Guys.....Chill.....
I think some of you are taking the show a little too serious.....Do you think a surgeon gets home, tunes in to ER, and then gets on the internet to bash it....?
Do you think the average homeowner if they even watch the show, will be able to tell that the panel they took down was better than the replacement or that speakers were installed wrong or anything else....no....If someone asks "why can't you run the power cord in wall like they did on tv?, tell them it's tv they can do whatever they want but in the real world there's codes to follow....
It's not a documentary or a training video, it's just entertainment.....relax... :)

What will happen though is a customer will say, "But that girl on TV that did Oliver Stone's home said the one box is just as good as those seperate pieces" (this could actually be translated by a customer as HTIB's are fine) or, "they used LCD, why are you trying to sell me a plasma?", or "she said the technology is better on those in ceiling speakers because they are what the movie companies use"

For most of the critiques I agree with you. But the show has made some choices that could end up causing problems for those of us that know how to design a real system

I definitely can see your take take on it....I respect that....My opinion is that it will get people that weren't previously interested, or on the fence to go ahead with a project just because they saw the show....I don't think, in my opinion, that they will be focused on the techniques as much.....Now I do think a problem could be the 3 day time frame..... EEeeeek

I have never watched the show, but there is one BIG difference, ER is a drama. No one expects it to be accurate, the doctors on there don't actually cut into anyone and perform surgery.

I think the issue here (from the posts I read) is
a) they see it as her mangling expensive job that could have been done better
b) her influencing and misinforming people since she is supposedly and expert.


PS. I don't know about ER, but every time I have seen/discussed a show with a professional who's job was portrayed in the show often you get to hear what is wrong.

Oliver Stones "tech-up" could be done in 3 days. With the exception of possibly an HDMI to the projector all the wiring was already there. Plus the work was spread out enough that throwing bodies at it would work. I don't miss the days of having too many bodies in a small area trying to get a job done.

Anyone else notice that the show isn't shown in high def? How can you showcase our industry without it being in high def?

I don't get the DIY channel in High Def, do you?  I hate watching anything not in HD..  
I htink this show is good and bad.  I've only seen 1 episode so far - the kid from Entourage - and I think what they did to that room was a disaster.  Sounds like the other shows are worse, I really need to catch the Oliver Stone episode.
The show is good for pointing out that our Industry does exist and that you can call specialists to do what we do.  
I agree with Fins though for all the reasons why the show is bad.  It seems like they could have done a much better job at showing off our Industry.  I have no experience in TV editing, but I feel like given all the recorded hours, I could have stitched together a better show!!!

Your theory is logical. But Im more skeptical. I would wager that instead of the show generating real prospects, it will bring in self proclaimed experts that require extensive re-educating to correct the damage done from the show. But I really doubt it would even bring those in. Most that like these kinds of shows are the DIY crowd. So instead of them hiring a pro, they will think this show has taught them what products they need, and they can do the work themselves.

I can tell about two that do...

Same thing with a couple of lawyers that have something to say about Law & Order, etc, etc.

My lawyer and FIL loves Law and Order... lol

The analogies fall apart because the actors who are murdered, dealing with illness or facing jailtime on those shows are not ACTUALLY dying or going to prison after the episodes.

Oliver Stone ACTUALLY has a screening room where the speakers have been installed in such a manner that they are destroying the soundstage that they are capable of producing (which was highly touted by the 'expert').

The speaker was designed in a compact array design to create the THX characteristic of limited off-axis energy in vertical plane (narrow vertical dispersion) while providing even off-axis energy on the horizontal plane (wide horizontal dispersion).



This means that the first reflections from the floor and ceiling will be minimized even BEFORE acoustic absorption is taken into consideration. Less reflected sound from above or below the plane of the image tightens up the dialog intelligibility as well as cementing the ideal scenario in the audience's mind that the sound is coming from the various characters and other elements that they see on the screen.

Also, when implemented properly, this design enhances the imaging across the sound stage as the actors, cars, music, etc are placed on the screen from center outward to the extremes beyond the edges of the 'super widescreen' image that she doted on.

Ok, so that's how these THX-approved LCR speakers are SUPPOSED to work....

------------



When they are laid on their sides, the off axis response is exacty the opposite of what is desired by the speakers' engineers and the THX ideals that they were designed to meet. Meaning that the upper and lower reflections will be intentionally exaggerated compared to the less harmful side reflections, and the 'sweet spot' means that the speakers need to be toed in and basically aimed to ONE listener's location to even COME CLOSE to not sucking.

This speaker setup will have radically inconsistent results in high frequency energy from one seat to the next. I cannot even imagine what the internal auto EQ system did to apply 'correction' to the signal being played back in this room...

These are the BASICS of home theater... Kaliedescape servers, anamorphic lens sleds, and lossless 7.1 soundtracks delivered via HDMI sure are neat-o, but they don't mean squat if the essentials are ignored.

I take that as compliment Rick, and sincerely appreciate it as such. IP is an invaluable resource and I have a huge amount of respect for just about everyone that I've ever corresponded with over there. I don't get a chance to contribute as much as I'd like, but that is because I spend most of my days running around "in the trenches".

Although I have perused these boards from time to time, I have not made myself a member until now. I was made aware of this thread by a colleague today, so I thought I'd hop on and have a look. And if you haven't surmised it already, I was one of the installers featured on the show.

First things first, I should make it clear than I am not an owner, partner, designer or even a manager for that matter, at the shop where I work. I am a full-time installer / part time programmer. I feel compelled to make this clear, as I can only speak to the aspects of the show that I was involved in (i.e. here's the equipment, here's the room, there's the camera, you've got 3 days... go!)

Secondly, I should make clear my position on the finished product. I thought it was OK. Not great. Certainly not horrible. Just OK. There were episodes I liked quite a bit (Patrick Warburton's comes to mind), and episodes that I found a little hard to watch. Overall, I suspect any direct affect that it may have our industry will be a positive one. But that's awfully hard to quantify, and personally, I just don't care to debate it.

There are 2 things that I want to address directly, one in general, the other more particular:
1) The power cord in the wall that has received so much attention
2) The sentiment towards Janna

1) No brainer... Our culpability in that regard is exactly... wait for it.... zero. That wasn't even us. We had a very minimal role in that last install. We had two guys there (I wasn't one of them), who retro'd in some network cabling early in the process. And that was it. Some other company, whom I couldn't name even if I wanted to, did everything else. As I understand it, they were not a residential integration company, and working in a commercial / studio environment is their specialty. Can't speak any further on that, other to say that if I was sitting in on the edit session that would have ended up on the cutting room floor. We, however, had nothing to do with what made the final cut.

If for no other reason, I wanted to reply to this thread in order to address this issue. Robert's is not above reproach (none of us are), but we are better than that. So now we're on record. Sorry Bubby, send your letters elsewhere. Or even better, save your postage for something worthwhile.

2) Secondly, in regards to Janna. We can have an intelligent debate over the merits of what she did, and didn't, bring to the show. But the irony in the placement of some of this locker-room-talk is not lost on me. If we want the world to think of us as more professional, then perhaps we ought to act that part and keep our sexual proclivities where they belong, i.e. at the bar with your buddies. Things do have a way of getting around ya know. There are plenty of things you can criticize about the show without it delving into a conversation about whether or not you'd "bang" the host.

In general, we are happy with the way the show turned out. Looking back, if I had my way, we would have had a little more control over the editing process than we did... which is to say none. Some of the voiceover soundbites could have used more professional guidance, but that was not our role (this time around at least).

I respect all of your opinions. Especially those of you who I know from my time cruising IntegrationPros. I simply had to address a couple of things that I felt were either inaccurate, or out-of-line.

That is all,
JG

Great reply JG...


Good to know that neither you, or one of the other guys with Roberts had anything to do with the "cord in the wall" move.


Regards all the remarks about Janna?

I guess she could be happy in that some here think she's hot and worthy of.....


Well, something other than CI work....

+1

Thanks JG, well said. I've laid off this thread for a few days due to the misogyny but you get the credit for calling it out first.

One thing that does 'bug' me about Janna... what is up with the hands and hyper adjectives? Is it her or is it 'reality TV 101' to over emote and over communicate with the hands?

Couldn't tell you for sure. But the smart money's on plain old nerves...