MojoLists

Adding new equipment is supposed to be fun, exciting, and if done well, an improvement. I recently upgraded most of my system, new Epson 9500ub projector, Emotiva XPA-3 for the fronts, UPA-2 for the rears and the long anticipated UMC-1 pre/pro. For those of you familiar with the rocky start of the UMC-1, I haven’t had many problems; it has been more of a learning curve. I will be doing a full review of the UMC-1 in the next few weeks.

This is about HDMI, something that sounds so perfect for this hobby, a single cable that handles every connection. I have waited for several years to upgrade to HDMI, I didn’t have a real need or an HDMI capable receiver, so I used alternative connection methods. Now I am ready to step into the modern world and boy am I… terribly disappointed.

HDMI is supposed to simplify my life, clean up the rats nest behind the component stand, and allow everything to communicate in an effort to make things work. It is so simple in theory, it’s a damn cable, you plug it in to each component and pass glorious 1080p images and Dolby TrueHD sound. If only it worked as advertised.

I was ready to blame everything on the UMC-1, and I will admit, it hasn’t made things easier but it isn’t the culprit. Despite every manufacturers promise that their components adhere to the rigorous specifications of HDMI , in this case HDMI 1.3, they don’t play nice with each other. Sony plays nice with Sony, Samsung plays nice with Samsung, but when you start to mix and match within a complicated system it all falls apart.

I set everything up and tested, it was all working beautifully, I basked in the brilliant sound of my Magnepan 1.6qr fronts while streaming FLAC. My wife was out of town and I was confident we would sit down and enjoy a movie when she got home. The first attempt was with my DirecTv HR21-100 DVR. I mashed the remote button and everything came to life, that was the end of my enthusiasm as the picture cut in and out, sound squawked occasionally from each speaker. No matter of playing got it to work until I did a reset on the DVR. After the 10 minute reboot cycle, everything was fine, it played nice but I could see the frustration in my wife’s eyes. This was not something she was willing to tackle on her own.

After considerable research I found that when you place the DVR in standby it continues to output video through HDMI. When turned back on it doesn’t perform a proper handshake and you get a pink image and odd behavior in general. Now I have to leave it on all the time. That doesn’t make me feel all green, even my strict adherence to recycling doesn’t make up for leaving the DVR on 24-7.

I have now convinced my wife that everything is working, the problem has been found and we will be able to enjoy our new Blu-Ray copy of Paul Simon’s Library of Congress show. Again, everything fired up, the flashing lights on the front of the rack were impressive, then the picture and sound vanished, the components all groaned and crackled as they fought to make nice with each other. The picture and sound returned, for a minute and the cycle started again. This continued through the show and ruined what was supposed to be a night we had waited for. My wife’s face said it all, I, the all knowing guru of home theater had let her down. The medals on my shirt were removed, the halo around my head vanished, and I sighed. I had let her down.

I played and researched, swapped cables, swore, tested, retested, swore some more, researched, tested, and swore, and so on. Every time I think it is working, it fails me when I need it most, when the woman I love, and who trusts me to make anything with a power cord easy for her to use.

I bypassed the UMC-1 for testing purposes and quickly found the video problems still existed. HDMI sounds great, it should be great but the manufacturers have fucked things up to the point that it only works in the simplest systems, if at all. I know many people that have no problems with HDMI, most connecting components directly to a TV. I have found HDMI problems discussed with every receiver, pre/pro, from every manufacturer. Unless you get lucky, you are eventually going to have an HDMI induced problem.

So what is a guy to do, component cable and analog multi-channel are an option but using component cables will be an issue soon because of the new copyright restrictions, no more HD over component. The simple fact is that manufacturers need to get their act together and ensure everything works with every other thing. I am hoping I get things figured out soon but I have my doubts.

Extras, included with DVD, HD-DVD and Blu-Ray have seriously lost their luster, at least for me. In the early days of DVD, I would wade through the extras, including the commentaries as if the movie itself simply didn't justify the purchase without them. I eagerly purchased the multiple disc versions and watched in astonishment when others selected the single disc version, geez, anyone can see that 2 discs are better than one.

More than a decade later I simply don't care, I watch the movie and remove the disc from the player with very few exceptions. The exceptions are when I know there is a great gag reel or short movie, like the squirrel in the Ice Age movies or the penguins from Madagascar. I admit, I can't get enough of the penguins, or the squirrel, or any number of Shrek sing along shorts. These my friends are the rare exception to the rule.

Blu-Ray (and once upon a time HD-DVD) promised to provide a huge leap forward in the extras department, BD Live removed the limitations that disc space once  enforced, so why then am I still so severely underwhelmed by the extras? Easy, they suck, they have no imagination and outside of the rare exception, they, oh I already said it.

There are commentaries I must have, all of which are found on the excellent Criterion versions, these guys know how to spruce up a movie. Kevin Smith commentaries are also worth a listen just for the laughs. The vast majority of commentaries however are worthless, they might as well mike up one of my dogs, the sloppy licking sounds would be far more entertaining and provide more information.

Gag reels should give us a few laughs, hence the term gag reel. Somewhere along the line the need to include extras lost focus and the gag reel is now more likely to make us gag than laugh. While not a great piece of cinematic art, Marley & Me should have been able to piece together a good or even great reel. I was saddened by its complete lack of funny however.

There is one gag reel I must mention as excelling, once again, not a great cinematic treasure but one of my biggest guilty pleasures. Armageddon's criterion 2 disc set has the funniest reel I have ever seen. Bruce Willis and Billy Bob Thornton  are a couple of very funny guys, give this one a chance, you won't regret it.

Blu-Ray is a huge improvement in picture and audio, so why is it failing so miserably at delivering the interactive extras it promised us? Lack of creativity is the best I have been able to come up with but I am sure there is an accountant behind the scenes who hasn't laughed in 20 years and would prefer to keep the rest of us from doing so as well.

Studios, are you listening? Give us something to smile about, show us the awe and wonder you promised. We love the improved picture and sound but for the extra bucks to get the Blu-Ray disc, well, give us something that really blows our socks off.

Tiered pricing for internet access based on your bandwidth usage is right around the corner for many, already in place for some, and bringing big changes for everyone. Time Warner is the largest ISP I have heard of going this route so far but more will follow soon.

If you are currently or have been planning on streaming video from online sources such as Netflix or Hulu.com, you better think again. The pricing I have seen from Time Warner has 40Gb of downloads costing $40 - $50 per month. That sounds like a lot of bandwidth but if you stream video you are going to blast past your limit in the first week of  the month.

I always said streaming video wasn't going to take off for years to come and this is one good reason why. The kind of bandwidth required means your ISP is going to need to make some dramatic changes. As pricing goes up, streaming is quickly going to return to the back of the bus.

If you are using the DirecTV On Demand service, as I am, you will have a problem under this new pricing. I for one will be unhappy, but that is pretty much my normal state. I am not using Tine Warner but AT&T will likely follow suit if Time Warner is successful in putting this new pricing in place.

If you are currently experiencing a change to pay per byte internet access speak loud and clear when you dump your ISP. Time Warner is in the awkward position of losing cable customers and watching its bandwidth use climb but is that really my problem? I dumped Time Warner years ago because of terrible customer service, outrageous prices and the final nail, they could never get me a reliable internet connection. Make a stand for progress and fair business practices and find another ISP.

Best Buy has been a part of my life for a long time, not because they always had the best prices or even the best selection. I could count on them to have most of the little computer parts, electronic accessories and other bits and pieces I needed, which made them handy when I was already on my way to pick up a new DVD.

In the last two months this has changed, they have cut way back on the computer parts they sell, even the electronics area, with the HDTV's, DVD and Blu-Ray players seem to be short on selection and inventory of many items they do stock.

Out of stock on popular movies is more common than in the past and I have walked out empty handed several times now when I had a fairly long list or purchases with me. I didn't cry when Circuit City went under, I never really forgave them for supporting DiVX in the early days of DVD and they were my last resort for purchasing.

I guess I should have mourned the loss from the beginning, I certainly am now. Best Buy and the other competition have for the most part decreased their weekly sales on movies and music. I am also seeing an increase in release week pricing across the board. I know times are tough but is it really wise to begin alienating your core customer base. I spend thousands a year in Best Buy but lately all of my money has been going to Fry's.

Fry's has always had a great selection of everything, I always know I am going to find even the most obscure computer part, movie or electronic adapter. It is just a hassle to get in and out, not because they are slow but because I can't help but wander the aisles to see what's new, on sale, or just plain cool.

I know Best Buy (Target has also followed suit but has never been on my go to list) feels a lot safer with Circuit City out of the way but they should be more worried about their core customers. I am already debating on whether to hit Fry's to pick up the latest James Bond because I also need an IDE to SATA adapter, something Best Buy is unlikely to carry anymore.

For years I have preached about the evils of pan-and -scan. Thanks to VHS and the public's inability to endure any movie that didn't fill their entire 4:3 screen, pan-and-scan became the way we endured movies, even the early days of DVD were filled with the criminal act. Criterion had the vision and guts to start releasing movies in their original aspect ratio during their beginning with Laserdisc and eventually helped all of the studios see the value of putting out DVD's in their pristine and full aspect ratio.

Aside from the occasional release that comes in both flavors, pan-and-scan has slowly vanished, thanks in part to the popularity of HDTV with its  16:9 aspect ratio. Now a new evil has started to find its way onto DVD and Blu-Ray. The most current release of Gulliver's travels, a movie with an original aspect of 4:3, has been released in an altered 16:9 format.

No movie should be changed from its directors vision, in any way. I don't want to see any of Stanley Kubrick's 4:3 films in 16:9,  that wasn't what he wanted, that wasn't his vision.  The general public needs to be educated all over again it seems... wait, that isn't it at all.

The studios need to be smashed over the head for this idiotic practice and belief that John Q Public won't accept black bars on their screen. People have finally come to understand that some movies don't fit their screen. If they don't like it they can select from a number of options to stretch the picture (a practice I am appalled by but tolerate) and fill their screen. It makes no sense whatsoever to leave those of us who wish to see the movie as it was presented on the big screen.

I am hoping this practice dies quickly and I certainly won't be purchasing movies, in any format that don't present the movie properly. Take a stand and force the studios to do the right thing, skip the purchase until the movie is offered in the format it was filmed for.

I will go into the lesser evil of not offering original sound tracks in a later article, it upsets me just as much however so be prepared for another rant.

I have written several article on the WRT160Nv2 wireless router from Linksys. The problem appears to be much more widespread that anyone imagined and Linksys has yet to admit there is a problem.

I don't get a whole lot of traffic to this blog but my user base has increased by thousands over the last two weeks, all because of people looking for a solution to the DNS bug in this router. The Linksys forums are swarming with upset customers and a total lack of caring on the part of Linksys.

Linksys was kind enough to send me a new router when I bricked the first one trying to downgrade the firmware. The new one arrived with the old firmware and it is running like a champ now. I appreciate Linksys doing a fast swap for me but it still cost me $20 for shipping it to them and I was without wireless for a week. That is a major inconvenience not to mention that the additional cost could have gone to a better router if I had known of the problems with the WRT160Nv2.

I am not giving up on Linksys, their customer support took great care of me. I will have to rethink the relationship if I don't see a fix from them soon however. Running the older version 8 firmware means I am open to a DNS security vulnerability. I don't like that, hell, who would. If you are in the market for a wireless router, especially a Linksys router, I wouldn't buy this one.

Original Article: Linksys WRT160N DNS Issue Needs a Fix

Linksys needs to fix the DNS problem on their WRT160Nv2 router and they need to do it now. I haven't used this blog to gripe much,  the fact is I have been very lucky and my equipment functions with little or no problem. Now I have a big problem and a major gripe with Linksys, a company whose products I have used for years without a hitch.

I decided to step up to a wireless N router about 6 months ago even though all of my wireless apps are b and g. The router was an amazing upgrade to the system. It extended the range and speed on all of my laptops and other devises. I could even stream HD effortlessly from the DirecTV DVR on the other side of the house. I was one happy camper. Then I got the news that there was a DNS security risk associated with the routers firmware. I was running 2.0.0.2, build 8. Being the security nut that I am I immediately updated my firmware to 2.0.0.2, build 11. This turned out to be a huge mistake.

Web pages started throwing 404 errors, I had to refresh pages over and over before they would come up. I hated it, it was a serious time suck for me as I spend most of my time working on the internet and God help me if I wanted to order something online or pay a bill. the 404 errors made it almost impossible to make it through a multi-page process.

I quickly jumped online and researched the problem to find this is a well documented issue in the Linksys forum. One of the threads I found had 17 pages of complaints and thankfully a fix. Unfortunately when I attempted to downgrade my firmware to the version I had previously, it failed and the router did nothing but flash at me, nearly lifeless and unable to reset itself to the factory defaults.

After 90 minutes of attempting to revive the WRT160Nv2, I gave in and contacted tech support. Of course they ignored the fact that I had attempted everything and made me do it all again before starting the RMA process. The router was dead and Linksys is replacing it. After receiving all the information and filling out the forms, mailing it back to them, at my expense I now await my replacement which will undoubtedly have the new firmware version and most likely the same problem that everyone else is having with this build.

The issue with the Linksys WRT160Nv2 firmware has been around since October and Linksys has failed to acknowledge the problem and worse, fix it. Linksys, I have spent tens of thousands of dollars with you between my home and my business. If this is not fixed, you can kiss my future business goodbye. I understand that shit happens and errors take place, I accept and am happy to work with any vendor while they correct the problem. You won't even admit there is a problem even though there are hundreds of documented cases on your own website. This is an issue and you need to fix it.

If you have the WRT160Nv2 router and are experiencing the DNS problem, here is a fix. I bricked my router attempting it but many have downgraded their firmware successfully. I intend to try again if my new unit has the problem. Good luck!

*** UPDATE! ***  Linksys does not have a fix yet but they did take care of me by replacing the router I killed with a new one. Read more here.

More and more I hear, “there is no difference between DVD and Blu-Ray” and I am shocked, dismayed and can do nothing more than scratch my head. How can anyone with eyes not see the improvement over upscaled DVD? Is Toshiba working behind the scenes to brainwash people as payback for losing the format war?

I will admit to the fact that I do not always see the financial benefit to HD sound or 1080p source material but I sure as hell can see and hear the difference. I think a fly, with its multi-faceted view of the world can see the difference. When I have to consider budget however, many times the DVD wins out. I have discussed my buying criteria in previous articles so I won’t rehash it here.

I did find a clue to at least one person’s unfavorable review of DVD VS Blu-Ray however and just so no one else makes this mistake… You cannot connect your Blu-Ray player to your HDTV with a composite cable (the yellow one) and see 1080p or even good 480p. You must use at least a component cable (red, green, blue) for 1080i and HDMI or DVI cables for 1080p.

I understand that to many people, connecting anything to a TV or receiver is akin to launching the space shuttle, but you spent a lot of money for your system, read the manual and get what you pay for. If you don’t want to, can’t or the manual isn’t available in your native language get help from a friend!

DVD is a wonderful media and I still buy movies on it. The picture is great and for many of the movies I purchase, quite adequate. Blu-Ray is amazing and many of my purchased go to HD. The point is, there is in fact, a huge difference between the formats for movies that are well produced. I understand that Blu-Ray doesn’t fit into everyone’s budget and that many people do not have a display that is HD capable. Down the road when prices are right or there is a beautiful new HDTV in your living room, I hope you make the smart choice and jump onto the Blu-Ray train, it is better in every way.

HDTVs are becoming a commodity again, much like the lackluster sets of the 90s, when prices fell to a level that CRT sets above 30 inches became the norm. Like then, it signals an end of an era where the quality of the picture, features and innovation stood still.

Pioneer announced last week that it will be discontinuing its line of plasma and LCD televisions and this saddens me greatly. While I was never in a position to afford one of Pioneer’s Kuro sets, they were the standard in the industry, a high standard that guaranteed the best of the best.

Television prices have fallen to the point that no company can create a great product and make money. Once again, the market has spoken and dictated that price is the only consideration. I agree that budget minded televisions are needed but companies need to set realistic prices that allow them to build quality while maintaining a reasonable profit. Yes the market has spoken loudly and it has simply repeated exactly what the electronics companies have trained us to believe, price is the end all, be all.

When it comes to buying many of the available TV on DVD collections, I just don’t get it. I have a few TV shows on DVD and for the most part I have been happy with them. What I don’t get is the need to watch Sanford and Son again and that is one of the better shows available today.

If it was ever on the small screen it is most likely available on DVD and now many are making their way to Blu-Ray. Has no one ever heard of Tivo? These show are available out there, I have seen them in my Sat guide. As a serious collector of movie media I understand the collectors bug, perhaps it's the cost of sets that puts me off. I can justify the cost of the Sopranos and many of my favorite Sci-fi shows, to a point.

I am a big fan of the Stargate  franchise, both SG-1 and Atlantis, but even my serious collectoritis hasn’t convinced me to buy these. I probably just lost most of you but I do like my Sci-fi and it is one of the few things I can still get my 15 year old son to watch with me. I won’t be buying these anytime soon however because they are on TV, all the time.

I did a cost analysis of lowering my DirecTV subscription to the minimum and starting to purchase the shows we watch on DVD or Blu-Ray. It didn’t pan out however as the cost of these TV sets is high, besides, it is pretty tough to avoid spoilers until the set comes out.

I hang my head in shame when I admit to owning all 5 seasons of Andromeda, a series that forced its writers to work with a special effects budget of about $75 an episode. It is one of my guilty pleasures though so I will accept the ridicule now. I guess I do in fact understand the desire to own many of these shows, at least if you really loved a series but is there really any joy at all in watching Survivor again?

Disney chief Robert Iger suggested in a recent interview that Disney needs to raise their prices on Blu-Ray discs. I was shocked and more than a little disturbed by this, not that I think it would last long if attempted. Where the Iger’s thought does worry me though, what if people kept buying?

Blu-Ray prices are already high and Disney is near the top of the pricing lists already. I have always written this off to the fact that Disney makes superb, even amazing Blu-Rays, from picture and audio quality to their interactive features. They rock the Blu-Ray world and even include the SD DVD version in many of their Blu-Ray sets. I am willing to pay for this convenience sometimes, at others times I figure I can wait and buy when prices come down.

Disney holds its movies in a vault for long periods, only releasing classics for short periods, which keeps their value up.  Many of their classics are worthy of this and I understand the idea of maintaining the value of these movies by releasing them at intervals that bring the magic of Disney to generation after generation without wearing the movie thin. I wait for these releases and relive moments of my childhood, often with my young nephews.

The scary thing is that raising prices across the board on Disney Blu-Rays hurts the consumer, especially in these tough economic times. Disney sales will drop and that is the last thing Blu-Ray needs right now, it is important to at least keep things where they are, not move backwards.

I hope Iger and the rest of the Disney heads realize the power they hold and make a decision that will help ensure their classics are shown in the best possible format available for generations to come.

 What is home theater? The definition is “the use of electronics to recreate the movie going experience in ones home.” I take this definition pretty seriously, I have many viewing areas in my home including three bedrooms and the living room. All have a DVD player or Blu-Ray and are used for watching movies but I only have one room I consider a home theater. All of my systems have a receiver and multiple channels although not always 5.1 or better. My main system is the only one I consider a home theater and not because it is a dedicated room, which is not, specified in the definition.

 The reason I consider only one system a home theater is because it is the only one I have made the effort to push the viewing experience as close to going out to the movies as possible, minus the gum and soda on the floor. I have carefully replicated the sound, picture and feel of the movie going experience in that one room.

That’s not to say I haven’t calibrated all of my televisions, dialed in the audio of each sound system and made every effort to maximize the experience. I simply have not gone to the lengths I consider necessary to make each room a home theater.

I have run into many people, friends and family who come to me for advice on setting up their home theater. I consider their budget and their priority in creating the system in their home. Like so many however, the advice is wasted or forgotten. They are likely to take my advice and get a great television and DVD or Blu-Ray player but that is where they stop.

I always provide a list of options, well within the budget that includes a receiver, speakers and subwoofer in various sizes that can fit any decor. This allows them to walk in and make purchases without spending a lot of time dealing with sales people or lingering over making the decision. I am all for listening to a system and making up your own mind, that however doesn’t really matter to most people who just want to get a decent system within their budget and for these people, the complete not enthusiast, they really don’t have much of an opinion on the sound system.

Just to prove the point, in almost all cases these people forgo my advice and my offer to make it simple by setting it all up for them. I get a call a week or two later to come over and check out their completed system. I know what to expect after so many of these visits and I bring along my standard equipment. Anyone who knows me well enough to call me up to check out their new system knows me well enough to expect me to put the finishing touches on things.

Here is where things get a little hairy as 9 out of 10 times I find a home theater in a box set up so that all 5 channels are sitting haphazardly on the cabinet below the television. The exception is when the surrounds have made it to the back of the room but very different distances from the sitting area. Nothing is ever calibrated, the system was simply plugged in.

I am not being a snob, I understand fully that the majority of people want to watch a nice picture and be able to hear the dialog, anything beyond that is a bonus for them. This is fine and I happily assist in making the most of what they have within the limits they impose. Is this a home theater? No it is not, it is an entertainment system and in no way resembles a home theater.

The first thing I do is check all of the connection on the television. I remove the coax running from the Hi-Def sat or cable box and replace it with an appropriate HDMI or component cable. Make sure all of the other connections are maximized and start making the correct audio connections.

 I always take a few minutes to explain how 5.1/7.1 works and how we can make that work in their house. This usually ends up with me disconnecting the surround speakers and disabling them in the receiver. This is not home theater but it is what makes them happy and that works for me.

Finally I pull out my calibration discs and analog sound level meter and get to work, making the absolute most out of what they have. They are happy and I am happy and for my final act I program their universal remote, hopefully one I suggested like the Harmony 550 which is both inexpensive and works well for most small set ups.

I am not a saint and I do have an elitist streak when it comes to an actual home theater. A television, source and speaker system capable of recreating as closely as possible, the movie going experience is not what most people want or strive for so when I am told about someone’s home theater, I smile and nod knowing the odds of them having a home theater is low, very low which gives me a warm elitist glow in my belly. What would I ever do if everyone did have an actual home theater, I might have to get into something like space flight where an actual space craft is much less subjective.

Home theater in a box is OK if it is set up properly.

No surround, not a home theater.

Non-HD television… You bet as long as it is 36” or larger, this is also dependant on the room. A 36” television watched fro 17’ away doesn’t work.

Subwoofer is required unless bass shakers have been installed, both are better.

Connecting an HDTV to HD sources with the wrong cables… Definitely not a home theater and close to unforgivable even for non-enthusiasts.

"DVD is going away soon" has suddenly become a hot topic on many enthusiast forums. While the question makes a lot of sense from people who have invested a considerable amount into collecting DVDs and buying top-notch players, there is nothing to worry about in my opinion, at least not yet.

Many make the argument that Blu-Ray will be a short-lived format that is brought down by downloadable movies. I will concede that downloadable movies will become more popular in the years to follow however for the vast majority of the public, it is not a convenient option as long as video quality and bandwidth problems exist.

Blu-Ray and downloads aside, DVD is king in the public eye at the moment. The movies are readily available at a fraction of the cost of Blu-Ray discs and players are available for well under $100. At this price point, the general public will continue to go the DVD route.

The difference between DVD and VHS was much more dramatic than DVD to Blu-Ray is. Few people had large collections of VHS tapes and the difference in quality between VHS and DVD was immense. Many home theater enthusiasts have skipped Blu-Ray altogether as they do not see enough of a difference between Blu and upscaled DVD. I am not of this opinion as I see a huge difference on many movies but like all media, it is dependant upon the source material and the quality of the transfer.

The current rule in my house is that big action movies get picked up on Blu-Ray for the HD sound quality as do classics for their video quality. Upscaling is good enough for many other movies, especially movies that are likely to be played in one of the bedrooms or even the living room where HD audio isn’t an option. I still like to have flexibility in where I watch but I never watch the latest war movie outside my main theater.

Until the general public is convinced to calibrate their televisions so they can easily see the difference between DVD and Blu-Ray they will not buy unless the price comes down to DVD levels, which it won’t, at least in the near future. Besides, what is the chance that the public will suddenly decide to turn their TV setting down from eye melting bright, not much in my opinion.

Downloading movies seems like a great option and years down the road it may be true, but renting downloads doesn’t satisfy the collection bug of so many who want the physical package on their shelf. The big chance downloads have at the moment is that most people really don’t care about picture quality at this point but the need to run wires and set up special servers will hold this format back for at least a few more years.

DVDs are not an endangered species by a long shot and much like VHS, the manufacturers will continue to put out players and media as long as there is a public willing to buy or rent. I for one will continue collecting for years if not decades yet to come.

 Aside from times when my son or wife talks me into seeing something at the Alamo Draft House in Austin I buy or rent movies. I see no reason to endure the crowd, rude people, poor sound systems and dull pictures so often associated with going out to a movie.

 I buy a pretty good number of movies on DVD, Blu-Ray and HD-DVD but most of the movies I watch are rentals. I have belonged to both Netflix and Blockbuster, even both at the same time at one point and I have been reasonably happy with both. A recent thread at my favorite online hangout, The Home Theater Forum, was about which rental service is better. The main complaint about both was the long wait for many titles and I have experienced the same problem but I have always been able to make it work. I don’t bother with downloaded movies so I will not be discussing that option, available from both parties.

 I started with Netflix about a month after they came online. I was in hog heaven, movies right to my door, no late fees and an amazing catalog of movies to choose from. I dismissed Blockbuster altogether at this point because of a grudge over late fees that I felt was unfair and it was some time later that they introduced their online plans.

Years later Blockbuster came up with their trade in deal. Instead of mailing the movies back, I take it to my local brick and mortar in exchange for an in store rental, at no cost. I decided to give it a try and it has worked so well for me I dropped Netflix.

The movies I put in my Blockbuster queue do tend to be older classics, cult favorites and concert videos. These types of movies tend to have a short, long or very long wait associated with them. While that would be a problem with Netflix, it isn’t for me as the wife and I make a pilgrimage to the store every Saturday and pick up the latest releases, often on Blu-Ray. Occasionally, if there is a standout release I will go in on a Tuesday morning. This works, I get the best of both worlds for the cost of a single subscription.

  If you sole purpose for renting online is to never walk into the store again and you order a lot of older movies and classics you are likely to be disappointed by the wait associated with these types of selections. My advice is to brave the sun once a week or so and take advantage of the Blockbuster trade deals, they let you have your cake and eat it too.

I am just estimating here but I would say 99.746% of people believe Bose is the best speaker ever made or as Bose claims are the most respected speaker ever. I hear it all the time, some guy bragging about his superior Bose system.  Bose owners look down on the rest of the audio world as if they were driving a Ferrari. The problem is that they are in fact driving a Yugo and not even a new one.

Bose survive, hell they flourish because of an amazing marketing drive. They have brainwashed the world into believing they build the greatest speakers in the world.  Nothing could be further from the truth, Bose are simply the biggest rip off in the audio world.

Bose uses paper cone drivers that have been around for decades, unchanged. Why does this matter? The sound these diminutive paper cones produce require the elimination of a vast swath of the frequency range used in common recordings. They don’t just remove the top end or the bottom end, they hack the mid frequency range to pieces as well. A full 80Hz is missing if you use one of their Acoustimass modules, while a mind blowing 180+ Hz is missing without it. According to Intellexual.net the actual frequency response of the Bose speakers is 280hz – 13.3kHz, even the cheapest speakers fill 120Hz – 20kHz and better speakers, even at a fraction of the cost of Bose are 40Hz – 22kHz.

Just for a reference, the same cone speakers found in most Bose systems are also used in alarm clocks that cost under $25. So how can they sound so good? Well, they don’t but they certainly sound better than my alarm clock. This is accomplished by removing much of the frequency range from the music before it is sent to the speaker. This is why it is difficult or even impossible to use the Bose speakers that come in a kit with other brands components. This is especially true of the Bose car audio systems that require a complete rewire to replace the head unit and speakers.

In addition, the cheap plastic boxes and cubes used for Bose enclosures are inexpensive and reduce the quality of sound even further. Anyone who has ever looked at how to build a speaker understands that plastic is one of the worst materials you can use. I will concede that building an enclosure out of aluminum cans would be worse but at this level of badness I don’t see that it would make a difference.

I can go on and on about how Bose refuses to release frequency response information for their systems, something that every other manufacturer, and I mean every other manufacturer provides. I can go on about how Bose displays in the store are designed to provide sound within a very specific area that cannot possibly be recreated in your home. How about the fact that they use amps that cost thousands to drive them, instead of using their own system, which is what they make it appear to be doing.

Enough about why to avoid them, what should you get instead. One of the things people do really like about Bose is the size of the speakers and I admit that is a tough one to find elsewhere but you don’t have to go much bigger. Almost any Home Theater in a Box will sound better than Bose once calibrated. I am including the Panasonic unit that can often be found under $150.

Will the Panasonic unit give you great sound? No, not even close but it is as good as anything Bose puts out if you set it up properly. Home theaters in a box are easily bested by buying the speakers and receivers separately but if you want Bose equivalent sound at a fraction of the cost, this is a good place to start.

Don’t fall for the marketing hype, anyone legitimately serious about home theater or audio will tell you about Bose, if they suggest otherwise, you are talking to a home theater poser.

Home theater technology is a funny thing in that every piece you install today is likely to be outdated tomorrow. Computers still work in much the same way but to a lesser degree than they did 5 years ago. The HDTV you purchased two years ago, you know the one that included the DVI port that would keep your system up-to-date for years to come, isn’t all that friendly in today’s world. DVI is still useful but HDMI quickly took over and is a superior technology that handles both audio and video.

As a semi-reformed early adopter, I have jumped on the DVD-A, SACD, HD-DVD and Blu-Ray bandwagons as quickly as possible. My mind appears incapable of fathoming the world not embracing each and every new technology. Looking back, I have found this mental instability has been a common theme throughout my life and based on the marketing robots that pump out this stuff, I am not alone. It doesn’t matter if it is the newest lure for bass fishing or the latest, greatest universal remote, I want it or I am unable to move forward in my endeavor.

I am a marketer's dream come true, I was diagnosed with upgradeitis at a very early age. I also have an overwhelming collectors bug that I can’t shake. I am not a pack rat but I am compelled to own every new movie and CD I read a good review on and not so good ones when the price is right or at least perceived to be right.

This blog will follow my adventures through new technologies, getting by with old ones and my thoughts on various movies and music. Like many of you, I live on a tight budget and have to find a way to make the most of what I have. So stay tuned and get a little guidance on what you need, should lust over, and even pretty things that are best avoided.