Engadget HD Podcast 112 - 11.21.2008
By Trent Wolbe 
posted Nov 21st 2008 11:00AM
posted Nov 21st 2008 11:00AM
We're coming at you a few days late this week, but we promise we weren't slacking off -- Ben took a trip to Microsoft to get the lowdown on Media Center initiatives, which he shares on this show. During his trip, he saw the DirecTV HDPC-20 in action alongside a smorgasbord of other gear, some identifiable and some not so much. Speaking of Microsoft, we talk about the Xbox Experience and the appearance of HD Netflix's Watch Instantly titles -- the selection isn't great yet, but the quality is there. This move really gives Xbox 360 a leg up on the competition, and Microsoft's Shane Kim (no relation to Steve, by the way) crowed about that this week; and our readers seemed to agree with him in this week's Ask Engadget feature. DISH will let you add USB storage to its ViP211 DVR for a "mere" $40, which while pricey is still better than a stick in the eye. And that's exactly what the newspaper editor who claims he can't see an improvement in Blu-ray picture quality must have caught, in our opinion. We admit that even price cuts may not be making Blu-ray decks fly off the shelves, but picture quality isn't a valid reason to hold off on the purchase. Apparently, people don't feel that being "bound" to physical media is a reason to nix Blu-ray, either, as this week's MOTO (master of the obvious) survey finds that people actually prefer discs to streaming. That's good news for Oppo's rumored BDP-83 Blu-ray player; but even if it decodes every format under the sun, a pricetag upwards of $400 might put a damper on things. Netflix has officially declared the format war is over, and will stop carrying HD DVDs in mid-December. No week would be complete without mention of VUDU, this time the rack-mountable XL2 version gets mention on the podcast. LCD prices are definitely in a free-fall, but we wonder what they would be if not for the price fixing that LG and Sharp admitted to. No such luck for those hoping to join club KURO, however, as Pioneer's rebranding of Black Friday as "KURO Friday" rings utterly hollow.Get the podcast
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Hosts: Ben Drawbaugh and Steve Kim
Producer: Trent Wolbe
01:10 - Comments from Engadget HD Podcast 111 - 11.12.2008
12:16 - The Media Center DirecTV HDPC-20 caught in action
22:10 - Xbox Experience now available to all who signed up, Netflix HD streams too
25:05 - Microsoft exec touts HD streaming over discs, suggests Xbox 360 will outlast PS3
28:09 - Ask Engadget HD: Best gaming / movie console: Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3?
29:49 - DISH Network (finally) offers ViP211 DVR Upgrade option
31:46 - Editor ponders: Do you need a Blu-ray player?
36:16 - Blu-ray player price cuts not spurring huge sales... yet
38:05 - Research finds that people still heart physical discs, greatly prefer Blu-ray to streaming
39:55 - Oppo teases BDP-83 Blu-ray player, offers no vital information
42:31 - Netflix no longer carrying HD DVDs as of December 15th
44:03 - VUDU XL2 brings on-demand films to rack-mountable enclosure
47:04 - LG, Sharp plead guilty to LCD price-fixing, take $585m fine
48:58 - Pioneer rechristens Black Friday "KURO Friday," won't lower prices
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hey how do i add the AAC link to a podcast aggregater like itunes?
The Netflix HD content I sampled wasn't quite up to Vudu 4mbps HD (and nowhere close to HDX) but I think my cable connection tops out at 5/6 mbps. Netflix streaming seem to scale quality down if you don't have 100% headroom on bandwidth, which is a shame. I did find a few cool movies in the selection however. The TV selection is also slightly better than Vudu. Should be a competitive market going forward.
hey guys pass the tardy sauce
That bit about the Microsoft exec's house was pure ear candy. Especially the 32 amps bit. O_O
Can't wait for the post, Ben!
Dear Ben & Steve, but more Ben,
This refers to the round table discussion show and how Ben made the point regarding does anyone on the show have audio systems worth more than their displays?
The crickets were heard and it very much disturbed me because how can anyone claim to be a Home Theater or HD enthusiast when they regard sound so low on the scale?
How can HD and the HD movie experience not go hand in hand? The two are equally important to the HD experience and especially the HD movie experience.
Good sound quality matters, it doesn't have to be top notch, but it does have to be good and affects the Home Theater experience tremendoulsy... period.
A good solid receiver and a good center channel and beefy subwoofer are required. I currently use Yamaha, Klipsch RC-64 and SVS, respectively and never once have I regretted the money spent. I don;t have the tree in the backyard with $50's and $100's, but I did buy over the years the best of the middle area that I could afford, with a sprinkle of lower upper.
After that the front mains are next important and then the rear surrounds... which don't have to be all that great, just good.
What good is having a big HD screen with SD cloudy sound? It makes no sense to me.
Here's another thing to keep in mind, that audio system will be working just fine in 15 years... where will that HD display be in 15 years?
Don't skimp on the audio... specifically the speakers. They're the one thing that will keep on ticking regardless of what happens to the video.
Pay as much for speakers as you can afford because after that the only thing you have to ever change is the receiver, if you ever feel like it.
Thanks,
Steve Jr.
PS: Is anyone else seeing the cursor and this text box overlap on the right side with the ads and menus? Is it just me? Am I the only one typing across the list of Manufacturers right now?
SteveJr --
I'd agree... to a point. In the roundtable, Ben also mentioned that I was probably the only one whose "investment" in audio came close to the video. I myself use a Rotel receiver and ACI speakers, and like you, have never regretted the money spent -- all said and done, probably coming in around $3k. But the money spent to put together what I consider to be very good sound isn't really close to the cost to get the same relative level of visual quality, especially when you factor in that the receiver does a lot of video lifting, it's pretty easy to spend that kind of money on a display+disc player+DVR.
I'm totally with you on getting decent quality sound, however. But in the market today, especially with internet-only audio gear manufacturers (no internet-only display manufacturers yet), you can get really good sound for relatively little money. And yes, it's money well spent, especially when you probably won't change audio equipment nearly as often as still-evolving video tech.
Steve K., I hear you... and all I can say is that people don't know what they are missing until they are shown (and hear) what they are missing.
When anyone auditions my setup they don't leave the same way they walked in. The funny thing is that size does matter because they see and hear everything and they think it's great, which at one time it was... but now the TV (a 61 inch Sammy DLP) is 5 years old and 720p and only 1,000:1 contrast... obsolete by today's specs, but that audio never chnages... that SVS subwoofer will punch you in the chest just like it did 5 years ago and will continue to punch people in the chest 5 years from now regardless how much the video changes.
You simply can't beat big speakers with big magnets producing clean big clear solid sound... Bose and those little cubes... paw-leeze!!!
I have a funny story about that, a guy I know has a Bose Acousticmass system and he came here and left in tears. Sound waves are sound waves and the physics of them can't be chnaged... you can try to fool your ears, but you ears will tell you you're the fool when you hear an audio system with big towers allowing the frequencies to be produced the way they were produced when the tracks were created in the first place. I personally consider the audio and the video on the same level and all rolled into the High Definition bundle. There is a difference between Surround Sound and Home Theater audio. The Bose Acousticmass systems are surround sound systems, but they are not even remotely Home Theater capable.
You mention $3K for audio gear... sounds reasonable to me. I just did some quick math on my stuff... speakers alone $5,000... receiver Yamaha RX-V2400 $1,100. You know, that would be a good poll question... how much for the gear we all have... one for audio then one for video or one for just the whole damn setup.
Hey Ben,
The PS3 does support SACD, so no additional benefit for the Oppo in that regard. HD DVD users on Netflix probably get their discs faster then the Bluray folks.