AVRant Home Theater Podcast

AVRant #135: Grammar Sith

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 22:15:25 +0000

Dina is back (yea!) but not for long (boo!). Things will go back to normal next month, however, so we’ve all got something to look forward to. Tom’s dad is getting a new sub and Tom is jealous (looks like the price went up since Tom’s dad ordered). Yamaha has a new HTiB receiver out [...]

BenQ Extended Warrenty Offer

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 23:54:12 +0000

OK guys, if any of you have or are thinking of picking up the BenQ JoyBee GP1 projector, they sent me a warrenty extension for AV Rant listeners. See the text from the email below. Hi Tom, We are offering free 2 years extended warranty for you and AVRant listeners! This is our way to say [...]

AVRant #134: Stoning

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 21:27:03 +0000

Guest co-host number 2 is Andy and he joins Tom this week. They tackle a number of issues this week including the complexity of electronics and how that will affect the sales staff of tomorrow, game lag and displays, and using professional monitors instead of home theater speakers. Ted wants to know if little metal [...]

AVRant #133: Speakover

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 00:23:43 +0000

Dina’s back and of course the first thing on the menu is Rob. A bunch of stuff about video games including XBox rumors and the Halo killer. LG has a 15″ OLED coming out. HDMI 1.4 Ethernet poll is discussed along with a new acquisition for Amazon. The brightening of speakers - good, bad, or [...]

Best Browser?

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 16:07:17 +0000

TG Daily did some testing on Internet browsers after Apple claimed that Safari was the best. Very interesting results. Of course, I can’t use Firefox 3 because it doesn’t play nice with the interface for posting to Audioholics and I can’t use Internet Explorer 8 because it crashes one of the programs I use to [...]

New poll

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 22:55:52 +0000

If you don’t know what I’m talking about in the HDMI poll, read this informative article. At the very least, HDMI 1.4 didn’t increase the already uber high bandwidth requirements with this release. Just understand that the 3D/4k they are talking about is running at something like 30 frames per second (or lower) as per [...]

AVRant #132: More Microsoft?

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 22:19:30 +0000

Our first guest Co-host makes his debut this week. Rob H is from Canada but we don’t hold that against him (no matter how he spells color). This week we talk about the new Harman Kardon BDP 1 Blu-ray player, how NAD hates Tom, and about the AV123 forum non-reopening. Glen has a question about [...]

BenQ Joybee GP1 Review

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 15:10:39 +0000

Loyal AV Rant listeners/readers will know that I got one of the BenQ Joybee GP1 projectors a while back in for review. It’s a small, portable projector designed for images up to 80″. Sure 80″ is the max but I’m not exactly about taking it easy on a projector am I? The Joybee GP1 comes [...]

AVRant #131: Going to the Movies

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 00:52:47 +0000

There is no video this week because ooVoo hates us. I can’t believe we’re paying for this service. We’ll try one more week and if we can’t figure it out, it’s gone. Tom and Dina both went to the movies (not together). He saw Star Trek and Dina saw Up in 3D. Both report. Why [...]

Bing goes Plop

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 14:41:21 +0000

Bing, if you don’t know, is Microsoft’s new search engine. The point? To compete with Google of course. Their own engine (Live Search) is used just long enough for people to homepage Google or install a search bar before it is ditched forever more. I’ve often thought that one of Google’s main modus operandi is [...]

AVRant #130: SCSCISISCSSSSsssss

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Thu, 28 May 2009 22:43:56 +0000

Clint’s in for Dina this week. We’ve got another unbelievable deal this week, check it out. A few listener questions including one about audition music, one about line level inputs on a sub, and a third about the new SVS EQ. Update on the contest. An evaluation of the PS3 by Tom (where he says [...]

AVRant #129: AV Phone Sex

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Thu, 21 May 2009 20:03:53 +0000

Dina makes weird noises. A couple of listener questions - what’s that RS-232 port for and in-ceiling speakers. AMX implicated in industrial espionage. New AV Rant contest discussed. Dina’s financial plan - Gold? Naw! Belkin customer services gets a thumbs up. Tom’s big weekend. Will Tom see Star Trek? Hopefully. Altona Tech AT-HD570 - the [...]

Want to Be Internet Famous?

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Sat, 16 May 2009 01:02:46 +0000

Join me on AV Rant! Dina is going to be in and out for the next few months as summer tends to be hectic for her. That means I’ll be needing some help from time to time. Clint obviously is up to the task but I wanted to give a few of you a chance. [...]

Pocket Projector from BenQ Coming to AV Rant

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Thu, 14 May 2009 23:32:16 +0000

No sooner do I order some blackout curtains for my HT than I get an email from BenQ about a pocket projector. Do I want a review unit? Yes I do! The Joybee GP1 is on the way. It’s only SVGA 4:3 native but should be fun for parties. Look for a review in the [...]

AVRant #128: Tom’s Going to Jail

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Thu, 14 May 2009 19:38:45 +0000

Clint fills in for Dina this week. Look for a new contest of sorts on the website on Friday. Tom got his PS3 (yea!) and a new Xbox (double yea!) on the same day (mind-blowingly yea!). First impressions of the PS3 - smug. That’s right, he said it. A few comments from the Midwest. A [...]

AVRant #127: Midwest Love

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Thu, 07 May 2009 19:51:21 +0000

Two years of AV Rant and Dina still hasn’t killed Tom? He must be doing something wrong. If you missed the Q&A last week, stick around, we’ll have some more in the future. Got some old HD DVDs you’d like to trade in for Blu-rays? Red2Blu is the answer. Can you get an honest opinion [...]

PS3 On The Way!

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Thu, 07 May 2009 18:07:07 +0000

Thanks to some very enterprising and generous listeners, I’m now the proud owner (as soon as it gets here) of a PS3. Thanks to all that chipped in and helped out (especially Rob). Now, let the suggestions fly as to what you’d like to see done with the PS3 - games to play, movies to [...]

Watch Hulu from Any Country

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Tue, 05 May 2009 15:22:12 +0000

I’m so tired of all these people bitch’n and complain’n about not having access to Hulu. Well, finally someone has both figured it out AND had the balls to post it. Over at NewTeeVee they did just that. I have no idea if it works or not but it must, it’s on the Internet right? [...]

Lost Netflix access on XBox 360?

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Mon, 04 May 2009 17:01:02 +0000

Here’s what may have happened - If you haven’t used it in as little as a week (according to the tech support rep I spoke to), it can “lose sync” or reset. You’ll get a “service temporarily unavailable” message. This happened to me when I sent my XBox in for repair. You can call Netflix [...]

Live Q&A with Tom

info@avrant.com (Tom Andry, Clint DeBoer) — Fri, 01 May 2009 13:23:53 +0000

Got a question and you don’t want to wait for the next podcast? Maybe you just need some clarification on something? Here’s your chance. Tom’s feeling guilty about the no podcast this week thing so he’s dusting off that Ustream account and signing in around 12 noon eastern for some Q&A. The way it works [...]