3 Blunders That Can Ruin Your Home Theater Experience

By: Kyle Kolbe
Submitted: 2007-01-17 16:23:11
Print this article | Tell a friend | For publisher | Social Bookmarking
Rating:
 

Whenever I'm tweaking and calibrating my home theater and music system well into the night I get stupid. The late night sessions always end with me thinking I've done the best I can and I've set everything correctly. The next morning and into subsequent viewing and listening sessions I retain the confidence in my skills and blame any oddities or failings of the system on bad software and limited hardware. On closer inspection I find that carefully coaxed dials and user menus have not retained their sweet spots.

Some recent blunders:

* My Panasonic S97 HDMI DVD Player forgets its picture settings after a power cycle: In my second to last screen calibration I set the DVD player's sharpness to a perfect, edge halo free -4. Unfortunately I didn't save this setting into a custom user memory and the next time I watched a movie the S97 defaulted back to 0. This glitch led me to complain about Pirates of the Caribbean and Akira. After my last calibration, Akira looks great, with little to no halos. As a consequence, I now obsessively check the sharpness setting before every movie.

* Bypassing the benefit of the Onkyo TX-DS989 AV receiver's DAC: While setting up my Airport Express's digital optical audio connection to my receiver, I thought I would get the best sound by using the Onkyo's Direct Mode (it bypasses as much digital processing as it can). What I really wanted was the Stereo mode. In Stereo the Onkyo can employ its DAC's 192kHz/24 bit upsampling and jitter reduction circuits. Oops. I'll have to listen to my Apple Lossless tracks critically again.

* Subwoofer Level and Crossover: Toddlers, aren't they precious? Toddler_o_Geek likes to squeeze into the corners of the house and hide. One of these corners is where my Hsu Research VTF-2 subwoofer sits. Every once in a while my daughter will sneak behind it and play with the crossover and volume knobs. After having to recalibrate the settings twice, I took a picture so I could set it back without the aid of a Radio Shack SPL meter.

Except for the subwoofer, I can only blame myself and my lack of sleep. I promise to get more sleep and double check all my dials before any critical viewing and listening sessions when I intend on reporting on my results.

If you want to avoid such stupid blunders yourself, I find writing down all your custom settings and reviewing them in the morning helps.

Father, Husband and Geek. My geeky interests have not changed since I was a kid. I still love comic books, anime, role-playing games, console video games, indie rock, imported toys and mecha models, bad American and great British sitcoms, and all the tech that let’s me experience these hobbies to their fullest. Now that I’m married with children, I’ve had to strike a balance between supporting and pleasing my family and feeding my geekery hunger. Lucky for me, my wife is very accomodating and even geeks out with me on occasion (the ladies love Joss Whedon’s "Firefly"). My two year old likes anything that moves on the front projection screen and makes noise, so far she is easy to please. Geekwithfamily.com exists to enrich the lives of fellow geeks and the friends and family who put up with them.

Article source: Expert Articles

Most Recent Articles in Home Audio Video category

  • MP3 Players - Offer great & varied ways to stay connected with music - By: Nitin Batra
    MP3 Player is a device to play audio file. This device support specific audio format. MP3 is a formate that is supported by this player. It is a compressed version of audio format.
  • Are You Seriously Thinking About Installing Your Own Home Theater? - By: Scott Armstrong
    The home theater market in Dallas, Texas can get cofusing, let Home Theatre Dallas help you navigate the waters.
  • What consumers need to do before the digital switch on February 17, 2009 - By: Tony Luna
    On February 17, 2009 all full-power broadcast television stations in the United States will stop broadcasting on analog airwaves and begin broadcasting only on digital. This article will help you determine what you need to do to prepare yourself for the upcoming digital switch.
  • Touch screen DVD Players - By: Orson Dixon
    With many touch screen DVD players available in the market, it may be quite a challenge to choose which player suits your needs the most.
  • The Perfect Paint Job Requires Perfect Planning - By: Virginia Wherland
    You may have heard that the bulk of a paint job, is not in the painting itself, but in the preparation to paint. While this is the case, it's important to note that a solid preparation before painting will also increase your chances of a more successful and professional looking paint job. So, do not overlook the important steps involved in painting preparation. Well thought out preparation will make the job hassle-free and look as good as possible.
  • The Hype and Noise about DVD - By: Sandra Prior
    Video CDs have been around for a while, but the quality they delivered was poor. The high capacity of DVD, on the other hand, allows for really great image quality - much better than VHS - along with cinema quality sound.
  • Preparing to Install Your Home Theater System - By: Vic Metten
    So getting that new HDTV and Hi-Definition DVD player sure has you excited. Now that your home and everything is unboxed and sitting around you on the floor, you see the 50 or so colored jacks staring at you, saying, "Plug me in!" Yes, connecting your Home Theater system can be a daunting task, especially if you don't know what should be hooked up for best quality.
  • Brand Name TV Stands - Guaranteed Excellent Quality - By: Antonio Gabellone
    For high quality material, choose brand name TV stands. Your entertainment system will be safe and secure, considering the durability of these television stands. Choosing a brand name TV stand will surely be worth your time and money.
  • LCD Versus Plasma - Which One is Best? - By: Leon Drell
    A new television is high on everyone's wish list. Who wouldn't love a brand new fifty-inch flat screen TV hanging on their living room wall? These days, the battle between LCD and plasma is on, and choosing sides can be hard. Which one should you purchase?
  • The Basics of Plasma Televisions - By: Leon Drell
    Are you thinking about buying a plasma television for your home? As you may already know, Plasma televisions are becoming increasingly popular as of late, as the prices of Plasma Televisions are becoming more and more affordable each passing year. Plasma televisions can provide excellent viewing experience, and are perfect for those who want to enjoy a high quality home theater.