DrPyro

Ben- I'm in the 'burbs, specifically Grand Island. I could also host a gathering, infact I had suggested this to markgod before he organized his little gathering partly across the state. I can easily setup two listening rooms and in a few months I should have the new plasma and Juicy Music amps... -Dave

rats...I just bought a new pair of speakers, so I best not get them... Good to see some klipsch-nuts in the area, i was starting to wonder if Buffalo was the dark side of the mooon for audio. If someone needs me to run to take a look in person, i'll be glad to make the trip...its only about 50 miles for me. I hope someone buys them! -Dave PS: You still coming to the NY get together?

Oh heck...I should have known that your house was full of speakers...lol So I won't worry about bringing them unless someone yells for them. Cheers -Dave

Hmm...I figured that the email had gotten lost in the lalaland. Anyways, I was offering to bring a pair of monitor speakers. They are not Klipsch...ekkks...blasphony...i know! They are Dynaudio Confidence C1s. They are nice "little" monitors (not broken in) and easily transportable, if we need a nother pair of speakers for listening. I don't know if you had the room or the desire to have another setup.... Its your choice... -Dave

Mark- Noon sounds just fine to me... As for food..I eat anything (almost), but I LOVE BBQ! My vote is for PiggyPats. -Dave PS: did you get my email about the posibility of bringing the C1s?

I might be there.... Amy, I sent the email lacking flattery about you, so will i be banned? [6] -Dave

No problem with the changed date...I'll be there... -Dave

I'll be there..... I won't have the pCATs yet...so they are not coming. However, I do plan on bring my Sony XA9000ES SACD player and custom interconnects. -Dave

I'm a little late responding this thread, but better late than never!!! Markgod had emailed me some time ago asking about a gathering, but i conviently ignored him as i was still in the process of moving to Buffalo & buying a house. Mark had expressed interest in the JuicyMusic pCATs and i had suggested a Spring date, because who in their right mind would come to upstate NY in WINTER! [:^)] Oh wait...we are Klipsch nuts...never mind! I would LOVE to bring the pCATs, IF I HAD THEM!! They are still in the process of being made and i currently don't know when I'll get them, perhaps not till Feburary or March timeframe. I'll call to check the status.... At this point in time, I think any weekend would be fine. In addition to the possible pCATs, I can bring my Sony XA9000ES SA-CD player and some of my homemade interconnects. Cheers [D] -Dave

Erik- I'm not sure about the Harmony 880 (I just got a Harmony 520), however, I have programed my MX-700 reasonably easy. The way i programed the remote was purchase a IR keyboard, and put the remote into "learning mode" and taught the remote the keystrokes for specific comands. The only problem that i had was recording the "Shift-Key" or other alternate commands like "ctrl-" or alternate commands. However, Pronto users haven't reported problems, so the Harmony may not have problems either. One keyboard that should work is this one... http://www.microsoft.com/hardware/mouseandkeyboard/ProductDetails.aspx?pid=038&active_tab=overview The only problem with "some" players is that they don't have hot keys to access certain commands, aka. you must use a mouse. The advantage of Theatertek is that they have a hotkey for almost every major action. -Dave

Oh fudge, Damon, I didn't know that. I set it all up for selecting DVDs or HDDVDs, and they didn't have an option for Blueray. I must have done the setup prior to the release of any BlueRay disks. Now you only made my selection harder...RATS! -Dave

I run TheaterTek too, it is one of the best DVD players if you want to use it with a remote control. Almost all of the key features have a hotkey, so all you need to do is buy an IR keyboard and teach your remote the key sequences (no Girder, etc, required). Scooter, I would also purchase AnyDVD. It is basically a DVD cracking software, but it does 3 other things that you will love, it removes annoying advertisements, and removes "user prohibitive actions" FFs or Skips for some trailers, and can jump directly to the movie or menu. It sometimes doesn't like certain disks that i use, perhaps 1 in 25, but i get alot of foreign movies off of netflix, but the program is constantly being updated. -Dave

If my memory serves me, BestBuy was also pushing HDDVD before Blueray was even out. BestBuy, and other B&M stores, will often not push the "best" product, but push the product which gets the best margins or results in the most profit. The sales people seem to focus on several "key" selling points when pushing BlueRay. 1) Its "TRUE" HD (1080P). 2) Larger disk space (50GB) 3) "New" Blue laser technology. Although these selling points sound like a big deal when you hear them (I admit I was pushing Blueray initially, mainly due to larger disk sizes), however, when in comes to the implimentation there are a few caviats. 1) In reality there are many HD formats, most popular are 720P and 1080i, so there isn't ONE "TRUE" HD. 2) Very few 1080P sets are currently sold, and many of them can't accept 1080P signals. Plus, many of them that do accept 1080P down convert to another format and then scale to 1080p, so you aren't really using the full 1080p. 3) 1080P and 1080i both feed the same resolution, the difference is that one is an interlaced signal and one is progressive. IF you have a decent deinterlacer, you will likely see NO difference. 4) Both HDDVD and BlueRay disks are encoded at 1080P, its just how the players OUTPUT the signal. 5) Yes, BlueRay does use a blue diode and has larger potential disk sizes. However, Sony has had troubles making the 50GB versions. I believe the only 50G movie disk is "Click", perhaps more will come on the market soon. However, "more" does NOT mean "better"!!! To give an example, about a year ago, i rented a DVD which had the WORST encoding on the planet I had EVER seen. I am not kidding or exagerating, the very first VCR tapes looked better than this DVD, the image was fuzzy, had interlacing problems, etc. My origional Dracula DVD was better than this, I had to look when the movie was made...2000!!! It was just shocking to me that something this new could be soooo poorly done. I would support the larger size IF they actually used it for the movie and NOT for all of the "extra" stuff, however the trends are to include sooooo much extra stuff that i almost always never watch it. I too am a little gunshy about either format, and I'm a tad negative about Sony. I don't think Sony quite knows how to launch a new "format". They want to control everything about it which tends to kill the format. Just look at Sony Memory Sticks, SACD, Betamax. Sony memory sticks are ONLY used in sony products...its damn annoying...when the most popular format is SD or CF for cameras. My g/f got a sony camera because its "stylish" with no reguard how she is going to actually read the memory stick and she now complains that the memory sticks are sooo much more expensive...Thats Sony.... I have a Sony SACD player, I LOVE SACD for my classical music...but i just see the format going along at 2mph barely moving. It will die...its just a matter of when or how. Frankly..I would wait to "pick" a format if you are going to buy the disks. I MAY (haven't decided yet) get HDDVD because I can rent the movies from Netflix, but at $30 a disk is a tad expensive for someone that rarely watches a movie twice. Hope this helped.... -Dave

I had the same experience when I was using my old surge protector. When it was used, the noise went up significantly. It convinced me to spend the $ and get a more "audio" type surge protector. I'm currently running a Monster Power Center (5100Mk2, i think). While it may add a small amount of noise, it is not large enough to have me remove it and run the risk of power surges destroying the equipment. -Dave

ROFL Jim... That is a great photo, cuz we all know how much extra "stuff" we have saved for the future.... I actually think the photos are great! I definatly would NOT post a photo that makes the interior look "messy" as it would make the parts look poorly made. And we all know that isn't the case! -Dave

Klipsch speakers are famous for being sensitive, they are extreamly sensitive to noise. That noise may be from amps, surround sound processor (DSPs), sources, and other things. Recievers like the Pioneer-Elite, don't have the quietest amps or DSPs, so some "hiss" (expecially from the horn) is natural. You can isolate the noise coming from the DSPs by changing the surround mode for a given source. You will likely notice the DTS and DD modes are quite different in "hiss" levels as compared to "stereo" or other modes. I had simular problems when i purchased my first klipsch speakers and a Denon reciever. The Monster Powerbar may be making more or less hiss. My old triplite surge protector actually added MORE hiss, however, my Monster reduced the "hiss" compared to a direct connection. When i upgraded my Denon to seperates, the hiss reduced so far i could barely hear it when i had my ear 1ft from the speaker. So I'm afraid its just the nature of the Klipsch beast.... You will likely NEVER notice the hiss when watching movies or listening to CDs. Hope this helps... -Dave

I have another error Mark, hehe, the pCAT is showing $4999 on the paypal site. Call me just slightly anal...but it is a difference of 0.08% The only other suggestion I would make is that under "More about us" page, it would be nice if the names under "info" were hyperlinked to the specific areas on the page. I kept trying to click on them to go to the specific location on the page. Oh, one more... On the product group pages, in addition to the "more" link to the specific product, create a link on the picture to the product too. But I love the new site... -Dave

As Mark (and some women) have suggested, its not the size, weight or power that really matters its the quality of the power that can be delivered. Also, the 2-channel integrated likely have significantly better DACs (if they accept digital) and other factors. However, it is likely that the integrated also sells signficantly fewer unites, thus the cost of development is higher per unit. And lastly, dedicated 2-channel fans are more likely to pay more for a "quality" 2-channel product versus the "general" consumer. All of this goes to the increase in MSRP between the reciever and integrated units. -Dave

Happy birthday Michael, nothing like getting a b-day present for yourself! Enjoy'em! -Dave

Yi and I also had a wonderful time meeting everyone. She even tolerated me talking toys with the boys, guess bribing with food, wine and a concert always helped. haha! Dinner was outstanding, it was an excellent choice. I too would like to thank Larry, Gary, and Mike for all of there hard work at putting this together. The concert was very good, it was the first time i had been to the National Symphony or Strathmore. I have to admit, it was SOOO much easier to get in and out of Strathmore than my experiences going to the Philadelphia Orchestra in downtown Philly. One thing that did surprise me was the slightly lackluster attandence at the concert. But the seats were fantastic, as we were sitting on the first balcony directly above the orcestra (left side). I hope that i can attend another Klipsch head gathering soon! Perhaps We could do a Buffalo NY gathering some time in the spring...HINT HINT!! It was great meeting everyone... Cheers -Dave

Excellent news, but don't stress yourself Larry. Your health is more important than meeting a bunch of crazy Klipschheads. There will always be another chance in the future! Mike...I have sent you an email... -Dave

Mike- I still plan on coming along with the g/f, not wife ;-) We would love to meet ppl for dinner. I can think of no better way to show our appreciation for Larry and his hard work than to get togehter and raise a few glasses to him! -Dave

Oh my... We all hope for the best and for a speedy recovery Larry! -Dave

Phil- As with any technology, there are positives and negatives and the same it true with LCD and DLP. The question you have to ask yourself is which positives and negatives you can live with. DLPs tend to have problems with "rainbows" but are better with blacks. Rainbows are a result due to a color wheel spinning in front of the little mirrors on the DLP chip. Due to the spinning wheel, the colors red, blue, and green, are displayed at slightly different times. So during fast action this differences in display times can make the subject trail like a "rainbow". The rainbows create eye fatigue and may cause some to become dizzy. The faster the color wheels, the less of a problem this is. So you need to determine if you or anyothers may be sensitive. LCDs don't have the "rainbow" problem, but don't have nearly as dark blacks and may have a "screendoor" effect. The "screendoor" effect is a result of the pixel structure of LCDs (larger areas of black between the colored pixels). HOWEVER, I would encourage you to really THINK about do you really WANT or NEED a projector! Projectors are great if you want a big image and are best in a light controlled room with high quality video/DVD sources. Standard TV isn't great on a HUGE screen. But if you are paying for a $4000 projector (or even a $1000), you must consider the cost of having to replace a bulb every few years. This is not a $20 bulb, most bulbs cost $300 - $400. Furthermore, heat kills bulbs and dramatically shortens their lives, to combat this problem manufactures have to put fans in the projectors. As we all know, loud sounds, like fans, are annoying during quiet movie scenes. So manufactures try and balance acceptable levels of heat with quiet operation, some manufactures haven't done a good job doing this balance so bulbs fail early. So do some homework to determine which models have more of a problem. I have owned a projector for 3 years when the bulb finally died (during my superbowl party...DOH), it made me seriously think about BULB life. My next display is going to be a Plasma, even if it is smaller. I may get another projector if i build a dedicated room and I will only use it for DVDs, HDDVD/Blueray, or HD only to save bulb time. As for specific recomendations I would suggest that you read www.avsforum.com as they will have the most detailed information. -DrPyro

Hmmm... For the "old" shows...I have always loved MASH. New shows..I must be crazy, but I like NCIS..noone seems to have mentioned that show. I also like the history& discovery channels, plus some SciFi stuff like Stargate SG-1 & Atlantis. -DrPyro