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The Twelve Biggest Industry Mistakes of the Digital Age More often than not, large companies tend towards stagnation. Others just make bad choices. Here are 12 of the best stories.

The Dumbing Down of Audio We live in an amazing time. Science is making bigger and better tomatoes, continually perfecting synthetic materials to enhance our lives, while making electronics more compact, powerful and…

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Subscribe to DISH, Get an iPad
Clint DeBoer — May 19, 2013 12:23

We've heard of new subscriber deals before, but this week DISH announced that it's offering new subscribers the choice of an Apple iPad 2 instead of first year programming discounts. This is for customers who sign up for the Hopper with Sling Whole-Home HD DVR and a qualified programming package. New customers can then use the iPad to get DISH Anywhere service. Combined with the Hopper entertainment platform, customers can use their iPad (or an iPhone for that natter) to watch live TV, DVR recordings and/or On Demand shows. The Hopper with Sling and iPad offer begins on Wednesday, May 22, 2013 and runs until September 18, 2013.

Electronic House 2013 Home of the Year Awards
Electronic House — May 13, 2013 06:44

We follow the folks over at Electronic House and are particularly enamored with their annual Home of the Year Awards. This is where they select from literally hundreds of entries to come up with the home installations that are the very best among the various categories and budget ranges. For the 2013 Home of the Year Awards we checked out the 12 different categories, some of which included several finalists in Gold, Silver and Bronze designations. I think that, after seeing them, you'll agree that any of these homes would be impressive. And that's just on the surface. Any time you're impressed with the look and layout of a home theater or whole-house audio/video system—just imagine all the work it took to design it, lay it out and, of course, install the system.

What Makes WiSA Certifications Different From Other Wireless Speaker Solutions
Alan Ruberg — May 06, 2013 12:09

Each wireless technology has its place, but no one is offering wireless surround sound audio for the home theater with all of the WiSA benefits such as multi-channel surround sound that is interoperable with any compliant system; transmitting uncompressed, interference free HD audio that is easy to set up and easy to use. There is also no reason that AirPlay devices and WiSA certified devices can’t work together. Basically, someone can take the stereo or HDMI output from the AirPlay receiver and plug it into an input on the WiSA certified audio hub. WiSA certification is a game-changer in the wireless speaker world. It IS the new industry standard for high quality surround sound in the home theater. WiSA speaker technology can also be used in portable speaker applications too.

Progressive Rock Band Renaissance - Annie Haslam Interview
Steve DellaSala — April 30, 2013 21:32

The British Progressive Band known as Renaissance was founded in 1969 by Keith Relf and Jim McCarty after the split up of their band, the Yardbirds. Renaissance was set slightly apart from other Progressive bands throughout the 70s, such as Genesis, Yes and ELP, as they emphasized more on symphonic classical music blended into their progressive themes without relying on hard hitting synthesizer or screaming guitars. But make no mistake; they were equally as popular amongst the same fans. In 2009, they got back together for their 40th year anniversary tour. We had a chance to sit down with vocalist Annie Haslam at her studio in Pennsylvania.

The Hidden Home Theater: Hiding Surround Sound in an Older Home
Clint DeBoer — April 26, 2013 04:09

In older homes, home theater really needs to be hidden. If not, then you can ruin the decor of the home. This isn't easy and we give you seven tips to achieve the hidden home theater. My grandma always told me that children should be seen and not heard. I live in an historic part of the city and when it comes to home theater, the exact opposite is true. Around here, people care about what their houses look like and home theater ruins the décor.

IMAX Private Theater for your Home
Tom Andry — April 24, 2013 19:54

Do you want a theater modeled on the one used by Christopher Nolan, James Cameron, and JJ Abrams to view their movies? IMAX will build you your own Private Theater - in your own home. While the price hasn't been announced, if you have to ask, we're pretty sure you can't afford it. With custom speakers, a system that does daily speaker calibrations, a floor to ceiling, wall to wall curved screen, and dual 4k projectors, this is the theater of your dreams. Right now, IMAX is waiting to start designing your Private Theater. Will we see an IMAX certification program like THX does? Time will tell.

Emotiva Audio to Acquire Bob Carver LLC
Tom Andry — April 17, 2013 04:42

Sorry if you had your brains explode all over your monitor, but it happened to us too. As revealed in this week's Emotiva Podcast, Emotiva has acquired Bob Carver LLC. Emotiva, long known to the Audioholics of the world as the go-to manufacturer for Internet Direct amplifiers, has a history of providing solid-state amplifiers at a fraction of the price of the brick and mortar competition. Bob Carver, a literal giant in the field of amplifiers, has a long history in the world of high-end audio through his companies which include the well-respected Sunfire. To top it all off, Bob Carver will now be working with Emotiva on R&D. The implications are mind-boggling.

DTS-HD Layered Audio Technology
Clint DeBoer — April 16, 2013 00:31

DTS announced something recently that didn't get much play. The company launched its new DTS-HD Layered Audio technology. What this is, is a way to allow online media services to stream (on-demand) adaptive bit-rate files from a single encode. DTS-HD Layered Audio takes the best stuff from the DTS-HD codec and uses it to create and store adaptive bit-rate audio streams—all from a single encode. So if you're streaming to a mobile product that isn't running at blazing 4G speeds yet, you can have them pull from a lower bitrate encoded stream. At the same time broadcast quality streaming is possible for those on higher bandwidth connections. DTS demoed the technology at NAB this year and it works as advertised.

The Audioholics E-Store is now audiogurus.com!
Clint DeBoer — April 11, 2013 17:28

Allow us all to introduce to you to: audiogurus.com! Audioholics and Audioholics Store have always been two separate companies, and we feel that it's now safe to end the confusion. The easiest way to do that is to rename the store and re-brand it on its very own top level domain. So after much thought, we've all decided to do just that. It's ready to fly on its own. Its wings have matured and the folks associated with the Store are ready to succeed in the world of audio and video electronics without the confusion of sharing a name with an impartial online A/V review magazine. Audiogurus will continue to provide the same great service, product selection, 30-day return and warranty policies as the original Audioholics E-Store, and Audioholics will still have a great relationship with the folks who run it. You will soon see the Store transition in name and URL from store.audioholics.com to audiogurus.com. It’s a great new direction for all parties involved and we're very excited to see the store get to this level!

Sound United to Oversee Polk, Definitive Technologies and BOOM Clint DeBoer — April 08, 2013 07:56

Legacy Audio Interview: Room Correction, DSP & EQ Processing of Loudspeaker Systems Gene DellaSala — April 07, 2013 20:43

Star Trek: Enterprise Season One Blu-ray Review Wayde Robson — March 26, 2013 14:13

Contest: Review and WIN a pair of SVS Ultra Tower Speakers! Clint DeBoer — March 25, 2013 06:06

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey...into Bad HT Video Technology Wayde Robson — March 06, 2013 10:16

The Inside Story: A Prognosis of Best Buy from a Veteran Employee Cliff Heyne — March 04, 2013 10:06

Samsung Introduces HomeSync Android TV at Mobile World Congress 2013 Wayde Robson — February 28, 2013 05:19

What Sony PlayStation 4 Brings to Your Home Theater System Wayde Robson — February 25, 2013 11:20

Speaker Manufacturers: Internet Direct vs Brick and Mortar Steve Munz and Cliff Heyne — February 13, 2013 06:08

Farewell Sony MiniDisc Wayde Robson — February 06, 2013 06:37

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