2011 saw some really great rock music. At 43 years old, with a two-year old and a wife, I didn’t discover it through my circle of hanging out and party friends, either. Instead, I’ve developed a sure-fire method to learning of good new tunes. I go to www.besteveralbums.com and create a playlist of the albums listed there. For 2011–and I’ve done this for other years, as well–I created a playlist, in MOG, of the 100 top albums and, as they come up on the player–in my case a Logitech Touch–I delete the songs I don’t like. (Spotify and Rhapsody are two other services which are choice options for listening to just about any music you like. Mog appears to have the best selection and they do have the best sound quality.)  I wind up with a killer playlist of new music, and for this year anyway, find whole albums that are good from start to finish.  (Listening to a whole album through, a great one, is a fulfilling experience, different from listening through a great mix.  I wonder how often younger people do this.)

My recommendations for your best shot at pleasing the rock fans on your gift list, in no particular order (band, album):

Radio Head, King of Limbs
My Morning Jacket, Circuital
Iron & Wine, Kiss Each Other Clean
Wild Flag, Wild Flag

All are available on vinyl, as well.

Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukka, Happy New Year!

All I want for Christmas is a stereo preamp with state-of-the-art room correction, the ability to stream network audio from my LAN (aiff, flac, wav, mp3, and all else under the sun), the ability to play internet radio and paid services (MOG, Rhapsody, Spotify, and Sirius, at least), the ability to accept all resolutions up through 24/192–at least–on all inputs (including ethernet!), at least 3 toslink inputs, at least 4 coaxial digital inputs, 5 line-level analog inputs, 3 USB inputs, 5 HDMI inputs (for decoding SACD, Blu-ray audio), 2 HDMI outputs (for 2 displays), an MC phono stage, built-in wifi, 2 channel pass-through for connecting with a surround sound processor, a digital processor loop capable of at least 24/192 resolution, sound quality at least as good as my McIntosh C2300 preamp when that piece is playing its MC phono and its line-level inputs, a backlit remote control, easy-to-use web based and TV screen control with full metadata, discreet IR codes for every function, an upgradeable design, full functionality from the front panel, comfortably spaced jacks, a tech support department that answers within 3 minutes and speaks English as a native language and knows the product thoroughly, a price under $9,000.  I’ll settle for the same piece in a surround sound version, but I don’t want to pay more than another $1500 for it.  Anyone know where I can get one of these?

I spent 4 1/2 hours with TiVo support, to view high def camcorder footage on an HDTV. No go. The best we could do is sound and no picture. It’s being kicked to tier 2.  They say people do it all the time, but for some reason my .mov files aren’t working.

TiVo becomes a more enticing product if it lets you watch your HD home movies in HD, as it claims to. Lots of people have HD camcorders now–iPhones qualify–and they need an easy way to see what they’ve recorded, on their HDTVs.

TiVo has worked out great as a much cheaper way to get HDTV and HD movies than if one were to pay a cable TV or satellite company.  I’m pulling in all the local HD programming–at about 20 miles from NYC–and getting Netflix, all through my TiVo.  It’s just about all the programming I want at a much cheaper price.  Ease of use is better than any cable company I’ve seen, even better than DirecTV which is pretty sensibly designed.

Homeowners expect every TV in their house to be HDTV, and a growing number want audio and video content to come from the internet (e.g. Netflix, security cameras) and from their computers (e.g. photos).  Given that HDTV and computer-based content are harder to implement than older technologies, designing TV and audio systems requires greater expertise than it use to.  And, homeowners want this technology in more rooms than they use to, adding still more system complexity.  Using a qualified A/V designer is as important as ever.  Often, though, the designer is consulted too late—like once the electrical has started.  At that point, framing, electrical, and concrete may have to be reworked to accommodate the A/V.  I’ve seen many cases where the installation of just a TV and a cable box would have been cheaper, and more to the homeowners’ liking, had it been professionally designed into the drawings.  Consequently, incorporating the A/V designs into the architectural drawings is an industry best practice.

Some homeowners don’t like the idea of planning with an A/V specialist.  Without one, they think, they’ll buy the right gear anyway and spend less (i.e. they’re penny wise and pound foolish).  Or, they say they wouldn’t know what to talk about with a system designer.  They often say that they’re not audiophiles or videophiles. They say they rarely listen to music or watch TV.  But, there is no correlation between the need for advanced planning and one’s passion for, or knowledge of, or consumption rate of, music and TV.

This seems particularly true of the homeowner who wants gear and wire hidden, or who wants just background music but in multiple rooms, or who wants to be able to plop down on the couch and watch TV at night without needing an “engineering degree.”  Indeed, people who say their needs are simple often want one or more of the system features listed below. These features require particular wiring and additional equipment that are missed by the non-professional.

1. Cable boxes, DVD players, and other equipment, hidden.
2. TVs viewable from multiple angles.
3. Ability to use a stereo/surround system to hear TV sound sometimes, but use the TV’s built-in speakers other times.  This one is requested frequently.
4. Ability to control volume from any room in the house.
5. Ability to choose sources (e.g. iPod, radio, internet, CD) and change songs from any room in the house.
6. Ability to combine music, security cameras, intercom, and HVAC, on one controller.

Bring an A/V designer into your project early—ideally, before the architectural drawings are finalized.  Incorporate the client-approved A/V designs into the drawings.  Other contractors’ bids can now be more accurate.  Knowing what is required of them to accommodate the A/V, all the trades are helped in their efforts to do their jobs right, on schedule, and within budget. The client is more likely to get what he wants, from all of us, with no surprises.