Toshiba BDX6400 Blu-ray Player

I've reviewed a lot of Blu-ray players now and don't often get surprised. So when I took the Toshiba BDX6400 out of its shipping box I was a bit taken aback. I knew it was coming, but I expected a standard size black box. Instead I found a tiny little player that's even smaller than a Nintendo Wii. The tiny size made me instantly attracted to the BDX6400. Blu-ray players can only output HD content over HDMI now, so there really is no reason every player is a large box. A smaller unit like the Toshiba BDX6400 still has every connection you likely need, but is easier to store away. So just how much does this little player manage to pack inside?

REL

REL Acoustics, Ltd. of Bridgend, Wales was founded in 1990 by Richard Edmund Lord. Dissatisfied by the commercially available subwoofers of the day...

NAD D 3020 Hybrid Digital Stereo Amplifier

When I left home for college in 1984, I brought my stereo system along. It consisted of a Kenwood receiver, Technics turntable, and a pair of Fisher 3-way speakers. After discovering a few high-end stereo shops in Boston, and having my turntable set up properly; I started shopping for a better amp. My meager funding ruled out separates but the proprietor of a small hi-fi shop pointed me to that now-familiar brown box. I returned to my dorm room clutching a brand-new NAD 3020, for which I believe I paid around $220. My reward was the cleanest sound I'd ever heard, bar none. I used that amp all through college and probably for another 10 years after. Today, NAD has recreated this amazing product for the digital age. Where we once relied on vinyl and ferrous tape, now it's all about bits and bytes. The timeless philosophy of clean high-quality sound, versatile operation, and a low price has now given birth to the all-new D 3020 Hybrid Digital Amplifier.

Power Protection: Fancy Power Protector or UPS or Simple Surge Protector?

I just bought a Samsung UN65F8000 LED TV, a Piooneer VSX-1128-K receiver which will power a pair of polk audio RTiA1's a CSiA4 Centre and PSW10 Sub. Also in the setup is HD Satellite box, a PS3 and a PS4 when it arrives in three weeks along with a BoxeeBox and some other crap. My question is about power protection. Should I get a fancy power protector for several hundred dollars, a UPS or simple surge protector? I don't mind spending a few hundred bucks if it will serve a purpose. Our power isn't bad but goes out acouple times a year and we get a brown-out now and again.

- Jack M.
Halifax, Canada

RHA

RHA is a specialist British headphone company. We stand for true-to-life audio reproduction and lasting quality. With these values at our core...

THIEL CS2.7 Floor-Standing Speakers

Sometime around 2007, Thiel introduced what was then (and still is) an astounding speaker in the CS3.7 which for the most part was significant because Thiel was engineering their own driver designs, versus buying OEM. The 3-way design was pure Thiel, soft and rounded yet muscular in design, Jim Thiel showcased the corrugated midrange and tweeter "coincidentally" mounted configuration. The CS2.7 is the result of that success in a more affordable package.