AV Rant #999.9i: Sofabaton U3 Review and Giveaway (and Lee Visited Vancouver!)
Tom’s away. Lionsgate joins Movies Anywhere. Apple TV 4K gets Hi-Res Lossless Apple Music. Lee and Rob met in person!
00:00:00 – Intro
00:06:05 – Sofabaton U3 Review
Our official Sofabaton U3 review. Positives, negatives, and some comparisons to the X2.
– https://www.sofabaton.com/product/u3/
00:26:27 – Sofabaton Discounts
Don’t be mad at Sofabaton if the discount codes no longer work. But feel free to give them a try:
– U3:
– 5% Off: AVRANTROB
– X1S:
– 35% Off: TOMX1S35
– X2:
– 15% Off: THOMASWT
00:29:33 – Sofabaton U3 Giveaway!
We’ll be giving away at least one U3 remote! Email us if you’d like to enter the giveaway for free: Question at AVRant dot com
00:31:56 – What We Watched
Lee is still watching For All Mankind, and Foundation, plus NHL Playoffs. Rob watched Masters of the Universe.
00:45:01 – Contact Info
How to get in touch with us.
– Lee on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/leeoversky.bsky.social
00:46:08 – Listeners of the Week
Our Listeners of the Week are our 121 Patreon Patrons.
We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Jason, Jairus, Joe, and Sasi. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!
In the news:
00:47:14 – News: Lionsgate Joining Movies Anywhere
Lionsgate Studios finally agreed to join: https://tinyurl.com/nhhyb6u6
00:49:27 – News: Apple TV 4K Getting Hi-Res Lossless
tvOS 27 will bring 24/192 Lossless audio support for Apple Music: https://tinyurl.com/48bx82bs
Comments:
00:52:25 – Comment: Nelson – Grok for Gary
Nelson tried to help identify Infinite Gary’s mystery cylinder by uploading the images to Grok.
QUESTIONS:
00:57:35 – Manuel: When to Buy a 98″ TV
Lee says to buy an 83″ OLED. Rob says to buy a 98″ TCL mini-LED.
– 83″ LG B5: https://tinyurl.com/ymaem4wd
– 98″ TCL QM8K: https://tinyurl.com/etndc644
– 98″ TCL QM7K: https://tinyurl.com/4xs6uz63
01:05:19 – Infinite Gary: OLED or TrueRGB
Gary wants “lifelike” colors in SDR. Is that the same as “studio monitor accurate”? Also, “kick you in the chest” bass.
01:10:47 – Jay: Four “Independent” Subwoofers
We dig into the details of Denon’s four subwoofer pre-outs, and just how “independent” they really are.
01:19:34 – Jairus: In-Wall Surrounds
His wife would prefer flush-mounted Surrounds. Does RSL have a solution?
– RSL W25E: https://tinyurl.com/y7wpufrm
– DynaBox: https://tinyurl.com/4sr95acc
– En-Wall enclosure: https://tinyurl.com/3s7kpv28
01:24:15 – Michael: $4,000 CAD System
A $3,500 audio system with attention paid to accessibility for a user with visual impairment.
– B-Stock Denon X1800H from Gibby’s: https://tinyurl.com/2wrxy39p
– ToneWinner SW-D2000 Sub: https://tinyurl.com/3y7yyv5x
– Paradigm Monitor SE Bundle: https://tinyurl.com/yeyt9xa2
– The All-Polk Signature Elite Option:
– ES50 Towers: https://tinyurl.com/4amsnshy
– ES30 Center: https://tinyurl.com/2paxccj5
– ES15 Surrounds: https://tinyurl.com/458h5ped
– ES12 Sub: https://tinyurl.com/4nmp83e3
01:38:17 – Jason: Theater Tour & High-Sensitivity Speakers
The fabulous home theater we helped Jason put together. And is all the hype about high-sensitivity, compression-driver speakers warranted?
01:47:41 – Chris: Hisense U6G Powering Off
A strange issue where his TV is acting like its Sleep Timer is activated sometimes.
01:53:43 – Joe: Marantz Pre-Pro Troubleshooting
As far as we can tell, the issue with his Front Right channel is being caused by his Marantz AV8805A.
01:57:57 – Lee’s Vacation to Vancouver!
We didn’t plan for this to be an hour-long slideshow. But we had too much fun reminiscing and just wound up recapping Lee and his wife’s entire stay in Vancouver, British Columbia last week.
02:01:57 – Day 1
The flight in, Sylvia Hotel, English Bay Beach, and Stanley Park.
02:13:15 – Day 2
False Creek Ferry, Granville Island, Lee’s Donuts, A-maze-ing Laughter.
02:17:13 – Day 3
Lionsgate Bridge, Grouse Mountain, Canada Place, Gastown.
02:29:59 – Day 4
Rob, Lee & Heather meet in person! UBC, Museum of Anthropology, Chan Centre, Kits Beach.
02:39:06 – Rob’s Home Theater!
Just a couple of photos. And ever since all the water damage, it’s never been restored to its full, final form. But if you’ve been dying for a glimpse of Rob H.’s home theater, here it is!
02:44:16 – Hotel Home Theater
Not quite as extensive as Rob’s setup.
02:44:55 – Day 5
VPL, Robson Street, Vancouver Art Gallery, Chinatown, Olympic Village, and Tim Hortons!
02:54:51 – Best for Last – Salmon n’ Bannock
Best meal of the trip, and then Queen Elizabeth Park, and flying back to Alabama from YVR.
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