Features

Home Theater Movie Renter’s Guide – February, 2011

Buried (Blu-ray), Saw The Final Chapter (Blu-ray), Alpha and Omega (Blu-ray), Amazing Alphabet (DVD), Numbers Ahoy (DVD), Virus X (DVD), Soul Kitten's Cabaret (DVD), Ray (Blu-ray), Piranha (Blu-ray), "My Soul to Take" (Blu-ray), Almost Famous (Blu-ray), Out of Sight (Blu-ray), Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2 (Blu-ray), Alice in Wonderland 3D (Blu-ray), RED (Blu-ray), Merlin: Season Two (DVD), You Again (Blu-ray), It's Kind of a Funny Story (Blu-ray), Death Race 2 (Blu-ray), Let Me In (Blu-ray)

DIY Calibration Software – Update: CalMAN 4.1

Since our DIY Calibration software round-up was originally published in May, the CalMAN software has undergone a major upgrade. When we met the SpectraCal folks at CEDIA in September, they were eager to have us try this new software package. I already had some hands on time with CalMAN 4 at the Calibration Bootcamp that I attended earlier this year CalMAN Calibration Bootcamp: A Crash Course in the Science of Calibration, but I hadn't had enough time to really explore the software on my own system and without the guidance of the SpectraCal training team.

CD Reviews for the Audiophile – January, 2011

Bi-coastal jazz saxophonist Jason Robinson, 35, an Assistant Professor of Music at Amherst College and former musician with the San Francisco Mime Troupe, seems to be blowing non-stop these days. No less that three albums that showcase the seemingly limitless range of his versatile musicianship hit the literal and virtual shelves in the fall of 2010. Each album shows Robinson on the cusp between tradition and experimentalism, with a strong emphasis on the latter.

CES 2011 Show Report – Summary

Do check out the CES 2011 Show Coverage Reports by the SECRETS Team: Robert Kozel, Jim Milton, Adrian Wittenberg, Stephen Hornbrook and John Johnson. Robert's summary of CES 2011 reflects the team's......

"What struck me the most about CES was the sheer magnitude of it all. I have been to Las Vegas many times for conventions in the past, but nothing compared to CES 2011. The enormous international crowds combined with thousands of exhibitors and locations spread throughout the city made it an event I will not soon forget. From the perspective of products, CES is overwhelming with its diversity. There were exhibitors covering home electronics, phones, appliances, automotive, computer hardware, networking, etc. The list was endless and it would be impossible for anyone to take all of it in. The crowd at CES was not just spending time looking at new products. There were countless people with "Buyer" tags on their show badges talking to exhibitors and discussing business. If the crowds were any indication, this should be a good year for the economy. Time will tell if all those conversations ultimately turn into real orders.

Final CES 2011 Impressions and more images just added by Stephen Hornbrook. Check it out!

Home Theater Movie Renter’s Guide – January, 2011

Strictly Ballroom (DVD), House (Blu-ray), Battlestar Galactica: Razor (Blu-ray), Cronos (Blu-ray), The American (Blu-ray), Salt (Blu-ray), Yogi Bear's All Star Comedy: Christmas Caper (DVD) , Backdraft (Blu-ray), Swat Kats The Complete Series (DVD), Catfish (Blu-ray), Battlestar Galactica: Season Four (Blu-ray), Samantha: An American Girl Holiday (DVD), The Films of Rita Hayworth (DVD), Yojimbo & Sanjuro (Blu-ray), Death Race 2 (Blu-ray), Secretariat (Blu-ray), Gone Madigan (Blu-ray), Triggerman (DVD) 

A Home Theater Build Project – Part II

In this installment I am discussing my upgrade paths and the decisions that went into each change: Video, Audio and Other cconsiderations, including power conditioners. I've presented the changes that I decided on in a chronological manner, as I think that many of us approach our decisions in this way...

Secrets Best of 2010 Awards

The SECRETS Editorial Team is pleased to announce the Best of 2010 Awards. This year we have added some new categories for Media, so look for our awards in the Blu-ray, CD and Vinyl Recordings. And we have established a new award (it is so "Bad", you will have to go to the second page to see it). The Editorial Team also wants to highlight the technologies that we will be paying attention to in 2011, so look for the "Technologies on the Rise Awards".

Congratulations to all of our 2010 WINNERS!!

Home Theater Movie Renter’s Guide – December, 2010

The Town (Blu-ray), Peanuts Holiday Collection (Blu-ray), Madea Goes to Jail (Blu-ray), Scooby-Doo 1 & 2 (Blu-ray), The Sorcerer's Apprentice (Blu-ray), The Search for Santa Paws (Blu-ray), Fantasia / Fantasia 2000 (Blu-ray), Cats vs. Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore (Blu-ray), Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (Blu-ray), Twas the Night Before Christmas (DVD), Nanny McPhee Returns (Blu-ray), Lost in Translation (Blu-ray), Inception (Blu-ray), Going the Distance (Blu-ray), A Christmas Carol (3D) (Blu-ray), Diary of a Mad Black Woman (Blu-ray), Why Did I Get Married (Blu-ray), The Wiz (Blu-ray), Meet the Parents (Blu-ray), Meet the Fockers (Blu-ray), Hunter Prey (DVD), Flipped (Blu-ray), Despicable Me (Blu-ray), The Secret Life of of the American Teenager Vol. 5 (DVD), Step Up (3D) (Blu-ray), The Legend of the Guardians (3D) (Blu-ray), Frenemy (DVD), Devil (Blu-ray), Boy Meets World: The Complete Fourth Season (DVD), Madea's Family Reunion (Blu-ray)

Communing with the Great Jazz Saxophonist Charles Lloyd – An Interview

Ever since he emerged a half century ago as music director of the Chico Hamilton Quartet, saxophonist Charles Lloyd has been at the forefront of jazz innovation. One of the first jazz artists to sell a million copies of a recording, which he made with a quartet that included a young Keith Jarrett, and two other legendary artists, drummer Jack DeJohnette and bassist Cecil McBee, Lloyd has done everything from jam with the Doors, The Grateful Dead, and the Beach Boys to birth a new music from diverse cultural and spiritual traditions.