It’s our 500th Episode Celebration! An event so big, we spread it across two nights. So welcome to Part 1!

Our Listeners of the Week are Shawn, William, Jeff, Jay, Luke, and Christian for their generous donations, and also Justin B. for letting Emotiva know his Airmotiv B1 speaker purchase was because of AV Rant, as well as a huge thank you to Ash for creating our custom 500th Episode artwork! We love it.

To celebrate this landmark event, AV Rant Podcast is partnering up with SVS for our first big giveaway! Entry for the giveaway will begin in September, 2016. So don’t worry, you haven’t missed anything yet. We will be giving out full details in the coming weeks. And for those of you who enjoy the YouTube version of AV Rant Podcast, Google moving Hangouts to YouTube Live will mean some format changes in the weeks ahead.

In the news, Antoine, Philip B., Justin B., and Steve O. were all amused by the story of audiophiles in Japan having personal utility poles installed for “cleaner” electricity. The HDHomeRun DVR app for Xbox One is now available. And Ray Coronado, Jonathan F., and Nathan D. were all just as surprised as the rest of us when Kaleidescape went out of business.

Our anonymous optical HDMI cable user found success using MyCableMart Fiber Optic HDMI products, and also found the Cables2Go HDMI Voltage Inserter for adding electrical power to weak or non-powered HDMI ports. Nathan D. shared Projector Reviews’ CEDIA and IFA predictions. John B. wants to add Salamander Designs AV Furniture to our recommended list. Michael R. followed Rob’s PLEX HTPC HD Audio Tutorial, and it worked! Ariel G. corrected us that Yamaha AV Receivers do show Atmos and DTS:X on their front panel displays. Bob confirmed that the Lepai LP7498E Class D Amplifier runs warm and uses >9 Watts while idle. And Jeff G. brought up Oppo Blu-ray players’ ability to reposition subtitles.

Heath B. asks how to calculate room volume when a false wall is involved, and we discuss his options for installing speakers around a water softener and sprinkler system. Chad T. asks about electrical conduit, soundproofing advice, and silent HVAC including the “dead vent” system. Nathan W. gets our ideas on why his air conditioning isn’t more effective. And Mike M. needs speaker stands with wire management, so we recommend Sanus speaker stands and VideoSecu Side Clamping stands for Surround speakers.

Michael I. asks us to clarify Audyssey Dynamic EQ Reference Level Offset, and Yamaha Senior Vice President, Tom Sumner’s remarks about AV Receiver brands having a “signature sound”. Matt G. wonders what “music optimizer” or “compressed music enhancer” programs actually do, and why we don’t consider curtains to be adequate room treatments. And Bill P. has a wide open space with an entertainment shelving unit that we think will nicely accommodate some Ascend Acoustics CMT-340SE or KEF Q or R Series speakers.

Karl R. noticed that Dolby Cinemas include ceiling-mounted subwoofers, and he wants to know if that would be best at home, as well. Jordan B. wants to avoid “TV envy”, so we compare his Panasonic VT60 plasma to the current Vizio P Series and an older 1080p LG OLED. And P.J. gets our honest advice about which subwoofers we think he should buy.

Cory W. seems to be right on the border of maximum output capabilities with all of his gear, but we don’t actually think he needs to replace anything. We discuss his B&W speakers, the lamp mode of his Sony VPL-HW55ES projector, and getting Dolby Atmos and DTS:X soundtracks to play on Blu-ray discs. Morgan’s Center and Front Height speakers occasionally cut out. We’re 99% certain it’s a speaker wire problem. If he needs new wire and terminations, we suggest Belden from Parts-Express, and Sewell Deadbolt, or Harpoon Locking Banana Plugs.

Rohan G. found some hilariously incomplete frequency response graphs for his Dali subwoofer, and he gets Rob to amend some previous advice about how to approach his extremely reflective room. Timothy K. discovered that .wtv files no longer play using PLEX. We point him to The Digital Media Zone and HandBraker transcoder as his best resources. And Brett B. asks about Xbox One Blu-ray audio output settings, and what we reach for first when we demo our own systems.

Thanks for listening. Now, don't forget to:

• Check out the AV Rant YouTube channel to watch our show videos.
• Download Tom’s FREE superhero-themed ebook Bob Moore: No Hero.
• If you like it, you can purchase the two full-length follow-ups -  Bob Moore: Desperate Times and Bob Moore: Hostile Territory.
• Check out AVGadgets.com where Tom is the new Editor-in-Chief!
• Download Tom's NEWEST book, Touch of Pain from Amazon now!

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