Home Audio Video Advisor

The Best That I Could Do 1978-1988

Although I prefer John Mellencamp’s later albums if you only know his music from truck commercials The Best That I Could Do is a great introduction to his early years. Billed as Johnny Cougar when his first album of covers was released in 1976 called Chestnut Street Incident little did it look like this singer and songwriter would become a major force in the music industry.

First he won the public with hit after hit and as he matured the critics were won over by his continuing heartfelt lyrics and passion. His band has been performing for over thirty years and with almost as many albums to pick from we guarantee you can find a few to relate to and appreciate regardless of your age or taste in music.

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Having a forum addiction I have read uncountable number of posts claiming one piece of equipment is better than another. Only to see the very next post claiming the exact opposite. Then of course it’s post after post wondering about upgrading to the latest model for better performance.

When these discussions evolve around video I often chuckle and tend to be interested only on a entertainment level. Of course different features sets can make one model better suited for your installation and influence the level of performance but let’s take Blu-ray players as an example. I have used at least a dozen different models in my theater from the Sony PS3 to Pioneer’s BDP-09FD. The difference in cost is multiple times the cost of the PS3 but when using HDMI for audio and video any differences would have to be measured in pennies.

With this in mind I consider the fascination with the latest and greatest a hobby in and of itself and most inclined to partake spend more time researching, discussing and tweaking than they ever do enjoying home audio and video. A few years ago I posted a poll asking the following.

Which would provide the biggest improvement over your current image:

• Upgrading to a better projector
• Focusing your current projector
• Calibrating your current projector

I was surprised when the last option drew the largest number of votes as it showed people realize in most cases they are attempting to replace their equipment long before they have come close to taking advantage of what it has to offer. Which to me enforced their hobby was indeed upgrading equipment. Certainly no harm in that but it seems a shame when we don’t get all the performance available to use especially when you consider how much can be gained with very little effort and cost.

When it comes to the video chain the best way to ensure you are getting everything you can is by having a professional calibration performed. Often it will turn out to be the best return you have ever had on for your entertainment dollar. The images will go from looking like TV to real life and open up a whole new world of realism you never knew was available.

Now if I haven’t quite convinced you to book your local ISF calibrator I have a completely free option to get you on the path to becoming a believer. You will begin to see images how they were intended to be seen. You can download and burn a free set of test patterns that will allow you to properly adjust your display. Even if you just correct the brightness and contrast levels you will be able to see more detail in the image and gain many other benefits.

Don’t worry it’s not difficult and if you write down your current settings you can always go back home again! For help in getting started or for future reference when you are ready to dig deeper in the world of calibration bookmark the following link which can also use to download the free test patterns.

Click Here to Download Your Free Test Patterns

Gran Torino (+ Digital Copy and BD-Live) [Blu-ray]

Has Clint Eastwood ever acted in, directed or produced a bad movie? Not that we know of and come June 9th you can catch yet another at home. Gran Torino is thoroughly entertaining on several levels with a strong story powerfully told and characters you care about well after the movie ends. From all reports the video and audio are stellar so there is simply no reason not to pick up a copy.

Since Clint is getting up in age (78 at last count) while writing this I thought of another favorite. The Straight Story directed by David Lynch and if you are familiar with his work you will be more than shocked by this unforgettable true story about a 73-year old man who travels 260 miles on his John Deere lawnmower to see… well we best not give away any spoilers. Unfortunately it isn’t available on Blu-ray but DVD will be just fine and be sure to invite the entire family.

Now to prove the leading man doesn’t have to be up in years for the movie to be a keeper we highly recommend Saint Ralph. This isn’t a true story but it’s seriously touching and funny at the same time. Ralph is 14 and not a saint as one of the funnier scenes in recent memory shows all too well. Again only available on DVD and combined with The Straight Story you have one of the best double features I can think of.

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Here are a few of our favorite captured images for a variety of reasons. In most cases you can’t learn a lot by viewing them but for some unknown reason people enjoy looking at them. So here you go. We would share with you all the technical details involved in creating and capturing them but that would simply spoil the magic of The Prestige.

Band of Brothers [Blu-ray]

Since Saving Private Ryan isn’t available on Blu-ray we’ll have to recommend another military related experience to salute our heroes in uniform. Which in this case is easy since the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers will more than do the job. The 10 episodes along with interviews of surviving veterans will bring alive their dedication to our country and the sacrifices it all too often brings.

You’ll follow Easy Company from boot camp through the end of the war. Including stops at D-Day and Battle of the Bulge but what really makes the series engulfing is the realism of Bad Company as they encounter the war on a daily basis.

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Amazon has a sale through May 30th that gives you a $125 discount on two already on sale Samsung Blu-ray players the BD-P1600 ($249) and BD-P3600 ($349). How bad is the catch? Not that bad at all actually. You simply have to purchase four Blu-ray Warner titles. They are priced great and you have a selection of over 150 titles.

Since we think the BD-P1600 is a nice player you can’t lose. The BD-P3600 is generally only worth upgrading to if you need wireless access for streaming. The BD-P3600 does offer 7.1 analog audio output and additional streaming features although as implemented neither are worth to get excited over.

Click Here to Claim Your Discount

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OPPO BDP-83 Blu-ray Disc Player with SACD & DVD-Audio

If the above photo looks familiar there is more than likely a very good reason. We have too many OPPO BDP-83s in-house and you probably saw the same image on eBay. Now we could have returned the surplus to OPPO and they will even pay for the return shipping but we know many enthusiasts can’t wait to get their hands on one. Frankly from the time we have spent with the BDP-83 we don’t blame them.

Now before you get too upset with us our price is $100 less than the only other current listing and after we pay the various fees associated with selling the player the price seems rather fair. Certainly the player is worth it but of course if you can wait until the general release and or initial backorders you’ll save some money.

Rumor has it we may be giving one away for next month’s Contest so if yours hasn’t shipped by then be sure to check back and see if it’s true. Now back to the player itself. Instead of giving you endless information we’ll tell you it’s a killer player and simply list a few reasons why.

• Superior build quality
• Fantastic back-lit remote
• Plays DVD-Audio and SACD discs
• Uses Anchor Bay’s Video Reference Series technology which provides the best DVD upscaling and de-interlacing.
• 7.1-channel analog output configurable for size, distance and trim
• It’s PS3 fast!
• HDMI cable
• Spears & Munsil High-Definition Benchmark Blu-ray Edition (calibration disc)

Of course it comes with the other players’ features including Profile 2 and bitstreams or decodes all HD audio formats. The only thing missing is Internet based streaming like Pandora and Netflix. If you can live without streaming and willing to spent a little more you’ll be rewarded with everything we listed. Currently none of the other players offer any of the above so your choice should be pretty easy.

Order Your OPPO BDP-83 from Amazon

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Yesterday in the mail I received advertising from Comcast, DirecTV and AT&T U-verse all claiming to offer the best service for the lowest price. Now it’s not unusual to receive one or two offers a day but when it hit three I was impressed by how much they missed me and wanted me back, the large sums of money they were willing to offer in rebates and the amount of equipment they were willing to offer and install for free.

For some unknown reason I always have to study each offer with a fine tooth comb searching for the true meaning of each asterisk. Sure it takes some time but I eventually figure out exactly why they aren’t the best service or even the lowest price. At least for my current needs. Outside of AT&T’s relatively new U-verse service I have used all of them for an extended period of time. Certainly long enough to know what I’d be in for should I decide to go in their direction.

For starters I don’t do movies on TV except for the extremely rare ocassion. Blu-ray was invented to enjoy movies and if it’s worth two hours of my time I’ll enjoy it all I can. Also outside of a few exceptions I don’t do SD on TV. Since HD was invented there really isn’t any reason to.

Outside of the Super Bowl I never watch anything live. I simply can’t sit through commercials as they too easily inform you just how boring what you are watching really is! I tend to instantly drift into something else if a commercial comes on and seldom make it back. Also who in their right mind is going take an hour to watch an hour show when it’s only 45 minutes tops.

I have been using TiVo for going on 10 years along with several other DVRs. Right now I use a TiVo HD for over-the-air channels. I also have a Dish VIP722. Which tells you exactly why all of the other providers want me back.

I currently subscribe to Dish Network for one simple reason. At the time I signed up they offered an all HD package. I refuse to pay for untold SD channels I won’t watch even if they are free. I also believe HD is a replacement for SD not a premium service. As such I feel you shouldn’t have to pay more to receive HD channels if they are available in SD and vice-versa.

I even believe it strongly enough that for a while all I was left with was OTA channels when Comcast took over my local cable company and my HD only package no longer fell through the cracks. With Dish Network I have HD Absolute (no longer offered) and it’s pretty much what the name suggests. If it was available in HD outside of the premium movie channels you got it. For some silly reason they throw in a few SD channels but I never remember which ones since I never watch them.

Which means for $29.95 a month you get every HD channel you’ll watch or at least the channels I want to watch. Oh and they charge $5.95 a month for the VIP722 HD DVR which isn’t TiVo but does have a few redeeming values. I have had this package for a year now and so far so good. There hasn’t been any new HD channels I care about. My biggest worry is what will happen when my two year contract runs out… will I be back to OTA only with my TiVo or will any of the companies realize TV is now HD. Quit trying to sell it as a separate package and offer it at a reasonable price. Currently they are only making Hulu, VUDU and everyone else that will replace them happen sooner rather than later.

Now if you have read all the way down to here or were somehow smart enough to skip over the above I’m going to list a few items that just might help in dealing with the companies in question. At least they have for me.

• DirecTV has the most HD channels and in most cases the best HD picture
• DirecTV will give you a service credit for virtually any reason
• Dish Network will never give you a service credit regardless of  the valid reason
• AT&T U-verse started out virtually featureless and is slowly catching up
• With FiOS you can’t go wrong
• Almost every company will pay all or a good portion of your contract cancellation fee to get you to switch services

We can only cover a limited number of topics and items so we like to highlight items readers have discovered by themselves and recently purchased. Many are great finds and just might be what you are looking for the moment you see it.

Sony BRAVIA V-Series KDL-46V5100 46-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV, Black

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