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The Rugged Sonos Roam Portable

MUSIC IN MOTION

Ten True Wireless Earbuds Tested TESTED

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• SMART CINEMA: LG HU810PW 4K Laser DLP Projector Where Technology Becomes Entertainment™

soundandvision.com

JUNE /JULY 2021

SINGULAR SPEAKERS POLK AUDIO RESERVE AND SONUS FABER LUMINA SURROUND SYSTEMS KEF LS50 WIRELESS II POWERED MONITORS

BUDGET BASS

SVS SB-1000 AND PB-1000 PRO SUBWOOFERS $6.99 US $7.99 CANADA

Bookshelf Reference X The BRX Lives Up To Its Name The BRX defines state-of-the-art performance for a bookshelf design, effortlessly producing lifelike imaging, superb transparency, natural detail, and room-filling bass.

In his in-depth review of the GoldenEar BRX, Stereophile’s John Atkinson was perhaps most impressed by the BRX’s ability to produce naturally detailed, lifelike, and immersive sound that belies the speakers’ room-friendly proportions.

“Even placed farther out in the room than I suspect is optimal, the GoldenEar BRXes sounded surprisingly full-bodied for a relatively small loudspeaker.”

TOP P IC 2020 K

He then recounted a particularly telling conversation with acclaimed musician and engineer, David Chesky: “Chesky told me that Periphery was recorded with a ribbon microphone and a pair of omnis in a giant church. ‘Your room should open up to infinity when you play this back,’ he promised. With the GoldenEar BRXes driven by the Parasound amplifiers, it did!”

BRX $1,598/pair

New Indulgences for the Rational Hedonist Over the last decade, AudioQuest’s Indulgence Series of HDMI cables have earned their dominant place in the HDMI sphere. AudioQuest applied superior design and superior materials in order to bring the A/V enthusiast a superior experience.

will offer better sound and will enable more features than their previous models.

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AQ’s entry models Pearl 48 and Forest 48 were the first HDMI 2.1 cables to receive HDMI Licensing’s Ultra High Speed certification; now, all models are certified. HDMI only certifies a bare minimum, though of course no AudioQuest cable is only a “bare minimum.”

The 48Gbps necessary for HDMI’s new and future features is made possible by 4 A/V channels of 12G each.

VOLUME 86 NUMBER 4

26

features

S&V INTERVIEW: ROBBIE ROBERTSON

Mike Me ler discusses the 50th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition box set releases of The Band and Stage Fright with The Band’s chief songwriter and ace guitarist Robbie Robertson.

30

A GARDEN OASIS IN THE HEART OF PITTSBURGH

A custom-installed outdoor A/V system in this renovated Pi sburgh row house sets the mood for parties, sports, or just chilling out and enjoying a City of Bridges sunset.

32

A HOME THEATER DREAM COME TRUE

This SoCal installation pays homage to the owner’s beloved Raiders while staying true to time-honored principles of quality audio and video.

On the Cover Clockwise from top: Bose QuietComfort earbuds, Sonus faber Lumina III tower And CI center speakers, KEF LS50 Wireless II powered speaker (back), SVS SB-1000 Pro subwoofer, Polk Audio Reserve R300 center speaker, KEF LS50 Wireless II powered speaker (front), LG HU810PW 4K laser DLP projector.

4 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

The Band photo: Ellio Landy / www.ellio landy.com

contents

The LARGEST online library of home theater, home audio & turntable videos, reviews, buying guides & more!

Shop online at AudioAdvice.com Raleigh & Charlotte, NC Showrooms • 888-899-8776

72

VOLUME 86 NO. 4

AL STEWART – YEAR OF THE CAT: 45TH ANNIVERSARY DELUXE EDITION Created in collaboration with uber-producer/engineer Alan Parsons, Al Stewart’s 1976 chart-topper gets a thoughtful presentation in this box set combining a stereo remaster of the original with live performances plus a Parsons DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix on DVD.

departments 8 TRACK ONE Back to basics.

12 LETTERS The pleasures of Kaleidescape.

A real IMAX Certified TV. The truth about Remaster Class.

The affordability (opinion) gap.

14 WIDE ANGLE Quick Takes: Sonos Roam portable wireless speaker, Cleer Crescent wireless smart speaker.

columns 18 SIGNALS Fond memories of the first Lexus and its carefully tuned Nakamichi sound system.

20 STREAM ON

contents

test reports

38 FACE-OFF: NOISE-CANCELING TRUE WIRELESS EARBUDS

46 LG HU810PW 4K LASER DLP PROJECTOR

50 POLK AUDIO RESERVE SURROUND SPEAKER SYSTEM

54 SONUS FABER LUMINA SURROUND SPEAKER SYSTEM

60 KEF LS50 WIRELESS II POWERED SPEAKERS

64 SVS SB-1000 PRO AND PB-1000 PRO SUBWOOFERS 6 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

The Rock ’n’ Roll Fantasy Camp streams its star-studded masterclass sessions direct to fans.

22 THE CONNECTED LIFE How home automation systems help by gathering all your control apps under one umbrella.

24 Q&A Configuring Tidal music streaming with an ear to High-Res Audio.

68 ENTERTAINMENT Soul; News of the World; Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Ultimate Edition (Remastered); Gattaca; Godzilla; Secrets & Lies; Zappa documentary.

74 REMASTER CLASS Elton John: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road

RISE ABOVE CINEMA 1200 SOUND BAR + 12” WIRELESS SUBWOOFER AND WIRELESS SURROUNDS

HORN-LOADED DYNAMIC SOUND

WIRELESS MULTI-ROOM STREAMING

HIGH-QUALITY WOOD MATERIAL

BUILT-IN UP-FIRING SPEAKERS

LARGE, IMPACTFUL WIRELESS SUBWOOFER

L E A R N M O R E AT AU D I OA D V I C E . C O M

©2021 Klipsch Group, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Voxx International Corporation. Klipsch is a trademark of Klipsch Group, Inc., registered in the USA and other countries. Manufactured under license from Dolby Laboratories. Dolby, Dolby Atmos, and the double-D symbol are registered trademarks of Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation.

On The Web Log on to soundandvision.com and sign up for our free monthly enewsle er.

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YES, IT HAD TO BE DONE. Consider it a form of spring cleaning. The “it” is in this case is a streaming service—HBO Max to be specific—that I decided to drop. My video streaming plate had become over-filled during the pandemic as I spent much of my free time at home, and now that I was vaxxed up and ready to re-engage (as much as possible) with the world, I made the decision to dump at least one service. It’s not that I wanted to lose it—in the final days of my active subscription, I of course happened upon a new original series, Mare of Easttown, that was right up my alley— but something had to give, and it was going to be HBO Max. Another factor that might, at least unconsciously, have shaped my decision was the knowledge that Denis Villeneuve’s Dune

reboot would soon be available to view in theaters. My February/ March 2021 Track One detailed WarnerMedia’s decision to run its full 2021 movie lineup on HBO Max, with titles available to stream on the service the same day as their theatrical release. It also covered the furious response that decision elicited from film directors, Villeneuve included, who felt their work was being sabotaged.

In this case, I’m with the directors: For viewing a sci-fi epic like Dune, I choose IMAX over HBO Max. With outdoor activities resuming as the Northeast pulls out of its deep frost, I’m sure I won’t lament having fewer video streaming subscriptions to choose from. In fact, one of my post-vax, late-pandemic (mid-pandemic?) resolutions is to be even more selective than usual about what I spend my time watching. A helpful tool I’ve discovered on this journey is the Le erboxd website (le erboxd.com) and app. What is Le erboxd? From the site’s About page: Le erboxd is a global social network for grass-

roots film discussion and discovery.

Use it as a diary to record and share your opinion about films as you watch them, or just to keep track of films you’ve seen in the past.

So far, I haven’t jumped in on the discussion part—Le erboxd lets you post reviews of films, as well as comment on reviews—but I’ve used the site plenty for discovery and to catalogue my recent movieviewing activity, as well as line up films I plan to watch in the future.

There’s lots more to be said about Le erboxd, but I’d instead encourage you to check it out.

What I like most about the site is the focus and organization it lends to my movie-viewing activity. It also has a useful “Where to Watch” feature that provides an extensive list of streaming services offering a particular title, and you can filter by quality (4K, HD, SD), or by price if you’re looking to rent or buy.

More mindful viewing, less streaming-bloat—sounds like a good plan for moving forward a er a year spent mostly at home, o en in front of a screen.

KIND BUDS

compact, allowing for easy toting around and plugging in at the gym, when doing yardwork, or while walking around. The better models can be used with smartphone apps to tweak sound, customize on-bud controls, and in some cases test your hearing ability.

Lastly, because it’s a highly competitive market, wireless

earbuds are affordable—you get a lot of performance and features for your money. My own buds get almost daily use and at this point have crossed the line into becoming indispensable. I look forward to getting on an airplane and putting their noise-canceling capability to the test—someday soon, I hope. —AG

A summer issue of Sound & Vision means another installment of our annual True Wireless Noise-Canceling Earbuds face-off. (Check it out on page 38.) There are several reasons why I find this product category compelling. First, the earbuds are wireless—’nuff said. Second, they are highly 8 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

June/July 2021 Volume 86/Number 4 EDITOR: Al Griffin

The Founder Series of Premium Speakers

SENIOR EDITOR, TECHNICAL EDITOR: Tom Norton EDITOR-AT-LARGE: Bob Ankosko CONTRIBUTING TECHNICAL EDITORS: Kris Deering, Barb Gonzalez, Michael P. Hamilton, Howard Kneller, Daniel Kumin, Rob Sabin, John Sciacca, Michael Trei, David Vaughn CONTRIBUTORS: Michael Antonoff, Brandon A. DuHamel, Ma Hurwitz, Roger Kanno, Josef Krebs, Ken C. Pohlmann, Leslie Shapiro, Stewart Wolpin MUSIC EDITOR: Mike Me ler MOVIES EDITOR: Chris Chiarella TECHNICAL CONSULTANT Joel Silver, Imaging Science Foundation

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looked in the Nashville paper next day to see if the concert was reviewed and—nothing!

Anyway, thanks to Mike Me ler for the article, and please do more coverage of artists like Steven Wilson, Opeth, Anathema, Riverside, Transatlantic, etc.

Jim Ballard / Decatur, Al

letters The Pleasures of Kaleidescape I was very intrigued a er reading a review of the Kaleidescape Strato S movie player in the October/November 2020 issue of Sound & Vision magazine and ended up buying a unit. The Strato S can be installed without professional help, which saved me a lot of money. Even so, the player is not cheap. Here’s my problem: The Kaleidescape dashboard interface is stunning, especially when viewed on my LG 4K OLED TV (I also bought an LG Soundbar with Atmos, and of course surround sound speakers to complete the system).

I’m so smi en that I find myself staring at it for far longer than is necessary.

I’m also buying movies le and right just to see them appear on the dashboard. When I do get around to playing a movie, the picture looks amazing—definitely studio quality. Here’s my question: How can I curtail my movie-buying before my wife throws me out of the house? Oh, I forgot, one more thing: I’m addicted to the movie downloading process, which I can do on my iPhone. Just watching the yellow loading bar increase li le by li le makes me yearn for the old Napster days.

Ron Stevens / Hemet, CA

A Real IMAX Certified TV I was pleased as punch when HBO Max not only released Zack Snyder’s Justice League this year, but released it in its original, uncropped, 1.43:1 IMAX aspect ratio. (I hope a 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release of the same is also forthcoming). I was also happy to hear Warner Home Video announce a 4K disc release of the IMAX Remastered version of Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, with its IMAX-shot scenes also presented in an uncropped 1.43:1 aspect ratio. But there is one glaring issue when it comes to IMAX at home: no current 4K (or newer 8K) TVs are available with a 1.43:1 aspect ratio screen.

The “TV Trends of CES 2021” article in the April/May issue makes the case that there are all sorts of wonderful new TVs coming out this year. But even the 110-inch Samsung Wall TV you wrote about is in standard 16:9 format, so the only way to view Justice League (and the IMAX remastered Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice) is pillarboxed on a 16:9 screen. That’s not exactly a recreation of the IMAX experience, is it? Are there any plans for manufacturers to release TVs with 1.43:1 aspect ratio screens? Also, will any other IMAX-shot features be re-released uncropped?

Julian Parrilla Grajales / via email Good news: An Ultra HD Blu-ray release Zack Snyder’s Justice League has been announced. There was no firm U.S. release date as we went to press, but the disc could be available by the time you’re reading this.

12 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

In the meantime, check out our review of the Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice Ultra HD Blu-ray on page 69. As for the question of TVs with a 1.43:1 aspect ratio screen, there’s no news of that on the horizon, and to be honest we’d be surprised to hear it. TVs are designed for the mass market, and the 16:9 aspect ratio matches the bulk of video content available on broadcast, cable, satellite, and streaming sources. Having said that, the larger your TV, the be er the visual impact you’ll get from movies presented in their original IMAX aspect ratio, although those are few and far between on disc. Also, we’re not aware of any other planned future releases in that format.

The Genius of Steven Wilson I was “high on resolution” a er reading Mike Me ler’s “Steven Wilson is a Hi-Res Man of the People” feature in the April/May issue that covered Wilson’s latest album release, The Future Bites. I have been a fan of Steven Wilson and his earlier band Porcupine Tree for years and have waited for a U.S. magazine to recognize his genius. I saw him a few years ago in Nashville (drove by myself for two hours on a weeknight a er a full day of work on the coldest day of winter). Talking to other fans at the show, I learned they had come from all over the South and Midwest: a group from Atlanta and other groups from Louisville and Indianapolis. It was a great concert but appeared to be only half-full. I could not believe what appeared to be a weak turnout for the “Music City.” I also

The Truth About Remaster Class Imagine my dismay when I read Mike Me ler’s April/May Remaster Class column only to find that the 2014 release of The Who’s Quadrophenia on High Fidelity Pure Audio Blu-ray is basically unobtainium. I can’t seem to find it for purchase anywhere.

What a tease!

Tom Geery / via email We feel your frustration about not being able to find copies of releases detailed in Remaster Class (this is not the first le er of dismay we’ve received on the topic), but the purpose of that column is to track the evolution of a classic recording or movie through various media formats. We believe there’s value in presenting that history, even if readily available versions of the discs discussed can’t be obtained outside of eBay, Discogs, and other online sources selling vintage OOP discs. For new discs that you actually can buy, check out the final page of Sound & Vision’s Entertainment section, where we present reviews of remastered discs in the Deluxe Edition box set format that record labels have shi ed to for classic rock re-releases, some of them in Dolby Atmos!

Desktop Dilemma I just finished reading Daniel Kumin’s review of the IK Multimedia MTM desktop speakers (April/May). I’ve read other reviews of similarly purposed speakers and have not seen mention of a feature that all these speakers should have: an easily accessible volume knob right up-front. Desktop speakers are designed for placement next to your computer monitor. Say you’re working away and the phone rings. Do you really want to have to open some control panel on your computer or click an onscreen volume control slider? A quick turn of the wrist would be so much easier. I’ve been looking for—and even tried out—a replacement for some inexpensive Bose desktop speakers. The new ones certainly sounded be er, but then I realized they didn’t have that easily accessible volume knob that my old Bose ones have. That’s a feature that should be included on any computer/desktop speaker. Keep up the good work.

Ken Chaletzky / via email Good point, Ken. While Daniel Kumin’s review of the IK Multimedia MTM took it to

task for the lack of an auto power option, an omission that forced him to reach around the individual speakers to turn them on or off, there was no discussion of volume knob location. However, unlike most desktop speaker packages that pack a stereo amplifier in a main speaker and link to a passive extension unit via a speaker-level connection, each MTM is a powered model with its own gain control. For this reason, it’s preferable to adjust system volume via so ware to ensure the output levels of the individual speakers remain matched.

Bring Back Orange, Yamaha!

Regarding the review of the Yamaha RX-V6A A/V receiver in Sound & Vision’s February/ March issue, kindly pass along word to author Michael Trei that he is sooooo right in wishing the company would “bring back the cool orange VFD displays of past Yamahas.”

As for the current crop of reasonably priced A/V receivers with their hard-to-read and, dare I say, ugly blue dot displays, the sooner they go away the be er. Yamaha should just include a display dimming control, as I suppose the orange glow might be distracting if placed beneath a TV. Thanks, Michael, for the excellent review.

Brian Wamsley / via email

The Affordability (Opinion) Gap Al Griffin’s response to reader Francesco

Tenti’s le er in the February/March 2021 issue requesting that Sound & Vision review products that are good but “affordable to most,” listed some “more affordable products” that the magazine had recently reviewed. While I certainly applaud his intent, I suggest there is still an opinion difference regarding that one word he added: “more.” The two speaker systems he referenced may indeed be “excellent values” and more affordable than the high-end gear common to S&V, yet they are hardly considered “affordable” by most. Apart from my audio/videophile friends, no one else I know would pony up $3,000 for speakers or $1,900 for a television. A $700 65-inch Hisense or TCL TV? Yes. A $2,000 Samsung TV? No. So...as you raise the upper price point of gear that you review, please do likewise on the low end.

Ed Osborne / via email These days Sound & Vision cannot seem to have a Le ers column without at least one reader complaining about the variety of gear you review. “How dare you review an A/V receiver over $400 that I can’t find in Walmart!” I have been a subscriber since the days when this publication was called Stereo Review. I enjoy all the gear reviews, especially the high-end components that can’t be heard in a big box store. I am glad that you’re not caving to readers who

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demand only reviews of budget gear. While I can’t always afford some of the higher end products, it’s still a joy to read about the new heights this hobby can take us to.

Bill Desmond / via email

The Quest for Audio Perfection A strange thing happened to the audiophile community a few years ago: they rediscovered vinyl records, and some went out and bought $50,000 turntables, $10,000 tonearms, $5,000 phono cartridges, fancy phono preamps, record cleaning machines, and other accessories. Next, they began to buy new remastered records priced twice as high as CDs—all of it to make their records sound be er than what they hear with the 10-year-old CD player that they paid $300 for. Here’s a question for you: Would we get be er sound by buying a new, improved high-end CD/SACD player priced between $3,000 and $6,000? If so, it would then bring new life to our CD collections, and if we wanted even be er sound a er we could next upgrade our speakers, subwoofers, amplifiers, cables, etc.

Lonne Lintner / via email The quest for analog playback perfection can be a pricey, high-end pursuit—one of the reasons why Sound & Vision doesn’t venture down that road. We also don’t review boutique-priced CD/SACD players.

Why? Except for Thomas J. Norton, who uses a Marantz UD7007 Blu-ray player for CD playback, most of our reviewing staff remain happy with the sound quality we get from our reference $500 Oppo UDP-203 universal players, a model that is now sadly discontinued. But while we’re not positioned to comment on the benefits of CD/SACD players priced between $3,000 and $6,000 compared with more affordable models, we can confirm that upgrades to speakers, amplifiers, and in some cases cables, can improve the sound quality of a system and thus “bring new life” to a CD collection.

SIGN UP NOW AT crutchfield.com/vision We welcome questions and comments.

Email them to editor@soundandvision.com. Please note: Questions about the features and functions of products are best directed to the manufacturer. Questions about what product you should buy are best directed to a dealer. All submissions are considered the exclusive property of Sound & Vision magazine and AVTech Media Ltd. We reserve the right to edit letters for brevity. Due to the volume of mail that we receive, we regret that we cannot respond to every letter.

soundandvision.com [ 13

AT A GLANCE

Rich, warm, sound Impressive bass Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and AirPlay 2 IP67 water- and dust-proof Lacks treble clarity at high volumes Pricey for a portable speaker wide angle

quick take

BY LESLIE SHAPIRO

RATING PERFORMANCE

Sonos Roam Portable Wireless Speaker

FEATURES

ERGONOMICS

VALUE

Roam on the Range SPECS When a company known for inventing the multiroom speaker announces a new fully portable model, we sit up and take notice. The new Sonos Roam ($169) is an ultra-compact, IP67 water- and dust-proof smart speaker that weighs less than one pound and links with your phone or tablet via Bluetooth 5.0. But that’s not the whole story. The Roam can also connect with your home Sonos ecosystem, automatically making the switch between Bluetooth and Wi-Fi as you come and go.

The very clever Roam can be charged via its USB-C port or wirelessly docked on a Qi charger. (An optional Sonos wireless charging dock with magnetic connection is available for $50.) It sets up quickly with the Sonos app, which makes it easy to adjust EQ and playback features including loudness compensation and Trueplay automatic sound tuning. The waterproof Roam can be submerged in 3 feet of water for up to 30 minutes, although it will sound much be er above water than below.

Given that the Roam is a portable speaker, having Trueplay onboard is a huge plus. Trueplay adapts the output of Sonos speakers for their surroundings by using a built-in microphone to periodically adjust the EQ. The Roam sounded just as good in my large living room as 14 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

it did in my smaller listening room and, more notably, outdoors.

The Toblerone-shaped Roam may be small and light, but it packs a punch, with separate Class-H amplifiers used to power the oval racetrack mid-woofer and tweeter.

You get up to 10 hours of continuous playback, and the speaker will hold a charge up to 10 days when in standby mode. There’s also a fast-charge feature that powers the Roam to 50 percent capacity a er two hours of charging. The USB charging port is located on the speaker’s base next to the power switch and one of the rubberized ends contains basic touch controls: volume, play/pause, and microphone mute.

Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant are available on the Roam, with a far-field microphone array

picking up voice commands even from quite a distance away. Both assistants are only available while on Wi-Fi, not Bluetooth, and a light indicates when the microphone is active and listening. The Roam can be grouped with other Alexa speakers through the Amazon app, but not with other Google speakers through that ecosystem. One caveat: The ba ery gets drained more quickly with Google assistant engaged even if the microphone is muted, but since that feature only works on Wi-Fi, it's not a big drawback because you can always plug in at home.

The Sonos app features over 100 streaming music services, including Apple Music, Amazon Music, Tidal, Qobuz, and Spotify. It’s a pleasure to use, especially if you already have other Sonos devices in your system, and supports Apple AirPlay 2, le ing you group non-AirPlay products with AirPlay-compatible ones. Other Roam capabilities enable you to use a second speaker to create a stereo pair, or to use Sound Swap—a feature making its debut with the Roam—to quickly

Connections: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, AirPlay 2, USB-C (charging only) Rated battery life: Up to 10 hours Accessories: USB type-C to USB type-A cable Dimensions: (WxHxD): 2.44 x 6.61 x 4.96 in Weight: 0.95 lb Price: $169 (Shadow Black or Lunar White) THE VERDICT If both portability and sound quality are important to you, the Sonos Roam smart speaker is an outstanding choice. sonos.com

transfer music playback from one device to another.

Performance As with many other portable speakers, playback on the Roam is single-channel. There is no sense of stereo separation or imaging, but what Sonos does with that mono signal is worth cha ing about.

I queued up “Anywhere Away From Here” with Rag’n’Bone Man and P!nk, and the detuned piano and small-room reverb on the vocals were very well-

suited for the small Roam.

Rory Graham’s gruff voice was conveyed with a nice balance of mid-range rasp and deeper resonance. The Roam really shined when the bass kicked in on the second half of the verse, with the racetrack woofer producing an impressive amount of low-end considering the speaker’s size. P!nk’s vocals sounded natural and accurate, with more presence than Graham’s. I anticipated a thin, bright sound, but the Roam leans to the warm side,

with a slight extreme high-end roll-off. For example, when both singers joined together in the bridge, their false o voices had a clean and airy quality instead of sounding edgy.

The Roam’s detailed midrange and impressive bass were evident on “Destroyer” by Of Monsters and Men. I heard clear separation between the lead vocal and subtle background harmonies, and when a wall of sound kicked in during the chorus, the Roam handled the deep bass while leaving plenty

of space for Nanna’s vocals.

When I pushed the Roam’s limits, it was able to handle a fairly loud playback volume, though it did get harsh at the highest levels.

An upbeat acoustic guitar that kicks off the song “supposed to” by Blü Eyes showcased the Roam’s accurate, natural sound, and that quality also extended to the doubled vocals. Listening to this track, it was clear that the sound The Roam delivered was much bigger than expected for a speaker of its small size.

Conclusion Sonos has a reputation for creating innovative products and the Roam is yet another notch in its belt. It may be small, but it’s one of the best-sounding portables I’ve yet heard. Add in its Wi-Fi and AirPlay 2 capability, Trueplay tuning, and rugged design, and the Roam is the one smart speaker you’ll want to take with you.

wide angle

quick take

BY BOB ANKOSKO

Cleer Crescent Wireless Smart Speaker Cleer-ly Different Design “Aladdin’s lamp” popped into my head as I li ed the 12-pound Crescent speaker out of its box. Between its champagne finish and arcing profile, it’s a distinctive design you’ll either love or hate. My wife cringed when she saw it si ing on the cabinet in my office. Me? I think it’s pre y cool.

The latest in a series of smart speakers from San Diego-based Cleer, the Crescent works with Apple AirPlay or Google Chromecast, which let you “cast” Tidal, Pandora, or any one of dozens of other services from your device.

The speaker also supports Spotify Connect allowing subscribers to stream directly via Wi-Fi. Behind the metal grille that stretches across the top half of the speaker are eight 1.6-inch drivers arranged in a gentle arc. Si ing just behind the array is a pair of 3.3-inch woofers, angled upward and facing in the opposite direction. A control strip runs along the top edge of the speaker with bu ons to turn the microphone on and off, engage listening modes, select inputs, control playback, and adjust volume. Around back, a recessed area has a LAN (Ethernet) port plus analog (minijack) and digital (optical) inputs.

Turning on the mic awakens the onboard Google Assistant so you can query the web, adjust volume, and control playback with voice commands. I have to admit, I liked the convenience of adjusting the volume while si ing at my desk.

The Crescent has three listening modes: Stereo Widening, the most restrained option, expands the soundstage “beyond the speaker’s physical placement,” 3D “surrounds the listener in threedimensional audio” regardless of speaker position, and Room Fill “creates an ultra-wide sweet spot to engage listeners in every corner of the room.” There’s no stereo mode, per se, though I found Stereo Widening to be a good alternative.

Setup is pre y straightforward.

You have to download the Google Home app plus a Google account to use Google Assistant. The rest is a simple ma er of connecting to your Wi-Fi network and following a few prompts in the app.

I put the Crescent on a 4-foot filing cabinet in my 12 x 12-foot home office. First stop on my musical journey was Easy Listening Radio on Pandora, where Eric Clapton’s “Wonderful Tonight” from 1977’s Slowhand was playing in Stereo mode. Not bad, considering the free version of Pandora streams AAC+ at 64 kbps. Clapton’s semi-gruff voice was surprisingly full and open and

his signature guitar refrain was clear and reasonably well defined.

Moving on to Amazon Music HD, I stopped to marvel at the clarity and presence of Buddy Holly singing “Heartbeat” in 1958 (From the Original Master Tapes).

It was mind-blowing. Streaming in the equivalent of CD quality, Holly’s voice was “in the room,” backed by his rockabilly guitar, surprisingly robust bass, and a realisticsounding cowbell.

I did most of my listening in Stereo Widening mode, which sounded the most natural. While the 3D and Room Fill modes did a great job of creating a spacious presentation, they also changed the tonal character of the music and were too exaggerated for my tastes. I also found myself wishing for a remote so I could toggle through the se ings without having to walk up to the speaker.

For one last hurrah, I connected my PC to Cambridge Audio’s DacMagic XS USB DAC and ran a cable to the Crescent’s analog input to enjoy a wide-reaching selection of 24/96 hi-res downloads, stopping to rock out to “Lone Star” by Carl Verheyen. His squeaky clean Strat was appropriately twangy or fat and raucous when he hit the distortion pedal, punctuated by the powerful (and realistic) crack of the snare drum.

On the whole, the character of the sound wasn’t perfect—it could be boomy and a bit strident a times— but it was still darn good for a single-speaker solution.

Cleer’s Crescent has distinctive looks, smart chops, and good sound. It doesn’t come cheap but is worth a listen if you’re looking for an all-in-one speaker solution in this price range.

AT A GLANCE

Striking design Excellent build quality Good sound quality Sound modes shift tonal balance, create exaggerated effect Tone controls accessible only through the Google Home app No remote control RATING PERFORMANCE

BUILD QUALITY

ERGONOMICS

VALUE

SPECS Drivers: (8) 1.6-in. drivers, (2) 3.3-in. woofers Enclosure: Ported Power: 114 watts total Inputs: Optical digital, 3.5mm analog, LAN (Ethernet) Dimensions: 26 x 4.7 x 7.25 in. (W x H x D) Weight: 12.3 lbs.

Finish: Gray plastic base with champagne metal grille across the top Price: $700 THE VERDICT The Crescent doesn’t come cheap but it has plenty going for it: distinctive looks, smart speaker chops, and good sound. cleeraudio.com

16 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

The New Shape Of Sound

Introducing The New KLH Model Five Acoustic Suspension Speaker System Widely celebrated as the best-selling loudspeaker of its era, WKH ./+ 0RGHO )LYH KDV RI½FLDOO\ UHWXUQHG WR OLVWHQLQJ URRPV PRUH GHWDLOHG DQG G\QDPLF WKDQ HYHU ./+µV QHZ LFRQLF YHUVLRQ RI WKH ODWH V RULJLQDO URRWV VWUDLJKW IURP WKH KHDUW RI WKH OHJHQGDU\ DXGLR FRPSDQ\ KRQRULQJ DFRXVWLF VXVSHQVLRQ GHVLJQ SULQFLSOHV PDGH IDPRXV E\ ./+ IRXQGHU +HQU\ .ORVV ./+µV &KLHI (QJLQHHU .HUU\ *HLVW UHGH½QHG WKH RULJLQDO DFRXVWLF VXVSHQVLRQ V\VWHP XVLQJ PRGHUQ GD\ WHFKQRORJ\ DQG PDWHULDOV WR DFKLHYH VRPHWKLQJ QR FRPSHWLQJ ORXGVSHDNHU GHVLJQ FDQ H[FHSWLRQDO ORZ EDVV H[WHQVLRQ UHVROXWLRQ DQG DFFXUDF\ IURP D VPDOO HQFORVXUH

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klhaudio.com

Hey man, I wanted to give you a shout-out. I really appreciate your kind words. Your comments jogged some memories, and I wanted to share them with you. I don’t have your contact information, so I guess I’ll instead just use this public forum.

Everything was top-notch.

Those were the days when cost and weight were less constraining. We added some internal bracing and damping to the rear package tray to avoid resonances from the very meaty subwoofer mounted there. The loudspeakers were equal in quality to high-end home speakers, with die-cast aluminum frames. Every detail was considered. For example, noise-sensing circuits in the radio automatically adjusted the antenna mast height for optimal reception. I could write a book on this sound system.

The February/March 2021 issue of Sound & Vision contained your le er to the editor in which you described your immense satisfaction with the Nakamichi sound system in your 1997 Lexus SC400. I am greatly relieved to hear that you like it because, well, I am the guy who tuned it. Allow me to tell you the back story.

I got a call from Toyota in 1988. They asked if I would work with their suppliers to tune the sound systems in a new brand of cars to be called Lexus. I agreed, grabbed my CD wallet, and flew out to the Toyota facility in Torrance, CA. Si ing there was a preproduction prototype of the first Lexus vehicle, the LS400. I spent two weeks there, working with engineers from Pioneer and Nakamichi, the la er supplying the premium sound system.

One day I was auditioning different tweeters and equalizations, trying to dial in the highfrequency sound. It measured flat, but I just didn’t like it. Finally, I pulled off a tweeter grille cover and took a close look. There was some internal bracing that looked problematic, and I also thought the percentage open area of the grille was lacking. I consulted with the Nakamichi engineers and they concurred.

Through a translator, I asked the chief Lexus engineer if we could change the grille. He winced, but excused himself and called headquarters in Nagoya, Japan. He came back

CD sampler, cha ing up the system, and congratulating the design teams at Pioneer and Nakamichi. At the request of Lexus, I devised a TV commercial touting the sound system.

When they graciously asked me to appear in the commercial, wearing a white lab coat, I respectfully declined. (A man needs to know his limits.) For his contributions, Mr. Previn got a free LS400. I did not.

A er we finished with the LS400, we subsequently started working on your car, Mr. Homel: the SC400. Honestly, the styling of the LS400 sedan never really appealed to me, but the SC400 coupe really impressed me (and it still looks sharp a er all these years).

I tuned the heck out of that Nakamichi system because I planned to buy the car for myself and I figured, what the heck, I might as well tune it the way I like it. I tuned many Lexus and Toyota vehicles over many years, before moving on to other car companies.

So, Mr. Homel, thank you for jogging these memories. From the CD liner notes: “The Lexus vision is the pursuit of the ideal...

Evidently, executives at Lexus were pleased with the result and wanted to show it off.

They asked conductor André Previn to pick classical and jazz selections for a two-CD sampler that would be placed in the glove box of every new Lexus.

From his picks, I sequenced the introduction to Also Sprach Zarathustra as the first track on the first CD. Hey, when you’ve got a good subwoofer, flaunt it. I wrote liner notes for the

it extends from the showroom to your many years of rewarding Lexus ownership.” Jay, at the time, I didn’t know I was tuning your car, but I’m immensely glad that you’re enjoying it.

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signals

Thank You, Jay Homel

BY KEN C. POHLMANN

and informed me that at this late stage any change would be very expensive. I forget the exact amount, but I am thinking he estimated somewhere in the neighborhood of $100,000.

Then he asked me two questions that I will never forget.

“Mr. Pohlmann, would the average listener hear any improvement?” I thought about that for a while, and answered negatively. Then he asked, “Mr. Pohlmann, would you hear a difference?” I did not hesitate, and answered affirmatively. He nodded, and replied, “Okay. We will make the change.”

It was then that I understood how serious there were about this car. They had told me that they wanted everything to be perfect, and they weren’t kidding. Throughout that tuning session, and in subsequent sessions, we did our level best to coax the best possible sound from the system.

18 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

THE AUTHOR Ken C. Pohlmann is an electrical engineer specializing in audio topics as a consultant and writer.

He is Professor Emeritus at the University of Miami.

BY MIKE METTLER

roughly 90 minutes each—though some actually ran over the allo ed time, something that no one seemed to mind—during which pairs of submi ed songs were mixed live. Each song stem and ultimately finished mix could be heard in the moment via the hi-res 32-bit/96kHz Audiomovers Listento virtual effect audio plug-in—currently the go-to plug-in for many professional recording musicians—so you could listen to and see the mixing process and procedures that Kramer and his engineering assistant were executing in real time onscreen.

Special kudos must be given to main Masterclass host Bri Lightning. Lightning, who also plays lead guitar in the all-female hardrock band Vixen, has shown herself to be quite adept at moving things along with panache and finesse. “I was a counselor for some of the last Camps before the shutdown,” Lightning told me the day a er one recent Masterclass. “I liked the idea of being able to share my expertise and my skills in this way—to be able to give something back to the community. I love what the Camp and the Masterclasses are about. There’s nothing else like them.”

Raise your virtual hand—or rather, your two-finger devil’s horns salute—if you’ve ever dreamed of becoming a rock star. Come on, don’t be shy. At the very least, many of us audiophiles are relatively proficient at playing an instrument or two, know how to sing on key, and/or have go en behind the boards in home and/or professional studios to record our own and/or someone else’s music.

Our natural affinity for making music goes hand in hand with our love of just how good music can sound with our favorite high-end gear—and, hey, if we can actually make some good music ourselves, that’s even be er.

This is where Rock ’n’ Roll Fantasy Camp comes into play. Not everyone can find their way to the national stage, but founder David Fishof sure knows how to bring participants as close to it as they can get. For 25 years and counting, Fishof’s Rock ’n’ Roll Fantasy Camp has brought budding musicians together with A-list, platinumselling musicians for a chance to glean firsthand and face-to-face how it’s all done. More than being mere fan fests, Fantasy Camps are hands-on learning experiences where the camp counselors (as they’re officially known) actually know their stuff, inside out.

Thanks to the pandemic, all in-person Camp opps had to be put on hold until further notice, but Fishof and his team came up with the next best solution: virtual Camps, otherwise known as the Masterclass Series. The first Masterclass—with Mark Farner of Grand Funk Railroad fame—was streamed on June 1, 2020, and they haven’t looked back since. A endance fees vary based on the scope and subject ma er of the Class at hand, all of which run no less than 60 minutes apiece. Some start as low as $25, but others can run into the hundreds. Go to rockcampmasterclasses.com to see how it all breaks down, and what Masterclasses are on the horizon.

I’ve virtually a ended quite a few of the various Masterclasses myself over the past year, ranging from lesson-oriented classes to no-holds-barred Q&As to insider sessions with managers and promoters. Most recently, I sat in on a three-part live mixing seminar conducted by legendary producer Eddie Kramer, known for his work with the likes of Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin. Each individual three-hour session was broken into two segments of

Anyone who’s ever had to manage a Zoom session with multiple participants involved—yours truly very much included—knows just how tough and maddening it can be to keep all the on- and offscreen plates spinning with as few lulls and/or glitches as possible. Lightning is an absolute pro whom I’ve never seen lose her cool, even in the most trying of Class circumstances. One time, while classmembers were waiting for the next rough mix to be cued up, Lightning pulled a question from the comments queue for Kramer to answer on the spot. Kramer then took a few minutes to share his insight about Jimmy Page’s original mixing intentions for the infamous “ear candy” section of Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lo a Love.” Fascinating details to hear directly from someone who was in the control room when it happened, to say the least.

More Masterclasses are purported to be on the way, and I couldn’t recommend signing up for, well, any of them more highly. I do hope that, as we (hopefully) enter the post-pandemic era, Fishof and his Rock Camp cohorts will continue to offer a combo of options that combine the best elements of their streaming sessions with the unique character of their in-person Camps as well, which are slated to resume later this year.

So, you wanna be a rock & roll THE AUTHOR star? Then listen now to what Rock Camp Masterclasses have Mike Mettler, a.k.a. The to say. They’re sure to take you SoundBard, is the music editor inside the music in ways that’ll of Sound & Vision. make your dreams come true.

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stream on

Masterclass Acts The Rock ’n’ Roll Fantasy Camp changed its tune during the pandemic from offering in-person seminars with stars to streaming Masterclass sessions. In many ways, the shift broadened the scope of what the Camp has to offer.

20 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

SMALL SPACE

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The Connected Life

Evolution of the App PART 2

BY JOHN SCIACCA My previous column in the April/May issue covered ways to control both a modern A/V system and a smart home using various manufacturer-supplied apps. With smartphone and tablet use now widespread, and smart devices capable of being controlled via free iOS and Android apps proliferating, app-based control has also surged. Whether you’re streaming music, controlling your A/V receiver, or managing your home’s energy or security systems, there’s now an app that can help you to do it smarter, be er, and more easily. And since most people are now in the habit of carrying their phones 24/7, they basically have a full-blown system controller in their pocket at all times.

But with so many devices offering their own control apps, it can get a bit overwhelming as you download and hopscotch from one app to the next, ultimately developing a case of app-bloat. This is where a smart control system from companies like Control4, Crestron, Elan, Savant, and URC can help.

Similar to replacing a coffee table full of remote controls, an automation system can corral lighting, shading, security, HVAC, audio/video, surveillance, and more into one

principal ecosystem. By eliminating the wait for new apps to open, load, and connect, this will enable you to do far more with less screen time and fewer bu on presses.

Many home automation companies make their own lighting and HVAC controllers, but they also allow for integration with products from other manufacturers. For example, my home’s primary control system is made by Control4, but I have a mixture of Control4 and Lutron dimmers, fan controllers, thermostats, and keypads, as well as both Lutron and Hunter Douglas shades. These items all appear as controllable devices within the Control4 app, regardless of who makes them. In fact, when it comes to my home's Hunter Douglas Duolite shades, I prefer controlling them with the

22 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

Control4 app because it presents more accurate information about the exact positions of the sheer and blackout shades.

Another automation system benefit is be er control over your home’s security. Besides being able to do things like see all of your security cameras within the same app, you can also quickly access other home control functions, o en with a single bu on-press that triggers a scene like “Welcome.”

For example, when using the Control4 app with the company’s new Chime smart doorbell, I can turn on my front porch lights, see and talk with a visitor, disarm the security system, and unlock gates and doors. When you’re not using an automation system, executing those commands might otherwise require jumping in-and-out of five or more apps.

a keypad bu on press, or an astronomic timeclock that automatically triggers events based on a specific time of day or sunrise and sunset. Savant system owners can even use the company's Apple Watch app to access climate, lighting, and scene programming, pu ing advanced home control capability right on your wrist.

With all your home’s smart devices controlled by an automation system, it’s also far easier to use Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant voice commands to kick off complex events through se ing up voice scenes like “Dinner” or “Goodnight.” For example, in my home a “Movie Time” scene shuts down all the lights, lowers the living room shades, turns off any audio playing around the home, turns on my surround sound system and video projector,

It’s also easy to trigger events to happen across multiple devices from different makers when all of your devices are managed by an automation system. For example, if one of my LeakSmart sensors detects a water leak, the system can trigger lights to flash in the house. A motion detector can trigger devices to turn on/off in a room, or the disarm code from a security keypad can launch a “Home” scene that adjusts HVAC, music, and more.

Automation systems deliver other benefits besides app-control over smart home devices. A wall-mounted or tabletop touchscreen can provide an always-on point of access for the system, which can be programmed to execute virtually any command or string-of-commands from

and calls up the Kaleidescape cover art menu—with all of that happening as I walk to the couch with my hands full of snacks and drinks.

Beyond everything an automation system can do when you’re at home, it also provides full control access from any location in the internetconnected world! This makes it easy to check in on your home—or to have it automatically report to you—so you’ll know that everything is okay while you’re away.

THE AUTHOR For the past 20 years, John Sciacca has worked as a custom installer in South Carolina. In his free time, he enjoys drinking craft beer and watching movies on his 7.2.6 surround system.

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Q&A

Tidal Troubles

BY AL GRIFFIN I have used computers for 30-plus years but am not a tech-oriented person. My partner and I want to get set up for high-resolution audio, however, and are hoping to use the Tidal service for be er-than-CD-quality streaming. (We mainly listen to vinyl because, to us, CDs sound flat.)

We have a Sherwood stereo integrated amplifier from the 1980s, along with big, beautiful, fantastic-sounding speakers and we don’t want to give those up. I’ve tried researching the huge range of available tech options—as well as the need to avoid Bluetooth to get the highest resolution—but just don’t know how to make it work. Can you give us any help? We use Android devices and also own a Fosi Audio DAC-Q4, along with various cable configurations. We also have a spare computer that can be used to run Tidal.

Q

VICTORIA BAKER / VIA EMAIL

Taking a leap into high-res audio streaming can be a daunting prospect, especially if you’re looking to make it work using legacy gear.

But the good news here is that you already have everything needed to make it happen, so I’ll just run through the options.

The first thing you’ll want to do is download the Tidal

A

desktop app to your computer and sign up for a Tidal HiFi account (free for a 30-day trial, and then $20/month a er). A HiFi subscription tier is required to access music in lossless CD-quality, along with the high-res albums and tracks available on the service (the la er will clearly tagged with a “Master” label). Connect your computer to the Fosi Audio

I own a Marantz SR6013 A/V receiver and use it for both video switching and audio amplification. For video, I mostly watch Ultra HD Blu-ray discs. For music, I mostly stream from the Tidal service using the Marantz receiver’s built-in HEOS app, which is relatively easy to use. (I should add that the HEOS menu structure is not the most intuitive, but it works.) Here’s my situation: I would like to buy an external digital-to-analog converter that supports MQA but am confused about the connections and the control app. A er checking out my Marantz AVR’s back panel, I see two coaxial and optical digital inputs, but no digital outputs to connect the DAC, so maybe using an external DAC with the AVR is not possible. Am I missing something? I’ve also heard that many AVRs convert incoming analog audio to digital for EQ and volume control, which negates the benefits of an external DAC. Is this true?

Q

ROD MCCLASKEY / VIA EMAIL

Using an external DAC with your Marantz receiver is not only a possibility, but a necessity if you’re intent on ge ing high-res from Tidal. As you probably already know, audio resolution when using the Tidal app on the HEOS streaming platform (the one used by Marantz and Denon AVRs) maxes out at 16-bit/44.1kHz (CD quality).

A

24 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

DAC-Q4 with a USB type-Ato-USB type-B cable, and then visit the sound se ings in the computer’s system preferences menu to select the DAC as the output device. The next step is to connect the DACQ4’s stereo audio output to an analog stereo input on your integrated amplifier using a set of RCA cables. Select a Tidal Master track for playback and you’ll hear it with up to 24-bit/96kHz resolution—the maximum limit of both the Tidal desktop app and your Fosi Audio DAC’s USB input.

If you instead want to use your Android devices as a source for high-res music

using the Tidal Android app, I’d recommend buying a portable DAC such an AudioQuest Dragonfly or the Helm Audio Bolt (both available for $99).

These compact DACs connect to the phone’s USB-C port and provide an analog stereo minijack output for connecting to headphones or audio components like your Sherwood integrated amp. (You’ll need to use a 3.5mm to stereo RCA cable to make the hookup.)

Good luck with the setup, and here’s hoping high-res music streamed via Tidal delivers the same level of satisfaction you get when listening to your vinyl record collection.

External DACs that support MQA (Master Quality Authenticated, the technology used by Tidal to convey high-resolution audio on albums and tracks tagged with a “Master” label), in contrast, enable a complete “unfold” of high-res tracks with up 24-bit/192kHz resolution. Similar to the scenario detailed in the above question, you’ll need to use an Android device along with a portable external DAC, or a computer running the Tidal desktop app. In the la er case, I’d recommend using a relatively inexpensive MQA-compatible standalone DAC like the Cambridge Audio DacMagic 200M ($499) to handle digital-to-analog conversion.

Connect the computer to the DAC via a USB type-A-to-USB type-B cable, and the DAC to the Marantz AVR using via its unbalanced stereo RCA outputs. The DacMagic 200M also has coaxial and optical digital inputs, which will give you the extra option of playing MQA-encoded CDs from a connected disc player in addition to streaming.

As for your Marantz converting analog audio to digital, that’s a necessary step to enable Audyssey room correction, EQ adjustment, tone controls, and surround sound processing. According to the company, selecting its Pure Direct mode will bypass analog-to digital conversion of incoming audio signals, along with switching off analog video and front panel display lights, features that could potentially introduce noise.

WHENEVER WE TALK about artists who changed the course of rock history

who aren’t The Beatles, one group with perhaps the most unassuming yet wholly appropriate name tops the bill: The Band. Their homespun July 1968 debut Music From Big Pink literally turned the rock world on its collective ear to such a degree that contemporaries like Eric Clapton instantly renounced their virtuosic “look at me” playing styles and adjusted their thinking toward creating more organic and more authentic music truer to their essential selves.

Hardly a one-and-done effort, Big Pink was followed up with September 1969’s equally seminal The Band—also known as The Brown Album because of its sepia-toned and textured cover art—and August 1970’s reflection on the not-so-hidden cracks in the group’s armor, Stage Fright.

In recent years, chief songwriter and ace guitarist Robbie Robertson has led the charge in overseeing how The Band’s core catalog is being remixed, remastered, expanded, and repackaged accordingly in highly collectible 50th anniversary 13.1 x 12.7-inch multidisc box sets via Capitol/UMe. Even be er, Robertson enlisted his longtime friend, venerated producer Bob Clearmountain (Bruce Springsteen, The Rolling Stones, Simple Minds) to bring said original Band albums fully into the surround sound universe.

26 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

Beat Poets: Robertson, Helm, and Manuel recording "Daniel and The Sacred Harp" Woodstock, 1970. Opposite page, top: Stage Fright box set.

Opposite page, bottom: The Band in repose—from left, Robertson, Manuel, Helm, Danko, and Hudson.

BY MIKE METTLER

Robertson and I first discussed surround sound over a decade ago back in March 2011 when he told me, “I love the idea of pu ing the listener right there so he can sit in the middle of the people playing the music, like he’s in another chair in the room with them.” Then, when we talked about the surround mix for Big Pink in September 2018, he observed, “I love it! And I so appreciate the idea that, the closer you can get to being right in the room and right in the center of the music, closing your eyes and feeling what everyone else was feeling while playing that music—I think that’s a special gi .”

Photo: John Scheele

WHEN I PAINT MY 5.1 MASTERPIECE

Robbie Robertson and ace producer Bob Clearmountain give The Band all the space they need to let loose in surround sound

Photo: Norman Seefe

And now, there’s even more Band manna from box set heaven. In this corner, we have the self-titled The Band 50th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition box set, which contains two CDs (including the original rough mixes of their underrated Woodstock festival performance from August 17, 1969), one LP, one 45 of “Rag Mama Rag” b/w “The Unfaithful Servant,” and a Blu-ray with 24-bit/96-kHz DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and 24/96 Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround mixes. Meanwhile, the Stage Fright 50th Anniversary Super Deluxe Edition box contains two CDs (including their stunning, full Live at The Royal Albert Hall performance from June 3, 1971), one LP, one 45 for “Time to Kill” b/w with “The Shape I’m In,” and a Blu-ray replete with the the same dual 24/96 5.1 options The Band box has. In other words, both collections are much, much more than “Just Another Whistle Stop.”

Today, Robertson is as sold on the idea of having his—and The Band’s—life’s work mixed in surround sound as he ever was. “With the way technology is now, we don’t have the same limitations of tape hiss and noise coming from compressors that we used to deal with,” he explains.

“To me, surround allows you to get closer to the music and hear what’s really going on be er. Sometimes I hear from people who say, ‘You can’t mess with what it was.’

I don’t disagree with that for the most part, but I appreciate what we can now overcome. This is a blessing to me—to be able to come back to these albums and go, ‘Yeah! That’s what I was thinking. That’s what I wanted. That’s what I would’ve done at the time if I could have,’ you know?”

Clearmountain was more than happy to assist Robertson in achieving his 5.1 Band dreams. “My theory is that, because the way The Band would set up in a circle facing each other all in the same room, it threw the engineers off because they weren’t used to that kind of thing in recording studios at the time,” he says about The Band’s philosophy for capturing the vibe of the musicians’ interpersonal interactivity for both the Big Pink and The Band albums as the songs were performed essentially face to face in their shared Woodstock home basement and makeshi pool house locale in the Hollywood Hills, respectively. “And the way I like to mix surround for them is to mix discretely, and put things in different speakers. That way, you can listen to The Band in a lot of different ways. You can hear different things by pu ing yourself in different parts of your listening room.”

Over the course of a pair of interviews conducted almost a full year apart in March 2020 and February 2021, Robertson, 77, and I discussed the literal and figurative layout of The Band, the slight shi in the staging of Stage Fright, and what might be in store for the next round of ge ing the rest of The Band’s storied catalog in surround. To modify the title of the lead-off track on Stage Fright, welcome to The Robbie Robertson 5.1 Medicine Show!

Once you get it, you can’t forget it . . .

Mike Mettler: Whenever you do surround mixes for The Band catalog with your compatriot Bob Clearmountain, we the listeners reap all the rewards.

Robbie Robertson: Bob is one of the few people I completely trust to work on things like this. Coming back and remixing a record like The Band album is really touchy territory, and he knows that be er than I do.

When I first went over to Bob’s studio and we were si ing there listening to his

early mix, he just stopped it and said, “You know what? If you don’t want me to do this, I completely understand.” Because, with him listening to it and me si ing there, something didn’t ring true for him. He was hearing it through my ears, a li le bit.

And then he said, “This is like messing around with a masterwork, and I have way too much respect to get in the way of anything like that.” Then we agreed, “Let’s really, really figure out how not to get in the way, but how we can bring you [the listener] closer to the sound, the music, and the environment of this record. How can we do that?”

There used to be a layer between you and the music. As Bob and I now understand, we can get rid of a lot of that layer, and let you come closer. And I think the closer you come to the music, the be er off we all are.

Mettler: Can’t argue with that. When I was listening to The Band in surround, I felt like Garth [Hudson, organist/pianist] is hanging out over either of my shoul-

soundandvision.com [ 27

ders and behind me doing what he’s doing, and I can just swivel my head to find your guitar on the right a little bit. Up front, Levon [Helm, drummer/ vocalist] is in the middle, and Richard [Manuel, pianist/vocalist] is on one side or the other—and the same thing goes with Rick [Danko, bassist/vocalist]. It’s that three-dimensional feel of, “Yeah, I’m in this room with you.” If Music From Big Pink literally sounded like you guys were hanging out underground in the basement, then The Band sounds like we’re now up on the ground floor.

Robertson: What I was really thinking about was my understanding of the other guys in The Band. This was my idea in my dream, to build a clubhouse or a workshop—and in this place is where you invent a thing. You’re not going into somebody else’s studio on their clock, where it’s no longer what you would do with the deepest part of your heart, which is making music.

It really came down to us being in our own world. And in your own world, you’re fearless. You can experiment, you can try things, and the truth wouldn’t be hidden.

The beauty of it is, I still record that way to this day.

Mettler: When I’m listening to a song from The Band in 5.1 like “Rag Mama Rag,” I feel the shift in tone when the instruments were switched up where Levon winds up playing a mandolin and Richard, whom Levon called his favorite drummer, takes over on the kit.

Those changes gave the song a different texture.

Robertson: Completely! Completely.

And, because I was writing these songs, I already could hear something. I already could imagine something. Right off the bat, I was like, “Richard, why don’t you play drums on this? And Levon, you play mandolin, and we can play back and forth on guitar and mandolin. Garth, since this song is called ‘Rag Mama Rag,’ I think we need some rag on it. Rick, why don’t you play this fiddle thing?” But that meant we had no bass player, so we got John Simon, the producer [of Big Pink], to play tuba on it—and he nearly had a heart a ack! We ran through it, and his face was purple a erward. He said, “I’ll get it. I’ll get it!”

Mettler: You sure make interesting production choices for your own guitar playing. In the surround mixes of “Look Out Cleveland” and “Jawbone,” you’re 28 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

way back, where you could have been up front in a solo spotlight. And it really seems like you’re almost buried under water in what you’re playing on the choruses. Is that a deliberate choice on your account?

Robertson: Yeah, it was just the way I was hearing it. The part I was playing, to me, was more of a support role than it was a lead role. I just put it in that perspective.

Mettler: Ok, it’s now a year later, and it’s time to talk about Stage Fright. You and Bob Clearmountain have done yet another great 5.1 job here, I have to say.

You must be really happy with how this one came out.

Robertson: I am exceptionally happy with the results of this one. For me, Stage Fright is personally very rewarding. I love the mixes on this. I love that I was able to go back to the original sequence on it. The whole package turned out to be a revelation to me.

The original album was what it was under the circumstances, but deep down, I thought, “Oh man, I wasn’t really involved.

I wasn’t there for the mixing the way I wish I could have been.” [The Band were on tour when Stage Fright was being mixed in London.] To me, it was le in this limbo— and now, I have freed it from limbo. This was one of those things where I thought to myself, “Oh my God, if Clearmountain and I could do what I would have done with the mixing. . .”—and then we did!

Mettler: I like that, for the majority of the album, your guitar textures are in the rear left over my left shoulder, and then it’s mainly Garth in the rear right channel, doing all of his textures. The other guys [Rick, Levon, and Richard] are mostly in the front stage. And that’s what you wanted, right? I feel like I’m sitting in the middle of the actual Woodstock Playhouse stage you recorded on, while you guys are on all those sides around me.

Robertson: Yep! Sometimes in the mixing, you look at it from the front facing the group, and sometimes you look at it from behind the group, you know what I mean? Sometimes you’re si ing here, and sometimes you’re si ing there. As Levon said many years ago, “I have the best seat in the house.” Listening to it from different positions tells the story in a different way.

And if what you’re listening to is ok to you,

they’re all good in their own way. Sometimes you just think, “Whoa! As I’m si ing here listening to this version of ‘Daniel and The Sacred Harp,’ this is really where I would want to sit.”

Mettler: Each time I listen to Stage Fright, I hear different things depending on what I’m trying to focus on in any given track. Sometimes I’m hearing it like you’re moving your head as you’re playing, so I’m getting your point of view—like, now you’re looking at Richard, so he technically shifts a little bit because you, the player, are moving your body just a little bit, maybe in reaction to something he or the other guys have done.

Robertson: Uh huh! It’s like what we were talking about before—it’s all of these perspectives, and you can also hear how we’re having an awful lot of fun playing together. What I really mean is, it brings you inside the music in a way we could only do to a certain extent years ago. We could have it coming blasting at you, but we couldn’t have it coming blasting around you.

Mettler: So, this is more like what you’re hearing on that stage. Even in the original Woodstock locale for Big Pink, you guys needed to see each other to get that kind of connection to play certain things together.

Robertson: Yeah! We didn’t know how to communicate musically if we couldn’t see one another, read one another’s lips, watch one another’s accents, and sense the dynamics somebody was playing with.

I mean, it’s part of the language. When you’re stuck in isolation rooms with headphones, you’re just guessing at that. I think you can get more of a musical intimacy when everybody is in the same dimension in sound, and vision.

Mettler: Yeah. Somebody oughta name a magazine after that. (Robertson chuckles) And I really like that you have three lead vocalists featured on “The Rumor” [Rick, Richard, and Levon], and they all get placed in different parts of the front stage. In a way, it’s a different version of “The Weight” [the linchpin track from Big Pink], because you had those same three guys lifting their vocals up into the heavens. If “The Weight” is more vertical, then “The Rumor” is more horizontal, in terms of the soundstaging.

Robertson: I wouldn’t disagree with that. You just brought up something that struck me in this way for the first time—that Big Pink and The Band albums are more like movies, and Stage Fright is more like a stage play.

Mettler: I love that! What’s coming next from you guys in 5.1? If you’re following The Band’s 50th anniversary trajectory, I suppose [September 1971’s] Cahoots would be the answer, which would mean we’ll finally get to hear “Life Is a Carnival” and “When I Paint My Masterpiece” in full surround.

And, as you said in [your 2016 autobiography] Testimony, “Life Is a Carnival” is one of your favorite songs that you’ve written.

Robertson: I want us to do Cahoots in a different way in surround, but I can’t talk about it right now. I can say I love “Life is a Carnival” because it was such a good time working on it with Allen Toussaint [the late, legendary New Orleans R&B musician who did the horn arrangements on the song].

Mettler: After you’re done with Cahoots, I’d like you and Bob to mix your 1987 solo album, Robbie Robertson, in surround. I mean, songs like “Fallen Angel,” “Showdown at Big Sky,” the two tracks you did with U2—"Sweet Fire of Love" and "Testimony"— and most especially “Somewhere Down the Crazy River,” really deserve to be heard in 5.1.

Photo: John Scheele

Robertson: Well, that’s another very good point you’ve made there, Mike. You know what you’re talking about.

Mettler: I appreciate that! Last thing—one of the key lines for me in “Rockin’ Chair” from The Band album is when Richard sings, “And I’m pushin’ age 73.” If you ever decided to sing that song yourself, you’d have to change that number to 78, right?

Robertson: (laughs heartily) Yeah, you’re right. On my next birthday, I’m going to be 78, so I be er get

the rocking chair out! Well, I’ve still got a lo a work to do before I’ll get out that rocking chair. I’m writing Volume 2 of Testimony, I’m doing the music for the next [Martin] Scorsese movie—oh, I’ve got a bunch of sh-- on my plate, actually! (chuckles)

Rockin' Chair: Robertson (top) keys into the essence of "The W.S. Walcott Medicine Show" in Woodstock, 1970.

For more with Robertson, and our exclusive, online interview with Bob Clearmountain— including the possibility of remixing Roxy Music’s 1982 masterpiece Avalon in Dolby Atmos—go to soundandvision. com/category/sv-interview soundandvision.com [ 29

A GARDEN OASIS IN THE HEART OF PITTSBURGH

NESTLED IN Pi sburgh’s North Side is a beautifully renovated row house with four bedrooms, two-and-aThis custom-installed half baths, and three outdoor entertainment spaces, outdoor A/V system including two private balconies offering stunning sets the mood for views of the City of Bridges’ skyline. As cool as the parties, sports, or just balconies are, the 2,000 square-foot courtyard is what chilling out and really sells this place. It’s a veritable oasis in the heart enjoying a City of of the city, complete with tasteful landscaping and a Bridges sunset small lawn, a spacious dining area with

BY BOB ANKOSKO a large firepit, and a sheltered “sports bar” area featuring a grill and wallmounted TV with its own dedicated sound system. When it’s time to get the party started, a second sound system concealed in the landscaping brings the courtyard area to life, capping off what adds up to a magnificent outdoor entertainment space.

“The outdoor area was the second phase of an extensive row house renovation,” explains Tom Pieracki, president and founder of Simply Automated (SA) and Luma Lighting, Pi sburgh-based sister companies specializing in smart technology and custom integration. “The client is a developer who had a vision to create a high-end, fully automated vacation home primarily used for Airbnb rental.” SA was contracted to design and install an elaborate

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whole-house system featuring automated A/V entertainment and lighting, which extended to the outdoor space.

“We were fortunate to start with a clean slate for the outdoor area,” Pieracki says.

The owner came up with a general design and SA worked up a plan to integrate audio and custom lighting throughout the space and bring video entertainment outdoors.

The main audio system is a 70-volt setup comprising four GO6 satellites and a GO10SW in-ground subwoofer from Paradigm’s Garden Oasis Series, which Pieracki says “provides great coverage throughout the space.” SA worked with the landscape contractor to bury conduit for the speaker wiring. “This greatly simplified the installation as we weren’t fighting with finished landscape and hardscape,” he says. “We’ve found that thinking ahead and working with all parties involved on these types of installations can limit potential issues, which ultimately lead to a loss of time and money for all.”

Each GO6 is a fully adjustable, stalk-

Equipment List

Sunbrite SB-S2-55-4K-BL 55-inch 4K/ UHD outdoor TV with all-weather TV mount and dust cover

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Paradigm Garden Oasis GO6 speakers (4)

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Paradigm Garden Oasis GO10 in-ground subwoofer

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Crown CDi1000 2 x 500-watt amplifier

Bowers & Wilkins Marine 6 outdoor speakers (2)

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Ice Cable Systems speaker wire and Cat6 cable

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Control4 Ea3 controller

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Holm landscape lighting

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Rimikon tape lighting

mounted speaker combining a 6-inch midrange driver with a 0.75-inch tweeter in a bronze-colored UV/water-resistant “PolyGlass” enclosure designed to blend into landscaping. The GO10SW picks up where the satellites leave off, using a fully concealed 10-inch woofer to supply bass down to an earth-shaking 28 Hz. The lows vent through a mushroom-capped tube that protrudes from the ground, also finished in bronze so as to remain inconspicuous.

All seven speakers are powered by a Crown CDi1000 amplifier located in the home’s main A/V rack, configured for 70-volt operation and rated to deliver 2 x 500 wa s of power. “We sourced the amplifier from Paradigm and it arrived pre-loaded with correct se ings to ensure a great listening experience,” Pieracki observes. The amplifier is located in one

of the two Strong FS Series racks in the basement that house an elaborate yet simple-to-operate Control4 system for A/V distribution, security, and lighting with automated window treatments.

To give you an idea of the caliber of the outdoor setup, if you were to buy the speakers off the shelf, the GO10SW subwoofer would set you back $1,800 and the GO6 satellites would cost you $600 apiece. Add to that another $1,200 for the Crown amplifier and you’re looking at $5,400 just for the equipment.

Pergola Paradise Adjacent to the main patio is the “sports bar” area situated beneath a sloping pergola—in this case, one with a solid roof to protect the space from the elements and provide a place to install a pair of Bowers & Wilkins Marine 6 outdoor speakers,

which can be played on their own or integrated with the Paradigm speakers to create a full-on party mode. Each speaker is a weatherproof coaxial design with a 1-inch tweeter suspended over a 6-inch woofer that sits flush in the pergola’s ceiling between recessed lights; the list price for a pair: $700.

Powered by a Triad amp in the main rack, the Bowers & Wilkins speakers provide a substantial upgrade in sound for a 55-inch SunBrite Signature Series Ultra HDTV mounted on the shiplap wall behind the bar. The TV is encased in durable aluminum and built to withstand the elements year-round, including temperatures extremes between –24° and 122° F. The display, which lists for $3,500, supports high dynamic range (HDR) and is equipped with an anti-glare screen optimized for use in daylight with partial (or filtered) exposure to the sun.

To get video out to the courtyard, the pros at SA tapped into the Just Add Power video-over-IP system that distributes video throughout the home via Cat6 cable. Doing so, it provides access to cable TV and content streamed over Roku and Apple TV. Like the A/V systems in the house, outdoor entertainment can be managed using Control4’s mobile app or an in-wall touchscreen controller next to the sliding doors out to the patio; both provide full control over audio and video. Going a step further and making system control super convenient, SA also created a series of media and lighting “scenes” that summon a particular mood at the push of a bu on.

When the sun goes down, Holm landscape lighting creates a relaxed mood punctuated with low-voltage LED strip lighting from Rimikon. The outdoor lighting ties into the main Control4 system inside.

When asked about the brands SA used to create this outdoor oasis, Pieracki responds, “We make it a point to only work with the best in the industry. We design systems based on scope and budget and choose the right solution to achieve the end result our clients expect.”

No question, the design and installation team at Simply Automated nailed this project, delivering an urban oasis with an all-in cost just shy of $25,000 in a section of Pi sburgh that’s also home to the inimitable Andy Warhol Museum, Carnegie Science Center, and Heinz Field, stomping ground of the Steelers. If you’re visiting the great city of Pi sburgh and need a perfect place to stay, you might want to check the local Airbnb listings. soundandvision.com [ 31

FOR MICHAEL MEEKER, the road to A/V para-

dise was long and circuitous but also immensely rewarding as he experimented his way from cobbling together a crude setup almost 30 years ago to building the theater of his dreams—one most of us would die for. In those early days, the “marriage of audio and video” was a concept embraced by enthusiasts and a handful of audio companies as they inched their way toward what we would come to know as “home theater.”

BY BOB ANKOSKO “My love for—and obsession with—home theater was born in 1993 in a small apartment in Southern California,” Meeker reminisces. “I had a 19-inch television that, through a myriad of spliced Radio Shack adapters, I somehow managed to hook up to my stereo. Top Gun was the first VHS tape I ever bought. Watching it over and over, I was fascinated by how it sounded like a fighter jet was landing in my living room— albeit a 3-inch-long fighter jet, courtesy of my tiny TV. I remember thinking, now that I had the sound, I had to upgrade my television. So began my journey.”

Fast forward 28 years, and “a hundred upgrades” later, Meeker developed a COVIDinduced itch to build a serious theater in the family’s new digs near the Temecula Valley Wine Country just north of San Diego. “Selling the idea to my wife wasn’t difficult,” he recalls. “We both love movies, and we have passed that love down to our kids. The onset of COVID was the icing on the cake. We had to stay home and watch movies as a family. I saw an opportunity and took my cue to present a solution.”

Meeker’s “solution” started with two requirements: The new theater had to top the “simple system I built in my spare time at my old house in San Diego”—a 5.1 setup with a generous 110-inch screen. “And with retirement around the corner, and no plans to ever relocate, it had to have the absolute best of everything.”

A third requirement quickly evolved as Meeker began imagining his dream theater. “I’ve

This SoCal installation pays homage to the owner’s beloved Raiders while staying true to time-honored principles of quality audio and video

32 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

been a Raiders fan since I was 8 years old,” he explains, “so I knew the space would take on a Raiders theme one way or another—and the fact that the silver and black team colors are ideal for a theater se ing was not beyond me.”

Though he knew it would be an awesome space for watching the Raiders meet their challengers, Meeker also knew it had to be a space that would transform family movie night into a true theater experience.

And then there were the practical concerns.

“The lighting had to be right so my in-laws could see the steps in the dark,” Meeker says. The system also had to be easy to operate so everyone in the family could fire it up to watch movies and TV or play videogames when Dad wasn’t around.

Even more important was finding a way to address daily internet dropouts that came with living in a remote part of Riverside County. “Running 13 mesh Wi-Fi routers throughout my home wasn’t working so I needed a solution that I didn’t have, Meeker says, recalling the moment he realized that “my dream project was well beyond the scope of my capabilities.”

Photos: Jonathan Bloom, Advantage Media Inc. (@advantage_media)

A HOME THEATER DREAM COME TRUE

Beyond the specialized technical expertise necessary to ensure a rewarding, glitch-free entertainment experience, Meeker knew that he needed help and inspiration to create the space of his dreams— one that would additionally pay homage to his beloved Raiders—so the search began.

“I went online and started researching A/V companies,” Meeker recalls. “I was ecstatic to find so many home theater installation companies in the Temecula Valley, but once I started looking at them individually, I discovered that their idea of ‘home theater’ consisted mainly of running an HDMI cable to a television they could mount over the fireplace (for an additional fee).”

Meeker needed to find an A/V expert with deep knowledge in not only audio and video but automation, networking, and lighting as well. On top of that, his vision included a movie-theater-style concession and bar/kitchene e area with a sink, microwave oven, and refrigerator. “My needs were more expansive than what these companies could provide.”

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1) A 133-inch screen is flanked by TektonDesign tower speakers in a unique space that pays homage to the owner's beloved Raiders with a custom logo (at right) and design that mimics Allegiant Stadium (below).

Enter Theater Monster Following the long and frustrating task of systematically eliminating one candidate a er another, Meeker came across Theater Monster out of nearby Murrieta. He was impressed with the company’s portfolio of large-scale projects so arranged to meet with owner Nate Goldstein. With 15 years of experience in home theater/automation under his belt, it was immediately clear that Goldstein was capable of executing his vision.

But that vision needed to be focused and refined, so they brainstormed, kicking around ideas

"I told Nate I wanted a room that Darth Vader would want, if he were a Raiders fan." of what a Raiders-themed space might look like. Meeker shared his concern about creating an “overly kitschy” space right up front. “A common mistake fans make is overwhelming a space with memorabilia—banners, signs, pillows, even bobbleheads. It’s just too much. I wanted to make sure we didn’t make that mistake. I told Nate I wanted a room that Darth Vader would want, if he were a Raiders fan—spacey, cinema-esque, and true to my inner Raiders soul.”

Goldstein then took the ball and he ran with it—all the way into the end zone.

In a stroke of genius, the master installer proposed a motif that would take its cues from Allegiant Stadium, the metro Las Vegas

venue the then-Oakland Raiders moved to last year. There was no question: Anakin Skywalker would be right at home in this environment. “I wish I could take credit for the Allegiant Stadium design theme but that rests solely with Nate,” Meeker acknowledges.

“I knew I didn’t want to create a space that felt gimmicky but I wasn’t sure what I was going to do or where the design process would lead me until I started rendering designs,” Goldstein explains. “I was googling Raiders images when I stumbled across an image of the new stadium, and that’s when it hit me: Why not design the room to look like the stadium so it feels like you’re at a Raiders game every time you walk into the room?” soundandvision.com [ 33

Building a Dream Once Meeker signed off on the Raiders-inspired design, Goldstein mapped out a room layout and put together an equipment list with the goal of delivering a first-class video and audio experience. “I wanted to fill the room with quality sound and make sure every listening position brought the best sound possible,” he recalls.

The first step on the road to creating theater bliss was to carve out a suitable space. Unlike the typical basement home theater, this movie palace would be built upstairs, which meant interior walls would have to be removed to convert what had been a bedroom, bathroom, and small theater space into a spacious room 16 feet wide and almost 24 feet deep with a separate concession area and dedicated bathroom. “The exterior walls were already heavily insulated so we were good there, but we had to add a layer of sound dampening cork to the sub floor to keep the bass from bleeding into the downstairs,” Goldstein explains. “That coupled with extra heavy carpet pad really did the trick.”

Next, the pros at Theater Monster had to fabricate those Death Star panels that would not only define the space but improve acoustics by deadening the sound.

The panels were built on-site out of quarter-inch medium-density fiberboard (MDF), covered with dense 3/4-inch-thick foam, and wrapped in black fabric. In a clever twist, they were a ached to the walls using 1-inch rare-earth magnets—eight per panel.

“The magnets gave us the flexibility to easily install and remove the panels but they also made it easy to adjust the panels in any direction and formed a quarter-inch 34 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

gap between the boards and the wall,” Goldstein says. Allowing the panels to “float” off the wall further enhanced their sound deadening properties.

Below the walls’ white lines— which were fashioned out of LED rope lighting—the Theater Monster crew installed 2 x 2-foot Gypsum3D tiles to complete the room’s distinctive look. “We used Liquid Nails and wood screws to affix the tiles to the walls,” Goldstein advises. As a finishing touch, the seams were spackled, sanded, and painted.

Meeker likens the wall’s geometric insets to something you’d expect to find in a lunar space station. “From an acoustic standpoint, the design is brilliant,” he observes. “The 3D tiles act as diffusers while the black panels aid in sound absorption.”

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Exceptional Gear for an Exceptional Space To fully realize Meeker’s goal of cra ing a topnotch theater space,” the pros at Theater Monster needed audio and video equipment that would complement the unique space he designed and deliver an immersive, “you-are-there” experience on family movie night. That meant vivid images projected onto a huge screen backed by a killer audio setup.

For video, Goldstein selected Sony’s VPL-VW715ES native 4K projector and paired it with a custom Zero Edge screen just over 10 feet wide and 4.5 feet tall (133 inches, measured diagonally) from Austin-based Screen Innovations.

The screen is fi ed with SI’s Slate ambient-light-rejecting (ALR) material so the Meeker’s have the option of leaving the LED mood lighting on while watching a movie.

The projector has a rated brightness of 1,800 lumens and features Sony’s Dynamic HDR Enhancer, which processes high dynamic range content frame by frame. “Sony makes some of the best home theater projectors and screens on the market, and they fit the space and throw distance allo ed by my design.”

When it came time to work up an audio plan, it was obvious that a theater of this caliber demanded Dolby Atmos sound, so Goldstein

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2) Unlike the typical basement theater, this one occupies a second-floor space that had been a bedroom, bathroom and small theater. 3) The project involved reconfiguring the space to create the new movie palace (4).

designed a 9.2.4 speaker layout that would envelop two rows of theater seats plus four barstools in back—12 viewers in all—with lush 3D sound. For the system’s speakers, he turned to TektonDesign out of Orem, Utah for the main speakers and surrounds and Italy’s B&C Speakers for the subwoofers.

The TektonDesign lineup starts with a pair of custom-built 6-foot-tall speakers that flank the screen.

Borrowing elements from Tekton’s Moab and Lore models and incorporating a 15-inch B&C driver, these one-of-a-kind towers boast an array of 13 tweeters—including a superrefined Beryllium tweeter in the middle—sandwiched between two 12-inch woofers with the muscular B&C subwoofer at the bo om.

Why TektonDesign and not a more well-known speaker brand?

“You get a very high-end product at

Construction photos: Nate Goldstein

As the photos show, the final design exudes clean, bold lines that mimic the stadium’s swooping “black wave” design with its signature white outline. The design is appropriately ominous yet classy, while honoring Meeker’s desire for an understated décor, with memorabilia limited to two jerseys and a backlit Raiders sign. And, as well see in a moment, the design is also functional.

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2-foot-tall Double Impact Surround speakers, two in each side wall and two in the back wall, round out the Tekton lineup. Both feature a proprietary “triple-ring-radiator” array of seven tweeters plus two (surround) or four (center) midbass drivers.

Tekton says its proprietary design mimics the “acoustical power pa ern” of a horn or waveguide “without the audible ringing influence of flared horns.”

The three front speakers and screen sit in a custom wall unit designed to match the custom soffit in the back of the room that houses the Sony projector and the wainscoting around the lower perimeter of the room. Si ing just above the wainscoting is a quartz chair rail that adds yet another touch of elegance to the room. The rail matches the quartz used for the bar in the back of the room and the concession stand’s countertop.

All of the Tekton speakers were painted with a special “Raiders gray” color selected by Meeker, and deliberately exposed to contribute to the room’s high-tech vibe. Though the room embraces the Raiders’ simple silver and black color scheme, Goldstein is quick to

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point out that the textured 3D tiles, exposed speakers, rope lighting, quartz chair rail, and pa erned carpet add panache to the otherwise monochromatic space. “The pop of white really draws your eyes into the room,” he observes.

Four KEF THX Ultra Certified Ci200RR-THX in-ceiling speakers—each of which mates an 8-inch woofer with a concentric 1.5-inch aluminum-dome tweeter—add an overhead dimension to complete the sonic bubble.

The KEF speakers also bring the system’s total driver count to 105—75 of which are tweeters!

The cadre of Tekton speakers is powered by a pair of Parasound five-channel Halo A51 amplifiers, each rated to deliver 250 wa s per channel into 8 ohms, with a 2 x 250-wa Halo A21 dedicated to the B&C subwoofers. These John Curl-designed, THX Ultra2 Certified power blocks are built to deliver loads of clean power with headroom to spare. “The definition and clarity of the sound is phenomenal,” Goldstein observes.

The installation pro deployed Denon’s new flagship AVR-A110, a limited anniversary-edition

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a relatively affordable price point,” Goldstein explains, adding that it’s become one of Theater Monster’s go-to speaker brands in recent years. “Utilizing the B&C subwoofer was Tekton’s decision, and it sounds incredible.”

A 4-foot-wide Double Impact Wide Center speaker and six

Counter-clockwise from top left: 5) Custom framing for the screen and front speakers.

6-8) The stadium theme takes shape.

9-10) Near-complete theater with its 9.2.4 speaker layout.

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A/V Equipment List O

Sony VPL-VW715ES 4K video projector

Screen Innovations Zero Edge 133-inchdiagonal projection screen with Slate ALR material

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Video sources: Apple TV, DirecTV Genie, Sony PS5, Microsoft Xbox

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Control4 EA5 system controller with NEEO remote

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Denon AVR110A A/V receiver

Parasound A51 5 x 250-watt power amplifier (2)

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Parasound A21 2 x 250-watt power amplifier

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TektonDesign custom front left/right speakers (2)

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B&C Speakers 15-inch subwoofers— integrated in the front speakers (2)

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11) Theater seating for eight plus four barstools.

12) The plan. 13) A "rock sink" and waterfall wall in the dedicated bathroom add a touch of class.

14) A/V gear in the "concession" area.

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A/V receiver on his client’s “must-have” list, to bring state-of-the-art audio and video processing into the fold. In addition to providing an arsenal of surround processing, the A110 powers the KEF in-ceiling speakers.

Honoring Meeker’s request to keep it simple, the Theater Monster crew capped the system off with Control4’s EA5 entertainment and automation controller, a super-intuitive NEEO remote handset that brings the theater to life with a single

bu on press, and DMX lighting control, which allows Meeker to change the color of the LED rope to match his mood. All system electronics are neatly organized and stowed away in an A/V closet/rack in the concession area space located just off the theater.

Does Meeker regret spending a quarter of a million bucks to realize his dream theater setup? Hell no. “Prior to pu ing this system together, I always thought you had to play a speaker loudly for it to be ‘felt,’” he says. “I now know that that’s not the case. I can feel a U-571 depth charge or Pacific Rim Jaeger blast in my chest without pu ing any stress on the system at all! It’s now about the quality of the sound, not the volume.” Oh, and it doesn’t hurt that his wife and kids absolutely love their new home theater. “I really enjoy that it’s something we can do as a family,” adds his wife, Suzy. “I don’t even miss going to real movie theaters anymore.”

13

36 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

TektonDesign Double Impact Wide Center speaker

O

TektonDesign Double Impact Surround speakers (6)

O

O

KEF Ci220RR in-ceiling speakers (4) Accessories & Additional Gear

Seatcraft Diamante seating in black leather

O

O

Strong 37U A/V rack

O

AudioQuest Golden Gate cables

Vertical Cable 10AWG speaker wire and Cat6 cable

O

AV Pro Edge AC-EX40-444-PLUS-KIT HDBaseT extender

O

AC Infinity CLOUDPLATE cooling fans (to keep the amps cool)

O

WattBox WB-800-IPV-12 IP power conditioner

O

Engineering Solutions RS-232 Response Box

O

O

Elemental Neon Blaze RGB rope lights

O

Networking by Araknis Networks

Total system cost: $250,000

14

FACEOFF

NOISE-CANCELING TRUE WIRELESS EARBUDS

By Stewart Wolpin

WHAT THE WORLD needs now is active noise-canceling (ANC) true wireless earbuds. ANC buds meet the needs of the moment by providing a way to boost audio quality during Zoom calls while simultaneously isolating us against intrusive environmental factors (remote-schooled kids, other work-from-home adults, etc.).

And fortunately for us all, they are ge ing be er-sounding, more feature-packed, and less expensive.

When considering which ANC buds will satisfy both your ears and lifestyle, you many need to reverse your usual headphones-buying qualifications.

You’re a Sound & Vision reader, so sound quality is critical. But while you will discern differences in frequency response and soundstage dimensionality from one set of buds to the next, the more critical metrics for comparing true wireless ANC in-ear models are convenience and operational features. You’ll also find a wide disparity in noise-canceling performance from bud to bud. Once you narrow your choice to a model with the right feature set, and noisecanceling effectiveness—the la er of particular importance if you regularly travel on planes, trains, or buses—sound quality can serve as a final determination.

As the range of available ANC bud options expands, buyers should expect a minimum set of standard features and functions. When comparing models, consider the following: k An easily pocketable charging carry case (2.5 inches wide or 1.5 inches thick max).

WIRE-FREE BUD OPTIONS THAT BLOCK NOISE SO YOU CAN HEAR MUSIC

k At least five hours play time on a single charge, plus a case that allows three recharges at minimum. k At least three pair of different-sized silicone ear tip options. k A complementary app to customize sound, noise-canceling, and operational functions. k Automatic playback-pause when you remove a bud from your ear. k Charging via a USB-C cable. k A selectable “ambient” mode to clearly hear external sound such as announcements, or to conduct conversations without removing the buds from your ears.

38 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

k On-bud control to access an Alexa or Google voice assistant. k Either IPX4 or IPX5 water protection (dust-plus-water protection would be expressed as two digits, e.g., IP56).

As you compare different models, you’ll see references to “adaptive” rather than “active” noise cancellation. This basically means that the otherwise active noisecanceling automatically adjusts—or can be adjusted with a control app—to accommodate environments with varying

degrees of ambient noise. Also be aware that all earbuds that feature ANC use external mics to detect external noise, which can result in whooshing wind sound ge ing amplified.

We auditioned nearly 20 sets of buds in varying outdoor and indoor situations: walking around midtown Manha an, riding the subway, pedaling a bicycle through a gusty 15 MPH wind, and si ing in a room with 75db of YouTube-sourced airplane cabin noise plus a TV blaring with chattering talking heads to simulate in-flight

AUSOUNDS AU-STREAM HYBRID ANC ($189.95) ausounds.com RATINGS PERFORMANCE

COMFORT

FEATURES

VALUE

Sticker shock is an apt description of what I felt a er auditioning these AU-Stream buds. Nothing about their performance, features, or functionality matches up to other models in their general price range, though if they were half the price, I could recommend them as a perfect option for listeners with smaller ears.

With its emphasis on bass, the AU-Stream’s sound will appeal to younger ears hungering for deepsounding beats. Bass is appropriately pounding on modern music mixes, but less so on classic rock and older tunes. While the soundstage is tight, voices sound a bit subdued, so you’ll need to turn up the volume to hear a satisfying, full-throated vocal performance.

The effectiveness of Ausounds’ hybrid noisecanceling is middling. With no music playing, airplane cabin noise is reduced to what sounds like an air conditioner on low, and nearby voices become muted but still decipherable. As with most ANC buds, playing music drowns out most

remaining ambient noise.

With the Monitor ambient sound mode selected, conversation is understandable but sounds muffled, as if it were coming through a thick face mask.

There is no companion app to modify the AU-Stream’s functions and features. Tap controls are limited to play/pause, answer/end call, skip track, and enable voice assistant.

You can also use them to cycle through the Off, On, and Monitor noise-canceling modes, though to do so you need to tap-and-hold a bud for three seconds twice in a row and pause the music so a voice-over can tell you which ANC mode is active—an overly compli-

conditions. For each of these acoustic environments, we streamed a variety of classical, jazz, classic rock, modern pop, and hip hop tracks, from Beethoven (“Ode To Joy”) to Dave Brubeck (“Take Five”), The Beatles (Abbey Road 50th anniversary mix), Bruno Mars (with Mark Ronson on “Uptown Funk”), and Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion (“WAP”), plus others from Apple Music on an iPhone 12 Pro Max. A er auditioning nearly 20 different models of ANC buds, here are our top 10, in alphabetical order.

cated sequence. Removing a bud from your ear also does not auto-pause music playback, which I found to be an annoying oversight.

You get 5 hours of single-charge ANCassisted listening—an average amount—plus a below-average 9.5 hours of additional ANC playback with case recharges.

For non-ANC listening, single-charge playback is a slightly above-average 8.6 hours plus an additional 15.4 hours with recharges, while a 15-minute quickcharge yields an impressive 3 hours of playback time. The AU-Stream buds are also IPX5 water-protected and their case can be charged via a USB-C cable or wirelessly on a Qi pad.

AU-Stream’s biggest caveat is their smallish

silicone ear tips. The “large” tips are sized more like the medium tips included with most other buds, which makes these buds more appropriate for those with smaller ear canals. I usually require large tips and found it challenging to achieve a sound-isolating seal. The buds themselves are small, weighing a barely-there 0.23 ounces, and once properly seal-fi ed remained comfortable for several hours of wear.

Ausounds’ tiny pebbleshaped case, meanwhile, measures a mere 2.5 x 1.5 x 1.25 inches and can be easily stashed in a pocket.

THE VERDICT

The Ausounds AU-Stream delivers deep bass and decent ergonomics, but it’s too expensive overall for what you get.

soundandvision.com [ 39

TRUE WIRELESS EARBUDS

BOSE QUIETCOMFORT ($279)

bose.com

RATINGS PERFORMANCE

COMFORT

FEATURES

VALUE

The QuietComfort (QC) earbuds carry on Bose’s tradition of noise-canceling proficiency, pairing ANC with near-audiophile sound reproduction to create one the best-sounding bud options we’ve heard to date.

But compared with the Jabra Elite 85t, our top choice in this test, the Bose buds come up short in several ways. The QCs aren’t as light or comfortable, and their fit isn’t as firm. They also offer few controls and no sound customization while priced $80 higher than the Jabra.

I’ve only heard a handful of other true wireless buds that can match Bose’s sound quality. Music displays a full frequency range with loads of detail and wide dynamics, and the soundstage is spacious. For portable listening, the QC buds have few sonic peers among the wireless ANC bud bunch.

If the Jabra’s noise cancellation in this test rates a 5, the Bose QC gets a 4.99: I heard a smidge more whisper in airplane cabin engine hum, but wind noise was

EARFUN FREE PRO ($60)

myearfun.com

RATINGS PERFORMANCE

COMFORT

FEATURES

VALUE

Noise-canceling true wireless buds for $60? What’s the catch?

In the Earfun Free Pro’s case, it’s not-great ANC, primarily. But

dampened far more than by the Jabra. Once music playback begins, all external sound disappears, and you can adjust the QC’s ANC level from 1 to 10 depending on your environmental situation. The QC also be ered the Jabra at ambient noise handling, with only a negligible difference between “live” sound and Bose’s ambient (no ANC) se ing.

Bose’s limited on-bud controls and customization features include doubletapping the right bud to pause playback and sliding a finger up or down to raise or lower volume, respectively. A Shortcut mode lets you touch-and-hold the le bud to either skip forward a track or hear a voice-over announce remaining ba ery level. Double-tapping the le earbud cycles through three “favorite” ANC levels, which you can set from 1-10.

The practical shortcoming for this function is that you simply can’t tap to instantly turn ANC on or off to hear ambient sound; instead, your best option for listening to announcements is to remove a bud to automatically pause music playback.

Bose says you’ll get 6 hours of listening on a single charge but doesn’t say if this is with ANC on, off, or somewhere in between. You get 12 additional hours of listening from case recharges—a low

with surprisingly decent sound quality, ba ery life, and comfort, these Earfuns prove you don’t need to spend hundreds of bucks to get a decent set of wireless buds.

I was quite frankly stunned by the robust sound the cheap Earfun Free Pros provided. You get bouncy if over-emphasized bass in an otherwise airy, open soundstage—a perfect combination for today’s pop chart-toppers.

40 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

amount even for buds priced half of what Bose asks for the QC—although a 15-minute recharge nets a he y 2 hours of additional listening time, and total bud/case recharging takes just 2 hours.

The Bose QCs are IPX4 water-protected. Instead of having the usual round silicone tips, they have oval ones with a ached ear wings to keep the buds in place.

Obviously, comfort depends on your ear canal shape and size. I usually use large ear tips but had to step down to the Bose QC's middle #2 bud/wings to create a comfortable, noise-isolating fit. If you find even large ear tips to be too small, the Bose QC is your bud.

The otherwise lightweight 0.3-ounce QCs extrude from your ears a bit further than other buds, and thus feel a bit off-balance. As a result, they were more prone to accidental dislodging than I

While the Earfun’s noisecanceling isn’t as effective as the other buds in this roundup, it did eliminate around half of the most egregious airplane engine drone, though I was able to hear some remaining hum even with loud music playing. But external voices were dampened nearly as effectively as with the more expensive ANC buds, and they were effectively eliminated once music playback began.

However, the Free Pro’s ambient

expected. Overall, the Bose buds proved comfortable for hours-long listening sessions, but their fit just felt looser than with the other buds I tested.

Bose’s case for the QC is awkward. At 3.5 x 2 x 1.25 inches, it’s nearly twice the size of the Jabra Elite 85t case, so forget squeezing it comfortably into your pants pocket. It’s also equipped with an annoying latch that seems designed to keep it from accidentally opening (not a problem I know of with wireless bud cases) that I o en found myself needing to pry open. Like the Jabra Elite 85t, Bose’s case can be wirelessly recharged.

THE VERDICT

The Bose QCs are among the best-sounding buds that we auditioned for this test and offer top-notch noise cancellation, but they’re also bulky and pricey.

listening mode is useless, with external voices sounding essentially the same as in the ANC Off mode. Bo om line: You will need to remove the Free Pro buds from your ears to clearly hear announcements or conduct conversations.

While there is no app to customize sound or controls, the Earfun Free Pro is otherwise packed with convenience features. They can be charged via the included USB-C cable

or on a Qi wireless charging pad. You can use single buds in mono mode, and you can control both track playback and volume level via on-bud taps.

Unfortunately, removing a bud does not automatically pause music playback.

The Earfun also has surprisingly good ba ery life: up to 6 hours playback with ANC on and 27 hours with recharges, and 7 hours plus 32 hours with recharges with ANC off. It takes 3.5 hours for a total recharge of the depleted case and buds, and 10 minutes of quickcharging yields 2 additional listening hours.

The Earfun Free Pro buds are the tiniest and lightest I auditioned, which is both a good and a bad thing. In the

tight noise-isolating fit even with the default largest size. You get two sizes of stabilizing ear wings, though the buds barely protrude and are unlikely to be accidentally dislodged. In the bad column, I had some minor difficulties digging the tiny buds out of their case and also out of my ears once they were twisted in. The Earfun Free Pro case also weighs a next-to-nothing 1.48 ounces, and at less than one-inch-wide it will slip easily into a pocket.

THE VERDICT

good column, the buds are incredibly light and felt barely there over several hours of

EDIFIER TWS NB2 PRO ($89)

edifier.com

RATINGS PERFORMANCE

COMFORT

FEATURES

VALUE

If you find it hard to believe that you can find true wireless buds for less than $100 that sound great and also offer decent noise cancellation, let me introduce you to the Edifier TWS NB2 Pro. Edifier buds consistently punch above their weight when it comes to audio quality, and these NB2s are no exception.

For less than a hundred bucks, you get bright, robust sound with plenty of bass. They’re a joy to listen with when you factor in the low price.

You get what you pay for when it comes to the NB2 Pro’s noise-canceling, however. Only about half of the surrounding cacophony gets stifled, which kind of makes sense since the NB2s are half the price of the models in this test that offer superior ANC. You’ll also hear faint external noise with all but the loudest musical playback.

The NB2 Pro has basic tap controls: double-tap on the right

listening. Four sets of silicone ear tips are included, although I did have problems ge ing a

bud to pause/play, double-tap on the le bud to cycle through the three ANC modes (On, Off, Ambient). Microscopic type in Edifier’s miniscule printed instruction manual refers once to functions in an “APP” without any further instruction, although an Edifier Connect app is among the features listed on the TWS NB2 Pro's outer box. When I downloaded it, the app contained no additional features or customization, just earbud ba ery level info and the ability to switch directly from noisecanceling to Ambient sound modes.

When you remove a bud, music

Inexpensive buds with bassheavy but otherwise clean sound, the Earfun Free Pros are best for basic everyday use rather than noise-isolation during travel.

automatically pauses and then resumes when returned to your ear. Even be er, you get an impressive 7 hours of music playback on a single charge with an additional 18 hours provided by the case with ANC enabled. Without ANC, you get 9 hours plus 23 additional hours of listening time.

Personal admission: I don’t like stick-styled earbuds, which tend to fit looser that rounder models. Stick buds like these Edifiers can also produce microphonic noise when you turn your head even slightly. Like many of the buds I auditioned for this test, the Edifier silicone ear tips tended to run small—I was unable to get a good fit even using the large tips. A comfortable, noisesealing fit also was hindered by the ball behind the ear tip, which keeps you from inserting or adjusting the buds as necessary into your ear canal. The approximately 2.5 x 2 x 1-inch charge-carry case is compact enough to fit into most pockets, but with no notch it’s a bit difficult to pry open.

THE VERDICT

At half the price of its competitors, the Edifier NB2 Pro offers great sound for the money, but not similarly great noisecanceling or comfort.

soundandvision.com [ 41

TRUE WIRELESS EARBUDS

JABRA ELITE 85T ($230) jabra.com RATINGS PERFORMANCE

COMFORT

FEATURES

VALUE

Jabra’s Elite 85t provides highly effective ANC plus the company’s excellent HearThrough ambient sound mode. The accompanying Sound+ app contains a variety of sound and control customizations, and both the buds and case are compact and lightweight enough for comfortable wear and carry.

Jabra’s buds have a neutral response out of the box, and the detail and aboveaverage soundstage allow it to nearly reach the acoustic heights of the Bose QC and JBL Club Pro+, the two top sonic performers in our test.

You can adjust the Elite 85t’s sound as desired with a fivepoint EQ for three situational sound modes (My Moment, Commute, Focus), or via six music presets (Neutral, Speech, Bass Boost, Treble Boost, Smooth, and Energize, which boosts both bass and treble). You also get a variety of noise-masking nature “soundscapes” including pink and white noise.

JBL CLUB PRO+ ($199.95) jbl.com RATINGS PERFORMANCE

COMFORT

FEATURES

VALUE

Featured-packed buds offering app-based customization for sound and control are generally a good thing, but JBL has gone way overboard on that aspect with its Club Pro+. The over-complicated sound modes

Slip these buds in, activate the Elite 85t’s ANC, and, like turning off a light instantly blackens a basement, you’ll experience an extreme aural shi to eerie near-silence.

Airplane cabin noise virtually disappears except for a low engine hum and vaguely distant-sounding voices, and that’s without music playing.

With music playing and ANC set to maximum—you can adjust the noise-canceling level along a sliding scale— barely a glimmer of the outside world is le to intrude on your reverie. And when you enable Jabra’s Elite 85t HearThrough ambient mode, nearby voices come through loudly and clearly.

When you first insert the Elite 85t, you’re guided through a MySound hearing profile test to determine which frequencies you can and can’t hear, and the app then optimizes music playback for your ears. A MyFit feature then makes sure the buds are creating an isolating seal to optimize bass response and ANC effectiveness.

The Jabra Sound+ app offers extensive audio adjustments plus a full range of playback and call control customization that can be assigned to single, double, or triple bud-taps. My one

included in these true wireless buds mar what was otherwise the best-sounding model I auditioned for this test.

Before you start listening to music, you use the My JBL Headphone app to choose between three smart audio modes: Normal (the default se ing that provides a “stable” connection), Audio (delivers the “best” audio quality), and (Video) which is meant to improve lip-sync performance.

Sound quality does gain additional presence in Audio compared with Normal mode,

42 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

quibble is the lack of an easy ambient sound mode music pause/play option: If you turn on HearThrough, music continues playing for some reason even though you can’t hear it. (Note to

Jabra: A single-click ambient sound/pause play would be a welcome app update.) On the plus side, the Elite 85t does have handy on-bud volume control.

With ANC on, you get up to 5.5 hours of playback from a single charge, plus 19.5 hours of additional recharge playback time. Single-charge playback rises to 7 hours plus 24 more hours via recharges with ANC off. It takes a he y 3 hours to recharge totally depleted buds and case, and 3.5 hours via convenient Qi wireless charging, and 15-minute quick-charging will get you an hour of listening time. An app-based Find My Jabra feature can locate your buds on a map,

but I’m not sure what you give up here since I didn’t experience any Bluetooth connection issues. In any event, the Club Pro+ in Audio mode challenges the sonics of the Bose QC and Jabra Elite 85t, with detail that emerges from an almost 3D-like soundstage and a wide frequency range with eventempered yet satisfying bass.

I could detect li le sonic difference between Audio and Video modes—voices and sound effects were a bit sharper, and lip sync was equally spot-on with either.

and you can pair the buds with up to 8 devices (most models don’t even allow two devices to be paired). Also, the Elite 85t’s right earbud can be used as a mono monitor, and they feature IPX4 water protection plus a two-year warranty.

I used the Jabra Elite 85t buds, each of which weighs only a featherweight 2.5 grams, for several multi-hour listening jags and never felt any in-ear discomfort. Small, medium, and large silicone ear tips are provided to give you the most comfortable noise-sealing fit. At 2.55 x 1.62 x 1.12 inches, the Elite 85t case is one of the smallest I've yet seen and is easily pocketable.

THE VERDICT

The Jabra Elite 85t’s combination of sound quality, noise-canceling effectiveness, features, comfort, and value make it the best all-around bud in our test.

Quite frankly, I preferred the smoother sound signature of the Audio mode for watching movies. Bo om line: Audio mode on the Club Pro+ makes the other se ings superfluous.

An then there are the JBL’s confusing noise-canceling modes. There are three to toggle through— ANC (which JBL labels as “Adaptive”), Ambient, and Off—plus a TalkThru mode separate from Ambient, which I guess improves ambient mode conversation. When toggling through the ANC modes on the

buds, instead of a voice prompt telling you which mode is which, a beep indicates that you’ve switched modes. To access TalkThru—which does sharpen up voices up a tad—you’ll need the app, which is ridiculously inconvenient. There’s also a separate Active mode that “optimizes noise canceling for active use,” but I heard no difference with Active mode enabled.

Even with all these largely unnecessary options, the JBL’s adaptive noise cancellation was a shade less effective than what I heard with the Bose and Jabra models. Voices were dampened, and it also eliminated the bo om end of airplane cabin noise, but a background of engine hum was disappointingly audible during all but the loudest music playback.

JBL supplies “gesture” control customization—basi-

cally bud taps. For each bud you can choose a set of multi-tap controls for playback, ambient sound, volume, and voice assistant control (phone call tap controls are static). But even with all this customization, what’s missing is an option to

JVC HA-A50T ($99.95) us.jvc.com RATINGS PERFORMANCE

COMFORT

FEATURES

VALUE

If you’re on a tight budget and your ears aren’t fussy, JVC’s HA-A50T is a worthy sub-$100 bud. Music reproduction is middling, but its noise-canceling and ambient sound modes perform on par with some buds at twice the price.

Classic rock tunes on the JVC mostly suffered from thudding bass and a thick mid-range with recessed vocals.

More beat-heavy modern recordings fared be er but were still hampered by a narrow soundstage and a lack of brightness and presence. The sound overall wasn’t bad, though it did pale in comparison with the be er-sounding buds in our test.

The JVC doesn’t match the noisecanceling competence of the Jabra and Bose models, but it did suppress slightly more noise than the JBL Club Pro+ and other pricier ANC buds. I experienced a dramatic cut-off of oppressive airplane drone with just some white noise

pause music and activate TalkThru with a single tap to hear announcements or to engage in conversation. On-bud volume and operational control seems to be mutually exclusive —you have to choose one or the other, which is pre y odd since many other buds accommodate both types of control.

The app also presents various “Stage+” EQs se ings.

There’s a customizable EQ that uses a bendable 10-point frequency curve, and DJ Signature, Piano, Jazz, and Vocal presets. You can set an auto-off time from 15 minutes to 2 hours so the buds don’t burn ba ery life when removed but not returned to their charging case, and there’s a Find My Buds feature designed to help locate them in your home, office, or wherever.

humming through, and voices nearly disappeared. Ambient sound comes through the HA-A50T with nearly all the clarity and level as you’d hear with your naked ears—far be er performance than I expected given the price.

With no app to customize audio or operation, the HA-A50T is pre y simple. The types of control assigned to each bud is reversed compared to other buds, however. For example, you control play/pause, volume down, and track back via tap, double-tap, and tap-hold on the le bud instead of the usual right, and toggle through the three noise-canceling modes—On, Ambient, and Off—volume up, and skip track on the right bud. A er playing with so many buds with pause/play on the right and noise canceling on the le , the JVC took a bit of muscle memory re-training.

The HA-A50T’s best and most surprising feature is Touch & Talk. When you tap the right bud to activate Ambient sound mode, music will automatically pause and then restart when you tap ANC back on. This is a feature that I wish all ANC buds offered.

You get plenty of listening juice with the HA-A50T: 6 hours of noisecanceling playback on a single charge, 8 hours with ANC off, plus three additional case recharges. Fully depleted,

JBL gives you a slightly above-average 6 hours of noise-canceling playback, and 8 hours without ANC. Total listening time is up to 24 hours with case recharges, and a 15-minute speed charge provides an hour of added playback time.

The My JBL Headphone app prompts you to test your bud fit when first opened. And once a noise-isolating seal is achieved, the lightweight and compact Club Pro+ wear easily and comfortably over hours of extended listening periods.

JBL’s 2 x 2 x 1.25-inch case also is relatively compact.

THE VERDICT

The JBL Club Pro+ offers great sound, above-average ANC, and a comfortable fit, but has way too many unnecessary and complicated se ings.

the case and buds require a he y 3.5 hours to replenish full ba ery power.

JVC’s buds are IPX4 water-resistant and come with a generous five sets of silicone and memory foam ear tips. The lightweight (0.25 ounce) oblong buds protrude a bit, but don’t feel unbalanced. Once twisted in, they stayed put even with aggressive head movements.

One drawback is the HA-A50T’s case.

At around 3.5 x 1.75 x 1.25 inches, it’s larger than most, so you’ll want to stash it in a bag rather than a pocket.

THE VERDICT

The JVC HA-A50T’s sound quality and ANC are mostly average, but it otherwise offers impressive features and functions for under-$100 buds.

soundandvision.com [ 43

TRUE WIRELESS EARBUDS

MASTER & DYNAMIC MW08 ($299) masterdynamic.com RATINGS PERFORMANCE

COMFORT

FEATURES

VALUE

Master & Dynamic's MW08s sure are beautiful buds.

And their physical beauty is matched by impressive ba ery life, with a whopping 10 hours of noise-canceling listening time. Whether these luxury buds ultimately merit their high price tag is another ma er, however.

Music with the MW08 is presented in a near-3D soundstage and can be described as punchy, though o en with thudding bass. The balance works for beat-heavy tracks, but depending on the music mix, the jackhammer low-end can prove to be a bit overwhelming. Unfortunately, there are no EQ functions or presets included in the MW08’s accompanying control and setup app.

SAMSUNG GALAXY BUDS PRO ($200) samsung.com RATINGS PERFORMANCE

COMFORT

FEATURES

VALUE

Given the price and luxury design, I expected equal richness from the M&D Connect app, but all it has is ANC and ambient sound mode switching, along with four options for auto-off timing.

There are two ANC modes: Max, and All Day noisecanceling, which is designed for lower-noise environments and, I assume, ba ery life optimization. All Day ANC let through more airplane cabin hum than I expected. Flipping to Max effectively filtered out the remaining engine thrumming, but I could still hear voices. You also get two ambient listening modes: Voice and Awareness. The MW08 further features builtin wind-reduction to reduce the whooshing sound that can wash out music when in ANC mode.

The MW08 is controlled by tiny multi-function bu ons.

A toggle mounted on the le bud is used to adjust volume, and you click-and-hold to cycle through the three ANC modes. Switching to ambient mode does not auto-pause

provided top-tier sound quality among the buds that I auditioned for this roundup. You’ll experience a wide soundstage, plenty of definition, and clean bass that’s not overly enhanced.

The Galaxy Bud Pro’s noisecanceling capabilities fell just below the Jabra and Bose models. With ANC set to High,

Samsung’s Galaxy Bud Pro provides excellent sonics and noise-canceling, plus a ra of cool features and functions such as the ability to amplify ambient sound and make voices nearly twice as loud. But there’s one catch: The Samsung buds need to be paired with a Samsung Galaxy smartphone.

Performance Along with the Jabra 85t, the Bose QC, and the JBL Club Pro+, the Galaxy Buds Pro 44 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

music, but that will happen when you remove a bud with “in-ear detection” toggled on in the app. On the right bud, a single bu on is used to control calls, tracks, and voice assistant access.

As noted above, you get 10 hours of ANC singlecharge playback. With ANC off, expect around 12 hours, with 30 additional hours from case recharges. You get 50 percent of full playtime— either 5 or 6 hours—from a 5-minute charge, which is astounding, and a full charge takes a mere 45 minutes.

Included inside the box is a USB-C to USB-C cable, with a USB-A adapter included for legacy users. There are

some airplane cabin noise and cha er still crept into my music listening, but amplified ambient noise is why you’d want the Buds Pro. You get four ambient noise levels: Low, Medium, High, and Extra High, with low delivering the same sound level you’d get without buds on and only a minimum of muffle. At

four-sets of silicone ear tips (XS-S-L-XL) and the buds come pre-fit with a fi h pair of medium-sized tips.

The MW08 feels as rich as its price—you can even get the buds monogrammed— and it’s IPX5 water-protected.

The buds are ceramic, and at 0.32 ounces each, heavier than their plastic competition. You don’t feel the weight, though—the MW08 buds will remain comfortable in your ears for hours.

THE VERDICT

The Master & Dynamic MW08 are luxurious and a ractive buds, but the sound is overly bass-heavy, and the price is high.

Extra High, the Buds Pros can double as hearing aids, though that se ing will also shorten ba ery life.

Though it’s packed with features, I felt I had to knock a point off the Galaxy Buds Pro’s features rating since none of its best functions are available for iOS. You’ll need a Samsung phone running the latest Android and Samsung One operating systems in order to access all of the fascinating functions buried within Samsung’s Wearable app. You can customize single, double, and triple on-bud tap controls, pass Buds Pro pairing from Samsung device to Samsung device, experience 360 Audio with Dolby Head Tracking, enable dual recording with both your Galaxy Phone and the Buds Pro

simultaneously capturing audio (handy for interviewing), and locate the buds where you last le them using SmartThings Find.

And that’s just a taste of the features that are available.

Ba ery life is about average: around 5 hours on a single charge plus 13 hours with case charges with ANC or ambient sound on, and 8 hours plus 20 hours with case charges in Normal mode.

With its IPX7 rating, Samsung’s Galaxy Buds Pro is practically waterproof. The tiny buds are thumb-sized, and because they’re also a li le slick they can easily slip out of your fingers. Once you choose from the small, medium, and large silicone ear tip options, Samsung recommends you insert and twist the buds into your ear canal to get a solid, sound-isolating seal. The Galaxy Buds Pro buds are light,

tribitaudio.com

RATINGS PERFORMANCE

COMFORT

FEATURES

VALUE

The performance and value of the inexpensive Tribit Flybuds NC will depend entirely on whether you find stick buds comfortable and can achieve a noiseisolating fit. Personally, I didn’t find the Flybuds NC comfortable and wasn’t able to make the fit work.

While the Tribit FlyBuds offer a relatively balanced sound, frequency range and soundstage are both somewhat restricted, and bass barely peeks through. Some microphonics caused by the stick design can also mar the already middling sound quality.

The reasonable suppression of airplane cabin noise here is pre y much what you’d expect from $50 ANC buds.

Voices are reasonably suppressed, but with their inherent microphonics, the FlyBuds don’t provide total silence even

CONCLUSION Four noise-canceling true wireless earbud models stood above the rest in our test: the Bose QuietComfort, Jabra Elite 85t, JBL Club Pro+, and Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro. Each has superior sound quality, an ability to cancel nearly all ambient noise, and offers extensive customization through a complementary app.

For the golden-eared, the Bose QC offer the best sound quality of all the buds I auditioned, the most effective noise cancellation (along with the Jabra Elite 85t), and by far the best wind-suppression in ANC mode, which makes them ideal for outdoor

THE VERDICT

If you’re an owner of a Samsung Galaxy smartphone, Samsung’s Galaxy Buds Pro is without a doubt the bud you should buy.

removing a bud doesn’t auto-pause music playback.

The Tribit FlyBuds have superior ba ery life: 10 hours on a single charge with ANC off plus 30 hours play time with case recharges, and 8 hours plus 24 hours with recharges with ANC on.

A 10-minute quick charge provides 90 minutes of playback.

Tribit supplies you with a surprisingly large selection of five silicone “eargels,” but all of the tips are somewhat shallower than the ones included with other buds. As a result, I found it difficult to achieve a satisfactory seal. Even when using the largest-sized eargels for the best noise-isolating fit, the FlyBuds, like all stick buds, felt loose and produced microphonics. The buds get stored in a round case that’s 1.25 inches thick, which is a bit chunkier than the slimmest cases we’ve run across.

TRIBIT FLYBUDS NC ($50)

compact, and comfortable, and they remain securely ensconced once inserted.

At 2 x 2 x 1 inches, the round Buds Pro case is a similarly compact design that allows for comfortable pocketing.

in totally quiet ambient environments.

Controls include basic on-bud taps for play/call navigation and toggling ANC through On, Off, and Ambient modes. There’s no customization app— not a shock considering the price. Also, there’s no on-bud volume control and

activities like jogging or biking. But the Bose QC buds stick out a bit too much and don’t feel as if they’ll stay as firmly stable in your ears as the other models. They also cost $50 more than the Jabra and $80 more than the Samsung, and the case is inconveniently enormous compared with those earbud options.

The Samsung Galaxy Pro’s sound is nearly as precise and enjoyable as the Bose QC’s. It also comes with a choice of colorful compact cases and offers the best ambient listening functionality, all at the same $200 price as the Jabra Elite 85t. But to unlock the Galaxy Buds Pro’s goodness, you’ll need to use it with a recent-model Samsung Galaxy phone.

THE VERDICT

Depending on if you have smaller ears, you might be able to achieve the necessary noise-isolating seal to make the inexpensive Tribid FlyBuds NC effective for music playback and ANC performance. If not, definitely look elsewhere.

The JBL Club Pro+ produces the liveliest, you-are-there sonics of the bunch.

But you’ll need to weed through too many arguably unnecessary se ings, and ANC effectiveness falls just below the other three, making them more “everyday” buds than airplane companions.

Of all the ANC buds we auditioned, the Jabra Elite 85t was the only model that proved superior in nearly all aspects, providing excellent sound quality with useful audio and control optimization, top-notch noise-canceling and ambient modes, and a range of comfort and convenience features. The Jabra’s overall excellence makes them our choice for best noise-canceling true wireless earbuds. soundandvision.com [ 45

test report LG HU810PW 4K LASER DLP PROJECTOR

RATING PERFORMANCE FEATURES

Smart Cinema

ERGONOMICS VALUE

By Al Griffin

AS THE “Smart TV” has become the norm, projectors in contrast have remained steadfastly dumb.

For many home theater enthusiasts, that arrangement has worked out just fine, with streaming, voice control, and other forms of internet-connected interaction handled by front-end components on the A/V rack and the projector serving as li le more than a means to display an image. But recent ultra short throw and other “lifestyle” projectors have begun to blur the distinction between smart and dumb by offering some of the hightech features found in the latest TVs. And now with the arrival of LG’s HU810PW, we have something we haven’t seen here before here at Sound & Vision: a model designed for a traditional ceiling-mount installation that’s loaded with TV-type smart features.

LG calls the HU810PW a 4K UHD Smart Dual Laser CineBeam Projector. To parse that mouthful, the HU810P is a single-chip (0.47inch) DLP projector that delivers 4K resolution via pixel-shi ing and uses a dual-laser (red, blue, plus green phosphor) light source to beam images with up to a specified 2,700 ANSI lumens brightness.

Smart features come courtesy of the same webOS 5.0 interface found in LG’s flat-panel TVs, with the projector offering access to Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, Peacock, YouTube, Showtime, Starz, and other streaming apps via a wired or Wi-Fi connection.

An HDMI eARC port lets you route audio, including Dolby Atmos soundtracks, directly from the projector to an outboard receiver or surround sound processor, and the HU810PW also has a Bluetooth

46 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

output for a wireless connection to a soundbar.

Along with its 4K display capabillity, the HU810PW supports the HDR10 and Hybrid Log Gamma high dynamic range formats and is spec’d for 97 percent DCI-P3 color space coverage, though a footnote in LG’s spec sheet claims that this only applies to certain picture modes. The projector lacks a dynamic iris, but does provide Dark Room, Bright Room, and user-adjustable Iris modes, which are aided by an Adaptive Contrast se ing that helps to maximize picture contrast depending on room lighting. There’s no useradjustable HDR tone mapping adjustment similar to the one found in Epson and JVC projectors, though a Dynamic Tone Mapping feature capable of adjusting HDR images on a frame-by-frame basis can be enabled.

The life of the projector’s laser light source is specified for up to 20,000 hours, which translates to nine-plus years of six-hour daily viewing time. It boots up to full brightness within a few seconds a er power-up, and shuts down quickly and quietly. Along with Wi-Fi, the HU810PW’s wireless streaming support extends to Apple AirPlay for Mac computers and iOS devices and screen mirroring via Miracast for PCs and Android devices. Voice control is also onboard, with Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa, and LG’s own ThinQ+ assistants all supported.

LG’s cosmetic design for the HU810PW could best be described as “unassuming.” It has a boxy white case, with a dial to manually adjust horizontal/vertical lens position on the right side and knobs to manually

adjust zoom and focus at the bo om front beneath the lens.

A joystick control to navigate onscreen menus and power the projector on and off is located on the projector’s back panel above the inputs.

The LG’s connections include a pair of HDMI 2.0b inputs plus an HDMI version 2.1 input that supports eARC (Enhanced Audio Return Channel) and ALLM (Auto Low Latency Mode). And while HDMI 2.1 on a projector should be great news for gamers, bandwidth for that input is limited to 24Gbps, which is not enough to support 4K/120Hz video output from latest-gen PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X gaming consoles. On the subject of gaming, I measured input lag from a 1080p test signal generator at 80ms in Game mode—a below-average level of performance compared with other projectors.

LG packages the same Magic Remote with the HU810PW that you get with the company’s TVs. This offers “point-and-click” capability where you use the fully backlit handset to drag a cursor around the screen, and then click on items to select them. There are navigation and scroll wheel controls, along with bu ons to directly access onscreen menus, picture modes, and a microphone for voice control.

Simplink (HDMI-CEC) lets you use the remote to also operate connected devices like a Blu-ray disc player. And if you have an A/V receiver connected to the projector via HDMI eARC, the remote can adjust the AVR’s volume. For someone like myself who regularly uses a “dumb” projector, LG’s Magic Remote—and the busy WebOS 5.0 screen interface—took some ge ing used to, but I eventually adapted. Unfortunately, many of the streaming apps that I regularly use for viewing like HBO Max, Netflix (Netflix!), and The Criterion Channel were not available for download from LG’s App Store, so I ended up using using an

At a Glance Ample brightness and good contrast Flexible zoom and lens shift range Built-in streaming apps Requires calibration for best performance Smart features may be overkill for some Price: $2,999 800-243-0000 lg.com

external Roku Streaming Stick+ for much of my evaluation.

SETUP Like many a projector before it, the HU810PW was installed on a high shelf located at a 14-foot distance from a 92-inch diagonal, 1.1 gain Stewart Filmscreen Cima screen in my

home theater room. The projector’s 1.6x zoom allowed me to easily adjust image size to fill the screen from that distance, while its 60 percent vertical, 24 percent horizontal lens shi adjustments helped to precisely center the image. The manual focus control meant repeated trips between projector and screen were necessary to

evaluate image crispness a er making fine adjustments, but I was able to eventually dial the focus in perfectly.

Most of the LG’s picture presets had a pronounced blue bias that made white tones look overly cool. That list included Filmmaker mode, a se ing that otherwise eliminates image processing such as motion enhancement. The most accurate preset I measured was Bright Room (Expert), which proved close enough that I would recommend it for most viewers. As a starting point for my adjustment, I instead ended up using Dark Room (Expert), a mode that required substantial calibration to whip into proper

soundandvision.com [ 47

test report LG HU810PW 4K LASER DLP PROJECTOR

Test Bench FULL-ON/FULL-OFF CONTRAST RATIO: 3,225:1

The measurements here were made using Calman measurement software from Portrait Displays (www. portrait.com), together with a Photo Research PR650 color meter, Minolta LS-100 luminance meter and a Murideo/AVPro (Fresco Six-G) test pattern generator.

Pre-calibration measurements were made with the LG HU810PW’s Expert (Dark Room) picture mode active. Postcalibration measurements were made in the same mode. All measurements were made with the projector positioned at a 14foot distance from a 92-inch diagonal, 1.1 gain Stewart Filmscreen Cima screen.

The projector’s maximum full-on/full-off SDR contrast ratio was achieved with the Expert (Dark Room) Picture, Minumum Energy Saving, Dark Room Iris, Low Black Level, High Dynamic Contrast, and Adaptive Contrast settings active, with Contrast at 80

shape (see Test Bench). Similar to LG’s HU85LA ultra short throw model Sound & Vision's Kris Deering tested in late 2019, the HU810PW offers 2-, 10-, and 22-point white balance adjustments—a unique feature for a projector. Starting out with 2-point adjustment, and then switching to 22-point for more granular tweaking, I was able to dial in a near-perfect grayscale, while the color management system controls let me make substantive improvements to color point accuracy.

A fully different set of picture presets is available for viewing programs with HDR. I opted

and Brightness at 50. With this combination, black measured 0.006 ft-L and peak white 19.35 ft-L for a contrast ratio of 3,225:1.

With the Iris set to Medium, contrast ratio with the other settings listed above was 2,415:1.

Before calibration, the default color temperature preset in Expert (Dark Room) Picture mode displayed a significant red/blue bias. The Delta E averaged 18.85, with a low of 7.4 at 10 IRE and a high of 24.4 at 100 IRE. After calibration, the average Delta E improved dramatically to 1.3 with a high of 1.8 at 100 percent brightness. (Delta E is a figure of merit indicating how close the color comes to the standards, either D65 for the white point or the color coordinates for each of the primary and secondary colors that define the color gamut under test. Values below 3 are generally unnoticeable.)

With the default settings active in Expert (Dark Room) Picture mode, the

for the Cinema Home mode, which delivered a maximum light output in the 110 nits (32 footlamberts) range. (A preset labeled Brightest unsurprisingly delivered the LG’s maximum measured light output at 307 nits, though the LG’s grayscale skewed green with that one selected.) There are multiple se ings that affect picture contrast for both standard and high dynamic range viewing, including Energy Saving, Iris, Black Level, Dynamic Contrast, Adaptive Contrast, and Brightness Optimizer se ings. As detailed in the Test Bench section, various combinations

48 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

Delta E of the HU810PW’s measured color points averaged out to 8.5.

Using the projector’s color management system adjustments, I was able to improve color point accuracy to an average Delta E of 2.4, with a high of 3.2 for blue. Coverage of the DCI-P3 color gamut in Expert (Dark Room) mode topped out at 87.3 percent.

Post-calibration, gamma closely tracked a 2.2 target for most of the range with the BT.1886 Gamma preset selected. With the HDR Cinema Home preset mode active, peak white output measured 110 nits +/- 5 nits regardless of the size of the measured white

Specs

window. Picture uniformity was excellent: white fullfield test patterns showed minimal brightness drops between the center and edges of the projection screen, and no color shifts. Our suite of video processing tests revealed excellent all-around performance.

Fan noise is very low.

LG specs it at 28dB for Minimum Energy Saving, and I only measured a 2dB difference between the Minimum and Maximum modes.

Input lag with a 1080p source measured 80ms in Game mode, making the LG a below-average option for high-def gaming. —A.G.

DIMENSIONS: (WxHxD, Inches) 13.2 x 5.9 x 16.1 WEIGHT: (Pounds) 24.2 VIDEO INPUTS: HDMI 2.0b (2), HDMI 2.1

(1, w/eARC) OTHER: Wi-Fi, AirPlay, Bluetooth (output); Optical digital audio output; USB type-A (2), LAN (Ethernet) ILLUMINATION METHOD: Dual laser (red, blue, plus green

phosphor) LIGHT SOURCE LIFE: 20,000 hours

of these resulted in a maximum 3,225:1 contrast ratio—about twice as high as what we’ve measured on other 4K DLPbased projectors. Some of the se ings crush highlight detail in images when applied, however, so you’ll need to experiment to find an appropriate mix for your viewing environment, screen, and taste. For my own HDR viewing, I set Energy Saving to Minimum, Iris to User Mode (6), Adaptive Contrast to Medium, and Dynamic Contrast to Low.

HD/SDR PERFORMANCE To check out the projector’s performance with regular highdefinition programs, I streamed The Knick on HBO Max. This series, which originally aired on Cinemax in 2014-2015 and is directed by Steven Soderbergh, takes place in a struggling hospital in early 1900s Manha an. The set decoration and costumes are both meticulously detailed, and so are the early apparatuses depicted from this embryonic period of modern medical exploration.

The crisp whites of the surgical gowns in each episode came across with satisfying brightness and highlight detail. Darker scenes, such as those that take place in the Chinatown opium den where brilliant yet troubled chief surgeon John Thackery spends much of his downtime also displayed impressive

depth. Skintones of the cast looked natural, and with the LG handling 4K upconversion, the consistently crisp picture allowed for fine details in the ornate drawing and dining rooms of the hospital’s wealthy benefactors to emerge clearly.

(As an HBO Max subscriber since its May 2020 launch, I can a est that streaming quality of the service has greatly improved since I first used it to rewatch GoT during the early lockdown days.)

ULTRA HD/HDR PERFORMANCE For my 4K/HDR evaluation, I used a mix of personal reference movie discs on Ultra HD Blu-ray and streamed shows on Amazon Prime and Netflix.

Starting out with 2001: A Space Odyssey, the cave scene where pre-hominids huddle displayed good black depth and impressive detail in the fur of the creatures. Shadows lacked the level of black extension I’ve noted on projectors that use a dynamic iris, but the performance here was a definite notch above

other DLP models I’ve recently had in-house.

The mostly monochrome 2018 Chinese film Shadow offers a good example of how high dynamic range can enhance black-andwhite images. LG’s projector presented a wide range of creamy gray tones in scenes that take place in the king of Pei’s court, and I didn’t note any color tinting that wasn’t originally part of the movie’s post-production special effects.

Blacks in Shadow looked consistently solid, and image highlights also had a satisfying level of punch. It was on this film in particular that I noticed how some of the HU810PW’s contrast enhancement features could easily cause HDR highlight detail to appear washed out, but once I hit upon the right mix of adjustments (listed above in the Setup section), the picture had a punchy, yet balanced look.

Of the LG’s built-in apps that I checked out, both Amazon Prime and YouTube programs could be displayed in 4K/HDR, with Amazon also providing Dolby Atmos soundtracks.

Watching the Amazon Prime series ZeroZeroZero, I noted rich color and excellent detail in shots of a tanker ship crossing the Atlantic ocean. And in a later scene where a paramilitary squad descends onto the tanker from a helicopter, the ship’s floodlights and the spotlights on the soldiers’ rifles contrasted powerfully with the dark background of the night sky. A subsequent scene in Mexico where the same squad ambushes a drug dealer’s entourage in an SUV showed similarly strong contrast as vehicle headlights flashed in a darkened tunnel.

I took advantage of the LG’s arrival to bust out my copy of the Midsommar Director’s Cut: Collector’s Edition on Ultra HD Blu-ray disc. Shot with 8K and 5K cameras and mastered at 4K resolution, director Ari Aster’s 2019 movie initially only received a Blu-ray release—a big disappointment. (While that disc looked good overall, it didn’t nearly match up with my visual memory of what I saw in the theater.) Watching the Ultra HD Blu-ray version on the LG, the play of sunlight on the Swedish commune’s rural retreat had a wonderfully natural look, and the white clothing worn by the residents displayed extremely fine tonal gradations.

Color in particular corresponded with my theatrical experience, with the flowers worn by the May queen during a ceremonial feast literally bursting with vivid hues.

CONCLUSION With the HU810PW, LG has delivered a DLP projector offering impressive performance that’s also reasonably priced for a 4K model with a laser light source. Ge ing pictures to look their best required a fair amount of work, but once I had the se ings dialed in, I was very happy with what I was seeing with both regular HD and 4K/HDR sources. For some viewers, the HU810PW’s streaming and voice control features likely won’t ma er, but once you do get used to the projector’s Smart TV interface, it’s easy to navigate. LG may be a company closely associated with OLED TVs, but the HU810PW confirms it can also make projectors that will satisfy the demanding home theater enthusiast crowd.

The Verdict LG’s 4K laser DLP projector is packed with smart features and offers impressive all-around performance at a reasonable price. soundandvision.com [ 49

test report POLK AUDIO RESERVE SURROUND SPEAKER SYSTEM

RATINGS Speakers PERFORMANCE

The Best, For Less

BUILD QUALITY VALUE

By Al Griffin

BACK IN 2019, Polk Audio rolled out its Legend series speakers. For a brand known to maintain a laser-like focus on value, the Legends, with their finely constructed cabinets (featuring real wood veneer) and fully redesigned driver complement, not to mention an enhanced version of the company’s SDA (Stereo Dimensional Array) technology in the line’s flagship L800 tower, seemed an atypically cost-noobject offering. Even so, this being Polk Audio, the Legend series was priced substantially less than flagship speakers from many other brands, but also more than a typical Polk customer might expect to pay.

Fast-forward two years and Polk Audio has rolled out its Reserve series, a follow-up to the Legends that incorporates the same advanced drivers developed for those flagship speakers, along with some new technologies developed to optimize performance in a less swanky cabinet design.

According to Polk Audio, the main goal was to take everything good about the Legend series and port it over to a significantly lower-cost speaker line, making the advanced tech featured in its premium speakers accessible to listeners with more modest means.

The key components the Reserve series shares with the Legends are Polk Audio’s next-generation Pinnacle Ring Radiator tweeter and Turbine cone drivers. I covered both in my review of the Legend L800 towers (December 2019/

January 2020 issue) but will provide a brief recap here.

Unlike conventional dome tweeters, Polk Audio’s design uses a ring-shaped diaphragm with internal and external waveguides. The benefit to this design, according to the company, is the elimination of the “break-up modes” characteristic of domes, along with smoother high frequency response due to the waveguides. A sealed cavity behind the tweeter also affects the linearity of its response through the use of damping material that specifically reduces ringing at the 2.5kHz frequency.

Polk Audio’s distinctive Turbine woofer features a foamcore polymer-injected cone with an asymmetric geometry.

According to Polk, this combination damps break-up modes without added mass and also reduces resonances characteristic of the smooth cone woofers typically used for bass and midrange drivers.

What’s new for the Reserve series? The patented Power Port featured in the company's Legend series speakers has been upgraded to version 2.0.

This next-gen tech, available in the Reserve R600 and R700 towers, uses a new port tube along with a revamped base design that positions the port diffusor closer to the floor to, in Polk’s description, make the floor “part of the Power Port.” The new design also minimizes the visual impact of the bo om-mounted port and uses an aluminum plate

50 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

and outrigger feet to enhance stability and aesthetic appeal.

Further on up the port tube in Reserve series towers lies another enhancement: X-Port.

A proprietary filter designed

by Sco Orth, Polk Audio’s Head of Audio and Acoustics, X-Port uses something called an Eigentone Filter that can be tuned to cancel resonances at multiple frequencies within the port. According to Polk, X-Port effectively eliminates “unwanted noise, even at high volumes.”

While Reserve series speaker cabinets lack the lavish construction and wood-veneer finishes found in the Legend series, the company says they are “precisely engineered to minimize unwanted internal standing waves and eliminate unwanted resonances.” To that end, a complex network of internal point-to-point bracing can be found inside Reserve series speakers. Each model in the R600 tower-based system I was sent to review sports a smooth, a ractive black finish (walnut and white finishes are also available), with rounded-off corners and dark gray mesh grilles that nicely complement the cabinets.

At just 11 inches wide, the two-way R600 tower is appealingly slim, blending easily into the background when I dimmed the lights for movie viewing.

Along with its 1-inch Pinnacle Ring Radiator tweeter, it features a pair of 6.5-inch turbine cone woofers and has a specified 35Hz-50kHz frequency response. Sensitivity is

87.5dB, allowing it to be driven to loud-enough levels by even modest-powered receivers.

Connections are made via nickel-plated five-way binding posts on the tower’s bo om rear panel, while adjustable rubber spikes on the aluminum outrigger feet allow for precise height leveling on uneven floors.

Polk also sent me its R900 module ($499/pair) for Atmos and DTS:X height effects, a compact, sealed design that fits on top of Reserve series tower speakers as well as the R200 standmount/bookshelf speaker.

The R900 features a 0.75-inch version of the Pinnacle Ring Radiator tweeter and a 4-inch Turbine cone woofer. Keyhole slots on the back panel allow for wall-mounting, and there’s a switch that optimizes the speaker’s output for on-speaker and on-wall installations.

There are three center speaker options in the Reserve family, including a low-profile LCR and the compact R300 model ($399) that Polk sent along. The R300 features a pair of 5 1/4-inch turbine cone woofers flanking its Pinnacle Ring Radiator tweeter, which is vertically offset from center.

According to Polk Audio’s Orth, this offset tweeter placement reduces diffraction issues, with the varied distances from the sound source to the edges of the cabinet helping to smooth out the response. Unlike the top center speaker in the Reserve line, the R400 ($599), the R300 has sealed cabinet, a factor that likely accounts for its lower sensitivity rating compared with

the R400 (86.5dB vs. 89dB), which features dual rear X-Ports.

Polk included a set of its R200 standmount/bookshelf speakers ($699/pair) to use as surrounds for my test. The R200 pairs a single 6.5-inch Turbine cone woofer with its 1-inch Pinnacle Ring Radiator tweeter and, with a rated 39Hz-50kHz frequency response, is spec’d to deliver be er-than-average bass extension for a bookshelf model. A single X-Port is located on the R200’s back panel, along with a set of nickel-plated fiveway binding posts.

SETUP I tested the Reserve system in my 12 x 9 x 16-foot home theater room, but later moved the R600 towers and R200 bookshelf speakers to my slightly larger living room for a stereo-only evaluation with music. The R600 towers were installed at either side of an 80-inch-wide projection screen with the R900 height modules placed on top, and the R300 center speaker on a low stand below the screen and angled up toward the listening position using rubber feet. I placed the R200s on high speaker stands in the corners of my room behind the couch and angled them in at the main listening position.

A/V gear used for home theater testing included a Marantz SR6014 receiver, Roku Streaming Stick+, and an Oppo UDP-203 Ultra HD Blu-ray player. Along with playing discs, I tapped the Oppo player as a Roon endpoint for music streaming. Since Polk Audio

At a Glance Crisp, near full-range performance R900 module delivers immersive sound Impressive build quality for price Excellent value didn’t send along a subwoofer, I configured the Marantz AVR to run the R600 towers full-range, with the center, surrounds, and height modules crossed over at 80Hz. While it's always preferable to use a capable subwoofer to deliver LFE effects for movies, low-frequency sweep test tones revealed usable bass extension down to 30Hz, along with sufficient output for my medium-size home theater room.

MOVIES PERFORMANCE The first movie I watched with the system was Christopher Nolan’s Tenet, a disc with a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack. In a scene where The Protagonist and crew hijack a plane prior to takeoff and deliberately crash it into a storage terminal, the roar of the plane’s engines as it got abruptly re-directed had impressive he . Sound effects like metal ingots tossed from cargo onto the tarmac and vehicles ge ing crushed underneath were conveyed with impressive detail and precision, and when the slowmoving plane finally struck the wall of the terminal, resulting

Revealing sound can be slightly bright with some sources Price: $3,195 (as tested) (800) 377-7655 polkaudio.com

in a fiery explosion, the bass impact I heard was thoroughly satisfying.

To check out the system’s immersive capability, I next cued up the recent Ultra HD Blu-ray release of 2014’s Godzilla, a disc with an ear-opening Dolby Atmos soundtrack. In a scene where the big boy himself arrives in downtown Honolulu, the air force fighters flying overhead had a believable sense of height—the sound of the planes seemed to emanate from well above the screen, and the Reserve system conveyed their passage in a consistent manner from le to right, and from the rear to the front of the room. Later, as the military fires up at Godzilla from the top of buildings, I experienced a clear sense of the upward—and downward—trajectory of their missiles and flares.

What’s a monster movie without a Ba le of the Titans?

Fortunately, Godzilla has them to spare, and when a radiationeating MUTO (Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organism) arrives for a piece of our boy GZ, its footfalls displayed suitable he , while the metallicsounding roars it emi ed had a powerful envelope that was truly unnerving. When Godzilla then steps up to get in a few hits, his footfalls sounded deeper and notably louder soundandvision.com [ 51

test report POLK AUDIO RESERVE SURROUND SPEAKER SYSTEM than the MUTO’s (guess who’s gonna win this fight?) and his roars had a room-filling effect, with the annoyed-sounding vocalizing seeming to emanate equally from each speaker in the Reserve system.

Craving more Titan-on-Titan action, I streamed Godzilla vs.

Kong on HBO Max. And while that film’s Atmos soundtrack definitely lacked the dynamic impact of Godzilla (a limitation of streaming as compared with disc-based playback, perhaps?), effects like the giant lizard’s laser-like fire-breathing still had a strong trajectory as it sliced through the air.

Dialogue in the scenes leading up to the main Godzilla vs. Kong bout—which takes place on an aircra carrier at sea, no less—had consistently good clarity. I also had no complaints about tonal shi s in human voices when si ing off to one side of my six-foot-wide couch.

And while I had no issues with dialogue sounding strained in my medium-sized home theater, I also wondered if the Reserve series R400 “Performance”

center speaker would do be er justice to the titanic roars of Godzilla, Kong, and crew, especially in a larger room.

MUSIC PERFORMANCE The next step in my Reserve series test was to move the R600 tower speakers into my 20 x 16 x 9-foot living/music room for a stereo audition.

I connected them to a 2 x 150-wa Hegel Music Systems H190 integrated amplifier and used an ELAC Discovery DS-S101-G server running Roon as a music source, and also played CDs. The speakers went in my usual location about 1.5-feet out from the back wall and 8 feet away from the main listening seat, spread wide and toed inward.

Similar to the Legend L800 towers, I found that the R600s had a revealing quality, bringing forth detail in well-recorded tracks, as well as highlighting shortcomings in others. This dual ability was clearly demonstrated when I listened to Lana del Rey’s latest, Chemtrails

R600 ($1,598/pair): 6.5 in Turbine cone

woofer (2), 1 in Pinnacle Ring Radiator tweeter; 11 x 41.9 x 15 in (WxHxD); 47.3 lb Specs R300 ($399): 5.25 in Turbine cone woofer (2), 1 in Pinnacle Ring Radiator tweeter; 19 x 6.8 x 8.9 in (WxHxD); 16.8 lb R200 ($699/pair): 6.5 in Turbine cone woofer, 1 in Pinnacle Ring Radiator tweeter; 7.5 x 14.1 x 13.9 in (WxHxD); 19.1 lb R900 Height Module ($499/pair): 4 in Turbine cone woofer, 0.75 in Pinnacle Ring Radiator tweeter; 6.5 x 6.2 x 12.6 in (WxHxD); 6.6 lb

over the Country Club. The first track, “White Dress,” has a wispy, hotly recorded vocal track, and it sounded almost too thin, trebly, and in-your-face for comfort. Skipping forward to “Dark But Just a Game,” a track with a more balanced mix, del Rey’s voice came across as lush and finely textured, and it emerged fully formed between the speakers. The song’s low, almost subsonic electronic bass notes sounded powerful and deep, with the R600 managing to pressurize the room in the same manner I’d expect when using a good separate subwoofer or two.

Listening next to guitarist Bill Frisell’s “Valentine,” from the album of the same name, I heard well-proportioned sound, with the guitar strings coming through crisp and trebly, but also with a sense of “roundness” and texture. The standup bass displayed good definition throughout its full range, never once sounding tubby or weak.

Most impressive, though, was the drum solo toward the track’s end, which the Reserve R600 towers rendered with notable dynamic drive while also managing to convey cymbals in an airy manner.

U.K.-based Producer/ composer Hannah Peel’s album Fir Wave is a contemporary re-imagining of the electronic music experiments of British pioneer Delia Derbyshire and the BBC’s Radiophonic Workshop. Playing the track “Emergence in Nature” about 10dB above my preferred

listening level, the Polk towers easily and gracefully handled the propulsive beats and pulsating synths. Imaging also extended well beyond the physical boundaries of the speaker positions, resulting in an ultra-wide, near-wraparound presentation that hinted at my previous experience listening with the SDA Pro-equipped Legend 800 towers.

Speaking of Legends, I fortunately had a set of Legend series L100 bookshelf models ($999/pair) on hand to compare with the R200s. A er placing both speaker pairs in turn on stands in the same positions where I had put the towers and then matching their levels using pink noise test tones, I listened to a few reference music tracks and was impressed with the close tonal match between the

two. With its larger 6.5-inch mid-bass driver, there was a bit more low-end kick coming from the R200, but the Legend bookshelf with its 5.5-inch midbass driver was certainly no slouch in that department. Both models displayed a pleasing overall tonal balance with clean, satisfying bass impact for a bookshelf speaker. I think most listeners would be happy with either and would certainly find the Reserve series R200s to be a steal at $699/pair.

CONCLUSION A er having lived with Polk Audio’s Reserve series system for several months, I’m pleased to report no complaints about its performance, especially given the affordable price tag. Would the addition of a subwoofer result in lower bass extension and higher overall dynamics when watching action movies? Probably, but in

the medium-sized room where I mainly used the system, the bass was more than satisfying with most movies I watched and music I listened to. Would the Polk Audio’s larger “Performance” center speaker have conveyed Godzilla’s screams with greater impact? Possibly, but dialogue with the R300 center was natural-sounding and consistently clear, even from the far side of my couch.

You could certainly spend more to get great sound in your home theater (sky’s the limit, actually), but this Polk Audio Reserve series package proves you don’t really have to.

The Verdict Packed with tech developed for Polk Audio’s flagship Legend series, this Reserve series speaker package delivers dynamic and immersive sound at a budgetfriendly price.

Amazing Reality with Headphones

test report SONUS FABER LUMINA SURROUND SPEAKER SYSTEM

Luminous Surround

By Thomas J. Norton

LOUDSPEAKER MANUFACTURER Sonus faber was founded in the early 1980s by the late Franco Serblin in Vicenza, Italy. It’s been known since then for offering superb sound with classic Italian a ention to style, with products aimed at buyers for whom price was at most a secondary consideration. But in recent years the company has tested more affordable waters, particularly in its home theater offerings, with the latest addition to its lineup, the Lumina Collection, designed to appeal to a wider range of listeners with real-world budgets.

Sonus faber’s Lumina series consists of three models, all of which I used in the system under review here. The Lumina III floorstander is a three-way design that consists of two 5.9-inch paper-cone woofers, a 5.5-inch paper-cone midrange, and a 1.1-inch so dome tweeter.

(A similar tweeter design trademarked DAD, for Damped Apex Dome, is also used in some of the company’s more upscale designs.) The center of the tweeter’s dome is gently restrained

54 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

to keep it from moving in a different direction from the rest of the dome which, should it happen, can affect performance. (This damping technique, though relatively rare, is also used by other manufacturers but under different names.)

The Lumina CI center is a two-way design with its DAD tweeter flanked by two 4.7-inch woofers. A pair of the tiny Lumina Is, used here for surrounds, is also marketed as a two-way speaker for modest two-channel systems (though at $900/pair, not too modest!). These employ the same DAD tweeter, together with a 4.7-inch paper-cone woofer. The Lumina III tower crosses over at 350Hz and 3.5kHz,

while the Lumina I bookshelf and Lumina CI center both cross over at 2kHz. All Lumina models use ported cabinets. In the CI and I, the ports radiate from the bo om via sturdy, black plastic fixtures. The Lumina III, however, uses a conventional port firing from the cabinet’s bo om. The III’s wood base, or plinth, not only stabilizes the cabinet but also forms part of the port length and it shouldn’t be removed.

The III comes with spikes that set the plinth high enough off the floor to let the port breathe.

This is where I encountered my only setup issue. Since my speakers sit on a room-sized carpet with a hardwood floor beneath it that I’m careful not to scratch, dent, or puncture, I don’t use spikes. (Sonus faber includes protective spike footers, but for me using them wasn’t practical, as I’d have to fish around blindly under the carpet to position them accurately.) Instead of the spikes, I installed a ermarket speaker outriggers that I’ve used for a number of other reviews.

These raised the Lumina III high enough to comfortably clear the port, further stabilizing the speakers (but not as rigidly as spikes would), and allowing for slight tilt adjustments. (Similar but not identical footers are available from Parts Express.)

The Lumina speakers come with magnetically a ached grilles. A quick measurement indicated that the sonic effect of the grilles was minimal. Nevertheless, I removed them for all of my subsequent listening and measurements.

There are no subwoofers specific to the Lumina range, but Sonus faber sent us its Gravis II subwoofer, a model employing a down-firing 10-inch woofer driven by a 350-wa (continuous) classA/B amplifier plus a front-firing 10-inch passive radiator. Its specified response is from 25Hz up to the low-pass filter se ing.

Connections and controls are relatively standard and minimal:

RATINGS Speakers PERFORMANCE BUILD QUALITY VALUE

RATINGS Subwoofer PERFORMANCE FEATURES BUILD QUALITY VALUE

Hi/Low line-level input with level control, a separate LFE line-level input with its own separate level control, and a two position (0- or 180-degree) phase switch. There’s also an Auto-on switch that activates the subwoofer when it senses low frequency information and a main power switch. The sub’s speaker-level input uses a Speakon jack—an unusual feature in a consumer product, though an adapter is provided.

I found the Gravis II’s LFE input superfluous for home theater applications and only used the Hi/Low input. The la er offers continuous lowpass se ings from 30Hz-120Hz, but there’s no defeat switch for this, so it will operate together with whatever subwoofer low-pass se ings you choose on your AVR. Such a tandem configuration isn’t generally recommended, but when I set this control to its 120Hz maximum and used different (lower) frequencies for my AVR’s own crossover se ings, the combination didn’t produce any audible issues.

All of the Lumina speakers, and the Gravis subwoofer as well, carry a “Made in Italy”

label, but I wouldn’t assume this means “Made Entirely in Italy.”

(As far as I could determine, Italian export law has a separate “100% Made in Italy” rating.

But the la er is difficult to achieve in today’s tech-heavy world.) Nevertheless, it’s safe to assume that the Luminas were designed and engineered in Italy, with many key parts and perhaps the final assembly originating in or near Sonus faber’s headquarters.

Style is a major concern for Italian-made products, and the Luminas are no exception.

While keeping costs in check demanded rectangular cabinets free of the swoopy curves found in Sonus faber’s pricier speaker offerings, the Luminas lack for li le in the looks department. The top and sides are wrapped in so black leather, and the birch ply front baffles are finished in your choice of Piano Black, Walnut, or Wenge.

Matching trims are also available for the Gravis II subwoofer.

SETUP I positioned the Lumina IIIs nine feet apart and roughly four feet out from the back wall with the Lumina CI centered between them on a low stand.

The IIIs were angled in toward the center listening seat and tilted just enough upwards to

At a Glance Crisp detail and opensounding midrange Immersive 5.1 performance Stylish and affordable Cl center speaker has limited off-axis response Price: $5,296 (as tested) sonusfaber.com

accommodate a seated ear height that’s slightly above the tweeters. The two Lumina I speakers I used as surrounds were positioned in the rear of the room a bit further back and higher up than classic Dolby recommendations due to room limitations. The Gravis II subwoofer was positioned behind the main listening position—a location that has previously provided good response in my room for a single-sub system configuration—and connected wirelessly using an SVS Soundpath adapter.

A Denon AVR-X6700H A/V receiver was used to drive the Lumina system. All the source material was lossless and included CD, Blu-ray, and Ultra HD Blu-ray discs. The disc players were an Oppo UDP-203 for movies and a Marantz UD7007 for stereo music.

MUSIC PERFORMANCE I started out my evaluation by listening to music with the two Lumina IIIs driven full-range with no subwoofer. As I’ve mentioned in previous speaker reviews, my room is very large in cubic feet and provides no significant deep bass support. That’s been a concern with every speaker I’ve reviewed in this space and the Lumina III was no exception. Even with a significant boost from the Denon AVR’s 63Hz graphic EQ control, the response at the main listening position was down by several dB at 50Hz and fell off rapidly below that point. The resulting bass soundandvision.com [ 55

test report SONUS FABER LUMINA SURROUND SPEAKER SYSTEM was impressively clean and tight, but not fully satisfying on music with a strong bo om end.

Nor is such a bass boost a good idea in a very large room. A er only a few selections I dialed in the Gravis II subwoofer and didn’t look back. In a smaller room the Lumina III might well offer deep enough bass to not require bass boost or a subwoofer, but despite being a floorstander it’s still a relatively small speaker.

Another issue in my room is a significant peak just above 100Hz. That’s hard to correct without rearranging the room (not possible to any significant extent in my situation, and in any case not always effective), applying a dedicated room EQ such as the Denon AVR’s Audyssey MultEQ XT32 feature, or employing some other form of equalization. I chose the la er here. The Denon offers five graphic (fixed frequency) EQ controls for each channel.

I used these to tweak the response but used only the 63Hz and 125Hz bands for 2.1 music (and on the center channel as well, but not on the subwoofer or the surrounds for either 2.1- or 5.1-channel listening). These adjustments only impacted the frequency range primarily affected by the room (apart from a barely measurable +/- 1.0 dB se ing of the Denon’s treble control if needed for a noticeably hot- or dim-sounding source) and were checked by measurements. You may not have access to these exact same controls, but all competent AVRs now offer some means to correct for room-related bass issues. (For a more exhaustive discussion of this specific technique, give a read to my February 2021 AV Veteran blog “Taming the Room Monster” at soundandvision.com.)

All stereo music listening was done with the Denon AVR set as described above.

With the Gravis II subwoofer engaged, overall system 56 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

balance was excellent from top to bo om. Detail retrieval was superb, without any harshness or exaggeration. Imaging and soundstage precision were well-handled, and the bass, thanks to the Gravis II subwoofer, was clean and tight.

Years ago, I created a compilation CD featuring a wide range of challenging bass tracks including hard-hi ing Japanese Taiko drums, conventional orchestral drums, powerful organ passages, and deep electronic bass. While the Gravis II couldn’t quite match the sheer power of the much larger SVS PB-3000 sub ($1,400 each) pair I had been using in my room, I never felt shortchanged, either in quantity or quality, by the single, smaller Sonus faber sub (roughly one quarter of the total volume and around half the price of the SVS pair).

Solo and group vocals from Josefine Cronholm, Holly Cole, Elvis Presley, Willy DeVille, Judy Collins, Toto, Nils Lofgren, The King’s Singers, and more sounded almost universally

excellent—and I say “almost” only because the Luminas appeared to be telling it like it is.

No speakers can do more than reproduce a recording accurately, and I found the Lumina IIIs, supported by the Gravis II, to be rewardingly neutral.

Nothing appeared to be overemphasized or underplayed, though as with all loudspeakers personal taste will always factor into how neutrality is judged by any given listener. If I had a mild reservation, it would be that in my listening the Lumina IIIs with the Gravis II lacked a li le of the grandeur o en a ributed to much larger (and pricier) Sonus faber designs. But that was easily remedied when I fired up the full 5.1 system. Read on.

MOVIES PERFORMANCE Ford v Ferrari is a demo-quality Ultra HD Blu-ray, and the first disc that came to mind to evaluate the Lumina system’s dynamic range. (I only later noticed the irony of using a film about Ford scrambling to

beat the world’s most iconic auto company, Italy’s Ferrari, at Le Mans ‘66 to audition a set of Italian speakers!) The roar and growl of engines, the screaming of brakes and tires, the screeching of twisted metal as cars spin out and sometimes sha er—Ford v Ferrari’s soundtrack is enough to challenge any audio system, but the Luminas weren’t phased by any of it, apart from the Gravis II subwoofer deciding to take a leisurely walk across my floor!

(It likely won’t move on a thick carpet—while most of my floor is carpeted, the location that was chosen for the sub is in a hardwood area.)

There was nothing smallscale here, confirming that you don’t need big speakers for a big sound even in a big room.

The Gravis II subwoofer didn’t detract from the experience by dominating the show or shortchanging it, but instead became an integral element of the broader soundscape. The overall sound was exceptionally dynamic, well-balanced, and not overly bright even in the most challenging scenes.

Midway (2019) offered a similar but at the same time very different experience. If anything, it was louder than Ford v Ferrari, this time with the sounds of warships and planes instead of race cars. Bass effects here were even more prominent, and the Gravis II subwoofer easily kept up without obvious distor-

tion. Even at a playback level 3dB below reference (i.e., very loud), the Sonus faber system held it all together. The sounds of ba le, with carriers pushing through relentless waves, aircra launching from their decks (particularly the bombers taking off for Jimmy Dooli le’s raid on Tokyo just months a er Pearl Harbor—the film covers a lot of ground!), anti-aircra fire, and dive bombers screeching seaward at an 80-degree-plus angle filled the room. And while here, as above, the Gravis II’s bass extension and ability to unclog my sinuses wasn’t quite up to the level offered by those two SVS PB-3000 subs, I never gave the difference a thought when watching either film.

Both Ford v Ferrari and Midway offer more than just action. Both films have a superb, and superbly recorded, music score, even if it’s o en obscured by aggressive action. Midway’s moving closing montage in particular provided a warm, rich accompaniment to the brief summaries of the real heroes that were key players in the actual ba le, and the Luminas conveyed it perfectly. I also watched the closing credits from beginning to end, not to read the credits themselves but to further immerse myself in the score. It ranged from an imposing orchestral sweep to a fully played and sung performance of the 1940s hit, “All or Nothing at All,” which was also soundandvision.com [ 57

test report SONUS FABER LUMINA SURROUND SPEAKER SYSTEM

Test Bench I conducted several in-room measurements using the Parts Express Omnimic measuring software and microphone, a $300 package that offers a usefully accurate response of a speaker at the main listening seat. The results shown here are for my room. All were taken at the

single, seated, ear-level position. (Experience in my room has shown that an average of several readings, taken across a span of about 2 feet, differs little from the single position measurement apart from smoothing out small ripples.) The graphs here are 1/6th octave smoothed.—TJN LUMINA III TOWER ($2,199/pair): 2 x 5.9

in paper cone woofers, 5.5 in paper cone midrange, 1.1 in so dome DAD tweeter; 9 x 38.9 x 10.9 in (W x H x D); 35.1 lb LUMINA CI CENTER ($699): 2 x 4.7 in paper cone woofers, 1.1 in so dome DAD tweeter; 20.6 x 6.6 x 8.4 in (W x H x D); 16.8 lb LUMINA I SURROUND ($899/pair): 4.7 in paper cone woofer, 1.1 in so dome DAD tweeter; 5.9 x 11 x 8.3 in (W x H x D); 11.9 lb GRAVIS II SUBWOOFER ($1,499): 10 in paper cone bass driver; 10 in passive radiator; class- A/B amp (350W, 670W peak); 14 x 15.9 x 16 in (W x H x D, including feet); 47.3 lb

[dBSPL]

Specs

Frequency Response -freq [Hz]

[dBSPL]

[dBSPL]

Fig.1 The in-room responses of the left and right Lumina IIIs with no subwoofer and no EQ. The left channel is in red and the right in blue.

Frequency Response -freq [Hz]

Fig.2 The in-room responses of the left channel Lumina

III and no subwoofer in red with no graphic EQ, and in blue with graphic EQ applied at 63Hz and 125Hz. Note that the EQ has essentially no effect above 250Hz and minimal effect between 200Hz and 250Hz.

heard (though in a shorter form) in the movie itself.

How a speaker system deals with a film’s music is o en more important to me than how well it supports action and effects.

The la er count, of course, but while we know what music should sound like, most of us have no sonic reference for explosions, gunfire, rocket launches, and general chaos.

The Luminas did a series of star turns on some of my favorite film scores such as the electronicbased one for Oblivion, the surprisingly lush 2003 miniseries Children of Dune, and Score, a terrific documentary about film music ranging from a brief glimpse of a young Hans Zimmer playing keyboard for

the rock band The Buggles to a sonically stunning (but sadly unidentified and all too short) orchestral flourish at the end.

Despite my very positive impression of the Lumina 5.1 system, it does have one significant weakness. The Lumina CI center speaker is a two-way design in a woofer-tweeterwoofer horizontal configuration.

I did all of my serious listening from the middle seat on my couch, and from that position it performed very well, with enough power to deliver clear, spit- and sizzle-free dialogue in the most difficult passages. But all such two-way designs I know of suffer from off-center issues and the CI is no exception. It’s simple physics: When you move

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Frequency Response -freq [Hz]

Fig.3 The total in-room responses of the left and right

Lumina IIIs together with the Gravis II subwoofer, as auditioned with graphic EQ applied to the Lumina IIIs at 63Hz and 125Hz. The left channel is in red and the right in blue.

four feet off-center to the le or right, the CI’s horizontally arrayed drivers interfere with each other, audibly crunching the midrange. This reduces overall impact and makes the dialogue less natural-sounding and intelligible. The Lumina lineup deserves a three-way center with the midrange and tweeter mounted vertically between the woofers, even though this more advanced and flexible design would increase the system price.

CONCLUSION Despite a few minor reservations, I enjoyed every hour I spent with this stylish and greatsounding Sonus Faber Lumina

system. There’s heavy competition at its $5,296 price point, but the Luminas are nonetheless worth a close look and a serious listen. Together with the Gravis II subwoofer, they handled some of the most difficult source material in my very large room without a whimper, and that’s saying a lot.

The Verdict The name Sonus faber conjures up visions of exotic speakers priced at a level that will buy you a reasonably nice house in some places. But a full 5.1 package from the company’s new Lumina line will cost you less than a modest patio upgrade.

test report KEF LS50 WIRELESS II POWERED SPEAKERS

RATING

The Wireless Meta-verse

PERFORMANCE BUILD QUALITY ERGONOMICS VALUE

By Daniel Kumin

WE LIVE now in wireless world, and the major loudspeakermakers have been quick to embrace it with serious-performance, near-full-range designs.

But each seems to have a different idea of what a “wireless speaker” should entail. Some simply connect to an existing component stack via a supplied small wireless transmi er.

Others incorporate the whole smart-speaker thang, with full multiroom audio system and Alexa-Google-Siri voice control integration.

KEF took a middle road with its LS50 Wireless, of which the esteemed British maker has now released a next-gen edition, the LS50 Wireless II. The new speaker looks almost identical to its predecessor but incorporates numerous innovations to incrementally upgrade sonics. Most notable is a new trick to dispose of the troublesome midrange/ tweeter “backwave” that, to one degree or another, plagues every dynamic-driver design by interacting with the forwardradiating output and with the cone itself to induce small but meaningful distortions in both amplitude and time domains.

Creative schemes to nullify this have, over the years, included highly damped sub-enclosures, tapered, transmission-line-like rear spaces, and strategically deployed wads of fuzz (pardon the technical terminology).

KEF’s solution in the LS50 Wireless II is a disc comprised of a newly developed Metamaterial Absorption Technology (MAT) located behind the radi-

ating surface of its concentric Uni-Q woofer/tweeter unit. This is molded with a labyrinth-like raceway pa ern—likely the fruit of many hours of high-MIPS computer-simulation time—that acts as a Helmholtz resonator (absorber) to trap unwanted sound, from a few hundred Hertz on up, before it can reflect back upon diaphragm surfaces.

Fundamentally, the LS50 Wireless II is an active, wireless evolution of a passive design KEF originally introduced to mark its 50th anniversary. (A passive edition of this upgraded design, the LS50 Meta, is also currently available.) The LS50 Wireless II retains KEF’s hallmark Uni-Q concentric woofer/

60 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

tweeter configuration, now up to a 12th generation, which positions the tweeter in the space where the dustcap of a conventional woofer would be.

This layout is said to promote the smooth, controlled directivity and even off-axis response that mitigates the impact of room interactions.

SETUP The two speakers in an LS50 Wireless II setup are not identical. The “primary” speaker, which you can set as either le or right, has a selection of wired digital and analog audio inputs, plus an RJ-45 Ethernet port, while both units feature physical

pairing bu ons (needed only if pairing is lost following a power outage or other event), an analog RCA-jack subwoofer output (more on which follows), and a service-only USB port.

Each also supplies a second RJ-45 port used to make an optional hardwired interspeaker connection, which will upgrade speaker-to-speaker digital audio from the default wireless link’s 24-bit/96kHz to 24/192 resolution—likely of more impact to bats and (young) dogs than to human audiophiles. To be clear, each KEF LS50 Wireless II speaker contains its own separate amplifiers (100 wa s class-A/B for the tweeter and 280 wa s

class-D for the mid-woofer), digital processing, and crossovers, while the inter-speaker link, whether wired or wireless, conveys digital data only.

Se ing up the LS50 Wireless IIs involved li le more than plugging each unit into AC power, downloading the KEF Connect app (iOS/Android), and following a few simple prompts.

The system found my home network automatically, requiring none of the awkward manual temporary re-se ing of network assignments I’ve experienced with some other wireless speakers. This gets you up and playing music natively from your existing compatible streaming services (Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Tidal, Qobuz, among others) or streamed via Google Chromecast or AirPlay 2, in mere minutes. The whole process, as I experienced it, was the fastest, simplest, and most elegant I have yet encountered. I did nearly all my listening via Roon over Chromecast, which the KEFs found and welcomed seamlessly, but I also made a wired connection via a long RCA-mini cable from my conventional componentbased system as a reference.

PERFORMANCE KEF’s LS50 family is the rare loudspeaker design that has been widely embraced by both subjectivist and objectivist audio fans, and this latest edition is unlikely to buck the trend. The LS50 Wireless II sounds ridiculously good: timbrally honest, spatially precise, and dynamically capable. And for a speaker roughly the size and weight of a serious one-volume dictionary (remember those?), it is ridiculously extended, producing usable, clean, and reasonably dynamic bass to about 45Hz or so—adequate for most musical genres and for most listeners.

In fact, the LS50 Wireless II is so all-around good that, rather than bore you with the usual rotation of tracks auditioned, and effects heard, I will move on

At a Glance Serious all-in-one streaming solution Remarkable tonal and dynamic range Excellent ergonomics and app Roon Ready Certified High volume level slightly reduces resolution Price: $2,500 (pair) 732-683-2356 us.kef.com

to the few things that the LS50 Wireless IIs do not do with near perfection.

But first I can’t resist one sample. Through Qobuz, I’ve discovered a 19th-century composer of whom I was altogether innocent: one Anton Fesca (1789-1826), whose numerous string quartets sound exactly like a melding of mid-period Beethoven and high-period Mendelssohn, though not quite as deep as the one nor as adept as the other.

The full canon is presented by the Amaryllis Quartet on the CPO/Chandos label, and streamed via Qobuz, these up-close, intimate recordings sounded simply gorgeous.

Cellist Yves Sandoz was a particular standout; I’ve heard a lot of top-shelf cello in real life, and this, via the KEFs, is quite simply what it sounds like. Well done, Chandos!

The LS50 Wireless II’s principal shortcoming, if you can call it that, is that it does not go infinitely low, nor infinitely loud, with uncompromised clarity.

Of course, this can be said of every loudspeaker ever made; it’s just a question of degree. In the KEFs’ case, this was fairly easy to observe on something like the ubiquitous Copland Fanfare for the Common Man, via the superbly dynamic Reference Recordings/Minnesota

Orchestra recording. At living room levels, the LS50 Wireless IIs had no problem delivering a fully accurate, solidly extended, and glisteningly clean rendition, albeit a li le “smaller-than-life” in every sense due to the reduced volume level.

When I asked for something approaching concert-hall level, the KEFs obliged, enthusiastically filling my large-ish studio with unexpected, even astonishing torrents of sound.

But the dynamics from the

tympani and—especially—the huge orchestral bass drum were restricted, with the crisp, etched-impact a acks now sounding slightly rounder and even almost gri y, while the sustained brass chords floating over them took on a sort of metallic haze. This is to be expected from a small speaker that depends on “smart” equalization and dynamics-aware amplification. (Another factor, obtained only at the highest volume se ings when the KEF

soundandvision.com [ 61

test report KEF LS50 WIRELESS II POWERED SPEAKERS woofers were really pumping, is intermodulation distortion from the tweeter’s output reflecting off of the now substantially moving woofer cone—its waveguide.)

Otherwise, absent the bo om-most octave and topmost reaches of volume, the KEFs were impossible to fault.

Tonally, the LS50 Wireless IIs nailed my ideals of colorationfree, timbrally honest reproduction, with impressive spatial and dynamic qualities even in my 3,000-cubic-foot studio.

Which brings me to KEF’s equally new sub-miniature subwoofer, the KC62, which I recently evaluated in the April/ May 2021 issue of Sound & Vision. Though I’ve seen no explicit statement to the effect, it seems pre y clear that KEF conceived the two as complementary. I connected the li le sub to the primary LS50 Wireless II’s single subwoofer

output, se ing the sub to its “LFE” input mode as instructed in the “Se ing Crossovers with LS50WII” tech note I found on KEF’s website. The same document suggested substantially “underlapped” crossover points of 70Hz high-pass and 45Hz low-pass (these are implemented in the LS50 Wireless II speakers, much as an A/V receiver might do in a more conventional layout).

A er just a bit of by-ear level-adjusting, I found this setup to work ideally: I heard no subwoofer localizing from a too-high crossover, but still plenty of bo om-octaves bass. And I do mean plenty: a track like “Flight of the Cosmic Hippo,” Béla Fleck’s acrostic on Duke Ellington’s “East St. Louis Toodl-Oo,” which features Victor Wooten’s powerful electric bass sliding downward from notes in the 30-40Hz octave, was fully realized, with no loss

62 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

DRIVERS: 5.25-in aluminum-cone woofers,

1-in aluminum-dome tweeter in Uni-Q (coaxial) arrangement Specs ENCLOSURE TYPE: vented RATED POWER: 280 wa s class-D (woofer), 100 wa s class-A/B (tweeter) CONNECTIONS: HDMI (eARC), optical and coaxial digital, analog-stereo mini-jack, RJ45 Ethernet; RCA subwoofer output; USB type-B (service-only); RJ45 wired inter-speaker port; IEC AC-power OTHER: Wi-Fi: IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n/ac dual-band 2.4/5GHz HIGH-RES AUDIO: 24-bit/384kHz via wired network, 24/192 via wireless; MQA-compatible; up to DSD256 (via network) DIMENSIONS: (WxHxD) 12 x 7.9 x 12.2 in WEIGHT: 44.3 lb (per set)

of content right down into the 20Hz zone, even at windowra ling loudness.

But adding the KC62 introduced benefits that, while less obvious than more-and-deeper bass, were no less important. Replaying the Copland Fanfare, I now heard the full measure of this

unusually dynamic recording.

A welcome extra octave of bass-drum and tympani foundation was present, but the sound of the remaining nine octaves became clearer and more depth-perceptible. Also, the marginal grain, or haze, or whatever it was that I’d heard on sustained brass notes when

the big percussion strikes came along, was gone. Most important, the full degree of dynamics was restored on the “whompwhomps,” even at concert hall levels, for a clear and valued step-up in realism.

Even music that did not necessarily require the subwoofer benefi ed from its presence, especially at more substantial volume levels. A track like Tracy Chapman’s iconic “Fast Car” sounded just that li le bit more transparent both dynamically and tonally, with the sub relieving the LS50 Wireless IIs of the 40-80 Hz load—not too surprising given the li le KEFs’ diminutive woofers. With the sub onboard, I could no longer visibly see these displacing on strong bass notes at higher volumes, and the enhanced clarity made it easier to tease out the individual voices of guitar and mandolin (dulcimer?) on the repeated unison lines.

THE OTHER STUFF Ergonomically, the LS50 Wireless II story is a bit too involved to unpack fully in my remaining space. The KEF Connect app, which gives access to all the speakers’ features, adjustments, and setup options, is perfectly straightforward and a pleasure to use. It also gives direct access to the major streaming services once you enter your login details, so in theory it’s all you need. That said, as mentioned I mostly used Roon, but this was only via Google Chromecast discovery since the LS50 Wireless II was not yet Roon Ready certified during my testing.

[Editor's note: As we were going to print, KEF informed us that the LS50 Wireless II had been Roon Ready certified.—AG] KEF supplies the LS50 Wireless IIs with a nice li le remote featuring volume/mute, source select step-through, and track forward/reverse bu ons. A set

of capacitive touch bu ons on the speaker’s top surface also enable basic controls, but since the KEF connect app duplicates these functions and more, I found both to be of limited utility.

As mentioned, I also auditioned the LS50 Wireless IIs via their analog-stereo inputs, observing no difference whatsoever in sonic performance. It’s worth noting that while the original edition of the KEF LS50 Wireless speakers included a USB type-B port for wired streaming from a desktop or laptop computer or other source, the LS50 Wireless II has dropped this feature, presumably since its on-board streaming abilities (and other connectivity options) deemed it redundant.

CONCLUSION The recent spate of seriousperformance, all-in-one streamer/amplifiers has impressed upon me a new era

of “just add speakers” integration. With its LS50 Wireless II, KEF has gone one be er: “just add music.” Assuming you have a suitable streaming service— and who doesn’t these days?— all you need for certifiably audiophile-grade playback is an AC outlet and suitable stands or shelves. The LS50 Wireless IIs are that good, and when paired with KEF’s KC62 subwoofer, they are even be er. It’s true, the speakers/sub combo will set you back four large, but many an audiophile has spent as much or more on cables alone, and received far less sonic satisfaction in return.

The Verdict KEF’s wireless speaker package is an ergonomic marvel that delivers true audiophile performance—especially when paired with the company’s complementary KC62 subwoofer.

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test report SVS SB-1000 PRO AND PB-1000 PRO SUBWOOFERS

The Dynamic Duo

By David Vaughn

INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGIES tend to debut in more expensive goods so that companies can recoup their research and development costs. Take Mercedes, for example. When new tech gets introduced, the company does not debut it in its A or C class of cars, but instead reserves it for its S class to entice buyers to “trade up” to the more expensive—and likely more profitable—model.

The same can be said for tech innovation in the A/V world. Back in 2016, SVS debuted a ni y control app for its top-of-the-line PB16- and SB16-Ultra subwoofers.

When I reviewed those subs, I

raved about how easy setup now was because, instead of crawling around on your hands and knees to make fine adjustments to optimize performance, all changes could be made from the money seat with your smartphone in one hand and a sound meter in the other. Now, five years later, the same app, along with other advanced technology found throughout the company’s subwoofer lineup, has made its way into its new entry-level models, the SB-1000 Pro and PB-1000 Pro. SVS sent me both subs to review.

With its compact 13-inch-high by 13-inch-wide cabinet, the spouse acceptance factor of the sealed

64 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

The new SVS 1000 Pro subwoofer line comes in two tasty flavors: the ported PB-1000 Pro model shown above, and the sealed SB-1000 Pro shown at right.

SB-1000 is off the charts. Furthermore, the piano black gloss finish of the model I tested would befit a subwoofer in a much higher price class than the $599 SVS charges (the SB-1000 is also available in piano gloss white for $599 and black ash for $499). The PB-1000, which only comes in a ma e black ash finish for $599, is slightly larger due to its dual ported design, standing about 19 inches tall, 15 inches wide, and 20 inches deep.

Both subs are powered by a Sledge 325D class-D amplifier boasting 325 wa s RMS and 820-plus wa s peak. Each also features a 50MHz Analog Devices

Audio DSP that factors in room gain to ensure peak performance.

Frequency response specs for the sealed and ported models are slightly different, with the SB-1000 Pro spec’d at 20 Hz to 270Hz (+/3dB) and the PB-1000 Pro at 17Hz to 260Hz (+/- 3dB). You can request foam port plugs that would shi the PB-1000’s response to 19 Hz to 260 Hz, but in that case I would instead opt for the SB-1000 Pro with its smaller form factor.

The driver in both the sealed and ported SVS 1000 Pro subs are new proprietary 12-inch designs that differ slightly between the two models. In the SB-1000 Pro you’ll find an 8.33-pound woofer with a 5.73-pound motor while the PB-1000 Pro has a 9.26-pound woofer with a 6.91-pound motor.

(There are other slight differences in mechanics that you can explore further on the excellent and informative SVS website.) I’ve become used to maneuvering subs into my home that weigh over 200 pounds and the 1000 Pro subs are dainty in comparison at 26 pounds and 42.5 pounds for the sealed and ported model, respectively.

When using the best-in-class SVS App (for iOS, Android, and Amazon devices), you can control volume and set low-pass filter frequency, phase, polarity, and room gain compensation (to adjust for bloated bass in smaller rooms). It also includes a Parametric EQ (PEQ) that lets you set the frequency of the filter (from 20-200Hz), increase or decrease the filter’s SPL, and adjust its bandwidth (Q Factor). Additionally, there are three user presets (Movie, Music, and Custom) to save se ings so they can be selected on the fly during listening/viewing. The app also features a variable port tuning mode with customized “Standard” and “Sealed” frequency response curves to deliver either maximum output or maximum low-frequency extension.

If you still use a flip phone, or just prefer to do things the oldfashioned way, both subs also have level, low-pass filter, and phase controls mounted on the rear along with a USB port for an optional SVS SoundPath Wireless Audio Adapter, a stereo RCA input and output,

RATINGS SB-1000 Pro PERFORMANCE FEATURES BUILD QUALITY VALUE

RATINGS PB-1000 Pro PERFORMANCE FEATURES BUILD QUALITY VALUE

and a stereo speaker-level input.

The 1000 Pro series models are considered “Green,” with only a 0.5-wa power draw when in sleep mode and both an auto/on and 3V-12V trigger input.

Like all SVS subs, these babies are built to last, with acoustically optimized cabinets that use extra-thick MDF and rigid internal bracing to eliminate resonances. They also sport extrathick ABS grille frames with a fabric mesh shield to prevent damage to the woofer from pets and prying youngsters. Finally, all SVS subwoofers ship with a Customer Bill of Rights that includes both price-matching and tradeup policies, a five-year warranty, and a 45-day risk-free in-home trial period.

SETUP Both SVS subs arrived at my front door via FedEx and unpacking them was a breeze due to their relatively light weight and compact size. Instead of testing in my 5,000 cubic foot main home theater room, I instead opted for my enclosed 1,200 cubic foot den, which holds a system consisting of a Denon AVR-2313CI receiver, TiVo Mini Vox, Oppo BDP-103 Blu-ray player, and Andrew Jones Pioneerbranded surround speaker rig.

The regular sub in this system is

At a Glance Big, deep bass from a small box Best-in-class control app 45-day in-home trial period No auto-calibration/room correction Best suited for smaller rooms Price: SB-1000 Pro: $499.99 (Black Ash), $599.99 (Piano Gloss Black/White); PB-1000 Pro: $599.99 (Black Ash) (330) 954-3286 svsound.com

an SVS SB-3000, so the new 1000 Pro series models had some very big shoes to fill since I find that the SB-3000 provides the best value of any subwoofer that I’ve ever tested or owned.

The subwoofer sweet spot in my den is clearly marked for the SB-3000 sub, so placement was easy. I disabled the room correction processing in the Denon AVR, set its subwoofer crossover at 80Hz, and then calibrated the output for both subs in that spot using the SVS control app so I could swap them out for comparison.

Out of the gate, I wanted to see how well each subwoofer integrated with my bookshelf speakers and whether further tweaking would be needed. Fortunately, it wasn’t—the handoff from the satellites was seamless. Ported models typically extend a bit deeper and also play a bit louder down low due to the tuning of the ports, and that was definitely the case here.

I ran some frequency sweep test tones on my music server and, sure enough, the 20Hz output level of the PB-1000 Pro bested the SB-1000 Pro by about 8dB.

PERFORMANCE Last year Paramount finally issued a Blu-ray release of The Haunting, a movie with a reference-quality Dolby TrueHD 5.1 soundtrack that every bass-head I know loves.

Things really come alive in Chapter soundandvision.com [ 65

test report SVS SB-1000 PRO AND PB-1000 PRO SUBWOOFERS 17 when the protagonist, Nell, is a acked by the evil spirit haunting the house, an action accompanied by prodigious thumps, rumbles, and bangs as she flees for her life. The SB-1000 held its own in this scene, but the PB-1000’s ability to go a bit deeper and play louder definitely enhanced the experience with bass that displayed more prominence and he plus an ability to slightly shake the subfloor.

Given the pandemic, few new movies appeared on disc in 2020. But Universal was able to get Greenland into theaters for a limited time early in the year, and it finally hit Blu-ray in December. This turned out to be an above-average disaster flick, with Gerrard Butler and Morena Baccarin starring as an estranged couple trying to save themselves and their young son from a planet-killing comet that’s racing toward Earth. Their only hope of survival is to get to Greenland where a not-sosecret government installation that’s hopefully fortified enough to save the human race is located. The Greenland disc’s DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track makes robust use of the LFE channel, and whenever a comet

fragment hit Earth, all hell broke loose. Both subs performed admirably in these scenes, but with the PB-1000 exhibiting a bit more bass weight than its sealed sibling.

Where the SB-1000 Pro really shows its chops is with music due to its linear 25Hz-80Hz response. (The PB-1000 Pro’s ported design, in comparison, delivers more pronounced output in the 20-25Hz range, which lets the low-frequency effects in movie soundtracks hang in the air a bit longer.)

Granted, I’m picking nits here and if I weren’t comparing the two side by side, I may not have noticed a difference. Both subs sounded quick and punchy, and I could definitely see someone using either in a two-channel music system.

A good example of the SB-1000 Pro’s musical competency could be heard on Norah Jones’ debut album Come Away With Me. This album is now nearly 20 years old, but arguably her best as it offers a great mix of soul, pop, jazz, and country tunes. Her cover of Hank Williams’ “Cold, Cold Heart” is still one of my favorite renditions of that tune due to its simple arrangement—just bass,

SB-1000 PRO

12 in proprietary driver in sealed enclosure AMPLIFIER: 325 wa s RMS, 820-plus wa s peak power class-D CONNECTIONS: stereo RCA input/output; stereo speaker-level input DIMENSIONS: (WxHxD, inches) 13 x 13.5 x 14.76 WEIGHT: 26.1 lb

Specs

PB-1000 PRO

12 in proprietary driver in ported enclosure AMPLIFIER: 325 wa s RMS, 820-plus wa s peak power class-D CONNECTIONS: stereo RCA input/output; stereo speaker-level input DIMENSIONS: (WxHxD, inches) 15 x 18.9 x 20 WEIGHT: 42.5 lb

piano, and Jones’ silky-smooth voice. The bass sets the mood out of the gate and it’s important for the subwoofer to convey it because most speakers can’t dig deep enough to do the track justice. The SB-1000 Pro sub really shined here, rendering the bass in a tight, punchy manner and never overpowering the vocals or piano.

Conversely, I found that rap tracks such as The Beastie Boys’ “Brass Monkey” sounded a bit more authentic with the PB-1000 Pro, which dug a bit deeper, and had bass decay

that was a tad slower than its sealed counterpart. Listening to this track took me back to the late 1980s when we built custom subwoofers for our cars to share the bass with everyone within a quarter-mile distance.

That bass typically sounded punchy and loud, at the slight expense of accuracy.

CONCLUSION I enjoyed my time listening with the SVS SB-1000 and PB-1000 Pro subwoofers and would easily recommend either model to anyone looking to get good bass on a budget. The harder choice will come down to which one to go with. If you’re a movie fan and don’t have space constraints, go for the PB-1000 Pro and get that extra bit of extension. If space constraints or SAF is an issue, check out the SB-1000 Pro. The build quality of both is impeccable and ge ing to control them wirelessly using the best-in-class SVS app is a very impressive extra feature in an affordable, entry-level subwoofer.

The Verdict SVS outdoes itself again by offering a pair of budget-friendly subwoofers controlled by the company’s best-in-class app.

66 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

CELEBRATING THE YEAR’S BEST PRODUCTS

GLOBAL AWARDS 2020-21 visit www.eisa.eu for the winners EISA is the unique collaboration of 62 member magazines and websites from 29 countries, specialising in all aspects of consumer electronics from mobile devices, home theatre display and audio products, photography, hi-fi and in-car entertainment. Now truly international with members in Australia, India, Canada, the Far East and USA, and still growing, the EISA Awards and official logo are your guide to the best in global consumer technology!

TESTED BY THE EXPERTS Q WWW.EISA.EU

reviews in ultra high definition

entertainment

Pixar O.G. and now Chief Creative Officer Pete Docter touched our hearts with Up, then plumbed the intricacies of the human mind in Inside Out. It would follow, then, that his next movie would be Soul.

Together, these are arguably the most grown-up entries in the Pixar canon, not for any sort of overly mature content, but rather for their sophisticated themes and storytelling. And Soul might be the most adult-skewing: It’s the longest of the three, exploring The Great Herea er and even “The Great Before,” namely where souls originate prior to their arrival on Earth. This concept requires quite a bit of exposition, and it’s executed masterfully by Docter, co-writer/co-director Kemp Powers, and co-writer Mike Jones, through bold visuals and pithy gags.

Soul introduces us to Joe Gardner (voiced by Jamie Foxx), a middle school band teacher with dreams of playing jazz piano. Joe finally lands the gig of a lifetime, which puts him at a personal crossroads, but an unfortunate occurrence derails his biggest day ever.

In scrambling to avoid his otherworldly new fate, he suddenly finds himself serving as the mentor for an exasperating noob named 22 who can’t seem to find the necessary motivation to begin life in the mortal world. In the pantheon of mismatched buddy comedies, we’re now given a soul that doesn’t want to die stuck with a soul who doesn’t want to live. Soul is incredibly smart, moving, and ULTRA HD BLU-RAY wickedly funny, and anyone doubting STUDIO: Disney, 2020 the mad skills of Tina Fey, should look no ASPECT RATIO: 2.39:1 further than her inspired portrayal of 22.

HDR FORMAT: HDR10 AUDIO FORMAT: Dolby Atmos Owing to the ongoing COVID with TrueHD 7.1 core pandemic, Soul skipped theaters and LENGTH: 101 mins. went straight to streaming on Disney+ DIRECTOR: Pete Docter during the 2020 holiday season. Now STARRING: Jamie Foxx, Tina Fey, Graham Norton, Rachel House, on disc, the 2.39:1 image dazzles not Alice Braga, Angela Bassett only with its detail (for fun, freeze-frame the wall of nametags from 22’s previous, failed mentors) but through the exquisite realism of its light and shading. High 68 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

ULTRA HD BLU-RAY dynamic range (HDR10 here, though the streaming version offers Dolby Vision) sublimely manipulates brightness—tiny stars and specks of astral energy stand out. There are a fair number of black voids, and one late scene shows a character made of blacks and grays and dust and wind, all of it well-defined and plain to see. The story is built upon abstract concepts and employs an abstract art style to help convey the mood, though it’s contrasted with photorealistic locations in a simulated New York City. Pixar has been on the cu ing edge of animation since its earliest days, and Soul, the culmination of those breakthroughs, represents the latest evolution in computer-generated movement, texture, and lighting.

Soul’s Dolby Atmos soundtrack highlights music in a clever manner. The presence of the jazz compositions/arrangements by Jon Batiste is exceptional, and they engage us with their clarity and dynamics “live” within a scene and serve as a counterpoint to the original score by Trent Reznor and A icus Ross. It’s an unprecedented and stunning collaboration, and the results are well-balanced with the dialogue and sound effects.

Bonus content on the included regular HD Blu-ray version of the movie (commentary by Docter, Powers, and producer Dana Murray, plus two feature es and some surprises) is on par with recent Pixar 4K releases, while a second Blu-ray pla er offers deleted scenes and more feature es. All of these special features—even the commentary—and more are available with the Movies Anywhere digital copy, accessible via the supplied code.

Pixar fans—and jazz aficionados—will surely want to add Soul to their stacks. O CHRIS CHIARELLA

Disney

SOUL

RATINGS

REFERENCE EXCELLENT GOOD FAIR POOR

ULTRA HD BLU-RAY

IT CAN BE taken for granted that if Tom Hanks is starring in a movie,

LEGEND HAS IT that director Zack Snyder was streaming his Dawn

we will become acquainted with a compelling lead character. Also, if Paul Greengrass is directing, it will be an exciting ride. Following the South’s loss in the Civil War, Texas circa 1870 was a complicated place and time in the United States. World-weary Captain Kidd (not Phillips) ekes out a humble existence traveling from town to town, reading the news of the day to small groups of dime-paying customers who might otherwise remain oblivious. In the nowfamiliar trope of the reluctant older protector taking on an innocent young charge, Kidd is tasked with transporting waif Johanna (talented newcomer Helena Zengel) to her surviving biological family a er she is “rescued” from the Kiowa tribe who raised her.

The journey is long and remarkably hostile in more ways than one, and the pair along the way come to terms with what they’ve lost and learn what they’ve been searching for.

This is one of the best-looking discs I’ve spun in a while. Captured digitally by cinematographer Dariusz Wolski, the 2.39:1 image boasts tremendous detail, imparting you-are-there immediacy even to the movie’s many dimly-lit scenes. The weave of Kidd’s jacket and of Johanna’s coat are razor-sharp, and you can pick out individual tiny flecks of dry prairie grass kicked up by the breeze. HDR10+ high dynamic range also brings out impressive highlight detail in the warm glow of oil lanterns illuminating a smoky meeting hall or in the inviting radiance of a campfire, the only light for miles around. News was shot in New Mexico, and the achingly beautiful scenery, with its sunwashed and moon-kissed plains, has its own distinctive lighting that’s neither artificially bright nor so dark that the action is ever obscured.

The Dolby Atmos soundtrack does its part to put us on the trail with these wayward travelers, with light touches such as the play of rainfall in both interior and exterior scenes, and all-engrossing ones like an ominous windstorm. Kidd’s readings are enlivened by the murmur of a small crowd or the tumult of a rowdier audience.

Elsewhere, gunshots display a precise ULTRA HD BLU-RAY crack followed by jarring bullet hits.

STUDIO: Universal Studios, 2020 Deleted scenes are all quite strong, ASPECT RATIO: 2.39:1 with story/character moments worthy HDR FORMAT: HDR10+, HDR10 of inclusion in the final film. The AUDIO FORMAT: Dolby Atmos with TrueHD 7.1 core feature es are rather short and fairly LENGTH: 118 mins. standard, the best of them providing a DIRECTOR: Paul Greengrass brief introduction to the Kiowa Native STARRING: Tom Hanks, Helena American tribe. Director/co-screenZengel, Ray McKinnon, Mare Winningham, Elizabeth Marvel, writer Greengrass shares his passion Fred Hechinger for the project in his audio commentary, and all extras appear on both the Ultra HD and regular HD discs in this combo pack. O CHRIS CHIARELLA

of Justice one day and was unhappy with the color, specifically red, a shade relevant to much more than a certain Last Son of Krypton.

And so, the studio took the unusual step of remastering the movie from the existing 4K video transfer and rereleasing it, with the new version addressing Snyder’s crimson concerns as well as showcasing the de rigueur IMAX scenes in their full and correct 1.43:1 aspect ratio. For be er or worse, the movie hasn’t changed: This is the three-hour, R-rated “Ultimate Edition” that details evil Lex Luthor’s elaborate scheme to frame Superman for horrific crimes and trigger the ire of Batman in order to lead the duo into mortal combat. It’s a direct sequel to Man of Steel and a pivotal steppingstone to Justice League and the larger DC Extended Universe or “DCEU” that also introduced Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman.

The new tweaks deliver a richer overall color pale e, one that’s less harsh and more pleasing to the eye, to give us a fresh take on a wellworn small-screen staple that’s been everywhere over the past five years. Black levels remain solid, grain can be mildly inconsistent, and a few of the busier shots can look a li le noisy. Bright highlights are powerful, particularly in the Dark Knight’s electronic eyes, in streetlights/headlights, and atop a deadly kryptonite spear. The gorgeous IMAX footage does indeed reveal significantly more picture information that heretofore had been missing in the home theater.

This is my first time hearing the soundtrack in Dolby Atmos, and it provides a worthwhile boost to Dawn’s unique breed of over-the-top havoc. The destruction in any given skirmish is on such a mammoth scale that it demands to fill an entire room, and it surely does here, as if we’re unfortunate enough to live across the street from the Gotham/ Metropolis war zone. The clarity and definition within the mix is just as laudable, as when an angry swarm of flying rodents is referenced by the crisp flapping of their wings.

What’s worth noting is what’s not here: This is a single-disc package offering no seamless branching to ULTRA HD BLU-RAY the theatrical cut, and no regular STUDIO: Warner, 2016 Blu-ray version. Like the original ASPECT RATIO: 2.39:1/1.43:1 release, high dynamic range is HDR FORMAT: HDR10 HDR10. The supplied digital copy AUDIO FORMAT: Dolby Atmos with TrueHD 7.1 core is—as of press time—the old LENGTH: 183 mins. presentation of the movie, but with DIRECTOR: Zack Snyder a substantial new feature about the STARRING: Ben Affleck, restored Justice League, while the Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Jesse Eisenberg, Gal Gadot, disc provides a quick introduction Jeremy Irons and a wide-ranging, first-ever director commentary for BvS that’s specific to this remastered Ultimate Edition disc package. O CHRIS CHIARELLA

Warner Bros.

ULTRA HD BLU-RAY

Universal

NEWS OF THE WORLD

BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE ULTIMATE EDITION (REMASTERED)

soundandvision.com [ 69

GODZILLA ULTRA HD BLU-RAY AS THE first film to launch the MonsterVerse, a “cinematic universe”

featuring enduring monster movie icons, this 2014 reboot of the Godzilla franchise set the template for several movies to come, including Kong: Skull Island and the late-pandemic sensation, Godzilla vs. Kong. Here’s the deal: A er escaping a nuclear weapons assault (cloaked by authorities as a “nuclear test”) in the 1950s, Godzilla went deep underground. But now he’s back and is not alone: MUTOs (Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organism), hostile creatures resembling a cross between a praying mantis and stealth bomber, have since hatched and aren’t ready to play nice. Even worse, they’re looking to reproduce, pu ing our planet at serious risk. Mixed in here somewhere is a family drama—Bryan Cranston from TV’s Breaking Bad and celebrated French actress Julie e Binoche make early appearances—to give the story a human angle, but the movie really only kicks into gear a er the monsters go at it, spectacularly decimating buildings, bridges, and skyscrapers in Honolulu and San Francisco as Godzilla seeks to neutralize the threats and restore balance to nature.

GATTACA ULTRA HD BLU-RAY

70 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

Warner Bros.

humans are provided all the benefits of an advanced civilization while those that are genetically inferior are relegated to more menial jobs and not afforded the same opportunities as society’s elite.

Ethan Hawke plays Vincent, an “in-valid” who takes on the identity of one of the genetically elite, Jerome (Jude Law), in order to realize his dream of becoming a navigator at Ga aca, a prestigious space exploration corporation. The film moves slowly, but with stylish cinematography and excellent performances, it holds up well nearly 25 years a er its initial release.

The film was shot in the Super 35 format and is presented here in a 2.39 aspect ratio. With a new 4K master sourced from the original camera negative, Ga aca exhibits a fair amount of grain that looks organic and natural but can also obscure detail. Although many of the scenes are intentionally quite dark, the HDR10 encode delivers excellent highlights, and the blacks always remain gorgeously inky and dark. The color pale e is quite stylized with plenty of blue and green lighting and both the locations and actors are o en bathed in gold or sepia tones. Except for the aforementioned grain which is most present in backgrounds such as overcast skies or distant buildings, everything on this transfer looks gorgeous. Close-ups of Gore Vidal as Director Josef reveal intricate detail in the tiny lines of his distinguished face. The youthful complexions of Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke look squeaky-clean in comparison, and the image brings out the detail in their perfectly pressed jet-black business suits and meticulously coiffed hair.

An Atmos remix on the 4K disc offers a marked improvement over the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 soundtrack on the included standard Blu-ray. The surprisingly loud opening credits are more explosive in the Dolby Atmos version, and it be er highlights details such as the faint clinking sound accompanying close-ups of falling strands of hair as they land on a metallic surface. Ga aca’s sound design is not always very energetic, but the soundtrack does make good use of all channels when required, ULTRA HD BLU-RAY providing an expansive presentation STUDIO: Sony, 1997 ASPECT RATIO: 2.39 of echoing footsteps or announceHDR FORMAT: HDR10 ments on a PA system in hallways.

AUDIO FORMAT: Dolby Atmos The bundled standard HD disc with Dolby TrueHD 7.1 core version of Ga aca appears to the be LENGTH: 106 mins.

DIRECTOR: Andrew Niccol identical to the 2008 Blu-ray release STARRING: Ethan Hawke, Uma and features the same extras: two Thurman, Alan Arkin, Jude Law, feature es, a documentary, deleted Loren Deans scenes, and ou akes. While mildly interesting, the picture quality of some extras is very poor. A digital copy code is provided. O ROGER KANNO

Sony

GATTACA tells the story of a future where genetically engineered

Godzilla was shot digitally at 2.8K resolution and mastered in a 2K digital intermediate format. That master was upscaled to 4K for the movie’s Ultra HD disc release and graded in HDR10 high dynamic range. Given its source, the resulting image is impressively crisp: shots of research and military facilities have a solid, stable quality, and special effects shots in urban environments also display a satisfying level of detail. Godzilla is a dark-looking movie, and benefits greatly from the addition of HDR, which fleshes out features of helicopters swirling against dark oceans and adds dynamic pop to scenes in military control rooms and to Godzilla’s white-hot fire-breathing.

The real benefit to owning Godzilla on 4K disc is its gut-punching Dolby Atmos soundtrack. You literally feel the approach of the giant creatures, and when they smash through a high-rise building, that action has ULTRA HD BLU-RAY a real impact. Listened to in Atmos, STUDIO: Warner Bros. alien metallic sounds emi ed by a ASPECT RATIO: 2.39:1 MUTO have a boundless quality—it’s HDR FORMAT: HDR10 AUDIO FORMAT: Dolby Atmos as if it’s hovering hundreds of feet with TrueHD 7.1 core above you. Planes, trains, helicopters, LENGTH: 123 mins. missiles launched from vehicles are all DIRECTOR: Gareth Edwards rendered in a thoroughly immersive STARRING: Aaron TaylorJohnson, Elizabeth Olsen, manner, with active use of surround Bryan Cranston, Juliette Binoche, and overhead effects panning.

David Strathairn, Ken Watanabe, Extras are in regular HD on a Sally Hawkins bundled Blu-ray and include creature “reports,” plus chats with director Gareth Edwards and the movie’s special effects supervisor. O AL GRIFFIN

SECRETS & LIES BLU-RAY AS A KID in England in the late 1970s, I loathed director Mike Leigh’s

BBC TV dramas about what seemed like the drab lives of dull, ordinary people because they lacked the glamour and drive of Hollywood classics. Years later, I became enthralled with the pathos of universal pain and struggle shown in Leigh’s Secrets & Lies, a microcosm of real relationships and feelings that is as moving and massively encompassing as any film I’ve seen. Nominated for five Oscars and winning the Palme d’Or at Cannes and BAFTAs for writer-director Leigh and his superb cast, Secrets & Lies’ main plot follows grieving optometrist, Hortense, who, having recently lost the last of her adoptive parents, seeks out her birth mother. Yet the overall story is a much bigger ensemble piece following several equally important strands of private tragedy. Hortense’s hunt leads her to an extended, unhappy family—plus a birthday party with revelations to end all cinema psychodrama parties. In its dealing with profound issues, Secrets & Lies is weighty and cathartic, but never depressing due to its humor and humanity.

The intentionally grainy picture on Criterion’s Blu-ray maintains

BLU-RAY

Magnolia

THE MODERN-DAY composer died way too young. Frank Zappa

Criterion

a film-like look without compromising sharpness. Age lines, skin pigment variations, and strands of hair are all visible. Smaller print in posters and a birth certificate, along with detail in woolens and flowery wallpaper, are also distinct. Solid contrast brings out the inky blacks in Hortense’s monochrome suits and the rest of the cast’s white or pale outfits. Interiors show a wide range of mostly subdued, gently lit pastels and autumnal colors, while rich primaries are occasionally glimpsed in vehicles shown in exterior shots.

The soundtrack’s music score is clear and clean, with ample bass to reinforce emotional moments, while dialogue sounds crisp and natural.

Fraught silences—and there are many in Secrets & Lies—are very quiet.

BLU-RAY Extras consist of two tasty interSTUDIO: Criterion, 1996 views. In one, Leigh details how he Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 AUDIO FORMAT: DTS-HD Master developed the film’s themes, as well Audio 2.0 as the purpose for, and meaning LENGTH: 142 mins. of, seemingly unimportant minor DIRECTOR: Mike Leigh characters. Marianne Jean-Baptiste STARRING: Timothy Spall, Brenda Blethyn, Marianne provides a fascinating reveal of Leigh’s Jean-Baptiste, Claire Rushbrook, process, one where he gives actors Phyllis Logan, Elizabeth only sections of the script that they’re Berrington in before sticking them with others to improvise scenes. As the last line of this extraordinary film puts it, “This is life, ain’t it?” O JOSEF KREBS

ZAPPA was only 52 when he passed away from prostate cancer in December 1993, but his recorded legacy continues to cast a long shadow over music to this day—and will continue to do so well beyond our lifespans. It’s all covered quite Motherly-lovingly in Zappa, an excellent in-depth documentary that looks at the full scope of the man’s grand wazoo of a career.

Astutely directed by Alex Winter, Zappa is a two-hour plunge into all things Frank. Given Zappa’s personal interest in filming most every envelope-pushing thing he could see and do once he got his hands on his father’s 8mm camera in the 1950s—and thanks to the unlimited vault access granted by FZ’s late wife, Gail—Winter culled from a wealth of unreleased and ultimately restored estate-approved imagery. (Di o the mining of Zappa’s vast music catalog.) Abe ed by sound designer Lon Bender, Winter uses a podcaster’s ear to cagily add incidental sound effects tailored to the meat of any given scene—something Frank himself would’ve embraced, given his penchant for adding non-musical aural punctuation to things.

Video quality varies based on the source material, so vintage clips look, well, vintage (B&W European TV clips from the ’60s), while the modern-day commentator segments are hi-def, full-framed, and setdressed in the most professional of ways.

Sonically speaking, it’s fascinating to get brief swaths of classic Zappa stereo tracks expanded into DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, like “Absolutely Free” and “G-Spot Tornado.” These intermi ent hot teases leave Zappaphiles like myself wondering just how wonderful a full-on FZ surround release would truly be, especially considering how Zappa himself dabbled with quad (see 2004’s Quadiophiliac DTS DVD-Audio disc).

I was most enamored with scrutinizing the occasional snippets of a short-cropped Zappa strolling through his personal vault, semi-casually pointing out row a er row of historical recordings or breezing past the multivolume master tapes for Joe’s Garage.

I know quick cuts were necessary BLU-RAY to keep the narrative flowing, but STUDIO: Magnolia, 2020 ASPECT RATIO: 1.78:1 great googly-moogly—including AUDIO FORMAT: DTS-HD Master an extended and/or uninterrupted Audio 5.1 complete vault tour would have made LENGTH: 127 mins. for one mother of an extra, seeing DIRECTOR: Alex Winter STARRING: Frank Zappa, how we only get 3 minutes of deleted Gail Zappa, Bunk Gardner, Ruth scenes. That said, if you want to further Underwood, Pamela Des Barres, explore FZ’s world, the official 3CD/5LP Bruce Bickford, Steve Vai companion Zappa soundtrack will school you on many masterworks by this most singular Father of Artistic Intention. O MIKE METTLER soundandvision.com [ 71

music AL STEWART

AL STEWART is the kind of

seasoned artist known for being well worth the wait. The Sco ish-born and London-bred Stewart initially focused on mining a folk-driven vein when he made his debut with October 1967’s orchestrally bu ressed Bed Si er Images, and it took the burgeoning singer/songwriter five more albums and another eight years until he truly hit his stride with March 1975’s Modern Times. By then, Stewart had not only honed his historical storytelling mien to a T, but he had also expanded his compositional palate by commencing the first of three fruitful collaborations with uber-producer/engineer Alan Parsons. The duo’s second winning release, October 1976’s million-selling Year of the Cat, was the perfect mesh of

Stewart’s vivid imagery with the emergence of Parsons’ progressive-leaning production style. (September 1978’s Time Passages, headlined by its ever-ethereal title track, triumphantly closed out the Stewart/Parsons troika.)

And now, we have an expanded Year of the Cat box set that catapults an always excellent-sounding, longtime audiophile-catnip release into the next sonic stratosphere thanks to Esoterica Recordings, a discerning label within the reissue-centric division

of U.K. stalwarts Cherry Red Records. Esoteric Recordings have been at the forefront of rightfully respectful yet lavish box-set packaging in recent years. Their 3CD/1 region-free NTSC DVD Year of the Cat collection is housed within a 10.2 x 9.9-inch slipcase, and the 68-page booklet contains most everything discerning collectors like yours truly want in box sets.

The lengthy liner notes interview with Stewart, conducted by executive producer and Esoteric major domo Mark Powell, gleans thoughtful firsthand takes on the writing origins and instrumentation implementations for each of the album’s nine songs, interspersed with multiple of-era photos of Stewart and the covers of all his albums prior to Cat. A er that, we get separate sections delineating the full lyrics, master tape boxes, and scores of international singles sleeves and 45 labels dubbed “A to Z,” many of which I’ve never even seen until now.

Each of the set’s four discs nestle in slim, individual slots in a separate gatefold cardboard sleeve. Four postcards and a glossy shop poster, all featuring the cat-themed Hipgnosis album-concept design, round out the included goodies.

Whenever you’re looking to shell out big bucks for box sets like this, the collective contents of Cat should be considered the standard-bearer for the kind of elements that will keep you engaged well beyond your initial ritualistic listening sessions and liner-notes read-alongs.

But there’s also nine lives, er, songs to tackle from the core album, so let’s get to ’em! Disc 1 contains the remastered stereo Cat plus a bonus track, “Belsize Blues,” which was recorded at Abbey Road Studios ahead of the other tracks in late 1975.

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CD&DVD Label: Esoteric Recordings Audio Formats: 16-bit/44.1-Hz PCM Stereo (CDs); 24-bit/96-Hz LPCM Stereo (DVD); 24-bit/96kHz DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, 24-bit/96kHz Dolby AC3 5.1 (DVD) Number of Tracks: 34 (25 on 3 CDs, 9 on 1 DVD) Length: 2:43:20 (2:04:25 on 3 CDs, 38:55 on 1 DVD) Producers: Mark Powell (deluxe edition); Alan Parsons (original album, bonus track, and 5.1 mixes) Engineers: Alan Parsons (original album, bonus track, and 5.1 mixes); Noah Bruskin (bonus track and 5.1 mixes); Paschal Byrne (live material); Dave Donnelly (CD, DVD 5.1 mastering, and DVD Stereo remastering); Ray Shulman (DVD authoring) PERFORMANCE SOUND

The honky-tonk ramble-tamble groove that dominates “Belsize” was deemed out of sync with the vibe of the album, hence its being held back. That was a wise artistic decision for Cat’s original purposes, but it’s a vital inclusion here as a righteous extra.

Discs 2 and 3, both dubbed Live at the Paramount Theatre, Sea le and recorded on October 29, 1976, split Stewart’s 15-song set that night right down the middle. Stewart and his tight fivepiece band add sinew and depth to more vintage tracks like “Soho (Needless to Say),” “Roads to Moscow,” and “Nostradamus,” as well as flesh out six Cat songs, the la er of which had only just come out that month.

Disc 4 is where all the surround magic happens in either the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 or Dolby AC3 5.1 realm, both

at 24-bit/96kHz. Parsons’ de surround touch brings out the best of what has always been a clean, well-layered recording, enhancing Stewart’s visceral tales greatly in the process. Stewart’s narrative singing voice— perhaps his most direct stylistic descendent is Neil Tennant of Pet Shop Boys—stays mostly in the middle as previously burrowed piano and guitar accents are relegated to various quadrants in mostly supportive, but more clearly identifiable, ways.

Highlights include Peter White’s upfront Spanish guitar accents in “On the Border” and Bobby Bruce’s rear-right violin solo and ongoing accompaniment populating “Broadway Hotel.”

The crux of the 5.1 mix is found in, of course, the expansive and perpetually mysterious title track via all-channel piano playing and highlighted by a stunning, twopart solo section. Here, White’s tasteful acoustic guitar solo nestles in the front right followed

by Tim Renwick’s fiery electric guitar response in the front le , with the feline tale’s own tail brought home in all corners by Phil Kenzie’s alto sax solos.

Considering all the aural rewards that permeate this Year of the Cat collection, we can only hope the aforementioned Time Passages is next on the clock to get the full-bore deluxe expansion and surround sound treatment from both Parsons and Esoteric. Until then, feel free to curl up with the all-channel purr of the Cat, until your sense of direction completely disappears into 5.1 bliss. O MIKE METTLER

© RCA

YEAR OF THE CAT: 45TH ANNIVERSARY DELUXE EDITION

PAGE

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soundandvision.com [ 73

1993 Mobile Fidelity Ultradisc

were in the midst of an almost decade-long creative mindmeld, and October 1973’s Goodbye Yellow Brick Road was the apex of their collaboration. The initially unintended double album’s 17 songs covered the gamut from nostalgic reverie for days gone by (the title track, the indelible “Candle in the Wind”) to pumped-up ’70s-style electric-boot rockers (“Bennie and the Jets,” “All the Girls Love Alice”), and everything in between.

And oh, what a listening experience it was—and still is. My original 1973 MCA 2LP Brick Road set, which is in similar condition to my first wax copy of The Who’s Quadrophenia discussed here last issue, has seen somewhat be er days. For one thing, ringwear is hard to avoid with older double LPs I obtained before ge ing more meticulous about proper sleeving and shelving.

However, I do have a 2014 Mercury/UMC 2LP reissue in hand, which does a fine analog job whenever I want to cue up piano-centric ballads like “This Song Has No Title” and “Harmony.”

As for the digital realm, I’ll only mention the 1984 MCA Redbook 2CD set in passing, just to play nice. Those of you prone to the 1990s-era Mobile Fidelity sonic universe will find the 1993 Ultradisc more to your liking, though it does assign all 17 tracks—which collectively clock in at an envelopepushing 76:20—onto one CD. Once the anniversary Brick Road reissues started coming, however, parent company Universal sure did them right. For starters, 2003’s 30th anniversary Rocket/Island collection is spread across 2 SACDs, and features four bonus tracks. A decade later, the 40th anniversary 2CD Rocket/ Mercury/UMe package upped the ante to include a second disc of nine covers (The Band Perry’s “Grey Seal” is a standout) plus nine live tracks. If you kept the yellow hype sticker—an absolute collectors must, btw—you’ll find it has an interesting typo: “Contains 9 love [emphasis mine] tracks from Elton’s legendary 1973 London Christmas concert & much more.” Of course, they meant live there—and said live tracks are indeed quite worthwhile, especially “Rocket Man”—so I suppose love would be considered somewhat of a Jamaican Jerk-Off slip up, in this particular case.

Brick Road was rightly brought into the 5.1 realm via both the aforementioned SACDs in 2003 and the Rocket/Island/Mercury DVD-A in 2004. The surround was “directed and mixed” by Greg Penny, who also did 5.1 for five other prime ’70s-era Elton John releases. “I was terrified when I first played my initial surround mix for Elton,” Penny told me. “He sat there for over an hour listening to it, and it was a revelation to him. A er we got to the end of the last track I played, ‘Candle in the Wind,’ he just turned to me and said, ‘It’s incredible. Do whatever you want to do with the rest of it.’”

For my ears, I much prefer Mercury/UMC’s High Fidelity Pure Audio Blu-ray Brick Road from 2014, which offers Penny’s stellar surround mix in 24-bit/96kHz DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. I could spend this entire column solely on the absolute majesty of Penny’s work on the album’s 11-minute opening opus, “Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding,” a combined track I o en deployed to demo systems at CES in Las Vegas. Suffice it to say the volume dynamics of David Hentschel’s ARP synthesizer intro rise and fall like an aural tidal wave for 5:52 before Sir Elton even sings his very first line, “The roses in the window box.” And don’t get me started on Davey Johnstone’s full-channel electric guitar assault on “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting.” (Alright, do get me started.)

Naturally, I expect that, two years from now in 2023 when Goodbye Yellow Brick Road intersects with its 50th birthday, Universal will pull out all the stops to produce a lavish box set containing upgraded wax, scores of bonus cuts and ou akes, and—fingers crossed—Greg Penny having been granted the honors of remixing the album in Dolby Atmos. Until then, my chosen listening future lies with Blu. Brick Road 5.1 harmony and me, we’re pre y good company. Mike Me ler

2003 Rocket-Island Deluxe Ed. CD

ELTON JOHN WAS IN THE ZONE. The piano prodigy and his songwriting partner Bernie Taupin

2004 DVD-Audio Disc

Going Back to the Plough

2013 Rocket-Mercury Deluxe Ed. CD

ELTON JOHN: GOODBYE YELLOW BRICK ROAD

1973 MCA Vinyl LP

remaster class

Sound & Vision (ISSN 1537-5838) (USPS 504-850) June/July 2021, Vol. 86, No. 4. COPYRIGHT 2021 BY AVTech Media Americas, LLC. All rights reserved. Published six times a year (February/March, April/May, June/July, August/September, October/November, December/January) by AVTech Media Americas, LLC., 260 Madison Avenue, 8th Floor, New York, NY 10016-2303. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY and additional mailing offices. Single copy price is $6.99. Subscriptions: U.S., APO, FPO, and U.S. Possessions $12.99 for 6 issues.

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74 [ June July 2021 [ soundandvision.com

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