Recent Home Theater Editorials

From prebuilt equipment rack options that include adjustable rack shelves, ventilation, and AC power to custom built walk in closets that rival google data centers, we're going to look at some of the options you have to safely store your gear. Isn't it about time for your AV electronics to get their own area with clean cable management and organization?

People hate change, and older people REALLY hate change. Can the audiophile industry change their outlook towards new technologies and proven science, over the voodoo and hokum? Can they achieve broader appeal to attract a younger audience? Or will they continue to look to the past and embrace antiquated technologies or unproven tweaks in hopes of achieving "SOTA" audio performance? Read on to see if we are ready. If not, we are doomed.

Back in October 2020 Audioholics first reported on an HDMI issue between select Denon and Marantz HDMI 2.1 AV receivers and the latest Xbox gaming console that left users literally in the dark. Sound United, parent company of both Denon and Marantz responded and created a fix for the majority of their receivers to allow full support of 4k/120Hz and 8k/60Hz resolutions. Today Sound United released information on how to fix the rest of their receivers. Best of all, it's FREE! To find out if you're affected, read on.

Cable TV Giant Discovery Inc. has joined the streaming wars with its Discovery+ streaming service. For as little as $4.99 per month, subscribers can access over 55,000 TV episodes from Discovery’s long list of networks, including HGTV, Food Network, Animal Planet, and TLC. In addition to this huge catalog of existing content, Discovery+ will be home to new original shows and documentaries. Read on to learn more.

Do you have tinnitus or a golden ear? Are you having trouble discerning Dolby Atmos from DTS:X? Help is on the way! Read on to see the medical breakthrough that will finally let you hear the difference between $100 and $10,000 speaker cables. Read on to find out more.

Every once in a while, we have to move our AV systems to a new room. Sometimes, it’s because the system has outgrown its current home and it requires a larger space. Other times, it’s because the current room is needed for another purpose. But acoustically, things don’t always work out in the new room exactly the way you thought they would, despite your best plans. In this editorial, I show how I overcame acoustical challenges by fixing the bass.

2020 wasn't a kind year for any of us, but for Onkyo and its subsidiaries including Pioneer, the struggle almost brought them down. Fortunately, Onkyo had a plan for difficult times long before COVID-19 struck. So far, its plan seems to be working as Onkyo and Pioneer Elite recently unveiled a new line of competitive A/V receivers for 2021. As Onkyo's fiscal year approaches its end on March 31st, we'll soon find out if it has completed audio's hail mary pass of the century.

It was an overproduced, overlong online "event" featuring the stars of Spotify in overtly scripted segments badly-acting spontaneity. The purpose of the event was to publicize Spotify's plan for global domination of audio-based entertainment over the next five years. To do this, Spotify will add features to compete with just about every other app on your phone including YouTube, SoundCloud, TikTok and even social media. But, the big news is that Spotify will finally offer Premium subscribers its most requested feature, lossless audio. Details are thin for now, but we can make some predictions based on what Dream On revealed and what it may have strategically omitted.

With people staying at home, AV products are in high demand. Dealers who are sitting on AV inventory are in an excellent position to sell even the normally higher priced models. There isn’t a need to deeply discount gear to make a sale because inventory is tight, and demand is pretty strong. The issue is actually getting inventory in hand. Is Physical Inventory the AV Retailers Saving Grace In A Pandemic Economy? Read on to find out.

For consumers, what you get for your money today in home theater equipment is better than ever before. Don’t be fooled into thinking that you have to pay for the nth degree of performance, unless that's the goal that you are chasing. We explore how home theater equipment has improved in performance and value over the last decade putting great performance within reach of virtually any enthusiast.

The audiophile community doesn’t like change, in fact, they despise it with every fiber of their beings. Today, we live in a world where $15 per month access to high-resolution, often remastered, and seemingly unlimited music is reality, yet the audiophile communities elders are still stuck in the past. See why I sold my vinyl and never looked back...

Much of today’s equipment does not exhibit that same degree of flat-out romance and visceral appeal. Today’s equipment is so uniformly excellent that a lot of the mystique and “skill” of picking out one’s personal system is just not there anymore. We'll discuss how the romantic, emotional appeal of audio gear has changed over the years to more of a disposable society.

COVID-19 has crushed the idea of home theater tradeshows for 2020 and likely most of 2021. With the decline of brick and mortar AV stores has the idea of actually listening to a demo of HiFi gear before you purchase it a thing of the past? Check out our thoughts on the future of listening to, and purchasing new AV gear.

WarnerMedia announced its plan to send all of its 2021 film releases directly to its streaming service, HBO Max. It's seen as a snub to movie theaters who weren't consulted about the plan. But Warner also forgot to work this plan out with partner studios. Warner now finds itself in the dog house with its own creative teams who were expecting to see their films debut on the big screen before going to the little screens. We can expect the lawsuits are being prepared, and that's just from within team-Warner. But is WarnerMedia simply accelerating what has already been in the cards for theaters?