Tuning Out The Future: A Symphony of TV Tech, a Swoon Over HDR, and a Salute to Unsung Heroes — TV SPEAKERS

When you’re in the cascading alluvial fans of the technology streams, it’s easy to look at a television as if it’s merely a big entertainment box, a giant frame displaying the finest synthesis of picture technology. But there are oases of speakers hidden in this bleak desert of prosaically reasoned preference; these snapshots of neon green on a QLED, this teasing dissemblance of Sony’s A80L and Bravia 8 to each other. They’re like the irritating motes floating on the summer light, casting a stubborn shadow on the surface of the pool. We’re so busy dissecting and honing the details of televisions that we forget that all the best entertainment is something to share. And we’re missing out on those built-in symphonies.

The Neon Green Dilemma: Tuning Your TV for True-to-life Colors

When was the last time you watched a television show and wondered if the grass looked a little too green? There’s a good chance it was on your Samsung QLED TV. Getting the colour calibration on your new TV just right begins with understanding its picture mode presets. If the output looks a little too green, try lowering the colour temperature. It might be enough to switch from ‘Cool’ to ‘Warm’. Within some of the presets (such as Movie or Filmmaker Mode), you’ll find a more complete calibration to make your colours as true as can be.

The Sony Standoff: A80L vs Bravia 8

When you compare a product, especially in the constantly evolving field of OLED TVs, the difference can be minimal, as the case is with Sony’s upcoming A80L and the already available Bravia 8. Bravia 8, in all intents and purposes, is the A80L’s successor with marginal improvements in brightness, a new design and improved eco-friendliness along with adaptive modes for streaming platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. The question is – would it be worth it to purchase Bravia 8, when the A80L is pretty popular right now? But is it? A closer look suggests otherwise, especially when you look at cost-benefit analysis.

The Audible Truth: Do High-end TV SPEAKERS Matter?

‘Why would anyone spend millions of dollars and years of research to create amazing picture quality only to plug in tinny headphones or attach an external audio system?’ asked the journalist Chris Hewitt in Wired magazine in 2012. But the truth is more complicated than that. A lot of people who buy TVs use the ones built into their sets and, for some, that is the end of the story. Perhaps, more than that, many people buy good speakers separately and do not find that TV sound systems are quite so bad. Finally, picture quality and audio quality are two sides of the coin. If I am going to spend a lot of money on a TV, I expect it to be a feast for the eyes and a banquet for my ears.

Is LG’s G4 OLED Worth the Leap from C2?

If you’re looking to upgrade from your previous TV to LG’s current model, the C2 to the G4 OLED makes sense, with its higher brightness and improved processing. Coming from the C2, perhaps you’re not going to notice such a huge leap. But if you’re coming from some mid-level LED TV, such as a 2018 4K TV, then upgrading to the G4 OLED is a bigger leap – but it’s one that’ll look stellar. And if you do have the budget, upgrading from C2 to G4 could also be a wise decision. Future proofing would be a huge benefit.

HDR on YouTube: A Rare Sight But Why?

The increase of detail and colour accuracy that HDR affords to video is undeniable; it is likely the best video content anyone will ever have the pleasure to see. So why aren’t there more HDR videos on YouTube? Because making HDR content in the first place tends to be more complicated and costly: it takes especial skill in colour grading, more equipment, and more time to produce. Occasionally, intrepid Youtubers decide to try their hand at HDR video; ones to keep an eye on include Vincent Teoh and Tha_VillaMan. The sheer effort involved in HDR content, poor versus good, often drives producers away from HDR content to make another SDR video.

Why TV SPEAKERS Deserve Your Attention

Don’t believe the hype: no matter how many pixels we pile on the screen and no matter how we trick out the display with other technological wizardries, sound is arguably essential to the viewing experience. Consider how we have a sense of tension in the dramatic dialogue or how we are swept up or escalated by the mix of music and sound effects in the latest blockbuster film. We care about the TV speaker, as proven by the fact that manufacturers invest in speaker quality not as a cosmetic plus, but as a necessity. They want sound quality to match the calibre of their high-end displays. And so, while we continue to chase the visual rainbow, we hope that we remember that it doesn’t float alone in the sky. It is being supported by the unassuming but powerful TV speaker.