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Theater Needs

By Clay Hankins, the CEO of The Audio Guy, LLC located in the Dallas and Ft. Worth, TX metro and serving the Dallas Home Theater, Media Room and surrounding DFW area a/v markets.

Custom Home Theater vs. Home Theater in a Box

Budget is generally one of, if not the, most important factors when designing a home theater. In the entry level arena of home theater, many manufacturers sell some variation of a “home theater in a box.” For sure, some of these systems can quite adequate at fitting many consumers’ needs.  Now, for arguments sake, we need to eliminate anything that most home theater companies would not use (read dirt cheap here) and anything that has a price tag over, say $1000. The reason for the former being obvious, the reason for the latter exception being that most of us could put a pretty decent system together for the $3,000 you would pay for some Bose systems. So for the purpose of this article, I’ll compare a system that I looked at on line that includes a Denon AVR1612 receiver and a 5.1 set of Klipsch speakers for about $800 to a custom home theater that's around $1300.

The Home Theater in a Box System

The Good

First, the products in the home theater in a box come from very well respected companies. Both companies are known primarily for their audio products and do not make microwaves, refrigerators, TV’s, weed eaters, etc.  Denon makes A/V electronics, and Klipsch makes speakers.

The Bad

Though the quality of this particular system is not an issue, it does have its limitations. The Denon is rated at 75 watts per channel and is a 5.1 receiver. That means no 7.1, ever, and no multi-zone capability. The multi-zone or 7.1 may not end up being a big deal but if it ever is, it’ll be time for a new receiver. The Klipsch’s biggest limitation is the subwoofer. At 80 watts and with a 6.5” driver, it won’t deliver impact bass for home theater especially in a room bigger than a small bedroom.

The Custom Home Theater

Now that we’ve looked over the Home Theater in a Box, let’s presume our client has decided to call in a home theater company. For argument’s sake, let’s say the client is trying to do an average theater, maybe 13’ x 18’.

First, the theater in the box is not going to cut it. That system would be way underwhelming because of the above noted issues.  I would recommend a Denon AVR1912 and a Polk T1 satellite system with a Paradigm PDR100 subwoofer. This would bump up the budget about $500 at retail (less if done in a theater package) but would be an entirely different system. The sub would be able to handle a room of that size (it has a 10" speaker and 300 watts of power), and the receiver (90 watts per channel) has the option to expand to either 7.1 or could run a second set of speakers in another zone AND play something independent of what’s on in the home theater.

Understandably, a few hundred more dollars may be a deal breaker for some, but if I was asked my advice on the set up, I would tell someone to wait a little, save their money and get the right gear. Remember, you’re paying an experience. And although the theater in the box would work in that example, it would be line asking a 4 cylinder car to pull a trailer up a mountain incline. You might make it to the top, but it probably won’t be a great experience.

By Clay Hankins, the CEO of The Audio Guy, LLC located in the Dallas and Ft. Worth, TX metro and serving the Dallas Home Theater, Media Room and surrounding DFW area a/v markets.

Just recently, I was bidding on a job against a local Dallas home theater outfit for a fairly small theater room job. The client was the kind that liked doing his homework (my favorite kind) and enjoyed talking about equipment choices and discussing the reasons why I recommended what I did for his home theater. He was pretty knowledgeable about what he wanted, what his budget was, and was looking to me mostly for direction. When the subject of screen choice came up, I had recommended a very reasonably priced white screen from Severtson – a great screen company with excellent quality and value (and a screen company that makes screens for many major motion picture theaters.)

The sales person from the other company had recommended a Screen Innovations Black Diamond screen. A screen that was three times the price of the Severtson, but more importantly, the wrong screen choice! Now, don’t get me wrong, the Black Diamond is a great screen from a great company, but what makes it the wrong choice in this particular job is that the homeowner had a dedicated theater room with no outside light interference and complete control of interior lighting in the room. And although a Black Diamond will work in those conditions, its strong point is enabling the viewer to raise the lighting conditions and still have a very viewable image. So, you’re the homeowner, what do you think? Did you spend more (a lot more, actually) for something you didn’t need? What would you tell your friends? Is the sales person that’s the most effective the one that “adds” to the ticket price, or the one that sells you the right thing for what you need at a much less expensive price?

I guess how you answer that depends on your approach to sales. For the other company, a higher ticket means better profit and more commission. For us, not overselling means long term relationships with clients based on trusts. I want our client coming to us because they know we won't do that to them. In short, I want them back.

I can't bring myself to sell someone a product they don’t need, just to sell them on something more expensive. Clients come to us for guidance and trust because we are the supposed experts in the field. Could you imagine going to your physician and having him recommend a major surgery that a minor surgery would have been just as effective?

So, as you think about what you want for your home theater, give some serious thought to the products being pushed your way. In the example above, there are clear cases where the Black Diamond would have been the right screen to use, but not this one.

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By Clay Hankins, the CEO of The Audio Guy, LLC located in the Dallas and Ft. Worth, TX metro and serving the Dallas Home Theater, Media Room and surrounding DFW area a/v markets.

Interior Design and Home Theater

Luxury homes and audio video do not have to be mutually exclusive. There, I said it. One of the greatest obstacles in the path to a beautiful home AND modern technology is closed mindedness. Audio/Video integrators can work hand in hand with interior designers so that the end user/home owner can have both a beautifully designed home and the latest technology. Fortunately, manufacturers of a/v equipment are spending a great amount of energy designing products that seamlessly integrate into décor without drawing attention to themselves. Some, like art frames for flat panel TV’s are even covering up technology when it is not in use!

There are products that completely disappear into the environment. For example, some manufacturers make speakers that can be textured and painted over. Imagine how happy a home owner would be with a beautifully faux finished wall or ceiling that didn’t have to include an ugly speaker grill! There are also speakers that can be covered with art fabric to look like a painting instead of a speaker. Whole home automation products can be incorporated to control lighting scenes that interior designers can use to accent the areas they want to stand out. Not only does this give the homeowner control of the lighting and moods, it can be used to control electricity costs as well by providing remote access to the smart systems of the home.

So, all you interior designers - take heart! There are product that will enhance the lives of your clients without destroying the vision of your project. Give us a call so we can help direct you to those products.

By Clay Hankins, the CEO of The Audio Guy, LLC located in the Dallas and Ft. Worth, TX metro and serving the Dallas Home Theater, Media Room and surrounding DFW area a/v markets.

This is the 4th article written in a series that addresses why we choose the manufacturers we do.

When I first started out in this business, I was very much an “audio guy”. You might have surmised that by the company name and though that is still my passion, I have spent a lot of time learning how to make video look its best. Nothing compares to the value received by having your system properly calibrated, but when it comes to the home theater/media room with a projector/screen combination, screen choice is as important, if not more so, than projector choice. First let me say, this was something I needed a little convincing on.

Screens come in all kinds of brands, with all kinds of fabric choices, in all shapes and sizes and in all kinds of price ranges. Most of the entry level packages we have allocate a screen budget of about $600-$1000. That number is pretty much the entry level price of a decent screen without breaking the bank. There are a number of choices in that price range as well from companies such as VuTec, Grandview, Elite, Dragonfly, and Severtson (who I will write about in my next article). In the early days, I remember thinking that compared to the price of a Stewart, how much of a difference can a piece of fabric make? Boy was I about to get an education.

Having access to Stewart, I hadn’t sold one in the early days of business because we weren’t doing a lot of theaters for one thing, and the ones we were doing were on entry level end. I can across a client that wanted one (well, insisted on one actually). This job would be my first Stewart install, and the first time I had seen one in a theater rooom. We had a lot of construction on that job so it took a while before we were ready to install the screen and projector and the day finally arrived to get it done. We got it hung on the wall, turned on the projector, did the alignments and, WOW! I was blown away. I just couldn’t believe how much of a difference there was in the Stewart and all the other screens I had installed. The images just popped off the screen. Colors looked natural, brightness was even without having hot spots, in short, it looked like 110” flat screen TV on the wall.

Once I was enlightened, I started looking more in to Stewart and of course, now I knew why most every reviewer out there chose Stewart as their “reference” screen. They are the benchmark. Are they cheap? No. But do they provide great value? Absolutely.

Most of the time when I am advising clients on how to best spend their “theater” dollars, I will suggest to them to put the largest portion into the screen and speakers. Those are the two items that will almost always live in the theater for the life of the theater. True, I won’t be putting any Stewart screens in a $5000 theater, but I can get them in a $6500-$7000 theater, depending on other equipment choices.

Again, are they cheap? No, but they are an excellent value for what you pay to get such a great return on your investment.

You can check out Stewart products at www.stewartfilmscreen.com

By Clay Hankins, the CEO of The Audio Guy, LLC located in the Dallas and Ft. Worth, TX metro and serving the Dallas Home Theater, Media Room and surrounding DFW area a/v markets.

This is the 3rd article written in a series that addresses why we choose the manufacturers we do.

Many times in my blog, I have written glowing editorials on the value and performance of the Focal/JM Labs brand of speakers. If this were a race, in my book, they would finish first. Shortly behind them at the finish line though would be an exceptional speaker company that is truly a great value – Paradigm speaker company.

Paradigm is widely recognized in the a/v community as the one of the premiere speaker companies and in my opinion, one of the best valued speakers I’ve ever come across. Ever.

From their website:

For over twenty-five years, Paradigm has set the standard for sonic excellence in every product category we offer. And while we remain focused on what we consider the “absolutely essential” performance/value relationship, we continue to push the boundaries of speaker design. Breathtaking accuracy, a spacious soundstage, pinpoint localization, deep, powerful bass and thrilling dynamics are hallmarks of Paradigm’s advanced speaker designs.

Rave reviews the world over and hundreds of product awards continue to confirm why Paradigm is the first choice for even the most critical listener.

I remember before I got into this business during my “audiophile” discovery days, I used to read a lot of a/v magazines. Every year, I looked forward to the Stereophile Recommended Components issue and every year, the Paradigm Studio 100’s were always on the recommended components list for speakers. In and of itself, that was quite an accomplishment. If I remember correctly, there were only about 5 pairs of speakers that made that list. What made it even more spectacular though was that the Studio 100’s were priced at about $2,000 and the next cheapest set of speakers in that class were over $10k with most of them being north of $50k!! Now that’s what I call a value!

Even more impressive to me though is the quality of sound and the quality of the build of the product. I’ve always had mixed feelings about reviews and praise of high end equipment just because if something audio costs $50,000, it  ought to sound great. So, what make Paradigm easy for me to recommend is that the quality of their speakers competes with speakers priced at the “high end audiophile” level, but is priced at the mainstream consumer level. Even with a few of their higher end speakers being more than what I would consider mainstream consumer pricing, most of their products are very affordable and aren’t more expensive than something you would find at a big box retail store.

So, if you want to enter the world of high end audio sound, at a mainstream consumer audio price, audition a set of Paradigm speakers. You’ll be amazed at what you get for what you spend.

Have a look at Paradigm products on their website at www.paradigm.com

By Clay Hankins, the CEO of The Audio Guy, LLC located in the Dallas and Ft. Worth, TX metro and serving the Dallas Home Theater, Media Room and surrounding DFW area a/v markets.

My first blog about the manufacturers we represent was about Focal/JM Labs. This blog is about one of the finest makers of electronics that I have come across and that company is Anthem Electronics. From the Anthem website, this is the description from the page "About Us"

By Clay Hankins, the CEO of The Audio Guy, LLC located in the Dallas and Ft. Worth, TX metro and serving the Dallas Home Theater, Media Room and surrounding DFW area a/v markets.

In my last blog, I introduced the topic of how we choose the manufacturers we represent. So this first one will be easy, because it is near and dear to my heart - Focal. I've written in other articles the history I have with Focal so I won't go into the long and drawn out version but Focal (then known as JM Labs) was my first pair of high end audiophile speakers. I spent a year searching for the "right" pair of speakers for me during which I auditioned several well respected, and incredibly good, audiophile speakers (B&W, Wilson, Paul Hales, and Thiel to name a few) but I kept coming back to a pair of Focal/JM Labs (the Daline 3.1's). At a fraction of the cost of some of the other speakers I was listening to, nothing else sounded as warm and rich as they did. I found myself comparing the sound of all the other speakers to them (a telltale sign of how a pair of speakers or piece of equipment becomes your reference piece!)

Anyway, they finally ended up in my home, and it was a game changer for me. I have always loved music from as far back as I can remember, but had never listened to it like I was with my new JM Labs. By the way, did I mention that I had not yet started The Audio Guy? This was all before the business was formed.

So, now for a little more about Focal. Focal-JM Labs is a french company founded by Jacques Mahul (the JM of JM Labs) in 1979. Originally, the speakers were branded JM Labs and were fitted with Focal drivers. Eventually, the JM Labs label was shortened to Focal which is where they stand now. This line of speakers won't be in our entry level packages, but for those that buy them, they hit one of the most important core values of how we pick our lines to represent and that's value. I still have my Daline 3.1 speakers in my office and have graduated into a little bigger pair of Focal speakers in my home theater but there hasn't been a day since I've owned them that doesn't bring me the same amount of joy as the day I bought them. Actually, I would say they bring me more joy since I have learned their nuances over the years. I'd call that a pretty good return on investment and an excellent value. Focal speakers also hit the other important criteria for us - reliability, customer service, and aesthetics. All in all, if they're in your budget, an easy choice to make!

Check out the Focal line of speakers at

www.focal.com

By Clay Hankins, the CEO of The Audio Guy, LLC located in the Dallas and Ft. Worth, TX metro and serving the Dallas Home Theater, Media Room and surrounding DFW area a/v markets.

Over the next few months, I am going to write about some of the products that we sell and represent. I think this is an important aspect of our business that may often times go over looked. I have spent considerable time and energy on picking manufacturers based on many things other than just the quality of the end product. Several other qualities must be included to "make the cut" into our stable of manufacturers, so to speak. The most obvious is the quality of the end product. For a projector, the image has to look good. Speakers have to sound good. Receivers have to sound clean. Those are easy. The other qualities are sometimes a little harder to identify. Here are some of those qualities.

1) Value. A company must produce a product that has good value to the end user. This is just as important in a entry level system as it is in a high end system. Let's look at a universal remote control, for example. The remote control brand that I like the most is Universal Remotes (yes, that's actually the brand name!) What I like about it is the simplicity of the remote for the end user. It is mostly icon based so the users just pick up the remote and press the button next to the picture of what they want to do. Simple as that. This is the only product that I try to "sell" someone on and it is because I truly believe it is worth the money. I can sell a cheaper remote, but that remote would not be worth the money saved when it added complication and frustration to then experience. Most of us use our a/v systems for entertainment and relaxation. I believe a simple to use remote is far more valuable than a cheaper one that ends up in a drawer unused.

2) Reliability. This is pretty self explanatory, but obviously, I don't want to represent a company that makes products that break a lot. I've worked with the manufacturers of the products we sell and they are all very reliable. All manufacturers have a product that will break on occasion, so we look for consistency in quality.

3) Customer Service. We also look for companies that have good customer service. If something does go wrong with a product, will the company back it up? Will they be helpful in troubleshooting the product? Do they offer a good warranty? Who does their service?

4) Aesthetics. Performance is a top priority of course, but if we're going to put something in plain sight, it needs to look good too.

Those are some of the areas that we feel are important and are sometimes not considered as much as profit margin. And although that is also a part of our consideration, it isn't the most important. I want my clients to have systems that perform well, are easy to use, and deliver value to them whether they spend a little, or a lot.

Several years ago, before I started The Audio Guy, my wife and I were blessed with discovering that we were going to come in to a little extra money. During the time in which we waited for that to happen, I started planning to realize one of my dreams might come true – to be able to buy a high fidelity stereo system. It took about a year or so before we received that money and during that time, I took to task the project of searching for a new pair of speakers. I lived in San Antonio at the time so I went to a few local hi-fi shops and started listening. Those early days changed my life. I had never heard anything remotely like what I was being introduced to and not only did I discover a new way of listening to music, I started to discover new music as well by listening to artists that the dealers used to showcase their particular speaker brands.

Being a flight attendant, I had the fortune of being able to travel all over the country and during my layovers, go to local hi-fi shops and audition speakers. It took me about a year and I listened to all kinds of different speaker systems – B&W, Mirage, Paul Hales, Wilson.... Some of the biggest names in high end speakers but eventually, I decided to buy a pair of Focal-JM Lab Daline 3.1 speakers. I liked everything I had listened to, but the Focal-JM Labs struck a chord with me in what I liked to hear and for the money, I thought they were a steal.

I remember bringing those speakers home, unpacking the boxes, hooking everything up and ending up with that Cheshire cat grin on my face that I so love to see on my clients. Music moves people in so many ways, and that was one of the happiest days of my life. In the early days of listening, I also discovered that not all cd’s were created equally! I remember that I couldn’t wait to get home, dig into my cd collection and listen to music that I had heard 100’s of times, but in a completely new way. Unfortunately, the speakers revealed a lot of flaws in the recording process on a lot of artists (something I’d never heard before!), but the ones that were done well, were spectacular.

Anyway, those early days began my love affair (some people - like my wife - might call it a sickness!) with hi-fidelity music equipment and I began to build my dream stereo system. But it all started with my little Focal-JM Labs Daline 3.1’s.

So where does that bring me? Well, the exciting news around here is that I have now become a dealer for Focal-JM Labs. I am always excited when we bring on a new line because I wouldn’t bring them on if I didn’t believe in them, but for me, this is truly special since it represents a turning point in my life.

Fortunately, Focal-JM Labs offers an extensive array of product that we can fit in to most any budget and I will be updating our packages shortly with some speaker packages from Focal-JM Labs shortly. Be sure to check back soon to see what we put together, or give us a call and we can see what fits what you desire and we can help you begin your journey into the world of hi-fidelity audio!

-Clay Hankins is the CEO of The Audio Guy, LLC located in the Dallas and Ft. Worth, TX metro and serving the Dallas Home Theater, Media Rooms and surrounding DFW area markets.

We recently added Pro-Ject turntables to our line up to meet a growing demand in the resurgence of vinyl. While most “experts” agree that this is still a niche market, what I love about this new trend is that it’s mostly college and high school age people that are buying records again. Not long ago, the industry seemed to suggest that high end audio was all but doomed. CD sales have plummeted to the rise of downloadable music, multi-channel music formats were being introduced and traditional 2 channel (that’s “stereo” to you and me) audio fidelity stores were becoming the stuff that ghost towns are made of.

Fortunately, the young and hip that walk amongst us are always looking for a way to make something retro cool again as is the case with albums and turntables. More importantly, I think, is that this generation of listeners is now discovering high end audio the way that us old folks did. Though I still love digital music and all that it brings to the table, there is an undeniable warmth and openness in a vinyl groove that, so far, digital music is unable to achieve. Moreover, listening to an album is an engaging process. Audiophile quality aside, some of the rise in popularity is attributed to the whole process it takes to listen to an album. It is once again cool to sit with the album sleeve and look at the pictures, lyrics, and liner notes while listening to the record. As this younger generation spends time discovering both the audiophile qualities of the turntable and the emotional involvement of the process, 2 channel music may once again rise up in popularity. Who knows what’s next? Can you say “tube amps” boys and girls?

-Clay Hankins is the CEO of The Audio Guy, LLC located in the Dallas and Ft. Worth, TX metro and serving the Dallas Home Theater, Media Rooms and surrounding DFW area markets.

Lots of new information is coming in from the new product showings at CES, the Consumer Electronics Show so over the next few weeks, I'll be posting some of the new and exciting things in store for next year from the manufacturers we represent. Below is a report from Paradigm.

Anthem/Paradigm
Anthem/Paradigm announced the release of their new Blu-ray player and their new subwoofers, the Sub 1 and Sub 2. The Sub 2 runs six ten inch long throw drivers and has an internal amplifier that can peak at over 9,000 Watts. In order to get the most performance out of this subwoofer, you will need to have a 220 Volt line run to it.  Reportedly during some of the demos, light bulbs had unscrewed and crashed to the floor and they had to routinely re-tighten the bulbs to prevent it from happening again during the show.

-Clay Hankins is the CEO of The Audio Guy, LLC located in the Dallas, TX area and serving the Dallas Home Theater, Media Rooms and surrounding DFW area markets.

$3,500 vs. $39,999 – What you get for the money.
On our website, we have home theater media room packages that range in price from $3,500 to over $100,000. So if you’re thinking of buying equipment for your media room, what should you expect to get for $3500 and what $39,000?
For starters, the $3,500 home theater media room is based on entry level products from some of the manufacturers we represent. We change the equipment periodically so that we offer the best value we can for the money. Right now, that would include a Pioneer 5.1 channel receiver with HDMI switching, up to a 100” film screen, an Optoma 1080p projector, mount, 2 – HDMI interconnect cables for components, a 5.1 surround sound speaker system, a bluray DVD player, surge protection (very important) and basic installation. When someone calls on this package, I always first ask what size the theater room is that they are planning to install it in. This system wasn’t designed to be installed in a huge room so we need to clear that up pretty quickly. The last thing you want to do is buy a system, any system, and be underwhelmed. The $3500 home theater media room package has other limitations as well and the biggest is with the projector. This is a $1,000 1080p home theater projector – currently one of the least expensive ones on the market. That means no lens shift and limited throw distance. So, the projector has to be mounted in a very limited location. Don’t misunderstand - done right, this system would satisfy a lot of people. But it does need to be done right and it does have limitations.
Now, what does $39,999 get you? Well, with that kind of money, you move into the world of “audiophile” and “videophile” equipment. We’ll start with speakers. That kind of money buys a Snell THX Ultra2 7.2 system. The “.2” in the system represents two Snell Basis 550 subwoofers (with 2 – 12” woofers each!) Make no mistake; this is a world class speaker system that would make you think twice about ever going to a movie theater again. You’ll hear soundtracks differently than ever before. I often find that I hear things in movies that I’ve watched 1,000 times that I’ve never heard before. The level of detail and the subtle nuances are brought to life in a system like this. The electronics in the system are also top notch, and THX Ultra2 certified. This home theater media room package use Parasound electronic products (they are the company that supplies some of the electronics to George Lucas’s Skywalker Ranch and has been credited in the Star Wars films.)
Before I continue, one thing I should mention is that when you move into a system like this, you have to apply the “weakest link” theory – the system will only be as good as its weakest link. So, that means high end video and audio cable interconnects, high end speaker cables, high end surge protection… you get the idea.
For the video side of things, we use a JVC DiLA 1080p projector and a Stewart filmscreen (long noted as the industry reference screen.) Even out of the box, this is an incredible video system. It’s jaw-dropping when properly calibrated.
$39,999 is a lot of money for anything, especially an entertainment item. Obviously not everyone will be in the market for a system on this level. But whether you’re a DIY’er or you hire a company to do the work, try to go out and see a system like this to allow you to have a reference level that to compare and then strive to come as close to that as possible in your system.
We’re just finishing designing our $100,000 home theater media room package. That will take the reference level to 11!

-Clay Hankins is the CEO of The Audio Guy, LLC located in the Dallas, TX area and serving the Dallas Home Theater, Media Rooms and surrounding DFW area markets.

A Time For Reflection, or “how to choose the proper fabric for your front projection screen.”

One of the tasks of a “home theater expert” is to help a client decide on the correct screen fabric for the theater. On the surface (pun intended) that may seem like an unimportant task. However, the right screen surface can make the difference between a poor picture, a decent picture, and a great picture. There are several great websites with a great deal more information on choosing the right screen surface than I am planning to cover here but this blog will cover a few of the basics.

Basically, here are a few of the questions I would ask a client to help pick the right fabric.

1)    Will the speakers be installed behind the screen?
2)    Do you have the ability to completely control the amount of light in the room?
3)    Will you watch the largest percentage of what you watch with the lights off, or nearly off?
4)    What are the dimensions of the room, and what will the seating layout be?

As you can imagine, there are several screen companies out there to choose from. Some names are more recognizable than others, but they all make different screen models that are better suited for certain applications.

The first question above determines if we will use a perforated screen or not. That’s the way a movie theater works in that the front speakers are installed behind the screen. The perforations are so that the sound is not muffled. Those screens also typically have a lower screen gain (more on that below) than a matte white or white screen.

When choosing screen fabric, you will most often select a screen that is white or gray (some are even black!) That choice is usually determined by your ability to control ambient light conditions. While most people will use a different light level while watching different material (I usually have low level lighting while watching sports, and completely dark for movies), you’ll want to let your home theater expert know what the lighting conditions will be most of the time. When the vast majority of your viewing will be done in very low lighting (and you can control the amount of light in the room) then a white screen is usually the better choice. There are still factors that may necessitate the choice of a gray screen (like an extremely bright projector) but generally speaking, a white screen is the better choice if light can be completely controlled and you plan to watch mostly in the dark. Conversely, a white screen is not the best choice if the room is multi-purpose and there are windows that cannot be completely darkened or you plan to have the lights on a lot. Since the job of a front projection screen is to reflect the light that comes at it, a white screen would wash out the image in these conditions.

Stewart Filmscreens introduced the industry’s first gray-based reference standard screen in 2001 with the GrayHawk screen when projector technology was moving from CRT projectors to brighter projector types like DLP, LCD and LCoS. Early models of these projectors were very bright, but had very low contrast ratios and did a very poor job on black levels. Gray screens were designed to help those projectors produce better black levels. Today, many projectors have contrast ratios of 70,000:1 so using a gray screen isn’t necessary in rooms where light is controlled.

The next element in screen choice is screen gain. Gain is a measurement of the reflectivity of any screen or projection surface. The gain number represents a ratio of the light that is reflected from the screen as compared to the light reflected from a standard white (magnesium oxide) board. Therefore, a screen with a gain of 1.0 will reflect the same amount of light as that from a white board. A screen rated at 1.5 gain will reflect 50% more light as that from a white board, whereas a gray screen with an 0.8 rating will reflect 80% of the light from a white board. Gray screens and high contrast screens often have gain levels of .8 and so less light is reflected off the screen than it receives. White screen gains are usually 1.0 to 1.5. So, once the home theater designer and client have decided on a projector and have determined lighting conditions, the choice of screen gets much easier.

The target for screen choice and projector choice is to recreate the experience at the movie theater. Ideally, the projector and screen should produce a minimum least 12 foot-Lamberts when measured and the ideal is 16 foot-Lamberts  (SMPTE and THX standards.) So choosing a gray screen with a .8 gain and a projector that only has 700 lumens is probably going to produce a dim picture, especially if the projector is mounted at its farthest throw distance and the screen is large.

Screen companies are very good to help out when determining which screen to go with. As you can see, even from this brief overview, a lot goes in to getting that picture to look just right. Too much gain with too many lumens can produce hot spots, unbalanced color and eye fatigue while too little gain, low lumens, and ambient light can leave a picture dim, or washed out. Be sure when you’re ready to purchase, you go over the details with your home theater expert. You’ll be glad you did!

-Clay Hankins is the CEO of The Audio Guy, LLC located in the Dallas, TX area and serving the Dallas Home Theater, Media Rooms and surrounding DFW area markets.

That may sound like an unusual title for a blog from a tech guy like me, but maybe as you read on, that’ll make some sense.

Usually, when I retire to my theater for the evening to take in a movie, a game, or to listen to some music, I leave the (non-audio/video) technology out of the theater. The cell phone stays in kitchen, charging for the next day. The laptop is in the office and for those few rare and precious hours, I am immersed in the media of the evening. Of course, I’m not fooling myself thinking I’m away from technology mind you, but I am away from the kind that can distract me too much from the enjoyment of whatever I may be watching or listening to. My bluray player, my satellite box, my Sooloos, and my receiver are all hooked up to the internet to offer me even more information and choices of what I may want to involve myself with.

Well, in my home, that’s changing now thanks to a very cool addition to the theater, the Nevo S70 remote control. The S70 is first and foremost a great remote. I spent a day in training learning the basics around the software and the possibilities of what you can do with this remote is very cool. It of course handles the basics of theater control – most infrared controlled electronics can be controlled by this remote – as well as some more elaborate functions. The remote is also compatible with Z-Wave two way communication devices so control over entire house systems can be done from the touch screen of this bad boy. Your installer writes in a Z Wave device for say, your air conditioning system. Not only can you now set your thermostat from your remote, but you’ll also get a response from the a/c system that will tell you what the temperature is at the moment. You can do this with lighting, pool/spas, whatever can be controlled by Z wave. So, say your kids are notorious for leaving house lights on, you can look at your remote, see what status the lights are (on, off, dim, dim setting… you get the idea) and presto, you change them on the remote. Since the remote has a 3.5” LCD screen, with an IP addressable surveillance camera, the remote can be set up to monitor security cameras. You can even control PTZ functions!

Finally, the S70 also has Wi-Fi connectivity to allow the end use to get on sites optimized for mobile devices. Your installer can write buttons for favorite internet channels and after the press of a button, the game scores are right there on your remote. For a sports nut, this is the nirvana of remotes. And though it’s true that you could also do this with your laptop, the temptation (for me anyway) of having the laptop there and getting just 1 more email answered, one more bill paid, one more blog read… is just too great. With the S70, I have access to sites that might enhance my entertainment experience and not emails and things that would distract me.

So – control, some internet access, automation… all in the palm of your hand. It’s the right combination. Give your Nevo dealer a call and check out this great product.

-Clay Hankins is the CEO of The Audio Guy, LLC located in the Dallas, TX area and serving the Dallas Home Theater, Media Rooms and surrounding DFW area markets.

I’ve written a blog before about this subject, but will probably touch on it from time to time because it’s such a sensitive issue to those of us in the retail industry and especially in the home theater market.

Here in the Dallas home theater market , like everywhere else in the country, the slow economy has caused many consumers to stop spending (at least like they used to anyway) and those that do, are shopping around a lot more. I certainly applaud those that spend money wisely and make informed decisions, but that brings me to the issue at hand – just how informed are you?

Picture the following scenario.

Phone rings. “The Audio Guy, this is Clay, how can I help you?”

Caller - “Yes hi, I’m interested in doing some work at my house. Do you provide free estimates?”

Clay – “We do, what would you like to set up? Next week, 10 am? Great, see you then.”

I go to the job site, review the details and plans, visit with the owner and go back to my office to prepare an estimate. Depending on the job location, this whole process can take between 2 or 3 hours before I get the estimate sent out. Two weeks later, I get the following phone call:

“Hey Clay, I bought all the stuff you recommended on the internet and now I’m ready for you to install it. When can we schedule?”

Before I go more in to this, again, I want to say that I’m all for people shopping wisely. I think if nothing else, with the current state of the economy we’ve learned we can’t just throw money away. But here’s the issue as I see it. First, as a consumer you should know who you are buying from. The first question to ask yourself is whether the person/store/website you are buying from is an authorized dealer of the products they carry. I’ve said this before, and will continue to stress it in the future – go to the manufacturer’s website and look at their internet policy. This is off the Proficient Audio website:

Proficient Internet Warning

Proficient products are sold exclusively to consumers through installing dealers. These dealers are trained by Proficient to credibly represent and demonstrate our products. They provide professional installations, post-sale support and service on all Proficient products. Please be advised that any person or web site offering Proficient product on the Internet are not authorized to do so. Proficient will not honor its warranty on any product purchased from unauthorized individual via the internet or any other website seller.
Unauthorized internet sellers often knowingly deceive the consumer by telling them the product is covered by the warranty and that the specific company will continue to support the original purchaser. This is absolutely not the case. We urge you to use caution and select a reputable local installing dealer to make your purchase and install your products.

Here is a link to Velodyne’s internet warning (http://velodyne.com/about/unauthorized.aspx?sid=791r350g)

They go even further addressing transshipping from dealer to unauthorized dealer. Not only does this violate the dealer agreement risking the relationship the authorized dealer has with Velodyne, it again voids the consumer warranty.

So why is this? Is this a plot to keep prices high? Not at all. First, the companies that do this and the dealers they select care about their products and their customers. Many of us spend countless hours in training learning about new products, proper installation of product and how to choose the right product. When I come to your house to look at your project, you can be assured that I will recommend products that I have experience with, products that are suitable for your project and the correct ones for the job. These companies don’t want customers calling up or being disappointed because someone that doesn’t know what they’re doing recommending the wrong product. Universal Remotes made it extremely difficult to get their software because so many consumers were returning or unhappy with the product because they didn’t know how to use the software properly and were messing up the remotes.

So, you might be thinking… okay, I’ll have the expert come evaluate the site, make the recommendations and I’ll save a few bucks buying on the internet and take my chances on the warranty. Aside from the fact that that’s pretty disrespectful to our time, when I bid a job, I usually try to cap installation, or make a “package” discount for everything when equipment is purchased from us. If it’s not, then it’s a straight hourly rate and if the equipment doesn’t work, then you’ll be paying us again to uninstall it and reinstall it once you get it back. Pretty quickly, the money you saved can evaporate.

Finally, we’re all here to make a living. Sure, most of us totally love what we do (it’s a great job) but like everyone else, I have a mortgage, car payments and kids to support and if I can’t make a reasonable amount of money doing this (and I assure you, none of us will hit the fortune 500 doing this) then I’ll have to move on to something else and we already see this happening to several dealers and custom shops. Eventually, there will only be a handful of people left doing this and the places you bought from in the past will be gone. You don’t access to the people that supported you before, the people that worked for that business are out of jobs and most of them will cut back what they spend for services as well. Everyone loses in that scenario.

-Clay Hankins is the CEO of The Audio Guy, LLC located in the Dallas, TX area and serving the Dallas Home Theater and surrounding area markets.