December 17th, 2001, 23:30
This is for anyone who may be on the fence about buying a test disc and SPL meter.<br /> There was a post here a few weeks back, a writer said he was thinking about buying a test disc and SPL meter, but wasn''''''''t sure if it would make a difference. It does.<br /> My experience went something like this: About two years ago, everything I had read said you needed to properly set up your television and calibrate your speakers. I had read enough to know what to buy, but, I kept putting it off. I figured there was no way I knew enough to properly do it, let alone need to spend the money on something I wasn''''''''t going to be able to use.<br /> Then one day, I decided to buy the Video Essentials dvd, followed by a quick trip to Radio Shack for the SPL meter. Leaving radio Shack, I was all set. Then the doubt set in.<br /> On the ride home, I kept thinking, I just wasted $80 bucks. What the h*** for? Like I''''''''m really going to see a difference. Man I''''''''m stupid.<br /> So when I got home, I popped in the VE dvd and got ready for who knows what. Now for those who don''''''''t know, the VE dvd starts with the audio, then goes to the video. I went thru the whole process, the entire process was easy, easier than I had imagined. I did everything they said, and at the end it says to live with it for a week and see how you like it.<br /> Well, right away there was a difference. The picture, IMO, looked better than the way I had set it up (which was he complete opposite of what was recommended). And the sound was better, it was clearer and the sound effects know sounded like sound effects.<br /> So, if you haven''''''''t purchased a test disc (Video Essentials, AVIA, or the new S&V HT Tune-up) do it today. Follow what they say and you will be amazed. Unfortunately, I''''''''ve heard that Radio Shack was discontinuing the popular SPL meter that they carried.<br /> So, sorry to be so long, but if these gets someone off the fence, it was worth it.