CES 2024 is happening now. But we record early in the week, so we only have the preview news to talk about. LG’s 2024 QNEDs, OLEDs, and their Transparent T Series. Samsung QD-OLEDs, and transparent microLED. Brighter, bigger – up to 115″ – TCL miniLED TVs. Sony’s focus on backlighting. Samsung’s Music Frame speakers. And Apple Vision Pro release date.

Pictures shown in this episode: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjBa1yU

00:00:00 – Intro

00:09:14 – What We Watched

Rob watched What If…? S.2. Tom watched Tacoma FD

00:24:58 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are Toke and Jonathan for their PayPal donations, plus our 133 Patreon Patrons, as well as Aaron for sending more Canadian movie codes for Rob to inspect.

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Jay, Kris, Scott, James, Martin, David, Gideon, Paul, Aaron, and Bradford. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:30:01 – News: LG 2024 QNED TVs

8K, miniLED & 98″ offerings: http://tinyurl.com/35kdv9wj

– https://avgadgets.com/what-is-a-qned-tv/

00:33:59 – News: LG 2024 OLED TVs

Brighter, 83″ MLA: https://youtu.be/NdOnEh0kvDE

00:37:15 – News: LG Signature OLED T Series

Transparent OLED with a roll up black backing: https://youtu.be/tcHGpw7KKE4

00:43:56 – News: Samsung QD-OLEDs

Matte screen option, and plenty of W-OLED models, too: https://youtu.be/ahg_-Qeely0

– https://avgadgets.com/oled-in-a-bright-room-can-it-work/

00:48:49 – News: Transparent microLED

Clearer than T OLED, but less available: https://youtu.be/3aWXsrcy0AE

00:50:03 – News: TCL miniLED TVs

Bigger, brighter: http://tinyurl.com/2znbnj3u

00:50:45 – News: TCL 115″ QM891G

No longer exclusive to China: http://tinyurl.com/2ykckk97

00:53:30 – News: Sony Local-Dimming

Trying to make miniLEDs as close to a dual-LCD monitor as possible: https://youtu.be/grBlT1DIqZk

00:56:23 – News: Samsung Music Frame

Art speakers the size of an LP: http://tinyurl.com/yeyjw648

00:57:29 – News: Apple Vision Pro Date

Coming Feb 2: http://tinyurl.com/bd3zmd6k

Comments:

00:59:33 – Comment: Scott – Hisense, and Fiber Optics

Bad customer service experiences. Be gentle with fiber optic HDMI cables.

QUESTIONS:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Happy New Year! Tom is sort of back in his home theater, and that means his video feed has returned! Denon & Marantz owners can now pay hundreds of dollars to add Dirac Live Bass Control. You can pre-register for ad-free Amazon Prime Video. And Discovery shows will remain available via the PlayStation Store for another 30 months.

Pictures shown in this episode: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjB8Ymi

00:00:00 – Intro

Welcome back to Tom’s home theater…mostly.

00:13:56 – What We Watched

Rob watched Only Murders in the Building S.3, and The Curse. Tom watched Reacher.

00:27:18 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are our 133 Patreon Patrons, as well as Aaron for seeing if Rob could make sense of some Canadian movie codes.

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Karl, Jim, Gurinder, Dev, Zach, Raf, Sasi, Kevin, Stan, Stephen, Aaron, Steve, Mike, Jason, Jefferson, and Toke. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:32:08 – News: Dirac Live Bass Control on Denon & Marantz

Top end Receivers & Pre-Pro now have the option of paying to add Dirac Live Bass Control: http://tinyurl.com/ybsx4fnr

00:38:22 – News: Pre-register for Ad-free Prime Video

Regular Amazon Prime subscriptions will have ads by February. Pay $3/month for ad-free: http://tinyurl.com/2xax57k3

00:39:32 – News: Discovery Shows Staying on PlayStation

Sony reached a new licensing agreement to keep Discovery shows for another 30 months: http://tinyurl.com/j7byphnf

Comments:

00:40:48 – Comment: Zach – Successful Buzz Troubleshooting

A USB power adapter was to blame.

00:44:06 – Comment: Sasi – EQ, Calibration & Subwoofer Room Size

Suggestions to try the WiiM software EQ options, calibrating SDR to be brighter, and a chart for various subwoofers’ output vs room size and Reference Volume: http://tinyurl.com/234tjkpe

00:49:26 – Comment: Infinite Gary – Class A Amp Setup

We might have exaggerated the heat output.

QUESTIONS:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Season’s Greetings! It’s our final episode of 2023! Happy New Year! And we’ll see you all again in 2024.

Tom has quite the tale to tell this week. Disney has dropped Jonathan Majors from his role as Kang in the MCU. And Xbox Cloud Gaming is available in beta on Meta Quest VR headsets.

Pictures shown in this episode: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjB7s4a

00:00:00 – Intro

What a day Tom and his family went through.

00:15:30 – What We Watched

Rob started Twisted Metal, and watched No Hard Feelings. Tom watched The Menu.

00:33:16 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are Tyler for his PayPal donation, plus our 134 Patreon Patrons, as well as Jack for alerting Tom when the https://avgadgets.com/ website seemingly had a problem.

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Joe, Jonathan, Dazz, Ben, Jay, Kevin S, Stephen, Kevin P, and Anthony. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:39:37 – News: Jonathan Majors Convicted

Following his trial verdict, Majors has been dropped by his agency and from the MCU: http://tinyurl.com/4yn7cy7u

00:43:47 – News: Meta Quest Xbox Cloud Gaming

Meta Quest VR headsets can now access Xbox Cloud Gaming in beta: http://tinyurl.com/2pkjzvke

QUESTIONS:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Happy Holidays! It’s our second to last episode of the year! SAG-AFTRA ratified their new contract. Zappiti players can live on via a subscription to R_volution’s R_video software. And Rob says SVS crossed the line with their bi-wire claims.

Pictures shown in this episode: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjB6MZX

00:00:00 – Intro

00:05:34 – What We Watched

Rob watched Bottoms. Tom continued Rick & Morty, and finished S.1 of Welcome to Wrexham.

00:18:32 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are Andrew and Jeff for their PayPal donations, plus our 134 Patreon Patrons, including Ken.

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Greg, Art, Ken, Mohsen, Terry, Brandon, Chris, Julian, Vince, Rob, Jeff, and Frank & Nina. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:21:37 – News: SAG-AFTRA Ratify Contract

The actors’ strike is officially over, and they have a new 3-year contract: http://tinyurl.com/54kjk2ad

00:24:24 – News: R_video on Zappiti

Zappiti’s own software is completely dead now, but you can pay a subscription to use R_volution’s R_video software instead: https://www.rvolution.com/rvideo

Comments:

00:26:19 – Comment: Rob J – Corner Bead Panel Frames

At one point (when lumber was overpriced), we wondered if drywall corner bead could make for good DIY absorption panel frames. Rob J tried it out!

QUESTIONS:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

We had to start recording a bit late, and Tom had to duck out a bit early, so it’s a slightly jumbled episode this week. But AVRant finds a way! Samsung, Google & the Alliance for Open Media are introducing IAMF – a new 3D audio format. But it’s not the “Atmos-killer” some clickbait headlines would have you believe. And Sony decided to completely remove any Discovery shows you might have “purchased” via their PlayStation Store. No refunds!

Pictures shown in this episode: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjB5Vbv

00:00:00 – Intro

00:03:58 – What We Watched

Rob watched Babylon. Tom watched Rick & Morty, and X.

00:13:51 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are Paul and Scott for their PayPal donations, plus our 134 Patreon Patrons. 

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Paul, Mike, Mohsen, Jason, Davide, Jeremy, and Jay. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:16:18 – News: IAMF 3D Audio

Samsung, Google, and the Alliance for Open Media introduced their new Immersive Audio Model and Formats. No, it isn’t going to kill Atmos: https://tinyurl.com/3z9cvwdr

00:22:06 – News: Discovery Shows Pulled from PlayStation Store

You might have clicked the “Buy” button and paid to “own” them, but Discovery shows will completely disappear from the PlayStation Store and your video library there. No refunds! https://tinyurl.com/y92p6bef

QUESTIONS:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS