04/30/2008
My first iPod
Just bought mu first iPod. The girls in the house all have the new style shuffle, but I have'nt had one :(
Even Nathan my boy has my wife's old stick type shuffle. He's mad keen on Primeval, so he has it as an Anomaly detector!
Anyway, it arrived yesterday. It's a beautiful piece of kit. Even the packaging is a work of art. So well thought out. I plugged it into my PC and had an issue straight away, I'm running XP 64 pro and iTunes has an issue with that OS, so I was'nt too surprised when the connection kept dropping. I did a search on GOOGLE and found that when I did a quick rebuild all the problems went away.
So it sinced up very quickly, I downloaded some YouTube videos (with the help of an FLV converter) and added my iTunes library, of about 6000 songs and it's not even scratched the 80GB!
The sound is phenomenal, the videos look stunning, the whole interface is more like a mini PC than an MP3.
The plan now is to hook it up to a Marantz IS201 docking station. This can take the audio and video signal to your amp for navigation on your screen via remote. i've got it on order, so just waiting.
09:48 Posted in Home Cinema | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this
04/09/2008
Finally got my Blu Ray
I've been pulling so much overtime at work, and still am, that I thought I'd splash out and take the plunge and buy a Blu Ray player.
Everyone who's been looking at the HD war will know by now that HD-DVD has lost it's battle against Blu-Ray, which is why you can pick the players and discs up so cheaply now.
Blu Ray on the other hand remains a tad expensive.
The player I bought, due to overwhelming feedback and advice was the Sony Playstation 3:
By farawaypictures at 2008-04-09
Because I'd bought my Marantz amp last month I was able to have this and my DVD connected via HDMI to my screen, because of course you can't watch an HD signal without an HD lead.
The PS3 is a superb piece of kit. It's reasurringly heavy. I added some higher rubber feet on mine to give better airflow, as it does warm up pretty quickly. I bought it with the Turismo prologue game. It's a stunning game, really showing off HD gaming. The controller connects via USB, that is until the pad has been charged, then you can put the lead away and play wirelessley. Talking of wireless, it also connects to your broadband to update it's firmware, log onto the net or go shopping at the PS3 store where you can download demo's etc.
Because I bought this primarily as a Blu Ray player I had to buy the seperate remote too:
By farawaypictures, shot with H 25 at 2008-04-09
It's a bluetooth device, so no IR and thus my Phillips Pronto can't learn the codes, so i'm stuck with an extra remote. Not a particularly big deal for such great HD entertainment.
As mentioned the discs are a bit pricey, for now, but allready some places are doing 3 for 2 deals. So I bought a few, amongst those Ratatouille and Surfs Up. Watched these and was thrilled at the detail of the image. I believe the Marantz has a lot to say in this quality, as it's really improved the image of my Denon DVD player too.
What I would say though is that you have to pick your discs for this player. Unless it's a new film with big effects and CGI I expect my DVD will give just as good an image, but for digital animation like those mentioned it's unbeatable on Blu Ray.
Next stop, a new iPod I think.
10:00 Posted in Home Cinema | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this
03/11/2008
Vince Gill: These Days
I bought this recently after seeing the amazing line up of talent Vince was dueting with. It's a 4 disc album and features the likes of: Rodney Crowell, Diana Krall, Guy Clark, Gretchen Wilson, LeAnn Rimes, Bonnie Raitt, Sheryl Crow, Trisha Yearwood, Alison Krauss, Phil Everly, Lee Ann Womack, and Emmylou Harris.
An incredible line up singing alongside the man known as the `Ambassador Of Country'.
I've listened to it once, and gone back to a few songs to check I had'nt missed something.
Some of the guest artists are amongst my favourites, so why does Vince relegate them to the role of backing singers?
Unless it had actually stated who he was 'dueting' with I would'nt have even realised it was a duet.
You want to know how to have a duet with Alison krauss? listen to Brad Paisley: Whiskey Luulaby. You want to know how to duet with Leann Rimes,listen to Brian McFadden & Rimes's Everybody's Someone. etc etc.
Such a shame. Even though Vince has a great voice it does feel as though he's not willing to share the lead with anyone else.
Rated 3 out of 5
11:15 Posted in Music | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this
03/03/2008
The Last Amp You'll Ever Need
I worked so much overtime last month I thought I'd treat myself to a new Amp.
Richer Sounds had a superb THX rated Receiver on sale, was £900, now only £600. When i rang the only silver one left was down to £550, so I bought it.
Marantz SR7001
It's a beast of a machine! Here's the full spec:
| Remote Control | Is an Infra-red remote control included? | Yes |
| Pro-Logic/pro-Logic 2/pro-Logic 2x | Analogue surround sound system - for TV and video. Pro-Logic 2 features stereo effect rears, whilst Pro-Logic 2x can output in 6.1 or 7.1 | Yes/Yes/Yes |
| 5.1/6.1/7.1 | The number of channels. 5.1 is the basic standard. 6.1 adds a rear centre. 7.1 adds side effect speakers. | 7.1 |
| Dts/dts-Es | Digital Theatre System - a rival to Dolby Digital. DTS-ES is a 6.1 format that offers a rear centre speaker. | Yes/Yes |
| Thx Select 2/thx Ultra 2 | Is it THX Certified? A specification requirement from Lucus Studios of Star Wars fame. THX Select 2 is the required standard for small/medium sized rooms, THX Ultra 2 is for larger rooms. | Yes/No |
| Video Inputs | Inputs for visual sources - DVD, video etc - on rear of unit. | 4 |
| Audio Inputs | Inputs for hi-fi sources - CD, aux etc - on rear of unit | 6 |
| Built-In Tuner | Built-in analogue or digital radio? | FM/AM |
| Coaxial Outputs | Number of coaxial digital outputs to loop digital information through. | 1 |
| Coaxial Inputs | Number of coaxial digital inputs to input digital sources such as DVD player | 3 |
| Optical Outputs | Number of optical digital outputs to loop digital sources through. | 1 |
| Optical Inputs | Number of optical digital inputs to input digital sources such as DVD players | 3 |
| Sub Out | Does it have a seperate connection for subwoofer | Yes |
| 6-Channel Input | Does it have a 5.1 analogue input? - uses 6 RCA phono sockets | Yes |
| Power Rating (Wpc) | Maximum power output per channel - RMS into 8 ohms | 110 x 7 |
| Hdmi Interface | Is HDMI included? HDMI offers the highest quality, digital connection. The number given relates to the number of HDMI inputs fitted - a single output is standard unless otherwise stated. | Yes - 4 |
I set it up on Saturday night, and was pulling my hair out. I got the sound down first time. It actually comes with a microphone that will set it all up for you, just put the mic where you like to listen and click Auto. I went for the manual set-up though, which i'm more familiar with. Just tell it the size of the speaker, how far away from you it is and then adjust the test tone.
It was the picture that through me. I had connected it up with some Scorpion HDMI cables, a superb power buy from AV Talk, and was getting sound but no picture. After countless attempts at trying different things i gave up and went to bed. i tried again in the morning and finally got it. The DVD had to be set up for HDMI component.
Anyway, watched Stardust last night with the THX setting on and it's fantastic. I've never owned a bit of THX kit before, but it really does make a difference.
Next stop now is Blu-Ray, and despite the cheapish stand alone players now the only way to go it seems is with the Playstation 3. So, roll on next month.
12:00 Posted in Home Cinema | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this
02/14/2008
Stephen Chow
Probably most people with any interest in the martial art genre wil know of Chow. BUT. This is one guy who's worth watching if you have any interest in film, especially action/comedy.
I bought Kung Fu Hustle a while ago last year. A superb film that has so much comedy in it that genuinely appeals to a wider audiance than just the original Asian.
From Amazon:
Stephen Chow's follow-up to SHAOLIN SOCCER ups the over-the-top action quotient by about three zillion percent. The story is set in 1930s Hong Kong, with Chow as a shaggy-haired, would-be bad guy named Sing, who gets caught up in the middle of a war between the top-hat-wearing Axe gang and the hard scrabble inhabitants of Pig Sty Alley. Chow who wrote, produced, and directed doesn't step in as the star here for quite a while, letting the comic duties fly in a myriad of directions: a landlady in curlers (Yuen Qiu) has a yell that can flatten buildings; people get kicked across courtyards and through walls; musician assassins whip ghost sabres from lyre strings, and a mental patient in pink flip-flops named 'the Beast' (Leung Siu Lung) catches bullets in his fingers. Buoyed by SOCCER's box office success, HUSTLE uses bigger production values and a dizzying amount of CGI-enhanced martial arts (imagine Bruce Lee vs. Bugs Bunny in THE MATRIX). It's full of references to other films and filmmakers, revering spaghetti westerns and '70s Shaw brothers movies a la Tarantino's KILL BILL (fight choreographer Yuen Woo-Ping worked on both films). It also pays sly homage to the works of Wong Kar Wai, D.W. Griffith, Sam Raimi, Jean-Luc Godard, Stanley Kubrick, and Akira Kurosawa. Raymond Wong's inspired score matches each cinematic reference with the appropriate cue as the camera circles and swoops around the sprawling sets. This is a real treat, more than a great action film or comedy, it's a great film period, and one that set box office records in the East.
I recently bought Shaloin Soccer, I'd heard it was a poorer film than Hustle but, instead found it even funnier as Chow takes his particular type of OTT action effects into the world of football.
Again, from Amazon:
Computer generated special effects have seldom been so giddy as in Shaolin Soccer, a gleeful fusion of kung fu and a classic Bad News Bears sports story. A former soccer star--whose "golden leg" was broken by a hired mob--assembles a team of former students of Shaolin martial arts, whose assorted skills (indicated by their nicknames, like Mighty Steel Leg and Iron Head) lend themselves to the swift interplay of the world's most popular game. Along the way, the team's leader (Hong Kong comic superstar Stephen Chow) meets a sticky bun baker (Vicki Zhao) whose kung fu is the equal of any of his teammates. Shaolin Soccer is supremely silly--in the final match, their opponents are called Team Evil--but that's part of the fun. American movies rarely achieve this perfect balance of the absurd and the sincere. A delight. --Bret Fetzer
Both films are well worth a look, more so, they need to be watched, these are great comedies full of action and wonderful characters. they easily stand up to repeat watching, SS has been watched in our house 3 times in the 2 days since I bought it!
And if you get the bug for Chow's work, then your in luck, as he has a brand new film coming soon: CJ7
12:08 Posted in Home Cinema | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this