HOT! AVIA Home theater setup DVD!!

[DaveR]

www.half.com has this $50 dvd for $24.97 and it is NEW. I got it in 5 days. Just search for avia.

Go to www.dvdpricesearch.com for $5 off coupon code for an even better deal!!

This came still shrink wrapped!

 

[ExplodingBoy]

Can you still use multiple coupons at half?

P.S. Buy this disc because people really love it when they come over to watch a movie on your system and you spend 15 minutes fiddling with it before starting the movie. Trust me on this.

 

[goog40]

What exactly does it do?

 

[DaveR]

No they only took ONE...I tried.

Also, I leave everything on for an hour or so...then set it up. I do not do this every time I play a dvd!

 

[DaveR]

Goog40, it is an updated Video Essentials type thing. Helps you set contrast, brightness, sharpness, color, tint and audio, etc. Comes with filters to view tv thru to help adjust.

PS, what is name of linux character i don't see it in options!

 

[DaveR]

I guess I found TUX!!

 

[maxcom]

seems half.com reg. site isn't secure

 

[Jdog]

This is a good deal, I paid 31 after coupon a year ago. It is simply awesome if you have a DVD player.

 

[maxcom]

Just ordered a copy......$21.92 shipped. Was just searching for this today. saved about $8+ bucks.....thanks !

Anand's dealfinders rule !

 

[Croton]

awesome!!!
thx!!!

 

[Tharpertx]

Links:
www.half.com

Only 9 left!


http://www.dvdpricesearch.com

 

[DaveR]

Just a quick note...these are new, but he keeps replacing them with more. Who cares. But I have seen it down to 1 left...next I see 11 left. Anyway, sooner or later it will say 1 and he will mean it!

Glad this deal was of interest!

Just giving back to the group!

 

[Jeraden]

I bought Video Essentials a while back, which is basically the same as this. I found it a complete waste of money. The sound section is basically worthless, any good receiver can test all the same things for you. So the video calibration is what you really want. They go through explanations of everything, ok, nice, but I could have read those free on numerous websites. So now we go to calibrate things using test patterns and a color strip. Wow, I just paid $25 for a dvd with 3 test patterns and a color strip. Maybe my tv sucks (Panasonic Flat Screen, similar to wega but not quite as good and cheaper), but the 'correct' settings made the picture so dark you couldn't see anything. So I ended up turning the 'picture' setting a lot higher than was 'correct' and it seems fine now, and the color down from the extremely saturated color that was 'correct' according to the test patterns. What I ended up with was pretty much the same I had it at before. No major revelations which is what they lead you to believe you'll get with these things. I'd save your money and buy a good movie instead. Ok, rant over.

 

[zhensel]

Hmmm... sounds like you also like to watch movies with the lights on and the contrast turned to the max...

 

[auyong]

hahaha...can't believe it. People need software to adjust tv brightness and color? Isn't it a matter of taste how the color of your tv and brightness is? It's not like a CD Demangetizer that cleans the electrical path of your sound setup so that there are less harmonics to interfere with your music. I'd have to agree with Jeraden on what a waste of money this is.

 

[IceBlue]

People look - it's in the title!

It's for setting up HOME THEATERS.

<begin rant>
Does your panasonic in the middle of the family room even spend 10% of it's time displaying movies? Most likely it's used for watching the evening news, sitcoms, and the kid's cartoons. This type of viewing is done in a wide variety of ambient lighting conditions, all of which affect the appearance of the display.

It is true that to a person unaccustomed to viewing a calibrated TV, a calibrated display will seem dark, especially under normal ambient lighting conditions.
HOWEVER, in a movie-plex, have you ever watched a movie with the overhead lights on? NO! In this situation, the picture on the silver screen would seem equally dark.

For those using this disc, it is meant to calibrate HOME THEATERS, period. That means the lights are off. JUST LIKE AT THE REAL THEATER.



<< any good reciever can test all the same things for you >>


not true, the reciever can calibrate it's own output levels, but cannot account for any inaccuracies/shifts in volume level between your DVD player source and the receiver.
<end rant>

This is a hot deal for home theater enthusiasts, and will annoy all but the people wanting to reproduce the theater environment in their home. Consider that statement seriously before purchasing.

Personally, I use the normal settings on my TV for normal viewing, and adjust the settings to the properly calibrated ones for DVD watching.

I hope this information helps you purchasing decision!

 

[DaveR]

Thanks...that is why I said it was for home theater!

Most TV's and rear/front projectors have brightness/contrast TOO high. This causes the pic to change size on bright scenes. It also overdrives the tubes and causes early failure.

Also, the audio tests check for phase.

I have a very good proc(Proceed AVP) and amp and B&amp;W speakers and need this. I had VE, but this has other tests..like paterns that move so when black level is adjusted and they appear as one, the movement helps determine that fact.

I am glad I posted this and that even the title was a help!
It seems that some have liked it...glad I could &quot;give back&quot; to the group.

 

[Boogak]

Just as a quick FYI, the recently released DVD version of X-Men has a THX optimizer menu option which has some of the test patterns Video Essentials has. There's also a nice low frequency sound test so you can see if your subwoofer crossover is set correctly.

 

[Jeraden]

Ok, for the quick-to-judge people telling me I'm clueless. I do have a home theater setup and an extensive dvd collection, so I obviously use it for more than watching the evening news on it.

But the all the stuff about the settings being whacked are irrelevant, the reason this is a ripoff is the only useful tool on the whole dvd is the 3 test patterns and the color strip. $50 msrp for that??? I don't think so! And as boogak suggested, several regular dvds provide test patterns for you, you just need to get a color strip from somewhere. So yes, the stuff is helpful but nowhere near worth what they try to charge. Even at a discount its way overpriced. I'm just trying to warn people that you aren't going to suddenly feel like a murky haze has been lifted from your TV, chances are you are close to optimal already or you are color blind.

And actually, they suggest leaving some backlight on, not to watch the tv in total darkness.

 

[Jdog]

I must disagree, Jeraden. No reciever comes out of the box ready to match perfectly with whatever speakers each HT enthusiast has. (Yes, I do own the little RadioShack SPL meter Quite simply, if you don't put in the time to ensure that each crossover is set right, that speaker output matches across the soundstage, and the like, DVDs sound like poo.
The video setup is truly only one half of the DVD experience.

This is a great deal, and if you take the time necessary, you will begin to apprieciate what the DVD format can truly offer. This disc can improve even the most meager HT setup.

 

[DaveR]

...also, those dvd's that do include a small setup section do not have filters included, etc. It is great they have the setup on them but they are not complete.

 

[KameLeon]

To people who think it's a waste of money:
Now STFU and go buy it
For $20, it's worth every penny, unless you have some 19&quot; tv and a cheap $50 dvd player for your &quot;home theater&quot;.

 

[Virtus]

If you've already spent $5,000 on your home theater, I think $30 is a good price for this disc. A sound meter is a great investment too.

I have an LCD projector for my system and the Avia DVD really helped me get it looking better - Also the lamps found in many LCD projectors do not just die - they slowly fade over time, so it's nice to have a calibration disc to keep the picture looking good, or just to verify that it's time for a new bulb.

The sound setup portion of the disc is very intuitive... it helped me balance my crossovers - and really improved my system's imaging. There's a definate difference over the out-of-the-box sound.

 

[DaveR]

***UPDATE***

Although still a good deal, the guy's next batch of AVIA dvd's is $5 more!...still good deal with $5 coupon...well, a bunch of us got it for $21 anyway!

 

[montanaman]

Very cool site. Has anyone sold anything through them? I just bought a DVD I've been looking for for the longest. Thanks again!!