Sound Version October 2018 by salenafox4446

BEST OF THE BEST The 2018-2019 EISA Awards

BOWERS & WILKINS

P.16

FINAL FLASHBACK 21 Audio Myths Debunked

CAMPFIRE

P.20

• Yamaha’s RX-V685 AVR Delivers Wire-Free Surround

Where Technology Becomes Entertainment™

POLK AUDIO’S AFFORDABLE, ALEXA VOICECONTROLLED SOUNDBAR

soundandvision.com

OCTOBER/ NOVEMBER 2018

OLED PERFECTED LG 65C8PUA ULTRA HDTV

TESTED M&K SOUND S150 SPEAKERS

$6.99 US $7.99 CANADA

MBER13 LUCKYNU X8500H DENON’S AVRPACKS 13 AMP CHANNELS FOR MAXIMUM IMMERSION

VOLUME 83 NO. 7

contents

features

2018-2019 EISA AWARDS

The Year’s Best Gear

FLASHBACK FEATURE

36 21 Audio Myths

Top A/V products as selected by the international Expert Imaging and Sound Association. Home theater video, home theater audio, Hi-Fi, mobile electronics, and more.

MythBusting Stereo Review-style. We look back at Peter Mitchell’s 1983 feature tackling topics ranging from weighted specs to belt-drive vs. direct-drive turntables.

On the Cover OLED Perfected: LG’s 65C8PUA OLED Ultra HDTV. Other gear: Denon AVR-X8500H A/V Receiver, Polk Command Bar Soundbar, Yamaha RX -V685 A/V Receiver

4 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

IT’S MORE THAN YOU CAN HANDLE – AND EVERYTHING YOU WANT AV8805 13.2 Channel Pre-Amplifier Supporting the latest in object based audio surround formats

because music matters

VOLUME 83 NO. 7

THE STEVEN WILSON REMIXES

A new 6-LP box of classic Yes albums reimagined by prog-rock remixmeister Steven Wilson. Mike Mettler digs in for a deep listen.

departments 10 TRACK ONE S&V software reviews matter.

14 LETTERS Where are the measurements? Hail classic gear. S&V style. 16 WIDE ANGLE New gear, news, quick take reviews, and commentary.

columns 17 SIGNALS Ken Pohlmann interviews himself. An S&V exclusive.

18 STREAM ON Which service is better, Apple Music or Spotify?

21 THE CONNECTED LIFE More theater design mistakes and how to avoid them.

contents

test reports

40 LG 65C8PUA OLED ULTRA HDTV

44 SAMSUNG QN65Q8FN LCD ULTRA HDTV

48 PANASONIC DP-UB820 ULTRA HD BLU-RAY PLAYER

52 M&K SOUND S150/S150T THX ULTRA SPEAKER SYSTEM

56 POLK COMMAND BAR SOUNDBAR

60 DENON AVR-X8500H A/V RECEIVER

64 YAMAHA RX-V685 A/V RECEIVER AND MUSICCAST 20 WIRELESS SPEAKERS

68 PS AUDIO SPROUT100 INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER

70 TEKTON DESIGN IMPACT MONITOR SPEAKER SYSTEM 6 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

24 Q&A Whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s afraid of Image Constraint Token? HDMI unraveled. 74 ENTERTAINMENT Ready Player One; Deadpool 2; Sex, Lies, and Videotape; Yes remixed; and more. 82 REMASTER CLASS Dire Straits: Brothers in Arms.

Two 6˝ High-Definition CastBasket Bass/Midrange Drivers w/ Multi-Vaned Phase Plugs Optimized Dual-Chamber Upper Bass/Midrange Enclosure with Angled Rear and Side Walls High-Gauss High-Velocity Folded Ribbon Tweeter (HVFR™) w/Zobel Network

Open-Cell Polyurethane Foam Damping Pads Proprietary Mix of Long-Fiber Lamb’s Wool and Dacron for Internal Damping

Three 6˝ x 10˝ Quadratic Sub-Bass Drivers w/ Massive Focussed-Field Magnet Structures Elaborately Braced Accelerometer Optimized Non-Resonant Cabinet Linear-Phase Balanced Crossover Network w/ Film Capacitors and Bridging Cap

Four Inertially-Balanced 10-1/4˝ x 9-1/2˝ Quadratic Planar Infrasonic Radiators Two on Each Side of Cabinet Hybrid Phase-Perfect Electronic/ Passive Low Frequency Crossover 1800-Watt DSP-Controlled Class D Digital Amplifier with Programmable Logic Device Based State Machine Elegantly Sleek Piano Gloss Black Lacquer Finish Cabinet Massive 3/32˝ Thick Steel Plate Built Into the Base for Exceptional Structural Rigidity

Triton Reference $4249 ea.

“

oldenEar’s New Triton Reference Redeines Ultra High-End Performance and Value!”

“Hearing my reference tracks on those über-expensive ( $85,000) speakers, I was surprised at how well the Reference compared … unbridled excellence” - Al Griin, Sound & Vision

“ he Triton Reference presents a serious challenge to speakers in the multi $10K range” – Robert Deutsch, Stereophile

GoldenEar’s Triton One is one of the best selling high-end loudspeakers ever, consistently thrilling listeners and reviewers alike and winning an enviable and unmatched collection of the industry’s most prestigious awards, including “Loudspeaker-of-the-Year” and “Product-of-the-Year” from key publications all around the world. Clearly, we knew that the One would be a very hard act to follow. here was a spirited discussion within our product development group about an all-out assault on the ultimate, cost-no-object, state-of-the-art, to produce a six-igure loudspeaker to do battle with the most esoteric and expensive loudspeakers on the planet. However, after much soul-searching, rational minds won out, and the decision was made to create a new GoldenEar lagship, positioned above the Triton One (of course still current and available), that would joust with the best, but still stick to our trademarked slogan, “We Make High-End Afordable.” We are pleased and proud to introduce the new Triton Reference. he Reference has begun gathering its own collection of honors, winning the prestigious and coveted CES Innovations Design and Engineering Award, Digital Trends Best Home Audio Tech at CES, HD GURU Best High Fidelity Loudspeaker at CES and What HiFi Stars of CES! And Triton Reference won the grand slam from Absolute Sound at CES, where all four of their writers honored T Ref with their highly coveted accolade, “Best Sound (for the money)”!

“ Undeniably stellar … Yes, it does deliver the sort of performance previously delivered only by cost-no-object speakers.” – Dennis Burger, Home heater Review he Triton Reference is an evolution of everything that we have achieved with the Triton One, but taken to a stunning new level of sonic performance and sophisticated visual design. All the components in the T Ref: including larger, more powerful, active subbass drivers with huge “Focused Field” magnet structures, upperbass/midrange drivers with “Focused Field” magnet structures, and High-Velocity Folded Ribbon tweeter with 50% more rare earth neodymium magnet material, are brand new, and have been speciically developed for use in the Reference. he powerful 1800 watt subwoofer ampliier, with level control to ine tune the bass to your room, and 56-bit DSP control unit are a signiicant evolution of those in the Triton One and our SuperSubs. here are a myriad of other signiicant upgrades and reinements, including: new internal wiring with a specially developed twist, further development of our signature balanced crossover including

ilm capacitors bridged across the high-pass section on the upperbass/midrange drivers, a unique proprietary mix of long-iber lamb’s wool and Dacron for more efective internal damping, intensive work with a high-resolution accelerometer to determine the most efective implementation of complex internal bracing, a 3/32"-thick steel plate built into the medite base to further stifen it for increased stability, new stainless steel loor spikes and cups, all of which results in higher resolution of subtle details … and the list goes on and on.

“ hey are lat-out incredible, knock-your-damnsocks-of, jaw-droppingly realistic, enrapturing speakers.” – Caleb Dennison, Digital Trends Visually, the Reference ofers a strikingly beautiful upgrade to the classic Triton styling, with a gorgeous hand-rubbed piano gloss-black lacquer inished one-piece monocoque cabinet. Sleek, statuesque and reined, the Reference is simply an elegantly gorgeous statement piece that will excite listeners with its dynamic visual presence, as well as its extraordinary sonic performance. Sonically, the Reference has been engineered to perform with a dramatic and authoritative voice, comparable to speakers that sell for ten and more times its surprisingly afordable price. T Refs completely disappear, with superb three-dimensional imaging that will open up your room, stretching from wall to wall and beyond, and depth that makes the wall behind them seem to vanish. he astonishing bass is rock-solid, with low-frequency performance that is tight, quick, highly impactful and musical with extension lat to 20Hz and below. Another GoldenEar signature is a silky smooth high end that extends to 35 kHz with a lifelike sheen but no trace of fatiguing hardness, sibilance or stridency so common with lesser tweeters. Tremendous time and energy has been put into the voicing of the speaker and the seamless blending of the drivers, for unmatched musicality with all types of music, and home theater perfection. Rarely do speakers excel at both, but with their world-class neutrality, the Reference absolutely does. A special bonus is the Reference’s extremely high 93.25 dB sensitivity, which gives them tremendous dynamic range and allows use with almost any high-quality ampliier. You must experience T Ref for yourself!

www.goldenear.com PO Box 141, Stevenson, MD 21153 (410) 998-9134 Like us on Facebook! facebook.com/goldenear

Call us or check our website for your nearest dealer

On The Web Log on to soundandvision.com and sign up for our free monthly enewsle er. You’ll get exclusive tips, news, trends, and reviews from your favorite S&V writers.

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Customer Service And Subscriptions soundandvision@emailcustomerservice.com Call (800) 666-3746 (international calls: 386-447-6383) or write to: Sound & Vision, P.O. Box 420235, Palm Coast, FL 32142-0235 Please include your full name, address, and phone number on any inquiries.

A RECENT reader comment on soundandvision.com gave high praise to the magazine’s A/V equipment reviews, but then went on to condemn our “weak” a empts to review movies on Blu-ray disc. The gist of the message was that movie disc reviews are best le to websites that can cover them on a timely basis, as opposed to the weeks or even months that it takes for Sound & Vision to turn out reviews of the same titles. While I understand (to a point) where the commenter is coming from, I’d like to make a case here for the importance of movie and music reviews in Sound & Vision magazine. Yes, product reviews and tech info are undoubtedly the main reasons why readers turn to S&V—those topics are clearly our speciality. But I’d also argue that A/V gear should not exist in a vacuum. Movies and music are the lifeblood of what we do; nobody goes through the trouble of pu ing together a high-performance system simply to view video test pa erns and listen to audio test tones. (And if you do, well….) The above-average systems that our mag’s reviewers have access to also make us uniquely qualified to comment on the visual and sonic quality of a particular release. When a review in Sound & Vision points out the crisp picture on a specific disc, or the dynamic character of its soundtrack, you can take that info to the bank. This is probably the biggest advantage S&V offers over more general disc review sites. I’d also like to comment on the caliber of Sound & Vision’s stable of reviewers. Chris Chiarella is a film fanatic who has been churning out disc reviews since way back in the laserdisc days. Josef Krebs is a cineaste with a deep knowledge of classic, independent, and international film. Thomas J. Norton and David Vaughn are not just gear reviewers, but movie buffs with state-of-the-art home theaters who also regularly a end theatrical screenings for reference. As for music, S&V music editor Mike Me ler is a lifelong collector with an extensive vinyl and CD archive. Mike also has what is probably one of the world’s most complete libraries of 5.1 surround music on DVD, Blu-ray, SACD, and DVD-Audio, which he regularly digs into as a resource for Remaster Class. To sum up, I am in total agreement with the suggestion that disc review websites like The Digital Bits, Blu-ray.com, and High-Def Digest (not to mention CineSavant and DVDBeaver) do a solid job of covering the latest releases, and doing so on a timely basis. But let’s not completely count Sound & Vision out of the disc reviewing biz. We may be slower on the draw, but our bullet almost always hits its target.

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EISA AWARDS Turn to page 26 and you’ll ﬁnd a feature on the 20182019 awards presented to the consumer A/V manufacturing community by the Expert Imaging and Sound Association. I had an opportunity in late August to attend the association’s Gala ceremony in Berlin, Germany, where it presented the awards. (There I am in the group photo under the video projector at left, along with Keith Pray, General Manager of AVTech Media Americas.) For me, the most impressive thing about this event (aside from the amazing magicians who performed between awards—see photo above), was getting to meet with a large, international group of fellow A/V magazine editors. It really drove home the reality that the print magazine is still a viable medium. Since the Gala was scheduled to coincide with Berlin’s IFA convention, I also had a chance to look at the 8K LCD and OLED TVs coming from Samsung and LG, respectively. Check out the Wide Angle blog on soundandvision.com to read my impressions of this duo of next-gen Ultra HDTVs.

October / November 2018 Volume 83/Number 7 EDITOR: Al Griﬃn SENIOR EDITOR, TECHNICAL EDITOR: Tom Norton EDITORS-AT-LARGE: Bob Ankosko, Darryl Wilkinson CONTRIBUTING TECHNICAL EDITORS: Kris Deering, Barb Gonzalez, Steve Gu enberg, Michael P. Hamilton, Daniel Kumin, Rob Sabin, John Sciacca, Michael Trei, David Vaughn CONTRIBUTORS: Michael Antonoﬀ, Brandon A. DuHamel, Avi Greengart, Corey Gunnestad, Fred Kaplan, Josef Krebs, Ken C. Pohlmann, Leslie Shapiro MUSIC EDITOR: Mike Me ler MOVIES EDITOR: Chris Chiarella

Meet the Family ...

TECHNICAL CONSULTANT Joel Silver, Imaging Science Foundation

ART DIRECTOR Jeremy Moyler

WEB MONKEY Jon Iverson

AVTech Media Americas Inc EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Paul Miller FINANCE DIRECTOR Owen Davies

General Manager Keith Pray (212) 915-4157, kpray@avtechmediausa.com Advertising Manager Ed DiBenede o (212) 915-4153, edibenede o@avtechmediausa.com Sales Coordinator Rosemarie Torcivia (212) 915-4160, rtorcivia@avtechmediausa.com Digital inquiries Keith Pray, kpray@avtechmediausa.com Important Sound & Vision telephone numbers US & Canada subscriptions (800) 666-3746, soundandvision@emailcustomerservice.com Sound & Vision, box 420235, Palm Coast, FL 32142-0235 Please include name, address, and phone number on any inquiries International subscriptions (386) 447-6383 Al Griﬃn editor@soundandvision.com Sound & Vision website www.soundandvision.com Reprints For high-quality custom reprints and eprints, please contact Keith Pray at kpray@avtechmediausa.com. Submissions Any submissions or contributions from readers shall be subject to and governed by AVTech Media’s user content submission terms and conditions, which are posted at h p://www.avtechmediausa.com/terms. html Canada Post Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: Imex Global Solutions, P.O. box 25542, London, ON N6C 6B2 Subscriber List

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You Need to Hear This The new Premier™ Series from Paradigm delivers a surprise: true high performance audio, delivered by patented technology, at a reasonable price. With six models, in three elegant finishes, Premier encourages you to step up to the realm of realism and depth. These loudspeakers are beautifully designed, intricately engineered, and &UDɾHG LQ &DQDGD to fill your life with sound. Experience Premier today.

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letters What Happened To July/August? I have not found any comment in the September issue or on soundandvision.com about the status of the July/August issue, which seems odd since the issue was supposed to be produced but in fact may not have been. Can you advise whether or not this double issue was produced? Kenneth P. Mullin via email

Sound & Vision owes an apology to readers for any confusion surrounding the existence of a July/August 2018 issue. S&V’s Rob Sabin stated in his June editorial that a July/ August issue would be forthcoming. However, it was ultimately decided as part of AVTech Media’s transition to a bimonthly schedule to jump straight to September 2018 and not produce a July/August S&V. Moving forward, readers will of course receive the exact number of issues due to them on their subscription.—AG

Missing Measurements I’ve just received the September 2018 issue of Sound & Vision magazine and was pleased to see the new-look graphics. But I was also surprised and disappointed to see that measurements are no longer published in the review section. Proper measurements are integral to evaluating the performance of an audio component and their absence not only leaves your reader at a disadvantage, but also detracts from the overall quality of the review and the magazine as a whole. Will S&V no longer publish measurements going forward? A. Lal via email I have just ﬁnished reading through the September 2018 issue of Sound & Vision. What happened to the laboratory measurements that used to be included in the equipment reviews? I am very disappointed by this change, which is one for the worse, as those measurements provided very useful quantitative information. Ideally, I would like to see them back again. Witold Waldman Melbourne, Australia Please bring back the graphic results/ measurements from the test bench segment. While anecdotal assessments by the writers are okay, they are a subjective account. For example, a reviewer might praise a subwoofer’s performance, but I want to see a frequency response graph to assess its “linearity.” I also want to see a graphic showing a TV’s pre- and post-cali-

bration results. Phil Treinen via email I fully understand the disappointment some readers will feel about the removal of audio measurements from Sound & Vision. Measurements are a useful accompaniment to a subjective review that helps to keep the reviewer honest and on-track. That said, the audio measurements Sound & Vision routinely published following its merger with Home Theater magazine in 2013 have been straight measurement data with no analysis, which apparently was a condition of the magazine’s arrangement with its audio technical editor. That stands in contrast with Sound & Vision’s video measurements, which are detailed, and o en contain interpretation to help readers relate to what’s appearing onscreen. While I regret that audio measurements will no longer continue (though there is a possibility they might resurface for special tests), I’m glad that we are able continue to provide in-depth measurements of TVs and projectors, along with analysis of those measurements. As for the graphs, we are currently working on expanding our visual representation of video measurements. Because of space considerations, however, these will most likely appear in the online version of the review rather than in print.—AG

This Just Isn’t In I received the latest Sound & Vision only to ﬁnd that the news has been removed. I’m referring, of course, to the “This Just In…” section. Those li le tidbits were really informative. Please bring them back. While I’m at it, I want to remind you that most of us subscribe to S&V so that we can make informed purchases. The magazine used to feature a two-page list of recommended products. Since I’m in the market for a new UHD Blu-ray player, it would be great if you reintroduced this feature, or at least provided an index to products featured in past issues. Carrington McVeigh via email

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The decision to remove the This Just In… section was based on the magazine’s new bimonthly publication schedule. News needs to be timely, and with the mag now coming out once every two months, any news reporting we’d provide would inevitably be stale. As for a recommended products list, that’s something of a relic of the pre-web era. I’d advise you to instead check out the regularly updated lists of Top Picks posted on soundandvision.com. You’ll ﬁnd it to be a far more useful resource, one that also provides handy links to full reviews for each recommended product.—AG

More Classic Gear! I have been a subscriber to Sound & Vision starting with its early predecessor Hi-Fi Review since I was a teenager in the late 50s and this is the ﬁrst time I have wri en to an editor. I like the new format and especially the equipment test report of the Nakamichi Dragon casse e deck. That was a grand time when engineers really cared about high ﬁdelity. I think it would be fabulous if you could make it a regular feature of Sound & Vision to review classic vintage equipment like the Nakamichi deck. Examples that come to mind are the JBL Paragon, Marantz FM tuner with built-in oscilloscope, Revox open-reel tape recorder, Klipschorn speaker, and any other classic gear. Henry Tardif via email

I very much enjoyed reading the vintage test report of the Nakamichi Dragon casse e deck, which brought back fond memories. When I was looking for a casse e deck in the mid-1970s, I narrowed it down to either a Nakamichi or the Onkyo Integra TA 2090. I ultimately went with the Integra since it had automatic azmuith adjustment (not to mention much less expensive!). It also had DBX noise reduction—much be er than Dolby, in my opinion. Looking forward to further nostalgia! Russ Poole via email It’s become clear to me a er reading these, and numerous other related le ers, that S&V subscribers thoroughly enjoyed the mag’s dive into the Stereo Review past as we

celebrated our predecessor’s 60th anniversary. For that reason, I plan to seek out future opportunities to dig through the archives and highlight vintage gear. In the meantime, check out the late, great Peter Mitchell’s 1983 SR feature “21 Audio Myths” on page 36.—AG

Life After Oppo Those of us who still have a sizeable CD/ DVD/Blu-ray disc collection are wondering who will replace Oppo, if anyone. In contrast with Oppo’s near-perfect players, every current model I’ve looked at has drawbacks. I was about to spring for a new one when they pulled the plug on production. Michael Oleson Fort Worth, TX I’m 63 and have been into Stereo Review (and its subsequent incarnations) since high school. I’ve never paid a ention to who the editor was before, but must confess to really liking the awesome new changes in editorial direction (reasonably-priced equipment, two-channel audio), the aesthetics of the mag, the new columns, and—most important of all—tone. Well done! I’d like to make a plea for you to consider two issues at some point. The ﬁrst has to do with a paradox. As A/V equipment becomes more complicated and sophisticated, user manuals have become less readily

available…if they even exist at all. The second has to do with average picture level when displaying HDR. In my room, an HDR picture looks very dark compared with the non-HDR Blu-ray version of the same movie. I use an Oppo 203 player and can easily strip metadata or convert video (in multiple ways!) from HDR to SDR, but find I have to set the TV’s target luminance to 250 nits (yikes!) to get an acceptable picture. Jon Links via email Thank you, Jon Links (and Henry Tardif), for the kind words on the magazine’s new format. We’re happy to hear from you a er all these years! I fully agree that the trend toward pushing user manuals online, or eliminating them altogether, is an alarming one. We will try to make note of that situation in future product reviews. (Fortunately, some manufacturers still make an effort to include a comprehensive printed manual with products. Such is the case with the PS Audio Sprout100 integrated amplifier reviewed on page 68.) Also, any reader looking for a good Oppo disc player alternative, and one that also does an excellent job processing HDR signals to match the capability of a specific TV or projector, should check out Kris Deering’s comprehensive review of the new Panasonic DP-UB820 UHD Blu-ray player on page 48.—AG

Enter to WIN CRUTCHFIELD’S GREAT GEAR GIVEAWAY

Sound & Vision Style I respectfully submit a few changes to your style guide, and ask you to avoid certain words that have been regre ably misused or overused in the pages of “Sound & Vision” and many other publications. Please avoid the following: 1) The “i” words: “incredible” and “impact.” These words are egregiously, thoughtlessly overused, and o en used incorrectly. “Impact” is most appropriate for molars, mortars, and meteors, and may be replaced in most cases with a host of be er words such as: consequence, influence, effect, and result. “Incredible” means not credible, and is typically employed when superlatives such as wonderful, amazing, fantastic, or even great would be preferable. 2) “Consume” and “Consumer” are ugly words that are more o en than not used incorrectly, especially “consume.” Of all the things described in S&V, aside from popcorn, is there a single item that we the readers or customers or aficionados or enthusiasts actually consume? Consume gives the impression that we are chowing down on streaming data or Blu-ray discs or even preamplifiers. My stomach hurts just to think about it. Karen Amrhein Baltimore, MD Thanks, Karen, for your careful scrutiny of the language used in Sound & Vision. I wish I had space to print your le er in its entirety. While I agree that “incredible” is an overused superlative, I find the term “impact” to be one that’s hard to avoid when discussing A/V gear. For example, anyone who has sat through a good home theater or music demo should be able to relate to a description of “bass impact,” which is something you feel physically. As for the idea of “consuming” media, that dates back to 1960s media theorists like Marshall McLuhan and has since become common, acceptable usage.—AG

We welcome questions and comments.

Enter now crutchfield.com/SVS

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 [ 15

1999.99/ea

– Sound & Vision Magazine

“ They are SUPERB … plunges into the nether regions with musicality and dexterity, VOLCANIC POWER and subtlety, the SuperSub XXL is a must audition.” – Jacob Heilbrunn, The Absolute Sound

“ SONIC BLISS … remarkably powerful … THEY KICK ASS, totally … down to the infrasonic” – Mark Henninger, AVS “ Blew me away … the PERFECT BALANCE of POWER and CONTROL PTWHJ[ HUK \UVI[Y\ZP]LULZZ M\Y` HUK ÄULZZL¹ – Dennis Burger, HD Living

“ The SuperSub XXL has looks to kill and is BUILT to ROCK THE HOUSE when duty calls” – Chris Martens, HiFi+

w w w.G o l d e n E a r.c o m |

(410)

998-9134

New Gear, News, Quick Takes, and Commentary

wideangle

Bowers & Wilkins 600 Series Speakers

Sony Master Series Ultra HDTVs Sony’s new Master Series UHDTVs were designed with “input from the creative community,” and bring a quality level that “approaches a professional monitor in post-production.” Both the A9F OLED and Z9F LCD models use a new X1 Ultimate picture processor with object-based HDR Remaster and Super Resolution. They also feature a Netflix Calibrated mode developed jointly with the company that’s said to deliver optimal picture quality when viewing Netflix’s original programs. Available in 55- and 65-inch screen sizes ($4,500 and $5,500, respectively), the A9F OLED models feature Acoustic Surface Audio+, which improves on the built-in capability of Sony’s previous A1E series OLEDs through the use of an additional audio actuator at the screen’s center plus a second subwoofer channel for 3.2-channel sound. There’s also a center-speaker option that lets you use the TV’s audio system as a dedicated center-channel speaker in a full surround-sound setup. Similar to the company’s previous top-of-line Z9D series LCD UHDTVs, the new Z9F models, which will be available in 65- and 75-inch screen sizes ($4,500 and $7,000, respectively), feature a full-array LED backlight and Triluminos extendedcolor display. The Z9F’s X-Wide Angle feature incorporates a new optical design that dramatically improves color fidelity at off-axis viewing angles—a traditional Achilles’ heel of LCD display tech. (See the above picture taken at a recent Sony event for an example of X-Wide Angle in action.) Another feature, X-Motion Clarity, effectively reduces motion blur without brightness reduction by blinking the set’s local dimming backlight on a zone-by-zone basis. sony.com

16 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

Bowers & Wilkins has introduced a sixth iteration of its affordably priced 600 Series speakers that integrates technologies previously found only in the company’s flagship 800 Diamond Series. All models in the new lineup feature the company’s Continuum Cone midrange driver and an updated version of its Decoupled Double Dome 1-inch aluminum tweeter and are available with a ma e black or satin white finish. The flagship model in the redesigned 600 series is the 603 tower ($900), which features two 6.5-inch paper-cone woofers and is rated down to 29 Hz (–6 dB). Two bookshelf models, the 607 ($300) and 606 ($400), feature 5- and 6.5-inch Continuum Cone drivers, respectively, while the slim HTM6 center speaker ($599) sports two 5-inch Continuum Cone drivers. Three subwoofers carried over from the previous 600 Series complete the lineup. The ASW610XP ($1,200) features a 10-inch driver and 500-wa amplifier, while the ASW610 ($650), has a 10-inch driver powered by a 200-wa amp. Rounding out the sub options is the ASW608 ($500), which has an 8-inch driver powered by a 200-wa amp. bowers-wilkins.com

EPV Screens AcousticPro 4K eFinity Series The new AcousticPro 4K eFinity Series from EPV Screens offers custom installers a 4K-ready, acoustically transparent screen option that features an ultra-thin bezel. Designed to maximize image size relative to the screen’s overall footprint, the EdgeFree frame format has a similar look to a massive flat-panel TV, but without the associated massive cost. The frame is paired with the company’s AcousticPro 4K front projection material, which provides minimal sound a enuation but minus the moiré effects that can sometimes plague perforated screens when displaying Ultra HD images. The AcousticPro 4K eFinity Series is available in a 16:9 format in screen sizes ranging from 100 to 150 inches diagonal. Prices start at $1,995. elitescreens.com

wide angle

signals

The Pohlmann Interview s this magazine celebrates its 60th anniversary, we are trying to reconcile the fact that Ken Pohlmann is the longest-serving contributor to these pages. Frankly, we’re not sure why we ever hired him 30 years ago. In an effort to find out, we asked Mr. Pohlmann to share his stories of his early days at the magazine. How did you get started in audio? It was because of a glitch in the space-time continuum. You see, as a kid, I loved to build and fly kites, model airplanes and rockets. When I went to college, I first enrolled in an aeronautical engineering curriculum. If things had gone according to the plan, I would be working for Boeing right now designing very sketchy airplane wings, and a guy named Archibald Leach would be writing absolutely splendid, brilliant articles for Sound &Vision. But the glitch happened and things got switched. Archie is doing amazing work at Boeing and S&V is stuck with me. I deeply apologize. But on the other hand, airplanes aren’t constantly crashing. Somehow, Sound&Vision and its predecessor, Stereo Review, has managed to survive in spite of your many contributions. Among your first SR appearances was a 1988 test report of Sony’s CDX-A20/RM-X2, which you co-authored with Julian Hirsch. What do you remember about that product review? To put things in context, let’s recall that in the 80s and 90s the

Compact Disc was extremely popular until it was eclipsed by Paris Hilton in the 00s. But at the time, the CD was huge. CD players were crushing turntables and casse e players. In particular, portable and car CD players absolutely blew people’s minds. That Sony product was a magazine-type, trunk-mounted disc changer/ in-dash head unit combo. From an engineering standpoint, it was extremely sophisticated, and Sony was the only company that could pull oﬀ such a technological feat. In hindsight, the jukebox mechanism, like all jukeboxes, was pre y clunky and I was never a fan of loading discs into magazines. Too much hassle. I’m sure that most people loaded the changer once, and never ventured into the trunk again. They are probably still listening to “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go” for the zillionth time. Do any of your other early reviews stand out? Let’s stick with Sony. I reviewed a couple of their early Memory Stick portable players. These li le bastards exactly exempliﬁed the crisis that Sony was experiencing at the time. Sony was founded as a hardware company and was still building

outstanding hardware products. But the company had diversified into content, buying Columbia movies and music. With the CD, they could sell both hardware and the so ware to play on it. They were printing money. But now they were faced with Napster, file-sharing, and ripping. If they built the piracy-enabling hardware that people really wanted, they would be crippling their music business. So they built their players with a copy-protection system called MagicGate. You had to check out a file from your computer, the system encrypted the file before moving it to the portable player, and playback on the computer was disabled until the file was checked back in. I completely understand their reason to employ a copy-protection system, but it was a nightmare to use. Even worse, my review samples were prototypes that kept crashing the host computer. I spent an entire miserable weekend trying to get the system to work on a variety of different computers, but these prototypes were completely wonky and basically unusable. I’m not sure that the finished products ended up being much be er. Well, we’ve run out of space, so, as fascinating as it’s been, we’ll have to sign off now. But, but, but, how can you possibly interrupt this very important discussion? I like to think of my words as being “deathless prose.” Well, I guess we see things differently. Thanks again for speaking with us. soundandvision.com [ 17

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Streams People Play Who wins in the streaming war between Apple Music and Spotify? You do, of course. BY MIKE METTLER Last issue, you and I made a pact, right here in this space. What, you don’t remember? (Apparently, even audiophiles have ADD.) Well, our agreement was essentially this: We the golden-ear people wholly accept streaming as another worthwhile delivery system for receiving and listening to our music, especially given the strides some of the services have been making in providing higher-quality, higher-resolution streams. (Coming back to you now?) The point is, good music is good music, regardless of how we receive it. My corollary: Audiophiles can’t discount how we choose to receive said good music if the latest format option—i.e., streaming—is up to our requisite SQ standards. Even music-biz veterans who have weathered many decades of format mods embrace the winds of streaming change. Consider the following from Seymour Stein, the legendary 76-year-old music mogul and founder of Sire Records (Talking Heads, Ramones, The Smiths), who noted in his recent autobiography Siren Song: My Life in Music, “Does it ma er if your daily hit is acquired digitally or if it’s needled up from a vinyl pla er? . . . With the growth of streaming services, it seems

we’re now moving from the old system of bo led medicine to the brave new world of hits on tap. . . . Stick to the substance and people will line up.” Now that we’re on the same digital-delivery page, let’s explore the benefits (and deficits) of some of the major services. First up, a fine pair: Apple Music and Spotify. In a way, these two titanic services are somewhat akin to the relationship between hip-hop and rock music—both services are quite popular, to be sure, yet one holds more mainstream sway and favor than the other does in the current musicconsumption climate. Spotify has more of an international-cool feel, while Apple Music is the onetime hippest kid on the block now

18 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

‘Me, I pay for both services beyond what’s offered up for free, because I want artists to be getting something in return.’ playing catch up with its younger upstart. Yet as 2018 continues to unfold, Apple Music is on track to surpass Spotify’s 22 million-plus subscriber count in the U.S., so listeners are clearly embracing what the music-service giant has to offer, especially given the iOS power Apple wields in relation to the devices many of us use on a daily basis. Me, I pay for both services beyond what’s offered up for free, because I want artists to be ge ing something in return for the sonic fruits of their creative labors. (I won’t go down the “artists are ge ing ripped off re: their streaming royalties” rabbit hole here—for now, anyway.) And, to keep with that food-group metaphor for just a moment, some think it’s apples and oranges when it comes to what you prefer and/or disavow from either service, so you have to pick what’s right for your specific listening diet. On the Spotify tip, since I am a stats guy at heart, I like monitoring how their numbers game unfolds. That is, due to my paying for the Spotify Premium service, I get to see just how many streams my favorite songs have in real time. For example, as I write this, personal

audiophile test tracks like Dire Straits’ “Money for Nothing” total up on the higher side (92.6 million plays), while Steely Dan’s “Aja” (6 million), and Styx’s “Boat on the River” (5.7 million) hit more where one might expect, with Steven Wilson’s “Luminol” (895,000) ﬁrmly ensconced in cult-status mode. I also enjoy seeing my Friend Activity listening habits scrolling down the right-side channel whenever I’m on my laptop. (Head Monster Noel Lee’s choices are always interesting, I must admit.) That said, I’m not the biggest fan of Spotify’s mood-centric curated/pushed playlists (gag city). But I do cue up the Prog-Rock Monsters playlist to hear favored tracks like Genesis’ “Firth of Fi h” (4.2 million plays) and more obscure cuts like Eloy’s “Poseidon’s Creation” (491,000) in a pinch. On the Apple-byte side, as an inveterate iPhone and iPad user, I do admire the way their HomePod speaker integrates with the Apple Music platform. I’m also a fan of the curated playlists from the likes of Sub Pop, Fender, and Sonos, as well as featured playlists like New Fire, Eclectic Rock, and The A-List: Singer/Songwriter. Three words: Damn good breadth. BTW, there’s no need to compromise SQ if you’re goin’ mobile, something I’ve personally had to check and adjust on more than a few friends’ iPhones of late. As you may know, Apple Music can reject playing at the higher bitrate at times based on Wi-Fi strength and other factors, so you need to go into Se ings > Music > Cellular Data and toggle High Quality Streaming into the green position to maximize your listening enjoyment. To modify a phrase, I ain’t gonna spend the rest of my streaming-listening life quietly fading away.

THE AUTHOR Mike Mettler, a.k.a. The SoundBard, is the music editor of Sound & Vision.

For over 20 years JVC D-ILA projectors have thrilled large screen home theater enthusiasts by delivering high contrast, high resolution images with vivid color and best-in-class brightness. ǡ ǯ Ƥ 8K e-shift home theater projector. 8K e-shift enhances 4K HDR content to achieve even higher resolution for a

greater sense of depth and a powerfully immersive viewing experience. Also new — a full line of 4K projectors that carries on the JVC reputation for superior optics and meticulous build quality, featuring native 4K D-ILA devices. It’s no wonder that JVC D-ILA projectors have been among the most highly acclaimed home theater projectors for over two decades. DLA-NX9

DLA-RS3000

jvc.com

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quick take

AT A GLANCE

Campﬁre Audio Cascade Headphones

Stunning design with consummate build quality Pleasurable sound balance Plush ear pads

BY STEVE GUTTENBERG Sound balance may be too rich for some tastes

A Very Guilty Pleasure Even before I start listening to headphones, their look and feel on my head can have an influence on my first impressions of the sound. On that score, Campfire Audio’s Cascade headphones really had my hopes up. The satin black machined aluminum earcups felt like they could survive a close encounter with a city bus and escape unscathed. The plush, real lambskin-covered earpads promised good times ahead. Yesiree, the Cascade makes a mighty fine first impression. What about the sound, you ask? No worries there since the Cascade’s sound encourages long listening sessions. Thoughtful design touches abound. A user-replaceable 50-inch-long Litz cable deserves special mention for its über flexibility, which contributes to the Cascade’s wearing comfort. The folding headband’s metal hinges feel like they’ll last forever, and I like that the earpads are user-replaceable. Another noteworthy touch is the deluxe faux shearling fur lining the zippered carrying case. The earcup connectors have a precision feel and make for a very secure fit. Basically, it’s the same type of connector that Sennheiser uses for its HD 800S headphones, which is why Campfire Audio claims that a ermarket HD 800S cables will fit the Cascade. As full-size ‘phones go, the Cascade isn’t very big, so its amply padded ear cushions rest on, but not over, my ears. Head clamping pressure is a tad high, but the upside there is that the Cascade does a good job of keeping any outside noise at bay. I rarely comment on headphone “break-in,” also known as “burn-in,” but in this case it really does make a difference. I was initially concerned about the 42mm Beryllium PVD driver’s bass untidiness, so I le the Cascade playing for a good 10 days

before listening again. Ah, the now se led in bass remained rich with palpable texture, but the Cascade’s grip on the low-end firmed up. While the Cascade isn’t what I would call an accurate or neutralsounding set of headphones, its bass and upper-midrange richness are deeply satisfying. Listening to the first few Led Zeppelin albums, I started focusing on the interplay between Jimmy Page’s guitar and John Bonham’s drums. The rhythm of these two musicians played a huge role in the band’s sound. On the Cascade, they were locked-in and grooving. Speaking of huge, the Cascade’s sound is remarkably open and spacious for smallish closed-back, over-ear headphones. Treble air and sparkle are also well-represented. Audeze’s EL-8 closed-back planar magnetic headphones ($699) were on-hand and ripe for a comparison with the Cascade. The EL-8 is bigger and less portable, but it’s also a champ at hushing external noise. The Audeze’s larger earcups and pads also do a be er job of fi ing around my ears. AT 13.5 ounces vs. the EL-8’s 19 ounces, the Cascade is lighter, but I still find the EL-8 to be more comfortable. I didn’t have to listen long to note that the

20 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

RATING PERFORMANCE

BUILD QUALITY

COMFORT

VALUE

Cascade has a more voluptuous, meaty, big, and bold sound. The EL-8 in comparison sounds much leaner and cooler. They’re both good headphones, but they approach sound from very different directions. The EL-8 is clearly more accurate, so my appreciation for the Campfire Audio Cascade’s sound almost feels like a guilty pleasure. A very guilty pleasure. The real magic with the Cascade happened in the midrange when I played Diana Krall’s Live in Paris collection: her vocals sounded so full of life. There was something really special about Krall’s intimate connection with the microphone; it was as if there was no mic at all. The Cascade was making all the right moves, rendering her exquisite touch on the piano keys, her dynamics, and most importantly her sense of swing. With a sound that seduces rather than dazzles with detail, the Campfire Audio Cascade isn’t equipped to compete in the high-resolution audio sweepstakes. While its treble isn’t so or rolled-off, the rich midrange and voluptuous-sounding bass are the Cascade’s star a ractions. That’s enough for me, and it might also be enough for you.

SPECS Type: Closed-back, over-the-ear Driver: 42mm, dynamic Beryllium PVD diaphragm Impedance: 38 ohms Sensitivity: 100 dB/1mW Weight: 13.5 Ounces Price: $799 campfireaudio. com THE VERDICT Campfire Audio’s Cascade is a class act, with distinctive good looks and a sweet, easy sound.

(THX) from a 100-inch diagonal, 16:9 aspect ratio screen. (A useful calculator can be found here: h p://myhometheater. homestead.com/viewingdistancecalculator.html.) And with the higher pixel density that 4K projection provides, a person with 20/20 vision could sit as close as seven feet from the same-size screen. LET THERE BE LIGHT

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The Connected Life

serving/drinking areas. But these rooms were usually quite large to begin with. SIZE MATTERS

Top Design Mıstakes, Part Two BY JOHN SCIACCA As I mentioned in my last column, I’ve worked as a custom installer for the past 20 years, and a key part of my job is designing and installing media rooms and home theaters. (The diﬀerence between the two: a media room is typically an open, multi-use space, while a home theater is a dedicated room purpose-designed for watching movies.) Having worked on hundreds of installations, I run across the same basic design mistakes over and over, and this series of columns is designed to help you avoid or correct those same mistakes in your own room. Last month we tackled three major design fails: excessive seats; risers too low; screen wall too light. Let’s now discuss a few more easily ﬁxable problems that I routinely encounter. DOING TOO MUCH In a similar vein to cramming too many seats into a room, media spaces frequently become a dumping ground for other forms of entertainment: card and foosball tables, arcade games, bars, and— by far the most

common and problematic space hog—pool tables. I’ve seen many plans where an otherwise great movie room gets chopped up to accommodate other random activities. When you consider that you’re usually working with a roughly 14 x 20-foot room, a size that’s only just adequate to pull oﬀ a nice movie presentation with properly placed seats, sightlines, and speaker locations, all that other stuﬀ creates a crowded mess. In other words, the movie-watching experience has been compromised. Now, before you write in to say how the pool table and bar in your room works perfectly, I’ll admit I have seen some well-designed theaters that incorporate gaming and bar

The fundamental reason for building a dedicated viewing room is to deliver a cinematic experience. That’s why I cringe when I visit what could have been a great room and see a 60-inch ﬂat-panel TV mounted on the wall. If you’ve made a commitment to creating a dedicated movie-watching space, I strongly recommend investing in a projector and screen. (Or, at a minimum, an 85-inch or larger ﬂat-panel TV.) When it comes to projection screens, larger sizes o en cost just slightly more than the smaller ones. Of course, factors like wall construction (A-frame) or ceiling height can sometimes dictate the physical size of the screen, but if those limitations don’t exist, always consider going larger. There are several guidelines for seating distance and screen size. The Society for Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE), for example, recommends that commercial cinemas not exceed a 30 degree subtended viewing angle. For an even more engaging visual experience, THX recommends a maximum 36 degree subtended viewing angle. Following these guidelines, you could sit either 13.6 feet (SMPTE) or 11.2 feet

I once worked on a theater where the builder didn’t spec a single light for the room. When I asked about the situation, he replied, “Well, you always say you want the room to be dark, so we gave you a dark room.” The preferred lighting level for movies—especially with a projection system— is dark-as-possible, which greatly improves both the actual and perceived contrast levels. Otherwise, you’ll need light in the room to safely enter and exit, and you should also take into account more social viewing occasions like sporting events. Ideally, your viewing room should have multiple, independently dimmable lighting zones. If you do want some lighting on while viewing a movie, it should be directed away from the screen. Sconces are great for washing sidewalls with light. Overhead spots serve to illuminate seating areas. Rope lighting provides a low level of ambient light so people can safely move around during a movie. And then there’s Smart, app-based lighting. Such systems, which have recently become inexpensive and DIY-retroﬁ able, may be the biggest, “Wow! That’s cool!” upgrade you can make. In the next issue, I’ll tackle distracting items clu ering the room, poorly placed speakers, and gear that’s either too old or complicated to operate. 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.

soundandvision.com [ 21

AT A GLANCE

Excellent sound quality Compact and well-built Easy to set up and use Great value No Wi-Fi streaming No visual feedback No grille cover wide angle

quick take

BY BOB ANKOSKO

RATING PERFORMANCE

Kanto SYD Powered Bluetooth Speaker

FEATURES

BUILD QUALITY

VALUE

Little Big Sound I could tell SYD was a serious speaker the moment I heard Joni Mitchell singing “A Case of You” from 1971’s Blue. Her angelic voice was mesmerizing in a way I didn’t expect from a speaker this size, not to mention a 47-year-old recording—and I was streaming from my phone. Actually, SYD had my a ention as soon as I pulled it out of the box. The perfect satin ﬁnish. The woven Kevlar woofers. The smooth silk-dome tweeters. A ributes that show that Kanto cares about quality. I’m a fan of the exposed-driver look, though I was a bit surprised to ﬁnd there was no grille cover option. Apart from those expertly cra ed drivers, the front panel is sparse with only an LED indicator in the bo om le corner and a small volume dial that doubles as a source selector in the bo om right. In other words: Don’t lose the remote. Around back, Kanto provides 3.5mm minijack, stereo analog RCA, and optical digital input options. In a nice twist, the RCA jacks double as a phono input so if you want to hook up a turntable—just move the slider switch to its Phono position. Kanto provides a medium-size remote control with bu ons for source selection, volume up/ down, mute, and track skip/play/

pause, the la er for Bluetooth streaming. Best of all, there are bu ons to adjust bass, treble, and balance—a feature you won’t find on most other Bluetooth speakers. Kanto also throws in a useful stand that tilts the speaker so it projects sound upward. Seeking instant gratification, I always start wireless speaker evaluations with Bluetooth, the rationale being that the quality can only go up from there. The sound with Bluetooth/aptX streaming was consistently good and perfectly fine for casual listening. From Joni Mitchell on Amazon to the Eagles on Pandora, I stopped to savor the signature harmonies and Don Felder’s sticky-sweet guitar solo on the title track of 1975’s One of These Nights. For the next musical excursion, I dusted off my Sony CD player and connected it via SYD’s optical input. I sought out favorite tracks I hadn’t heard in years, including “Figure of Eight” from Paul

22 [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

McCartney’s overlooked 1989 album Flowers in the Dirt and Led Zeppelin’s bi ersweet “Ten Years Gone” from 1975’s Physical Graffiti. The sound was rich and full and had mostly ample volume in my large 25 x 13-foot room. The soundstage didn’t spread much beyond the speaker and, at times, I wished SYD would play a tad louder, but those are quibbles. McCartney’s voice was raw and engaging and his driving bass appropriately fat and round, punctuated by a snare drum that sounded as real as the one in my basement studio. All was revealed on the chosen Zep track with li le of the congestion I expected to hear from such a dense recording: The juxtaposition of Jimmy Page’s graceful acoustic guitar with his vintage Telecaster, edgy and multilayered to great effect, behind Robert Plant’s passionate, at times ragged, vocals . Kanto’s SYD is a great li le speaker that will bring all but the largest of rooms to life with surprisingly robust sound. I wish it had Wi-Fi/multiroom capabilities, but maybe that’s too much to ask from a fine-sounding speaker system that costs only $330.

SPECS Drivers: 4-in Kevlar woofer (2), 1-in dome tweeter (2) Enclosure Type: Bass reflex Design: Dual ports Rated Power: (total RMS watts): 70 Connections: Bluetooth/aptX, switchable stereo RCA/ phono input, optical digital audio input, 3.5 mm auxiliary input, subwoofer output, USB Dimensions: 17.5" W x 5.7" H x 6.9" D Weight: 9.9 lbs. Accessories: Remote control, stand with 16 degrees upward tilt, 3.5mm auxiliary cable Price: $330 kantoaudio.com THE VERDICT Kanto’s SYD is a simple, high-performance Bluetooth speaker that will wow you with rich, powerful sound.

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Q&A

High-Def Anxiety BY AL GRIFFIN

I would like to use an Oppo BDP-93 as the Blu-ray player in my system connected to an Arcam AVR350 A/V receiver. Since the Arcam is a legacy AVR with no HDMI switching, I will need to use the Oppo’s component video output. Here’s my question: Will I be able to get high-deﬁnition resolution from Blu-ray discs with this setup? I have read that Blu-rays have embedded ICT (Image Constraint Token), which forces the player to downscale the video resolution to DVD quality. Also, are there any workarounds, like using an OPPO player with early (pre-ICT) ﬁrmware? LISA KAYE / VIA EMAIL

Image Constraint Token is a key feature of the AACS digital rights management system that was created by a consortium of movie studios and technology companies to accompany the high-deﬁnition Blu-ray and HD DVD disc format launches. The idea behind ICT was to prevent the copying of high-deﬁnition digital content by

plugging the “analog hole.” What typically happens is that when a Blu-ray player is connected to an HDTV using component-video cables, a ﬂag on the disc instructs the player to downgrade the video output to 540p—a notch above DVD resolution. Having said all that, you still may be able to get high-deﬁnition images from some Blu-rays since the decision to embed ICT on the

Can I use an HDMI 1.3b cable to connect an Ultra HD Blu-Ray player to my regular HDTV? Will the cable downscale the 4K image to 1080p, or do I need to use an HDMI 2.0 cable for it to work?

disc is up to the individual studio that produced it. While it’s possible to ﬁnd an old Blu-ray player from Oppo or another company with a ﬁrmware version that doesn’t support ICT, I’d instead suggest making a direct HDMI connection from the player to the HDTV. For an audio connection to the Arcam AVR, you could then use the player’s optical or coaxial digital outputs, or even its multichannel analog connection. Because the Arcam AVR is a legacy model that doesn’t support Dolby True HD and DTS-HD Master Audio high-res soundtrack formats, there will be no loss in using any of those audio connections. And by using an HDMI cable for a video connection to the TV, you won’t have to worry about any reduction in output resolution caused by ICT.

I’ve got a decent Velodyne subwoofer that I’d like to connect to a powered soundbar. Most soundbar manufacturers now

Since you’re using an Ultra HD Blu-ray player in your system, I would recommend buying a High Speed HDMI cable .The cable itself won’t perform any downscaling of the 4K video on Ultra HD

CHARLES KUFORIJI / VIA EMAIL

Before I get to your questions, let’s review the basics of HDMI cables and their capabilities. First, there’s no such thing as an HDMI 1.3b or HDMI 2.0 cable. Instead of being linked with a particular version of the HDMI speciﬁcation (e.g., HDMI 1.4), an HDMI cable is instead labeled by its capabilities. A Standard HDMI cable will support up to 1080i/720p high-deﬁnition video and multichannel audio. A High Speed HDMI cable can support 4K video with high dynamic range and multichannel audio. Both Standard and High Speed HDMI cables are also available in a separate versions with Ethernet support. Oh, there are also Premium High Speed HDMI Cables, but that’s something of a marketing gimmick to sell pricey cables.

24 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

use wireless subwoofer connections, however, so I’m struggling to ﬁnd one that’s capable of connecting with my sub. Could you recommend a mid-level or a high-end soundbar that features a hardwired subwoofer output? JIM O’HARA / VIA EMAIL

It’s good that you’re in the market for a mid-level or high-end soundbar, because it’s mostly the entry-level models that lack a hardwired subwoofer output. Three powered soundbars meeting your requirements that we can recommend include the Focal Dimension ($500), ZVOX SoundBar SB700 ($700), and Bluesound Pulse ($999). Yet another option would be to use a passive three- or five-channel soundbar connected to an A/V receiver. With that configuration, you could use the AVR’s own subwoofer output, which would also provide the benefit of flexible setup options when it comes to subwoofer crossover point and distance compensation adjustments.

Blu-ray to 1080p resolution; the player does that. To set things up properly, simply select the 1080p output option in the player’s video setup menu and signals in the correct format will be sent to the TV.

2018-2019 HT VIDEO & AUDIO

PRODUCTS OF THE YEAR EISA, or the Expert Imaging and Sound Association, is an organization representing 55 special interest magazines from 29 countries covering the categories of Hi-Fi, Home Theater Video, Home Theater Audio, Photography, Mobile Devices, and In-Car Electronics. Each year, EISA expert group members gather at the Kasteel (castle) den Brandt in Antwerp, Belgium to preview the latest products in their respective categories, and to cast ballots on which products are worthy of receiving the prestigious EISA award. Once European-based, EISA has expanded into a global organization, with member publications now located in North America, Asia, and Australia. As a member of EISA’s Home

[

26 October November 2018 soundandvision.com

Theater Video and Home Theater Audio groups, Sound & Vision had the opportunity to participate in the vote for the 2018-2019 awards. It was an honor to participate in this year’s process, which culminated in a ceremony held at the IFA consumer electronics tradeshow in Berlin, Germany on August 31, 2018. The products presented in the pages that follow—some of which have already been reviewed by S&V such as the Denon X8500H receiver on this issue’s cover— truly represent the A/V state-of-art. When a product receives an EISA award, you can be assured that its performance, design, and value have been recognized not just by one publication, but by a global network of experts.

TCL 55DC760 TCL’s midrange 55in UHD television has genuine EISA all-round appeal, adding the BEST BUY new Android 8.0 operating LCD TV system to a feature set that 2018-2019 includes HDR playback and an integrated two-way JBL soundbar to give pictures a sonic boost. Its extended color gamut reaps rewards with sports, movies and games content, and a wide viewing angle helps it retain its high picture performance when watching oﬀ-axis. The user interface provides options to adjust images to your personal taste, while Android TV integrates Chromecast and Google Assistant for slick control and access to your online content. The 55DC760 is a great value-for-money TV, particularly when you consider its roster of added features, elegant design and connectivity options.

Philips 65OLED903 Home theater enthusiasts demand a genuinely cinematic EISA experience that marries HOME immersive visuals with dynamic THEATER TV sound, and Philips’ 65in OLED 2018-2019 flagship delivers. A new, exclusive partnership with hi-fi specialists Bowers & Wilkins results in a bespoke in-built soundbar featuring dedicated midbass and treble drivers in isolated chambers, cra ing a soundfield that’s rich in detail and depth. Philips’ powerful P5 engine with its new ‘Perfect Natural Reality’ image processing and extensive user calibration tweaks ensure superb UHD (and upscaled SDR) HDR pictures with deep black levels, fine shadow detail, outstanding contrast and a wide color gamut. Overall, the 65OLED903 offers a class-leading performance, topped off by Ambilight-enhanced atmosphere, which gets the best from Ultra HD Blu-ray and streamed sources.

LG OLED65E8 With the 65in E8, LG has unleashed a superior and EISA hugely versatile UHD HDR TV PREMIUM where stunning image quality is OLED TV only part of the story. For 2018-2019 example, smart interaction and video-on-demand via its excellent WebOS interface is further boosted by LG’s ThinQ A.I. processing. Onboard Dolby Atmos decoding/playback brings extra sonic immersion, while the picture-on-glass design blends into any environment. As for its all-important picture performance, a new, brighter OLED panel design and Alpha 9 engine combine to deliver contrast-rich, wide-color visuals. Dolby Vision material from disc and streaming platforms is supported, while HDR10 material is polished via LG’s impressive image processing. This is a worthy winner in our premium OLED TV category. soundandvision.com [ 27

EISA 2018-2019 HT VIDEO & AUDIO PRODUCTS OF THE YEAR

EISA Home Theater Video Citations 2018 Samsung 65Q9FN The ﬁrst thing you notice about Samsung’s top-of-the-range EISA QLED TV is its gorgeous PREMIUM design and discreet installation LCD TV potential. Its 65in UHD display 2018-2019 is freed from all cables except a single, sleek connection with the One Connect Box, which houses the electronics and inputs. Then, via Samsung’s Ambient mode, the TV can display artwork, widgets or your own images while still in standby mode, and thanks to ‘Smart Things’ technology can also form part of a smart home ecosystem. Picture quality is even more impressive, with the 65Q9FN’s use of Full Array Local Dimming (FALD) technology, driven by Samsung’s Q-Engine image processing, resulting in images of breathtaking beauty. SDR and HDR content, including HDR10, HDR10+ and HLG, dazzles with its super-wide color gamut, high brightness and deep blacks.

Philips 55OLED803 Philips combines the latest 2018 OLED panel with its EISA revised P5 picture engine BEST BUY for truly stunning results OLED TV with this 55in model, while 2018-2019 still hi ing a tempting price. This UHD OLED TV lets you experience standard dynamic range content in near-HDR quality through Philips’ latest innovation, ‘Perfect Natural Reality’. Meanwhile, its rich, natural colors, true blacks and excellent motion sharpness – plus support for the latest HDR10+ standard – also make this an excellent choice for HDR material. Furthermore, Philips’ unique Ambilight technology creates a striking visual addition to the onscreen experience while the powerful 50W sound system and Android TV with Google Assistant all add to an outstanding all-round TV.

LG 65SK9500 Artificial Intelligence is transforming the smart ARTIFICIAL operations of televisions, and INTELLIGENCE the SK9500 from LG leads from TV the front. Heading up LG’s 2018 2018-2019 Super UHD range, it delivers a fine Ultra HD image (with Dolby Vision support) from IPS Nano-Cell technology with Full Array LED Dimming Pro, while adding a powerful artificial intelligence backbone called ‘AI ThinQ’ that combines with Google Assistant. This system works with existing Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa-enabled devices, making channel, input and other adjustments possible via voice command. The latest webOS platform and Magic Remote make navigating the TV’s vast number of streaming apps a pleasure. This is an A.I. TV with excellent connections and intuitive features that are receptive to the individual user’s needs. EISA

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Sharp Aquos LV-70X500E 8K isn’t the future – it’s EISA already here. Featuring a MONITOR native 7680x4320px INNOVATION display (16 times the 2018-2019 resolution of Full HD), this 70in LCD monitor from panel manufacturer Sharp delivers a level of deﬁnition that has to be seen to be believed. Among its eight HDMI inputs, four are used in parallel to deliver an 8K video signal, and there are two USB ports supporting 8K still pictures. But there’s no need to wait for such content – the LV-70X500E features powerful 8K upscaling technology and Full Array Local dimming for high-contrast and razor-sharp reproduction of your UHD HDR movie collection. This a stunning proposition from Sharp that heralds the dawn of a new era.

EISA

BenQ W1700 BenQ HT2550 (in the USA)

The W1700 (HT2550 in the USA) from BenQ brings UHD HDR qualities to bigscreen projection in the home at a price which previously only delivered Full HD. BenQ’s optical system leverages a DLP Digital Micromirror Device, in which the pixels of a Full HD array are shi ed to four positions per frame, giving a UHD experience with crisp, bright and brilliant images. Colors are impressively accurate straight out of the box, and 3D playback is oﬀered for that extra level of cinematic immersion. The compact cabinet makes the W1700 easy to install, while its onscreen menus are packed with tools and adjustments. As a way to upgrade to UHD projection, the W1700’s combination of quality and value is irresistible. BEST BUY PROJECTOR 2018-2019

Sony VPL-VW760ES Sony adds to its home theater projector lineup with this EISA laser-illuminated native 4K HDR PREMIUM flagship that delivers an PROJECTOR outstanding movie perfor2018-2019 mance. Using SXRD panels filtered down from the company’s digital cinema division, the VPL-VW760ES creates refined, supersharp largescreen visuals, combined with an HDR10 and HLG delivery bolstered by the projector’s skilful light-handling and 2000-Lumen brightness. A wide-colour presentation thanks to the laser, Reality Creation upscaling of Full HD sources and immersive 3D playback complete a package that’s destined for the finest of home theaters. Finally, the curved chassis design, a 2.06x zoom and expansive throw ratio mean installation is painless. Simply put, this 4K projector is best-in-class. soundandvision.com [ 29

EISA 2018-2019 HT VIDEO & AUDIO PRODUCTS OF THE YEAR

EISA Home Theater Video Citations 2018 EISA

COMBINED AWARD WITH HT AUDIO GROUP

Panasonic DP-UB9000 series

Panasonic adds to its illustrious Blu-ray history with the DP-UB9000 disc-spinner, a gloriously engineered high-end machine compatible with Ultra HD Blu-ray (including both Dolby Vision and HDR10+ grades), DVD, CD and hi-res audio – including DSD. Custom processing, high-spec components and advanced user adjustments mean every last drop of performance detail is squeezed from movies and music alike – Panasonic’s user-adjustable HDR Optimiser tool improves the delivery of UHD HDR10 content, while a 768kHz/32-bit DAC serves up a premium stereo audio experience. And then there’s the DP-UB9000’s sumptuous design and build. Doublelayer base and top plates, an aluminium chassis and a new, rigid drive mechanism ensure this master of Blu-ray is ready for action. HIGH-END UHD BLU-RAY PLAYER 2018-2019

Sony UBP-X700 From Sony’s second EISA generation of Ultra HD BEST BUY Blu-ray players, the UHD BLU-RAY UBP-X700 delivers PLAYER everything you need to 2018-2019 enter the new UHD HDR world without leaving the past behind, as it also handles DVD, BD and even SACD audio discs. If needed, the second HDMI output can send audio only, while the main output carries the video signal (including HDR10 and Dolby Vision) directly to a television. It oﬀers a major bonus with its wireless networking abilities, able to access online video and audio services including Netﬂix and YouTube, plus high-res DLNA playback. Every 4K TV should have an Ultra HD Blu-ray player as a high-quality video source, and the UBP-X700’s keen pricing makes it a high-value overachiever.

COMBINED AWARD WITH PHOTOGRAPHY GROUP

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COMBINED AWARD WITH HT AUDIO GROUP

EISA

Panasonic LUMIX DC-GH5S

This camera is specially designed for demanding videographers. The 10.2-megapixel Four Thirds sensor offers dual native ISO sensitivities for the best picture quality when working in low light. It also offers many different recording formats, including 4K/30p 4:2:2 10-bit direct to card without any time limit, or high frame rates (240fps in Full HD) for smooth slow motion. It also offers V-Log and HDR mode for wide dynamic range and be er tonal rendering. Other useful facilities include a zebra pa ern display, time code in/out function as well as a waveform and Vector Scope monitor. PHOTO VIDEO CAMERA 2018-2019

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Denon AVC-X8500H Denon’s flagship AV amplifier is EISA perfect for those seeking the HOME highest levels of home THEATER entertainment. Rated at 210W AMPLIFIER per channel with no fewer than 2018-2019 13 discrete amplifiers, it’s potently powerful and capable of driving demanding speakers, delivering a dynamic performance regardless of whether you are running a 9.1.4 array, or 7.1.6 setup with six ceiling channels. Able to decode Dolby Atmos, DTS:X and Auro-3D movie soundmixes, the AVC-X8500H also packs an extensive range of inputs plus networking/streaming functionality to offer borderless comfort. A heavyweight construction, immense power supply and Audyssey’s top-tier MultEQ XT32 EQ/calibration suite help engineer its superb, cinematic sound. Standing clear of its rivals, it delivers the ultimate home theater experience.

Pioneer VSX-933 In direct contrast to its reasonable price, Pioneer’s HOME seven-channel VSX-933 AV THEATER receiver comes with a suitably RECEIVER high-spec feature list, allowing 2018-2019 it to operate as the centerpiece of a home theater with up to 7.2 channels. Onboard decoding includes the object-based Dolby Atmos and DTS:X formats, while a bespoke ‘reflex optimiser’ is on hand to calibrate any upwards-firing speakers in even the most challenging rooms. The powerful and well-constructed VSX-933 adds to its movie playback credentials with wireless multiroom, hi-res audio support, streaming services including Tidal, Spotify and Deezer, plus Chromecast. Immersive sound quality is fine-tuned by Pioneer’s MCACC auto-calibration system, ensuring this receiver delivers films and music to a far higher level than you might expect given the price. EISA

KEF Q Series EISA KEF’s Q Series has a legendary HOME status stretching back decades, THEATER but has now been re-invented SPEAKER for today’s user. A robust, stylish SYSTEM cabinet design is matched by 2018-2019 an impressive performance bolstered by the latest version of KEF’s Uni-Q concentric driver, where midrange and treble information is treated as a single source. For largescale bass delivery, an active driver is combined with two passive radiators in the Q750 ﬂoorstanders. These are joined by the Q650c centre and Q350 surround speakers to provide an accurate, wraparound soundstage with incredible neutrality. Extra bass depth comes via the Kube12b active subwoofer, while the Dolby Atmos-enabled Q50a upﬁring speakers ensure that movie enthusiasts can enjoy up to 5.1.4 channels of unbeatable home cinema sound. soundandvision.com [ 31

EISA 2018-2019 HT VIDEO & AUDIO PRODUCTS OF THE YEAR

EISA HT Audio Citations 2018 EISA

Jamo S 809 HCS / S 810 SUB / S 8 ATM

BEST BUY HOME THEATER SPEAKER SYSTEM 2018-2019

When it comes to captivating home theater audio from a smart, stylish system, Jamo’s Studio 8 series ticks all the boxes. An ideal starting point for a multichannel setup, the S 809 HCS package of two floorstanders, center speaker and pair of bookshelf surrounds can be strengthened by the addition of the compact but powerful S 810 SUB for extra low-end grunt. Meanwhile, Jamo’s S 8 ATM upfiring speakers, which integrate seamlessly with floorstanding models, provide a Dolby Atmos upgrade path. The performance here is accurate, well-balanced and enveloping, and the slim, elegant cabinets with grey fabric grilles result in 5.1.2 package that looks every bit as good as it sounds.

Focal 300IWLCR6 / 300IW6

EISA For those that don’t want HOME THEATER speakers clu ering their room, IN-WALL Focal’s 300 In-Wall series offers SPEAKER an elegant solution without 2018-2019 compromising performance. Installation is made easy by the smart clamping mechanism, and the frameless magnetic grilles result in a near-invisible finish. Through their Flax drivers and glassfibre cones, these Focal in-wall speakers provide a neutral midrange, accurate bass and precise vocal definition, while clear and vibrant harmonics are delivered by the inverted dome tweeter – performance can adjusted via treble and midrange switches. With the three-way 300IWLCR6 speakers bringing impressive dynamics and low-frequency response to the front/center soundstage, the smaller two-way 300IW6 is perfect for surround channel use. Simply cut a hole, click in and you’re ready to go.

LG SK10Y Designed to partner screens up to 65in and above, LG’s EISA SK10Y Dolby Atmos soundbar is a thrilling home SOUNDBAR theater solution for when 2018-2019 space is at a premium, and comes fully equipped with network functionality, hi-res audio compatibility, Chromecast and a wireless subwoofer. Slim and beautifully constructed, this 5.1.2-channel model features 4K HDR passthrough via its HDMI connectivity, and can be combined with LG’s SPK8-S wireless speaker upgrade package to expand to a 7.1.2 soundﬁeld. Audio performance, boosted by Meridian Audio technology and preset EQ modes, is rich in bass and huge in scale, with the in-built upﬁring drivers adding impactful height-layer detail. It’s a stunning home cinema sound from a well-featured package.

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32 October November 2018 soundandvision.com

Polk Audio MagniFi MAX The MagniFi MAX soundbar EISA packs a lot of functionality into BEST BUY its living-room friendly design. SOUNDBAR Dolby and DTS decoding are 2018-2019 allied to Polk Audio’s patented ‘Stereo Dimensional Array’ digital surround processing, giving an expansive performance to movies, TV and music playback, while voice adjust technology boosts dialogue delivery, making it easy to understand at all times. The additional subwoofer, which connects wirelessly, oﬀers powerful and well-controlled bass. HDMI connectivity simpliﬁes installation, and music streaming from your favorite apps is achieved over Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. And if that’s not enough, you can even hook up a Google Assistant speaker to control music playback with voice commands. It’s an excellent soundbar all-rounder.

SVS SB-4000 When it comes to a bass performance you can feel as HOME well as hear, the SB-4000 is in a THEATER class of its own. Borrowing SUBWOOFER technology from SVS’s 16-Ultra 2018-2019 reference-grade range, this breathtaking subwoofer is equipped with a ‘Sledge’ amplifier boasting a mighty 4000W peak delivery. Its long-throw, 13.5in driver – bolted inside a solid closed cabinet – is capable of unleashing pure dynamics even with the very lowest subsonic frequencies. SVS’s advanced DSP offers impeccable room correction with full parametric equalization, le ing the SB-4000 provide pinpoint LFE precision from any location, while all its se ings can be easily altered via remote control or smartphone app. Offering maximum SPL, massive slam and an incredible low-frequency extension, this sub will shake, ra le and roll your home theater. EISA

Morel Virtus Nano Integra 602 & SoundWall PowerSlim PMC600

EISA SLIM INSTALLATION COMPONENT 2018-2019

Designed for easy installation where space is limited, this Morel Integra driver is used for both in-car audio and in-wall products under different names. Thanks to its limited depth, it can be installed in-wall using proper frames with almost no space behind as well as in shallow places in the car, as the mounting depth is a mere 0.67in (17mm). An ‘Endumax’ multilayer sandwich cone, with convex geometry, and ‘Acuflex’ so dome with 2.1in and 1.1in voice coils, respectively, provide precision and control. The speaker cleverly uses the same magnet for woofer and tweeter voice coil, which not only saves space but also provides an almost perfect phase alignment. This ‘ZeroPoint’ dual-concentric technology assures that limited space need not affect the speaker’s sonic prowess.

COMBINED AWARD WITH IN-CAR GROUP

soundandvision.com [ 33

EISA Awards 2018-2019 Hi-Fi Expert Group EISA Analog Music System 2018-2019 EISA Compact Music System 2018-2019 EISA All-In-One System 2018-2019 EISA Wireless System 2018-2019 EISA Stereo System 2018-2019 EISA Stereo Receiver 2018-2019 EISA Amplifier 2018-2019 EISA Best Buy Amplifier 2018-2019 EISA High-End Amplifier 2018-2019 EISA Streamer 2018-2019 EISA Dac 2018-2019 EISA Turntable 2018-2019 EISA Loudspeaker 2018-2019 EISA Best Buy Loudspeaker 2018-2019 EISA Smart Loudspeaker 2018-2019 EISA Headphone 2018-2019 EISA High-End Headphone 2018-2019 EISA Hi-Fi Innovation 2018-2019

Pro-Ject Juke Box S2 Denon CEOL N10 Naim Audio Uniti Atom DALI Callisto 6C & Sound Hub Marantz ND8006/PM8006 Yamaha R-N803D Primare I15 Prisma Pioneer A-40AE NAD M32 Pro-Ject Stream Box S2 Ultra Chord Electronics Hugo 2 Technics SL-1200GR ELAC Adante AS-61 Q Acoustics 3050i Harman Kardon Citation 500 Sennheiser HD 660 S Focal Clear Micromega M-One M-150

Combined with Mobile Devices Expert Group EISA Portable Dac/Headphone Amplifier 2018-2019

iFi Audio xDSD

Photography Expert Group EISA Camera of the Year 2018-2019 EISA Professional Dslr Camera 2018-2019 EISA Dslr Camera 2018-2019 EISA Best Buy Camera 2018-2019 EISA Superzoom Camera 2018-2019 EISA Mirrorless Camera 2018-2019 EISA Professional Mirrorless Camera 2018-2019 EISA Dslr Zoom Lens 2018-2019 EISA Dslr Telezoom Lens 2018-2019 EISA Dslr Prime Lens 2018-2019 EISA Professional Lens 2018-2019 EISA Mirrorless Wideangle Zoom Lens 2018-2019 EISA Mirrorless Standard Zoom Lens 2018-2019 EISA Mirrorless Telezoom Lens 2018-2019 EISA Photo Innovation 2018-2019 EISA Photo Service 2018-2019

Sony Į7 Iii Nikon D850 Canon Eos 6d Mark Ii Canon EOS M50 Sony Cyber-Shot RX10 IV Fujiﬁlm X-H1 Sony Į7 III Sigma 14-24mm F2.8 DG HSM | Art Tamron 70-210mm F/4 Di VC USD Canon EF 85mm F/1.4l IS USM Nikon AF-S Nikkor 180-400mm f/4E TC1.4 FL ED VR Sony FE 16-35mm F2.8 GM Tamron 28-75mm F/2.8 Di III RXD Sony FE 100-400mm F4.5-5.6 GM OSS Canon Speedlite 470EX-AI CEWE Photobook Pure

Combined Awards with Mobile Devices Expert Group EISA Best Smartphone 2018-2019

Huawei P20 Pro

Mobile Devices Expert Group EISA Consumer Smartphone 2018-2019 EISA Lifestyle Smartphone 2018-2019 EISA Best Buy Smartphone 2018-2019 EISA Noise Cancelling Headphones 2018-2019 EISA Mobile Loudspeaker 2018-2019 EISA Wireless In-Ear Headphones 2018-2019 EISA Artificial Intelligence Loudspeaker 2018-2019 EISA Mobile Audio Player 2018-2019

Nokia 7 Plus Honor 10 NOA Element N10 AKG N700NC JBL Xtreme 2 JBL Endurance DIVE LG ThinQ Speaker WK7 Pioneer XDP-02U

In-Car Electronics Expert Group EISA In-Car Head Unit 2018-2019 EISA In-Car High-End Component 2018-2019 EISA In-Car Smart Upgrade 2018-2019 EISA In-Car Subwoofer 2018-2019 EISA In-Car Processor 2018-2019 EISA In-Car Amplifier 2018-2019 EISA In-Car DSP Amplifier 2018-2019 EISA In-Car Integration 2018-2019 EISA In-Car Innovation 2018-2019

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Pioneer AVIC-Z910dAB Audison TH K2 II A Coro Match UP 7BMW Audison APBX 10 AS Helix DSP Mini Ground Zero GZPA 4SQ JL Audio VX800/8i Mosconi Gladen Pico 8|12 DSP Gladen Aures

Introducing Debut 2.0 Series

Surround yourself with the sound of applause, better than ever. The ELAC Debut 2.0 Series is available in eight models that include Bookshelf, Center-Channel, Floorstanding, On-Wall and Dolby Atmos® systems. Add the app-controlled SUB3010 Powered Subwoofer to create the perfect two-channel or surround-sound system.

Few speakers have garnered such critical acclaim as the original Debut Series, offering build quality and performance never before attainable at such an affordable price. Now ELAC changes the game again with the Debut 2.0 Series and app-controlled SUB3010 powered subwoofer—every speaker you need to build a serious home theater system. Designed from the ground up, they sound even more remarkable than the speakers that sparked the revolution in affordable high-end sound. Because at ELAC, everything we do is different.

FLASHBACK FEATURE

Well before there was a “MythBusters” on TV, confronting audio misinformation was a popular sport for Stereo Review writers. Here’s a still-relevant article from 1983.

21 AUDIO MYTHS READERS OF STEREO REVIEW and, later, Sound & Vision, have been blessed through the

years with the reviews, columns, and features of a great many superstar experts. The list of prolific writers who have graced the magazine’s masthead as either a full-time or freelance editor is a who’s who of audio industry celebrities. Their collective contribution to the hobby simply cannot be overstated. If you’re a loyal reader for some time you’ll recognize these names: Julian Hirsch, David Ranada, Larry Klein, Ivan Berger, Tom Nousaine, and even longtime current contributors Ken Pohlmann and Daniel Kumin. Peter Mitchell, whose work we reproduce here, is another member of this accomplished group. At one time a contributor to several audio publications and the president of the Boston Audio Society, Mitchell brought a fact-based, engineering approach and a refreshingly clear writing style to both his feature stories and, later, his “High End” column that graced the back inside page of SR until his untimely passing. This article, which appeared in the July 1983 issue, was in the vein of so many of the helpful how-to and shopping stories in SR and S&V that a empted to teach while debunking the misinformation rampant among audiophiles. You’ll note that while some of Mitchell’s “myths” address dated technologies and constitute a nostalgic walk down memory lane, others—even his comments about vinyl—remain both relevant and timeless. Especially this: “To choose audio components, listen to them, not to theories and claims about them.” A real pearl, that one. — ROB SABIN hopping for hi-fi components can be confusing enough even when you have all your facts straight. And if you subscribe to many of the common myths and misunderstandings about how audio equipment works, how specifications relate to what you hear, and what all of the technical jargon means, you’re really in trouble. Some misconceptions have their origin in misleading claims made by salespeople or in advertisements; others arise from the wondrously complex and subtle nature of the human hearing process, which inevitably gets involved in the judgments that people make about how good a stereo system sounds—or how they assume it ought to sound. Let’s shoot down some of the hot-air balloons that continually arise in hi-fi, taking as our gospel the principle that there are exceptions to almost every rule. To choose audio components, listen to them, not to theories and claims about them. And remember that what you hear in any particular case may be influenced as much by the factor of compatibility—between a stylus and a tone arm, between an amplifier and a speaker, between speakers and room acoustics—as by the quality of individual components. If a system sounds good, it is good, regardless of theory. If it sounds bad, something in it probably is bad—but the fault may not be what you think it is. The twenty-one misconceptions discussed here, in no particular order, are among those we have found to be most common.

Weighted speciﬁcations are the audio industry’s way to cheat by making the numbers look better.

False. Weighting is an eﬀort to make test equipment “hear” the way the ear does, so as to produce measurements that accurately predict what we will hear. For instance, A-weighted measurements of background noise correctly reﬂect the fact that at low volumes the ear is sensitive to even very small amounts of noise occurring at mid-treble frequencies (around 3 kHz) while much larger amounts of noise at low bass frequencies are inaudible. 36 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

Okay, then, unweighted speciﬁcations are meaningless.

Wrong again. Although unweighted specs o en don’t correlate directly with what we hear, they can alert you to other problems. For instance, if a turntable’s rumble is concentrated at frequencies below 10 Hz, where the ear can’t hear it, the DIN-Bweighted rumble figure is likely to be down around -60 or -70 dB, correctly predicting that you won’t hear the rumble itself in playback. However, if the unweighted rumble figure for the same turntable were -30 dB or worse, that could indicate unwanted stylus vibration that would be heard—not as rumble, but as flu er and mistracking. Similarly, if a product’s A-weighted signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) is good but the unweighted S/N is much worse, it may have excessive 60-Hz hum since A-weighting reduces the influence of any power-line hum on an S/N measurement.

Records must be stored vertically, never lying ﬂat.

Only half true. Actually, once you understand that record vinyl is a congealed liquid that yields under pressure (like very thick molasses), the two primary rules of record storage will be obvious: (1) Records should be subjected only to light pressure; heavy pressure may press loose dust or wrinkles from the plastic liner into the vinyl

surface. (2) Any pressure should be distributed evenly over the disc; uneven pressure may cause warping. Thus, vertical storage is ﬁne (really vertical, not leaning; ﬁll empty spaces with cardboard). But horizontal storage on closely spaced shelves is also okay; you can stack up to a dozen discs on a level surface before the pressure on the bo om disc becomes too great. In either case, be sure that the discs’ jackets are not themselves warped or tight enough to cause warping.

to multipath reﬂections or strong adjacent stations). Therefore, for the majority of FM listeners the really important FM- tuner speciﬁcations are capture ratio, AM rejection, and alternatechannel selectivity.

A 60-watt ampliﬁer will play 20 percent louder than a 50-watt ampliﬁer, and a 100-watt amp will play twice as loud.

Nope. A 20 per cent increase in available wa age amounts to less than 1 dB of increased loudness capability. Doubling the power input will give a 3-dB increase in volume, which can be noticeable but is definitely not dramatic. It’s a ma er of biology: our eyes and ears have an approximately logarithmic response to light and sound so that they can cope with the million-to-one range in iñtensities that they are exposed to. In any stereo system only 1 to 10 wa s of power are actually used, on average, to generate “loud” sound levels with typical music. An amplifier’s ability to put out more power does, however, influence its sonic clarity, “openness,” and low-bass impact, especially during transient peaks and climaxes.

Any two 50-watt ampliﬁers should sound alike.

Well, sort of. Actually, a well-made 20-wa amp and a 200-wa amp will sound alike much of the time. But if you are concerned about those transients and climaxes that stress an amplifier’s capacity to the maximum, then the rated power is only a very rough guide because it is measured using an 8-ohm resistor instead of a loudspeaker. “Power” is the electrical product of both voltage and current. Two amplifiers with the same power rating usually have the same maximum voltage output, but they may have very different output current capacities, which can make an important difference in driving a loudspeaker that has a low or complex (“reactive”) impedance.

Moving-magnet (MM) phono cartridges are not as good as moving-coil (MC) cartridges.

As cartridges of both types continue to improve, the accumulating evidence indicates that it really doesn’t ma er whether

the magnet or the coil does the moving. In various comparisons among highperformance MC and MM cartridges— notably a set of carefully controlled listening tests supervised by Canadian researcher Floyd E. Toole—the audible differences in timbre and detail have consistently been related to the cartridges’ known differences in frequency response. When these differences were equalized, the MM and MC pickups sounded alike.

A component rated at 0.01 per cent total harmonic distortion (THD) will sound better than one rated at 0.1 per cent THD.

Biology again. Distortion generates false tones at frequencies other than those in the original signal. If these distortion components are suﬃciently weak compared to the original signal, they won’t be heard. If you can’t hear them, reducing them still further below the threshold of audibility won’t make them any more inaudible. The actual threshold of audibility depends on the frequencies involved in both the original signal and the distortion. With musical signals of typical complexity, tests have repeatedly shown that distortion levels below 3 percent aren’t heard even by experienced audiophiles.

Bass depends on woofer size.

A three-way speaker system is better than a two-way system.

A large woofer can always reproduce deep bass be er than a small woofer. The problem here is to distinguish between quality and quantity. The quantity (the volume level) of deep-bass output is strictly dependent on the amount of air that is moved, which equals the area of the woofer cone multiplied by its “excursion” (backand-forth movement). Thus, a large woofer can reproduce bass at higher maximum volume levels; conversely, at a given high volume level, a large speaker can usually reproduce lower frequencies with less distortion than a small one can. But at moderate volume levels the deep-bass “reach” of a speaker is a ma er of design choice; some 8-inch woofers have useful response down to 25 Hz while some 12-inch woofers roll off steeply below 50 Hz. Deep-bass response is not free: to extend the bass you must either reduce efficiency (thus requiring more amplifier power for those climaxes) or use a bigger, costlier cabinet.

The main advantage of a three-way system is higher power-handling: it can play louder without burning out its voice coils, a signiﬁcant consideration if you are trying to re-create rock-concert sound levels in a very large room. The purely sonic advantages of a three-way design, however, are small in theory and sometimes nonexistent in practice. Particularly in the mid-price range of speakers, a system employing two high-quality drivers and a carefully tailored crossover o en outperforms one

Sensitivity is the most important speciﬁcation of an FM tuner.

Perhaps—if you are located more than ﬁ y miles from your favorite station and cannot use a roof antenna. In the urban and suburban locations where most people in the U.S. live, however, signal strengths of several hundred microvolts are typical, and the usual problem is interference (due soundandvision.com [ 37

FLASHBACK FEATURE with three cheaper drivers and a complicated crossover. The proof, of course, is in the listening.

standard of accuracy, it simply makes sense to use tone controls to obtain the sound that seems natural and lifelike to you.

Separate components (tuner, preampliﬁer, power ampliﬁer) are better than an all-in-one receiver.

Circumaural headphones (the kind with a rubber ring that ﬁts all around the ear, making an airtight seal) are better than the open-air types that simply rest on the outer ear.

Sometimes yes, but o en not. Separates offer greater flexibility, of course, and some include more elaborate circuits or features (selectable wide/narrow tuner i.f. filters, for instance) that can prove useful in special circumstances. Also, very few receivers offer more than 100 wa s per channel, so users who need or want more power may have to go the separates route. But a few manufacturers have found it more cost-efficient to make integrated amplifiers and receivers using the same circuitry as in their separates; such a receiver actually consists of tuner and amplifier separates in a single housing.

A belt-drive turntable is better than a direct-drive turntable, or vice versa.

Neither. The best examples of either type are superb. Among lower-priced units, each type has its strong and weak points. For instance, even a low-priced direct-drive system can easily be made to provide variable pitch and exact speed regulation. Belt-drive design, on the other hand, makes it easy to ﬂoat the pla er and tone arm on springs for isolation from internal and external vibrations. Take your pick.

Digital tuners are better than “analog” tuners.

The basic advantage of digital-synthesis tuning is its convenience: quick, precise, pushbu on selection of favorite stations. In terms of sensitivity and sound quality, though, the tuning method is irrelevant— except in those few digital tuners with inadequate internal shielding that allows noise and whistles from the digital circuitry to leak into the audio.

Chrome and metal tapes cause more rapid head wear than ferric tapes tend to do.

This old canard has been consistently proved false in tests. Poorly made “bargain” tapes are the only ones likely to cause rapid head wear, and these, of course, are mostly low-grade ferrics. With good tapes from reputable manufacturers there is no clear correlation between tape type and head wear. (With all tape types wear does tend to increase with high humidity, though.)

Chrome and metal tapes have more distortion than ferric tapes do.

This is true at high recording levels (0 VU and above), but the diﬀerences in distortion are slight. More to the point, at lower recording levels the distortion decreases rapidly to inaudibility with all tape types. So, to make recordings on high-bias tapes that are as distortion-free as those on premium ferric tape, simply decrease your recording levels by about 2 dB.

Playing a “normal” (ferric) tape in the chrome (high-bias) position will damage the recording.

No way. During playback, mis-set controls may cause poor sound, but the signal on the tape won’t be altered— unless you accidentally set the deck for record and erase the tape!

Overloading a tape recorder (by pushing its level indicators strongly into the red) may damage the machine.

Not even a li le bit. Oh, it’s conceivable that you might bend a meter’s needles if you “pin” them hard enough, but even that is very unlikely. As for the recorder’s electronics, they can be damaged by connecting the 120-volt a.c. power line to an input jack but not by any authentic audio signal.

Tone controls should always be set “ﬂat” for the most accurate sound.

This might be a reasonable notion if every other element in the recording and playback chain (from microphone to speakers to room acoustics) were known to be “ﬂat,” but of course that’s not so, at least not yet. Regardless of how good your playback system is, recordings vary a great deal in tone quality (sometimes because of equalization added to compensate for imperfections in the studio’s monitor speakers). In the absence of any objective

38 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

Circumaural phones have two advantages: extended deep-bass response is easier to obtain, and the airtight seal eﬃciently excludes external sound (an important consideration in live on-location recording). Open-air phones tend to be more comfortable to wear and can sound equally good. In Stereo Review’s July 1982 listening tests of ﬁ een headphones, the three highest-ranked models were an open-air, a circumaural, and a quasi-circumaural design with a “leaky” foam ring instead of an airtight rubber surround. Evidently no one design approach is unequivocally the best.

20 Unlike discs, tapes don’t wear out with repeated playing.

They do, but in a less obvious way. With worn discs, noise and distortion are added to the sound. When tapes are played a great many times there are signal losses, dropouts and high-frequency rolloﬀs, caused by the rubbing and ﬂexing of the tape as it is pressed against the deck’s heads, capstan, and guide posts. The highs may also be partially erased by residual magnetism in these metal parts, hence the need for periodic demagnetizing.

Digital Compact Discs (CDs) are virtually indestructible.

Not so. It is true that ordinary surface dust, ﬁngerprints, and light linear scratches have li le or no eﬀect on them and that wiping a dirty CD clean usually restores pristine playback quality. But a curved scratch that follows the CD’s spiral signal path can make it unplayable. Therefore, when cleaning a CD, do not use the circular brushing motion that is customary with analog LPs; wipe the disc from center to edge. And remember that the CD’s signal surface is embedded directly beneath the label, protected only by a thin coating of lacquer. A scratch that penetrates through the label is likely to wreak more havoc than a scratch on the transparent-plastic-coated “playing” side of the disc. Peter W. Mitchell, one of hi-fi journalism’s most prolific writers, is also president of the Boston Audio Society and of his own electronics consulting firm.

STORIED SOUND FOR EVERY MOMENT.

test report LG OLED65C8PUA OLED ULTRA HDTV

The Best OLED TV Yet? By homas J. Norton

THE PICTURE quality improvements in LG’s 2018 OLED Ultra HDTVs aren’t a dramatic upgrade over the company’s already superb 2017 sets, but they are accompanied by a new Alpha 9 processor, an autocalibration option, and a few new and updated features. LG has gathered all of these capabilities under the “LG ThinQ AI” rubric. While the AI (Artiﬁcial Intelligence) claim may be a bit overstated, that’s where the market is headed and LG is not alone in it. I wonder if adding a blinding blizzard of

do-everything geegaws makes the screen interface too complex for the average user who simply wants to turn on his or her TV and watch a movie. But while the OLED65C8PUA certainly delivers most of the things gadgetsavvy viewers want (and a lot that they possibly didn’t know they wanted), my emphasis here is on how the set meets its fundamental task: providing the best image quality possible at an approachable price. For the newbie who isn’t familiar with OLED technology, an OLED

40 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

RATING LG OLED65C8PUA OLED Ultra HDTV PERFORMANCE FEATURES ERGONOMICS VALUE

display, unlike an LCD/LED one, is self-illuminating. Each individual pixel is its own light source, and it can go from full brightness to completely turned oﬀ as required by the source image. This capability is what gives OLED its notably inky blacks. To even approach OLED’s black level, an LCD display requires LED backlighting with some form of local dimming. And in that case, dimming is limited to a few or, at best, a few hundred zones depending on the LCD set’s design (and cost). There are roughly 8 million pixels in an OLED Ultra HDTV, with each one acting as its own local dimming zone.

FEATURES AND SETUP The 65C8 is compatible with HDR10 and Dolby Vision, the two most common high dynamic range formats, plus HLG (Hybrid Log Gamma). Technicolor HDR is also onboard, but it’s primarily a

playback Picture Mode (and a promotional feature, since the Technicolor name still commands a ention). There’s no such thing as Technicolor HDR at the production end, and no sources are currently mastered in that format. Because most UHDTVs can’t show the full peak brightness contained in many HDR sources, a technique called tone mapping is used to preserve as much of that high brightness detail as possible by “folding” it into the set’s display capabilities. For Dolby Vision programs, tone mapping is generated scene-by-scene (or even frame-by-frame) during production and is included as dynamic metadata in the source. But with HDR10 ones, the metadata remains static through the entire program. The 65C8 oﬀers a selectable Dynamic Tone Mapping feature that uses internal processing to analyze content sceneby-scene and convert static metadata to dynamic metadata. This feature was also found in LG’s 2017 sets, but there it was combined with the active se ings in the Dynamic Contrast menu selection. For 2018, it gets its own, separate control. Can set-derived dynamic tone mapping— a feature that other set manufacturers also oﬀer—

equal Dolby Vision? While I can’t definitively answer that question, I can say that dynamic tone mapping does make a visible difference. The 65C8’s user calibration controls include White Balance (2-point and 20-point) and a color management system (CMS). Not all of the set’s available picture modes feature these controls, but I used Cinema for HDR viewing and ISF Dark Room for SDR viewing, which do. A separate HDR Effect mode that provides only a Color Temperature slider and no CMS adjustments simulates HDR from SDR sources. While I didn’t hate the result, I didn’t love it either: the simulated HDR images looked harsh, though they did appear more natural if the OLED Light and Contrast controls were turned down from their default 100 se ings to 90. Regardless, I didn’t use the mode during any of my SDR viewing for this review. New for 2018, the autocalibration feature I mentioned earlier is usable for both SDR and all of the set’s supported HDR formats. It permits a far more precise setup than traditional white balance and CMS controls by using a 3D LUT (lookup table), but still requires sophisticated, expensive test tools, making it useful mainly to

experienced calibrators. (All of the calibrations performed for this review were done manually.) The 65C8’s MPEG Noise Reduction control serves two purposes: noise reduction (duh!) and a reduction of visible banding (posterization). You can’t select one of these without the other. I can recall only rare occurrences of banding artifacts in the many hours I spent viewing, however. TruMotion, a feature used for motion smoothing, offers the usual soap opera effectinducing se ings plus a User option with separate De-Judder and De-Blur controls. The User mode also includes a Motion Pro se ing that uses black frame insertion to reduce blur. While Motion Pro can be effective, it also serves to dramatically reduce picture brightness. Image retention isn’t as significant a concern with OLED as it had been with plasma and CRT TVs. (Image retention isn’t a problem at all with LCD models.) It can occur, however, so LG provides several features designed to reduce the risk. The most unique of these is a Logo LG's C8 OLED can pass Dolby Digital and DTS soundtracks in full surround from its optical digital and HDMI ARC output connections.

At a Glance Deep black levels Extremely wide viewing angle Supports Dolby Vision and HLG Expensive compared to same-size LCD UHDTVs Lower peak brightness than LCD UHDTVs Price: $3,499 (847) 941-8182 lgusa.com

Extraction Algorithm (LEA) adjustment designed to slightly tone-down the brightness of stationary objects on otherwise moving images, such as scoreboards during baseball or football games. Its effectiveness appeared to vary with source material, but in my testing the decrease in brightness averaged about 40 percent. While LG’s spec stating that the set offers Dolby Atmos audio may be more fanciful than audible, the 65C8’s sound was above-average for a flat-panel TV. It can’t play particularly loud—when I tried, the audio was o en accompanied by low bass breakup and, sometimes, an annoying buzz coming from the back panel. But I otherwise found the 65C8’s sound acceptable even with movies, though it is no substitute for a separate surround system or a first-rate soundbar. LG’s wand-like Magic Remote is used to wirelessly control an onscreen cursor. The keys are not backlit, however, which o en led me to push the wrong bu on. There’s also a Google Assistant feature, but it requires registration for the set to respond to any voice commands. Registration further requires that you read pages of legal disclaimers and allow Google to share your data. No thanks. Also annoying: a screen that urges you to register persistently pops up each time soundandvision.com [ 41

test report LG OLED65C8PUA OLED ULTRA HDTV

Test Bench The measurements here were made using CalMAN measurement so ware from Portrait Displays, together with Photo Research PR-650 and Klein K-10A color meters and a Murideo Fresco 6-G (UHD) pa ern generator. The peak white levels given below were rounded here to the nearest foot-lambert/nit. 1080P HD/SDR

Post-calibration, with the 65C8’s peak white output set to 39.5 foot-lamberts (135 nits) in ISF Expert (Dark Room) Picture Mode with OLED Light at 45, Contrast at 85, and Brightness at 50, black level could not be measured. The image was effectively totally black, making full-on/full-off contrast ratio infinite, or, more practically speaking, unmeasurable. I measured a 1080p HDMI input lag of 21ms in Game mode, increasing to 100ms in ISF Expert (Dark Room) mode. In ISF Expert (Dark Room) Picture Mode, the pre-calibration grayscale Delta E values from 20% to 100% ranged

you turn the set on. In addition to Google Assistant, LG’s webOS Smart TV suite oﬀers a wide array of other features, all of them detailed in the set’s onscreen or online User Guides. You can use these to fetch videos, photos, and music over your home network or from a USB stick, as well as access popular video streaming services such as Netﬂix, Amazon Video, or Vudu. All of the sources I used for critical evaluation (both HDR and SDR) in this review were Blu-ray and Ultra HD Blu-ray discs, however, though the LG did perform notably well with high-quality material streamed via its built-in video apps.

from a low of 2.83 at 20% brightness to a high of 3.78 at 50% brightness. Post-calibration values ranged from a low of 0.35 at 20% to a high of 1.03 at 40%. Only the 2-step White Balance adjustments were needed to dial in the D65 white point. The BT.1886 gamma measured a low of 2.37 at 70% and a high of 2.40 at 80%. (A empts to further fine-tune gamma using the luminance adjustments in the 20-step White Balance controls were not only unnecessary, but produced serious visible side effects, including obvious posterization.) The pre-calibration SDR color Delta E values ranged from 0.96 in magenta to 3.04 in blue. Post- calibration, the minimum was 0.76 for blue and the maximum 1.42 for magenta. (Delta E is a figure of merit that indicates how closely a display adheres to the color standard. Experts generally agree that at levels below 3-4 the result is visibly indistinguishable from perfect color tracking. Delta E may be used

SDR PERFORMANCE The 65C8 easily passed all of our standard video tests. It also passed both Dolby Digital and DTS soundtracks in a full surround format from its optical digital audio output. I spent several weeks watching the 65C8 using the ISF Dark Room mode’s default se ings, modiﬁed only by a reduction of the OLED Light control. Color rendition was hard to fault. One of my favorite Blu-rays to check for natural color is Oblivion. Here, and with other Blu-rays as well, ﬂesh tones looked believable. Other colors, from the desert sand to the vivid greens in Jack’s secret valley,

42 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

to characterize either white balance or color.) ULTRA HD/HDR10

Post-calibration, at the peak measured HDR light output of 635 nits (185 foot-lamberts) in Cinema (User) HDR Picture Mode with OLED Light at 100, Contrast at 100, Brightness at 50, and Dynamic Contrast on Low, black level could not be measured. This made the full-on/full-off contrast ratio, as above, essentially infinite. A recent refinement in our HDR measurement technique resulted in a superb HDR technical performance from the LG 65C8. It followed the EOTF (gamma for HDR) almost perfectly. Pre-calibration, the grayscale Delta Es ranged from a low of 0.4 at DIMENSIONS:

(W x H x D, Specs inches): 57 x 32.7 x 1.8 (without stand); 57.0 x 34.7 x 9.1 (with stand) WEIGHT: (pounds): 46.3 (without stand); 56 (with stand) VIDEO INPUTS: HDMI 2.0/

gave me no cause for complaint. Resolution was also superb, with the set’s Alpha 9 processor clearly doing a great job converting a 1080p source to ﬁt the LG’s 2160p display. There have been complaints in the past about OLEDs revealing dark vertical streaks when displaying full-ﬁeld near-black test pa erns. These were present (but barely) on the LG E7 I reviewed last year. On the 65C8, I did see a single, nearly invisible streak, but it never appeared on actual program material. Another complaint has been that the deepest blacks on LG’s OLEDs appear subtly crushed. LG has consistently improved on this

20% to a high of 5.1 at 70% with luminance included in the Delta E calculation. Postcalibration they maxed out at 2.7 at 70% with luminance, and 0.8% at 100% without luminance. Only the 2-step White Balance controls were used. Pre-calibration, the maximum color Delta E with luminance was 4.9 (green); post-calibration, it was 2.8 (red). The HDR peak white levels with various-size 100% luminance windows measured (in nits) 440 at 2%, 605 at 5%, 630 at 10%, 350 at 25%, and 130 at 100%. Using the 1976 uv standard, the set measured 70.6% of BT.2020 and 95.4% of P3 color space. (No consumer UHD source material as yet exceeds P3 color space.) HDCP 2.2 (4), ARC on HDMI 3, composite (plus L/R audio with adapter), RF Cable/ Antenna AUDIO OUTPUTS: Optical digital OTHER: USB 2.0 (3) LAN, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, RS232 (mini-jack)

with each new generation of sets, and I now consider it to be a non-issue. When it comes to displaying deep blacks and detailed shadows, I’d favor an OLED set like the 65C8 over any other current technology. Did a full color calibration improve on the 65C8’s already pristine SDR performance? Absent two identical side-byside samples, one calibrated and the other not, any improvement would be hard to spot. That doesn’t make calibration unnecessary, but recent top sets in my experience provide be er out-of-the-box performance than in the past. The 65C8 can handle motion as well as any competing

flat-panel set I’ve reviewed over the past five years, though it doesn’t do it as well as long-departed plasma or old-timey CRT sets. If motion blur bothers you, particularly on sports or games where fast motion is common and the infamous soap opera effect is irrelevant, LG’s TruMotion feature is there to help. But since I strongly dislike the effect of any motion interpolation on movies (true for any post-plasma set I’ve reviewed) I le TruMotion off. Do I need to mention off-axis viewing? While LCD sets are only just now starting to improve in this area, OLED offers near-ideal picture uniformity as far off from center-screen as you (or your guests) are likely to sit.

HDR10 PERFORMANCE Even out of the box, HDR10 programs were a pleasure to watch in either the Cinema HDR or Technicolor HDR Picture Modes. They looked even be er post-calibration, though the improvement was easier to spot with some material than others, and was rarely dramatic. I turned on Dynamic Tone Mapping and used the Dynamic Contrast se ing that worked best for the speciﬁc source and/or viewing condition. In my darkened room, this was either Oﬀ or Low. In my 2017 review of the LG

OLED65E7P (available at soundandvision.com) I remarked that the individual hairs on Jack’s stubble and the freckles on Victoria’s face were much easier to see than on the 1080p version when watching Oblivion. The same was true with the 65C8. Highlights and shadow details also stood out. One shot in the film’s opening montage that combines a collapsed structure in deep shadow with a bright sky above it appeared more lifelike in Ultra HD than on regular Blu-ray. Uniformly dark scenes with bright highlights, such as one where Jack investigates an underground library and a later sequence when he’s captured by the “Scavs,” also produced a more dramatic result than the same scenes in SDR. Oblivion’s color is relatively natural and doesn’t knock you out when viewed in either SDR or HDR. For eye-popping UHD color, you can’t do be er than Pixar’s Coco. The enhanced colors provided by the 65C8 were easy to spot in this animated film, but I saw them with live-action discs as well. Rich, saturated reds, in particular, can’t be equaled by HD’s Rec.709 color gamut. OLED can’t as yet reach the peak luminance offered by the best LCD sets (and may never be able to), but the technology’s unequalled blacks allow the

DOLBY VISION PERFORMANCE

Onscreen control of LG's 65C8 OLED can be carried out using the included wand-like Magic Remote.

65C8 to provide exceptional HDR performance. The bright lightning ﬂashes in Oblivion as Jack maneuvers his copter through a violent thunderstorm; the elaborate, richly-staged musical numbers in The Greatest Showman; and just about all of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2 didn’t leave me wanting when it came to color, resolution, and high dynamic range impact on LG's 65C8 OLED.

While I didn’t perform a Dolby Vision calibration for this review, that didn’t stop me from sampling several Dolby Vision titles on Ultra HD Blu-ray, including Gladiator, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, and Braveheart. Each of those sources looked every bit as good on the LG as the HDR10 programs I watched. As always, the result was dependent on the quality of the original material. I can’t yet say whether or not Dolby Vision oﬀers any distinct advantage over plain-vanilla HDR10 (or even HDR10 on a set like the 65C8 that can convert the static tone mapping of an HDR10 source to dynamic). But of the titles mentioned above, Braveheart made the deepest impression. It looked li le short of spectacular on the LG, providing one of the most jaw-dropping viewing experiences I’ve had to date.

CONCLUSION When I reviewed LG's OLED65E7P TV this time last year, I wondered if it was the perfect TV. Ultimately, the answer to that question is no, because the company’s new C8 model is even be er. The diﬀerence isn't dramatic, however—LG’s changes for 2018 are evolutionary, not revolutionary. But if your budget allows it, and you don’t require the higher peak brightness that LCD provides, you’d be a fool not to give LG's OLED65C8PUA a very serious look.

The Verdict This new C8 series OLED TV exceeds the performance of LG’s previous models, making it the best OLED from the company I’ve yet tested. The price, while still at the high end, is significantly lower than last year’s C7, which means more buyers can now bring home an LG OLED instead of dreaming about one. soundandvision.com [ 43

test report SAMSUNG QN65Q8FN LCD ULTRA HDTV

Quantum of Solace By Al Griffin

SAMSUNG’S QLED— not to be confused with OLED—UHDTVs are the company’s top-of-the-line models. In case you’re wondering, that Q in QLED stands for quantum dot, a backlight technology that provides a more precise method to generate the red, green, and blue light that creates a video image than the process typically used for LCD displays. How does it happen? In a Samsung QLED TV, a blue LED backlight generates the blue component of the image and also stimulates a layer of nanocrystal dots sized to emit a speciﬁc wavelength of

light —red and green in this case— when energized. The benefits to using quantum dot technology in a TV include a more saturated color range at all brightness levels, along with increased energy efficiency since filters aren’t used to create the red, green, and blue primaries that make up the full-color image. Along with quantum dots, another benefit to Samsung’s Q8FN series LCD Ultra HDTVs, including the 65-inch QN65Q8FN model tested here, is a full-array LED backlight with local dimming. That’s

44 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

RATING Samsung QN65Q8FN LCD Ultra HDTV PERFORMANCE FEATURES ERGONOMICS VALUE

a new development for 2018— Samsung’s high-end LCD offerings over the past few years have all used edge-lit LED backlights. A key feature that differentiates Q8FN series sets from the company’s pricier Q9FN models is the number of local dimming zones. While Samsung doesn’t cite a specific number, the Q9FN series provides 10 times as many zones as Q8FN series models. Anyone keeping track of high dynamic range developments with new UHDTVs will be aware that Samsung doesn’t do Dolby Vision. Instead, it supports its own HDR10+ format in addition to standard HDR10 and HLG (Hybrid Log Gamma). Same as with Dolby Vision, HDR10+ uses dynamic metadata to direct the TV’s rendering of image dynamic range on a shot-by-shot or frame-by-frame basis. At present HDR10+ is only available on a limited number sources, specifically the library of HDR programs available for streaming from Amazon Video. Another Q8FN series feature that helps with high dynamic range delivery is an Ultra Black Elite Anti-reflective screen. While screen reflections aren’t an issue when viewing in a dark environment, most people watch with some degree of room light, and Samsung’s light-filtering screen effectively serves to remove glare caused by lamps and undraped windows. As with other Samsung TVs, careful a ention has been paid to the 65Q8FN’s design features. The screen is bordered by a thin, almost non-existent 0.25-inch bezel. The spindly legs included for a table mount are splayed wide apart, but they otherwise provide solid support. Samsung’s Clean Cable Solution lets you route the power cable from the TV’s back through a conduit on either leg, allowing for a clu er-free installation. Adding to the set’s design flair is Samsung’s Ambient Mode. When this is activated, the TV’s black screen transforms into a framed picturestyle display that blends in visually with the TV’s physical environment. You get the option to display either a preset image or a custom image that you upload.

Another feature separating Samsung’s Q8FN and Q9FN series TVs is the lack of the One Connect Box for the former. (Samsung’s One Connect Box is an external AV connection box that links to the TV via a single optical cable.) Instead, the 65Q8FN’s back panel provides a full set of connectivity options, including four full-bandwidth HDMI 2.0 inputs (including one with ARC), an RF input for cable/ terrestrial TV, LAN and USB ports, and an optical digital audio output capable of passing Dolby Digital surround soundtracks to an AV receiver. On the subject of sound, the 65Q8FN’s built-in audio system can play relatively loud for a ﬂat-panel TV, and it also has Bluetooth for streaming sound to set of wireless headphones for solo late-night viewing. The Samsung OneRemote included with the TV is a deliberately stripped-down handset that depends largely on interaction with the set’s onscreen GUI to carry out many operations. While I see the appeal of replacing a traditional bu on-clu ered remote with a more advanced control option, I actually found myself turning to the set’s online e-manual to learn how to perform functions as basic as volume adjustment. In other words, I didn’t ﬁnd OneRemote to be particularly intuitive, though I did eventually get the hang of using it a er a few visits to the e-manual. One reason why Samsung may have de-emphasized traditional remote-control options with the Q8FN series is its Bixby intelligent voice command feature. Many new TVs from Sony, LG, Vizio, etc. feature some form of voice control, typically Google Assistant or Amazon’s Alexa. Bixby, on the other hand, is a Samsung creation. While it didn’t have the same AI chops that impressed me during my past interactions with Google Assistant, it still managed to carry out basic commands like “volume up” and “volume down.” (More on Bixby in a bit.)

SETUP When you ﬁrst turn on Samsung’s TV, a welcome screen directs you to download the company’s SmartThings app to your phone or tablet. A er doing so, I was disappointed to learn that I had to register and create a Samsung account to use the app, which only provided rudimentary TV remote control functions. (SmartThings is geared more towards controlling the company’s Smart Home devices, including sensors, hubs, security kits, and kitchen appliances.) Qui ing the SmartThings app and turning my a ention to OneRemote and Bixby, I decided to try using voice commands to navigate Netﬂix, only to learn that Samsung’s assistant isn’t compatible with that service. Instead, I searched for a movie. “Watch The Hangover Part II,” I commanded. “Did you want to watch The Hangover Part Two Inches?” (Whaaa?) “No,” I responded. “Is ‘No’ what you wanted to search for?” On it went. I started my picture setup of the 65Q8FN by selecting the Movie preset, which provided mostly accurate out-of-box color rendition. I also selected Warm2 Color Tone (white balance), Auto Color Space, and

At a Glance Excellent color rendition Deep, detailed-looking blacks Full-array backlight with local dimming Potentially confusing screen GUI and remote Unreliable voice command feature No Dolby Vision Price: $2,799 (800) 726-7864 samsung.com le Gamma at its default 0 se ing. When connecting an Ultra HD Blu-ray player or UHD-capable streaming box to the TV, you will also need to select the HDMI UHD Color option in the External Device Manager submenu under the General Se ings menu for a specific input to ensure passage of full-bandwidth signals. The 65Q8FN provides both 2- and 20-point white balance adjustments, but I only needed to use the 2-point option to calibrate the set’s grayscale for standard dynamic range (SDR) HD viewing. Gamma closely tracked a 2.4 target at the default se ing, while the Auto Color Space se ing delivered almost spot-on Rec.709 color rendition. The set’s measured P3 color space coverage using the CIE 1976 uv standard was 98.78 percent — the highest amount I’ve measured so far. Contrast ratio proved unmeasurable in all local dimming modes, with the set in each case fully shu ing off the backlight when displaying an all-black image. And since the set also doesn’t provide an option to turn off local dimming, making a measurement of its native contrast wasn’t possible.

SDR PERFORMANCE The Q8 Series TVs feature back panel inputs instead of an external One Connect box.

I did plenty of casual viewing with the Samsung in Movie mode before digging in and performing a calibration. Once

that was finished, I couldn’t have found be er source material to show off the set’s standard dynamic range capabilities than Be er Call Saul, season 3, episode 10 streamed in 4K from Netflix. The show opens with a flashback of a young Jimmy McGill and his brother Chuck reading by lantern light in a dark tent. The shadow detail in this scene was excellent: blacks looked deep and inky, and the fine folds and creases in the brothers’ clothing came through clearly. In a subsequent scene where an adult Chuck faces off with a business partner, the warm light coming from a column of lamps lining a conference-room table had a powerful glow. Be er yet, the 65Q8FN’s rendition of contrast and color in this scene was subtle enough to suggest a visual connection with the previous tent scene, while also providing a demonstration of the set’s solid dynamic capabilities, even when displaying regular SDR programs. The Samsung’s strong rendition of blacks and shadows remained in evidence when I next watched a Blu-ray of 2001: A Space Odyssey. A scene in a cave where the proto-humans cluster at nightfall revealed a high level of detail in their fur, and the environment’s black backgrounds looked endlessly dark. One thing that did bother soundandvision.com [ 45

test report SAMSUNG QN65Q8FN LCD ULTRA HDTV

Test Bench Pre-calibration measurements were made with the Samsung 65Q8FN’s Movie picture mode active. Postcalibration measurements were made in the same mode. Post-calibration, the set’s light output measured 40.6 foot-lamberts ( -L) on a 100% white window pa ern, and 0 -L on a full-black pa ern, effectively providing infinite contrast ratio. This was due to the Samsung’s nondefeatable Local Dimming feature fully switching off its backlight, which was the case with all three Local Dimming se ings. Before calibration, the Samsung’s Warm 2 color tone preset with the Auto

Specs

Color Space se ing active displayed average grayscale tracking, with the Delta E averaging out to 2.9. A er calibration using the 2-point White Balance adjustments, that number improved substantially to 0.4, with a high of 0.8 at 40% 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 se ings active in Movie mode, the Samsung’s color point

measurements were accurate across the board, with the Delta E averaging out to 2.2. Post-calibration, the Delta Es dropped to 0.65—a vanishingly low number. With the set’s BT.1886/0 Gamma preset selected, precalibration gamma closely tracked the target for most of its range, averaging out to 2.4, with a low of 2.2 at 100 IRE. Post-calibration, gamma measured a consistent 2.2 across the full brightness range. HDR measurements of the 65Q8FN revealed the same “inﬁnite” contrast performance due to the set’s local dimming feature shu ing the backlight oﬀ. Measured using

DIMENSIONS: (W x H x D, inches): 57.1

VIDEO INPUTS: HDMI 2.0a (4), HDMI

x 35.8 x 11.6 (with stand); 57.1 x 32.6 x 2.3 (without stand) WEIGHT: (pounds): 59.7 (with stand); 58.4 (without stand)

AUDIO OUTPUTS: Optical digital OTHER: LAN, USB (2), RS232C, Wi-Fi,

me when watching this and other scenes from 2001, however, was the TV’s tendency to shi abruptly to black during fade-outs, something that appeared to happen with all the local dimming se ings. The Samsung’s upconversion of 1080p video was impressively clean, with no noticeable smoothing of grain in ﬁlmsourced images. It also aced all of our full suite of video processing tests. Watching a Blu-ray of Passengers, the level of detail in the image was striking. Colors also looked rich but completely natural, especially in close-up shots of the main characters’ faces.

HDR PERFORMANCE Switching to HDR10 viewing, I watched the impressive recent Ultra HD Blu-ray release of The Matrix. Although the ﬁlm’s visual

ARC on input 4, RF cable/terrestrial

Bluetooth

design emphasizes an overall “green” cast, the skintones of both Neo and Trinity had a natural-looking paleness. Other subtle colors came through, and they looked perfectly balanced against the ﬁlm’s more lurid greenish hues. Highlights with this disc also came across powerfully, almost too much so—watching in a dark environment, I felt the need to signiﬁcantly dial back the contrast and backlight controls from the default HDR Movie mode se ings to create a more comfortable viewing experience. Once that was done, the Samsung’s HDR image displayed rock-solid, but not eye-piercing, contrast. Another movie I watched on Ultra HD Blu-ray, Logan, based on the Marvel Comics X-Men character Wolverine, also wowed me with its eye-popping contrast and strong shadow

46 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

detail. Watching the black-andwhite “Noir” version included with the disc package, the 65Q8FN displayed excellent image uniformity and an impressive range of ﬁne gray tones. I did note a small degree of banding in a few scenes with streetlights superimposed against a black background, but that was the one instance where I encountered that artifact while watching Ultra HD discs.

CONCLUSION Samsung’s QN65Q8FN QLED Ultra HDTV delivers exceptionally good performance when displaying both HDR and standard dynamic range programs, whether streamed or on disc. Its picture is distinguished by rich, yet balanced color and by sumptuous, detailed-looking shadows. The set does have ergonomic

the CIE 1976 uv standard, P3 color space coverage was a very impressive 98.78%. Post-calibration in Movie mode, The HDR peak white levels with various 100% luminance windows measured (in nits) 714 at 2%, 835 at 5%, 785 at 10%, 718 at 25%, and 588 at 100%. Picture uniformity was mostly good: a slight amount of screen “clouding” could be seen on dark gray full-field test pa erns, but I didn’t notice a similar effect when viewing regular programs. As with most other LCD displays, picture uniformity was reduced when viewed from off-axis seats, although screen reflectivity in bright lighting conditions was minimal. Our video processing tests revealed excellent performance, with the 65Q8FN passing the full set.—A.G.

challenges—I can’t remember ever having to consult a manual before to use a remote control. And its busy screen interface and Bixby voice assistant are likely to frustrate viewers who prefer to cut straight to the basics of watching a movie or TV. But at $2,799, the QN65Q8FN is priced competitively for a UHDTV that delivers mostly uncompromised picture quality. You could spend more on a higher-end set, but in this case that may not be necessary.

The Verdict Quantum dots in Samsung’s near-top-of-line QLED TV allow it to deliver exceptionally rich color. Add in a full-array backlight with local dimming and the QN65Q8FN amounts to a winning proposition from a picture quality standpoint.

Can’t Hear Voices On TV? 199

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O R D E R AT A M A Z O N . C O M O R Z V O X . C O M

test report PANASONIC DP-UB820 ULTRA HD BLU-RAY PLAYER

RATING

High Dynamic Ranger By Kris Deering

Panasonic DP-UB820 Ultra HD Blu-ray Player PERFORMANCE FEATURES ERGONOMICS VALUE

TODAY’S ULTRA HD BLU-RAY player market is drastically smaller than the one for the spinning-disc machines of old. In my early days reviewing DVD players, I could literally enter an electronics store, walk out with over a dozen players, and that would only represent a sampling of the available models. But with the massive rise in the popularity of streaming, we’ve seen the player market continue to slim down. On the plus side, the quality of the UHD Blu-ray players we’ve seen has been uniformly good. Granted the quality of the disc media is fantastic, so in the end the player just needs to pass that data along to the display with as li le manipulation as possible. For this review we’re going to look at a new UHD Blu-ray player from Panasonic that actually does quite a bit of manipulation, but for good reason. Panasonic’s DMP-UB820 is the ﬁrst player to oﬀer advanced onboard tone mapping for High Dynamic Range (HDR) and Standard Dynamic Range (SDR)

playback. The HDR Optimizer feature found in the DMP-UB820 was designed to correct the HDR troubles of displays that either don’t support HDR or don’t do a great job with it. The UB820 is also the first player I’m aware of that supports the new HDR10+ format. While no discs exist yet in this format, having that support helps future-proof the player. Hybrid Log Gamma (HLG) HDR is also included and Dolby Vision support will be added in a firmware update slated for Fall 2018. At $499, the UB820 is a midto-upper-price offering, but read on to see why it’s the best player yet for corralling the wild, wild west of HDR.

FEATURES The UB820 closely resembles the Panasonic DMP-UB900 reviewed in the February/March 2017 Sound & Vision (online at soundandvision. com), a player that earned top marks for its performance and remains one of our top picks. I’ve owned the

48 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

Panasonic's remote control is small and lacks backlit keys.

UB900 myself and found its video playback capabilities second to none, though its ergonomics didn’t ﬁt with me as well as my reference Oppo Digital UDP-205 player. The UB820 is nearly identical to the UB900 from an everyday operation standpoint: its menu structure and home screen are the same, and both players have the same sleek look, though the UB820 lacks touchsensitive controls, THX certiﬁcation and other minor details that make it feel slightly less high-end. I do prefer the UB900’s remote control to the UB820’s, which is smaller and lacks the backlit keys and spacious layout of the remote that comes with the older Panasonic player. The back panel of both players are nearly identical with dual HDMI outputs (one audio-only), a 7.1-channel analog audio output, USB support and a LAN connection. All standard fare for this market, but I was bummed to note the lack of an HDMI input. That’s a feature that the now discontinued Oppo Digital

players oﬀered, and would have been a welcome addition to this player so that other sources could take advantage of its unique HDR processing. (A er I dive in deeper on that topic, you’ll understand why.)

HDR, SDR, GAMMA, AND TONE MAPPING I’m not going to talk much more about the UB820 itself since I found its performance to be nearly identical in every way to the previously reviewed UB900. What I do want to focus on is what sets this player apart: HDR performance and processing. The arrival of HDR has been both a blessing and curse. It delivers the best video I’ve ever seen at home, but I’ve found its implementation to be abysmal at best, with standards lacking for pre-recorded media, playback, and display. HDR has also generated yet another format war to confuse consumers. Fortunately, the UB820’s onboard processing does a formidable job of beating back many of the HDR demons. To understand the UB820’s unique advantages, we’ll first need to discuss the specifics of HDR. This relatively new format was designed to leverage the higher light output capability of today’s displays—a capability that was wasted on most of the programs we’ve been watching for years. Before HDR, consumer media was mastered for display at 30 foot-lamberts (approximately 100 nits) brightness, which is on the dim side for most flat-panel TVs. HDR10, the most basic HDR format and one that’s mandated for inclusion on all UHD Blu-ray discs, supports brightness levels up to 10,000 nits! Granted, we have not yet seen programs graded at that

brightness level, but we have seen some that were graded on mastering displays capable of up to 4,000 nits, which is far beyond the capability of any consumer TV on the market. So how do you display content mastered at 4,000 nits on a display capable of only 25 percent of that brightness or less? Tone mapping. SDR content is mastered using what we commonly call gamma. This system measures the peak white output of your display and then balances the grayscale intensity to that level. HDR, in contrast, uses absolute values that are meant to map directly to the display with no wiggle room for its overall light output. To properly show content with a higher brightness level than the display is capable of hi ing, tone mapping is used.

'Panasonic leveraged what it learned developing HDR displays to create the HDR Optimizer.' The most basic way to describe this process is that the display shows the content as intended for as much as its brightness capability will allow. A er that point, any remaining detail that exists in the program gets “rolled off.” This compresses information at the upper end of the brightness range so that you are not just clipping the signal. If you were to graph the response, it would almost look like a crossover filter in an audio system. The problem, however, is that there is no standard of any kind for tone mapping, so every TV and projector manufacturer handles it differently.

Another issue is that HDR10 programs contain metadata that’s supposed to inform the display about the program’s characteristics. More o en than not, this data is largely inadequate (or missing, or wrong), so the tone map is generated based on incomplete or misleading information. This is the primary cause of viewer complaints about HDR images looking too dark or displaying clipping in highlights. To combat these common HDR tone mapping issues, Panasonic leveraged what it learned from developing its own ﬂat-panel displays to create a feature that it calls “HDR Optimizer.” When enabled, this feature lets you pick from an assortment of brightness presets that match your display’s capability. Presets include 1500 nits, 1000 nits, and 500 nits, which roughly align with the light output capability of high brightness LCD TVs, OLED TVs, and lower brightness projectors. Once conﬁgured, the player applies a tone map designed to match the typical brightness seen from these designs. But the UB820 doesn’t just provide a simple tone map; it also looks at the HDR metadata in the program and bases its processing on that information (including the maximum brightness of the display used for mastering and the program’s maximum pixel level). If the program’s maximum pixel level happens to be lower than the maximum display level, the tone map adjusts to the pixel level to preserve image brightness (thus eliminating the dark look that so many complain about with HDR viewing). The UB820 also provides an onscreen dynamic range slider that lets you make adjustments for richer contrast (at the

At a Glance Reference-level video performance In-player tone mapping for HDR and conversion to SDR Multichannel analog output Image enhancement options can be overwhelming Setup not always intuitive Would benefit from having an HDMI input Price: $499 panasonic.com expense of brightness) or a brighter average picture level (at the expense of contrast). Panasonic has even included presets that can be accessed directly from the remote control to quickly tailor overall image brightness for viewing in diﬀerent environments.

PERFORMANCE The UB820’s HDR adjustment features worked well, delivering exceptional tone mapping performance with all the programs I viewed. I found very li le reason not to use it with both my projection system and LG C7 OLED TV. The UB820 changes the HDR signal’s metadata when you turn on the HDR Optimizer, so the signal that your display sees is diﬀerent than what you’d get with the Optimizer turned oﬀ. This actually makes it hard to evaluate your set’s own performance: Some HDR displays actually use the HDR metadata to do their tone mapping, so if the player changes that, the display may be

soundandvision.com [ 49

test report PANASONIC DP-UB820 ULTRA HD BLU-RAY PLAYER

Fathom® IWS In-Wall Subwoofer Systems

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doing something diﬀerent than it would have with an unaltered HDR input. I found that the HDR Optimizer did a fantastic job with nothing objectionable to note, but it will ultimately be up to the end user to evaluate how it performs in conjunction with their own display’s internal processing. Another major perk with Panasonic's UB820 is its ability to convert HDR to SDR while still preserving UHD’s wide color gamut (BT.2020). Here’s why that’s important. Some projectors and older TVs support a wide color gamut, but not HDR, or do a very poor job with HDR processing. Panasonic’s previous UB900 player was capable of sending SDR signals with a BT.2020 color gamut if the display it was connected to reported it would accept BT.2020 but not HDR. Projector owners tried to take advantage of this capability by using inline devices like the HD Fury Integral or Linker, both of which are capable of changing the HDMI information that the player is receiving. With the UB820, the option to send SDR signals with BT.2020 (or Rec.709) color is now available right in the setup menu, so there’s no need to use external devices. This lets you watch HDR programs tone mapped down to near-SDR levels (the default is 350 nits, which works well for projectors), so a viewer with a projector or older, non-HDR TV can still get many of HDR’s picture quality perks by simply calibrating the display to a 2.4 gamma and either Rec.709 or BT.2020 color (the player supports both). The UB820’s very impressive tone mapping let it breeze through content I typically use to evaluate HDR display problems such as clipping, black crush, and poor overall image balance. Some of my go-to discs for this include The Revenant, Mad Max Fury Road and Deadpool. The Revenant has absolutely stunning natural-looking images featuring low light photography that many HDR projectors have a hard time dealing with. With the UB820, the HDR Optimizer’s tone mapping brought out plenty of shadow detail in the more diﬃcult sequences while still providing an excellent balance in brighter scenes. The infamous “sand storm” sequence in Mad Max Fury Road can really test a display’s tone mapping when it comes to clipping and color saturation. With the Panasonic handling the processing, however, I didn’t see any of the same issues I’ve noted with some other displays when viewing this scene.

DIMENSIONS: (W x H x

Specs

D, inches): 17 x 2.5 x 8 WEIGHT: (pounds): 5 VIDEO OUTPUTS:

HDMI (2) AUDIO OUTPUTS: Optical digital, 7.1 analog RCA, stereo analog RCA OTHER: USB 3.0 (rear), USB 2.0 (front), LAN, Wi-Fi

With the player in HDR-SDR conversion mode, you also get the option to turn the HDR Optimizer on and oﬀ. This will tell the player whether or not to use the program’s HDR metadata or to default to a base 1,000 nits tone map. For the most part, leaving this feature on was the way to get the best possible picture quality with HDR programs, but there were some UHD discs like Sicario that looked be er with it turned oﬀ. That’s because this title doesn’t report its 1,200-nits maximum pixel level, but only its mastering display maximum value of 4,000 nits. (The missing data causes the player to tone map to the higher brightness level, which results in a more dull and washed-out image.) This feature alone puts the UB820 at the top of my list for anyone wanting to view HDR programs with a projection system. It’s also as close to a plug-and-play solution as I can think of, and performed nearly as well as my reference video processor, the Lumagen Radiance Pro, in delivering high-quality HDR tone mapping on a lower light output display.

CONCLUSION The DP-UB820 is an outstanding UHD Blu-ray player that matches the referencelevel playback of Panasonic's previous UB900 but adds much-needed features to optimize HDR playback. I would have liked to have seen reﬁnements in operability, but its overall video performance is without peer. For projector owners who want to watch HDR, the UB820 is the ﬁrst must-own player to hit the market, but I’m sure it will also improve playback of 4K/HDR on the majority of other displays as well. A Top Pick for sure!

The Verdict Panasonic’s UHD Blu-ray player offers reference-level video performance and also sets a new bar for HDR playback with both HDR flat-panel TVs and projectors.

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test report M&K SOUND S150/S150T THX ULTRA SPEAKER SYSTEM name and I’ve had the opportunity to review a number of the company’s oﬀerings, including the X12 Subwoofer and the S300 sub/satellite system. (Reviews available at soundandvision. com.) The latest oﬀering to come my way from M&K Sound is the all-new Miller&Kreisel S150 Series, consisting of the S150 LCR speaker ($1,799 each) and the S150T surround ($2,599 pair).

Sound Evolution By David Vaughn

IT WAS A sad day for home theater fans when M&K Sound exited the speaker-building business in 2007. Fortunately, a group of investors and former

managers bought that company’s assets and created a new venture called MK Sound. To celebrate the company’s 40-year anniversary in 2013, the team decided to bring

52 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

back the legendary M&K Sound company name, along with the original Miller&Kreisel brand. Today, top models from M&K Sound all carry the Miller&Kreisel

FAMILIARITY DOESN’T BREED CONTEMPT I’ve used a seven-channel M&K S150 speaker system consisting of three S150 LCRs across the front along with four S150T surround speakers in my theater for the past 15 years. I’ve always wanted to upgrade to an M&K Sound subwoofer, although cash has been tight over the past few years with two kids in college. Regardless, I’ve happily managed with a quartet of subwoofers that includes an SVS PC-Ultra, HSU 15H-MK2, and a pair of JL Audio D110s, all run through a MiniDSP configured to provide a flat in-room frequency response. The original M&K S150 was regarded as one of the most accurate speakers on the market and served as a reference monitor for many music and movie soundtrack production facilities. The line was revised a couple of years a er the purchase and rebranded as the S150 MKII. But as with all products over time, a further update was in order. Can this new version of the legendary studio monitor carry on the company’s legacy? Nearly three months elapsed from the moment I was asked to write this review to the day that speakers finally showed up at my house, so when the boxes arrived I couldn’t wait to get them opened. These are beautiful speakers—a definite aesthetic improvement over my legacy S150s. For starters, the new cabinets are a smooth gloss black as opposed to a textured satin, so when dust

se les on them, they are easier to clean. Granted, the glossy finish is prone to fingerprints, but that’s why M&K Sound includes a pair of white gloves in every box! My only gripe is that the S150’s speaker terminals don’t accept standard banana plugs. While that’s not a big deal— most users rarely unhook their speakers—those of us with a revolving door for review products prefer the ease of plug-and-play. The original S150 line had dedicated right, center (in my case, angled center), and le speakers and each cabinet was constructed differently. The le /right speakers were toed in with their outside edge longer than the inside to create a 45-degree angle. M&K’s center speaker was designed the same way, but with a slightly longer top or bo om depending on if the speaker was placed above or below your screen. The original speakers, which conformed rigidly to THX specifications, also featured foam pads mounted between their three tweeters to make them as vertically directional as possible. Although still THX certified, the new S150 is a different design than its predecessor. Each box has the same dimensions, measuring 10.4 x 12.5 x 12.2 inches (W x H x D). That change likely saves manufacturing costs, and the toe-in effect can still be carried out by angling the speaker to ensure proper placement. Gone are the foam pads between the tweeters: M&K Sound has re-designed the wave guide in the tweeter faceplate to provide ideal focus and integration both when the S150 is used as a nearfield monitor (closer than 10 feet from the listening position) or installed at longer distances. The S150 features two 5.25-inch fiberglass bass/midrange drivers and three 1.1-inch Danish-designed (from ScanSpeak) fabric dome tweeters. The Phased-Focused crossover was always M&K’s (and now the new M&K's) secret sauce in that it has been critically tuned through psychoacoustic and complex computer time-domain analysis to achieve a uniform timbre balance throughout the listening room. This improves the threedimensional response and provides a reference listening experience

RATING Miller&Kreisel S150/S150T THX Ultra speaker system PERFORMANCE BUILD QUALITY VALUE

Brackets are provided on M&K Sound's S150T Tripole surround for easy ﬂush-mount installation to a wall.

from virtually any position. (If you decide to audition the new S150s, be sure to move around the room to experience that effect since most speakers don’t sound nearly as good when you move outside the center sweet spot.) Like its predecessor, the new S150 has a 4-ohm impedance and M&K Sound recommends using between 25 wa s and 500 wa s of amplification. The more amp power the be er—for my evaluation, I used a seven-channel ATI AT527NC (another S&V Top Pick) amp rated at 200 wa s per channel. Along with three S150s for the le , center, and right positions, M&K Sound sent four of its S150T Tripole surround speakers to create a seven-channel system. The S150T is just as beautiful as the S150, but with no mounting hole for a speaker bracket, it needs to be flushmounted to the wall. According to M&K Sound, the S150T is voiced for a wall-mount installation, however. The S150T’s Tripole design makes it a unique surround speaker. It uses one of the same 5.25-inch mid-bass drivers found in the S150 coupled with

At a Glance Very accurate sound Excellent dynamics Great for movies Pricey S150 speaker terminals don't accept standard banana plugs

Price: $10,595 (as tested) (888) 779-4968 mksound.com

a single 1.1-inch so dome tweeter for the front baﬄe, plus two 3.5-inch drivers located on either side of the cabinet that are wired out-of-phase. The 10.4 x 10.6 x 5.9-inch (W x H x D) cabinet has a trapezoidal shape, with the rear wider than the front. The S150T’s design gives the listener the best of both worlds—a direct radiator for directional sound combined with a dipole for diﬀused sound. While Dolby doesn’t necessarily recommend dipole surrounds for Atmos setups,

soundandvision.com [ 53

test report M&K SOUND S150/S150T THX ULTRA SPEAKER SYSTEM S150 LCR: Bass/Midrange: 5.25 in

Specs

ﬁberglass woofer (2), 1.1 in fabric dome tweeter (3); 10.4 x 12.5 x 12.2 in (WxHxD); 25.4 lb S150T TRIPOLE SURROUND: 5.25

I’ve used the S150 Tripole speakers in my own Atmos setup for a number of years and actually prefer them to monopole surround speakers. But don’t take my word for it—audition them for yourself!

PERFORMANCE One of the things that originally drew me to M&K speakers was their imaging across the front soundstage. By using three of the exact same speakers, there’s no audible disconnect when a sound is panned across the front of the room—it’s like timbre matching on steroids. This same concept applies to the surround speakers; since they use the same exact drivers found in the S150, panned sounds move seamlessly around the room. Among the first things I noticed was that the new S150’s midrange had a bit more he . There was an improvement in dialog intelligibility, especially with male voices—something I heard both when watching movies and when si ing through nightly newscasts or sitcoms. Si ing through my earlier testing notes for the S300, I had made the same observation with that speaker. At the time, I chalked the change up to the S300’s larger cabinet size, but in hindsight it may have had more to do with the new and improved drivers than the actual cabinets. For confirmation, I popped my legacy S150 center speaker back in and right away noticed a difference. While the older speaker didn’t sound bad by any stretch, the new S150 sounded be er. I noticed differences when listening to music as well. Playing the title track from Billy Joel’s An Innocent Man SACD, the soundstage was to die-for, with seamless imaging across the front of the room along with robust depth. Moving on to multichannel recordings such as Luther Vandross’ “Dance with my

in ﬁberglass woofer, 1.1 in fabric dome tweeter, 3.5 in paper pulp side driver (2); back 10.4 x 10.6 x 5.9 in (WxHxD), front 6.4 x 10.6 x 5.9 in (WxHxD); 10.6 lb

Father” on DVD-Audio, the sulky voice of the late singer floated in the room and each keyboard chord hit with precision. As much as I enjoyed music on these speakers, movies really made them come to life. With the recent release of Avengers: Infinity War, I’ve found myself revisiting many of the previous Marvel films for a refresher on the backstories of various characters. When I popped in Iron Man 2, a film that pits billionaire superhero Tony Stark against a ruthless Russian physicist, The DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack wasted no time in supplying demo-worthy material, with Iron Man leaping from the back of a military transport as AC/DC’s “Shoot to Thrill” exploded across the soundstage. When a payload door slowly dropped, explosions filled the room as Iron Man vaulted through a pyrotechnic display. With my Anthem AVM60 preamp/processor set for an 80Hz crossover, the seamless handoff between the main speakers and subwoofers created a full-bodied

54 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

'The speakers played at reference level without any sense of strain or fatigue.'

presentation at multiple listening positions. For example, when Iron Man engaged a crowd, his booming speech, and the reverberation of the crowd’s raucous applause through the room, provided a convincing illusion of being a participant in an actual event. It’s rare that a movie franchise improves with subsequent films, but that’s certainly the case with Mission: Impossible. The fourth film in the series, Ghost Protocol, was wri en and directed by Brad Bird, who notches up the action and intrigue to a higher level than the previous three M:I entries. As Ethan Hunt and his team chase a bad guy through a horrific sandstorm, The S150T surrounds did an excellent job rendering the disc’s Dolby True HD 7.1 soundtrack. During a high-speed chase, wind engulfed the entire room, yet I was still able to pinpoint discrete effects in the 360-degree soundfield that the M&K Sound speakers created. In the end, it didn’t ma er what type of material I threw at the S150/ S150T system, it handled it with ease, conveying the midrange and highs with clarity and unmatched accuracy. The speakers also played at reference level without revealing any sense of strain or fatigue.

CONCLUSION Some listeners prefer their sound to be colored in one way or another. I don’t—give me what the sound engineer cra ed, nothing more, and nothing less. The cynic in me initially worried that this updated S150-based system wouldn’t provide the same experience I’d grown accustomed to over the past 15 years, but that all ended up being wasted energy. M&K Sound’s updated speakers not just uphold the ﬁne tradition of the S150 line, they improve upon it. Highly recommended.

The Verdict M&K Sound’s revamp of its longstanding THX certified line delivers audible improvements over the original speakers.

test report POLK AUDIO COMMAND BAR SOUNDBAR

Alexa Bar None By Rob Sabin

A COUPLE OF Consumer Electronics Shows ago I was visiting the booth of Sound United, the parent of Polk Audio, when a friendly executive invited me up a narrow staircase to a private meeting room. Once I was sworn to secrecy, a long, thin, black travel case was brought out and laid on the ground, and its buckles were snapped open for the big reveal. I half expected it to house a bazooka of some sort. Instead, what popped out was the prototype of a thin spear of a soundbar that appeared to have an Amazon Echo Dot sunk into its middle. Polk’s team was rightfully excited about their new project. The smart speaker was just beginning its explosive push into people’s homes, and no one had yet combined Amazon’s increasingly popular Alexa voice control technology with a soundbar. It seemed liked a perfect fit for the emerging market. So, in a way, it really was Polk’s new secret weapon. The Command Bar was finally released for sale in summer 2018, concurrent with the launch of the Alexa-enabled Sonos Beam soundbar, which I reviewed in the September issue (see soundandvision.com). As the only two of their ilk, they beg comparison. But let’s first have a close look at Polk Audio’s Smart soundbar offering. At $300, the Command Bar is priced aggressively and provides a robust feature set for its cost. It’s 43 inches wide by 2 inches tall and 4 inches deep at the middle, tapering off on both ends to about 3.25 inches. Build quality is typical for the price point: lightweight (just 5 pounds) with a molded plastic case, but with admirable fit-and-finish. Polk’s soundbar has a pair of forward-facing active drivers mounted near each end: a 1.25 x

3.25-inch oval-shaped paper pulp midwoofer and 1-inch coated silk dome tweeter. Open ports on each endcap help to reinforce bass, but the bar is not meant to be used without the supplied wireless subwoofer, which sports a downfiring 6.5-inch paper pulp driver in a ported, molded cabinet. Despite its two-channel configuratioin, the Command Bar has 5.1-channel Dolby Digital and DTS decoders. There is no option to add discrete surround speakers. There is, however, ample connectivity. You’ll find two 4K/ HDR-compliant HDMI 2.0a inputs plus an HDMI ARC-enabled output, which allows direct switching of HDMI sources without forcing the TV to perform those duties (with possible denigration to the source signals), as is done with the Sonos Beam. There’s also an optical digital input for legacy TVs. One of the HDMI inputs is intentionally situated in a recess where an Amazon Fire TV Stick streaming dongle (or comparable product) can be plugged in and fully hidden, with a nearby active USB port supplying power. Alexa’s compatibility with Amazon Fire media players allows voice command for some functions, including searches, requesting content from specific streaming services, and transport controls. The supplied, contoured remote is 6 inches tall and has a nice, solid feel. I was impressed with its ergonomics. Behind the sealed, rubberized face are membrane bu ons alternately raised or recessed to allow the user to differentiate by feel in a dark room. Along with a volume rocker and mute there are dedicated bu ons for the subwoofer bass level and for

56 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

RATING Polk Audio Command Bar Soundbar PERFORMANCE FEATURES ERGONOMICS VALUE

Polk’s patented Voice Adjust technology to sharpen dialogue. Four dedicated bu ons activate Movie, Sports, Music, and Night listening modes, and there are also dedicated bu ons to select the wired inputs or onboard Bluetooth. Play/pause and transport keys work with streaming music services or the aforementioned Fire TV Stick for track advance and such. The same keys also worked with my Oppo Blu-ray player thanks to HDMI-CEC. Finally, an Alexa bu on at the remote’s top drops the volume and puts the Command Bar in listening mode in case it has trouble hearing your wake-up command over music or a loud movie soundtrack. I never really needed it: The speaker drivers are intentionally mounted at the bar’s ends to inhibit interference with the two-microphone, directional far-ﬁeld array that captures voice commands, and it worked well for me. Although I sometimes had to raise my voice over really loud soundtracks, I mostly found the system sensitive even from long distances.

Beyond Polk’s remote, you’ll ﬁnd that HDMI-CEC enables the volume rockers to work on the Command Bar if you pick up your set-top box or TV remote; no programming should be required for most leading TV brands. Alternatively, you can program any remote to operate the bar via an IR-learning feature. As for Alexa, once awakened you can ask her to change the volume, the bass/subwoofer level, and the

At a Glance Alexa voice control Flexible connectivity Good sound quality Great value No multiroom music functions

Price: $300 (800) 377-7655 polkaudio.com

from the Alexa-friendly services (Amazon Prime Music, Spotify, Pandora, iHeart Radio, Tune-In), audio books from Audible, and the usual queries about the weather.

SOUND QUALITY

'The Command Bar did a great job tracking dynamic soundtrack swells and peaks when called upon.' Voice Adjust. She’ll activate any of the listening modes, and also select any of the inputs, including Bluetooth. It’s worth noting that, although the Command Bar’s control panel looks and behaves like an Echo Dot (right down to the multicolored light ring that acts as an indicator for volume and various other functions), it lacks the full voice

capabilities of a standalone Echo smart speaker. As with the Sonos Beam, there are limitations pending ongoing ﬁrmware updates, which in this case includes Alexa voice calling and messaging. The Command Bar also lacks multiroom functionality to send music to other rooms via any of the usual platforms (Chromecast, AirPlay 2, or even

Amazon’s own MRM that allows sharing of music on some speciﬁed Echo speaker models; Polk says a ﬁrmware update for the la er is forthcoming). On the other hand, most functions you’ll want to control by voice are there, including home automation (via Philips Hue lighting and Wemo smart devices, for example), music

So, how does Polk’s Command Bar sound? Pre y darn good... for a $300 soundbar. To begin with, it was surprisingly authoritative. It played really loud and clean, having no trouble hi ing peaks in the 95to 98-decibel range with both music and movie soundtracks in my large space. At loud but more typical volume, the Command Bar did a great job tracking dynamic swells and peaks when called upon by audio eﬀects or a big crescendo. On the minus side, it suﬀers from at least one of the faults we generally complain about with soundbars: a lack of front-to-back image depth that would otherwise add dimensionality and body to instruments and vocals. My only other complaint— also common with inexpensive soundbars—was that the supplied subwoofer couldn’t always keep up with the bar. It did go low for a small, plastic sub; frequency sweep tones in my studio revealed noticeable output at 40 Hz and above, and there was no obvious sonic gap at the crossover to the bar. On the other hand, while it delivered punchy impact with action movie soundtracks, it could also soundandvision.com [ 57

test report POLK AUDIO COMMAND BAR SOUNDBAR sound one-notey and overwhelmed when pushed and didn’t do as well handling driving bass lines in music or orchestral scores. Fortunately, Polk’s controls provide some ability to adjust the sound. I found it best to keep the bar in its Music mode for all content, including movies, and then use the Bass and Voice rockers on the remote to optimize the sound. I also found that propping the front of the bar on my 26-inch-high TV stand for be er aim at my ears improved its projection into the room. Thus tuned, the Command Bar delivered a fairly wide and tall image that nicely matched the height of my TV’s 60-inch screen and went beyond its edges. The early ba le scenes in Wonder Woman, in which Diana first crosses the No Man’s Land into German-occupied territory and then helps liberate the town of Veld in Belgium, is a non-stop frenzy of gunfire, exploding bomb shells, shield-deflected bullets, and crashing metal and concrete. The Command Bar brought it to life and delivered the effects with solid visceral impact. Dialogue was clean and well reproduced, and it was easily adjusted to taste with the Voice control, a click of which gave the vocals a touch of etching to help them stand out from background chaos without adding any edge to the overall sound. Though the Command Bar is best-suited to TV sound, music on it was quite palatable. Even with compressed streams from my George Winston Radio station on Pandora, the bar

Soundbar

Specs

DRIVERS: 1.25

x3.25-in paper pulp oval woofer (2), 1-in silk dome tweeter (2) AMPLIFIER: Class-D, 160 wa s

exhibited good timbre and decay on piano notes, and only disappointed in its ultimate lack of fullness and dimensionality. When I got into feeding a variety of CD tracks to the bar via my Oppo disc player, I noticed that it was discerning enough to like high-quality recordings and not readily gloss over poor-quality ones; it wasn’t all-forgiving. But a superb recording like John

A er having positive things to say about the $399 Sonos Beam is the last issue, I made it a point to compare the standalone Beam (without extra-cost surrounds or subwoofer) with the Command Bar on some movies and music tracks. The Beam is a compact speaker (just 26-inches wide) that

Mayer’s “Movin’ On and Ge ing Over,” from The Search For Everything, projected Mayer’s huge, up-close vocal and gave impressive realism to the bluesy guitar links and ﬁnger snaps and other percussion. This is a $300 soundbar, a er all, so it’s not a system that I would necessarily recommend to serious audiophiles. But as a secondary music system, it will satisfy even critical ears for day-to-day music listening.

sounds reasonably full without subwoofer support and relies on spatial processing to spread its soundstage. It’s clear sonic advantage over the Command Bar is the extra dimensionality the processing imparts, which adds texture and weight to instruments and voice (helping to round out George Winston’s ﬂoating piano notes, for example). But the Beam couldn’t come close to matching the Polk system’s visceral impact

INPUTS: HDMI 2.0a (2), optical

digital, Bluetooth OUTPUTS: HDMI 2.0a

(ARC-enabled), USB 5.0 volt DIMENSIONS: (WxHxD,

Inches): 42.95 x 2.0 x 4 WEIGHT: (Pounds): 4.95

58 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

COMPARISON

Subwoofer DRIVER: 6.5-in paper pulp cone woofer, ported enclosure AMP: Class-D, 100 wa s INPUTS: Wireless DIMENSIONS: (WxHxD, Inches): 7.4 x 14.43 x 14.5 WEIGHT: (Pounds): 8.65

with bass effects, and it couldn’t play nearly as loud. Furthermore, the Beam’s spatial processing affects vocals, making them sound subtly but artificially reverberant and recessed. It couldn’t bring John Mayer into the room in quite the same way as the Command Bar did or provide the same level of midrange detail. Still, the Beam boasts other benefits, including

the Sonos multiroom music platform and the ability to add surrounds or a subwoofer, albeit at signiﬁcant cost.

CONCLUSION If you’re married to the idea of an Alexa-enabled soundbar, both the Command Bar and Sonos Beam have their place and create engagement in a diﬀerent way. But what can’t be questioned is that the Polk has serious chops, and, at $300, it noticeably overdelivers on features and performance. I don’t hesitate to recommend it.

The Verdict Polk’s feature-packed soundbar offers Alexa voice control and above-average sound quality. For $300, there’s plenty here to like.

test report DENON AVR-X8500H AV RECEIVER

Lucky Number Thirteen By Michael Trei

SOME PEOPLE get weird about anything with a 13 in it. Fear of this seemingly innocuous number, otherwise known as Triskaidekaphobia, has brought us buildings with no 13th floor, and even the renaming of the 13th Space Shu le mission. But Denon has shown us they don’t have time for silly superstitions by delivering the world’s first A/V receiver with 13 channels of onboard amplification. Physically, the AVR-X8500H marks a return to the monster receivers Denon was known for in the past, such as 2008’s massive AVR-5308CI. You won’t find any class-D amplifier modules or wimpy switched-mode power supplies here. A glance through the perforated cover of this 52-pound beast reveals that two-thirds of the real estate is dedicated to the huge transformer and 13 individual class-AB amplifier cards. Four fans are mounted under the heat sinks to keep things cool when the going gets loud. Up front, the AVR-X8500H has Denon’s familiar front-panel layout

with two large knobs, one for volume and the other for source selection, ﬂanking a large display that indicates the status of various functions. A drop-down door directly under it conceals a multi-function cursor for menu navigation and zone and source selection bu ons, along with an HDMI input, USB port, and a headphone output jack. As with most receivers, the remote control is required to gain access to the Denon's less-used functions. While new object-based surround sound formats like Dolby Atmos, DTS:X, and now Auro-3D have expanded home theater setups into the vertical dimension, most receivers only have a limited number of amp channels. Do you want both front wide and back surround channels along with your height speakers? With most The AVR-X8500H features Audyssey MultEQ XT32 speaker calibration/speaker EQ for all of its 13 channels.

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RATING Denon AVR-X8500H AV receiver PERFORMANCE FEATURES ERGONOMICS VALUE

receivers you will run out of channels and be forced to make choices. The AVR-X8500H, however, is the first receiver with 13 amp channels. Do you want a 7.1.6 setup with six height speakers along with a full complement of ear-level speakers? No problem. How about a 9.1.4 setup with front wide speakers? The only Atmos combination you can’t do with the AVR-X8500H is 9.1.6, but I think most of us would be abandoned by our spouses or evicted by our landlords before reaching that point. Some immersive surround sound formats require different speaker placement configurations, and the AVR-X8500H is versatile enough to accommodate that. There are connections for 15 speakers on the back, which allows you to connect both the center-mounted ceiling speakers used by Auro-3D and the height or elevation speaker pairs used for Dolby Atmos and DTS:X. With just (just!) 13 amplifier channels, the receiver of course can’t drive all 15 speakers at once, but it will automatically switch to feed a proper 13-speaker configuration to match each surround mode.

BLEEDING-EDGE FEATURES As you would expect from a new ﬂagship receiver from one of the big boys, the AVR-X8500H is loaded to the gills with the latest tech. All eight (one front/seven rear) HDMI 2.0b inputs support 4K/60p and HDCP 2.2, along with Dolby Vision, HDR10, and Hybrid Log Gamma high dynamic range. Next-gen HDMI 2.1 connections aren’t available yet, but Denon has promised a future HDMI 2.1 hardware upgrade option (cost

hasn’t yet been specified) for the AVR-X8500H. On a similar note, only standard ARC (audio return channel) is supported at present, but a free firmware upgrade to eARC is promised for late 2018. A new, enhanced version of HDMI’s ARC feature, eARC among other things enables lossless multichannel audio to be routed back to the receiver from sources connected to an eARCequipped TV. The Denon’s wireless connections include Wi-Fi, AirPlay, and Bluetooth, and there’s a pair of supplied rear-mounted antennas to ensure good wireless range. Naturally, Denon’s own HEOS wireless multiroom streaming protocol and control app are also supported, which gives you access to music streaming services like Spotify and Tidal plus any DNLA music server that you have running on your home network. The receiver can also be controlled with the Denon AVR app, and you can even add voice control via Amazon’s Alexa. Along with its eight HDMI inputs, the AVR-X8500H has a pre y complete array of legacy connections, including six pairs of stereo analog audio inputs, a 7.1-channel analog audio input, coaxial and optical digital audio inputs, and a full complement of composite- and componentvideo inputs and outputs. There’s also moving magnet phono preamp input for connecting a turntable, and a full 15.2-channel set of preamp outputs in case you ever want to connect even bigger amps to your speakers. Calling this a receiver would imply that a radio tuner is part of the package, and the AVRX8500H does indeed include an AM/FM tuner. But with no HD Radio onboard, radio reception is one feature that’s been downgraded from prior models. (Denon’s last flagship receiver, the AVR-X7200W, included HD Radio.) It can be argued that the increasing popularity of internet radio streaming has made

over-the-air terrestrial radio less important than ever. Still, I suppose we’re lucky because the otherwise-identical AVC-X8500H that Denon sells outside North America provides no tuner at all. Denon’s remote control is similar to those supplied with other high-end receivers from the company over the last few years, with backlit bu ons that illuminate as soon as you pick the remote up. The clean layout places most-used bu ons where your thumb can reach them easily. A small display at the top shows the current control mode, while a set of transport controls can be used when playing ﬁles on a USB stick or network-streamed via DLNA. I especially appreciated the four bu ons that let you cycle through the various stereo and surround modes, separated here into Movie, Music, Game, and Pure (surround bypass).

SETUP Since 13 channels is beyond the already extensive capabilities of my resident PSB Synchrony One speaker system, I sent out an SOS to the good folks at PSB and they were kind enough to ship me a speaker rescue package. Along with their Imagine XA Atmos Enabled speakers, PSB included a bunch of Imagine Minis to cover the bases while matching up sonically with the Synchrony speakers. I experimented with several combinations, but for

most of my listening used my normal Synchrony 7.1-channel layout, plus four Imagine XAs in the surround and rear surround height positions and one pair of Imagine Minis near the ceiling as front height speakers. For Auro-3D I used three Imagine Minis as height speakers and two Imagine XAs, but fearing for the integrity of my ceiling, didn’t go so far as to install what Auro calls the “Voice of God” speaker directly over my head. With all of the additional wiring running across the floor, my room was starting to look like an explosion at a speaker cable factory, but in the end it was worth it. Configuring this many speakers and subwoofers, (up to two are supported, but I stuck with my single trusty M&K MX-350THX), could be a tedious chore, but the Denon’s Audyssey MultEQ XT32 speaker calibration program and its supplied calibration microphone makes the process pre y simple. The calibration mike is moved to eight different spots located near the main listening area, and it sweeps each speaker in turn at every spot. Do the math and that means over 100 sweeps! Normally, I like to run the program, then go into manual mode and hand-tweak the se ings as needed. And because part of my goal is to get a handle on the receiver’s sonic performance, I will also switch off the Audyssey EQ and dynamic range controls as part of my critical listening.

At a Glance Clear, punchy sound Beefy 13 x 150W class-AB power amp Dolby Atmos, DTS:X, and Auro-3D decoding up to 7.2.6 or 9.2.4 No HD Radio Flagship price to go with flagship performance Price: $3,999 (201) 762-6665 usa.denon.com

Sources included my Oppo UDP-203 Ultra HD Blu-ray player for all discs and streamed music from Tidal via the HEOS app. Netﬂix and video-on-demand services were streamed from a Roku Ultra. I also connected my Technics SL-1200 Mk2 turntable to test the Denon’s phono input.

PERFORMANCE Starting my listening as usual with two-channel music, I played a Tidal stream of “The Race” by the Swiss group Yello. It immediately became clear that the AVR-X8500H is no lightweight in the ampliﬁer department. This song features lots of heavy bass and car door-slamming sounds, and the Denon’s startling dynamic grip on the speakers really made things come to life. Imaging performance was no less

soundandvision.com [ 61

test report DENON AVR-X8500H AV RECEIVER impressive, with the band spread behind and around the speakers and sound eﬀects circling the room. Imaging with the Denon was so impressive, in fact, that I had to get up and assure myself that the receiver hadn’t somehow switched from stereo to multichannel mode. The success or failure of a surround music mix mostly depends on who was behind the boards, and Jerry Harrison’s 5.1 mixes of the Talking Heads catalog on DVDAudio DualDisc are some of the best. Listening to “Moon Rocks” from Speaking In Tongues, Tina Weymouth’s bass bounced along tunefully, while the percussion parts and David Byrne’s guitar swirled around my head. It made me want to get up and dance. Naturally, the main course with any new high-end A/V receiver will be movies with object-based surround soundtracks. It’s pre y ironic that a movie set in the atmosphere-free expanse of space makes for a great Atmos demo, but Gravity takes full advantage of the height channels to put you in another world. What you hear is just what astronauts in space would hear: the intimate sounds of their voices and those of their fellow astronauts over the radio. These ﬂoat around you in a remarkable dome of sound that’s interrupted by loud impacts as objects crash into The backlit buttons on Denon's remote control automatically illuminate when you pick it up.

Specs

POWER OUTPUT: 13 x 150 wa s (8 ohms, 2 channels driven) AUTO SETUP/ROOM EQ:

Audyssey MultEQ XT32 VIDEO PROCESSING: Scales to 4K/60 4:4:4;

transcodes analog video to HDMI DIMENSIONS (WxHxD, Inches): 17.2 x 7.8 x 17.3 WEIGHT (POUNDS): 51.4 VIDEO INPUTS: HDMI 2.0b (8, 1 front), component video (3), composite video (4) AUDIO INPUTS: Coaxial digital (2), optical digital (2), line-level stereo (7), phono (MM), multi-channel analog (7.1) ADDITIONAL: RJ-45 Ethernet/IP control, USB

62 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

each other. The effect is enough to make you want to keep your feet firmly planted on the ground. The sharp contrast between Gravity’s soundtrack elements was handled beautifully by the AVR-X8500H, with the soothing silence of space punctuated by dynamics that could ra le your fillings. For a complete change of pace, I next watched xXx: Return of Xander Cage, specifically the scene where Xiang drops in through the glass ceiling at CIA headquarters and shoots things up so he can grab the Pandora’s Box satellite controller. Bullets flew overhead, and the

(2, 1 front), 12-volt trigger (2), IR-in/out, RS-232C VIDEO OUTPUTS: HDMI 2.0b (3, including 2 monitor, 1 zone), component video, composite video (1 monitor, 1 zone) AUDIO OUTPUTS: 15.2-channel preamplifier, stereo line (2 zone), 1/4 -inch headphone, 15-channel speaker (13 amplifier channels) on multi-way posts WIRELESS STREAMING: Internet radio (TuneIn); Spotify, Tidal, Pandora, Amazon Music, Deezer, more via HEOS casting COMPUTER AUDIO: Streaming via wired Ethernet or Wi-Fi (DLNA/equivalent), USB fixed-storage; HRA capable up to 192/32, including native-DSD 2.8/5.6 MHz

pumping techno soundtrack gave my main speakers and subwoofer a real workout. Even with all 13 speakers cu ing loose at leasebreaking volume, the AVR-X8500H delivered outstanding clarity and dynamics and didn’t display any sign of distress.

CONCLUSION The technology featured in a state-of-the-art receiver is a fast-moving target, so much so that with some gear you might want to consider pu ing tech support on speed-dial. Not so with Denon’s AVR-X8500H, which performed superbly out of the box with no serious glitches. The price here is pre y steep, but if you want bang-up-to-date technology that works brilliantly, it’s hard to go wrong with this receiver. Just make sure you don’t take delivery of it on Friday the 13th, especially if you happen to live on the 13th ﬂoor.

The Verdict Denon’s latest flagship receiver checks off every box on the A/V receiver feature wish list, and it provides plenty of brawn to back up its formidable brains.

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test report

YAMAHA RX-V685 AV RECEIVER

Surround Unbound By Daniel Kumin

I GET TO REVIEW a lot of A/V receivers. Familiarity breeding— well, familiarity— I confess that I tend to sort new examples into one of three classes. The flagship models cost a lot, pump out 140 or so wa s from each of at least nine and o en more channels, and they tend to cram in every conceivable feature. Entry-level jobs are cheap, five- or seven-channel affairs that usually top out at 65-or-so real wa s per channel and incorporate more basic feature sets. Everything in between I callously lump into the “commodity-class” rubric. These are the ones nearly everybody actually ends up buying, and for good reason: they’re still heavily featured and impressively capable, but seductively priced at one-third to one-half what the cruisers and ba leships cost, and just a couple of Franklins above the cheap ‘n’ cheerfuls. But much like Orwell’s farm animals, some, like Yamaha’s latest example, the $599 RX-V685, are

more individual than others. The V685 has all the expected check boxes: Dolby Atmos/DTS:X surround decoding with seven onboard channels of ampliﬁer power to provide for a 5.1.2 front-height setup (or 7.1 surround with surround-back speakers); HDMI with full HDR compatibility and video processing including output resolution up to 4K; and a generous helping of wired and wireless streaming-audio options, including Pandora and Tidal, plus full participation in Yamaha’s proprietary MusicCast multiroomaudio ecosystem. Unfortunately, along with most of its class cohort the V685 lacks the line-level rear-height outputs that would permit users to add an outboard stereo ampliﬁer, such as a mothballed stereo receiver or integrated amp, to provide power for a “full” 5.1.4-channel Atmos/DTS:X system. Pre y much in concert, the

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RATING Yamaha RX-V685 AV Receiver PERFORMANCE FEATURES ERGONOMICS VALUE

industry seems to have agreed (with “No collusion!” I’m sure), to force buyers requiring nine-channel capability to move up-range to the near-ﬂagship models at the $1,200 or higher price level. That’s a shame in my book since system-growth expansion options are a foundation stone of the A/V hobby, something that lures unsuspecting users every deeper into audio and home theater. Two factors set the new Yamaha RX-V685 apart. One is the ﬁrm’s longstanding DSP-surround, an ability that can bloom stereo (and surround) recordings into richer, more detailed ambient experiences than can Dolby or DTS “Music” modes. Brand-Y has been the leading proponent of applying digital signal processing to the recreation of acoustic environments for some four decades, and its technical expertise, at least in the consumer space, is without serious rival. I am in general a fan: when judiciously applied to selected— that is, naturally recorded—acoustic music, Yamaha’s processing, currently marketed by the company under the “Cinema DSP 3D” rubric, can deliver a remarkable simulacrum of natural space. The second is the V685’s option to deploy a pair of Yamaha’s MusicCast wireless speakers in the surround position, obviating the need for long speaker-wire runs to the rear of the room (see sidebar). MusicCast is Yamaha’s proprietary

wireless-multiroom ecosystem, competing in the distributedmusic space with rivals such as Sonos and Denon’s HEOS. Yamaha also states that the V685 can integrate Amazon Alexa voice-assistant control through MusicCast, a feature my dystopia-phobia prevented me from exploring.

SETUP Unboxing Yamaha’s latest revealed the familiar, black-rectangle format (would somebody please make an AVR in a different shape, like a sphere, maybe, or a banana?), with a single volume knob and numerous small, tinily-labeled pushbu ons for input and mode selection and other functions. (Apparently, our onscreen era makes legible panel graphics superfluous. I can’t think of any A/V receiver fascia that does not require a flashlight and a magnifying glass.) Hooking up the usual complement of HDMI and speaker cables, I set the V685 into my system in a 5.1.2-channel configuration, with front-height “ceiling-bounce” speakers perched atop my long-serving Energy Veritas standmount monitors. The Yamaha’s speaker outs are plastic multi-ways spaced too wide to accept standard half-inch dual-bananas, alas. Yamaha’s proprietary YPAO (Yamaha Parametric Acoustic Optimizer) auto-setup/room-EQ routine runs along a familiar path: You plug in the supplied small microphone, place it at the listening position, run the setup routine, and wait while the receiver cycles through a series of bursts and bleeps. (Yamaha provides a clever li le knockdown cardboard stand for the mic, though I used my usual full-sized tripod.) YPAO collects data from only a single mic placement and does not show EQ results in either a graph or data, but the distance, speaker-size, and channel-level results it obtained were all within range of what I had previously set manually. The system’s EQ correction seemed to dial in a milder version of the effect I

usually hear from full-bore systems like Audyssey EQ32: slightly tighter bass and more focused ambience in the upper-midrange region. But since my speaker/room setup is quite accurate above about 100 Hz, corrections tend to be modest from any system. Thus, as always, I did the bulk of my listening with the system bypassed.

PERFORMANCE My first order of business with any receiver or amplifier is two-channel, unprocessed listening, for which I turned to the V685’s Pure Direct mode: direct as in stereo, no-subwoofer, unprocessed, full-range playback. And like virtually all the receivers I encounter these days, including many surprisingly inexpensive examples, the Yamaha proved a very capable basic amplifier. It had no difficulty driving my antiquebut-effective Energy three-way monitors—a moderately difficult loudspeaker load—to convincing levels on both rock and orchestral classical, and they sounded lively and dynamic doing so. A solid recording like Duke Robillard’s “Rain Came Falling Down” (via a Tidal FLAC stream) maintained plenty of bite and a ack from Duke’s understated guitar licks and preserved an easy clarity from the bright snare hits and the loping cymbal ride hovering over the tune’s heavy New Orleans walk, even at pre y demanding volumes. Another Tidal stream, the opening Allegro of the familiar Mozart d-minor piano concerto (k466),

played with odd severity but great clarity by the jazz hands of Keith Jarre , had no difficulty in presenting at concert-like levels without strain or congestion, and with fine textural integrity and impressive clarity and “ping” from the piano single-line a acks. As I’ve done many times before, I marveled at the ability of an inexpensive, heavily integrated multichannel amp to approach the transparency and dynamics of my much more costly, everyday separate components. Did it match them? Probably not, but it came surprisingly close. The V685 has a sort of medium-sized helping of Yamaha’s DSP prowess. There’s the usual long list of available programs, including a half-dozen or so music-appropriate ones like Hall in Munich, Chamber, and The Bo om Line, plus plenty more A/V-oriented options. There’s even one named Roleplaying Game, which I confess misses my demographic altogether. User-adjustable parameters like Hall Size and effect DSP let the listener dial in effects to suit speakers, room, and taste, but for the most part Yamaha’s defaults are reasonably restrained. As a rule, I generally still choose to dial back effect levels and “room sizes” by a couple of clicks for a subtler but still important contribution. For example, a hi-rez DSD track of a Haydn horn concerto (Channel Classics), a superbly naturalsounding recording to begin with, gained, via my personalized “Hall in Vienna” program, a

At a Glance Class-leading DSP surround 5.1.2-channel Dolby Atmos/DTS:X decoding Useful Scene memory feature Wireless surround speaker (and multiroom) option via MusicCast speakers No 9-channel (front- and rear-height) Atmos/DTS:X expansion option Slow DLNA audio streaming response Price: $599 714-522-9105 usa.yamaha.com

bloom of hall-sound spaciousness and of proscenium-arch altitude that made it more convincingly lifelike and thus more musically complete. I really have no idea what proportion of RX-V685 users might employ these programs in this way, but those that do will derive real sonic value.

ERGONOMICS AND EXTRAS Yamaha’s supplied remote controller is a handsome new design, quite usable in the main though devoid of any key-illumination. A bit curiously, there are direct-access keys to the receiver’s Extra Bass and Enhancer features (both fairly unimportant in my view), but no

soundandvision.com [ 65

test report YAMAHA RX-V685 AV RECEIVER direct-access keys to select inputs—you need to instead to cycle through the 16 possible options using the remote's input-up/down arrow keys (you can delete unused inputs from the rotation in the setup menu). Happily, Yamaha provides a valuable alternative with its Scene memory feature. This set of eight presets, every one of which can

store a combination of input source, surround program, channel- and overall-levels, and virtually every other user-selectable or adjustable parameter, gives one-touch access to custom-conﬁgured sources. While many of Yamaha’s competitors oﬀer a similar feature, few are as comprehensive. If the V685 was permanent in my setup, I would surely come to rely on it.

'The MusicCast 20s are particularly well-suited for surround duty.'

The V685’s interface for streamed audio (my principal music source these days) showed itself to be quite workable, if somewhat slower than some others I’ve tried in commanding my iMac-sourced (TwonkyMedia) DLNA server. But it was stable and decoded and played my hi-res ﬁles with full ﬁdelity, including DSDs, though the only way to get a display of currently

High Wireless Late during my RX-V685 review, Yamaha sent along a pair of its newest MusicCast wireless speaker model, the MusicCast 20 ($230 each), for trial-by-wirelessness in the surround (rear) positions. (This ovi-cylindrical two-way design, about the size and shape of a familysized carton of Quaker’s finest, also proved to be a very fair-sounding little speaker, especially when configured as a stereo pair.) Setting these up as surrounds in thrall to the V685 proved initially puzzling, but ultimately very straightforward. I first had to find the instructions to do so online—no mention of wirelesssurround use whatsoever appears in the receiver’s own manual, despite the feature being trumpeted on Yamaha’s product web page. These instructions, however, proved to be very curt: essentially, follow the on-screen prompts of the MusicCast app on your smartphone or tablet. This proved perfectly accurate, except that you must first register both wireless speakers into your receiver’s MusicCast “location,” a process that requires considerable screen-pressing, swiping, and switching of Wi-Fi networks to and from a

temporary one that each MusicCast device throws up for the setup process. (Such byzantine setup steps are common among wireless audio systems, however, and not peculiar to MusicCast.) In retrospect, this was perfectly logical, but it stymied me for a bit since the “MusicCast Stereo/ Surround” menu option cited in the one-paragraph instructions stubbornly refused to appear on my app until both speakers were registered. I know, I know: duh. Frankly, as an old-school guy I’d be every bit as comfortable stringing a quick pair of speaker wires, especially since each MusicCast 20 must of course still be provided with 120-volt wall power via a— gasp!—power cable, making the “wireless” surround claim strictly relative. With all this accomplished, and the speakers plunked on my high sidewall shelves in place of my everyday dipoles, the MusicCast pair dutifully functioned as surrounds with performance pretty much equal to that of any good-quality, sub-compact two-way wired speakers. Actually, their rather wider and somewhat more difuse spatial imaging, typical of such one-piece powered designs,

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made them particularly well suited for surround duty, presenting a nicely broad spread of ambience. For one example, a scene from the shockingly wooden Kenneth Branagh version of “Murder on the Orient Express” has the eponymous train speeding through snowy Alps, whereby its locomotive whistle, chuf, and clatter all echoed satisfyingly in support of a strong, fullband left-to-right sound pan. I naturally wondered if the compact and modestly powered 20s would have enough stuf to keep up with the V685 at referencelike overall levels, but in my “normal” listening I heard no signs of distress or of a loudness shortfall. I tried a few surround-heavy scenes at reference level with the 3.1.2 channels all disconnected (listening to the

surrounds “naked”), and found the same to be true, with the caveat, of course, that Smart speakers like the MusicCast 20 are designed to be diicult, or even impossible, to overdrive, so audible distortion is unlikely under any circumstances. Nor was I ever made aware of any wireless lag from the surround channels. (There may have been some lag, in the millisecond or sub-mil sense, but the surround channels is not where one will ever detect it.) More importantly, the MusicCast 20s dutifully turned on and of with the receiver, and I never noticed any delay in the surround-channels output coming to life. The executive summary is that the MusicCast 20s work quite well as “wireless” surrounds, and they present other advantages as well. You could easily take the MusicCast 20 pair along on a vacation weekend, temporarily reconﬁguring them as a stereo pair at the chalet. They also, of course, free up the receiver’s rear speaker outputs to use for a wired second zone. I can recommend them to those for whom avoiding the routing of surround-channel speaker wires (though not, I repeat, power cords) is worth the extra cost.

POWER OUTPUT: 105 wa s (8

ohms, 2 channels driven, 1 kHz, <0.9% THD); 90W (8 ohms, 2 channels driven, 20 Hz-20 kHz, <0.06% THD) AUTO SETUP/ROOM EQ: Proprietary (YPAO) VIDEO PROCESSING: 4K scaling/pass-through supporting HDCP2.2, upscales analog video to HDMI; HDR (HDR10, Dolby Vision, and HLG) via HDMI DIMENSIONS: (WxHxD, Inches): 17.1 x 6.75 x 14.8 WEIGHT: (Pounds): 23.1 VIDEO INPUTS: HDMI (5), component, composite AUDIO INPUTS: coaxial digital (2), optical digital (2), USB (front); analog line-level stereo (4, with one 3.5mm stereo on front panel), phono

Specs

playing file-type and sampling rate/depth was to go five-clicks deep into the onscreen setup menu’s Info branch. (App control offers easier access to file format info.) Yamaha offers a few free apps (iOS and Android) to

ADDITIONAL: RJ-45 Ethernet VIDEO OUTPUTS: HDMI (2, Zone 2 optional) AUDIO OUTPUTS: stereo pre-out (front and

Zone 2), dual subwoofer, 1/4-inch headphone (front) ZONE 2: Second AV zone via HDMI, and/or audio via speaker- or line-level outputs WIRELESS: dual-band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Apple AirPlay, MusicCast multiroom WIRELESS STREAMING: Spotify, Tidal, Pandora, Sirius/XM, Deezer, Napster; Internet-radio on-board; more via MusicCast casting COMPUTER AUDIO: streaming via wired Ethernet or Wi-Fi (DLNA/equivalent), USB ﬁxed-storage/asynchronous input; HRA capable up to 32-bit/192kHz (WAV/AIFF) including native DSD up to 11.2 MHz

supplement its receiver operations. AV Controller provides full command over the unit including a number of features, such as direct selection of inputs and DSP programs, that the supplied remote does not. (It can even

link to display the full owner’s manual on your phone or tablet.) A separate, equally well thought out, MusicCast app is required to select and control content from Spotify and Tidal, and to integrate any wireless MusicCast speakers in other rooms.

CONCLUSION With well more than a dozen A/V receiver options in the $550-to$700 range, Yamaha’s V685 plays on a hotly contested ground. But for those who consider close listening of acoustic stereo music to be a key function, it’s a must-audition: DSP-surround for music may or may not ultimately prove to your taste, but serious listening under controlled conditions should be mandatory before deciding. For everyone else, the Yamaha is still a fully competitive choice, with excellent basic sonics, the usual level of video processing, and its own distinctive helping of features.

The Verdict Yamaha’s unique DSP-surround technology sets apart what is otherwise still a strong A/V receiver in a highly competitive market niche.

soundandvision.com [ 67

test report PS AUDIO SPROUT100 INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER/DAC

Small Wonder By Al Griffin

inputs. Outputs include line-level RCA preamp, subwoofer, and speaker connections that accept banana plugs but also bare wire when used with the included banana-plug adapters. In a welcome touch, the compact Sprout100’s power connection uses a standard IEC jack as opposed to the external wall-wart power supply that typically gets packaged with compact electronics. The brushed aluminum-clad remote control that comes with the Sprout100 is a deﬁnite upgrade over the standard credit-card types you get with some gear. It has a substantial feel when seated in the hand, and its power, mute, and volume up/down control bu ons click audibly when pressed. I was happy to see a printed owner’s manual—an endangered species in the A/V world—when I opened the box, especially an informative, clearly wri en one.

SETUP THE ORIGINAL PS Audio Sprout integrated ampliﬁer/DAC was noted as being part of a new trend of ultra-compact ampDACs when Sound & Vision reviewed it back in 2015. We’ve since tested similar models from Elac and Teac, though it was the Sprout that most grabbed our a ention due to its moving magnet phono stage—a feature those other models happen to lack. While vinyl playback may not be a priority when an ampDAC is on your desk connected to a computer and used to drive headphones, that feature takes a step-up in importance when it’s in a living room connected to speakers. Three years later, PS Audio has come out with a next-gen Sprout, the Sprout100. Vinyl playback remains a priority for the new model, which features a re-designed phono stage, along with aptX Bluetooth wireless streaming. The new Sprout100 provides increased power output, with an ICEpower class-D ampliﬁer delivering 50 wa s per-channel into 8 ohms, and 100 wa s into 4 ohms. Other new features separating it from the earlier

Sprout include a remote control, a subwoofer output, RCA-jack line-level analog inputs and outputs, and an ESS Sabre 9016 DAC that supports PCM signals up to 24-bit/384kHz and DSD up to DSD128. Last but not least, at $599 the Sprout100 is priced $200 less than its predecessor. PS Audio opted not to mess with the original Sprout’s design: The 100 features the same cigar box-size machined aluminum case and real, actual wood top-panel, the la er giving the company’s AmpDAC a homey, vintage look. Front-panel features are limited to input select and volume control knobs (also aluminum), an LED indicator light, and a ¼-inch headphone output. PS Audio also tosses in an adapter to plug in headphones that use a 3.5mm connector. The Sprout100’s back panel is completely packed with connectors. As mentioned above, there are asynchronous USB, optical digital (another diﬀerence from the earlier Sprout, which provided a coaxial digital jack but not optical), RCA phono and line-level RCA stereo

68 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

RATING PS Audio Sprout100 Integrated Ampliﬁer/DAC PERFORMANCE FEATURES ERGONOMICS VALUE

The Sprout100's clean front panel provides just input select and volume adjustment knobs plus a 1/4-inch headphone output.

To evaluate the Sprout100, I bypassed desktop use and instead deposited it on the hi-ﬁ rack in my living room where it was literally dwarfed by another integrated amp I had in for testing. Setup was a simple ma er of inserting the banana plugs of my Nordost Purple Flare speaker cables to connect the amp to a pair of Totem Acoustic Sky bookshelf speakers. I then plugged in cables from my Pro-Ject Debut turntable into the jacks labeled “Vinyl” and connected an Elac Discovery server to the optical digital input to stream Tidal and other uncompressed music from my Mac computer. Most of my listening was done with the Totem Sky bookshelf speakers alone, though I also plugged in a MartinLogan 12-inch powered sub for a spell to test the subwoofer output.

PERFORMANCE To quickly get acquainted with the Sprout100, I grabbed my iPhone, linked up via Bluetooth, and used Apple Music to stream the song “Disarray” from Canadian post-punk band Preoccupations’ latest album,

New Material. (Maybe it’s just me, but it seems the band could have tried harder to think up with a be er album title than that.) Right off the bat, the sound was room-filling, dramatic, and had a dense sense of atmosphere. The combined acoustic and electronic drums displayed strong impact, while the bass guitar came across as clean and with good low-end power. Switching to the same Preoccupations track streamed to the Elac music server via Roon music management so ware—this time from Tidal— I heard a notable increase in separation between instruments. Vocals gained body and a distinct placement in the mix, and the impressively wide soundstage also took on some depth. The most impressive change could be heard with the percussion and bass: drums were not just punchy but also packed with detail, while the bass guitar’s sound now displayed a more rounded, full tone. With a sensitivity rating of 87 dB, the Totem Sky I listened with is not the most efficient monitor. Still, the Sprout100 didn’t seem to have any trouble driving it to a loud level in my fairly large listening room. Playing a techno track, “Syncope,” by Steve Hauschildt, the system’s rendering of the four-on-thefloor beat was solid and dynamic. The synthesizers had a warm and convincingly analog sound, and when the multitracked female vocals entered, there was a crisp, layered quality to the presentation, with voices floating forth effortlessly. Compared with the integrated amp I normally use for testing, a more powerful unit that costs nearly seven times the PS Audio’s $599 price, the Sprout100 displayed a bit of treble emphasis. This could be most clearly heard when I played “Woodstock” by contemporary jazz supergroup Hudson. Most of the elements I listen for when playing this track—subtle dynamics, a wide presentation, deep but controlled bass—were

in evidence, though Jack DeJohne e’s cymbals had a slightly crispy character and the tone of John Medeski’s piano came across a bit aggressively. Still, the Sprout100’s sound struck me as well-balanced with a good sense of dynamic ease during most of the time I spent listening with it.

At a Glance Impressive power from compact box Built-in phono stage Subwoofer output Slightly forward sound on some tracks Price: $599

VINYL ME, PLEASE Since vinyl playback is a big feature of the li le Sprout, I made a point of giving some of my records a spin. Pulling out a clean, vintage copy of Dire Straits’ eponymous ﬁrst album, I played “Six Blade Knife.” The background was notably silent, and I heard impressive dynamics on this subtle, slinky track, with drums punching cleanly through the speakers and the bass guitar coming across as smooth, yet muscular. Mark Knopﬂer’s vocals also sounded smooth, and his guitar was detailed and trebly, but not edgy, during solos. Moving on to heavier material, I played “Bleeding Muddy Water” from The Mark Lanegan Band’s Blues Funeral.

psaudio.com 800-PSAUDIO

CONCLUSION

The song’s deep, foundational bass had good impact and the detail to be heard in Lanegan’s gruﬀ, breathy vocals gave the singer an almost physical presence. The background keyboards and electronics in this dirge-like track provided a dense, wall-of-sound presentation that the Sprout100’s phono stage—obviously capable of conveying both delicacy and weight—clearly rendered.

POWER OUTPUT: 50 wa s per channel at 8 ohms (100W at 4 Specs ohms), both channels driven DIMENSIONS: (WxHxD, Inches): 4.06 x 1.46 x 4.80 WEIGHT: (Pounds): 2.9 INPUTS: USB Type-B (asynchronous), optical digital, phono RCA (moving magnet), stereo RCA, Bluetooth wireless

PS Audio’s Sprout100 is an impressive li le integrated amp. With more power, be er connectivity, an improved DAC, and, yes, a lower price than its predecessor, the new Sprout has a lot going for it. The key feature that allows it to vault over other ultra-compact AmpDACs is its built-in phono stage, which, depending on your media consumption habits, may or may not be essential. Either way, for $599, you won’t go wrong with the Sprout100.

OUTPUTS: stereo RCA, subwoofer (full-range), 1/ -in headphone 4

BIT DEPTH/SAMPLING RATES, USB: PCM up

to 24-bit/384kHz and DSD up to DSD128 BIT DEPTH/SAMPLING RATE, OPTICAL: up to

24-bit/192kHz UPSAMPLING: Yes DAC: ESS Sabre 9016

soundandvision.com [ 69

test report TEKTON DESIGN IMPACT MONITOR THEATER SYSTEM

RATING

Don’t Fear the Tweeters

Speakers PERFORMANCE BUILD QUALITY VALUE

By Michael Trei

Subwoofer WITH A PHALANX of 38 drivers pointed directly at my ears, it was with some trepidation that I reached for the remote control to start listening with Tekton Design’s Impact Monitor Theater system. A er all, I normally subscribe to the less-is-more approach to speaker design, where simpler usually means be er. Tekton laughs at this type of thinking, however, throwing more drivers into its designs than there are plot twists in a David Lynch movie. The ﬁrst thing that grabs your a ention when you encounter Tekton’s Impact Monitor is a circular array of seven tweeters that stare back at you like a giant ﬂy’s eye. If, like me, you know just enough about

speaker design to be dangerous, you may wonder if all of those tweeters will interfere sonically with each other. When I was a kid, my friend Ken built a speaker using a similar cluster of drivers, but that was only because he had a bunch of extra ones lying around and ﬁgured it would be a waste if he didn’t put them to work. The result sounded terrible, and that may be where my love of simplicity took hold. Thankfully, Tekton’s Eric Alexander knows a lot more about designing good speakers than Ken did— there is plenty of careful decision-making plus decades of experience behind all those drivers used in the Impact Monitors.

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When a bunch of tweeters are situated near each other, even small head movements can result in big differences in their combined frequency response, an effect known as comb filtering. Rather than seeing this as a problem that needs to be minimized, Alexander has harnessed its effects to control the way sound radiates from the Impact Monitor. Instead of feeding all seven drivers with an identical signal, they are divided into three groups with different highfrequency cutoff points. The center driver alone extends to the highest frequencies as a true tweeter, while the six drivers surrounding it act more like a concentric midrange

PERFORMANCE FEATURES BUILD QUALITY VALUE

A trio of tweeters on Tekton's Impact surrounds (below, right) provides wide lateral dispersion.

radiator with carefully controlled directivity. Alexander is so convinced of his approach that he received a U.S. patent covering his multi-driver array with overlapping frequency ranges. He explains that by using six small, lightweight drivers to do the job normally handled by a single, heavy midrange cone, he can match the moving mass of the drivers to the audio spectrum they cover. The result: a speaker with notable speed, slam, and detail-resolving capability.

VARIATIONS ON A THEME My review system consisted of five Impact Monitors in three different variations, with each optimized for a specific position in a 5.1-channel home theater rig. The Impact Monitor ($1,000 each) with a seventweeter array was used for the front le and right positions. A third Impact Monitor, this one flipped sideways with a driver array optimized for horizontal placement, served as the center channel. For surrounds, I used a simplified 3-tweeter version of the Impact Monitor ($775 each) that provides the wide lateral dispersion preferable for surround speakers. All three speaker versions have a large port on the back, along with a single pair of unplated copper Cardas binding post connectors. On the bo om of each speaker are small rubber plugs pressed into threaded inserts. Size-wise, the Impact Monitors fit into a slightly awkward category: too bulky for a bookshelf, yet clearly too short to sit directly on the floor. I

'The system had about the best tonal match between channels that I've ever encountered.' placed them on spiked 20-inchhigh speaker stands, which put the center tweeter height close to ear-level. Tekton is known for oﬀering high value, and there’s no doubt that you get a lot of speaker here for your money, especially considering that they are manufactured in Utah rather than somewhere in Asia. Most of the cost savings can be a ributed to the simplicity of Tekton’s cabinetry. Square-corners and a basic painted ﬁnish give the speaker a rather severe look. Also, the lack of standard grilles might not sit well with designconscious homeowners. The good news is that optional grilles are available for a modest cost, and the somber black

of my review samples can be brightened up with piano gloss and metallic finishes at extra cost. But don’t mistake Tekton’s no-frills design for anything less than superb manufacturing. These are solid, he y speakers of the kind that may leave your knuckles bruised if you do the knock-test. Tekton’s sound-over-style approach can also be seen in the Brisance 12 subwoofer ($800) that I used to round out the system. When it comes to subs, there’s an old adage stating that there’s no replacement for displacement. With a large 12-inch driver mounted in a fairly massive box, the Brisance 12 fully embraces that philosophy. Power is provided by a 500-wa BASH plate amplifier, and there are both line- and speaker-level inputs and a bypassable crossover. Audiophiles for decades have argued about the relative merits of ported versus sealed subwoofers, with ported subs typically delivering lots of output, and sealed models trading some of that efficiency for tighter, more extended bass. The Brisance 12 is neither of these; it uses what Tekton refers to as a Tesla valve to vent the enclosure. Alexander describes this patent pending design as a set of restricted flow vents, which he feels combines the benefits of both sealed and conventional ported designs. Three relatively small rectangular openings can be found on the Brisance 12’s back, but instead of a port tube extending into the enclosure, there’s what appears to be a sculpted form made from rigid high-density foam located inside the openings.

Tekton's center speaker has the same six-tweeter layout, but is optimized for horizontal placement.

At a Glance Powerful, dynamic sound Excellent value Large, bulky cabinets No furniture-grade finish option Price: $5,350 (as reviewed) Tekton Design 801-836-0764 tektondesign.com

SETUP I find that most standmounted speakers provide the best focus and balance when the cabinet’s top sits at ear height. But with the tweeter on the Impact Monitor positioned lower than normal in the baffle’s center, I found that it liked to be positioned a li le higher than usual. I also kept the Impact Monitors I used as surrounds at the same height as the other speakers rather than raising them up high. The benefit here was a more seamless transition between the front stage and the surrounds. As usual, I placed the subwoofer to the outside of the le front speaker near my front wall, but also made sure to leave plenty of breathing room for the Tesla valve ports. For most of my listening, I ran all five channels crossed over to the Brisance 12 sub set at 60 Hz. The exception was during my initial music listening, where I simply used the main le /right Impact Monitors in stereo mode. The Impact Monitor’s 94 dB sensitivity rating makes it an easy load for most amplifiers. My Integra receiver did a good job driving them as loud as I could stand, but I did find that connecting a more powerful amp helped to maximize the sound’s dynamic impact. Before listening to actual music, I first had to convince myself that Tekton really has managed to tame the combfiltering demon through the use of all those drivers. Playing pink soundandvision.com [ 71

test report TEKTON DESIGN IMPACT MONITOR THEATER SYSTEM IMPACT MONITOR: 6.5-in paper cone

Specs

woofer (2); 1-in so -dome tweeter (7); 10.125 x 24.5 x 13 in (WxHxD); 37.5 lb 3 TWEETER IMPACT MONITOR: 6.5 in paper cone woofer (2); 1 in so -dome

noise through the ﬁve speakers, I was impressed at how I could move around the room without hearing the usual highfrequency response variations from each speaker. Not only was the response very stable, but the system had about the best tonal match between channels I’ve ever encountered.

PERFORMANCE As usual, I started my listening using uncompressed music

tweeter (3); 24.5 x 10.125 x 13 in (WxHxD); 37.5 lb • BRISANCE 12 SUBWOOFER: 12-in paper cone woofer; 500 wa s RMS; line-level, speaker-level inputs; 17 x 28 x 21.5 in (WxHxD); 77.5 lb

streamed from Tidal with just the le and right channels playing full range and no sub. Kaya has long been my favorite Bob Marley album due to its open and relaxed sound, and for great songs like “Is This Love.” The Impact Monitors impressed me with their detail and wide tonal color pale e, and I heard plenty of body in Bob’s voice and in those of his backing singers. Reggae music is all about the bass, of course, and the Impact Monitors gave a tuneful and

72 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

agile performance on that front, though without the deepest weight and he you’d hear from a real reggae sound system. But adding in the Brisance 12 sub brought balance to the sound, supplying it with a foundation to match the system’s detail and top-end sparkle. Switching gears, I next played Brahms’s Hungarian Dances conducted by Ivan Fisher with the Budapest Festival Orchestra. I find that most speakers have an instantly identifiable sonic character, one that’s usually a ributable to the tweeter. The Impact Monitors, in contrast, didn’t have a “sound” at all. Sure, there was speed and dynamic impact, but terms like bright or warm didn’t really apply. In some ways, there was the same chameleon-like quality that I hear with electrostatics, but here it was combined with the dynamic capabilities of an efficient speaker that uses conventional drivers. Given its impressive tonal consistency and dynamics, I figured the Tekton system would be ideal for surround sound, and it didn’t disappoint. Rogue One on Blu-ray features lots of surround-channel action and lease-breaking bass. The ba le scene on Jedtha ra led the floor with laser guns that sounded like they could inflict real damage, plus loud explosions that the Impact Monitors handled without any hint of distress. During quieter scenes, the system provided loads of envelopment, turning my room into a cavernous spaceship interior or whatever virtual environment was being depicted onscreen. Dialogue was transparent and clear, and it could be easily understood even as chaos was breaking out. While the five Impact Monitors

The Brisance 12's Tesla valve venting combines the beneﬁts of both sealed and ported subwoofer designs.

delivered ample dynamics during action scenes, it was the Brisance 12 sub that did much of the heavy li ing. This sub can move lots of air, yet it still manages to sound punchy and taught as opposed to being boomy and indistinct.

CONCLUSIONS While most speakers seem to be designed by commi ee to appeal to the widest range of potential customers, it’s clear that this system reflects the priorities of a single person, Tekton Design’s Eric Alexander. The name Impact here applies perfectly, because the speakers are efficient and dynamic and can play really loud. They also offer tremendous value. The trade-off in this case is a somewhat industrial look, with dozens of exposed drivers and no furniture-grade finish. This system clearly isn’t for everyone, but if, like me, you believe audio gear is to be listened to rather than gawked at, I’m sure you’ll appreciate Tekton’s Impact Monitor Theater system.

The Verdict Tekton’s Impact Monitor Theater system lives up to its name, with performance that reflects the unique priorities of its designer.

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reviews in ultra high definition

entertainment

UHD BLU-RAY

How many more movies and TV shows will simulate virtual reality to tell a “thought-provoking” story about the fate of society? I gave up on Netflix’s Black Mirror because I could not bear another tale of VR gone awry, but Ready Player One brings the pedigree of Steven Spielberg, plus Ernest Cline’s bestselling novel. How could it miss? In 2045, Columbus, Ohio has become the new Silicon Valley, but for most folks it is a dreadful existence, with the rank-and-file crammed into teetering stacks of mobile homes. They escape each day into “The Oasis,” an elaborate virtual world where almost anything is possible. Designed by pop culture-obsessed genius Halliday (Oscar winner Mark Rylance), it is also the location of his posthumously announced contest: find three hidden keys and gain full control of The Oasis, plus a halftrillion dollars in stock. Pure-hearted Wade (Tye Sheridan) finds the first key, but there’s no time to celebrate as an evil corporation determined to win the game at all costs has put him in its sights. Spielberg first and foremost seeks to dazzle the audience, and while the scope of the virtual world is respectable, the VR trappings depicted feel mostly been-there, done-that. Cline’s beloved book has essentially been gu ed for this adaptation, which soon devolves into a series of young-rebels-raging-against-the-machine clichés. Too bad the filmmakers did not grant the same priority to cra ing sympathetic characters as they did to perfecting the texture and lighting of their avatars. Also, the fact that this homage to ‘80s iconography is directed by the man who created so much of it is a tad bizarre. Ready Player One was shot on a combination of 35mm film and digital video, a fitting mix considering the nature of the two worlds depicted. Yes, the realm of The Oasis is vast, and it’s rendered in just enough detail to keep the realism “virtual” while still teasing the eyes to explore around this corner of the 2.39:1 frame over here, or to plumb 74 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

ULTRA HD BLU-RAY STUDIO: Warner, 2018 ASPECT RATIO: 2.39:1 HDR FORMAT: Dolby Vision and HDR10 AUDIO FORMAT: Dolby Atmos with TrueHD 7.1 core LENGTH: 140 mins. DIRECTOR: Steven Spielberg STARRING: Tye Sheridan, Olivia Cooke, Ben Mendelsohn, Mark Rylance, Lena Waithe, T.J. Miller, Simon Pegg

that shadow over there. The speed and fluidity of the movement through these meticulous environments were undreamed of but a few years ago, so let’s not overlook the technical accomplishment. I heartily recommend viewing RP1 in 4K and high dynamic range (it’s in Dolby Vision, though I watched in HDR10) to get the full experience. Upon my second viewing I spo ed even more of the Easter eggs, which are beyond counting. (There’s apparently a converted 3D version of the movie as well, which is probably a lot of fun.) The sole visual distraction I noticed—a weird flicker on the pa ern of an X1 VR “bootsuit” chestplate—was fleeting, and also more pronounced on the 1080p Blu-ray, where it degraded into outright moiré. The Dolby Atmos soundtrack (I listened to the TrueHD 7.1 core) immediately immerses viewers in the drone-filled skies above the crowded stacks—even the air here feels congested. No effort has been spared to conjure a credible sonic presence for the real world, warts and all, while the digital realm in contrast is all about “wow.” Legendary sound designer/mixer Gary Rydstrom once again is on-point, pu ing a unique spin on familiar cinematic scenarios and even revisiting a certain irritable T-Rex. The mix is a bold, layered confection with slick panning between the speakers, as when a motorcycle zips around a dense pack of jockeying vehicles. There’s no shortage of big, wild action and the LFE track does its part admirably, while the plethora of ‘80s pop tunes are woven in full and wide. Ready Player One’s bundled regular Blu-ray disc version carries six behind-the-scenes feature es, nearly two hours total, that are mostly free of fluff and delve into meaty analysis of the movie’s special effects and beyond. A printed code unlocks a 4K digital copy. Appropriately enough, a Snapchat augmented reality experience is also supported. O CHRIS CHIARELLA

Warner

READY PLAYER ONE

RATINGS

REFERENCE EXCELLENT GOOD FAIR POOR

DEADPOOL 2 UHD BLU-RAY

WHEN AN IMF AGENT gets killed in the line of duty, critical ﬁles

ALTHOUGH NEVER QUITE as disturbingly dark nor as overtly sexual as the original, Deadpool 2 is nonetheless a more-thanworthy sequel, recapturing that sublime balance between raunchy comedy and edgy action. The story has surprising heart, as super-powered contract killer Wade/Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) struggles to cope with a sudden loss while reluctantly coming to the aid of Firefist, a powerful teenage mutant in crisis. Firefist is fleeing a painful secret, and his turbulent young life becomes more violent than ever with the arrival of Cable (Josh Brolin, Avengers: Infinity War), a mysterious hunter from the future. The fights and chases are many, wild, and rather graphic, while the rapid-fire jokes are definitely adults-only, and that’s before we even switch over to the extended, unrated Deadpool 2 Super Duper $@%!#& Cut. Like Fox’s Ultra HD release of Logan (October 2017 S&V), this is a fourdisc set with the theatrical and alternative presentations on separate 4K and HD Blu-rays.

containing Russian nuclear launch codes that he was carrying fall into the wrong hands. With the help of two IMF colleagues, agent Ethan Hunt penetrates the Kremlin to find out the identity of “Cobalt,” a terrorist who wants the codes to start a nuclear war. Things go awry when Cobalt plants explosives in the fortress-like complex, and Hunt and his team get blamed for the resulting carnage. As tensions rise between the U.S. and Russia, the President is forced to disavow the IMF, leaving it up to Hunt and his team to solve the crisis. With six films under its belt, including the recent Mission: Impossible - Fallout, M:I is a bankable franchise for Paramount. It’s rare that a multifilm series gets be er as it goes along, but that’s certainly the case here. (Let’s pretend that the subpar Mission: Impossible II never existed!) Brad Bird’s excellent writing and directing makes this one of the best films in the franchise. The pacing is fantastic and the action is breathtaking, especially the stunts performed by Tom Cruise. If you’ve made the leap to 4K viewing, you’ll definitely want to add this reference-quality Ultra HD Blu-ray to your collection to show your system off to friends and family. The 12-bit Dolby Vision-enhanced transfer is mesmerizing from the first scene that features overhead shots of Istanbul onward. The HDR grading is also used to full effect: there are many scenes where you’ll literally find yourself shielding your eyes from the harsh light, which is exactly the kind of lifelike experience that 4K/HDR is supposed to provide. My only complaint about the disc is its lack of a Dolby Atmos track, but that’s not to say Ghost Protocol’s Dolby TrueHD 7.1 soundtrack can’t hold its own. Like the video, the audio here is reference-quality. Dialog is intelligible from start to finish, the imaging matches the onscreen action, and the low-frequency effects give your subwoofer a workout, especially in the sequence where the Kremlin goes up ULTRA HD BLU-RAY STUDIO: Paramount Pictures, 2011 in smoke! ASPECT RATIO: 2.40:1 The disc’s supplement package is AUDIO FORMAT: Dolby TrueHD 7.1 ported over from the Blu-ray version LENGTH: 133 mins. and includes three “Mission DIRECTOR: Brad Bird STARRING: Tom Cruise, Accepted” and 11 “Impossible Paula Patton, Jeremy Renner, Missions” feature es that take you Simon Pegg behind the scenes to show challenges faced during production, such as the shooting of specific scenes with IMAX cameras. O DAVID VAUGHN

Captured using a blend of film and digital media, the image is immaculate, with a predominately warm, natural look throughout. The de use of focus on different elements within the 2.39:1 frame is striking, with razor-sharp rendering of subtle nuances that also extends to scenes with mist and smoke. Thanks in large part to the high dynamic range, colors appear deeply saturated and shadow detail is remarkably rich—just what we need to catch the brief, bountiful Easter eggs peppered about from start to finish. Built upon a Dolby TrueHD 7.1 core, the Atmos soundtrack is as bodacious as Wade would want, with aggressive exploitation of all speakers. Bass is powerful yet precise, and the surrounds are utilized quite effectively as well, particularly in an imaginative simulation of an out-of-body experience. Deadpool’s gri ier approach to mayhem reveals a different sonic personality versus Cable’s high-tech weaponry, and the combination of both during Act II’s convoy ba le makes for an exhilarating joyride. (The bundled 1080p Blu-rays have DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 soundtracks.) Reynolds, director David Leitch, ULTRA HD BLU-RAY and screenwriters Rhe Reese and STUDIO: Fox, 2018 ASPECT RATIO: 2.39:1 Paul Wernick supply an entertaining HDR FORMAT: HDR10 audio commentary on the 4K pla er. AUDIO FORMAT: Dolby Atmos with The HD disc carries a pair of deleted/ TrueHD 7.1 core extended scenes plus video odds LENGTH: 119/134 mins. DIRECTOR: David Leitch and ends, some of which are not what STARRING: Ryan Reynolds, Josh they might seem at first glance. No Brolin, Morena Baccarin, Julian extras appear on the Super Duper edit, Dennison, Zazie Beetz, T.J. Miller although the chapters with additional/ alternate footage (which is most of them) are called out with a li le icon on the timeline. O CHRIS CHIARELLA

MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE GHOST PROTOCOL

Fox

Paramount Pictures

UHD BLU-RAY

soundandvision.com [ 75

A QUIET PLACE UHD BLU-RAY DIRECTED BY John Krasinksi (from “The Oﬃce”) and produced by

Michael Bay, A Quiet Place is a curious mashup of sci-fi/horror and family drama. The world is under siege by aliens who are blind but have powerful hearing capability. To survive, a family at the story’s center must remain completely silent—not something that’s easy to do when the clan includes young children. The parents’ struggle to navigate this new world and remain positive role models for their kids provides much of the dramatic tension. Some story aspects are ludicrous—the family’s determination to bring a new baby into a world where sounds above a whisper result in an alien launching at you at 150 MPH, for example—but mostly it’s engaging, scary stuff. A Quiet Place was shot on 35mm film and Paramount’s Ultra HD Blu-ray is sourced from a 2K digital intermediate. But even though the image is upconverted, this Dolby Vision-enhanced version has a

AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR

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Paramount

THE FIRST DECADE of the Marvel Cinematic Universe has all been leading to this, an adventure so u erly spectacular that...well, it’s going to need a whole other movie to wrap the story up. Jampacked with a who’s-who of familiar faces (and masks), Infinity War is a remarkably complex tale of conflict and loss highlighted by thrilling, high-stakes action. No time is wasted in thrusting us into the ba le against the malevolent Thanos (Josh Brolin from Deadpool 2), who has a plan to load the six magical Infinity Stones into his newly forged Infinity Gauntlet, whereupon he will alleviate the woes of overpopulation across the universe with but a single snap of his nigh-omnipotent purple fingers. Accompanied by a squad of ruthless minions, Thanos will stop at nothing to realize his life’s mission, and only Earth’s mightiest heroes and their allies have any hope of defeating him. Captured using the recently developed Imax/Arri 2D digital camera, the 2.39:1 Ultra HD image here is o en shadowy. That characteristic matches the story’s dark tone, yet nuances are plain to see, and not just in the sprawling CGI cities but also in intimate character close-ups. Special effects comprise much of the film’s runtime, and they include a computer-generated lead villain. Fantastic worlds are rendered with precise lighting and focus, and high dynamic range helps us to appreciate this grand achievement even more. Some strange artifacts on the fine parallel lines printed on Vision’s face did pull me out of the moment, but that only happened with a couple of shots. Infinity War features a Dolby Atmos mix with a TrueHD 7.1 core, and although I noted solid, and sometimes refreshingly subtle, surround activity, the bass presence and overall volume level were lacking. Whether it was the he of an oversized dwarf stomping around his workshop, the crash-landing of a gigantic spaceship, or the arrival of a literally earth-shaking invasion, I was le feeling, “Oh, is that it?” The sonic deficit isn’t unforgiveable, but events on this scale—Thanos hurling a moon like it’s a baseball for ULTRA HD BLU-RAY Pete’s sake—deserve be er. STUDIO: Walt Disney, 2018 Extras reside on the included ASPECT RATIO: 2.39:1 1080p Blu-ray. The best among them HDR FORMAT: HDR10 AUDIO FORMAT: Dolby Atmos with is the audio commentary by directors TrueHD 7.1 core The Russo Brothers and writers LENGTH: 149 mins. Christopher Markus and Stephen DIRECTOR: Anthony and McFeely. Most of the deleted scenes Joe Russo STARRING: Robert Downey Jr., consist of tiny expansions of existing Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, moments. Also, a roundtable Chris Evans, Chris Pratt, discussion with some of the MCU’s Josh Brolin most accomplished filmmakers is exclusive to the digital edition (a Movies Anywhere online code is supplied). O CHRIS CHIARELLA

Walt Disney

UHD BLU-RAY

punchy look, with natural color and a subtle handling of film grain. There’s no great leap in clarity compared with the regular Blu-ray version (also included), but the extra black depth and highlight detail HDR brings adds depth to the nigh ime shots of the family farm lit by strands of red Christmas lights (to indicate they are under siege). The real star of A Quiet Place is the sound. Given the film’s premise, the Dolby Atmos soundtrack of necessity emphasizes low-level elements like objects shuffled carefully and the so whistling of wind. When a loud sound does occur—the kids accidentally knocking over a kerosene lamp, for example—the effect is dynamic and intense. Terrifying, too, given the very real threat of a racting a ention. Overhead effects are deployed sparingly, such as in one scene where BLU-RAY the besieged couple share a set of STUDIO: Paramount, 2018 headphones and slow-dance to ASPECT RATIO: 2.40:1 HDR FORMAT: Dolby Vision and Neil Young’s “Harvest Moon.” The HDR10 soundtrack here emulates the AUDIO FORMAT: Dolby Atmos headphones “sound bubble” with TrueHD 7.1 core experience, with the listening position LENGTH: 90 mins. DIRECTOR: John Krasinski locked at the center. STARRING: Emily Blunt, John Extras on the Blu-ray inlcude a doc Krasinski, Millicent Simmonds, on the editing of the film’s minimalist Noah Jupe soundtrack, which was executed by the same crew responsible for Michael Bay’s maximalist Transformers movies. O AL GRIFFIN

JURASSIC PARK: 25TH ANNIVERSARY COLLECTION

SEX, LIES, AND VIDEOTAPE BLU-RAY

UHD BLU-RAY THIS INDIE REVELATION explores sexuality, relationships, and the

Criterion

never really took off. Seven years a er shelving the project, he wrote the first of two books—Jurassic Park, followed by The Lost World. Both were eventually adapted and directed by Steven Spielberg. Jurassic Park hit theaters in 1993 and was a resounding success. The dinosaurs came to life through the film’s fantastic set pieces coupled with astonishing special effects work by ILM. Jurassic Park is by far the best film of the bunch. Spielberg’s direction transports you to the fictional island of Isla Nublar, where prehistoric creatures are bioengineered for the benefit of an eccentric billionaire who wants share them with the general public. Unfortunately, Murphy’s Law takes hold and all hell breaks loose when the cloned dinosaurs escape. Visitors to the island are then forced to play a game of cat and mouse with the deadly creatures. The next two Jurassic films are mostly forge able, but the franchise received a successful reboot in 2015 with Jurassic World starring Chris Pra . Jurassic World’s story centers on human arrogance as a new group of investors think they can control Mother Nature. . Universal’s box set includes Ultra HD and regular Blu-ray disc versions of four films: Jurassic Park (1993), The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997), Jurassic Park III (2001), and Jurassic World (2015). Each film receives a new 4K transfer along with HDR color grading, though the results are mixed. Jurassic Park is inconsistent, with some shots even featuring print damage. Also, some of its scenes don’t translate to 4K, with visible halos in the high-contrast shots. The next two films have a more consistent and stable look, but the standout is 2015’s Jurassic World. The new Ultra HD disc looks amazing, with notably improved color saturation and shadow detail over the regular Blu-ray. Jurassic Park was the first film mixed ULTRA HD BLU-RAY in DTS, so it’s no surprise that all four STUDIO: Universal, 1993-2015 films here get a DTS:X audio track. ASPECT RATIO: Various Each sounds amazing, but The Lost AUDIO FORMAT: DTS:X World and Jurassic World are almost LENGTH: 474 mins. DIRECTOR: Steven Spielberg, perfect. That said, the T-Rex scene Joe Johnston, Colin Treverrow from Jurassic Park still remains my STARRING: Sam Neil, Laura Dern, go-to demo, even on Ultra HD Blu-ray. Chris Pratt, Jeff Goldblum The supplements are the same as what was provided on the original Blu-ray versions, so there’s nothing new here to report. O DAVID VAUGHN

Universal

IN 1983, Michael Crichton wrote a screenplay for Jurassic Park that

way that both interact with technology. Therapy doesn’t seem to be opening uptight housewife Ann to her feelings; it takes videotaped erotic confessions for her to overcome her inhibitions. Meanwhile, Ann’s sister and husband are deceiving her with a steamy affair and endless lies. Eventually, a candid, oddball dri er visits and uses his video project to untangle the tape tying up this dysfunctional family. Since this, his still thought-provoking debut feature, writer-director Steven Soderbergh has frequently embraced new recording techniques—he shot Unsane on three iPhone 7 Pluses with various lens a achments—managing to get striking images from all. This transfer, from a 4K scan taken from the 35mm camera negative, has all dirt, scratches, and other distortions of time removed. Contrast is good: blacks look deep, and the yuppie lawyer’s braces stand out starkly against his bright white shirts and teeth. Colors in the abstract painting in his office are rich and unmuddied, and skin tones look natural and have wide variegation. Even the boxy black-and-white video images have a haunting beauty. The picture is crisp throughout, bringing out elements like woodgrain, stucco, and details in photos. For Criterion’s Blu-ray release, Sex, Lies, and Videotape’s remastered soundtrack has been upmixed to 5.1 surround. Apart from the opening acoustic guitar, music is initially absent from the soundtrack, along with any surround effects. (I actually stopped to use Skyfall to check that my speakers were turned on.) Turns out that the score was being held in reserve for the videotaped confession scenes. From the first words on, you are immersed in resonating electronic music that floats off the screen and fills the room, creating an immense, yet intimate emotional impact. Meanwhile, voices throughout this very conversational film are clear and vibrant. Even the BLU-RAY STUDIO: Criterion, 1989 soundtrack’s many silences are ASPECT RATIO: 1.85:1 hiss-free and somehow resonant. AUDIO FORMAT: DTS-HD Master Extras include an involving Audio 5.1 director’s commentary (aided by LENGTH: 100 mins. DIRECTOR: Steven Soderbergh filmmaker/playwright Neil LaBute) STARRING: James Spader, and 30 minutes of interviews with Andie MacDowell, Peter Gallagher, Soderbergh from 1990 to 2018 where Laura San Giacomo he discusses the film’s themes and performances, as well as his career’s tribulations and his 1970s filmic influences. O JOSEF KREBS soundandvision.com [ 77

FERDINAND UHD BLU-RAY FERDINAND IS an unusual young bull. Growing up in a ranch that

trains bulls for the ring, he loves to smell the flowers and hates to fight. That just won’t do, of course, as his ultimate fate is to be either in the bull ring or what’s-for dinner. Being smaller than the other young bulls at the farm he’s also the subject of endless…um… bullying. But when a personal tragedy pushes him to escape, he wanders into small farm where he’s instantly adopted by the farmer and his young daughter, Nina. Ferdinand soon enough he grows to an immense size, though he remains every bit as gentle as before. But he’s now far too big to hide and is recaptured. The bull ring now becomes inevitable—he must fight and likely die at the hands of El Primero, the greatest matador in all of Spain. This isn’t a remake of Blood and Sand; no one will get nightmares from this flick. Based on a popular children’s book and brought to life by the same team that produced the Ice Age and Rio films, Ferdinand is definitely aimed at the younger set. But it does offer plenty of laughs for everyone, with the best chuckles coming from Ferdinand being put in situations decidedly unfriendly to a huge, two-ton beast.

A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH BLU-RAY

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Fox

expanding and contracting shi s to a very specific night during World War II when a girl talks desperately on a radio to . . . . A sudden cut plunges us into the awful noise and chaos of a roaring, burning Lancaster Bomber, wind rushing through holes punched by ack-ack shells, as it descends into its final dive. The pilot who kept the plane alo while his crew evacuated has no parachute, just courage, gallows humor, and style under pressure. And thus, two people fall in love without ever having met. When the man somehow survives his jump into the sea despite his being recorded in Heaven as dead, he argues that his love and this mistake give him the right to his day in celestial court. The conceit by writers-directors Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, however, is that this all may be hallucinations caused by a head injury. The Criterion Collection’s glorious restoration uses a 4K scan from the original 35mm three-strip Technicolor negatives. Jack Cardiff’s deep-focus compositions look sharp throughout, with plentiful detail even in shadows and the gloom of frequent low lighting. Figures and faces are solid and dimensional. Each of the worlds has a very different look, but both feature enough grain to convey a film-like quality without compromising resolution. Beach scenes show vast tactile waves of wet sand, pools, and individual blades of scrub grass, and the excellent contrast helps to differentiate everything. Technicolor terrestrial scenes have a gorgeous, painterly saturated-yet-restrained pale e with a wide range of velvety colors and natural skin tones. Black-and-white Heaven features an equally wide, beautiful range of gray tones. Effects in the remastered mono soundtrack are very realistic. A shepherd boy playing pan pipes lends BLU-RAY a scene an archaic quality until a STUDIO: Criterion, 1946 ASPECT RATIO: 1.37:1 bomber roars in low overhead. Rain, HDR FORMAT: NA vehicles, and a ping-pong game are all AUDIO FORMAT: Linear PCM Mono convincing, and the classical score LENGTH: 104 mins. presents a clear, full wall-of-sound. DIRECTOR: Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger A commentary by film historian Ian STARRING: David Niven, Christie focuses on the production, Roger Livesey, Raymond Massey, while an intro by Martin Scorsese and Kim Hunter, Marius Goring interview with Scorsese’s editor Thelma Schoonmaker and Powell’s widow both offer analysis of the directors’ visual style. O JOSEF KREBS

Criterion

A LIMITLESS tracking shot showing the universe peacefully

The computer animation is beautifully done, with rich detail, vividly rendered color, and brilliantly choreographed action. As with most animation, the film is brightly lit, resulting in seemingly limited opportunities to show off Ultra HD’s high dynamic range. But while subtle, the HDR here does make an important contribution, with beautifully rendered shadows and enhanced image depth. Bright highlights in the occasional dark scenes don’t jump out at you, but when viewed on a display with good blacks they’re definitely eye-catching. I watched the film on both a UHD-capable projector and an OLED flat-panel TV. The former triumphed in its immersion, the la er with truly jaw-dropping picture quality. The film’s soundtrack is never truly spectacular; it won’t startle the rugrats with deep, growling bass and ULTRA HD BLU-RAY hyperactive surrounds. It’s also never STUDIO: Fox, 2017 ASPECT RATIO: 2.40:1 harsh, offering clear dialogue HDR FORMAT: Dolby Vision together with a terrific music score— and HDR10 the la er particularly impressive in the AUDIO FORMAT: Dolby Atmos film’s quieter moments. I auditioned it with TrueHD 7.1 core LENGTH: 108 mins. in 5.1, but the UHD disc does offer DIRECTOR: Carlos Saldanha Dolby Atmos if you’re set up for it. STARRING: John Cena, The disc’s extras include odd but Kate McKinnon, Bobby Cannavale kid-friendly advice, a few excellent, if brief, making-of feature es, and a lesson in how to plant flowers in eggshells (!). O THOMAS J. NORTON

April 12 – 14, 2019 • Chicago Renaissance Schaumburg Hotel & Convention Center, Schaumburg, IL

www.axpona.com

North America’s Audio Show! 8,000+ attendees, 500+ Brands on Display From Around the World! “Over the years AXPONA has grown to become one of the most important high-end audio events to attend in North America for manufacturers, dealers and consumers ... The Renaissance Hotel in Schaumburg, IL was a perfect venue for AXPONA 2018 and provided a refreshing and professional venue for all attendees to gather, present and discuss new product concepts and share excellent music.” Peter Mackay, V.P. Global Sales & Marketing, MAGICO LLC, Hayward, CA “AXPONA was a major success this year. We’ll be back and already pre-booked our room for the 2019 AXPONA.” Rune Skov, Sales Director, Raidho Acoustics, ScansonicHD & Gamut Audio, Denmark

Learn more about exhibiting at AXPONA 2019. Contact: Mark Freed at mark@jdevents.com / 203-416-1927

music YES

CALCULATING HOW many times

key entries in the Yes catalog have been remastered, remixed, repackaged, and reissued can sometimes feel akin to tallying how many official live albums The Grateful Dead have released over the years—well, okay, maybe not quite that many, but still…. It can also be somewhat arduous to keep up with all the ongoing Yes release permutations without a scorecard, let alone decide which ones are worth purchasing. But once the irrepressible guru of progressive rejuvenation Steven Wilson was enlisted to weave his (re)mixing magic with five peak-period albums in the Yes oeuvre, many of us audiophiles were all-in from the get-go. Wilson had originally been commissioned by the custom label Panegyric to do “Definitive Edition” 24-bit/96kHz surround-

sound mixes on Blu-ray and DVD for 1971’s The Yes Album, 1971’s Fragile, 1972’s Close to the Edge, 1973’s double album Tales From Topographic Oceans, and 1974’s Relayer, with smashing results across the board. (The fully enveloping scope of Rick Wakeman’s “I Get Up I Get Down” sequence from “Close to the Edge,” as performed on the church organ at St.-Gileswithout-Cripplegate in London and then ﬂoated into the ﬁnal track from quarter-inch tape, remains a personal highlight, and

is one of my all-time favorite 5.1 demo tracks.) It was only a ma er of time before the stereo versions of the mixes Wilson did between 2013-16 for these albums found their roundabout way onto high-grade 180-gram vinyl, and they have now done so in a six-LP box set from Atlantic/ Rhino reverentially titled The Steven Wilson Remixes. Whether this deluxe box is worth your time and money will depend on just how much the ritual of Yes discovery and/or rediscovery means to you. Knowing the lacquer-cu ing had been done by the everstellar Chris Bellman at Bernie Grundman Mastering for each poly-vinyl bagged 180g album proper put my mind right at ease. I found every disc to be pristine upon initial unboxing and unbagging, with all center holes clean of debris and each LP fla er than a long-distance runaround drive across the Midwest. I encountered no pops, skips, or scratches on any of the 12 sides, which resulted in a number of instantly pleasurable spinning sessions. Highlights of said repeat spins included the much punchier crescendo during the final “Würm” portion of The Yes Album’s “Starship Trooper,” the fury of Bill Bruford’s drumming interlocked with Chris Squire’s bass on Fragile’s “South Side of the Sky,” and the abject dead-quiet lead-in and fadeout on the title track to Close to the Edge. Di o with Steve Howe’s dexterous acoustic guitar work in the “Leaves of Green” portion of the full-sided “The Ancient” on Topographic, and the clarity of Jon Anderson’s impassioned vocals during the final “Soon” segment of “The Gates of Delirium” on Relayer. When it comes to Yes, more than a few words must be

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LP Label: Atlantic/Rhino Audio Format: 180-gram vinyl Number of Tracks: 25 (on 6 LPs) Producers: Yes and Eddie Offord (original recordings); Steven Wilson (2013-2016 stereo mixes); Steve Woolard (box set) Engineers: Eddie Offord, Gary Martin, Mike Dunne, Guy Bidmead, Genaro Rippo (original recordings and tapes); Chris Bellman (lacquers, cut at Bernie Grundman Mastering) PERFORMANCE SOUND

devoted to the artwork, given that the otherworldly brushstrokes of the prog genre’s preferred artiste Roger Dean have become integral to the Yes brand identity. The Dean kickers for this box include the totally new cover art (a slightly reminiscent but fairly distant cousin of the vibe he was going for with the cover to the 1991 Yesyears box set), as well as his revisiting of the cover art for all ﬁve albums, including full re-imaginings of those for Edge and Topographic (but only just slight mods to the others). Purists are likely to bristle at those blue-hued changes, but they do add another dimension to the overall visual presentation. Meanwhile, the lack of any liner notes explaining Wilson’s process for each album is an odd oversight, especially given the expectations for this box set of

the band’s discerning, aurally inclined audience. These could have easily been culled and remastered, er, re-edited from the extensive liners about audio sources (which ones were flat stereo transfers or enhanced mono recordings, if there was any declicking deployed, etc.) Wilson provided and Yes historian Sid Smith penned for the five comparable Panegyric BD/DVD releases. The other misstep involves the decision to forego the green-toned calligraphy-delineated lyrics sheet from the original Edge. Perhaps there was an assumption that the intended audience already had access to and/or owns all this vital information via previous releases—but as we all know given the potential consequences, one should never assume. Regardless of these aesthetic lapses, the bo om line is this: If you a) are a fan of the overall sound philosophy, b) fully understand going into it that these mixes are most decidedly not meant to be an upgrade to or reproduction of the original Offord-overseen and bandapproved mixes but rather a faithful yet modernized recasting of them, and c) vinyl is your preferred playback medium, then, by all means—your choice to acquire this box is no disgrace. O MIKE METTLER

Phil Franks

THE STEVEN WILSON REMIXES

PAGE

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1996 Vertigo Remaster CD 2005 Vertigo SACD

Sound & Vision (ISSN 1537-5838) (USPS 504-850) October / November 2018, Vol. 83, No. 7. COPYRIGHT 2018 BY AVTech Media Americas, LLC. All rights reserved. Published six times a year (January, March, May, July, September, November) 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. Canadian orders add $6.00 per year and international orders add $12.00 per year (for surface mail postage). Payment in advance, U.S. funds only. POSTMASTER: Send all UAA to CFS. (See DMM 707.4.12.5); NON-POSTAL AND MILITARY FACILITIES: send address corrections to Sound & Vision, P.O. Box 420235, Palm Coast, FL 32142-0235. Mailing Lists: Occasionally, our subscriber list is made available to reputable firms offering goods and services we believe would be of interest to our readers. If you prefer to be excluded, please send your current address label and a note requesting to be excluded from these promotions to AVTech Media Americas Inc., 260 Madison Avenue, 8th floor, New York, NY 10016-2303, A n: Privacy Coordinator. Subscription Service: Should you wish to change your address or order new subscriptions, you can e-mail soundandvision@emailcustomerservice.com, call (800) 264-9872 (international calls: 386-447-6383), or write to: Sound & Vision, P.O. Box 420235, Palm Coast, FL 32142-0235.

82 [ October [ November 2018 [ soundandvision.com

Ken Sharp, Warner Bros.

DIRE STRAITS’ 1985 megaplatinum masterpiece Brothers in Arms is the album that truly ushered in the CD era, fulfilling the initial promise of the shiny 5-inch disc in terms of both commercial viability and sound quality. Spearheaded by Straits mastermind guitarist/vocalist/producer Mark Knopfler, co-produced and engineered by Neil Dorfsman (Sting, Paul McCartney), and recorded at AIR Studios in Montserrat, the fully digital BIA recording took full advantage of those heady DDD times. For starters, witness the wide soundstaging of the Latin beats and wa ing flutes in “Ride Across the River,” the sprightly synth-organ melodies on the extended intro and verses of “Walk of Life,” the lilting vocal harmonizing on “So Far Away,” and the mesh of MTV-ready messaging and abject guitar muscle of Knopfler’s Gibson Les Paul Junior-into-Laney amplifier crunch on “Money for Nothing.” Why did BIA have so much resonance? As Knopfler told me, “Everything reached critical mass with Brothers in Arms. The reputation we built through touring and how we made our records finally met up with the sonic quality of the new CD technology.” Naturally, there are quite a few Brothers in Arms listening options. My absolute favorite version—and one that remains a personal demo-disc benchmark—is the 5.1 mix done by Chuck Ainlay with Knopfler’s approval at British Grove Studios in London for the 20th anniversary 2005 DSD SACD and concurrently released 24-bit/96kHz MLP DVD-A, as mastered by Bob Ludwig at his own Gateway Mastering Studios. In 2006, the BIA 5.1 mix won the Grammy Award for Best Surround Sound Album. I asked Ainlay what his goals were for this 5.1 mix when he sat in on one of the hi-res audio panels I hosted at CES 2018. “It’s one of those records you can’t change because it was recorded so well to begin with,” he acknowledged, “but I wanted to expand it a li le bit so it would feel warmer. I wanted to make the surround mix more dynamic, and sound bigger than the original.” On the CD front, the original 1985 Redbook standard disc, as manufactured by Matsushita in Japan, is an of-era marvel as bright and open as can be, but the subsequent 1996 remaster is more in line with what our ears became a uned to with the format. Given the other options available for hearing this album in its most optimal state, however, these CDs are collectible talismans at best. When it comes to the LP versions of BIA, I must admit I never once played the original 1985 Warner Bros. LP I own—I only bought it at the time to maintain a complete collection of the band’s catalog on wax. But there’s no reason to ever taint that virgin vinyl since I also own Mobile Fidelity’s 2014 2LP Original Master Recording version. Slo ing two songs per the first three sides (and three on Side 4), all presented at 45rpm via the precision cu ing of MoFi’s GAIN 2 Ultra Analog System, the album is given the space it needs to breathe. Elements like Omar Hakim’s de cymbal work and the Brecker Brothers’ seductive trumpet and sax on Side 2’s “Your Latest Trick,” Knopfler’s 1937 National Resonator guitar strumming on Side 4’s “The Man’s Too Strong,” and the thrust of Tony Levin’s bass lines on Side 4’s “One World,” all have that much more impact. Given the overall quality of Ainlay’s impeccable award-winning 5.1 efforts, either the SACD or DVD-A of BIA is your best bet for appreciating the true promise of the burgeoning digital era. That special surround mix only serves to reinforce just how good Knopfler’s vision was (and is) for the sonic valleys and farms comprising the full aural landscape that is Brothers in Arms. O MIKE METTLER

2015 Warner Bros. DVD-Audio

That’s the Way You Do It

2013 Mobile Fidelity CD and 2014 LP

DIRE STRAITS: BROTHERS IN ARMS

1985 Redbook CD

remaster class

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