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24th May 2008 - Loewe

Loewe LCD Televisions

Offering probably the best picture currently avaiable from any LCD television, a selection of dem Loewe sets are available from Phase 3 in Worthing

24th April 2000

I GOT ONE!

Well actually, I got it about five months ago. A lovely Panasonic DVDA360B. Great time for my TV to start playing up, and for two VCRs to need servicing. Picture quality on good discs is stunning, and the sound quality, using my fancy Chord Company DB25 lead, is excellent.
Here's a list of DVDs that I have at the moment:

Grosse Pointe Blank
Heat
Out of Sight
Casino
Backdraft
Suspiria
Tenebrae
Blade
As Good As It Gets
Re-Animator 2

I'll try to get some reviews done soon.

Stargate SG1 on DVD

Warning. These discs indicate that they have 5.1 soundtracks on the back of the cover. Don't believe them. It is a 3.1 soundtrack. Bizarre, I know, but I am waiting for an explanation at the moment.

22nd July 1999

New Panasonic DVD player.

Well, there are three in fact, but one in particular that I found interesting.
The new DVDA 360 is the new top of the range player. Apart from all of the usual expected features, like 96khz, 24 bit audio DAC, 10 bit video DAC etc, this player not only has a built-in Dolby Digital processor, it also has a DTS processor built-in as well. Now there is a player that covers all of the options for people wanting to use their 5.1 inputs (like me). I am hoping to get one fairly soon, so I finally get to use my £200+ Chord Company lead (I have tried it before, and it sounds wonderful. Three runs of Siren across the front, two Cobras for the rear and Chrysalis for the sub).

Broadcast news._{(Good film that, btw!)}

Both OnDigital and Sky Digital are now giving decoders away if you sign up for a year. Now all they need is a decent, high quality subscription movie channel, that shows films before they come out on sell-through video and DVD. Speaking of DVD, "Heat" is due out in September/October. All I want now is Babylon 5 and all will be well.

My System

A quick rundown on my system as it stands at present (and for the forseeable future, sadly):

VCRs:
Panasonic NVHS 1000 S-VHS VCR
Panasonic NVFS 100 S-VHS VCR
Panasonic NVHS 900 S-VHS VCR
Panasonic NVHD 700 VHS VCR

Amplification:
Rotel RSP 980 THX processor
Rotel RB 985 THX power amp
Turntable:
Linn Sondek LP12 (Black) with Valhalla power supply.
Naim ARO tonearm
Ortofon Rhomann MC cartridge
Kinshaw Perception SE phono pre-amp
Other sources:
Rotel RCD 955 CD player (with signal leads hard-wired onto the motherboard
Yamaha KX580SE cassette deck
NEC 3022 satellite receiver
Loudspeakers

KEF Reference Model Three (front)
KEF RDM Two (rear)
KEF Model 200 (centre)
Cables:
Mainly Chord Company Sirens for interconnects, with QED Qudos Profile for speaker cables. I'd love to change the speaker cable to Chord Company Odyssey (anyone seeing this, Sally, Nigel, Dave , Mark?).

I know that £700 for rear speakers may seem extravagent, but my system does sound better than any other I've heard (but then, I haven't heard Norman's system, yet. It should sound better, at about £70,000 at the last count).
I'll probably leave this section for a while, again, unless someone wants to ask questions, or provoke some discussion. I'm game. Game I said. Bye for now.

3rd May 1998

More DVD news. May 11th should see the release of a few decent films, at last. Titles that caught my eye included Batman and Robin, Mars Attacks!, Fargo, Outbreak, Dead Man Walking, The Client, Tin Cup and The Bodyguard. Almost worth it just for Mars Attacks!

Not much other news. New VCRs coming from Panasonic, including a DV edit machine, and a new DVD player, between the DVD-A100 (now at £400) and the DVD-A350. I guess it will have the 10-bit video DAC and 24bit 96khz audio DAC, but without Dolby Digital.

All they need are a few more reasonable films (Heat) and I'll have to buy a machine.

Digital broadcasts from satellite are now going to start in the autumn. Included will be a Manchester United channel. I can hardly wait.

10th April 1998

DVD news. About thirty discs should be released soon. Exciting titles include "Four Weddings and a Funeral", "Lord of the Dance" and "Trainspotting". That's a selection that's sure to make people want to rush out and buy a machine.

Digital broadcasts from satellite are due to start in June. After a bit of a scare about whether the satellite and terrestrial services would work through one decoder box, it now seems that they will.

14th March 1998

Sorry it's been a while. Panasonic have launched the DVD A 350, which has built in Dolby Digital, for all of you with 5.1 channel inputs on your AV amps. It also has an improved 10 bit video DAC, and is compatible with MPEG 5.1 soundtracks. Not DTS though. A new model, just released in the States, is. Expect it in the U.K. soon.

DVD releases should happen in the U.K. in April. About 40 titles are threatened. Main release to come in August/September though, with more than 300 titles by Christmas.

New Yamaha amp, the DSP A1, has DTS as well as Dolby Digital, but I have heard that the DTS performance is less than impressive, possibly due to efforts to maintain compatibility. Price: £1600.

Rotel have a combined DTS/Dolby Digital decoder ready, but are just waiting to see what happens with DVD in the U.K. before committing to the product. As a user of the excellent RSP980 and RB985 THX^® setup, I can hardly wait!

14th December 1997

STOP PRESS!!! Sanity breaks out at DVD consortium! Dolby Digital has been confirmed as the multi-channel, digital surround system for European DVD. This largely arose due to Philips not producing a working chipset, more than a month after the deadline that they were set.

1st December 1997

My goodness. I reckon that all the people associated with specifying DVD machines and discs for Europe must engender a strong feeling of nervousness in nearby farmyard animals. Now it seems that Phirrips have trouble with the MPEG sound decoder chips, and Hollywood Inc is threatening to go to Dopy Digital for all of its discs. I think that with one more concerted effort, they may be able to kill DVD stone dead. We'll have to wait and see.

8th October 1997

New latest on DVD. Panasonic have now stated that their existing DVD player, the A 100, will NOT give multi-channel digital surround sound with MPEG-2 encoded discs. Since Warner, Tri-Star and others have stated that this is the format that they will be using, we'll have to see what Panasonic (and others who have badged the same machine) are going to do for anyone who has a machine that doesn't appear to meet the European standard.

14th September 1997

Latest on DVD. Finally got a Panasonic machine. Picture quality stunning. Best I've seen outside of D2 video. Wallace and Gromit particularly impressive. Uncertainty (!!) about availability of further discs and of changing standards.

25th August 1997

Update on DVD. Panasonic machines should hit the streets within the next week or so. Three discs will be supplied with each machine. "Supersense" and Walace and Gromit's "Grand Day Out" from the BBC, and Queen's "Greatest Flix I & II". More news as I get it.

Don't forget Babylon 5 on Channel 4 on Wednesdays at 23:00 or thereabouts. Great for the system.

24th July 1997

Latest news from Panasonic is that they are expecting to deliver the first U.K. DVD players during August. 1997, that is. The machine, which does NOT have a built-in Dolby Digital^® decoder, WILL come complete with a small software package.

If you haven't done so already, get "Broken Arrow" to give your system a good workout!

The Basics.

What are all these new digital systems, like Dolby Digital^®?

What is

^®?

Paul Franks asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

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