Within half an hour of Tweeting the fact that I finally got my paws on the new stereo Beatles remasters this week, my email inbox was clogged with the same question repeated practically ad infinitum: “So... don’t leave me hanging. How do they sound?” The ellipses were often stretched to the point of abuse, and the question marks ranged from solitary to the obscene, but I read that exactly question so many times I almost started to have Tweet remorse
Honestly, though, who doesn’t want to know how these discs sound? So I’ll cut to the chase and tell you all what I told them:
Put your system (and your foundation) to the test with these spectacular subwoofer Show-Offs
Sure we all enjoy a carefully crafted surround sound mix that oozes ambience and paints a pretty phonic picture in the air, but what we all really love is head-slamming, rump-shaking, rafter-rattling bass.
With that in mind, this installment of Show-Off is all about giving you the lowdown on the lowest of the low—Blu-ray subwoofer demos certain to pin you to your seat, part your hair (assuming you have any) and rattle anything that isn’t nailed, bolted or Gorilla-glued to the walls or floor.
I still remember the first time I bought this album. I was going on fourteen years old, on a school trip to New York City. I found the tape in a little store off the beaten path. Nevermind had just come out, but no one could foresee the impact on music Nirvana was going to have.
Fast forward to 2009 and I sit here admiring a gorgeous 180-gram white vinyl 2 LP set. Album #1 is a remastered pressing of the original Bleach LP. The other is a February 9th, 1990 show at the Pine Street Theatre in Portland, Oregon.
These spectacularly spooky Show-Offs will ensure your sub isn't the only thing going bump in the night.
Ah, Halloween: the weirdest of all holidays. The night when all the world turns into a Key West street parade and yard decorations run the gamut from tacky carved vegetables to toilet paper. Who could blame you if you decided to stay inside with the door shut tight and wait for the craziness to pass?
Holing up for the night doesn’t preclude you from celebrating All Hallows’ Eve entirely, though.
I know what's about to happen. I'm about to sit here and type a thousand words or so, waxing left and right about The Beatles: Rock Band, how it fits into the current glut of music/rhythm games, whether it does justice to the band and their legacy, blah blah blah...
When really, what it all boils down to is this: if you like The Beatles, go buy this game. Now. If you like the Beatles and don't own a PS3 or Xbox 360 (or Wii, I guess), go buy one of those. Now. And then buy this game. Right after that.
If you guessed "4D" to the question above, you might not be far off. Companies like Phase Space are working on a technology, which allows actors to wear sensor suites and translate their actions, real time, into animated characters. To do this level of work for commercials and movies - a la "Avatar" - typically costs between $1,000 and $10,000 a second. PhaseSpace's solution costs about $10 a second. Says author, Rob Enderle: "While in its beginning stages, the concept of people being able to enter the movies they watch, or eventually being able to create 3Di movies could dramatically alter both what we watched and how we interacted with it. This technology may be applied to gaming via a head-mounted controller and voice-alteration." Imagine "virtual cameras" which allow the director to walk around, look at the tablet, and see into the movie world from all angles, making for intriguing participatory experiences.
The Next Big Thing: Crowd Sourced Movies and Immersive HD Games
According to Enderle, it isn't hard to imagine that an immersive game, properly cut and directed, couldn't actually be an interesting movie. When you combine the ability to immediately translate real actors into high-definition, animated, photo-realistic characters, in realistic, real-time-rendered environments, and view them all in real time, you have the potential to bend gaming and movies in a way that we may not be able to tell the difference.
The Beatles Stereo Remasters Review
Within half an hour of Tweeting the fact that I finally got my paws on the new stereo Beatles remasters this week, my email inbox was clogged with the same question repeated practically ad infinitum: “So... don’t leave me hanging. How do they sound?” The ellipses were often stretched to the point of abuse, and the question marks ranged from solitary to the obscene, but I read that exactly question so many times I almost started to have Tweet remorse
Honestly, though, who doesn’t want to know how these discs sound? So I’ll cut to the chase and tell you all what I told them:
The Home Entertainment magazine podcast - Episode 9
On Music and Filters
Did rock die in 1972? Are "old people" just glamorizing classic rock and ignoring modern music?
In our most opinionated, animated and heated podcast yet, Brent, Geoff, Kevin and Steve get into a debate on the state of music.
Download link after the jump.
Subwoofer Demo Material - Bring the Boom
Put your system (and your foundation) to the test with these spectacular subwoofer Show-Offs
Sure we all enjoy a carefully crafted surround sound mix that oozes ambience and paints a pretty phonic picture in the air, but what we all really love is head-slamming, rump-shaking, rafter-rattling bass.
With that in mind, this installment of Show-Off is all about giving you the lowdown on the lowest of the low—Blu-ray subwoofer demos certain to pin you to your seat, part your hair (assuming you have any) and rattle anything that isn’t nailed, bolted or Gorilla-glued to the walls or floor.
Nirvana Bleach 20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition 2 LP Set Review
I still remember the first time I bought this album. I was going on fourteen years old, on a school trip to New York City. I found the tape in a little store off the beaten path. Nevermind had just come out, but no one could foresee the impact on music Nirvana was going to have.
Fast forward to 2009 and I sit here admiring a gorgeous 180-gram white vinyl 2 LP set. Album #1 is a remastered pressing of the original Bleach LP. The other is a February 9th, 1990 show at the Pine Street Theatre in Portland, Oregon.
The Best Monster Movie Marathon
These spectacularly spooky Show-Offs will ensure your sub isn't the only thing going bump in the night.
Ah, Halloween: the weirdest of all holidays. The night when all the world turns into a Key West street parade and yard decorations run the gamut from tacky carved vegetables to toilet paper. Who could blame you if you decided to stay inside with the door shut tight and wait for the craziness to pass?
Holing up for the night doesn’t preclude you from celebrating All Hallows’ Eve entirely, though.
The Beatles: Rock Band Review (With Video)
When really, what it all boils down to is this: if you like The Beatles, go buy this game. Now. If you like the Beatles and don't own a PS3 or Xbox 360 (or Wii, I guess), go buy one of those. Now. And then buy this game. Right after that.
10 Best Software 2009
Our 10 Best Software Award winners.
Nothing less than our picks for the best demo material of the past year.
What’s Next After 3D? Appear in Your Own Movie
The Next Big Thing: Crowd Sourced Movies and Immersive HD Games
According to Enderle, it isn't hard to imagine that an immersive game, properly cut and directed, couldn't actually be an interesting movie. When you combine the ability to immediately translate real actors into high-definition, animated, photo-realistic characters, in realistic, real-time-rendered environments, and view them all in real time, you have the potential to bend gaming and movies in a way that we may not be able to tell the difference.