To Randall Smith,

I have to ask how you’d stack the JL Audio Fathom f113 up against the Aerial Acoustics SW12, which is one the best subwoofers I’ve heard. I noticed that your mains were Aerial 10T speakers. Thanks.

Kevin

I have only heard the Aerial SW12 a couple of times and both opportunities were last year. The first time I heard the Aerial sub, it was in the Aerial suite at CES. It was part of the System One configuration, which is as unique an offering as you will find from any speaker company. I was lucky enough to experience this system in the presence of Michael Kelly, the much-respected owner of Aerial Acoustics. In this setup there were two SW12s up front and one in the rear. As you can imagine, it was amazing. The bass was powerful and clean, leaving nothing to be desired despite the untreated room inside of the Mirage. I have described the JL Audio f113 with exactly the same words, but since I haven’t had the SW12 in my home, a true comparison isn’t possible. Based on my knowledge of both subs, I would say that the f113 has more output capability and the advantage of the A.R.O. calibration system. From there I believe the sound quality from both subs is among the best available. Aerial builds incredible products, and the SW12 is one of the true reference subs available. New, it will run you around $5000 depending on the finish. The f113 is a lot less expensive ($3200) and you get the same level of quality, both in build and in sound. Try to hear the F113 for yourself and let me know what you think….Randall Smith

Monster vs. APC

January 5, 2007

To Randall Smith,

I read your review of the APC H15 and found it to be very useful and informative. When comparing units, I found a Monster three-stage filter for about $170, half the price of the H15. I was wondering what you thought. Is this a case of getting what you pay for? Could the the APC at $340 be that much better then the Monster 3600 I'm looking at?

Greg Blesie

I am glad you found the APC H15 review useful. I enjoyed the few months H15 was in my system; it truly made a positive difference, and I recommend it to people who are looking for an inexpensive way to filter power and protect their systems. I haven’t, however, had the opportunity to use the Monster 3600, so I cannot compare it to the H15. I read the specs, and the two units seem to be very comparable. The Monster 3600 is more expensive, but if you can get it for $170 new, what do you have to lose? Good luck with whatever you do. I think either will deliver on their promised improvements….Randall Smith

HDMI for her Vizio?

January 3, 2007

To Wes Marshall,

I just read your explanation "The Truth About HDMI, DVI-D, and the Oppo Digital OPDV971H DVD Player."

The writer had purchased a Vizio 50" plasma. I just purchased a Vizio 42" LCD. I find (so far) the picture and sound to be excellent. The DirecTV installer mentioned when he left that an HDMI cable would improve the clarity even more. I think I understood your explanation of keeping the signal source through the chain. However, I’m not using a DVD player. I was just going to use the HDMI cable from the TV to the receiver.

I’m willing to try this, just to see if there is improvement, but I’m hard-pressed to understand the pricing. I’ve seen prices from $3.99 to $399 online, and explanations as to why this is. But, it’s getting so you don’t know what to believe. And, I didn’t realize I was going to have to look at whether M-M, M-F, F-M, etc., was something to look at. I just want to try a mere 3’ cable to connect the TV to the receiver and see the difference for myself. Is that so hard to ask someone, and get a straight answer?

Since you seemed to have perused the Vizio manual already, I thought you might have a "yea" or "nay," and cable type.

Thanks for all you techies out there that "get it."

Linda

The DirecTV installer is correct, you will see a better picture with HDMI. However, there have been a number of reports of HDMI not working on HD DirecTV boxes (mine included), so you should get a cable from some place that will accept returns.

That being said, I believe that HDMI is far superior to component. So here’s the scoop for your display.

Vizio makes four different 42" plasmas, the P42, VP42, L42 and GV42L. The first two have the older 1024x768 panels, which make them tough to find a standard when it comes to resolution. The last two use the newer 1366x768 panels. Note that any of these will require the incoming signal to be scaled, since the DirecTV box only gives you the choice of 420, 540, 720 and 1080. That defeats one of the purposes of an HDMI cable, since the ultimate fidelity is gained from using pixel-to-pixel mapping. What all this means is this: Your plasma can deliver a fine picture, even if you use component cables. In your case, adding HDMI means less clutter (one cable vs. four) and the ability to maintain a full-bandwidth digital signal from source to display.

Regarding the price of cables, I am appalled at the crazy pricing you see on what is essentially a digital cable. If we were talking about wires for a low-output moving coil cartridge, I would understand spending some big bucks, but HDMI should either work or not work. Not working will show up in dropouts on both video and audio. Otherwise, it works.

Personally, I use the cables from Better Cables ($69.95 for one meter) and Accell ($29.99 for 1 meter). I can’t think of any recommendable cables for less than the Accell. Both Better Cables and Accell are best found online.

Finally, I would recommend buying a setup DVD (AVIA, Sound and Vision, or Video Essentials) and use it to set up the main categories of contrast, brightness, color, hue and sharpness. Vizio is notorious for getting these settings wrong at the factory, so 20 minutes with a setup disc will improve your picture more than changing the cables.