Rob has watched all the 2025 Oscars Best Picture nominees, and now he ranks them. Sony resumes projector sales in Europe. TCL officially releases the QM8K Series of quantum dot, mini-LED TVs with new WHVA LCD panels.

Pictures shown in this episode: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjCgBP7

00:00:00 – Intro

Personal updates on the eve of Rob lining up to buy a Switch 2.

00:17:27 – What We Watched

Rob watched Emilia Pérez, and with that, he’s seen all 10 of the 2025 Oscars Best Picture nominees. So he has a little fun ranking them this week.

00:37:54 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are our 130 Patreon Patrons, including Nelson.

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Mario, Ian, Nelson, and Henry. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:43:44 – News: Sony Resumes Projector Sales in Europe

Amendments to import regulations now allow Sony to sell Home Cinema projectors in Europe again: https://tinyurl.com/yh4dw3vp

00:45:20 – News: TCL Launches QM8K TVs

We knew they’d be coming, but now the TCL QM8K Series TVs have officially been released: https://tinyurl.com/7zpnarwv

Comments:

00:51:40 – Comment: Karl – K Scape Owners’ Forum

If you’re looking for used Kaleidescape players, this is the place to go: https://www.kscapeowners.com/XF/

00:53:14 – Comment: Infinite Gary – A Little Bit Dolby

Gary does have a single-seat, dedicated home theater, so maybe Dolby’s diagrams make sense for him.

– https://avgadgets.com/everything-wrong-with-dolby-speaker-layout-diagrams/

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The new Marantz AV 20 Pre-Pro was definitely going to support Dirac ART. And now we have good news regarding other Denon & Marantz models. Aperion expanded their Theatrus Series speaker lineup with new Slim Stack models. Tom bought movie tickets!

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

00:00:00 – Intro

Rob’s still going to line up for a Switch 2, but he scored a pre-order on a low stock Switch 2 accessory! And Tom has updates about his house.

00:19:22 – What We Watched

Tom bought movie tickets! Rob started The Studio, and watched I’m Still Here.

00:40:48 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are Ray for his PayPal donation, plus our 132 Patreon Patrons, as well as Bertrand for sending in a movie code for us to test for him.

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Joe, Jefferson, Bertrand, and John. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:45:46 – News: More Denon & Marantz Getting Dirac ART

The full list of Receiver & Pre-Pro models that will support Dirac ART via a future firmware update has been revealed: https://youtu.be/WFCFqtU8DA0

00:48:53 – Aperion Theatrus Slim Stack Speakers

If you’d prefer your on-wall or in-wall Aperion Theatrus speakers to be tall rather than square-shaped, the new Slim Stack versions are for you: https://tinyurl.com/ykedhkrk

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Warner Bros. Discovery will rebrand Max back to HBO Max this summer. Kaleidescape Strato E is a standalone player that slots right between the Strato M and Strato V. Marantz AMP 20 is a 12-channel, Class-D amplifier, while the AV 20 is a 13.4-channel Pre-Pro that will get Dirac Live ART as an optional, paid upgrade via a future firmware update.

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

00:00:00 – Intro

Rob’s lining up for a Switch 2. Tom’s way off on a tangent.

00:16:21 – What We Watched

No movies watched this week. Rob’s been watching the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs, and he finished the final season of Mythic Quest.

00:29:55 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are Brandon for his PayPal donation, plus our 132 Patreon Patrons, as well as both Infinite Gary and Greg for sending in Movies Anywhere codes for Tom to test out.

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Ilango, Mike, Manuel, Sebastian, Kevin, Greg, and Ray. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:33:11 – News: Max Renamed HBO Max

Yup. Warner Bros. Discovery is going back to the HBO Max name for their streaming service: https://tinyurl.com/yadvvkw7

00:39:29 – News: Kaleidescape Strato E

It’s the Strato M, but it can do 4K, for a price smack dab in between the Strato M and Strato V: https://tinyurl.com/2phup2ba

00:45:20 – News: Marantz AV 20 & AMP 20

Take the Denon AVR-A10H and make it into a Pre-Pro and you’ve got the Marantz AV 20. 13.4-channel processing. But it’s also the first Denon or Marantz to officially announce Dirac Live ART support (coming via a future firmware update, and you’ll have to pay extra for it). AMP 20 is a 12-channel, Class-D amplifier: https://tinyurl.com/bdefmfev

Comments:

00:51:33 – Comment: Mike – Shop With an Expert

Best Buy’s website has a Live Chat option that might be able to price match and give you a discount. Just ask!

00:54:13 – Comment: Sebastian – Pioneer LX505 Success

We mixed up which speakers he has, but the global crossover still worked out.

00:55:48 – Comment: Daniel – Android TV Flexibility

He’s a fan of being able to side-load and use 3rd party launchers.

00:58:42 – Comment: Gurinder – Inside that Resort Theatre

After last week’s tease, Gurinder got the code to get inside. Can’t say we’re impressed.

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Harman – A Samsung Company is buying Masimo Consumer (aka Sound United). Emotiva has launched their Pre-Pro Trade-in program earlier than expected, and there’s an option to retrofit upgrade. Panasonic unveiled their 2025 OLED TV lineup. Sonos has ended the IKEA Symfonisk Series. And Rob has a sad.

Pictures shown in this episode: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjCe6FN

00:00:00 – Intro

Tom’s son is ok. And Nintendo failed Rob.

00:10:53 – What We Watched

Tom is watching Reacher. Rob watched The Brutalist.

00:26:23 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are Eli, Larry, and Tim, plus our 131 Patreon Patrons, as well as Andrew for trying to alert Rob when Walmart Canada briefly had more Switch 2 pre-orders available.

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Tom, Infinite Gary, Larry, Sebastian, Henry, Sasi and Tim. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:30:56 – News: Harman Buys Sound United

Harman – A Samsung Company has agreed to buy Masimo Consumer: https://tinyurl.com/jkxmkwjh

00:35:01 – News: Emotiva Trade-ins & Upgrades

If you have an XMC-2, RMC-1L, or RMC-1, you can now trade it in – or retrofit upgrade it – to an XMC-2+ or RMC-1+: https://tinyurl.com/yee5ubv4

00:40:23 – News: Panasonic 2025 OLED Lineup

Only the Z95B is coming to North America. But elsewhere, there will also be Z90B and Z80B models: https://youtu.be/QIN-wMIWX1E

00:44:49 – News: Sonos Ends IKEA Symfonisk

The partnership between Sonos and IKEA has ended: https://tinyurl.com/bp76ej3u

Comments:

00:45:56 – Comment: Gurinder – WiFi Clue Leads to Resort Theatre

No one said the resort he visited had a dedicated Theatre, but their WiFi revealed its existence.

QUESTIONS:

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The big news about Masimo selling Sound United to Harman dropped after we recorded. So we’ll cover that next week! This week, we’ve got Xbox price hikes. And Fluance Reference Ri Series self-powered speakers.

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

00:00:00 – Intro

Tom’s laptop was successfully repaired, so he’s back in video form.

00:17:35 – What We Watched

Rob watched A Complete Unknown.

00:30:38 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are Jefferson for his PayPal donation, plus our 131 Patreon Patrons, as well as Vince for offering to help Rob secure a 3rd Switch 2 pre-order, and John & Carl for informing us about more Skype alternatives.

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Jefferson, Henry, Ryan, Vince, and Jack. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:36:19 – News: Xbox Price Hikes

Prices on Xbox hardware and games have gone up everywhere in the world, but especially in the USA: https://tinyurl.com/yukmfw62 ; Canada’s new prices: https://tinyurl.com/ysrh5dr4

00:42:17 – News: Fluance Reference Ri Series Speakers

New self-powered speaker models with AMT tweeters and HDMI-ARC input: https://tinyurl.com/2nmz6pj7

– https://avgadgets.com/kef-ls60-wireless-tower-speakers/

Comments:

00:47:17 – Comment: Infinite Gary – Strato M Margin

Don’t expect any discounts on the Kaleidescape Strato M.

00:48:41 – Comments: Karl – JVC B-Stock at AV Science

One of our favorite projector retailers has B-Stock JVC projectors at good prices.

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