A History of DIRECTV

Possibly typically the most popular satellite provider within the U . s . States, DIRECTV® includes a lengthy and impressive history under its belt. So, who is DIRECTV? And just how did they reach where they're today?

DIRECTV - The First Years

Satellite as you may know it today really began in 1984, when Hughes Electronics acquired FCC approval to construct and manage a direct broadcast satellite system, or DBS. The satellite DIRECTV-1 was released on December 17, 1993 as well as in 1994, Hughes Electronics founded DIRECTV and opened the very first United States offering of DBS service. Frequently known as the "minidish", this new satellite dish was substantially more compact than customers were utilised to - roughly 18 inches across - plus much more workable than individuals large, cumbersome TVRO satellite dishes from your past.

Together with its sleek little look, the minidish introduced customers a different way of receiving satellite tv transmissions. Older TVRO dish systems were analog only and according to open standards equipment. Minidish systems however, were digital, offering clearer audio and video, and were operated on the closed system that needed special reception equipment. TVRO systems were also mobile, an essential feature to enable them to get transmissions from multiple satellite systems, while minidish systems are stationary and received all their programming in one specific satellite. In August of 1994, DIRECTV released its second satellite, DIRECTV-2 and boasted a million customers in the finish of the season.

DIRECTV - Full Steam Ahead

In 1995, DIRECTV approved Toshiba and Uniden to start manufacturing DBS systems. Carrying out to 0 million in advertising, DIRECTV ready for the expected customer growth and released their third satellite, DIRECTV-3 in This summer.

In 1997, DIRECTV released DIRECTV-6 as well as in 1998, with more than 4 million customers, DIRECTV Satellite joined into a contract to buy its partner, US Satellite Broadcasting for more than .3 billion in stocks and funds. The merger provided DIRECTV clients with use of USSB's premier movie broadcasting, growing funnel selection from 185 to 210. In This summer, DIRECTV invested 0 million in XM satellite radio.

1999 introduced much more growth when DIRECTV acquired Primestar, Corporation. as well as their 2.3 million customers. Included in the transaction, DIRECTV inherited Primestar's satellite assets - particularly, 11 transponders and 2 satellites - providing them with high-powered DBS wavelengths to supply full dental coverage plans from the continental U . s . States. Additionally towards the Primestar acquisition, DIRECTV released a brand new satellite that belongs to them, DIRECTV-1R on October tenth.

By 2001, DIRECTV Satellite had acquired over ten million customers as well as in October, introduced it's intention to merge with it's prime competitor, EchoStar Communications, parents company of DISH Network. In November, DIRECTV became a member of with Music Choice and Wink Communications to announce a brand new interactive music commerce service that will allow customers to buy a Compact disc from the song these were hearing directly through their handheld remote control. This 24/7 feature was released in September of 2002.

The merger with EchoStar's DISH Network fell through in 2003 and then that very same year, Vehicle offered their controlling interest of Hughes Electronics to News Corporation. 2003 also saw the development of a brand new high-definition video recorder from DIRECTV and TiVo in addition to a second-generation model via a partnership with Philips. It was even the second year consecutively that DIRECTV was named #one in customer support by JD Forces &lifier Affiliates.

On November 11, 2003, DIRECTV loved its 12 millionth customer milestone.

DIRECTV - Today

Today, DIRECTV offers plan to a lot more than 14 million customers within the continental US along with the a million plus customers in Latin America. It continues to be top ranking consumer satellite provider and is constantly on the expand its choices through high-definition and special interest packages for example National football league SUNDAY TICKET and TOTAL CHOICE® Mobile programming.

Exactly what does the long run hold for DIRECTV?

With four new satellites expected through the finish of 2007 and exclusive Digital recording device sneak previews of high-ranking premium broadcasting, DIRECTV is constantly on the push the envelope and expand the phrase satellite tv entertainment. What's going to be next for DIRECTV?

If history offers any clue, it's certain to be large!

Building a Recording Studio

Studio Considerations

The magic of the recording studio has often mystified even the most seasoned professionals. With all the knobs, switches and buttons on various gear and large format consoles, no wonder confusion sets in to most non-techies. Many people, especially artists, composers, producers, and engineers, will end up putting together their own studio for writing and pre-production, with some eventually deciding to take the plunge and create a full-fledged recording complex that is capable of recording major albums. This article will try to shed some light on the considerations to take into account when making a studio, be it a small home studio or a professional recording studio.

Is size important? Some may say it is so but this is not always the case. The dimensions of the studio are very important. A room too large may become over-reverberant or full of unwanted echoes. A room too small may sound tight and unnatural. It is important that the room size and room sound is relevant to the type of music you are recording. You don't want to go into a very small tight room to record BIG rock drums. Although, big room sounds can be achieved by adding external reverb effects to simulate rooms at a later time when necessary.

It is best to find the room that suits the sound you are trying to achieve from the beginning of the recording process. The smaller the room, the smaller and tighter the sound will be; this is not necessarily a bad thing. Small tight rooms can be good for vocals, guitars and percussion if you are going for a tight clean sound. Larger rooms have more air for the sound to travel in, so it will be in fact a bigger more open sound. The sound has a longer travel time for the sound wave to move, therefore the reflection from the walls will take longer to bounce back creating a bigger more spacious sound. The decision of size and sound has to be made early on before the recording starts. One advantage that a larger room will have is the ability to be scaled down by closing up the room using modular baffles or gobos (go betweens). Gobos are structures that are partitions, that help to block sound by placing them in between the musicians, instruments, and microphones. Placing the gobos around the microphone at a close distance will help a large room with too much ambiance sound smaller. This will eliminate the reflections coming off of the walls that are further away.

Small rooms can produce big heavy tight sounds with the absence of the decay from the reverb that is caused from big rooms. Sometimes a large room can sound like it's washed out, or far away. With a good engineer any room can sound amazing with a little adjusting. A poor sounding room can be manipulated to sound good, although it requires much more work and time. Deciding on the proper room size for your needs is critical to the sounds that get re-produced. This will highly dictate the type of sound the microphones will pick up.

Clapping your hands in a room can give a good representation of what a room will sound like. The reflection coming off the walls will be picked up by a simple hand clap. The true test is to try out some instruments or vocals and position them in various sections of the room until reaching the optimum sound quality. If one side of the room sounds bad try a different spot or move around into a corner until the sound is improved.

Experimenting with different sections of the room also keeps the sound fresh when recording many instruments. If the acoustic guitars are recorded in the center of the room, when the time comes to record the electric guitars you may try recording them in a corner of the room for a different room sound. This gives clarity on the final mix creating separation and providing more distinction on various sounds.

If you are starting your own studio, remember that the bigger the studio the higher amount the bills will be. The benefit is that larger studios can charge more for their studio rates.

Getting the Necessities

If you happen to reach that elite 2% and become that million dollar, hit selling, famous producer or artist (or if you just win the lotto), then you might eventually think about buying serious studio gear and setting up your own producer paradise.

Acquiring the proper equipment and labor is key to a great studio and successful recordings. Studio gear is expensive and the knowledge of those who use the gear does not come cheap. Hiring the right people can save money and time in the long run. Studio designers also are specialty breeds that can make or break your studio. Your buddy Joe the carpenter may be able to help build it for less, yet if the studio is not properly isolated for sound it is a great waste of time, energy and finances.

The studio engineer is also the focal point of the sound that is created. Having an experienced engineer involved in the process will make your sound have a character of its own. He is the extra set of ears that gives another dimension to your productions. He is also a critical consulting partner when building or choosing to rent a studio. Let the experts help you with advice, it will create less of a headache in the long run. The experienced engineer can fill you in on all the equipment needed for recording the music that is relevant to your world. He can also give some guidelines on how the studio should be setup before having to consult a designer. There is no room for guessing or assumption on these issues.

Check List: Part 1

When purchasing studio gear it is wise to research only what is absolutely essential for your style of music. If you're not recording live drums in your studio, there is no need to buy a plethora of microphones for them. By being patient and shopping around for the best prices, a mass amount of money can be saved in the end. When you save to 0 bucks on each piece of gear it really adds up in the end, and there is a ton of gear needed to put a proper studio together.

Below is a basic studio checklist that will be discussed in further detail in later articles. These are the essentials of modern day recordings and the tools that are most commonly used in the best studios around the world.

The Studio Gear Checklist:

Recording / Mixing Console

The engineer or producer operates the console that controls all of the levels for recording, playback and mixing.

This is the big board that has all the buttons, switches, knobs, faders which control the levels and signal routing for each instrument. This could be referred to as a board, console or mixer. The most common consoles in major studios are SSL (Solid State Logic) or Neve. The console is the most important piece of gear in the studio. It controls the overall operations of signal flow and sound manipulation. The console allows for each instrument to be on its own channel on the board. Each channel may then have effects inserted into its signal path to enhance the sound. A signal may also be routed to external gear for further manipulation. Anything that can be imagined, can be done. There are no rules for experimenting with sound. A signal can be sent to reverbs, delays, compressors, guitar amps, speakers in hallways for re-recording

Each channel strip on a decent console will contain: Faders, Preamps, Panning, Equalization, Filters, a Routing Matrix, AUX Sends and Returns, Dynamics, Muting, & Solo.

Other Features Of The Console: Inserts, Outputs, Monitoring, Automation, Fader Grouping, Bussing, Splitting...

Patchbay

Allows the studio to combine interconnectivity with all the equipment by using patch cables. The patchbay can be configured for each studio's specific equipment requirements. All of the outboard gear, console and recording devices inputs and outputs are hard wired to the patchbay. The Patchbays can be be analog or digital. The most common is the bantam TT cable configurations.

Check List Part 2:

Microphones Microphones pickup the initial sound source. The mic is the first source in the recording process receiving and converting the sound wave into electrical energy to be amplified, transmitted and recorded.

Preamps Amplifies the original signal coming from the mic or instrument. Gives initial control of the recording levels. Preamps are located on the console or as external outboard gear.

DI Boxes The Direct box is used mainly for instruments such as keys and bass to be compatible with mic inputs. The DI box transforms line levels of instruments to mic level for console and preamp inputs.

Compressors Helps to further control levels and dynamics coming from the preamp or console. Usually comes in rack mounted outboard gear or software plugins for DAWs. Compressors keep levels from peaking into distortion levels and help to bring lower levels louder.

FX Processors For special effects like adding space, dimension, pitch and time delays on signals and recorded tracks. Usually comes in rack mounted outboard gear or software plugins for DAWs. Multi-FX processors may have reverb, delay, flangers, EQ, compression and more all in one unit.

FX Pedals Small floor foot pedals originally designed for guitar FX processing. These pedals are created for distortion and special effects, which add space, dimension, pitch and time on guitars mainly, but are an inexpensive alternative used as outboard gear for other instruments.

DAW The Digital Audio Workstation is like an entire studio inside of a computer. Protools, Logic and Nuendo are just a few DAWs that provide a digital multi-track recorder, a virtual console, a wide variety of effects, editing, and sequencing(musical programming) possibilities. The DAW uses software, hardware and computers in combination to operate.

Check List: Part 3

Control Surface The control surface acts as a console that controls a DAW or external machine. The control surface usually has faders, knobs and buttons that are controlled by the computer connected to a DAW. This makes operating the DAW similar to analog operations by being able to put your hands on faders instead of clicking a mouse. Some control surfaces have all the same features as a console. The most common control surfaces are made by Digidesign.

Clocking Digital recorders use different clocking formats to operate properly. Digital units sample the sound to be replicated. Clocking refers to the amount of time in between samples taken for reproduction. If the digital clocking is off it will sound jittery or add noise to the sound in the analog to digital conversion. A quality clock will improve the sound. Some common digital clock sources can be found in products made by Prism, Rosendahl, DCS, and Aardsync to name a few. Some clocks have sync generators built in to lock up with other machines.

Sync Generator Generates tones to allow communication between machines so that several recording devices can be synchronized together and operate at the same speed. Clocking works with synchronization (sync) when analog and digital equipment is combined. Sync uses SMPTE, MTC (midi time code), Midi Clock, MMC (midi machine control) to allow recording on several DAWs and tape machines to be linked up together.

CD Recorder Records and plays back compact discs. Gives the ability to record stereo mixes and playback these mixes on other CD players. CD standard for consumer playback is a sample rate of 16 bit and a sampling rate of 44.1kHz. Sony, Tascam, Alesis, and Yamaha all make good studio CD recorders.

Tape Machines Recording machines that use analog or digital tape for recording and playback of music. Some purists in sound recording prefer the sound of analog tape. There are many digital tape machines used for recording both music and video.

Cabling Literally miles of various cabling could be needed for a single studio. Common cables in sound reproduction are XLR balanced mic cables and Unbalanced 1/4 inch instrument cables.

Monitors / Amps Speakers in the studio are referred to as Monitors. Powerful clean amps are needed to run monitors. Many monitors are self powered, which means that they have built in amplifiers. Monitors usually consist of high frequency tweeters, low frequency woofers and cabinets that contain the speakers and components.

Headphones / Distribution By using a set of earphones this allows communication between the control room and the studio, also allows pre-recorded tracks to be heard during the overdubbing process. Headphones are also referred to as cans.

Instruments / Keyboards / Drums / Guitars These are more of the tools of the craft. You may have all the best studio gear in the world, but if the instruments sound bad you are starting in the wrong place. Anything could be considered an instrument if it makes noise that could possibly be recorded on a record.

Amplifiers This is often referred to as an amp. Amps increase the amplitude or volume of electrical signals from sound waves. These are used in powering speakers. Guitar and Bass amps can be used for many other applications such as running a vocal or snare drum through them.

Microphone Stands A wide variety of sizes and styles are needed for a proper studio. The mic stand helps to get the microphone placed properly for the best sound quality possible.

Studio Furniture There are many types of racks and furniture designed to hold consoles and outboard gear. The interior decoration of the studio completely sets the vibe of the working environment.

Electricity

Nothing will work without electricity unless you're jamming at the local drum circles down on the beach. Electrical installation studio power is often overlooked. Studios will setup a "clean feed" that is a separate breaker from the rest of the general power that is being used for air conditioning, lighting and the basic necessities of the rest of the building. Have you ever plugged something in and heard that horrific buzzing sound coming from the speakers or guitar amp? This is usually due to bad electrical wiring, which causes ground noise. This is the first thing to listen for when going in to a studio session. A simple solution to the problem would be to use a simple ground lifter on the gear or lift the ground from a direct box which can also solve the problems. We will go into details later.

Isolated electrical circuits for each individual room are a must in a recording studio. The proper amount of amperage is also a must. Not enough amperage will surely cause your breakers to blow. Consult with an Electrician who is familiar with studio setups to insure that wiring and voltage is regulated and conforming with local codes.

Unregulated Power Supplies (UPS) should also be in place just in case there is a power failure. This will insure that valuable equipment will not blow up or cause a fire. If there is a case of a power outage the UPS will provide enough time to backup important computer files and safely turn off your equipment. Some studios will have complete generator systems in place to keep the studio running for the remainder of the session.

Improper lighting can also cause buzzing ground issues, especially fluorescent bulbs. Avoid using these in any studio. Dimmers can also cause many problems. The average household dimmers will surely put a damper into a clean sound. Make sure that professional grade dimmers are installed to avoid ground noise. Always listen carefully to signals being recorded before committing to a final take. There are a countless number of accounts that the engineer discovers electrical noise on takes during the mix process.

If you are serious about your studio, may I suggest balance power or a separated panel with neutral power conditioning. The evil problems of ground issues are a direct reflection of sources returning or looking for a different ground. Voltage potential between neutral and ground will certainly change your way of looking at things... for example, .5 volts between neutral and ground is the maximum allowance by UL code that electronics will operate optimally without potential induction issues. I would suggest having a meter installed to rate this. Logging this information and having a good rapport with the local electric company would not hurt at all.

Air Conditioning/HVAC

This is another very important area that is often not considered. Studio gear gets very hot. The lack of adequate cooling could result in equipment failure or damage. Blowing up equipment is no fun and it gets very expensive. Some recording studios have a separate Machine Room for computers, tape machines and power amps that is highly air-conditioned to keep everything cool. This also cuts down on the noise from the fans on such units, which can distract concentration from listening in detail in the control room. Having too much air conditioning could also result in moisture or condensation build-up that may also damage the gear. Water in general is bad for electronic gear.

The return air system is used to pull heat out of needed areas and also provides an air intake for the AC units. These are placed in key areas where there is a build-up of heat from the gear, for example near the console or in the machine room.

Separate Rooms: Control Room

Most studios have several isolated areas for recording, mixing, and production. Soundproofing is the main agenda when creating multiple rooms in a studio. To achieve this, the main objective is to make the rooms airtight. If air cannot leak in or out of a room, there will be less chance of sound leaking in or out as well.

Most pro studios have double doors that create a sound lock to help prevent noise leakage. They also have very thick double walls with interior air gaps to also help trap unwanted sound. The floors in the studio should also be floated which means they are lifted from the ground to help further prevent extra vibrations and leakage.

The first focus would be the Control Room where the mixing console and outboard gear are contained. This is where all of the recording and mixing is controlled, hence control room. The acoustics in this room should be designed for hearing the exact sound that is being recorded or mixed. The sound of the room should be as natural as possible for accurate representation of the original sound translated to the speakers in the room.

The first rule for an appropriate acoustically treated room is that there should be no parallel walls .If you were to clap your hands in a room with hard parallel walls you would here the sound bouncing back and forth, this is known as a flutter echo. This is neither good for recording or mixing. The trapping of unwanted bass is important for a room to sound great as well. Twenty five percent of the room should be assigned for bass traps for an adequate mixing room.

Separate Rooms: Live Rooms

The next focus of equal importance would be the Live Room where the music is recorded. This is where the musicians and vocalists perform on the microphones. Live rooms should have more versatility to be able to adapt to different recording situations. Wood floors for example are great for reflection of sound, which creates a brighter tone. If a warmer tone is wanted, one could simply place a rug on the floor. Many live rooms also have a great deal of glass to see between rooms for communication. This is also very reflective. Many studios use curtains to control the amount of reflections coming off glass or hard walls. Non-parallel walls are again needed to eliminate any flutter echoes.

Some studios also contain a vocal booth within the live room. This would be a smaller room designed for vocals. They may also be used for guitar amps and other instruments. There are no rules for what this can be used for; its main purpose is for additional isolation during the recording process. Glass doors or windows are used for visibility of the artists and those working in the control room.

Many elaborate studios may have multiple control rooms and production suites. Lounges and proper bathroom facilities are important in keeping the creativity flowing. A dining area and kitchen are also a consideration if budgets permit. Many hours are spent in the studio when working on projects. It is important to have all the comforts of home to keep everyone happy.

A few proper offices are necessary for the client to be able to have private internet access and to handle business without any distractions. All studios are designed differently. Whatever can be imagined can be created. There are no rules, only guidelines.

Acoustics

Sound is a wave, much like the ripples on a still body of water when a rock is dropped into it. The larger the wave, the lower the tone. Lower tones, known as bass frequencies, travel in wide long waves while higher tones known as treble frequencies travel in a tighter, shorter wave. Frequencies heard by the human ear range from 20Hz to 20K. Just as an indication, a piano's range, probably the widest range of any instrument, is from 39Hz on the low note and 3Khz on the high note.

Sound is measured in decibels also represented as dB. An average concert is about 95-100 dB while a heavy rock concert or hip hop concert could reach levels of 130dB. This is above the threshold of pain; so don't forget to wear your earplugs which are designed to protect your hearing when in extreme sound levels. Interestingly enough, whales can actually produce levels of up to 180dB. It should be remembered that taking care of your ears is the most important thing you can do to prevent damage and have a sustained career. So don't hang out with any whales and put some protection in your ears when exposed to loud volumes.

Absorption is the act of a sound wave being soaked up by a particular material. This is measured by co-efficient ratings. The higher the sound absorption co-efficient rating, the more sound that is being eliminated from troubled spots in your room. Different section of the room may require different co-efficient ratings. Remember that studios start off as an empty shell. Hard surfaces and walls need treatment to provide for a great sounding room. For example, 20 gauge theater curtains are commonly used in studios. They consist of a thick velvet material, which is excellent for absorbing high-end frequencies. The thinner materials soak up higher frequencies.

The thicker materials soak up lower frequencies. This is why thick bass traps are very large and contain ports or holes to trap low-end frequencies. The larger the port, the lower the frequency absorption.

There are endless amounts of products and designs that are used in the industry. Wall panels are also commonly used to absorb sound. These are made from a fiberglass product wrapped in a cloth material. Various sizes and thickness are used for problem frequencies. Again the thin materials eliminate high end and thicker materials absorb low end.

Reflection is the opposite of absorption. Think of the sound as a wave hitting a mirror and bouncing back. This can be used as an advantage for a brighter tone. If a room has too much absorption causing the room to sound too dead, hard surfaces such as wood panels can be placed in strategic locations to add a more live sound to the room.

Some studios have reversible hanging panels that can be flipped between reflective and absorptive to change the room sound at will. For vocals the room may need a more dead sounding absorptive room. Drums may require a more live sounding room. John Bonham, from Led Zeppelin had an amazingly huge live reflective drum sound. This became the goal for the big Rock drum sound.

Prince is underestimated as a drummer. He has a great tight drum sound on his first record where he played all of the instruments as well as the drums. The drums have just the opposite effect using absorption in a small tight room creating a very in your face heavy Pop drum sound.

These are not rules, only guidelines. Using your ears is always the key to getting the best sound.

Designing a studio is quite an undertaking to do professionally. Each room is completely separated and isolated from one another. The most common method is to actually build a room inside of a room. The inner walls do not touch the outer walls, which creates an air gap that traps sound. Each wall can be many feet thick and multiple layers of thick glass and doors divide the rooms.

The floors in each room are floated from the ground with spacers that also create an air space to lower vibrations and help to trap unwanted sound leakage. All floors have different characteristics in the way sound waves bounce off from their surfaces. While wood floors have a warm tone, concrete and tile have a brighter tone. This also holds true for walls.

A solid plan is needed to run cabling between rooms so that each room can be interconnected with each other for microphone signal lines and headphone communication systems. Custom made cable troughs or PVC tubing is used to send groups of microphone cables from a panel to the control room. From the control room the Headphone lines would be run through the walls for communication between all of the rooms.

Materials and Tools

Drywall is needed for walls. The more layers of drywall added will increase the thickness of the studio walls. By using varying thicknesses of drywall stacked and shifted, alternating at the seams will help minimize sound transmission between rooms. Many drywall screws and a good electric drill will definitely come in handy if you are building a studio.

Fabric is used for making wall panels and ceiling clouds that control the absorption in the studio. There are specific fabrics that are designed for different frequency absorption. Each thickness and texture has varying co-efficient ratings at multiple frequency bands.

AC Duct Board and other fiberglass products are wrapped in fabric with spray glue to create absorbing panels called Wall Boxes and Bass Traps. Thermal Fiber or Fiberglass Insulation is inserted in between two sets of walls and ceiling to create an additional thickness providing an alternate texture, containing fiberglass, which is superb for capturing sound.

Sand is also an excellent alternative choice for filling walls to prevent sound wave transmission. Wood provides the skeleton for frames that hold the panels and boxes. Larger Bass Traps with large ports could be made from wood or fiberglass. RPG panels are a series of wooden slats mathematically designed to absorb and refract, or soak up and scatter sound inside a room. Wood can also be used to create custom racks to hold the outboard gear, console and patchbay. Custom studios can be designed for any situation and style.

Doors, Walls and Windows

Doors and walls are the single most important item where recording studio sound bleed is concerned. A small 1/4inch air gap at the bottom threshold of a door will release 30% of the sound. Creating airtight rooms are the first step in sealing all the gaps for optimum sound proofing. The transitions between where the rooms are connected have more possibilities for sound leakage. All corners, gaps and frames for door and window cutaways must be sealed with a silicon or caulking material. Keep in mind that if air can escape through any passage then sound will surely go through as well.

Digital Dj'ing - Utilizing a Laptop or PC in your Mobile Disco

Many Mobile Discos have made the change from a conventional CD or Vinyl based system to a software based one, usually running on either a full sized pc or a laptop. The fundamentals of both systems are largely the same, and so you shouldn't simply be taken in by reading other DJs horror stories about how their laptop overheated during the first dance at a Wedding or how their full sized PCs power supply exploded halfway through a gig. There are pros and cons of using both systems, but largely whether to use a full size pc or a laptop comes down to personal choice, practicality, budget and space, and you'll often find that DJ's criticising the opposite machine, have never actually used the system that they are criticising!. If possible visit a DJ who already uses a system to that which you intend to use yourself, nothing can sell an idea better than actually seeing it in use!, for the record, I have watched Mobile DJ's use both PC's and Laptops to DJ from, and neither, in my opinion, was more reliable or better than the other, so it should only be personal choice, rather than rumour or scaremongering which makes the decision on that score!.

Is running a Mobile Disco from a PC or Laptop reliable?

Anybody who has ever encountered the windows blue screen of death, or worn out the Ctrl+alt+del keys on their keyboard will possibly dread the thought of using such a system as a platform to their DJ'ing!. In essence, a decent dedicated pc or laptop with a clean install, good quality hard drive and a reasonable amount of memory will out preform most typical home pc set ups which may be running several applications at a time, be infiltrated with virus or spyware traces, and have a hard drive and registry full of corrupt enteries and partly uninstalled files.

The key to running a successful software based DJ system, is to buy a dedicated pc / laptop for the task, and to only run the operating system and DJ Software on there, and never allow it to run other applications or even connect to the internet. This way the installation runs and remains clean and largely error free, will rarely have a corrupt file, and won't get infiltrated or bogged down with several other applications. This advice is given by DJ's who have been using software and PC's for many years, and have found this method of DJ'ing to be just as reliable as conventional DJ'ing from CD's.

The advantages of using a Laptop or Pc to DJ

The advantages of converting your material to music files and using a Pc or Laptop to DJ from are many. The first is the most obvious, gone are the days where you are carrying several heavy boxes of CD's around with you, most DJ's CD collections can easily be converted to MP3 and will fit onto a 80gb - 200gb hard drive!. By converting to Software Dj'ing you also rid yourself of that long search through several hundred CD compilations in order to find that elusive requested track that you just know that you have got somewhere!. With most DJ Software, you can type in part or all of the artistes name or song title and find it within seconds!. It really is possible to find and cue up a request within 5 seconds - something which just can't be done easily or quickly with a CD or vinyl collection.

Other advantages of a software based DJ system, include the possibility to create playlists from frequently used tracks, and you could create playlists from all genres, for example a playlist for background music, one for dance music, one for the 70s and one for the end of the night slowies. Of course you can also group the tracks together and catalog them according to Genre which also makes finding tracks from particular era's easier too. Some DJ Software will also allow you to group tracks together which have a similar BPM - a boon for DJ's who mix.

Which DJ Software should I choose?

There are many different brands and types of DJ Software about, again it comes down to personal preference which type you choose. It is always a very good idea to check out reviews and discussions on DJ Forums and if possible to find a DJ who uses a system based on the software which is of interest to you, so you can actually see it in action, in a disco environment.

Some DJ Software comes with a free trial, which enables you to download and install the software on your system and try it for for free for a time limited period (usually 10 - 30 days). Depending on the cost of the software, there can be differing features. Some Dj Software will simply allow you to cue up and play music using 2 "players", others will have more comprehensive features, such as being able to fade between tracks, alter the pitch and tempo controls in a similar manner to conventional CD and Vinyl turntables, some of the more expensive software will even allow you to mix, or add a USB controller which looks and functions like a twin cd controller!, some Software will even mix the tracks for you!.

Remember that a feature is only worthwhile if you have a use for it!. Carefully consider what features you need, and which will be the ones that you will have any use for. It would be pointless buying a Dj Software package which allows you to mix, if you are a mobile dj who rarely has the requirement to beat mix. Most Software in its basic form, also comes with the option to add and install plug ins which give you additional updates and features, so its worth starting with the basic packages and then adding new features if and when you require them!.

My advice at this stage, if you are new to, or considering Software Dj'ing is to download the free trials of the various software which is available, try them for the time limited period, and then buy the one which suits you, and which is the most comfortable to use.

Some dj software titles which are currently popular and well reviewed by Mobile DJ's include OTSDJ, DSSDJ and PCDJ

What type of PC do I need to run my DJ Software package

When you have decided on a software package, it is then time to consider what pc or laptop to use it on. Contrary to rumour, you don't need the latest brand new pc or laptop to successfully run DJ Software from, and neither do you need a huge CPU processor. Most DJ Software will happily run on a pentium 3 processor with 600mhz speed or higher, many of the newer 1.2ghz+ celerons will also flawlessly run DJ software with no problems and without breaking into a sweat. Try and buy as much memory as you can afford, ideally 512mb of memory or a minimum of 256mb for most applications.

How big should I be :o)

A decent sized hard drive is the next consideration. Remember the bigger the hard drive the more individual tracks that you can fit on there. An average music file ripped at 192kbps is around 5mb in size and so a 100gb hard drive should fit around 20,000 tracks on there. However if you increase the quality of the track in MP3 format, then the file size rises also, so a 320kpbs mp3 could be as large as 11mb in size and so the same 100gb capacity would be reduced to holding only around 9000 tracks. Don't forget to factor in space for your operating software, drivers and DJ software when working out hard drive capacity!. You can of course expand your hard drive capacity by fitting external hard drives to USB ports, and these are also reliable. If possible try and use a system which runs USB2.0 or even firewire since these run at faster data speeds than conventional USB1.1 although many Dj's report no issues with hard drives and soundcards run from older 1.1 systems.

Give me Sound!

Using a good quality soundcard is a must!, many laptops and motherboard based sound chips on full sized pc's rarely do justice to sound quality or are designed with full time high quality audio playback in mind. Consider installing a pci sound card in your pc, or investing in a good quality USB external soundcard if you opt to use a laptop. Most 2 channel soundcards will suffice for DJ'ing in most mobile applications, where the audio is mixed between the players on the laptop and the single output is then fed through a pair of "L" and "R" connectors on the soundcard, and then into the mixer or amplifier.

However, if more creativity is required, or the software is to be used for mixing applications or the use of a crossfader between channels on a conventional mixer is likely to be utilised, then you need to buy a 5 channel soundcard. This allows the soundcard to be set up, in a manner which allows one pair of "L" and "R" outputs to be used for "Player 1" on the soundcard and fed into an individual channel on the mixer, and the same for "Player 2" - this allows each software player to have its own fader on the mixer - just like a conventional twin cd player.

What Quality?

Some Dj Software packages come complete with the means to "Rip" a cd. "Ripping" means placing the original Cd into the PC's CDROM and the process of converting the original music on the CD to MP3 Data, which is then stored on the hard drive as an MP3 File. In the case of OTSDJ, the option is also there to convert to a file called OTS, this is a custom files regonised only by the OTSDJ software, however it sounds just as good as MP3 and is also a slightly smaller file size, meaning that more OTS files can be stored on a hard drive when compared to conventional MP3 files.

If you use a DJ software package which does use conventional MP3 files, then you will need to select the quality at which to "rip". This figure is measured in "Kbps" and often ranges from 32kbps and 320kbps. Lower ranges are not recommended for professional use over a PA system since they can sound dull and even distorted. Ideally for professional use, the DJ should be looking at ripping their CD's to Mp3 files at 192kbps or greater.

192kbps is considered reasonable quality, however 320kbps is near cd quality and may be preferred by some Dj's - however on smaller audio systems the difference may be hard to detect. As the quality is increased, so does the file size, and a 320kbps file may be several mb larger than its 192kbps counterpart, it may also take longer to rip an entire CD at 320kbps than at lower rates.

For Dj Software which doesn't have ripping capability, Musicmatch Jukebox may prove to be an alternative for this process,

Are there any disadvantages to being a Digital DJ?

Now the disadvantages!. Obviously the initial cost of buying a PC / Laptop, a good quality soundcard, large hard drive and the Dj Software itself is likely to total far more than buying a conventional CD Player or turntables. It also takes time to "rip" your cd collection to Mp3 and store them on your hard drive. In some jurisdictions it is also illegal to convert original material to MP3 format for digital use without a licence, and this can prove to be expensive, if the Dj is to work on the right side of the law. It is the possible licence requirement that we discuss next.

Do I need a licence to play music from a laptop?

At the time of writing this article, an annual licence is required in Canada and the UK in order to use a PC or laptop to DJ from. In the UK, a further licence and possible royalty payment is also required for the conversion process. Although no fees have yet been advertised (April 2006) these controversial laws are likely to make this form of DJ'ing unattractive when compared to more conventional, and "licence free" alternatives.

Finally, my tips for Software Djing

* Always buy and use a dedicated pc / laptop purely for Dj use, do not be tempted to use the family pc or run other applications on the machine you use to DJ from, and do not allow this machine to connect to the internet. On a pre-used machine, also start from scratch with a format and fresh install of the operating system.

* Use a good quality soundcard, even if you need to upgrade or buy an external USB one

* Always rip the music direct from an original CD at 192kbps quality or higher. 320kbps is advised for higher quality pa systems and is near cd quality. 192kbps is okay for smaller systems used by the Mobile DJ.

* Don't be too concerned about buying the latest top of the range PC to run from. Most Dj Software will happily run from basic P3 600mhz machines, but do check out the minimum requirements on the software authors website.

* Read reviews on the various software packages available. Stick to the features that you will use, since you can always upgrade extras later. Take advantage of the free trials of DJ Software which are available and use the time to find the best software to suit you

* If you choose a full sized PC make sure that it is professionally flightcased - pc's are not designed to be carried around.

* Select a high capacity 100gb - 200gb hard drive from a reputable manufacturer. Where practical and legal always back up your data

* Fit your machine with at least 256mb of memory, and ideally 512mb.

* Check out the legal aspect of converting original music to MP3 and whether a licence is required to operate such a system.

Wireless Multichannel Audio Home Cinema - 5 Best

If you're searching for a brand new home entertainment then you definitely certainly want to get the wireless multichannel audio home cinema. This new kind of audio electronic innovation from Chinese engineers is presently among the best selling on audio market, since it provides a new feature that leads it before other home entertainment systems. The brand new primary feature is wireless loudspeakers, the loudspeakers of theater system which are attached to the primary station with wireless, so ignore cables and wires which help your house be look chaos, now you'll have a clean floor home without cables that will also look more stylish. Here you will notice that are presently the top five items selling around the internet.

Like every other wireless items wireless multichannel audio home cinema doesn't need any cables or wires to become connected. It is best to purchase the system not just the loudspeakers because then you'll experience connection. There are many different system types from 5.1 surround system, 6.1 to 7.1 surround system. Presently among the best and best selling are 5.1 and when you continue reading you will notice what are top ones to buy. You will find many quality brand items like: The new sony, Panasonic, Creative Labs, Samsung, Bose yet others. Option is yours! Within the pack of 5.1 surround theater system you're going to get 4 satellites, 2 front wireless loudspeakers and a pair of rear wireless loudspeakers, then 1 center speaker and 1 subwoofer, having a station where one can play Compact disc, Dvd disks and USB.

Cost for such audio electronics are actually cheap. Using the seem quality and wireless feature they supply the cost vary from 200$ as much as 1990$, however the 300$ ones are quality enough because they are the presently best selling ones. If you prefer a quality seem then having to pay 300$ is sufficient!

This is actually the listing of best wireless multichannel audio home cinema:

Samsung HT-Z310T 5.1 Home Entertainment Multichannel Audio SystemWirelessCreative Labs GigaWorks 550W 5.1 System Panasonic SC-PT760 5.1 Loudspeakers 1000 WThe new sony DAV-HDX275 Bravia 5.1 1000 W Wireless Bose Lifestyle Wireless Surround Link

Writing Your Existence Story - Techniques For Achievement

When a luxury from the wealthy and famous, technologies have, the very first time ever, managed to get feasible for anybody to capture, share and preserve their most precious existence tales. Using the creation of computer systems, the web, photography, video, and audio, anybody can capture the richness and texture of the existence tales. These personal histories is going to be appreciated by family, buddies, and future decades.

Today you'll be able to easily blend the skill of traditional biography and memoir with effective technology right into a new type of individual existence storytelling: the private existence history. Personal existence histories are satisfying to produce. And, due to the interactive multimedia options natural in computer systems and also the web, a properly-done personal existence history could be wealthy and fully rounded with techniques which are impossible to attain in text-only memoir or biography. But many importantly, personal existence histories preserve vital individual and family tales. And, when correctly done, they'll continue for decades.

In the following paragraphs you'll uncover using time-honored existence story writing techniques together with the most recent technologies to produce a story that's distinctively "you."

The skill of Traditional Existence-Story Formats

For anybody thinking about creating their very own autobiography, memoir or personal existence history, you should comprehend the distinctions between these types of telling a person's own existence story. To in excess of-generalize as it were, an autobiography is much more fact-based, while a memoir is much more emotion-based.

Autobiographies are compiled by the topic, sometimes using the collaboration of some other author. Autobiographical works take great shape, from intimate documents made throughout existence that aren't always meant for publication (including letters, journals, journals, memoirs, and recollections) towards the formal autobiography. Oddly enough, the autobiography format doesn't always need to be true. It could also be a literary imaginary tale.

Memoirs are a kind of personal recollection which has grown enormously in recognition in recent occasions. Memoirs frequently concentrate on more subjective memories for example reminiscences, feelings, and feelings and tend to be written in the first-person point of view. The memoir is frequently centered on taking certain significant highlights or moments.

In the own Memoir, Palimpest, Gore Vidal creates that "a memoir is when one takes note of a person's own existence, while an autobiography is history, needing research, dates, details double-checked."

Memoirs usually concentrate on a short period of your time or a number of connected occasions (an autobiography covers a longer period period). Inside a memoir, the author is generally retrospective, and considering past occasions. Memoirs may incorporate the strategy of storytelling for example setting, plot, conflict, character development, foreshadowing, flashback, irony or meaning. And finally, writing a person's memoir frequently includes a therapeutic effect for that author.

Dental History Tracks

An dental history is really a verbatim transcription of the interview, left within the narrator's exact words. These are typically left inside a question-and-answer style and therefore are a cost-effective method to preserve family tales. A recording system with a decent-quality microphone along with a quiet place free of disruptions are that's really required to capture an dental history. Consider using questions prepared prior to the job interview.

Dental histories are often recorded using analog tape or digital recording equipment, but it's also easy to record straight into a pc. Dental histories are frequently transcribed (typed or word processed) right into a document format. The conversational style is appealing because of its easygoing informality.

Caveats: Recording formats and standards are continually changing and may become difficult or impossible to experience back when the equipment becomes obsolete. Recorded tracks decay with time.

Video History Tracks

Do-it-Yourself: In the fundamental level, it's fun and easy to produce a fundamental video history. Video cameras are relatively affordable, and lots of computer systems today include fundamental editing software. Taking a great video history shares all the same requirements being an audio recording: a basic place, with questions prepared ahead of time. Plus, you will need an uncluttered background, flattering lighting, and right clothing to enhance the standard from the finish product. Whitened t shirts, pants or dresses, for instance do not show up well on video. Likewise, busy designs could be annoying. Solid light-colored neutrals or pastels are often safe.

Professional videographers: A lot of professional video companies focus on the development of existence story productions. Productions may vary from a ten or fifteen minute short for an hour or longer small-movie, filled with game titles, music, along with other Hollywood-style effects. Naturally, you'll pay more for any professional production than the usual homegrown effort.

When choosing an expert make use of all the typical wise-consumer tips. Request for references. Request to determine examples of prior work. Get every cost, production schedules and obligations on paper. It's wonderful to possess movies of the individual or family. When well-performed they frequently have entertainment value and are ideal for special events.

Caveat: Just like audio tracks, formats change with time, and media can degrade, despite proper storage techniques

The Mixing of Art and Technology: Web-Based Personal Existence Histories

Just within the last couple of years, the net has become a effective new medium for creating and discussing existence tales. On the internet it isn't just possible, it's enjoyable and simple to produce a wealthy multimedia story with text, photos, video and audio. This is actually the new format from the personal existence history.

Web-based personal existence histories enjoy several positive aspects over paper-based posting, audio, video, or perhaps Compact disc existence tales. Particularly, Web-based publication is updateable-it's possible to add new information anytime. It's easily shareable among buddies or family. Probably the most advanced sites offer options of security and privacy protection. The net can also be multimedia, meaning you can include text, photos, audio, and video. Photos, audio, video will never be lost, broken destroyed. An finally, many sites offer print-on-demand, permitting you to definitely create instant books. The books might be printed in your home printer, or sent to small-run marketers. When you purchase the little-run option, make sure to specify archival quality paper.

Among the greatest benefits of web posting is the opportunity to build community around similar interests, jobs, skills or existence occasions. For instance, a World war 2 veteran pilot who posts his story to the net and causes it to be open to the general public might be approached by lengthy-lost buddies, other veterans, students, historians, museum personnel, varieties thinking about this pivotal chapter in American history.

Why Make Your Personal Existence History?

Mark Twain once stated: "There is never yet an unexciting existence. This type of factor is impossibility. Inside everybody, there's a drama, a comedy, an emergency.Inch

An individual existence history is often as short like a couple of pages, or several volumes long. Regardless of the length or medium, it takes thoughtfulness and often a great deal of labor to complete. However the jobs are useful since it is able to influence decades ahead. Your individual existence history may leave a legacy for your kids and grandchildren. Just like memoir, writing an individual history enables you to definitely examine and think about your existence up to the current day. It allows you set your story towards the bigger historic record of ones own, city, and country. And finally, if you do not get it done, who'll?

Begin with a period of Existence Sections

How do you begin to tell the storyline of the existence that could cover 60, 70, eighty years or even more? Frequently it's useful to produce a chronological timeline of major occasions inside your existence. It will help to write down a couple of notes around key phases inside your existence. Actually, you might be considering your existence like a book, with separate, distinct sections built around important existence episodes.

Obviously, not everyone's existence follows the same chronological sequence, but listed here are a couple of suggestions for chapter titles for the book or story. GreatLifeStories.com uses the next "sections" to arrange existence tales:

o Your Origins

o Where You Live

o School Days

o Off and away to Work

o Romance and Marriage

o War and Peace

o Triumphs and Tragedies

o Words of Knowledge

o Humor

o Words of Gratitude

The chapter product is very flexible. For instance, it's not necessary to start your existence story using the times of your birth and youth. Possibly you'd an amazing experience throughout world war 2. Just like a film, you may open your existence story with this "scene," then tell the storyline the way you arrived.

Once you have a concept for that "flow," of the story, listed here are more specific recommendations to assist add color, texture, and authenticity:

Just start writing! Perform a mind dump. Have it from your mind and lower in writing, the pc, the tape recorder, wherever. Don't be concerned about how exactly it may sound. Just write. Subdue the longing to edit yourself you will see here we are at editing later.Be genuine. Don't be concerned in case your grammar or spelling is not perfect. Write it as being you'd express it.Honesty is everything. The very best writing informs it enjoy it happened.Include humor. Favorite jokes, tales, anecdotesDetail, detail, detail. What type of floor did your kitchen have? What color was the headscarf she used when you initially met?Go in a comfortable pace. Create capture a whole lifetime in one session of furious writing. Write, allow time for you to reflect, and return again to writing.Consult others. Family people and buddies could be invaluable causes of details and interpretation.Use photos to jog your memory. Tip: Put down photos inside a timeline of the existence, beginning out of your very youngest days, and moving through current occasions. Write or record for your visual storyboardSearch for styles inside your existence. Styles are broad ideas which are central for your existence. Have you always desire to be an airplane pilot? A preacher? Possess a restaurant? Be considered a player? Tell the storyline of methods you met your ultimate goal, or the way the goal transformed to another thing totally unpredicted.

Take a look at a couple of other thematic existence story options: a. The Spiritual mission b. The Confession c. The Travelogue d. The Portrait e. The Complaint f. Humor g. The Household history h. The direction to Recovery i. War Story j. Romance

An Alternative Choice: Employ a Professional

Most want to know , has concentrated on allowing the do-it-yourself personal existence history. There's, obviously, a choice of using a professional. The best professional author or videographer is an experienced interviewer and it has the correct equipment and tools. And, surprisingly, frequently it's simpler for somebody to spread out up before an unfamiliar person instead of before a relative.

You will find many methods to dealing with authors or videographers. However, you will find numerous commonalities in keeping. The author/videographer frequently:

1) Meets you to look for the scope and price from the project.

2) Usually creates recorded interview periods. Based on your objectives, these might be a couple of hours, or 10, 20 hrs or even more.

3) It is transcribed and edited together with your input and guidance

4) When a final manuscript/movie is decided, it might be sent for printing or duplication.

5) For books, personal history professionals recommend archival bindings and acidity-free paper for durability

6) You obtain the amount of books/movies decided inside your contract.

7) Make sure to discuss services, costs and finish items ahead of time, and obtain all contracts on paper.

Because of high tech, the skill of taking and protecting the tales from a person's own existence has become available to more and more people and simpler than in the past. A brand new genre of private storytelling is emerging that pulls around the literary traditions from the autobiography and memoir, while adding audio, video, and web technology to produce personal existence histories. On the internet, these personal tales personal existence histories are multimedia, collaborative, shareable, and instantly updateable.

Enjoy taking your existence story!

References and additional Reading through

Internet Sites:

http://world wide web.greatlifestories.com

Associations:

The Association of private Historians is really a 600+ member organization of professional personal historians who create existence tales in most formats: text, audio, video. http://world wide web.personalhistorians.org

How-to Books:

You will find many good books full of different approaches and strategies for writing an individual existence history. Take a look at a couple of:

Daniel, Lios, Crafting Your Personal Existence Story

Rainer, Tristine, Your Existence as Story Books

Roorbach, Bill, Writing Existence Tales

Consumer Reviews - Loudspeakers

The very best variety of audio or video components enables you to lower if matched up with poor-quality loudspeakers. Good loudspeakers don’t need to cost you a bundle, though you can easily spend a great deal. For any home-theater system, you can begin with 2 or 3 loudspeakers and add others as need and budget enables. Dimensions are no indication of quality

WHAT'S AVAILABLE

One of the 100s of speaker brands available, the main names include Altec, Bose, JBL, KLH, Pioneer, Polk Audio, RCA, and The new sony, and Yamaha. Loudspeakers are offered through mass suppliers, audio/video stores, and “boutique” merchants. To keep your them online, but be ready for shipping charges as high as 0 because loudspeakers could be fairly heavy.

Loudspeakers are offered as pairs for traditional stereo system configurations, and singly or perhaps in teams of 3 to 6 for outfitting a house theater. To help keep a well-balanced system, buy right and left loudspeakers in pairs, instead of individually. The middle-funnel speaker ought to be matched up towards the front (or primary) loudspeakers. To find the best seem, the trunk loudspeakers should in addition have a seem like the front loudspeakers. The leading loudspeakers give you the stereo system effect and carry the majority of the seem towards the listener’s ears. The middle (or center-funnel) speaker chiefly provides dialog and it is usually placed on the top of or underneath the TV in the home-theater setup. Rear loudspeakers, sometimes known as surround or satellite loudspeakers, deliver ambient effects for example crowd noise. A subwoofer carries the cheapest tones.

Cost range: under 0 to in excess of ,000.

Shelf loudspeakers. These are some of the littlest, but, at 12 to 18 inches tall, most are still too big to suit on the typical shelf. A set of these may serve as the only loudspeakers inside a stereo system system or because the front or rear duo in the home-theater setup. One may serve as the middle-funnel unit, provided it’s magnetically shielded therefore it won’t hinder the television. Small loudspeakers such as these make strides within their capability to handle deep bass without buzzing or distortion. Any bass-handling restrictions could be a lesser concern inside a multi speakers that utilizes a subwoofer to breed deep bass.

Cost range: 0 to a lot more than 0.

Floor-standing loudspeakers. Typically about three or four ft tall, these large loudspeakers may also function as the only loudspeakers inside a stereo system system or because the front pair in the home-theater system. Their large cabinets have the possibility to complete more justice to deep bass than more compact loudspeakers, but we feel many audience would be happy with more compact loudspeakers that obtained well for bass handling. Even when floor models perform a bit better, their size and price may steer purchasers toward more compact, cheaper shelf models.

Cost range: 0 to a lot more than ,000.

Center-funnel speaker. Inside a multichannel setup, the middle-funnel speaker sits on or underneath the TV. Since it mainly handles dialog, its range doesn’t need to be as full as those of the leading pair, nevertheless its seem ought to be similar so that all three blend well. Devoted center-funnel loudspeakers are short and wide (6 inches high by 20 inches wide, for example) so that they perch nicely atop a TV.

Cost range: 0 to in excess of 0.

Rear-surround loudspeakers. Rear loudspeakers inside a multichannel setup carry mostly background seem for example crowd noise. More recent multichannel formats for example Dolby Digital, DTS, DVD-Audio, and SACD make larger utilization of these loudspeakers than did earlier formats. You’ll obtain the best blend when the rear pair sounds like the front pair. Rear loudspeakers are usually small , light (frequently five to ten inches high and three to six pounds) to allow them to be attached to the wall or put on shelves.

Cost range: 0 to in excess of 0.

Three-piece sets. Designed for use like a stand-alone system or integrated along with other loudspeakers, these sets mix two shelf or satellite loudspeakers for midrange and greater tones with whether center-funnel speaker or perhaps a subwoofer for bass.

Cost range: 0 to 0.

Six-piece sets. Scalping strategies have four satellites (used for the front and back pairs), one center-funnel speaker, along with a subwoofer. Six-piece sets help you save the problem of matching the distinctive sounds of six loudspeakers. That is one daunting task in your own home, and much more of the challenge amongst the din of the store that doesn’t possess a decent listening room.

Cost range: 0 to a lot more than ,000.

Other shapes and dimensions. A “powertower” is really a tower speaker, usually listed above ,000, having a side-firing, powered subwoofer in the base.

IMPORTANT FEATURES

Enthusiasts of noisy seem should give consideration to some speaker’s measured impedance, which affects how good the speaker and receiver get on. Energy range refers back to the marketed w per funnel. The wattage inside a matched up pair, front or rear, ought to be identical. Furthermore, a speaker’s energy range should exceed the w per funnel provided from your receiver or amplifier. Loudspeakers offered to become near a Television set normally have magnetic shielding so that they won’t distort the image using their core magnets.

How To Pick

Consider size. Loudspeakers come in most shapes and dimensions, so observe how they’ll easily fit in your living space. Floor-standing loudspeakers might overwhelm more compact spaces. Shelf loudspeakers are frequently a much better fit. However, many are very large, so make certain one you select will fit the shelf or niche you’ve reserved for this. And don’t fear that you simply’re quitting quality for compactness. Many small loudspeakers perform a fine job. Style may factor to your decision too. Some loudspeakers are sleekly formed, with silver finishes. Other medication is more conventional black boxes.

Concentrate on precision, not advertising. Probably the most critical attribute associated with a speaker is precision--the opportunity to reproduce seem wavelengths without over-or under-emphasizing any area of the audio range. As our test have proven repeatedly, a few of the cheapest-listed loudspeakers could be one of the most accurate. Advertisements frequently tout two-way or three-way motorists and how big the cone in the speaker, however, you can’t judge seem quality by these characteristics.

Listen for that variations. Even loudspeakers with comparable precision scores can seem quite different. One model may overemphasize treble, while another under-stresses it. There’s no replacement for hearing loudspeakers, so bring a Compact disc having a familiar bit of music towards the store. Pay special focus on the leading pair, because individuals loudspeakers perform the most work.

Loudspeakers will seem different in your own home due to your living space size, shape, and furnishings, so find out if the store allows a house trial or request concerning the return guarantee. Should you’re torn between two options, purchase the cheaper. Stores might be more available to coming back if you wish to trade up to and including more expensive set.

Check impedance. If you want to experience music noisally, make certain your receiver is ranked to handle impedance (generally varying from 4 to eight ohms) from the front speaker pair.

Copyright © 2002-2006 Customers Union of U.S., Corporation.

For that latest info on this and lots of other items and services, visit http://world wide web.ConsumerReports.org

Samsung BD-P1400 Reviews from the Multi-Region Blu-Ray Disc Player Version

Region code Areas

The multi-region version plays all REGION A And B Blu-Ray Disc movies on any TV with HDMI input.

A/1North America, Central America, South America, Japan, Taiwan, North Korea, South Korea, Hong Kong, and Southeast Asia.

B/2Europe, Greenland, French territories, Middle East, Africa, Australia, and New Zealand, plus all of Oceania.

C/3India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Mainland China, Pakistan, Russia, Central, and South Asia.

Reviews of the BLU-RAY BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player (the is no difference in basic specifications for the
Region A version and the Region A and B Multi-region version so all reviews stand for both versions.):

It's good: Excellent image quality on Blu-ray movies; outstanding soundtrack support with onboard decoding for Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD High Resolution and bitstream output for Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio; relatively low price compared to other standalone Blu-ray BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player s; Ethernet port for updating firmware.
MDOJ,

My BD-P1400 arrived late yesterday! The firmware was updated last night via internet download and burning a CD. First impressions:

Video - !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Audio - !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

FYI: There is no image or sound quality difference, or any other type of difference, in the USA Region A version of the multi-region Region A and B version of the Blu-ray BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player.

I have tried a regular DVD and one BRD so far and am very pleased. Load
times are very acceptable. No negatives from me on this unit so far. Will
report more later when I get some of the more seemingly problematic BRDs.

The BD-P1400 has classic Samsung style. The front of the unit is all glossy black, with a thin strip of silver along the bottom.

Got my Samsung BD-P1400 last night and boy was I excited!! Before this review, let me start by saying that this is the first and only Blu-ray BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player that I have owned and that I may not make some of the comparisons you are looking for. If I don't, just lemme know! I also want to say that I have NOT upgraded to the latest firmware yet as my modem is not near a TV.

Picture

Excellent, duh...... inky blacks, great contrast, detail, everything you expect from Blu

Design: Wonderful looking BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player , the best yet I think. Face is very open, not cluttered, and the piano gloss finish rocks. Good remote too.
Load Times Wonderful. I have 5 movies so far and they all loaded in approx. 15 seconds. Then there was the new F4 Silver Surfer.... This is a BD+ title from Fox and many have had complaints about its load time. The BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player gave me no problem, and the multi-region version from Planet Omni will be even more incredible. Let me say again that this is right out of the box, no firmware update yet!

FYI: There is no image or sound quality difference, or any other type of difference, in the USA Region A version of the multi-region Region A and B version of the Blu-ray BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player.
Sound

I have not played with the sound much as I don't have my Onkyo TX-SR705 yet. I did notice that there is an option to set the speakers from small to large in analog 5.1 out mode. There are other discussions and reports of people getting full DTS-MA bitstream from this BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player (after firmware upgrade) on other threads and forums. I'm getting very anxious to try this out!

Others

The rest of the stuff is pretty standard. 128x max forward, unit resumes same position in the movie even after powered off, pretty good response times from remote keys, etc.

All in all, this is a dynamite BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player. With the firmware upgrade, this guy will do just about anything that you can expect from a blu-ray BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player right now!!

In addition to Blu-ray discs, the Samsung BD-P1400 can play standard-definition DVDs and CDs.

FYI: There is no image or sound quality difference, or any other type of difference, in the USA Region A version of the multi-region Region A and B version of the Blu-ray BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player.

The BD-PBD-P1400's high-resolution soundtrack support is excellent. It has onboard decoding for Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, and DTS-HD High Resolution, which means it can output these soundtracks either in PCM format over the HDMI output or via the analog outputs. For newer receivers, the BD-P1400 also offers bitstream output for high-resolution soundtracks. So if you have a newer receiver with onboard Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio decoding, you can set the BD-P1400 to output audio over HDMI in encoded bitstream format--letting your receiver do the decoding, rather than the BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player.

There should be absolutely no sound quality difference whether you let the receiver decode or the BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player decode, but some AV fans just love seeing the "Dolby TrueHD" light on their new receiver. If you need a Code free Converting DVD Disc Player for .95 Planet Omni also has that and they come with 2 warranties. So far, I am really happy with this purchase. I was not sure I made the right deal because of the negative reviews I read but bought it anyway.

I really don't know why people get upset when it only takes two minutes to get ready to play. I have used it several times with Blu-Ray disks rented from Netflix with no problems. I am still waiting for the eight free movies.

Connectivity is also solid. There's an HDMI output capable of carrying both 1080p video signals and high-resolution audio.

For high-def analog video, there's a component video output (limited to 1080i), and there's an S-Video output and a composite output for standard-def output. (As with all DVD BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player s, there is no DVD upscaling available via component video). On the audio side, there's the aforementioned HDMI output, along with 5.1-channel analog outputs, both optical and coaxial digital audio outputs, and stereo analog outputs.

Rounding out the connectivity is an Ethernet port, which enables you to upgrade the firmware from the Internet--a feature that's been common to HD DVD Players, but very rare among Blu-ray BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Players.

FYI: There is no image or sound quality difference, or any other type of difference, in the USA Region A version of the multi-region Region A and B version of the Blu-ray BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player.

The BD-P1400 did a good job of rendering the opening sequence of Star Trek: Insurrection, demonstrating its 2:3 pull-down prowess. Next up was Seabiscuit, and the BD-P1400 did a solid job with the difficult introduction, with few to no jaggies on the black and white photos.

MDOJ,

Just a quick update on the Samy BD-P1400. I have rented some BR's from Netflix and have really been enjoying the BD-P1400 - how about you? All the techno mumbo jumbo aside, as far as I'm concerned this is a great BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player.

I hope that the head dudes in charge of this forum will make a sticky for the Samsung BD-P1400 - hint - hint! watching home movies here...not saving lives.

The Samsung is a REALLY good unit for the price. The multi-region version is just 9.95 from Planet Omni and considering they use a double motherboard specially imported which must cost a fortune plus the intensive labor it's a real great bargain, IMHO.

I was able to plug my unit directly into my modem with a network cable (as per Samsungs directions in the user manual) and the BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player found it's new firmware and loaded it up without the need for me to get on the computer, burn disks...etc. Very cool.

The Samsung has a great image and with the current update I can listen to DTS-HD Master Audio (Sony can't say that for twice the price!).

With the pace at which the technology is moving I think it is very difficult for a manufacturer to manufacture these units, get them to market and have them totally "current" with the new disk technology, (which is changing daily), but Samsung has provided me with a unit that I can just plug into my modem and get an update when they have it available. I think that is AMAZING.

A little patience and understanding can go a long way. After all...it wasn't that long ago that when you bought an electronic component, you couldn't update it at all. I am sure Samsung will come through with an update soon. I have not run into any disks I could not play as of yet.

Having never seen a 1200 in action, I can't help you - but the BD-P1400 PQ is excellent, but that's what Blu is all about - right?

I have tried several BD's from Netflix as well as a few standard def DVD's. All were great. As far as the handshake issue, I'm not really sure what that is.... and for the off, then play thing... why would you want to do that in a movie anyways?

Great BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player, I couldn't be more happy I got the new BD-P1400 last week. returned the 1200 to get it. (plus 100 price difference in my favor. PROS= the pic quality is by far the best I've seen, even better then the panny I had.

Controls are easy and setup just the same. I don't like it loses the signal at the beginning of the discs.
AUDIO= I am not able to use all the audio features due to my ONKYO being a few years old. I have it setup with a digital optical cable, the sound is really excellent except for the POPS I get every now and then.

As for the BD discs, POTC about 2 minutes, have had no problem, and the multi-region version from Planet Omni will be even more incredible, with any other BD movies. I did notice that after I hit pause and went to hit play, the movie would play for a minute and then stop. I had to hit play again. No big deal.

Used the Ethernet port to download new firmware, can't tell the difference though. I am sorry I am not that technical but this is my blue collar review. any??????s I will answer the best I can

Just finished watching Casino Royale - spectacular!

I have a PlayStation 3 that has awesome picture quality for both Blu-Ray and upscaling of Standard DVD's since a software upgrade. We use this for our main HD TV in the family room. I needed another BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player for a second HD TV we just had hung in our bedroom.

I waited for the BD-P1400 to become available since I already committed to the Blu-Ray format and wanted the latest technology available. I cannot say enough about the sound quality that this BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player offers, it is unbelievable. The picture quality is excellent and on par with the PlayStation 3. I am seriously considering purchasing a second BD-P1400 for our main set because of the outstanding sound. Great BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player especially for the money.

By far the best Blu-ray I ever tested. Never watch cartoons but now I'm spending a lot of time watching with my kids.

This is a great Blue Ray BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player. DTS HD MA bitstream finally. I have owned this product for about two months and am thrilled with it; it is really a good deal. I only use my Blu Ray BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player to play Blu Ray movies, since the sound is piped into a Samsung 5-disc receiver. The picture quality is amazing. I own four Blu Ray discs (which I purchased on Amazon at .99 each) and they all play beautifully, with no problem, and the multi-region version from Planet Omni will be even more incredible, and a crystal clear picture.

I bought this BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player in December. I hooked it up with an HDMI cable to a Sony Receiver. The Cable Box from Comcast is also hooked up to the receiver. The receiver is connected to a 42 inch Panasonic 1080P Plasma. Three HDMI cables, that is it.

It has worked flawlessly from the beginning with every Blu-Ray disc we have tried. We get about one a week from Netflix. I can play Pirates of the Caribbean 3. Not sure why the other reviewer could not.

The picture quality is stunning with Planet Earth. I guess I can credit the Panasonic TV mostly for that.

I did the version 1.2 firmware upgrade in December. I just did the version 1.5 firmware upgrade yesterday Feb 5th. I downloaded both and created the ISO CD.

To me it works fast. So you have to wait a few seconds for it to boot up, so what? Go get the DVD while you are waiting.

Most computers nowadays take minutes to boot. I imagine it will never get better, likely probably worse over time since these are in essence computers, and the more technology advances the slower these machines are to turn on and load up.

After doing the firmware upgrade, I checked my settings and noticed they had been reset. If you have a digital receiver, you should make sure that the audio is set to 'bit rate' and not PCM if you want surround sound.

I also had no problem, and the multi-region version from Planet Omni will be even more incredible, playing regular DVDs or CDs either. So when it becomes obsolete, it will replace my other DVD BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player and improve the quality of the regular DVDs with my other older 720P Samsung set.

I don't think anyone should delay buying because of the format war. The minute you buy anything nowadays, it becomes obsolete and is eventually a throw away. So you at least enjoy it while you can, life is too short. At the prices today what the heck, it is cheap, buy now before the dollar becomes worthless! You can get an entire home theatre 1080P HDMI based system with speakers for less than $[...] right now. Thank you China! I got my HDMI cables from Planet Omni, .95 for 2 meter length, superb images and sound!

Before I hooked this up, I updated the firmware via the Ethernet port. Once that was done I have had no problem, and the multi-region version from Planet Omni will be even more incredible, with the BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player at all. I debated whether or not to buy this due to some negative reviews, but the deal was just too good to pass up for a stand alone. Those of you that have had problems with this BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player have every right to complain about them here, that's what these reviews are for.

However, the people complaining it isn't 1.1 or 2.0 (no BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player is 2.0 yet) should stop. Nowhere in the description does it say this BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player is supposed to be 1.1. If you want to inform people there are updates coming and this BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player will not be able to benefit, go ahead, but to say it is horrible and obsolete because of it being 1.0 is misleading. I have a feeling most people want to just watch the movie and would rarely use the features of 1.1 (like picture in picture commentary).

If that's you, this BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player is perfect. If you need a 1.1 BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player, get the panasonic. For me this one will work fine for the next couple of years while Blu-ray gets its act together and finalizes an emerging product. I hope those of you that have had problems were able to get them resolved and can now enjoy the BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player as I do.

I have had no problem, and the multi-region version from Planet Omni will be even more incredible with the Samsung BD-PBD-P1400. I just plugged it in, connected it to the internet and started the firmware upgrade utility. After about 20 minutes, the firmware upgrade was successful and I played my first movie without a glitch. Every movie I've played since has also played flawlessly. You can also upgrade the firmware by burning a CD or if you don't have internet, Samsung will send it to you.

This product works just fine on blu-ray disks, also on non-European format DVDs, and on music CD-ROMs. I have found no problem, and the multi-region version from Planet Omni will be even more incredible with it. It even does a superior job of showing plain DVDs on my 40" TV, where my previous DVD BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player only would take up part of the screen.

One clever and undocumented touch is that it seeks out the right TV input choice once a disk is inserted. It may help that the TV is also a Samsung.
I got this on Nov.30, 2007, and unlike what other reviewers have said, the BD-P1400 does start back where you stopped. Everything else looks and works great.

I'm editing this review on March 13, 2008, to reflect my experience with the machine. It appears to me that whether a DVD will start back where it stopped depends on how the DVD was manufactured, NOT on the BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player . Some DVDs, such as "LOST, Season 3", don't even have chapter/scene makers on them, much less the ability to restart after a stop.

Some DVDs, such as "3:10 to Yuma", actually have their own system for marking where you stop or where you may want to go back to, but otherwise require a restart from scratch. But some DVDs do restart where stopped.

My chief complaint with Blu-Ray (not necessarily with this BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player in particular) is that it takes FOREVER for a DVD to start up, then if you do have a DVD that won't restart from where it stopped, you have to go through the painfully long start-up again.

I've learned to NEVER PAUSE a DVD, which causes it to shut down the BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player after a few minutes. Instead, I keep it going at 1/8 speed, then when I come back, I can easily back up to where I was -- a lot faster than a restart.

If there is a better BR BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player anywhere near this price range, I haven't heard of it. Now that HD DVD has died, I hope that DVD makers will focus their attention on making BR DVDs work more easily and FASTER.

This is a great player. The only issue is the firmware upgrade. I used CD-R/RW burning method...easiest and fastest. Burn *.iso image using nero burning rom software. The instructions are in [...]/support. I have both HD-DVD and blu-ray. so far blu-ray is better. HD looks like upconverted DVD. Read the instructions carefully i.e. the new Blu-ray "Live Free Die Hard" contains a note letting you know the software upgrade may be needed.

Lastly, remember this is HDMI 1.3 compatible...so in order to use 1.3 capabilities, you need a cable and TV which is HDMI 1.3 compatible also....the picture is great. Buy this BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player and upgrade the software right away.

I have read and continue to see many complaints about different blu-ray and hd-dvd BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player s not working like people hoped. I can say that with this model I have had absolutely zero issues.

I am sure some people will write that it doesn't load this or doesn't do that, but it hasn't affected me. I have not found a single disc that has not played perfectly. What people have to remember is that in this day and age everything is like a computer, you may have to update, it is part of life now, get over it.

Will the manufacturers eventually get this flawless, probably so but in the mean time I will be enjoying my movies now. If you are an early adopter like I am on technology then any issues you might run into will be no big deal. The BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player is easy to setup, easy to play and loads reasonably fast. Glad I bought it and already thinking about a second one for different room.

Complete satisfaction with this product. Greatly enhances my regular dvd's. I was really surprised about this claim, but the Samsung does as advertised. The blu-ray disc audio is very good. Can't wait until hooking this up with my new surround system.

This product is money well spent for the viewing pleasure it gives. I highly recommend this product.

For its price this is a steal. The audio and video quality here is great, the quality and selection of Blu-ray is top notch and you can be fairly confident you'll be getting blu-ray format movies made for you for years to come. One of the better options for a dedicated BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player if you're not interested in the PS3.

Before deciding to purchase my Samsung BD-P1400 I studied many of these customer reviews and they were very useful. I also read a dedicated AV Science forum online concerning this model BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player. First, all of the information and customer reviews highlight the endemic problem that implementation of newer Blu-Ray standards is occurring gradually. Moreover, features are evolving, meaning that we are all taking some chances when we purchase any Blu-Ray BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player (that is not a PS3).

I personally have no interest whatsoever in owning a game console. Second, many of these reviews describe in conscientious detail the kinds of problems that people are having, as well as whether and how the problems have been overcome. This review adds data to that second category - practical problems.

When my BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player arrived the very first thing I did was install the latest firmware downloaded from the Samsung web site. I suggest the method that uses a cd rather than a direct network connection; in either case the manuals and web site offer complete directions. Be sure to *confirm that the update was successful* by restarting the BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player , re-inserting the firmware cd, and comparing the disk version to the installed version.

What problems have I had? In a month of watching Netflix discs I have had not one single hiccup, not a single blue screen, no refusals to play any of the BDs or SD-DVDs that others have had problems with - I have had *nothing but perfect performance*! True, some of the other criticisms like slower controls are inherent to the technology. But my BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player has been flawless and my expectations have been significantly exceeded. Without hesitation, I give my BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player five stars.

Pros: My favorite feature, by far, is the 24 frame per second output mode. Movies display exactly as they were intended - be that good or bad - and 'judder' in slowly-panned scenes is significantly improved compared to 30 FPS. This alone, in my opinion, warrants the relatively modest price tag. [In direct comparisons using my 50" plasma TV, the video quality of movies from the BD-P1400 at 24 FPS is clearly superior to the same discs when played through advanced computer video cards that cost the same!] I also like the features and layout of the remote control, which doubles up to control my Samsung TV. Yes, these are basic features within the realm of Blu-Ray, but they have been very capably implemented.

Cons: My only nit-pick is that I would like a set-up feature that allowed the audio and video outputs to be delayed relative to each other by a selectable increment. This would allow perfect lip-sync when using older (i.e. slower) audio decoders/receivers that are not HDMI 1.3 compliant. However, to my knowledge this feature is not offered on *any* new Blu-ray BD-P1400 Blu-Ray Disc Player , since the HDMI 1.3 standard incorporates an automatic synchronization feature if all the components are HDMI 1.3 compatible.

Maybe I've been lucky, but I have not had a single 'playability' issue using the latest build of the latest firmware. Based on this - 5 stars.

Let's hope that Samsung will support this model well into the future by further optimizing the operating firmware, as needed.
In brief: Outstanding picture quality---my wife and I say, even for stills, "Polaroid picture!", breathtaking.

The unit has all the requisite connections. I play it through a Yamaha av-tuner with 7.1 channels, via HDMI, but other connections are available.

There is a simple blue-ringed on-off button, and a tray open-close button; that's it on on-board controls. The remote has several levels of sophistication: It is easy to find and use the power, pause-play-rewind-fast/slow controls, those you will use 99% of the time. The remote also provides movie menu controls (e.g., language), player menu controls, and options for controlling other devices---learn to use them only if/when you need them. There was absolutely no setting up to do---plug and play! Great neuro-ergonomics, i.e., intuitive ease of use.

In over three weeks of regular usage, we have noted some glitches, but it's not clear if it is the player itself or the emerging technology. Several times, the unit went into "Stop" mode as if the button had been pushed; I had to hit "Play" to get the movie started again. Mildly distracting.

What would I also like? Perhaps controls for the av amplifier as well, although that unit has all the buttons needed for TV, player, and amp. Maybe better backlighting on all buttons. This is one heck of a deal, recommended to anyone wanting to get into blu-ray.
Good BluRay DVD. Easy to use. High definition DVD's look great but regular DVD's look better too.

No problems found yet.

the Samsung 1400 is significantly superior to the Toshiba HD-A3. The BD-P1400 supports not only TrueHD, but DTS-HD MA bitstream output over HDMI. The A3 can only extract the DTS 'core' and cannot send bitstream DTS-HD MA out. Only the HD-A35 and the XA2 can do that, but both are significantly costlier than this player. The BD-P1400 can also output full 1080p/24 video, while the A3 can only send out 1080i and does not support 24fps output.

Both are slow to load up, but the A3 is significantly slower, taking almost 2 full minutes to warm up the player and display video on your monitor/screen. The PS3 takes less than 30 seconds btw. The A3 is also very noisy, distractingly so especially because it is a high pitched noise that is hard to ignore.

Overall, the BD-P1400 is a high functioning blu-ray stand alone player, that supports lossless audio output (PCM, TrueHD, and DTS-HD MA) and 1080p/24. I would still recommend a four hundred dollar PS3 over the BD-P1400, but if you really want a standalone player, you can't go wrong with the BD-P1400.
I don't actually own this player, but I have a friend who bought one and he loves it.

This is a excellent blu ray and I am very happy with my purchase, I recommend this player to everyone and the price is great.

It did NOT disappoint in the slightest. I have not had any problems playing any DVD Blu-ray or not. I have not had to download any firm-ware to solve ANY issues. The BD-P1400 worked straight out of the box. The only thing that comes close to a con is that it's slow on start-up and loading.

I am very satisfied with this player and I'm happy. All I can report is that mine works perfectly so far, and I have recommended it to many of my friends when asked for an opinion.

Works wonderfully with my new Samsung plasma... Haven't experienced any issues expressed by other reviewers. Connected with an HDMI to TV and optical audio to Home Theater... Breathtaking PQ and sound.

This Blu-Ray player is first-class. Easy setup. This is my first Hi-Def player, and I am very happy with my purchase. I did the latest firmware update per the instructions in the manual, and it has functioned flawlessly. The player has a modern, slick, glossy appearance. The sounds are incredible, and the images are too beautiful to be described. Very easy to install and use. I never knew the difference that a Blu-ray player can make in the movie watching experience. I am not an expert, just a regular mom that purchased the blu-ray player for family viewing.

I have had this player for about a month now...After updating the firmware, it has been flawless. Amazing picture, quiet unit, looks great in the entertainment rack along with my HD DVD player.

The upconversion is wonderful! Best part is I can use optical and take advantage of the new audio codecs.

I give this player 5 stars!

Not a single problem. I even have it in a tight spot with 2" clearance above top and open back with No overheating problems. None of my movies have locked up or have been unable to play. I have tried Live Free or Die Hard, all the Harry Potters, Planet Earth and others. Firmware 1.5 arrived on Jan 24th and it has seemed to fix all the problems others were having. I would definitely recommend this player to others.

I have a PS3 and a Sony 300 S Blu-ray player, and they are both excellent blu-ray players. However, I love my new Samsung 1400 BD it can decode DTS HD sound, and it makes for a wonderful movie watching experience. The first thing a new owner should do is go to samusung.com and download the latest firmware update (it is a fast simple process). There are also instructions on the owner's manual that explains how to update the player. I have watched the latest Blu-ray releases from Fox, Disney, Sony, etc. and the picture/sound quality is outstanding. Very pleased with the product.

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