Tom is trying out another new mic again. How’s this one? Netflix House locations will open in malls next year. Tidal drops MQA and commits to Atmos. Redbox misses an important debt payment. And The Last Screenwriter – a film written by AI – has its theatrical premiere cancelled.

Pictures shown in this episode: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjBwQ8p

00:00:00 – Intro

Tom tries out another new microphone this week: https://cherryxtrfy.com/microphones/ngale-r/

Here’s the boom arm he likes: https://cherryxtrfy.com/mic-accessories/ngale-boom-arm/

And you can find his son’s Twitch channel here: https://www.twitch.tv/nomasjr

00:19:08 – What We Watched

Rob congratulates the Florida Panthers for winning the NHL Stanley Cup, and watched Creed III. Tom’s really gotten into watching weightlifting.

00:39:46 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are our 134 Patreon Patrons.

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Mohsen, Rob, Mike P, Dazz, and Mike H. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:41:10 – News: Netflix House

Netflix will take over two former department store locations to offer experiences, food, and merchandise, but not theaters: https://tinyurl.com/28h5yubz

00:45:36 – News: Tidal Drops MQA

Tidal will stick with Hi-Res FLAC and Dolby Atmos while dropping less popular formats: https://tinyurl.com/mr3vhkfa

– https://avgadgets.com/what-is-mqa-and-should-you-care/

– https://avgadgets.com/the-deep-state-squashes-mqa/

00:51:37 – News: Redbox Debt Woes

Debts have ballooned, lawsuits have been lost, and installments haven’t been paid. Seems bad: https://tinyurl.com/2bm4y9df

00:55:12 – News: The Last Screenwriter Premiere Cancelled

The first feature film written entirely by ChatGPT won’t debut in theaters after all: https://tinyurl.com/y3nrsr7p

QUESTIONS:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Yes, Tom is back to using his old mic! Thanks for all the feedback. Isn’t it nice when we can all universally agree on something? News-wise, the Alamo Drafthouse chain of theaters has been purchased by Sony Pictures Entertainment for an undisclosed amount.

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

00:00:00 – Intro

What was up with Tom’s mic last week? We discuss. And shout outs to: Jonathan, Mark, Joe James, Nelson, Yanick, Mario, and Sammy, plus many others on YouTube and elsewhere for all the feedback!

00:17:40 – What We Watched

Rob watched Anatomy of a Fall. Tom watched Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. And we both watched the 3rd episode of The Acolyte.

00:43:51 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are Tyler and Nelson for their PayPal donations, plus our 134 Patreon Patrons, including James, as well as Infinite Gary for sending Tom a movie code.

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

In the news:

00:47:35 – News: Alamo Drafthouse Sold to Sony Pictures

Sony Pictures Entertainment will wholly own the Alamo Drafthouse theater chain, with intentions to keep most of it the same, including Fantastic Fest, and making it a major part of their new Experiences division: https://tinyurl.com/yfhdv7pa

Comments:

00:56:58 – Comment: Gurinder – When a Speaker’s Not Attached

Can a speaker be disconnected without anyone noticing?

QUESTIONS:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Tom is using a new mic. We welcome your feedback. Neither of us is impressed :p ELAC announced new Debut 3.0 Series speakers. Microsoft announced “new” Xbox Series X/S consoles. And TCL will probably make 130-inch TVs, with up to 148-inches being possible if they want to.

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

00:00:00 – Intro

It wasn’t our plan, but Apple forced a rant out of Rob in particular.

00:15:35 – What We Watched

Rob watched The First Omen. Tom watched Big, finished X-Men ’97, and started watching cricket. We both watched Eps 1 & 2 of The Acolyte.

00:38:53 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are Steve for his PayPal donation, plus our 135 Patreon Patrons, as well as Vince for sending Lee a movie code, and Sasi for giving Tom permission to post his Subwoofer Selection Spreadsheet Tool on https://avgadgets.com/

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Ilango, Vince, Sasi, Steve, John, and Dazz. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:42:37 – News: ELAC Debut 3.0 Speakers

Via Dazz – The first ELAC Debut Series without Andrew Jones gets new cabinets & drivers and a small price increase: https://elac.com/debut3-welcome/

00:49:37 – News: “New” Xbox Series X/S Consoles

A white Series X with no disc drive. A white Series S with more storage. And a Galaxy Black Series X with more storage and a dumb price. But zero performance improvements: https://tinyurl.com/yx5cc8jm

00:52:10 – News: Even Bigger TCL TVs?

130-inch LCD panels seem likely. And they could go as large as 148-inches if they want to: https://tinyurl.com/scd26tew

Comments:

00:55:08 – Comment: Sasi – Subwoofer Selection Tool

Sasi incorporated our suggestions, and would welcome AVRant Listener feedback!

– Sub Selection Spreadsheet Tool v.0.3: https://tinyurl.com/m283eype

00:55:27 – Comment: Sasi – miniDSP Flex

It costs more than the miniDSP 2×4 HD, but if you want balanced connections and other options, the Flex might be the way to go: https://tinyurl.com/36pp4pw2

00:57:47 – Comment: Andrew – Atlona HDBaseT

A way to send both HDMI and network signals over a single ethernet cable: https://tinyurl.com/4mu53cnc

00:59:21 – Comment: Infinite Gary – 100 Nit G3 OLED Achieved

Gary’s professional calibrator found the perfect OLED Light setting for him.

QUESTIONS:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Sony’s PlayStation VR2 is getting a PC adapter. MIT researchers created a sound-suppressing fabric. Measurements of acoustically transparent fabrics. A spreadsheet tool for getting subwoofer recommendations. And our Godzilla Minus One reviews!

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

00:00:00 – Intro

Our minor mishaps while recording our previous episode were clearly the only significant event last week.

00:07:13 – What We Watched

Rob watched The Big Short. Tom finished his The Good Place rewatch. And we both saw Godzilla Minus One.

00:32:35 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are our 135 Patreon Patrons.

We also appreciate the notes of gratitude for keeping the podcast going from: Mike, Sasi, Dazz, and Adam. Thank you to everyone for continuing to listen!

In the news:

00:33:58 – News: PS VR2 PC Adapter

Sony announced a PC Adapter for the PS VR2 headset & Sense controllers coming Aug 7 for $60: https://tinyurl.com/3hxcrn6c

00:38:38 – News: MIT Sound Curtain

A piezoelectric fabric that can reduce sound wave transmission. But the headlines and images are a bit misleading: https://avgadgets.com/beyond-the-clickbait-the-mit-sound-curtain/

Comments:

00:46:55 – Comment: Nathan – AT Fabric Measurements

Nathan compiled a forum thread with info about absorption panels, including measurements of popular DIY acoustically transparent fabrics: https://tinyurl.com/2x37yhk3

– Mellotone Premium Grill Cloth: https://tinyurl.com/ymmknu44

QUESTIONS:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Sonos Ace Headphones fail to impress us. Comcast’s StreamSaver bundle gets a price and complicated rules to go ad-free. Apple TV 4K settings. And we have tech issues and a hard out this week!

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

00:00:00 – Intro

00:03:15 – What We Watched

Rob watched Evil (S.4, Ep.1), Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, and American Fiction. Tom watched Kaleidoscope on Netflix.

00:20:15 – Listeners of the Week

Our Listeners of the Week are our 134 Patreon Patrons, including Terry, as well as J.D. for sending a Movies Anywhere code to Tom to test out.

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

In the news:

00:22:41 – News: Sonos Ace Headphones

They’re just Bluetooth headphones. Expensive, ANC, Bluetooth headphones. Their one trick is being able to swap with a Sonos Arc SoundBar. But they don’t synchronize. We can’t understand the hype: https://tinyurl.com/bdcbktcn

00:36:21 – News: StreamSaver Bundle Price

Comcast StreamSaver bundle of Peacock, Netflix & Apple TV+ is available now for $15/month: https://tinyurl.com/3tt5wtfe

Comments:

00:40:44 – Comment: Andrew – Denon/Marantz EDID Control

If you access the web interface for custom installers, there have been HDMI & EDID controls available for years.

00:41:29 – Comment: Dan – Furious About Sonos App

Sonos is the worst it’s ever been after their latest app update.

QUESTIONS:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS