding audio cassettes making a come back; here's a story about a NEW Tascam (Teac) cassette deck from ITNews.com. Audio Cassettes Back in Business, What!? I'm not sure what to make of this story. Apparently the old
analog cassette tape is riding on the
coattails of the vinyl renaissance.
I do miss the old analog
stuff. It was fun.
Check out this story at Installation/AVTechnologyEurope.com What is AV1? MPEG's H.265 High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) has another challenger and its free for video programmers to implement. Check out this story at
TVTechnology.com.
Blue LED Light Creates Insomnia? Tech's favorite color is making us miserable. Check out this story at FastCompany.com. Samsung Moving Away From LCD Technology This report outlines how Samsung is implementing a revised mix of quantum dots and OLED's. A base of blue OLEDs energize red and green quantum dot pixels. Blue pixels are produced by the 'base' blue OLEDs. This technology improves on LG's current color filtered white OLED 'stacks'. Select mysmartprice.com for the story. 8K? 16K? 32K? Here's a story to make your UltraHDTV 4K day. Insight Media's founder Chris Chinnock reported "not only was 8K right on track but that its adoption is essentially inevitable, and they are now thinking about 16K and even 32K." Select this link to Advanced Television.com for the story. HDMI Heads UP HDMI over a long distance can drive installers crazy. Here is some advice and
facts about active HDMI cable runs from Jeff
Boccaccio.
Select this link at CEPro.com for the story.
HDR Format War Update High Dynamic Range is the path to stunning UltraHD video performance. HDR format choices currently include HDR10, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, HGL, and Technicolor's SL-HDR1, 2, & 3. However HDR formats must be paired with compatible sources and hardware to deliver on the HDR promise; this includes the TV, BluRay player, streaming service, and don't forget broadcasters. This story from c/net.com outlines the battle for your TV screen. MQA - It's About Time The human ear is more sensitive to phase (timing) than frequency. This is the weakest link of the Sony/Phillips CD and other digital formats. Bob Stuart's Meridian CD players have included phase band-aids since the 1990's. And now phase accuracy is a foundation of Mr. Stuart's MQA format which is implemented in the recording studio. This is a big deal. Select this Link. AudiophileRevicw.com for the story. How many Shure M91EDs did you mount? This question is aimed at the gray hairs in my audience. Shure will no longer
manufacturer phono cartridges. Time moves
on.
Select this LINK to What HiFi for
the story.
Is Your Audio System Set Up Wrong? As in life, audio facts are often less than convenient. This is a link to a story by Steven
Stone at Audiophile Review.com about where to
place up your gear.
Hint, avoid resonant
peaks.
On the Lookout for HDMI 2.1 HDMI 2.1 48Gbps bandwidth has many AV Pros nervous --- and for good reasons. Fortunately Jeff Boccaccio is a 'go to' source for accurate HDMI news. Select this CEPro LINK. Mr. Boccaccio lays out key issues and a probable time line for the HDMI 2.1 roll out. New Speaker Technology? Since the first decades of the 20th century, there has not been a truly new speaker technology. Although this statement contradicts the claims by manufacturers and those who repeat their hype -- it's true. However that may change. Check out this story at New Atlas.com. A new technology uses
thermoacoustics via the use of graphene as
opposed to a moving mechanical diaphragm.
Wait --- I forgot about plasmatronics.
Well at least this eliminates the helium
tanks.
FREE - 25,000 78 RPM Records This
LINK to
newsworks.com reports on an
interesting source to a musical
'way-back-machine'.
Check out the musical gems that lie in this free site: George Blood/The Great 78 Project Mono or Stereo This is a link to a RareRecords.net Blog by Charlie Essmeier. Charlie
reviews and offers classic recordings released
in mono and stereo. This is a must read
for the record collector.
The Loudspeaker Design Cookbook Much as the author of this story (Brent Butterworth), it has been three decades since I first read Vance Dickanson's "The Loudspeaker Design Cookbook". If you're looking for a reference that sums up speaker design choices; then pick up a copy or at least read Mr. Butterworth's outline of the 'Cookbook' at this link to hometheater review.com. Musical Origami This is a must read by Robert Harley of TheAbsoluteSound about MQA " ..... a revolution that comes once in a lifetime". This is a digital audio revolution. He stated that, “By comparison ... conventional PCM is a crude and inefficient method of encoding audio.” Select this LINK Now! Human
Hearing
Beats Uncertainty Limit Blog Archive Links to previous blogs This outlines your
custom speaker installation options.
The
Next Wave #1
The Next Wave #2 / Channels of Distribution The Next Wave #3 / UltraHD, 8K UHD, HDR The Next Wave #4 / OLED, IOLED, Contrast Ratio Keep Pace
Keeping pace with our industry and technology is essential. AV Pros need reliable sources of information. Frisson Terms such as audiophile, video-phile, or custom AV pro do not adequately characterize the skill of my late friend Steve. How to choose a
retail location in 9 steps.
Fidelity without truth? I expect to be lied to by sleazy laywers and politicians, but I draw the line at my high fidelity audio/video world. UltraHD HDR Primer - all 7 Parts Part 1 Set the Table Part 2 Buzzword Noise Reduction Part 3 HDR Format War Part 4 The HD Multimedia Interface Part 5 More HDMI Tips Part 6 UltraHD Sources Part 7 System Compatibility Adventures
in
AV Land Part 2 'Wipe out the noise' Adventures
in
AV Land Part 1 I
Am A Salesman Hedy
Lamarr,
Lefty Gomez, and David Bromberg Ray
Davies Why It
Matters Mis-mixed
audio concepts Where Have All My AV Friends Gone? The
Bully Not
Invented Here
Pet
Peeve How to compete with a big box Eavesdropping at the big box store Bad
Chili Baseball
and
Selling Audio / 3 Part Blog
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Ed's
AV Handbook
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