Home Theater Magazine is dead

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I just got an issue of S&V Magazine in the mail. I was a little confused because I don't even subscribe to S&V. I subscribe to HTM.

Well, it appears the 2 magazines have "joined forces" - so the editor said.

I glanced at the review of the $2K Marantz 7008 AVR. They showed the usual 2CH 8 ohms/4 ohms & 5CH/7CH 8 ohms power output. But then said "FR, THD, Crosstalk, & SNR were all within usual limits"!

Translation: they didn't even measure them at all.

The speaker measurements appeared to look the same...probably less. I was already pissed off at this time so I didn't look closely.

Is this the beginning of the end for paper magazines?

Next thing you know, S&V, HTM, & Stereophile will also "join forces" and screw all the measurements to hell.

 

[Cos]

"Is this the beginning of the end for paper magazines?"

It's way past the beginning, were are more than half way through and closer to the end.

- How many people read an actual book rather than a digital copy, or pick up a newspaper when they can do it online on their phone or ipad?
- I can't remember the last time I picked up a newspaper or read a book that wasn't on my Ipad or Kindle
- I knew about that merger a while back because it was on their website

Print media is on life support

We all know how fond you are of measurements, I wonder if their is a place to go for for measurement rehab

 

[gene]

I just got an issue of S&V Magazine in the mail. I was a little confused because I don't even subscribe to S&V. I subscribe to HTM.

Well, it appears the 2 magazines have "joined forces" - so the editor said.

I glanced at the review of the $2K Marantz 7008 AVR. They showed the usual 2CH 8 ohms/4 ohms & 5CH/7CH 8 ohms power output. But then said "FR, THD, Crosstalk, & SNR were all within usual limits"!

Translation: they didn't even measure them at all.

The speaker measurements appeared to look the same...probably less. I was already pissed off at this time so I didn't look closely.

Is this the beginning of the end for paper magazines?

Next thing you know, S&V, HTM, & Stereophile will also "join forces" and screw all the measurements to hell.

This industry is slowly dying. Only the ultra high end has a solid footing b/c people with more money than they know what to do with will always buy uber expensive gear for bragging rights.

The midpriced segment and CE market is shriveling up and being consumed by the Soundbar, Earbud, table radio markets. CEDIA is missing a lot of big names this year for this very reason

 

[psbfan9]

Maybe I'm being to sentimental, or maybe it's mental, but there is something about waking up with a cup of coffee, or tea, yes I drink tea, don't judge, and having the cat and a 3lb. Sunday paper on my lap. I still like print books, newspapers, and magazines. I can stare at this monitor for only so long before I get bored or get a headache.

I can understand their point of view from a business perspective, but I may be too nostalgic to accept the change.

 

[slipperybidness]

Maybe I'm being to sentimental, or maybe it's mental, but there is something about waking up with a cup of coffee, or tea, yes I drink tea, don't judge, and having the cat and a 3lb. Sunday paper on my lap. I still like print books, newspapers, and magazines. I can stare at this monitor for only so long before I get bored or get a headache.

I can understand their point of view from a business perspective, but I may be too nostalgic to accept the change.

My Digi Fundamentals class has officially gone to an open-source, digital only pdf textbook. It is a good book, 500 pages, and has all the material. We were given a link to it and the option to download it to a thumb-drive.

While I think this is very noble to try to save students $, I still prefer the physical textbook. I like to work out the problems in the margins, highlight, make notes. I have the same textbook that was used for this class in previous semesters.

I also very much love a shelf full of books. Whenever I can get a home office, I fully intend to have floor-to-ceiling bookshelves full of my favorites. I also still collect vinyl, so I guess this isn't much of a surprise.

We have several Half Price Books around town, and go browse whenever I have a couple spare hours.

 

[Cos]

I am still old enough to remember not having an email account, and having blazing fast internet of 300 Baud Modems on my Commodore 64 and Compaq Portable Suitcase 8088 Intel. In the same respect there are things I like to have in paper form

- Manuals for all my HT and Electronic Gear
- Contracts with original not digital signatures

I would have loved to have Digital books for school when I was in college, it would have been so much better IMO to be able to use SEARCH to find topics a lot faster.

I was styling back in college as I had a Toshiba Laptop with back lighting and my Motorola flip phone.

 

[Adam]

I don't believe that printed media will ever go away, nor should it. It's just no longer the most efficient or cost-effective means of disseminating information to a large audience in most parts of the globe. Word of mouth was replaced with print a long time ago for mass distribution, and now electronic media is overtaking print. When I was delivering papers back in the 80's, I thought that we'd eventually be distributing the information using digital media (I was thinking discs that would be delivered and picked back up, but that was before I ever heard of the internet ).

I just wish all the companies that continue to send me large amount of junk mail would consider just trying to spam me over e-mail. I hate the idea of so many resources going into delivering me (and millions of other people) physical media that I don't want.

 

[ratso]

My Digi Fundamentals class has officially gone to an open-source, digital only pdf textbook. It is a good book, 500 pages, and has all the material. We were given a link to it and the option to download it to a thumb-drive.

While I think this is very noble to try to save students $, I still prefer the physical textbook. I like to work out the problems in the margins, highlight, make notes. I have the same textbook that was used for this class in previous semesters.

I also very much love a shelf full of books. Whenever I can get a home office, I fully intend to have floor-to-ceiling bookshelves full of my favorites. I also still collect vinyl, so I guess this isn't much of a surprise.

We have several Half Price Books around town, and go browse whenever I have a couple spare hours.

my med - surg textbook cost $500. used. and i got back $50 when i sold it back at the end. so no, i do not miss that.

 

[markw]

Geez, wotta bunch of crybabies. The big fish have been eating the smaller fish ever since the early 60's. ...and you're just noticing now?

Maybe my being in this hobby sincethe early 60's gives me a bit more perspective, but really. The world didn't start when some newbies first noticed this stuff.

Here's a link to the lineage.

 

[mtrycrafts]

... The big fish have been eating the smaller fish ever since the early 60's. ....

For a fraction of a second or maybe a whole I though you were going to say since the beginning of time.

 

[Adam]

Geez, wotta bunch of crybabies.

Who's crying?

 

[markw]

Who's crying?

Read the initial post.

 

[Adam]

Read the initial post.

I know...but you said bunch of babies. There didn't seem to be many folks lamenting the merger.

 

[markw]

I know...but you said bunch of babies. There didn't seem to be many folks lamenting the merger.

True. There was only one. I did paint with quite a broad brush there. mea culpa.

 

[panteragstk]

Books don't need power. I'll keep my books. E-books cost just as much (some).

 

[slipperybidness]

Books don't need power. I'll keep my books. E-books cost just as much (some).

View attachment 12489

Haha, yup. Plus, if I lose a book, no big deal, maybe $5 as almost all of my books come from Half Price Books. They have good record selection too!

 

[markw]

Gotta love Half Price Books! I wish we had 'em where we live. As it it, I make time to hit up as many as possible when we get to places that have 'em.

 

[Cos]

Kindle books are cheap as well, and I will never lose my book, it's just waiting for me in a big puffy cloud...now ipad's...that's another story. At least I have never lost one yet . As for the airport I can wait 10 minuets to open my device, and I never lose my page I am on.

 

[slipperybidness]

Kindle books are cheap as well, and I will never lose my book, it's just waiting for me in a big puffy cloud...now ipad's...that's another story. At least I have never lost one yet . As for the airport I can wait 10 minuets to open my device, and I never lose my page I am on.

What happens when you upgrade or move to a different brand ebook?

I'm seriously asking the question, not a hypothetical.

Is it seamless to read the books on another device? How about if you want to loan to a friend? Or sale it back to fund new books?

I could be wrong, but I think there is a lot of digital rights stuff that makes this a hassle?

 

[Cos]

- Your books go with you when you upgrade your device because they are stored on the cloud, its funny, my kindle has one of my devices listed as ipad 7


-Amazon runs on my Kindle, Ipad, PC, Android Phone device. As far as switching book I really don't need to as I can pretty much access it on any device I own, or will own in the future
-It is easy to read on another device, books can be downloaded from the cloud in a matter of seconds
-When you buy the ebook, you can send it to one or all of your electronic devices, up to a certain number, I think its around 5
-I can also log on to my amazon account through apps for apple, android, Windows, Mac OS, and get the book quickly

Lending
- I never really lent out my books when I had hardcopy, but amazon does have a 14 day lending policy on most books
- As far a selling it back, no you can not do that, I think it's why the ebooks themselves are typically less then the hardcopy counterparts. (I.E. I am reading the Third Kingdom, by Terry Goodkind)

Hardcover: 17.99
Kindle: 11.04

I think the credit you would get from trading in an old book would be offset by the cost difference of the lower price kindle edition.