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Q What is the ideal ratio of the screen size to the distance between
the audience and the screen? In other words, if my couch is 10 feet from the
screen, what is the ideal diagonal of the screen?
A The ratio I see most often quoted is the seating distance should be
about 1.5 x the width of the screen. For your situation, that means a screen of
about 6 to 7 feet wide. Note that refers to the projection part of the screen,
not the projection part plus the black border.
T
Q Do most remotes work through glass doors? Does it
matter if the glass is clear or smokey?
A Yes, remotes work through
glass doors, but there will be a bit of sensitivity decrease, especially if they
are smokey glass. If you have a problem, you can get an IR repeater setup that
lets you put the sensor outside the cabinet, and then you connect as many IR
repeaters as you need, up to 6, to the sensor. The repeaters have long wires
that let you stick the repeater on the front of each component's IR receiver
area. Then, no matter where the component is, behind glass, inside a closed
wooden cabinet, around a corner, or whatever, as long as you can see the sensor
with the remote, it will work. I guess we should write a little article on how
to do this. It makes having several components whose IR receivers are at odd
angles to the sitting position a lot easier to work with remote controls.
T
Q I just read your equipment
selection choice on the C5 Corvette. Very nice. The equipment in my
Mercedes E430 is about 90% the same. Instead of the Dynaudio speakers, I'm using
Focal Speakers. However, I wanted to ask you when were the Alpine 900 and the
PXA-H700 out? I have been desperately looking for these two units. I have the
C800, but I want to upgrade to the C900, and I have been waiting for a DD/DTS
car processor with this type of specification for a while, the PXA-H900 F1 is
just way out of performance/dollar.
A We often get equipment in
advance of it being available to the public, but you should contact the
respective companies' customer service lines to ask about specific availability,
especially since our readers are in about 80 countries around the world, and
products are released at different times in different countries.
T
Q I have a Denon 5700
receiver (140 w.p.c. X five) and would like to know if it would run the Dynaudio
Contour 1.8MKII speakers with it. I like the Dynaudios, but am unsure about the
amp.
A Those particular
speakers have a nominal impedance specification of 4 Ohms, but the minimum is
3.8 Ohms, while the max is 9.4 Ohms. I suspect you will be OK with the Denon,
but don't crank it up too loud. Probably somewhere around 10 o'clock on the
volume control will be about the limit.
T
Q I have tried to find both the Panasonic
RP82 and XP30 that ranked among the top choices in the "Shoot Out". However,
both appear to be discontinued at the various retailers I check, both
brick-and-mortars stores and on line.
How can this be if both were so well reviewed?
I thought the XP-30 was new?
A When Secrets gives a
product a Secrets Recommended rating, they disappear from stores really fast.
Models change so quickly these days, that any one model number is not around
very long regardless of reviews.
T
Q We are setting up a home
theater in a room with a high vaulted ceiling. This ceiling has a lot of
reverberation. How can I solve this problem?
A It should be easy to do using sound absorption
panels that attach to walls and ceiling. The hard part may be convincing your
spouse to let you put those panels on the ceiling. You may be able to get away
by just using the panels on that part of the ceiling that is a reflection line
between the speakers and your sitting position. Go to some of the websites that
offer wall treatment panels. They usually have ideas on how to solve specific
room problems.
T
Q I recently purchased an Hitachi 57SWX20B and have
experienced a problem on totally black screens while viewing DVD movies. It
appears as if the previous image, such as film maker's logo, is burned into the
screen in blue when it disappears and the screen goes pure black. A technician
came out to see the problem, recognized it, and did a gray
calibration but this did not help. He suggested that I get a different DVD
player so I did, Panasonic XP-30 and Monster Cables for component input, but the
problem persists. There are also blue spots on transition scenes when the
background is black. Is this TV just a lemon? The only way I have found to rid
of this problem is to adjust the brightness down to a very low level.
A That Hitachi model uses CRTs for projection, and
I suspect your problem is related to blue phosphor persistence, which means the
blue CRT stays illuminated in areas too long. That could be due to too much
voltage on that CRT, but lowering it will throw off the color balance. Contact
the store where you bought it and explain the problem to them. It should be
covered under warranty. If it can't be fixed to your satisfaction, check out
another unit (same model number) in the store to see if it has that problem. If
it does not, then request a replacement. If it does have the same problem,
exchange it for a different model or brand that does not have the problem. That
is what warranties are for.
T
Q I purchased a Samsung HDTV STB as-is. It will
turn on by the remote but has no video output. I've checked the P/S and
everything, but it seems like the problem is with the microprocessor on the main
board (bad memory or something). I tried a BIOS update and that seemed to work
but still no output. It is just barely out of warranty. I've called the Samsung
service department, and they say repair costs $500! Seriously, because they have
to replace the main board they want more for repair than a new one costs! The
unit seems to be made to be non-repairable. All the chips are surface mount,
soldered in, and nothing can be easily replaced or unplugged for testing.
1. Isn't there any place that will repair these at a reasonable price?
2. Isn't it illegal to make something that can't be serviced?
A It is a sad fact that so many mass market
consumer products are cheaper to build than to repair now. It is because robots
build them, but people have to repair them by hand, and labor is very expensive.
When a product for sale is labeled "As Is", this nearly always means it has some
serious problems that you cannot ignore. If it only has a few scratches or other
blemishes, or simply was returned but still works fine, they just sell it as "B
Stock" without any "As Is" kind of limitations. They might label it as "Open
Box" products, on sale. Someone who buys an "As Is" item needs to be
prepared to have it repaired or repair it themselves. A teenager who buys an old
car "As Is" is someone who knows how to, and is actually looking forward to,
fixing the car. You may have to just chalk this one up to experience. I suspect
you did not pay much for it ($150) since new ones are not very expensive anyway.
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