Hello world!
I’m baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack! Yes, it HAS been a year since I posted. I’ve finally gotten around to importing my blog into my website, instead of having a separate blog on Wordpress. There is a lot to talk about! I just attended a Denon CI (custom installer) training today for their newest receivers and learned a lot about the newest features and some features that I didn’t know existed. We covered a lot about HDMI as well. HDMI is not as simple as you think people! It is not just another cable! I would say that the difference between the composite cable (the one with the yellow head) and HDMI is like the difference between a Volkswagen Bug and a Maserati. Both will get you somewhere, but when you look under the hood you will see a world of difference. And more is coming with the addition of 3D. Let the fun begin!
More from EHX
From March 11th to the 14th I was at the Electronic House Expo in Orlando, FL. I did shoot off a quick update along the way and haven’t had a chance to fill out that update since after four days off I had to hit the ground running when I went back to work. Just want to hit some highlights.
On the 11th and 12th I was attending the Imaging Science Foundation certification class. The Imaging Science Foundation or ISF, as it is more commonly known, “is dedicated to improving the quality of electronic imaging.” What the heck does that mean? It means a better picture on the TV you just bought, a picture that has details in the dark and light areas, richer and more accurate coolers, more accurate resolution, a just better picture. Did you know:
- That when you expand the picture past the edges of the screen you loose resolution? It’s called overscan, and it wipes out the 1080p you paid money for.
- That a calibrated display uses less energy. The class demonstration showed a 50% drop in energy usage on the demo TV.
- That calibration can extend the life of your display as well as ease eye strain for the viewer? That bright, over-driven picture is not only ruining your viewing, it is also like driving your car with the throttle wide open all the time. Not good.
- That TV’s come miscalibrated, some grossly so, out of the box? They are set up for the showroom floor, and the brightness and contrast are cranked to catch your eye in the store, not to make your movies look like the director intended.
Hey, it’s a two day class. How much can I cover here? Go to ImagingScience.com and check it out. But as the digital age comes upon us you realize it’s not your Grandmas TV anymore.
And don’t forget HDMI, BluRay, HDCP, DRM, HD, servers, streaming video, ATSC and the end of analog TV…….. in June!
Happy viewing!
Quick Update
I’ve been at EHX most of this week, the Electronic House Expo in Orlando, Fl, taking training classes and checking out new STUFF! Have I got some interesting, cool to me, things to share when I get back to the keyboard. Better pictures is what video is all about. Do you have a 1080p flat panel or projector? Are you really getting 1080p on the screen? I bet not. Tell you why…later. Happy watching!
The remote control is your connection to your home entertainment experience. If your remote doesn’t work right, if it is difficult to use or understand, then your entertainment experience suffers. Very likely, you are frustrated by the system, and you use the system less often. Listening or watching under those conditions just isn’t enjoyable anymore.
So what constitutes a good remote control? That depends on your system. If you are just controlling a satellite or cable box, and the TV, then you can get by with a lot less than if your system also includes DVD, surround sound, game controllers, CD players, Ipods, AppleTV, or other media storage systems. A programmable, learning remote is essential for such a system. What is a programmable, learning remote you ask? Well, most of the less expensive remotes you see in big box stores have code sets for equipment pre-loaded into them for a wide range of equipment. Your know the drill, turn on the equipment, push buttons until it goes off, store the codes, now your remote controls that TV, DVD, etc. You get the pre-programmed codes, in a pre-configured layout, with very little customization. It’s a universal remote, but whose definition of “universal”?
A learning, programmable, remote allows you not only to edit buttons, create strings of commands, “macros”,to control multiple pieces of equipment, allows you to save, configure and edit “macros”, but also gives you the ability to “learn” codes from other remotes. If there is a code on the original remote that is not in the database, then the learning remote has the ability to capture and “learn” that code from the original remote for future use. That is a life-saving feature, let me tell you.
Professional installation is also important, unless you are very confident that you can learn the programming yourself.Not everyone is that confident or ambitious however, they just want things to work.
There are some remotes on the market that program as a download form the manufacturers servers, and all you have to do is list the components that make up your system. For a do-it-yourselfer, this is a great option as long as you don’t require much customization.
But programming a remote control is much more than loading a bunch of codes into a remote and shooting them at equipment. Some equipment you have is difficult to control. The equipment doesn’t have “discrete” codes, which are codes that are specific to a function, like “power on” instead of a toggle command like “power” or “standby”. When a device that is “on” receives a “power on” command, nothing happens, it is already “on”. If it receives a “power” command, a toggle command, it moves to the opposite state, on to off, off to on. When controlling multiple components it is easy to get out of sync, especially if someone turns something manually on or off. An experienced programmer has access to code-sets the average person may not, and knows “work-arounds” that let you accomplish the same action in a different manner. There are also intelligent IR systems that can “route” the commands based on the ability to sense the status/state of the equipment.
So having the correct remote control as well as someone to program it, is essential to your home entertainment well-being! Talk to an installer or integrator and use their recommendations. If they can demo a remote for you, even better, since the proof is in the pudding. Either way, their experience and knowledge will serve you well.
Happy Watching!
Just finished up a project that was a little more of a challenge than I thought it was going to be, but it was a great learning experience as well. Actually, I bid (7) hours of labor and it took closer to twenty-seven. It happens. You try to learn for the next time.
Many, probably most, custom installers shy away from existing systems, especially older ones. They can be difficult to work on and with, and the owner doesn’t always understand the limitations of older equipment. The old adage “you touch it, you own it” keeps a lot of people from delving into existing systems. “It worked before you got here” is one of the most dreaded phrases to assault the ears of an installer, sort of like garlic, stakes and mirrors to vampires. We tend to shriek and recoil in horror at the words, and the pain they cause keeps us away just like the aforementioned items and the undead. Seventeen years later the words carry the same power, maybe forever. Yeah, I go with forever.
This is the reason custom installers get the bad rap for saying “just rip it out and start over.” We would rather die on the sword of our own equipment if we have to, but the fact is that we know what we install, and we are confident that we can make the equipment do what we want it to do. That isn’t necessarily the case with your existing equipment. The older the equipment, the more difficult it is to integrate into a system. The older the equipment, the less likely it is to have infrared control, especially for power. I have come across older CD and cassette players that only have a manual “on” button, and while this can be made to work, it added one more element of difficulty. It all depends on the existing equipment and its capabilities. AV equipment ages like dogs, only one year is like a decade or something. I’ve heard the words, “It’s only nine years old” and cringed. Do you KNOW how much has changed in electronics in NINE years!
Never fear, you don’t have to trash everything you own and buy new.{Unless you want to. 
} Just be aware and remember that your older equipment will have limitations. Some things will have to be upgraded regardless. Your system may have a shorter lifespan if you asked it to work harder to support additional loads. It may not be as easy to control as you thought it would. And remember that everything has a lifespan, no matter how well it used to work. So put your stakes away, and let your installer work their magic to get you up and running. Happy listening!
One day Cavegirl comes in from shopping, stops and says, “What is that cluttering up my cave?”
Caveboy answers, smiling hopefully, “It’s fire. It’s the latest thing. Everyone has one. It will do all sorts of cool things. I really like to sit and stare at it.”
“It’s taking up all the space in here,” Cavegirl says, “and it smells bad. What is all that black stuff? What is this over in the corner?”
“That’s wood. It’s what runs the fire. You just have to put more on now and then so it doesn’t go out. Here, I’ll show you how.”
“I don’t want to touch it! Can’t you stack that somewhere else? Like the back of the cave?”
Caveboy frowns. “But it won’t be easy to get to from my rock. Let me show you how to run it, it’s easy.”
“Never mind,” she says, holding up a hand. “And get that wood out of my cave!”
And so begins the divide. I’m sure the chimney was invented because someone’s wife said, “Can’t we just get the fire out of the middle of the room?” That’s where we men would have left it, with steak bones and candy wrappers laying around. Men don’t mind seeing wires everywhere, and big honking speakers, and seventeen remotes. We can work with it, why can’t you?
Peace in our time begins with integrating the equipment into the décor, hiding it and the speakers too, as much as possible. It has to be easy to use, with only one remote, though men have to hold it. It’s a security thing. (Off topic: Why can’t I surf during the commercials? But I digress.)
Why do men and women have such differing views of technology and of audio/video equipment in particular? Why the distrust of speakers and large TV’s? Why don’t women like movies where things blow up? …. I digress again.
I really am interested in this topic, because my job is to sell women the equipment their husbands want and that they are going to use. I want to get it right for everyone. It’s an important issue, well worth figuring out, especially before the Super Bowl. Let’s talk high-def, resolution, amperage, wattage, crossovers, HDMI, DRM, DLP, LCD, (all men commence the chest pounding here), stealth speakers, hidden equipment, one remote solutions, IPod docks, and easy-listening playlists.
When is something going to blow up?!!!!!!
Welcome
to the blog of Gordon’s Light and Sound. This is the place to discuss the latest in home technology. Gordon will share his expertise and give reviews. Shelly ( Gordon’s wife and office manager) will throw in her 2 cents occasionally to represent the girls.
We’re happy you stopped by.
