PS5 consoles get a slimmed down redesign with a modular disc drive. Best Buy is abandoning DVDs and Blu-rays. Microsoft officially owns Activision Blizzard now. And McIntosh’s $3,000 Graphic EQ majorly misses the mark.

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

00:00:00 – Intro

00:06:35 – What We Watched

Rob watched the start of the NHL Hockey season, continued Loki S.2, caught up on Star Trek: Lower Decks,and adored Pearl. Tom continued with Star Wars Rebels, did his best to enjoy Scary Stories To Tell in the Dark, and revisited Star Trek TOS.

00:22:58 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are Tyler for his PayPal donation, plus our 136 Patreon Patrons.

Thanks also to Kris for giving Tom permission to use his photos on https://avgadgets.com/

And we appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Dan, Kris, Mike, Luke, Stan, Greg, Julian, Michael, and Ilango. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:27:48 – News: PS5 Slim

Sony has redesigned their PS5 consoles to be smaller with a modular disc drive: https://tinyurl.com/44dhrtbn

00:32:02 – News: Best Buy Ditches DVDs

No more DVDs or Blu-rays, even online: https://tinyurl.com/2nv69hd4

00:39:07 – News: Xbox Owns Activision Blizzard

More than 20 months of legal battles and almost $69 billion finally results in Microsoft’s acquisition: https://tinyurl.com/3xyv4zfz

Comments:

00:45:35 – Comment: Infinite Gary – Cheap Sony Headphones

MDR-ZX110, which we’ve actually mentioned before: https://tinyurl.com/3habf47t

00:47:26 – Comment: Greg – WiiM Pro AirPlay 2 Transmitter

WiiM Pro has a trick up its sleeve: https://tinyurl.com/mrxpjf53

00:48:51 – Comment: Nathan – How To Build a False Wall

Link to instructions from an AVS Forum member: https://tinyurl.com/4cbjfucw

00:50:02 – Comment: Julian – Calvin, Hobbes & Dual HDMI

We reminded him of a comic strip, and splitting audio & video signals worked, but with a drawback.

00:52:41 – Comment: Ryan – Marantz Customer Service

A little slow, but ultimately satisfying.

QUESTIONS:

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The WGA ratified their new 3-year contract. Sony Bravia Core rebrands to Sony Pictures Core and comes to PlayStation, but without Pure Stream. Onkyo, Integra & Pioneer Elite flagship AVRs get optional Dirac Live Bass Control. And Tom reviews a pair of affordable, ribbon headphones.

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

00:00:00 – Intro

00:03:58 – Sineaptic SE-1 Ribbon Wireless Headphones Review

Tom has several criticisms, but the sound quality ain’t one of ’em, nor is the price: https://avgadgets.com/sineaptic-se-1-wireless-ribbon-headphones-the-audiophile-headphones-you-can-afford/

00:18:26 – What We Watched

Rob finished Ahsoka, started Loki S.2, and watched The Voyeurs. Tom continued Star Wars Rebels.

00:28:33 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are our 135 Patreon Patrons, as well as Gurinder for sending Tom a movie code.

Thanks also to J. Karl for giving Tom permission to use his photos on https://avgadgets.com/

And we appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Karl, Joe, John, Julian, J. Karl, and Ilango. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:31:00 – News: WGA Ratify New Contract

The Writers Strike is officially over! https://tinyurl.com/y5mk4a5h

00:36:23 – News: Sony Pictures Core on PlayStation

Bravia Core is rebranded as Sony Pictures Core and comes to PS4 & PS5: https://tinyurl.com/mr24y8c6

But without Pure Stream: https://tinyurl.com/2wtz88vs

00:39:26 – News: Onkyo Gets Dirac Live Bass Control

Only the flagship Onkyo, Integra & Pioneer Elite AVRs get it. But you can now pay extra to add Dirac Live Bass Control: https://tinyurl.com/29tbrunb

Comments:

00:41:50 – Comment: Kris – Freestanding Projection Screen

Tom loves the suggestion to use closet support poles.

00:45:04 – Comment: Joe – Webinar with Anthony Grimani

And extended webinar covering network-based audio, RP-22, new approaches to bass, and more: https://youtu.be/3B9jbLgWBsM?

– direct link to RP-22: https://cedia.net/advocacy/rp22

QUESTIONS:

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Zappiti is shutting down for good. Meta Quest 3 Mixed Reality Headset is almost here and will be getting Xbox Cloud Gaming this year. Value Electronics crowned their new King of 4K TVs for 2023.

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

00:00:00 – Intro

00:06:07 – What We Watched

NHL preseason for Rob, as well as X, and No One Will Save You. Tom continued Star Wars Rebels, and started Welcome to Wrexham.

00:14:49 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are Paul for his PayPal donation, plus our 135 Patreon Patrons, including Aras.

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Ryan, Dave, Kris, Jim, Toke, Rob, Jason, and Aras. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:20:58 – News: Zappiti Shuts Down

Zappiti is no more, and support for the future looks questionable: https://tinyurl.com/y7ad3c8x

00:25:59 – News: Meta Quest 3 Getting Xbox Cloud Gaming

Meta Quest 3 Mixed Reality Headset will be available Oct 10, and is getting Xbox Cloud Gaming this year: https://tinyurl.com/3rextk2e

00:27:46 – News: 2023 King of 4K TVs

Value Electronics held their annual TV shootout, and Sony’s QD-OLED won again: https://tinyurl.com/4j4hseyj

– https://avgadgets.com/8k-displays-are-stupid/

Comments:

00:31:08 – Comment: Scott – Netflix Webpage Settings

Getting 5.1 audio to play involved digging into Profile and Parental Controls only found on Netflix webpage.

00:33:16 – Comment: Toke – Use Older Dirac Version with NAD

Only mentioned in Dirac’s Version Archives.

00:34:23 – Comment: Rob – Audeze Maxwell Impressions

A little pricey but worth it.

QUESTIONS:

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MQA Ltd has been bought by the parent company of NAD, PSB & Bluesound. Amazon Prime Video will start inserting ads unless you pay extra. LG is ditching built-in ATSC 3.0 Nextgen TV tuners. And we make our cost-no-object audio & video gear picks.

Pictures shown in this episode: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjAWd8a

00:00:00 – Intro

00:12:12 – What We Watched

Rob finished Star Wars Rebels, and caught up with Ahsoka (aka Rebels S.5) so far. Tom is also watching Rebels.

00:21:36 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are our 134 Patreon Patrons, as well as Rohan for giving Tom permission to use his photos on https://avgadgets.com/

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Rohan, Mark, and Dan. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:27:51 – News: MQA Bought by NAD/PSB

Lenbrook Crop, parent company of NAD, PSB & Bluesound, has purchased MQA Ltd: https://tinyurl.com/44y7akp6

00:30:40 – News: Amazon Prime Video Getting Ads

Prime Video will start interrupting shows and movies with ads in 2024 unless you pay extra: https://tinyurl.com/y9c8x2tt

00:34:07 – News: LG Ditches Nextgen TV Tuners

None of LG’s TVs will have built-in ATSC 3.0 tuners in 2024: https://tinyurl.com/dxruy32r

Comments:

00:38:23 – Comment: Mark – Silence Phone in Car

A suggestion that silencing your phone when it’s connected to your car’s Bluetooth might prevent unwanted volume changes.

QUESTIONS:

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Tom is back! Our thanks to Joe for guest co-hosting last week. PS5’s latest update puts Tempest 3D Audio in a Dolby Atmos container. Denon announced their X6800H Receiver. AVA Cinema Remote could be a (more expensive) Harmony replacement, if a lawsuit doesn’t kill it. And leaks reveal an Xbox Series X refresh, and plans for a new console in 2028.

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

00:00:00 – Intro

00:06:19 – What We Watched

Rob finished S.3 of Star Wars Rebels, Pixar’s Elemental, the Apple Movies release of Barbie, and has been listening to the Strike Force Five Podcast.

Tom also started Star Wars Rebels, and is watching La Vuelta.

00:27:45 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are Ty for making an automatic monthly donation on PayPal, plus our 133 Patreon Patrons, including Bertrand.

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude from: Ty, Dazz, Jared, James, and Rohan. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:31:20 – News: Dolby Atmos on PS5

Via Mark – Sony’s Tempest 3D Audio gets put into an Atmos container, and everything comes out as Atmos now: https://tinyurl.com/yc3f3r7z

00:33:15 – News: Denon X6800H AVR

13-ch processing, 11 amps built-in, HDMI 2.1 switching: https://avgadgets.com/denon-avr-x6800h-av-receiver-first-look/

00:35:36 – News: AVA Cinema Remote

Along with the AVA Nano Brain hub, it looks promising as a (more expensive) Harmony replacement, if it survives a lawsuit: https://tinyurl.com/bddb6e6h

00:39:35 – News: Xbox Console Leaks

Series S “Ellewood”, Series X “Brooklin”, and “Sebile” controller refreshes in 2024: https://tinyurl.com/mtkhx7e7

New hybrid next gen console in 2028: https://tinyurl.com/2rkf922p

CORRECTIONS:

00:43:53 – Correction: Roger – Denon X1800H Has Pre-Outs

Not only does the North American version have Zone 2, it also gains Front L/R pre-outs.

00:45:56 – Correction: Herb & Sasi – RP22 Background Noise Level

Rob & Joe overlooked the use of NCB rather than dBA when measuring ambient noise floor levels.

Comments:

00:48:25 – Comment: James – Denon ECO Mode & Video Processing

Auto ECO Mode is the real deal, but more heat comes from Video Conversion being on.

REVIEW Revisit:

00:49:47 – Soundcore Motion X600 Review Update

Tom is more impressed than he was initially: https://avgadgets.com/soundcore-motion-x600-portable-speaker-review/

QUESTIONS:

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