AV Adviser

Electronic House announces homes of the year

Cleveland - Yesterday I pointed you to some photos of well designed home theater installations for inspiration.  Well, you ain't seen nothin' yet.

Whether you're considering a home theater, a distributed audio system or a home with a control system for your lighting, security and climate, etc. you'll find ideas galore here.  The annual Electronic House Homes Of The Year Awards (2013) have been announced.

Here you'll find in depth looks at a fully automated 42,000 square foot home, an underground 200+ inch home theater screen, and a 24 zone distributed audio system, along with much more.  There's also awards per budget that'll give you an idea of what you can expect for the money you plan on investing. 

We at K+ Integration Systems can create something just like this for you.  Note to self.  I need to enter our company in this competition next year.  We can hold our own with the best. 

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal

 

Tips on recycling your AV equipment in recognition of Earth Day

Cleveland - Earth Day is on Monday April 22 though most activities will take place over the weekend.  Actually on Earth Day itself the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo will hold a Party for the Planet.

In recognition of the ecologically focused day I thought I'd pass along some tips about how to dispose of your AV and home theater equipment.  And none of these ideas has your beloved gear ending up in a land fill.  At least not under your watch. 

1.  Give your old equipment to family or relatives.  Maybe you can cobble together a stereo for your kid's dorm room or basement gaming area.  Or perhaps you have a niece or nephew who's off to college. 

2.  Give or sell the gear to friends.  Just make sure its a fair price or they may not be friends later on.

3.  Sell your equipment at a garage sale or online.  There's plenty of ways to sell online including eBay, Craigslist and Audiomart.

4.  Donate your old electronics to a charitable organization.  You could drop it off at a Goodwill location or find an Alzheimer group who can use it as part of their music therapy. 

5.  Actually you can just put it on the tree lawn on trash day.  If your neighborhood is like mine there's plenty of garbage hunters.  Most likely that stuff will be gone a few hours after you set it down. 

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal

Paying tribute to Roger Ebert

Cleveland - The main purpose of your home theater is to enjoy watching movies.  And with the passing of the most well known movie critic in America I think its only fitting to pay tribute to Roger Ebert. 

I'd been a fan since the original TV show that paired the late Gene Siskel (also struck down by cancer) with Ebert, Sneak Previews.  The show would open with a clip from a new movie then cut to the two of them, seated in a staged balcony where they'd begin to either gush over the film together or begin an entertaining argument.  One thumb up and one thumb down.  Two thumbs up meant a must see for me and many who watched. 

Recently I recall watching an episode of Anthony Bourdain's Layover show where he spent a couple of days in Chicago.  He asked a prominent local which citizen would be considered the ambassador of the city.  Without hesitation he said Roger Ebert. 

The thyroid cancer that eventually claimed Ebert's life was first discovered in 2002.  In 2006 he had a portion of his jaw removed.  His days of TV were over.  For that matter his days of speaking were essentially done.  But until the very end his mind remained as sharp as a tack, and he kept on reviewing movies. 

Ebert was a fan of Twitter.  It was a way for him to remain in contact with the public.  He used it as a platform to not only discuss film but to opine on things he believed in.  He was a great liberal mind.  His last tweet was the day before he died, directing followers to a blog post explaining his latest battle with the damned disease.  Here's the piece he wrote just two days before he died, A Leave of Presence.

I read his autobiography, Life Itself: A Memoir,  a couple of years ago when it first came out.  It's a fantastic read.  Here he talks about death, I Do Not Fear Death. 

Roger Ebert's passing is one of those that touch so many of us in America.  President Obama even issued a statement.  It's because he was an everyman and a fan of the movies more than anything.  Movies that can provide us escapism from things like the reality of cancer. 

In that autiobiography I'll always recall his love of black and white.  He preferred it over color.  He suggested looking at photos of your parents or maybe your own wedding, probaby taken in color.  Then to compare that with wedding photos from your grandparents in black and white.  Which look a little goofy and which look classic and timeless.  So I'll leave you with a classic black and white shot of him.  The balcony is closed. 

Samsung opening up boutique stores in Best Buy

Cleveland - In a cross between Best Buy's Magnolia store within a store and Apple stores, Samsung is opening boutique stores inside 1,400 Best Buy locations.  The roll out begins in May.  Best Buy is trying to shore up eroding sales that have plagued the company for three straight years. 

Here's the scoop from Tech Crunch, Samsung To Open Retail Boutiques In 1,400 Best Buy Stores.

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal

 

The future of TV could bring a closer knit community

Cleveland - As our cable TV bills keep rising, my AT&T U-verse has gone up by about $20 over the last year, the incentive to cut the cord grows stronger.  And every day technology is making it that much easier to say goodbye to your cable provider.

We're moving to closer and closer to the tipping point and a new way of watching TV where we only pay for what we want to watch.  It's being called a la carte TV and last week the Washington Post wrote about it, Verizon, Cablevision emerge as unlikely allies of cable-TV customers fed up with bundling. 

Cancel your cable TV and you will be missing out on some things.  Sports and most anything live doesn't have that big a presence on the internet yet.  Though CBS is showing all of the NCAA basketball playoffs on their site. 

There may be something gained by this a la carte future though, a closer community.  Ok, so imagine no one has bundled cable TV anymore.  You decide to subscribe to the Mad Men season series and a friend or neighbor is going to be subscribing to Dexter.  Each of you are interested in both series but why pay for them both.  You invite them over for Mad Men viewings and they do likewise when it's time for Dexter. 

Suddenly you've got neighbors gathering in each others homes in numbers that haven't been seen since Eisenhower was in office.  TV which has always been thought to alienate could now become a beacon for our gathering tribe.  

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal

 

Sony struggles to keep up with the IT guys

Cleveland - I love Sony.  I have one of their SXRD TVs.  It's fabulous.  The Sony name conjures up long lasting images of a company making quality products.  It all began with the Trinitron TV. 

The thing is they still make great products.  But they have been playing catch up and trying to combat the onslaught of the IT upstarts.  It's taking its toll as is pointed out in this story from Motley Fool, How Apple, Smartphones, and Tablets Are Killing Sony.

I still pitch Sony video products all the time.  As I say, their patented SXRD technology makes for a great looking projector image.  And their flat panels always look terrific.  I'm pulling for ya' Sony. 

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal

A music mix for your Super Bowl party

Cleveland - Earlier  this week I wrote about tweaking your TV for the Super Bowl.  So you've got that ready.  The menu has been chosen and you've made that trip to the liquor store.  All that's missing is music for the party. 

The big game takes place in New Orleans, serving as a kickoff to Mardi Gras.  So give your party an air of authenticity.  I've created a New Orleans themed playlist. 

The Radio Hannibal Daily Music Session 2.01.13 Super Bowl Party Mix

This two hour set is the perfect warm up to the game.  And if you'd like some more music from the Crescent City tune in to WWOZ or Channel 67, the Real Jazz station on SiriusXM who'll be broadcasting in team with WWOZ.

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal

Preparing your home theater for the Super Bowl

Cleveland - While the kitchen is abuzz with activity as glorious food is being prepared for the Super Bowl chow down and beverages are being iced down and stocked on the bar, little is paid to making sure the center of attention is ready for action.  Your home theater is probably just fine but there are some tweaks and tips that'll make the experience more enjoyable.

In a very handy guide, CNET's Geoffery Morrison gives all sorts of good tips on setting up your home theater for the Super Bowl, Getting your settings right for the big game.  One thing I would had to his tip sheet is to have your iPad or tablet at the ready.  It can be used to answer questions from your guests, like "who won that Super Bowl in 1997?".   CBS, who'll be broadcasting the game, also has all sorts of interactive features online that you'll be able to access on the tablet. 

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal

"Knock your socks off" movie theater coming to Cleveland

Cleveland - I'd heard about the move to bring back a movie theater to Great Northern Mall in North Olmsted awhile ago.  I rarely go to the theater to see movies anymore since I have a very good home theater.  So the news didn't get me too excited. 

Yesterday Great Northern Mall and Regal Cinemas announced more detailed plans for the theater which will be built in the old food court area.  There's to be some new restaurants as well.  Great, more bland national fare.  Please, make a point of supporting locally owned restaurants.

What got my attention though was the theater chain's announcement of their Regal Premium Experience.  One of the theaters will be designed using all the latest in high tech to bring you a mind blowing movie going experience. 

Here's what we can expect from the Regal Premium Experience (RPX). 

RPX will feature luxurious seats that have high-back head rests. The theaters will also have large 60 foot wide immersive screens and dual 30,000 lumen digital projectors capable of showing Real 3D and 2D movies. They will also be equipped with state-of-the-art 100,000 watt 9.1 digital audio speaker systems with 273 loudspeaker components including eight 21 inch subwoofers.

"Regal patrons have shown a strong preference for viewing films in premium environments," said Greg Dunn, President and Chief Operating Officer for Regal Entertainment Group in a news release. "Each RPX location will be individually designed and tailored by our technicians and will feature high-quality digital projectors and screens complemented by a custom surround sound system. The addition of the RPX locations to Regal's already successful IMAX strategy will complement and extend the number of Regal theaters featuring premium movie-going experiences."

This information was published in 2010.  I hope that they keep up with the technology and offer the best available presently.  So maybe I will be going to the movies a bit more often. 

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal

CNET is losing some cred

Cleveland - I use CNET all the time.  It's a great place to see what I thought, up until this week, was unbiased opinions and reviews of products.  A kind of Consumer Reports for the tech age.  I often send customers there in order to back up my advice on what sort of equipment I've recommended. 

The Consumer Electronics Show, which ended over the weekend and which I've been discussing for the past week has a close relationship with CNET.  Annually, the website announces it's products of the show awards with the blessing of the Consumer Electronics Association.  Here's this year's winners, Best of CES Award Winners.

The problem is that one of the big winners isn't on the list.  The Dish Hopper, a DVR type device from Dish Network which allows you to skip commercials, was pulled from the list by CNET's parent company, CBS.  You can see the conflict of interest.  CBS makes their money off of advertisements and here's a device that allows consumers to avoid them.  That doesn't make companies that advertise on TV very happy, and CBS is obliged to make their advertisers happy.

So CBS told the CNET editorial staff to drop the Dish Hopper from their list.  This didn't sit well with some of the CNET staffers.  Here's a story from the Washington Post, CNET reporter quits after CBS vetoes best CES gadget pick due to dispute with Dish Network.  That's understandable as the journalist now has lost credibility and integrity.  Where's the objectivity and transparency?  What else might CBS be telling them to not write about.  Or, conversely, what might CBS tell the staff to hype? 

It's a conflict of interest and will become more prevalent as big media companies continue to buy online start-ups.  Who do you trust?  I thought I could trust CNET for unbiased advise on home theater gear and other electronics.  Now they've lost some credibility. 

Honestly though, I rely just as much if not more on the readers comments and personal reviews.  Sure, that can be gamed, but only if there's just a few customer reviews.  The more reviews the harder it is to avoid the true story of a product.  I guess that means it's up to all of us to help each other in our buying decisions.  And isn't that one of the beauties of social media?

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal