New Theater System
July 31, 2007
As mentioned in a previous post, I have replaced most of the components in my home theater system. I had set up the current system about 4 years ago when we moved into our current house in Arizona. HDTV was still relatively new and some wanted features weren’t available then. Some of these features were true HDMI, 1080p native and hi-definition DVDs.
There really wasn’t anything wrong with the current system and I hope I can recoup a few dollars in the sale of it. I have already had one guy come by and look at the HDTV. I should hear back from him in a day or two. The HDTV was a CRT projection set. It is still has most likely the best black color representation and essentially infinite contrast ratio. However, the unit is simply big. It is 26 inches deep and has totally useless speakers covering the bottom third of the set. I decided to go more slim on the TV.
I don’t like plasma or LCD displays as their blacks and whites are too washed out. To me, fast motion on them also causes artifacts. Thus, I decided to go with a DLP projection HDTV. Some folks have reported seeing color wheels on the sets if they turn their heads very fast while viewing. First, not sure why you would do that and second, I don’t have that issue. The new set is only 14 inches deep and and is 1080p with HDMI. It is a 61″ Samsung model. I am still playing around with doing a color calibration on the set, but am thus far very satisfied.
I replaced my Denon A/V Receiver with a Yamaha A/V Receiver that is HDMI compliant and can do input switching and upconversion. Both receivers were 7.1 surround sound receivers. Yamaha is well known for the DSP sound field programs, but I am not sure how much I will use them as I prefer to use the encoded sound directly off the DVDs. I much prefer DTS to Dolby though.
I also added a Samsung Blu-Ray player to my setup. The Blu-Ray replaces my Pioneer Elite DVD player. I am still not sure that I don’t technically prefer the HD-DVD format to Blu-Ray, but clearly the most source data is available in Blu-Ray, so I went that direction. The 1080p resolution coming off of the discs is absolutely stunning. There is a noticeable although not great difference between the 1080i and 1080p formats. Hopefully, it won’t be years before more source material (ie Satellite) will be available in 1080p. It is really hard for me to watch standard definition TV after having HDTV for years. It is likely that the 1080 Blu-Ray will due the same to 480p and upconverted DVDs.
The last, new component was the DirecTV HD DVR. We have long used Tivo, but it was always standard def. Suzanne and the kids have been using the Tivo up until now, but I have pretty much ignored it since I find it hard to watch standard def TV. With this new hi def recorder, I can again watch some shows of interest that I may have missed. The record quality is very good. It also has two tuners which allows us to record two programs or watch one while recording another. Technically, that’s not a new feature, but it’s new for us and has already come in handy.
The components in my system that I did not replace were my power conditioning unit, the battery backup (can’t lose my xbox 360 games or in progress DVR stuff), my Xbox 360, Suzanne’s karaoke system and my 7.1 speaker system.
This new theater system is really awesome. Folks need to stop on by and check out the future with hi-definition movies!
Boardgames on the Xbox 360
July 7, 2007
As my loyal readers (gotta be at least 8 of ya) know, we are pretty avid boardgamers. The family loves sitting down on the weekend and spending hours playing boardgames. Actually, the kids would love to play even more. Our game closet at home must have 50 different boardgames in it.
Lately, the boardgame industry seems to be dominated by German games. The Germans have come up with numerous really good games. A couple that we have liked the best and that are the most popular are Settlers of Catan and Carcassonne. These are very fun games that are easy to pick up, yet can have many nuances of strategy that keep you coming back. Both also feature tiles that make up the boards which mean the board is different every time you play. Several additional German boardgame titles are on our short list to acquire though we usually wait for the kids Birthdays or holidays to add games to our collection.
Recently, the Xbox 360, through Xbox Live, has added both Settlers of Catan and Carcassonne to its list of available of games. We have purchased both since they cost less than $10 on Xbox Live. Both games have given us additional hours of fun and have lived up to the real boardgame. In fact, in some respects, they are better than the actual boardgame since you don’t have the setup and tear down time.
Both games allow you to play against computer AI (one or more), which makes getting up a game much easier than getting the whole family to play. They also allow you to play against other folks around the World on Xbox Live, again, making finding a game very easy. Carcassonne also allows you to play local multiplayer games. The kids and I have played dozen of Carcassonne games already. It’s very simple to start and games can be played in 15 – 20 minutes. The visual representation of the game on the Xbox 360 actually speeds up the game and helps the kids with tactical decisions.
Unfortunately, Settlers of Catan does not allow local multiplayer. This is due to players having/acquiring cards in the game that are supposed to be hidden from the other players view. Video games haven’t come up with a good system yet for these kind of games. I wish they would just implement some simple system, such as just asking the other players to look away while you take a glance. While obviously not optimal, it would make local multiplayer games possible.
For both actual boardgames, we have added multiple expansion modules to the game that have grown the size, complexity and enjoyability of the games. These expansions are not yet available on the Xbox 360 version, though Carcassonne does come with the river expansion, but will be soon for a small fee that will again be a fraction of the real cost.
It also appears that another Germany boardgame, Alhambra, will soon be making it’s way to Xbox Live. We don’t yet own this boardgame, but it is next on our acquisition list based on reviews and rankings that I have done in research on boardgame sites. With Sean’s Birthday approaching in August, we have begun to start thinking about which boardgames to add to our collection.
I don’t see the video version of these games replacing our love of physical boardames, just complementing them. There is still the allure of gathering around the table plus we can’t take the video version when we travel.
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