On this installment of You Requested: TVs over the hearth — yay or nay? Sonos versus Amazon, Google, and Apple audio system. And can 3D TVs ever make a comeback?
TVs over fireplaces
Kartik Khanna writes: I’m shopping for an condominium the place the one place to mount a TV is over the hearth. I completely hate the thought of mounting an LG G3 over a fire, however I used to be questioning should you had any ideas in regards to the deserves of mounting it with a Mantle Mount to keep away from the inevitable neck pressure.
Ooh, I’ve ideas. And I’m completely satisfied to share them.
My stance on the entire TV-over-fireplace factor has developed a bit through the years. I wrote an article about this years in the past, and boy, did I get raked over the coals.
For many who don’t know, listed here are the three most important causes it’s a foul thought:
- It’s actually a ache within the neck. Should you can’t get the TV down nearer to eye stage, you’ll find yourself tilting your chin up simply sufficient that it could trigger long-term discomfort or ache within the neck.
- The viewing angle of many LCD TVs is such that even should you angle the TV down towards the place you sit, you’ll not get all the image high quality you paid for.
- In case your fire and residential aren’t correctly ventilated, the warmth and, generally, smoke may be dangerous to your TV, each within the brief time period and long run. Warmth and electronics do not combine.
Nonetheless, what consultants like me usually gloss over is that the area above the hearth usually is the one place you can match a TV within the room as a result of its structure. I don’t know what trendy residence builds are wanting like lately as a result of it’s been some time since I went residence buying, however for many years, it was extraordinarily frequent – particularly with so-called “nice room ideas” — to design the room so the one wall you possibly can place the TV on has a fire in the midst of it. Different partitions are too brief, or you possibly can’t place your seating throughout from any of the opposite areas. So, many individuals don’t have a selection apart from to have a devoted TV room or simply not have a TV in the principle room. These aren’t options.
Typically it’s worthwhile to mount your TV over the hearth, and if that’s the case for you, I might extremely advocate utilizing an articulating, drop-down wall mount like this one from MantelMount that allows you to deliver the TV down nearer to eye stage and has a sensor inbuilt to point if the TV is getting too sizzling. You may even get motorized variations of those mounts in order that while you flip in your TV, it simply drops down robotically. This fashion, you defend your neck, your eyes, and your funding.
MantelMount just isn’t the one sport on the town. there are different producers, like Sanus, for instance, that make mounts like this. However I’m a fan of MantelMount’s merchandise and provides them an enthusiastic thumbs up. We additionally advocate the MM700.
Sonos vs. Wi-Fi good audio system
The second query at the moment additionally comes from Kartik: Do you could have any ideas in regards to the deserves of including in-ceiling Sonos audio system versus simply spreading just a few Wi-Fi-based audio system (say, HomePod Minis, that are much less obtrusive) round the home? I actually like the thought of the previous, however merchandise like Sonos in-ceiling audio system are costly, plus a little bit unwieldy given the variety of amps wanted to unfold the audio system round the home. As you possibly can inform, I’m not an enormous audiophile, however I like the aesthetic benefit.
The very first thing I wish to name out is that Sonos in-ceiling audio system are simply passive in-ceiling audio system. You possibly can use any model of high quality in-ceiling audio system, and plenty of of them would price lower than the Sonos or Sonance model. Sonos in-ceiling audio system don’t have built-in amps or built-in Wi-Fi, which might make them so easy that you would simply set up them, run the Sonos app, and be carried out with it.
As you level out, you’ll must produce other Sonos tools. The Sonos amps are very handy as a result of they convey Sonos simplicity to the amplification you want, leading to fewer bins to purchase and set up. However getting these Sonos amps ramps up the price, too. That is true for any in-ceiling speaker setup. Should you’re fortunate, speaker wires for in-ceiling or in-wall audio system have been run all through the home and routed again to 1 central location when the home was constructed, so all you need to do is set up the in-ceiling audio system the place they should go after which set up the Sonos and amp stuff within the closet and get all of it linked. That sounds easy, however it’s sort of concerned, and admittedly, I might advocate an installer try this work.
Nonetheless, in case you are making an attempt to retrofit a home that didn’t have that CL3 in-wall-rated wire run when it was constructed, you positively want an installer, and also you’re an much more costly proposition.
Utilizing Wi-Fi-enabled good audio system is probably not as stealthy as having in-ceiling or in-wall audio system, however they’re a far cheaper solution to get sound distributed all through a house. As a bonus, they’ll really sound a bit higher in some circumstances. You possibly can purchase Sonos Period 100 audio system, or you would get any variety of audio system that help Amazon Alexa or Google Dwelling and nonetheless have a distributed audio system that works awesomely.
The place it will get trickier is integrating your TV sound with these unbiased good audio system. In order for you your audio system to not simply deal with music and podcasts and such, but additionally to play again what you’re watching in your TV, that’s going to be lots simpler with a Sonos setup than will probably be with Amazon, Google, or Apple good audio system, although it can be carried out.
Anyway, for price and comfort’s sake, I like to recommend utilizing sensible good audio system. If you’re actually into the thought of doing the in-ceiling factor, by all means, go for it. However I might advocate hiring a professional and being ready to crack open your pockets a bit wider. It may be price it to you should you’ll be within the residence for a very long time. However should you assume you’re going transfer any time quickly, don’t assume you’re including to the worth of the house by doing an elaborate system. These built-in methods usually go unused or are ripped out by new homeowners, in accordance with installers I speak to.
3D TV
Tom Swift from Waterford, Eire asks: Together with your huge connections within the digital world and, specifically, TVs, might you inform me if there are producers anyplace on the planet that also make 3D OLEDs? I heard they have been nice, however too costly on the time for me to purchase, however I feel it will be my final TV.
I’m afraid the dangerous information is that this: So far as I’m conscious, no one is making a 3D OLED, or another 3D TV, for that matter.
I perceive that some people actually loved their 3D TVs at residence. In truth, I do know of some people who received’t improve their present TV as a result of they’ll lose 3D performance in the event that they do. Nonetheless, 3D was a large failure for TV producers. It was too costly to do at prime quality, or the cheaper, low-quality implementation upset viewers.
Again once I began reviewing TVs, you bought lively shutter glasses that will shut off your imaginative and prescient in a single eye whereas passing gentle via the opposite eye — this triggered flicker and dimmed the TV, lots just like the black body insertion on TVs does now. It wasn’t nice. Plus, these 3D glasses both ate batteries for breakfast or wanted fixed recharging.
The opposite concern with 3D was that the film’s decision was basically lower in half as a result of the TV needed to present alternating frames to realize the 3D impact.
Anyway, TV manufacturers are conscious that some die-hard 3D followers are on the market, however they aren’t returning to the previous methods. So till glasses-free 3D may be carried out on a budget and produced at scale, I’m afraid we’ll have to order 3D as a deal with we get on the cinema. I’m sorry I don’t have higher information on that entrance, however whether it is any comfort, you might be removed from being the primary or solely individual to deliver this up.
Speaker dropout
Scott Baker writes: My new Sony 77 A95L linked to a Nakamichi Dragon soundbar will intermittently change back-and-forth from exterior speaker (Nakamichi) to inner TV audio system. Any solution to repair this within the settings? There is no such thing as a software program “change” within the sound settings menu to pick out “exterior solely.” Is that this a bug?
Yeah, Scott, that sucks, and I’m sorry for that irritating state of affairs. First off, within the A95L menu, if you choose the Settings cog on the distant, then the Settings cog icon within the upper-right of the display screen, then scroll all the way down to audio output, it’s best to be capable of choose both “TV audio system” or “audio system.”
In case you have “audio system” chosen and you might be getting dropouts, it’s as a result of the TV is seeing the audio system disappear. Now, is that the TV’s concern, or is it the Nakamichi’s concern? Or is it an HDMI cable concern? I might purchase a high-quality, ultra-high-speed HDMI cable and remove it as a possible wrongdoer as a result of any sign points because of the cable might trigger the issue you’re describing. Nakamichi has advised me that sure cables have triggered points when used with sure supply parts. For instance, utilizing a Zeskit cable apparently causes points with a Sony TV, particularly when a PlayStation 5 console is concerned. I’ve additionally been advised that Belkin’s extremely high-speed HDMI cable is greatest to be used with an Apple TV.
Anyway, should you substitute the cable with an ultra-high-speed cable as I recommend and it retains taking place, effectively, then, we have to determine if it is a Sony A95L concern — and it may very well be as a result of I’ve had some handshake issues with the TV. This jogs my memory: make sure that your A95L is operating the newest software program replace. That might additionally repair the issue.
However, it is also that the Nakamichi is dropping its handshake as effectively, which might be a problem for Nakamichi to repair. Nakamich says it’s gathering as a lot data as it could from clients and utilizing that to construct a database from which it could conduct additional testing. Sadly, although, eARC and ARC are identified to be buggy.
Samsung S89C
KevinB writes: I’ve just a few questions in regards to the Samsung 77-inch S89C. It appears to be an S90C, however is barely bought at Greatest Purchase. I actually can’t discover the distinction between these TVs.
I’m so glad this query got here in. I knew this might be a problem, and right here it’s.
Most tech journalists who cowl TVs felt just like the S89C didn’t make a ton of sense and, worse, would create lots of confusion. So right here’s the deal on the S89C.
The S89C is a QD-OLED TV that’s just about indistinguishable from the Samsung S90C. It has all the identical {hardware} and options because the S90C. It’s only a Greatest Purchase-exclusive mannequin. If I needed to guess, I might say that Samsung needed to create a distinct mannequin quantity and SKU in order that Greatest Purchase might low cost the TV additional than different retailers are allowed to do. However, once more, that’s simply an informed guess. Samsung has not supplied any concrete details about the S89C apart from to substantiate its existence as a QD-OLED TV in its lineup that’s unique to Greatest Purchase.
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