Thank you to our Listeners of the Week, Grant, Jimmy, and Rick B, for your generous donations!

Pomegranate! (listen to Ep. 510 if you want to know what that’s about)

Tom reviews the ToughTested Solar Dual USB 10,000mAh Battery Pack. In the news, new 7.2.4 AV Receivers and Pre-pros are now available: Onkyo PR-RZ5100, TX-RZ3100, and TX-RZ1100 that are THX Certified and use AccuEQ; Integra DRC-R1, DRX-R1, and DRX-7 that add HDBaseT and MQA; and, Pioneer Elite SC-LX901, SC-LX801, and SC-LX701 that drop THX and use MCACC. All of these Receivers use Pioneer’s D3 Class D amps. ATI introduced their Class D Hypex N-Core AT52 and AT54 Series amplifiers. And Infinite Gary let us know about the new Outlaw Audio Model 7140 Class A/B amplifier with a Class F power supply.

Scott S. loves the most recent update to the Plex App on the NVidia Shield TV that has granted lossless bitstream audio output support, including Dolby Atmos and DTS:X. And Karl R. pointed out that Apple’s new favorite things – dongles and proprietary cords – are on sale.

Fab F. has decided to build a dedicated theater in his basement. We discuss which room we think he should use, how to contend with ductwork, where he should place his speakers, and that pesky 4 ohm setting on Receivers. Kevin A. wants new Front L/R speakers that can play loud and clean, and he’s deciding between passive and active. We shorten his list of candidates down to the EMP Tek R5Bi for passive, and the JBL LSR305 for active. And Vince H. asks about Tom’s and Rob’s plans regarding the PlayStation 4 Pro and HDR displays. He wants a large HDR TV and a new Receiver, we suggest the: Vizio P-Series, LG OLED B6 Series, Sony XBR Z9D Series, and LeEco uMax85 for TVs, and the Marantz SR6011 for a Receiver.

James B. wants to know which projectors under $1,500 we recommend these days, so we mention BenQ projectors, and the Epson Home Cinema 3700. Tim B. wonders, what’s the deal with oxygen-free speaker wire? And Travelling IT Guy wants an inexpensive 65-inch TV, so we recommend the 1080p Vizio D-Series, UltraHD Vizio D-Series, and Samsung 1080p J6200 Series.

Jonathan F. sent us some articles to rant about: first, London’s audiophile listening clubs; and second, the rise of analog recording studios. Infinite Gary wants to know why the Center speakers he’s auditioning have more dramatic differences between them than the expensive SoundBars he was trying before. And Justin B. asks for our opinions about Philharmonic Audio speakers, how futureproof his Marantz SR6010 will be, and also asks for an explanation of how the Dolby Surround Upmixer works, and what he ought to see on his front display.

A different Justin B. is moving to a smaller room with a smaller budget. He’s planning to buy high sensitivity speaker kits from DIY Sound Group. We suggest Power Sound Audio and Tekton Design if he’d like non-DIY options. (Rob also mentioned Reaction Audio before realizing they’ve suspended business for the time being.) And we point to the Dayton Audio RSS460HO 18-inch driver as a suitable option for his DIY subwoofer. Nathan W. gets the low down on whether Chromecast with Plex can handle lossless bitstream audio. And Grant M. requests our help with Marantz SR7010 pre-out settings, placement of his overhead speakers, GoldenEar on-wall vs. in-wall speaker choices, and absorption panel placement ideas.

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In the news this week, many, many AV Rant Listeners let us know that the Xbox One and Xbox One S will be getting lossless bitstream audio output, including Atmos and DTS:X support. Logitech Harmony Hub Remotes now officially work with Amazon Alexa voice commands. Rythmik Audio announced two gigantic new subwoofers: the Rythmik FV18 and FV25HP. And Nick B. is excited for the Nintendo NES Classic Edition.

Boshko S. is using an optical audio connection from his Xbox One to his Harman Kardon AV Receiver. He wants to know why he isn’t hearing surround sound sometimes, what he’d gain by using an HDMI connection, as well as what it would cost him in electricity to always power up his Receiver, and why the front panel display doesn’t seem to match his speaker setup. He also asks about his computer’s HDMI audio output settings. Greg F. is constructing a home theater in his basement, and he wants to figure out acoustically ideal room dimensions. We mention the Room Mode Calculator as a helpful online tool. And Troy T. wants to know if he can use an existing speaker wire run with a speaker wire to RCA converter cable to send a signal to his subwoofer. We caution him to use butt splice terminals if he does, and to switch to a wireless subwoofer kit if he hears noise or a hum.

Ted got his Legacy Audio Silhouette on-wall speakers. They’re huge and sound fantastic! We discuss why Legacy’s own engineer suggested avoiding putting the tweeters at seated ear height, as well as rolling off the Center speaker’s high frequencies, and why they use a phase plug on the midrange driver. We also discuss dual driver subwoofers, Audyssey Flat vs. Audyssey Reference curves, and whether or not Apple TV is getting left behind when it comes to 4K and HDR. Will and Liz rearranged their Living Room and want to make sure a Monoprice TV wall mount is ok. We also suggest possible new locations for their Surround speakers and subwoofer(s).

Matt G. asks our opinions of Monitor Audio Silver Series speakers and how they compare to Ascend Acoustics Sierra-1 and Sierra-2 models. Terry G. has updated his theater plans yet again and asks us to weigh in on the overall seating placement, Atmos ceiling speaker placement, and Surround speaker positions. And Bret R. is running Kodi on an Intel NUC that we suspect is having some issues with a dynamic contrast video setting.

Mark H. found some DIY bass trap plans that we don’t like, so we point him to Tom’s DIY Absorbers articles that we do like. We explain why paper or foil-lined insulation isn’t a good idea. And we tackle Mark’s subwoofer placement and irregular room shape. Michael R. gets a short list of bookshelf speakers to audition in Canada, as well as an explanation of why paper woofers are just fine, and our suggestion to use Canuck Audio Mart to sell his PSB T5 Towers. And Bob G. moved his theater to a much larger room, and he’s finding his lack of tactile bass disturbing. We suggest the HSU VTF-3 MK5 HP as the perfect balance of output and price for his room size and budget.

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Fresh off of last week’s incredible donor turnout, our Listeners of the Week are Brad, and Ted M., who made good on his pledge with an amazingly generous $200 donation! We also thank Mark H. for telling SVS his Prime Bookshelf speaker purchase was because of AV Rant. And Bobby K. in Canada for mentioning us to Gibby’s Electronic Supermarket. Thank you, all!

In the news, LeEco announced a ton of “Le” products and “Le” services. We focus on their LeEco Super4 and uMAX UHD HDR TVs, which do seem like excellent values. Vudu Movies On Us will offer streaming movies for free with ads. AT&T is buying Time Warner for $85.4 billion. And Nintendo Switch is a home console/portable hybrid with detachable controllers that will launch in March 2017.

Ken M. has a problem keeping Kodi full screen on Windows 10, and wants to retain Atmos and DTS:X audio when making MKV backups. We also recommend the Yamaha RX-V381 from Accessories4Less for an inexpensive AV Receiver. Mahi is trying to decide between the Ascend Acoustics Sierra Towers RAAL, Revel Performa3 F208, and RBH SV-6500R. We weigh in, and also add the KEF R-Series and DALI Loudspeakers into the mix. And John M. gets the lowdown on Dolby AC-4 audio.

J asks whether Atmos speakers should aim straight down or at the listening position. Josh S. wants to know the best way to connect and configure a miniDSP to add a subwoofer to one of his whole house audio zones. And Nick B. experienced some networking problems and asks if a battery backup UPS might be a good countermeasure.

Jason S. wants to know what will happen if/when dynamic metadata gets added to HDR10. Infinite Gary gets our advice on acoustic panel placement in a kitchen setup. And Mark H. wants to maximize the acoustic performance in his small room, so we discuss absorption panel and bass trap placement, as well as Eclipse Absolute Zero Drapes and what to do with a skylight.

Michael R. gets our input on which locally available speakers to audition, plus a suggestion to try Axiom Audio. Kevin C. wants to hear more about PlayStation VR launch games. And Fab F. gets more advice about the complicated process of setting up dual subwoofers when ideal placement isn’t an option.

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Amazing! We are awestruck by the outpouring of support from our MANY Listeners of the Week. Ya ready?

Terry G., Richard C., Nathan D., Brandon W., Peter M., Fabrizio F., Stefan B., Eric B., Mahidhar, Jay C., Pieter, Tom K., Ian, Karl R., Carl M., James D., James O., Joshua L., Frederick R., Antoine C., Bryon S., Jeffrey B., Miles W., Jayson W., Vincent H., John S., Lee V., Ilango, William C., Keith M., Wade E., Tom T., Sean M., Gabe M., Geoffrey D., Chad T., Matthew F., Gavin B., Jason S., and Ronald G. who also told A4L that his Marantz AV8802A purchase was thanks to AV Rant!

And a huge thank you to Ted M. who inspired all of these donations with his generous offer to match them dollar-for-dollar! This is far beyond our wildest expectations.

Our official YouTube Page – https://www.youtube.com/c/AVRant/ – features Tom as a logo for the entire podcast this week thanks to technical difficulties. We’re working on it!

Rob gives his first impressions of the PlayStation VR. And Infinite Gary sent us breaking news that Razer bought THX.

Tom K. says our advice to replace a pre-pro with an AV Receiver worked out well. Kris I. says a pair of SVS PC12-Plus subwoofers in a 10,000 cubic foot space is 80% satisfying. And Kevin N., our 500th Episode SVS Giveaway winner has received his SVS Prime Satellite 5.1 Speaker Package! Congrats!

Byron S. has a new house and a new dedicated theater room. We discuss screen sizes, seating distances, and speaker layout ideas. Bob wants to make sure Ascend Acoustics speakers that use RAAL ribbon tweeters can hit full Reference Volume, and we suggest the Ascend Pedestal Stands. And Infinite Gary asks if an acoustically reflective room benefits from speakers with narrow dispersion, how to tell what kind of dispersion a speaker will have, whether playing up to 40 kHz is useful, and what type of insulation we prefer for DIY absorption panels.

Bill C. is moving to a much larger house with an existing sound system. We suggest a Pro Amplifier to power the passive subwoofers, and a Distribution Amplifier to power his whole house audio system. Fab F. is disappointed after adding an SVS PC12-Plus to his PB-1000 in an open concept living room. We talk about placement and dual subwoofer considerations. And Terry G. gets our input on his updated theater plans. We discuss false walls, dual subs that are different brands, and Logitech Harmony Remotes vs. Control4.

Karl R. asks, is Apple’s Lightning headphone jack digital or analogue? Ken S. wants to know if AV Receivers need anything special to support Dolby Vision. And Fred R. is renovating his room to focus on the fireplace. We recommend Dynamic Mounting or MantelMount to put his flatscreen above it.

Nick B. wants to know how much louder four subs will be in a room vs. outdoors, and he also wants to know why Ascend Acoustics doesn’t show distortion measurements. Michael R. wants to swap his Tower Front speakers for Bookshelf speakers, but his choices are limited in Canada. And Casey P. wonders if he can repurpose an old Receiver as an amplifier for Atmos speakers.

Aidan has a left speaker channel problem that we are convinced is being caused by a bad speaker wire connection. Josh Pollard is upgrading his TV, and we think a 55-inch Vizio M-Series is the perfect choice. And Jim O. wants to know if Front Wide speakers are really a thing of the past.

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Our Listeners of the Week are Kris I. for his donation, Infinite Gary for letting Ascend Acoustics know that he heard about them from AV Rant, and Ted M. who is graciously offering to match all donations dollar-for-dollar this week from Oct. 10 – 17!

You can check out our videos on our official YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/c/AVRant/

Kevin N. is the winner of our 500th Episode SVS Giveaway! He chose the SVS 5.1 Prime Satellite speaker package, and he says it will be his first “real” speaker system. So we’re extremely happy for him! Congratulations, Kevin! And since he’d like suggestions for a new Receiver to go along with his new speakers, we think the Denon AVR-X2200W from Accessories4Less is a great choice.

In the news, the biggest surprise from Google’s press conference last week is the inclusion of Dolby Vision support for the 4K Chromecast Ultra. And SVS launched their new 16-Ultra Series Subwoofers.

Philip B. shared an article about Douglas Trumbull’s Magi and Magi Pods 4K 3D 120fps theater systems. And Partha S. let us know that Velodyne subwoofers ended up being the most affordable option in India.

Antoine B. asks if 5.1.4 Atmos is really worth it over 5.1.2, and he also asks about DIY absorption panel materials. Casey wants to know if he’ll hear a worthwhile difference when he upgrades his Polk Audio speakers. We also sort through Receiver models that can handle 7.2.4 Atmos and DTS:X. And we recommend some external amplifier options, including: Emotiva BasX A-500, Monoprice No Logo, Dayton APA100, and Monoprice Monolith. And Michael R. lives in Canada, and he wants a Bluetooth boombox. Tom recommends a Creative Roar model, and Rob recommends a JBL Charge 3. Michael would also like adjustable speaker stands for his Surrounds, so we recommend the Quest Telescopic TM100B or Dayton Audio SS-SAT stands. Lastly, we discuss speaker wire gauge for longer runs.

John M. asks about the light output capabilities of the Epson 5040UB HDR10 projector and just how many nits we’re actually aiming for with HDR projection. Matt G. wants to know if his Xbox One would be a better Blu-ray player than his standalone Sony player, and he also gets some of our suggestions for games that aren’t shooters, sports, or racing. “McMansion” Kris solved a crazy Denon Receiver troubleshooting problem by replacing it with a Marantz model, but we try to speculate about what might have caused his issues. And Moanis asks what he should choose if neutral gray wall paint is vetoed by the aesthetics committee.

John W. wants to include his 2-channel integrated amp in his system, so we suggest the connection path he should use. We also talk about cleaning tweeters, where an ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure. Jon wants a slim Center speaker to either match his Klipsch Icon Towers or “force” him into upgrading all three Fronts. We suggest HSU Research, Revel On-Walls, GoldenEar SuperSats, and Ascend Acoustics HTM-200SE. We also lament the discontinuation of HSU’s STF-2 subwoofer, but still recommend the HSU VTF-1 MK3 as a good match for Jon’s Klipsch subwoofer. We also talk a bit about bi-amping and up-firing Atmos-enabled speakers. And Josh S. wants to incorporate a subwoofer into one room of his whole house audio setup. We suggest using the built-in crossover capabilities of an SVS Plus Series or SVS Ultra Series subwoofer, or using a MiniDSP 2×4.

Rodney gets us to examine his theater plans. We go over speaker and subwoofer placement and options, and recommend Sonance or RBH Sound for in-ceiling speakers. Greg wants to know if a more powerful amplifier is worth it, and we can’t help but suggest that he opt for the KEF in-wall speakers that match his existing KEF Towers and Center. And Steve W. wants to know if it’s possible to put artwork on the back of a projection screen.

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