Technology
Review: Vizio 75-inch P-Series 4K HDR SmartCast TV
If you dabble at all in BYOTV systems integrations, you’re going to come face-to-face with Vizio eventually. Here is what you can expect.
Dennis Burger
Product Reviews
Review: MartinLogan Motion 4i and 8i Speakers
MartinLogan upgrades its Motion Series speakers with a lower-case “i” onto the ends of the model names and a pretty striking aesthetic makeover.
Product Reviews
Review: Yamaha R-N803 Network Stereo Receiver
The Yamaha R-N803 Network Stereo Receiver deftly blends new-school connectivity with old-school cool in a way that other stereo receivers could learn a lot...
Technology
Reviewing Meridian Audio’s 857 Reference Two-Channel Power Amplifier
Active Cooling is a Major Plus, Even If We Never Managed to Push It Hard Enough to Engage During the Course of This Review
Technology
Reviewing Lutron’s RA 2 Select
Lighting Control Line Offers a Goldilocks-Zone Solution for Those Homes Where RadioRA 2 is Overkill but Caséta Wireless Just Doesn’t Quite Keep Up
Product Reviews
Control4 CA-1 Automation Controller Reviewed
In a world where every new product release often seems like a bigger, badder, version of the last big, bad, do-everything thing before it,...
Technology
Reviewing Denon’s AVR-X6400H 11.2-Channel AV Receiver
As I approach the eight-year mark in my tenure with Residential Systems, I find myself reflecting on just how much our industry has changed...
Technology
Z-Wave Certified Installer Toolkit
Dennis Burger writes that Z-Wave’s Certified Installer Toolkit provides pretty much everything you need to analyze, troubleshoot, and monitor the health of a Z-Wave...
Technology
Triad One Single-Zone High-Resolution Streaming Amplifier Review
Dennis Burger says the Triad One Single-Zone High-Resolution Streaming Amplifier–which is also an automation controller–is the perfect solution for that extra zone in need...
Technology
Product Review: The Triad One Single-Zone High-Resolution Streaming Amplifier
The Triad One, as you might imagine, is the child of Triad’s marriage with Control4, and just from seeing its full name alone, you’re...
Technology
Legrand Nuvo Series Six Outdoor Speakers Review
As the outdoor market continues to explode, the era of merely okay-sounding all-weather speakers is coming to a pretty swift end.
Technology
Triad Introduces Unobtrusive and High-Performance Designer Series In-Ceiling Speakers
Triad has begun shipping the Designer Series In-Ceiling Speaker line, a solution to many of the gripes of in-ceiling speakers, and then some.
Blogs
An Up-Close Look at Triad’s Custom Speaker Process
As we were preparing to tour Triad Speakers’ manufacturing facilities in Portland recently, my fellow journalists and I were given a detailed rundown of...
Technology
Russound XZone70V Streaming Mixer Amplifier Review
To be perfect frank, I’m not even sure where to begin an exploration of Russound’s XZone70V Streaming Mixer Amplifier.
Technology
Yamaha YAS-706 Soundbar Review
Dennis Burger offers a sequel, of sorts, to his Yamaha MusicCast review with this look at the company’s YAS-706 soundbar, which depends on that...
Technology
Indy Audio Labs Acurus ACT 4 13.3 Review
American-Made Atmos/DTS:X Preamp-Processor Outshines its Competition
Technology
Peerless-AV PeerAir Pro
A couple of years ago, stumped for ideas about how to fill out my Christmas list, I casually mentioned to my dad that I...
Technology
Yamaha MusicCast WXA-50 & WX-010 Review
Here’s a thought experiment for you: if you were to design a wireless digital multiroom music system, what would it look like?
Technology
Arcam AVR850 AV Receiver Review
One of my favorite philosophers, the neuroscientist Sam Harris, frequently makes an intriguing point about the future of artificial intelligence.
Technology
Definitive Technology BP9060 Bipolar Tower Speaker Review
Incredible Sounding Speaker With Distinct Design Features, Atmos Expandability
Technology
MarkAudio-SOTA Viotti One Review
The Viotti One is the result of collaboration between Markaudio Ltd. and Sota Acoustics, who joined forces to create a new brand dubbed, logically...
Technology
Control4 Amazon Alexa Integration Review
Judging by the reaction to the official unveiling of Alexa/Control4 integration at this year’s CEDIA, it’s also a thing that a lot of people...
Technology
Focal Dôme Flax Speakers Review
Five minutes into unboxing Focal’s Dôme Flax speaker system, I realized I needed an adult, or at the very least a more comprehensible instruction...
Blogs
Unboxing the Echo: Will Control4 Play Nice?
Trade shows are kind of a fantasy. Or at least they can be. I can't tell you the number of times I've seen some...
Technology
Origin Acoustics AcoustaScape AS41 System Review
Or so I thought. Turns out, a new outdoor speaker system from Origin Acoustics is also reason enough to dig trenches and bury subwoofers...
Technology
KEF Q Series Speakers Review
The KEF Q Series is a bit of a minor miracle, really: an incredibly affordable, high-performance sound system that adapts itself (sonically, at least)...
Technology
Peerless-AV Xtreme Outdoor Soundbar Review
Is there anything worse in the world of AV than those teeny tiny speakers built into today’s high-performance TVs?
Technology
Focal Custom OD 108 Outdoor Speakers Review
The Custom OD 108 is one of those rare speakers that shines just as brightly when whispering as when driven like a beast of...
Technology
Ray Super Remote Review
If you have clients with basic home entertainment systems (plus perhaps Hue lighting and a Nest thermostat), who don’t need an advanced control solution...
Technology
Life With Access
A few months back, my friend and fellow AV journalist Brent Butterworth stopped by the Alabama offices of Residential Systems (i.e., my house) to...
Technology
On Controls Cloud-Enabled Automation Platform Product Review
When reviewing a product or platform for Residential Systems, one of the primary questions I ask myself is, “Who is this for?
Technology
Control4 EA-1, EA-3 Controllers Review
The EA-3 and EA-1 are entry-level controllers for single-room use, or for expanding a larger Control4 system into additional rooms.
Blogs
Control4: New EA Controllers Will Be ‘Devastating’ to the Industry
So, what's so special about this new line of entertainment and automation controllers? The first thing to come out of one of those boxes...
Features
The Demo Scene: Top Video Game Demos
If you’re not including video games in your home theater demo rotation, you’re doing it wrong.
Technology
iRoom iDock Review
This little beauty keeps my iPad charged and ready in a handy location. But best of all, it doesn’t make my tablet a slave...
Technology
Audio Control Rialto 600, Bijou 600 Zone Amplifiers Review
Maybe it’s just my own skewed perspective here, but it seems that all too often, the modern integrator has to make a choice between...
Technology
Beale Street Audio ICS8-MB and ICS6-MB Subwoofer Review
Right around this time last year, I finished up the first major overhaul of my dad’s home theater system, during which I upgraded his...
Technology
Artison RCC Nano 1 Subwoofer Review
The Nano 1’s diminutive footprint is actually one of the least interesting things about it, in my opinion.
Technology
Control4 SR-260 System Remote Review
I’m sure you’ve been in this position before: a manufacturer introduces some shiny new thing to replace the less-than-shiny old thing you’ve been selling...
Features
Demo Scene: Science Fiction Triple Feature
Here’s your chance to show clients just how much better a well-crafted home theater system can look and sound than the commercial competition.
Video
SnapAV’s Wirepath NVR and IP Camera Review
I like knowing what I’m getting myself into ahead of time.
Technology
Integra DTR-70.6 Dolby Atmos AV Receiver
I need to get this off my chest right at the giddy-up.
Technology
Truly Entertaining Audio Demos from CES 2015
I have absolutely no intention of taking credit for this.
Technology
Review: Definitive Technology’s W7 and W9 Wireless Speakers
It seems to me that the only things popping up with greater frequency these days than funny cat videos on YouTube are new wireless...
Technology
Product Review: GoRave Wireless Multi-Room Audio System
If you’re looking for an easy-to-install, integration-friendly distributed audio system that reflects the way most people are consuming personal entertainment these days, go with...
Technology
Autonomic Controls MMS-2A Mirage Media Server
As I was installing and configuring Autonomic Controls’ new MMS-2A Mirage Media Server, it occurred to me just how much the music distribution market...
Technology
NEAR LB8 Outdoor Loudspeakers
When the head of PR for NEAR (New England Audio Resource) approached me this summer about reviewing a set of the company’s outdoor speakers,...
Archive
CEDIA 2014: All The Outdoor Audio That’s Fit to Print
The vast majority of outdoor speakers at this year’s show are practically indistinguishable from one another. It makes sense, I suppose; there are only...