Audio and video trends 2018

Here are some audio and video trends for 2018.

Buying headphones in 2018 is going to be a fragmented mess because of a silent goodbye to the 3.5mm audio plug, Majority of new headphones introduced at CES were wireless and there are several different wireless systems. Bluetooth audio has historically sacrificed sound quality for convenience relative to a wired connection. However, there are a couple of standards now that promise “better-than-CD” audio quality. For wired connections where we once had the solid reliability of a 3.5mm analog connector working with any jack shaped to receive it, there’s now a divergence of digital alternatives:Lightning, USB-C, and Sony’s 4.4mm Pentaconn connector.

Voice, connectivity and AI took center stage at the Consumer Electronics Show. Alexa Skills and the Voice Experience is really getting off. With over 15 million Amazon Echo devices shipped and 244 million projected by 2022 it is expected to take lead with Google Home Assistant and Apple Homepod with Siri following. Also Google Assistant was mentioned a lot in CES. Google Sold 6.75 Million ‘Google Home’ Devices In the Last 80 Days. ‘Language assistants  were a big topic at this year’s CES. More and more manufacturers like JBL and Creative are integrating smart helpers into their WLAN speakers. Alexa support comes to 2018 TVs from Sony, Hisense and LG. Google launches smart displays with JBL, Lenovo, LG and Sony. There will be also other competitors aiming to this market, for example “China’s Google,” shouted out most loudly for voice. Microsoft’s Cortana had a crappy CES so it seems that Amazon Alexa will soon arrive on Windows PCs (HP, ASUS, Acer and others). Introducing Single-Chip Solutions for Building Alexa-Enabled Products.Sony launches a bunch of new headphones and adds Google Assistant functionality to the line.

Binaural, ambisonic, spatial, surround, 3D will be talked about. The most accessible exhibitions of this technology are in Youtube VR and Facebook 360, where users can interact with 360º videos that contain spatial audio. AR/VR was hot topic at CES 2018.

Sound bars are popular for compact home theater setups. Traditional home cinema systems with AV receivers and large speaker arsenals are only used by film and sound enthusiasts who sacrifice space in the living room for this purpose.

People listen to four hours of audio content every day. Streaming platforms like Spotify take a big bit of that. Streaming accounts for 41% of music consumption was the 2017’s most jaw dropping statistic. People will also listen a lot of music from YouTube.

Acoustics-based NFC is being pushed to market as it requires only a microphone and speaker, eliminating tags and chips. Chirp and LISNR are two emerging companies facilitating soundwave communication.

Wireless headphones and speakers become more common. Portable loudspeakers without cables are more popular than ever with music listeners. Most popular connection technology is Bluetooth.More and more manufacturers are breaking away from the cable and are showing new models and updates of completely wireless in-ear headphones at the CES 2018.

There is a bit of nostalgia involved: Several traditional technology tries to make come-back in 2018. The traditionalists among the music lovers continue to use records, so new record players keep coming. Cassette tapes making a comeback thanks to young, independent artists. Artists like Justin Bieber, Eminem and Metallica have all put out material on tape recently as a recent blockbuster film “Guardians of the Galaxy” put a hero center stage with a Sony Walkman. Tube amplifiers are back for traditionalist audiophiles that think that tubes can make your music to sound better.

4K video resolution is hot and 8K going to be pushed to market. TV has progressed to the 4K ultra-high-definition stage with its 3,840 × 2,160 pixel resolution. LG Display has made a 65-inch rollable 4K OLED TV. LG displayed 8K OLED TV at CES. Samsung has technology scales the image resolution to a 8K with AI. LG, Panasonic, and TCL put the spotlight on the chips that do the video processing: For the foreseeable future, any advances in image quality will be coming from these chips, not from the displays themselves.

Welcome ATSC 3.0 in USA: In November, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued new rules that will let TV broadcasters adopt the next-generation wireless TV standard designated ATSC 3.0. This new standard defines the specifications for ultra-high-definition (UHD) or 4K over-the-air (OTA) digital TV. But over-the-air is minority in USA as roughly 75% of households pay for their TV reception for cable or satellite distribution.

Home theater headsets have come a long way. AR/VR is hot. Oculus partners with Xiaomi to launch the Oculus Go and Mi VR Standalone.

Wired peripherals and electronics are still a major part of the market. Cabling for AV systems will have new features:  a new HDMI standard and how active cables will provide both power and video to consumer devices.

3D cameras are hot. HP’s Z 3D Camera puts Sprout’s scanning power on your PC. Intel’s new cameras add human-like 3D vision to any machine.

When almost all AV products are pushing more and more features, it seems that almost Everything is too complicated for an average Joe.

Sources:

https://www.smartbrief.com/original/2018/01/10-audio-marketing-trends-2018

http://www.computerbild.de/artikel/avf-News-Audio-Trends-CES-2018-11264743.html

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-11-28/cassette-tapes-making-a-comeback-thanks-to-young-artists/9161938

https://www.marketplace.org/2017/11/22/business/cassette-tapes-make-comeback

http://aeaaudio.com/why-tubes-are-back-and-how-to-get-in-on-it/

https://www.collectorsweekly.com/articles/could-an-old-school-tube-amp-make-the-music-you-love-sound-better

https://www.digitaltrends.com/home-theater/coolest-best-audio-gadgets-ces-2018/

https://www.theverge.com/2018/1/18/16903516/headphones-wireless-analog-jack-future-ces-2018

https://techcrunch.com/2018/01/08/alexa-support-comes-to-2018-tvs-from-sony-and-hisense/

https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1332845

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYhgJlEn880

http://www.etn.fi/index.php/13-news/7368-tekoaly-skaalaa-televisiokuvan-8k-tarkkuuteen

https://spectrum.ieee.org/view-from-the-valley/consumer-electronics/audiovideo/ces-2018-look-to-the-processor-not-the-display-for-tv-picture-improvements

https://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-talk/consumer-electronics/audiovideo/ces-2018-active-hdmi-cables-and-harmony-in-the-smart-home

https://techcrunch.com/2018/01/12/cortana-had-a-crappy-ces/?ncid=rss&utm_source=tcfbpage&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Techcrunch+%28TechCrunch%29&utm_content=FaceBook&sr_share=facebook

https://www.theverge.com/2018/1/6/16859102/lg-display-rollable-oled-65-inch-ces-2018

https://www.engadget.com/2018/01/08/eagle-wearable-home-theater/

https://tech.slashdot.org/story/18/01/07/171214/google-sold-675-million-google-home-devices-in-the-last-80-days

http://www.electronicdesign.com/community-home/free-tv-keeps-getting-better-welcome-atsc-30

https://www.engadget.com/2018/01/18/intel-realsense-ready-to-use-depth-cameras/

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2018/01/hps-z-3d-camera-puts-sprouts-scanning-power-on-your-pc/

https://techcrunch.com/2018/01/08/google-partners-with-jbl-lenovo-lg-and-sony-to-launch-echo-show-and-spot-smart-display-competitors/?ncid=rss&utm_source=tcfbpage&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Techcrunch+%28TechCrunch%29&sr_share=facebook

https://developer.amazon.com/blogs/alexa/post/ba17fd33-6510-45d6-b682-ee9ed9ef589c/single-soc-dev-kits-for-avs

https://techcrunch.com/2018/01/08/sony-launches-a-bunch-of-new-headphones-and-adds-google-assistant-functionality-to-the-line/?ncid=rss&utm_source=tcfbpage&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Techcrunch+%28TechCrunch%29&utm_content=FaceBook&sr_share=facebook

https://techcrunch.com/2018/01/08/oculus-partners-with-xiaomi-to-launch-the-oculus-go-and-mi-vr-standalone/?utm_source=tcfbpage&sr_share=facebook

 

841 Comments

  1. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Mick Guzauski Masterclass on Pop and Funk Mixing [ft. Jamiroquai]
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFx4gBSwM3g

    Mick Guzauski, critically-acclaimed GRAMMY-winning mixer for Daft Punk, Michael Jackson, Pharell, Mariah Carey, Chairlift and more walks us a real working funk/pop mix from the multi-platinum selling artist, Jamiroquai’s latest release.

    Reply
  2. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Is IMAX worth it
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPnf_iv4bZk

    Ever wondered if IMAX was worth the cost of admission? Check out our video to see if it is.

    Reply
  3. Tomi Engdahl says:

    How to Make a Night Vision Camera From a Regular Digital Camera (Infrared IR)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRCz6n_cqHM

    How to convert a digital camera into an infrared night vision camera. I needed a camera that could film in the darkness of night whilst doing astronomy, so I converted this old snappy to be able to see infrared light. It works a treat!

    Comment:
    Older cameras and most cheap Chinese cameras don’t have IR filters. Easiest way to tell if your camera isn’t filtered and can see IR is look through the camera at the front of a TV remote and press some buttons on the remote. If you can see the red light flashing then your camera isn’t filtered.

    How To Make Infrared Night Vision Camera From Any Smartphone !
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_otDBRFmGI

    Learn How to Make a infrared Night Vision Camera From Any Old Smartphone . Its a physical mod that you can do to any camera.
    In this video I am going to show you how to convert any normal camera Into infrared night vision camera very cheap but useful hack.

    Every Camera Sensor has ability to see Infrared i.e. Thermal Part of The Light but Infrared Blocking Filter Inside Such Digital Cameras protects The CCD Sensor From burning with high energy Infrared light such as sunlight. Now, If We remove the blocking Infrared Filter the camera can also able to see Infrared Part of The Spectrum of Light that is the night vision camera.

    Reply
  4. Tomi Engdahl says:

    All About Diffusion
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vb30CICG68c

    Most people have no way to hear what diffusors do or how they sound in a room. So this video explains diffusion in plain terms with no math, then lets you hear an acoustic guitar recorded in close proximity to five different surface types – a “well” diffusor, a poly diffusor, absorption, a bare wall, and a typical bookcase.

    Reply
  5. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Recording Sound to DSLR Camera vs Audio Recorder
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2oZp_k7AmXs

    How can you get the best quality sound for your videos? There are a lot of factors, and using an external microphone is one of the big factors. But another question that comes up quite often is, will a dedicated audio recorder improve my sound quality? I think it will in 95% of cases. Here’s a sample comparing the quality you get with a professional level lavalier microphone, the Countryman B6, recorded into a simple Zoom H1 audio recorder and recorded into a typical DSLR camera, the Nikon D750.

    Now there are still cases where recording sound with your camera may be good enough. But if you want the best audio quality you can get, even a little $99 USD audio recorder is better than a $2000 DSLR camera.

    Reply
  6. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Cinematic Film Look – Dslr Filmmaking Tutorial
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vD3oQ_B-bPg

    Cinematic Film Look Dslr Filmmaking Video Tutorial. Learn how to create a Cinema Film Look with a DSLR Camera.

    This Cinematic DSLR Tutorial will cover basic Filmmaking techniques and tips to help you better understand the key elements on how to achieve a more Cinematic Film Look with a DSLR camera.

    Reply
  7. Tomi Engdahl says:

    RMAF17: DAC Design Masterclass
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXyjsSYjnL8

    Speaker: Rob Watts, Chord Electronics

    Reply
  8. Tomi Engdahl says:

    RMAF17: Affordability: How Low Can You Go?
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYiHPJ4it8I

    Panelists: Steve Guttenberg, The Audiophiliac ©; Scott Hull, Part-Time Audiophile; Herbert Reichert, Stereophile

    Where to start with entry-level hardware? Is getting into vinyl financially prudent? Does Spotify really sound that bad? Can we make Bluetooth sound any good? Does good sound only arrive via a fat wallet or deep pockets? David Solomon chairs a panel of industry luminaries in pursuit of hard and fast answers to these questions … and more.

    Reply
  9. Tomi Engdahl says:

    NAMM 2018: CONTRASTING PHASE, ORTOFON, AND RANE’S TWELVE
    https://djworx.com/namm-2018-contrasting-phase-ortofon-ranes-twelve/

    Vinyl is a beautiful, if inherently flawed medium. Who thought that it was a great idea to have a literal industrial diamond scraping plastic to recreate sound? We have lasers, touch screens, etc, but we still cling to a medium created in 1886.

    This NAMM had three different approaches as to how to modernize the art, embracing the lineage while moving toward the future.

    Phase is interesting in that it is not a new idea, but the execution is such that it fixes many of the issues with units that came before.

    Can THIS change everything?
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qK_ATzpPzKM

    With the release of the Rane Twelve and Phase… Its an exciting time to be a DJ…

    Reply
  10. Tomi Engdahl says:

    How to build your very own glass speaker!
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=27zBr74NuKU

    In this video I’ll be showing you how to build your very own glass Bluetooth speaker, with an integrated LED filament light to mimic an Edison lightbulb or an old valve amplifier!

    Reply
  11. Tomi Engdahl says:

    I MADE A HIT SONG – WITHOUT TALENT
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5808NVK8nI

    Comments:
    I wouldn’t be surprised, if:
    1. Some top-performers really do that
    2. Some people would think you’re serious here

    Reply
  12. Tomi Engdahl says:

    First I listened to a $250,000 amp, then a $33 one
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJqXcBHixQc

    Reply
  13. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Exclusive First Look: Phase Wireless DJ System | Tips and Tricks
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yL46Uw8M6HA

    Mojaxx provides an exclusive first look at the highly-anticipated Phase wireless DJ system.

    Cutting Room: Poland (Feat. Phase Wireless DJ System)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bD-pARanmM

    Polish DJs VaZee, Eprom, Krootki, Falcon1, and Keeper ET put the new Phase technology to the test.

    Reply
  14. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Video journalism tutorial: Basic video shooting tips | lynda.com
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tQSmQJtvXI

    This tutorial offers basic tips for you to get the most out of your video shoot.

    This tutorial is a single movie from the Video Journalism Storytelling Techniques course presented by lynda.com author Jeff Sengstack.

    Introduction
    1. Choosing the Message
    2. Selecting Strategies to Prove the Message
    3. Getting Visuals and Sound to Support the Message
    4. Using Good Miking and Lighting Techniques
    5. Organizing Your Assets
    6. Scripting Your Story
    7. Putting It All Together in Post-Production
    Conclusion

    Reply
  15. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Smartphone journalism: Videos
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Fzyvv0DS9I

    Taking pictures on your smartphone is quick and easy. Our expert Marc Settle gives tips on how to use an iPhone running iOS 9, or other mobile phones, to take brilliant still images.

    Reply
  16. Tomi Engdahl says:

    DVTV – Tour of a Multicam HD Production Studio for Live Broadcast Television
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzJHyidK3Nw

    Reply
  17. Tomi Engdahl says:

    How I Went From a $27 to a $30,000 Video Camera
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4iR-aG4N1aY

    Tony reflects on the origins of NextWaveDV, Creative Edge Productions and how he went from purchasing a broken camera on ebay for $27 to owning a Red Epic-W.

    Reply
  18. Tomi Engdahl says:

    It’s not just Autotune – how singers cheat today (Pop Theory)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RF67YxdCJdk

    Thought autotune is the only thing used to fix singer’s voices? Think again!

    Pop Theory is a series that explores the secrets and methods of modern pop music. Want to know more about the inner workings of popular songs & artists? Then this is for you.

    Reply
  19. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Why Photos of the Eiffel Tower at Night are Illegal
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M16CGK1T9MM

    Reply
  20. Tomi Engdahl says:

    $60,000 for our stolen photo: We made a copyright thief PAY!
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUEbi4r8Pg0

    Two years ago a company used one of our most well-known photos on the cover of an iPhone case without our permission. This was misleading in a couple of ways; the product seemed to advertise that it could produce the results in our picture (it couldn’t) and some people assumed we were endorsing the product. The product was in some of the biggest stores in Australia and New Zealand, including Target, and selling for about $70 AUD.

    We tried to reach out and handle it nicely without getting lawyers involved, but the people who stole our photo immediately lawyered-up and tried to ignore us.

    So we sued them. That wasn’t easy!

    Reply
  21. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Raw vs JPG: Image Quality vs Speed, when to use each
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QczEFjn9P7I

    Summary: Raw is better for image quality, but JPG files are quicker to shoot and process. Raw is the right choice for most photographers in most scenarios. I almost always shoot raw or raw + JPG. JPG might be a better choice for photographers taking a large number of pictures or those with limited storage.

    The main point Jared and many of his followers seem to be missing: Raw might be right for YOU all the time, but other photographers have different cameras and shooting requirements. SO MANY parents are shooting their kids sports with a T6, which buffers after only 6 raw shots, and takes several seconds to clear. Shooting JPG will reduce the buffering.

    Reply
  22. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Why the Film Lab of the Future is Open Source
    https://petapixel.com/2019/01/09/why-the-film-lab-of-the-future-is-open-source/

    We are approaching the peak capacity for film photography labs. The machines are old, the parts are scarce, the demand is high. The measly Kodak Pakon Scanner, terrible it may be, fetches absurdly high prices.

    The two brands and workflows that need to be replicated are Fujifilm and Noritsu. A theoretical duopoly, but here lies the problem: Fuji is dead. When will Noritsu follow suit? All the remaining hardware is on life support, waiting to die. The state of the film lab is much the same as the state of premium compacts of the 90s.

    The solution is inevitably open source, some sort consortium between photo labs and other interested parties on a commitment for free and libre IP on parts and technology for scanners/processors. “Free as in speech, not beer.”

    Reply
  23. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Janko Roettgers / Variety:
    Videolan says it expects VLC to surpass 3B downloads on Friday and that Airplay support is coming to the main VLC app, possibly arriving in about a month — Open source video player app VLC was mere hours away from surpassing 3 billion downloads Friday, and the Videolan team celebrated …

    VLC Expected to Break 3B Downloads at CES, Will Add Airplay Soon
    https://variety.com/2019/digital/news/vlc-3-billion-downloads-1203104910/

    Reply
  24. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Why Kodak Willingly Ignored the Future of Photography – Cheddar Examines
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHdOXWWD8ZE

    Steve Sasson, a Kodak employee, was granted a patent for the world’s first digital camera. So why did Kodak go bankrupt in 2012 if the company had the future of photography in its grasp? Cheddar explains.

    Reply
  25. Tomi Engdahl says:

    The Living Voice Approximately $2,000,000 System
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kaWpP95MwKw

    You passed the point of diminishing returns about $1.9 million ago.

    Here’s why most insanely expensive audio systems don’t sound insanely great
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtUQzd4VoEU

    The Audiophiliac ponders the question, why is it that most very very expensive systems don’t sound all that good.

    Reply
  26. Tomi Engdahl says:

    What’s the difference: High-end audio & audiophile?
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9di4HiyUKzQ

    Some people use those terms interchangeably, but they’re different.

    Comments:

    High end is the selling of “money” over quality. The idea that something that costs X amount times the cost of something else, it must be X times better.

    That’s not the case. It’s prevalent in the electric guitar industry where the big name companies use their brand name to overcharge for their goods.

    I agree that affordable high end audio is the way to go.

    I agree and a lot of High End Audio made for the super Rich and Wealthy is perhaps more of a piece of ART rather than being that much more superior in sound quality.

    I don’t know, what is the difference between gourmet, handcrafted and artisan sandwiches? It is a stupid play on words to be the more serious or better class of something for marketing. It’s a stupid linguistic game.

    How about this. All High End is Audiophile but not all Audiophile is High End.

    He’s definitely saying that not all high-end is audiophile. It shows if you read enough reviews

    Reply
  27. Tomi Engdahl says:

    The case against 1 inch dome tweeters
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHNzd4oAUOU

    It’s funny, look at a 300 pound monster high-end speaker, with vault-like cabinet, very impressive woofers, high-tech midrange driver, but so many of these beasts have just a single 1 inch dome tweeter. That little guy is responsible for reproducing everything from 3 or 4 kHz to 20 kHz or higher. That little dome has an awfully big job, don’t ya think?

    Reply
  28. Tomi Engdahl says:

    This is why we burn in electronics
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KFIGJOOhXjc

    A prime reason to burn in new electronics before putting into service.

    Reply
  29. Tomi Engdahl says:

    SuperTweeters: how to increase your frequency response or a critique on modern music compression
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGeh-PLySGE

    In this video we analyze the benefits of introducing a pair of SuperTweeters in out Hi-Fi system and discuss the issues related to the over compression adopted in modern music recordings and media

    Comments:

    Well done, great video! Very interesting, and enjoyable.

    your supertweeter also produces sound under 20khz, still down to 10kHz and this interferes with the normal tweeter output. The normal tweeter also produces output above 20kHz because it is only highpassed. So you DESTROY your sound in the hearable range with lot of interferences . That is really bad. Use a frequency filter for the supertweeter and integrate the loudspeaker tweeter in this filterdesign. But this is all useless. Please concentrate on linear frequency response in the hearable range from 35Hz to 12 kHz!

    Reply
  30. Tomi Engdahl says:

    If a Photographer can do THIS with an Entry Level Camera, What’s Your Excuse
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lh-zcxqFkGA

    How many times have you heard “my camera stinks” or “I need a better camera”? As I have said a million times it’s not about the camera as much as the lenses. And in many cases you can get better pictures with an entry level camera with a solid lens than the best pro camera with a crappy lens.

    This set is another example of someone using an entry level Nikon D3200 and coming out with poppy vibrant color and black and white images. On top of that their composition is top notch and the subjects are interesting.

    Reply
  31. Tomi Engdahl says:

    This cool tool deletes the background from images so you don’t have to use Photoshop
    https://techcrunch.com/2019/01/08/remove-bg-photoshop-free-image-background-editor/?sr_share=facebook&utm_source=tcfbpage

    If you’re tired of firing up Photoshop for lightweight image editing tasks, this little tool is good news for you. Called Remove.bg, it can clear out the background of an image in seconds, no lassoing or any other editing hassle required. Because it uses AI trained on images of people, Remove.bg only works on photos of humans for now, immediately separating subject from background and leaving your image clean and ready for whatever you plan to do with it.

    https://www.remove.bg

    Reply
  32. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Why do cheap audio cables usually get the colors reversed?
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5oh713ca38

    You know what really grinds my gears? When audio cables (or even A/V cables) get the colors reversed. Especially with cheap cables from China, it seems to happen more often than not. And I’m not the only one experiencing it:

    Caution! Non-standardisation in audio interconnects – left/right channel reversal
    https://www.harbeth.co.uk/usergroup/forum/subjective-soundings-your-views-on-audio/electronics-sources-stands-cables-accessories/cables-connections-biwire-links-discussion/1010-caution-non-standardisation-in-audio-interconnects-left-right-channel-reversal

    On a number of occasions over the years I’ve been aware of a Left – Right signal reversal. Using pop music as a test source, it’s impossible to detect this reversal because there are no rules about which instruments should occupy particular positions across the L-R sound stage.

    But for classical music, with rare exception, the musicians are arranged in a rigid plan from left to right, just as you would hear them in the concert hall playing a contemporary western symphony or similar*. It beggars belief that a commercial CD could be mastered with L and R transposed, so what is the problem?

    It seems that the issue is that many – perhaps most – 3.5mm jack to L – R phono cables are incorrectly wired inside or colour coded outside. There is a perfectly clear standard of how the unbalanced stereo three-way jack plug should be connected and it is the top picture here. The tip (marked 3) should be left channel, the ring (marked 2) right and the body (marked 1) the common ground. But the tip and ring connectors are frequently interchanged.

    According to Pro Co Sound (who bulilds audio interface products) – Engineering Specifications states that the colour code for hot is red and for cold is black. If the tip is hot then red should be hot. Maybe, this is why you find longer cables to be “miswired” because they were probably used in recording industry rather than home audio where red is right and white is left.

    According to their standards:-

    Audio signal wiring typically involves three connections:
    SHIELD a/k/a common, ground, screen
    HOT a/k/a high, positive, phase
    COLD a/k/a low, negative, antiphase

    In general, Pro Co regards a red conductor as HOT and a black conductor as COLD, and wires all connectors to accepted industry conventions:

    • Two-pole connectors (1/4′ phone, 3.5mm mini, RCA phono, etc.): HOT conductor to tip, COLD conductor and SHIELD to sleeve.
    • Three-pole connectors (1/4″ phone, 3.5mm mini, ‘TT’, etc.): HOT conductor to tip, COLD conductor to ring, SHIELD to sleeve

    STORY SO FAR: Even the audio industry cannot (seemingly) decide how to connect a 3.5mm jack plug to two phono plugs. You MUST be on guard for channel reversal.

    The final arbiter of this must be an IEC standard or equivalent.

    It appears there are two color codings for 3.5mm Jack (TRS)to RCA cables. One is Red and Black, and the other is Red and White. My headphone’s 3.5mm to RCA cable is Red and White. The red colour is for right channel and the white is for left channel.

    I have another set of cables but that is Red and Black and here the Red is Left channel. I only realized that after reading your post. All the while I was thinking there was something wrong with my computer’s sound card.

    Did you find the case of wrongly wired interconnects only applies to Red and Black RCAs? My old RCA interconnects were Red and Blue colours.

    Unfortunately, it’s all too easy to disprove this theory and I am unshaken in my original position which is, regardless of whether one considers red and black to be right and left or red and white to be right and left there is no assured consistency across cables regardless or brand, length or any other factors. There is complete chaos over this rather small, but important point. You cannot and must not assume that the tip is wired to a particular channel whichever ‘specification’ you chose to believe in

    Enough proof? You have to ask yourself, if the audio industry can’t even get this most basic issue of left-right channels correct, can you believe anything you read other than that from real, hands-on end users?

    Or you can just buy/borrow/steal/download a Stereo Test Disc, like Stereophile’s Test Disc 2, which includes channel separation and phase tests. Both should indicate whether you’ve got cables that are faulty or cables that were mixed up by the user on initial connection. HTH.

    Reply
  33. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Depth of Field Preview Button Explained! (aka that mysterious button below your DSLR)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H49-h0-fv4Y

    What is that little button on the bottom of your DSLR that does seemingly nothing?

    Reply
  34. Tomi Engdahl says:

    How To Take Floating Photos // Levitation Photography Tutorial
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDQFc3XT7To

    Ever wonder how to take floating photos? In this levitation photography tutorial, I explain my process of making objects float. No magic required.

    Reply
  35. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Wireless security cameras overcome ‘glitch’ fears
    https://www.electropages.com/2019/01/wireless-security-cameras-overcome-glitch-fears/?utm_campaign=&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_term=article&utm_content=Wireless+security+cameras+overcome+%E2%80%98glitch%E2%80%99+fears

    Wireless security cameras are rapidly becoming more sophisticated with the latest models now equipped with motion detection sensors and the ability to record footage of an intruder. More advanced cameras include facial recognition and two-way audio. But regardless of the model, it is the quality of the video footage that is the most important aspect of a wireless security camera.

    All security cameras support at least 720p resolution (1,280 x 720 pixels), although this is now giving way to 1080p (1,920 x 1,080 pixels). The ability to switch seamlessly between day and night modes and pick out the same level of detail even in low light is a pre-requisite for any good wireless security camera. Night vision enabled devices may use either: LED lights, infrared, or a combination of the two. Cameras with motion detection sensors usually have the ability to send alerts to a phone app or via email. It is also possible to set up a schedule whereby motion alerts are enabled only when the customer is out of the home.

    Cameras can either operate from the mains plug or from a battery.

    Reply
  36. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Pimp My Scope
    https://hackaday.com/2018/05/12/pimp-my-scope/

    Take [The Thought Emporium] who has upgraded an entry-level microscope into one capable of polarized and dark-field microscopy. You can also see the video after the break.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Knb8LzGmh6E

    Reply
  37. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Sara Salinas / CNBC:
    Netflix reports mixed Q4 earnings, with revenue of $4.19B vs. $4.21B est., says it added 8.8M global paid memberships, up from its estimate of 7.6M

    Netflix beats on subscriber growth, but misses slightly on revenue — stock falls after hours
    https://www.cnbc.com/2019/01/16/netflix-earnings-q4-2018.html

    Reply
  38. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Do Better Cables Make a Difference? (XLR, RCA)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxEfTa2Pais

    I recently changed out some poorly made xlr to rca connectors to cables made with much better quality. And it made me wonder: with such a difference in quality, will the sound also be improved? In this short video we’ll find out.

    Comments:
    I’m hearing no difference. I don’t claim to have expert hearing but on a similar note: Lifehacker did an experiment on MP3 bitrates and the conclusion was: Listeners typically can’t tell the difference between bitrates above 128 kbit/s. I think something similar is going on here.

    Almost exactly the same from what I could hear on my okay PC speakers (maybe my monitors would make the difference more obvious),

    Now everybody will say that B sounds better simply because you said it was the most expensive cable… personally I heard no difference between the two

    Reply
  39. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Alex Sherman / CNBC:
    SEC filing: Disney lost $1B+ from streaming in its 2018 fiscal year, with a $580M loss attributed to its stake in Hulu and $469M to ownership of BAMtech — – Disney’s stake in Hulu and its ownership of BAMtech led to a loss of more than $1 billion in the latest fiscal year.

    Disney is already losing over $1 billion in streaming, and its Netflix competitor has yet to launch
    https://www.cnbc.com/2019/01/18/disneys-streaming-efforts-are-already-losing-more-than-1-billion-and-they-havent-really-even-started.html

    Disney’s stake in Hulu and its ownership of BAMtech led to a loss of more than $1 billion in the latest fiscal year.
    Direct-to-consumer losses should continue to surge as Disney ramps up Disney+, its new streaming service.

    Reply
  40. Tomi Engdahl says:

    IP Networking for Studio and Outside Broadcasting
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AG2Gh-5ubh4

    Sony’s CTO, Hugo Gaggioni discusses IP Networking

    Reply
  41. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Color isn’t what you think.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFxx4jVRHME

    Most people think that “color” has nothing to do with luminosity (brightness,) but it does! The correct word for that is “chrominance!”
    Here’s the paper I’m citing:
    https://web.ma.utexas.edu/users/davis/reu/ch1/signals/chroma.pdf

    In regards to computer monitors, CIELAB would be an absolute color space if a white point AND a white LEVEL were defined, but it’s not, so it isn’t.

    Reply
  42. Tomi Engdahl says:

    IP Studio: broadcasting for the 21st century
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lugt8R1GV8

    BBC R&D Engineer Alex Rawcliffe explains the concept behind the IP Studio project – and invites you to join a broadcasting revolution.

    Reply
  43. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Netflix’s competition is anyone entertaining their customers

    Netflix thinks ‘Fortnite’ is a bigger threat than HBO
    https://techcrunch.com/2019/01/18/netflix-thinks-fortnite-is-a-bigger-threat-than-hbo/?sr_share=facebook&utm_source=tcfbpage

    Netflix thinks “Fortnite” is a bigger threat to its business than HBO. The company in its latest quarterly earnings report released on Thursday said that while its streaming service now accounts for around 10 percent of TV screen time in the U.S., it no longer views its competition only as those services also providing TV content and streaming video.

    “We compete with (and lose to) Fortnite more than HBO,” the company’s shareholder letter stated.

    Reply
  44. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Recording on 100-Year-Old Equipment
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1n2b0NdL6_E

    Recording music on 100-year-old wax cylinder recording equipment.

    Reply
  45. Tomi Engdahl says:

    The Making of a loudspeaker voice coil
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qjcIXaE7gc

    We show you step by step, a simple way to copy and build a voice coil, that has been Impossible to find in the market.

    Reply
  46. Tomi Engdahl says:

    High Performance Imaging Using Large Arrays of Cameras
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dvGKdUW6PrE

    The advent of inexpensive digital image sensors, and the ability to create photographs that combine information from a number of sensed images, is changing the way we think about photography.

    Reply
  47. Tomi Engdahl says:

    Camera Special Effects | I Didn’t Know That
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OruWu1hZe9M

    The “time slice” effect is often used in action movies when actors appear frozen in time as a camera spins around them. Find out how ordinary digital still cameras are used to create this extraordinary special effect.

    Reply

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