Home Audio News

CNET has posted a review of Samsung’s latest high-end rear projection DLP TV, the HL61A750. The HL61A750 features a 61in 1080P panel with 3 HDMI, 2 component and 1 VGA input. The reviewer mentioned that even in the “Just Scan” mode the TV still has some overscan which makes it less than ideal for use as a PC display. The reviewer was suitably impressed with the HL61A750’s color fidelity and black level but warned that it fails to implement 2:3 pulldown for 480i sources. Deinterlacing of HD material is properly implemented though. In addition to providing excellent color accuracy and black level, the HL61A750’s LED backlight lowers the tv’s power consumption compared to traditional compact fluorescent backlights. The reviewer measured a calibrated power consumption of 83.38W. At a street price of about $1700, the Samsung HL61A750 looks to be a solid TV which could be the center-piece of a modern home theater.

View Product Page
View CNET Review

Audioholics posted a review of the Olevia’s entry in the budget LCD TV market, the 32in Olevia 232V. The Olevia 232V features a 32in 1366×768 LCD panel with an ATI Xilleon Technology Video Processor for scaling and deinterlacing. The Olevia 232V only contains one HDMI input and one VGA input which can accept a 1080i HD signal. The reviewer measured the contrast ratio to be 278:1 in a dark room which is somewhat expected considering that the TV has an MSRP of $699. The Olevia 232V only scored a 61/130 on the deinterlacing stress test and based on that fact, the reviewer suggested feeding the TV a progressive signal to achieve the best results. At a street price of about $600, the Olevia 232V looks to be a solid choice for office or bedroom duty.

View Product Page
View Audioholics Review

Audioholics has posted a review of Samsung’s latest entry in the high-end LCD TV market, the LN52A750. The Samsung LN52A750 features ample inputs including 4 HDMI, 2 component, and a PC VGA input; these should be enough to satisfy almost any A/V enthusiast. The reviewer was particularly impressed with the off-axis viewing angle, high contrast ratio (4850:1 in dynamic mode) and the quality of the built-in deinterlacer (scored 120/130 on their test). These results are indicative of the quality of LCD panel, backlight, and deinterlacing hardware used in the Samsung LN52A750 and should be expected given the MSRP is $3500. If you are looking for a 52in TV to build a high-end home theater around, the Samsung LN52A750 should be on your short list.

View Product Page
View Audioholics Review

Audioholics has posted a review of the new Roku Netflix Player. The reviewer was suitably impressed with the video and audio quality at the highest bitrate setting although video is currently limited to 480P and only 2-channel audio is available. The player features HDMI and optical audio connectivity so Dolby Digital/DTS audio and HD video is definitely possible with a firmware update. The reviewer was disappointed by the prevalence of 4:3 material in the Netflix “Watch Instantly” library but concluded that purchasing the Roku Netflix Player is a “no-brainer” for current Netflix subscribers especially given the $99 asking price. The lack of HD content and surround sound encoding may put off hardcore A/V enthusiasts but they are not the target marker for this product. With an ever-growing library of titles, the Roku Netflix player is poised to secure a position in the future of online video distribution.

View Product Page
View Audioholics Review

PC Magazine has recently posted a review of the 52in Westinghouse TX-52F480S LCD TV. The 1080p LCD TV features 4 HDMI inputs that accept a 1080p/24Hz signal. By taking advantage of the adjustable backlight, the reviewer was able to measure an impressive contrast ratio of 1186:1. The 52-inch TV significantly outperformed the Westinghouse TX-47F430S in both contrast and black level measurements. The review also compares power consumption with other 52-inch LCD TVs. At a street price of less than $2000, the Westinghouse delivers exceptional performance and impressive value.

View Product Page
View TX-52F480S Review

Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity has benchmarked the video performance of Oppo’s latest DVD player, the DV-983H. The DV-983H utilizes the Mediatek 1989S for MPEG decoding and the Anchor Bay Technology ABT-102 for de-interlacing/scaling; with such a high-end de-interlacer/scaler, one would expect exceptional performance and the DV-983H delivers just that, scoring a perfect 100 on the DVD Benchmark. The DV-983 is a universal player featuring both DVD-Audio and SACD playback through its HDMI port; since the player supports HDMI v1.2, SACD is converted to multi-channel PCM. The reviewer was suitably impressed commenting that “its performance matches any design I’ve tested to date.” At an MSRP of $399, the Oppo DV-983H appears to be quite a bargain for reference quality SD-DVD playback.

View Product Page
View Secrets DVD Benchmark

Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity has recently posted a review of Integra’s latest entry in to the midrange surround sound processor market, the DTC-9.8. The Integra DTC-9.8 SSP features balanced inputs and outputs, 4in-2out HDMI 1.3a switching, HQV Reon-VX video processing, Audyssey MultEQ XT speaker setup and room correction, and an HD Radio tuner. The DTC-9.8 provided stellar benchmark results in the THD+N, IMD, and frequency response tests. The reviewer concludes that the Integra DTC-9.8 SSP is competitive with much more expensive surround sound processors and is an exceptional value at an MSRP of $1699.

View Product Page
View Secrets Review

HD Guru has recently posted a review of Samsung’s most recent entry in to the LCD TV market, the LN-T4081. The LN-T4081 is Samsung’s first attempt at an LCD TV with an LED backlight. LED backlights offer some marked advantages over the traditional CCFL backlights including higher contrast, better black levels, and lower power consumption; Samsung also includes “Motion Plus” technology which decreases LCD motion blur in high motion content such as sporting events. The LN-T4081 features a 1080P S-PVA panel which results in great off-axis viewing. The reviewer mentioned a deinterlacing/scaling problem on 480i content but concluded that the Samsung LN-T4081 “is the best LCD HDTV available today” and awarded it their top score.

View HD Guru Review
View Product Page

Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity has posted a review of Onkyo’s latest entry in to the high-end A/V receiver market, the TX-SR805. The TX-SR805 features a measured 130w x 7 amplifier with a steller pre-amp section that features the Audyssey MultEQ XT system for speaker setup and room correction; Digital to Analog conversion is provided by top-of-the line Burr-Brown DACs. The 3-in/1-out HDMI 1.3 switch features support for Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, and DTS-HD. The reviewer was particularly impressed with the receiver’s exceptional amplifier performance which resulted in the THX Ultra2 certification. He even measures idle power consumption with HDMI control enabled and disabled. The review concludes that the Onkyo TX-SR805 is exceptional receiver especially given its $1099 MSRP.

View Product Page
View Secrets Review

Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity has run the newly released Oppo DV-981HD through its comprehensive DVD Benchmark suite. In Oppo tradition, the DV-981HD handles almost all of tests with great aplomb, only failing the “Sync Subtitle to Frames” test and scoring “borderline” on the Recovery Time test. Passing the remainder of the 22 tests yield the Oppo DV-981HD an exceptional score of 98 which is only bested by the $800 Samsung BD-P1200. The DV-918HD is universal DVD player featuring support for DVD-Audio and SACD but is one of the few dvd players that can pass the SACD signal (converted to 88.2/24 PCM) over its HDMI 1.1 connection. Its exceptional deinterlacing is a result of Oppo’s use of the FLI-2310 LF chip which also performs scaling duties; it features the Mediatek MT1389FE for MPEG decoding which results in excellent core performance. The Oppo DV-981 is an exceptional value at $229 especially given Oppo’s superb customer service and frequent firmware updates.

View Product Page
View Secrets Benchmark