MacBook Up & Downgrade Dilemma: From El Capitan to Catalina stereophonicstuff 2026-09-24 | MacBook Up & Downgrade Dilemma: From El Capitan to Catalina
Smokers Special Sony DCR-TRV460 Digital8 Handycam Repair stereophonicstuff 2022-12-14 | This Sony DCR-TRV460 Digital8 Handycam I started out with had a working tape mechanism, but its exterior was in rough shape and the LCD screen was broken rendering it pretty much useless. Having another TRV460 whose tape compartment was broken but was otherwise in excellent cosmetic condition, I robbed its external pieces and made one good camcorder from two. Thankfully the smell of cigarette smoke has greatly subsided since I first tackled this project several weeks ago.
The RadioShack Pro-82 VHF/UHF Handheld Radio Scanner stereophonicstuff 2022-12-07 | This RadioShack handheld scanner does everything a scanner app on your phone does, but it doesn't need WiFi or data and it takes AA batteries.
1980s Sears SR-2100 Series Boombox - A Blast From The Past stereophonicstuff 2022-11-24 | Some people call these something a little less charitable than a boombox, but whatever you call these, this is one such specimen from Sears Roebuck. I've had this thing for many years after the initial recording of this video (back around 2017) and the only thing that's happened from then to now, is the tape compartment has given up the ghost and needs new belts. Other than that, it's like having a stereo system's room-filling sound capabilities, but in a portable formfactor and the LED level meter just sweetens the deal.
X13 Wireless Signal & Hidden Camera Bug Detector - Does It Even Work? stereophonicstuff 2022-11-16 | I probably shouldn't have bought this thing, but curiosity got the best of me. During my brief testing, the wireless signal detector was able sniff out a wireless router and an access point. The GPS tracker detection remains to be seen, since I don't have any of those to test it with, though it seems a bit redundant, since virtually all GPS trackers use LTE or even Bluetooth/WiFi to transmit their location, so the regular wireless signal detector mode should theoretically be more than capable of picking them up. Finally, the hidden camera detector seems more of a gimmick than anything else, since it seems (the instructions leave quite a bit to the imagination) that you're just looking for the red LEDs reflecting off a camera's lens, which I found not to work too terribly well. But it does have a blue LED that serves as a (very dim) flashlight!
Crosley Voyager Suitcase Record Player Review stereophonicstuff 2022-10-26 | The built in speakers and build quality leave quite a bit to be desired, but it doesn't sound all that bad when using headphones or the line output with external speakers. Sure, the tracking force of its ceramic cartridge is on the high side but this isn't meant to be an audiophile's turntable--just something for somebody looking to have a quick and easy way to play their vinyl collection.
Sony CCD-TRV608 Hi8 Handycam Black Screen & Clogged Video Head Repair stereophonicstuff 2022-10-14 | Yes, it's another Handycam video. I make no apologies for it. I'm transferring a lot of tapes and it was only a matter of time until I encountered one or two needing repair.This Sony CCD-TRV608 had two issues: when switched to camera mode, the screen was black (but the OSD was still visible) and during playback, the video was garbled, distorted, and oftentimes triggered the blue screen that shows when there's no recorded content on the tape. The first issue was brought about by lubrication from the lens zoom motor migrating onto the small paper-like blades of the lens aperture. This had the opposite affect of lubricating things--instead acting like a glue of sorts keeping the iris from opening. The second issue was caused by a clogged video head, presumably from playing back very poor quality and/or damaged 8mm tapes by the previous owner. I was able to resolve both issues by following along at home to 12VoltVids' videos on two similar Handycams having identical issues. Through some very judicious disassembly and use of isopropyl alcohol, I was able to clean the oil that had made its way onto the iris blades (giving the camcorder sight again!), and also cleaning the clogged video head drum using the back of my fingernail (restoring it's "memory"). The best part, of course, is that it only took an hour or two of my time and didn't cost a thing, yet I was able to repair not one but two Handycams that were planned to be relegated to the scrap pile. 12VoltVids repair videos:Black screen on record: youtu.be/tcyJEXeKx4kNo video during playback: youtu.be/vhBcCnRaQZg
Topaz Labs Video Enhance AI MiniDV 480i to 720p60 Test Clips stereophonicstuff 2022-09-30 | These test clips were taken from a standard MiniDV video tape presumably recorded with a Canon GL1 or similar around 2001. As was mentioned in my original review, the audio didn't survive the deinterlacing and upscaling process, but the video is exceptionally clear for standard interlaced DV video.
Tikitunes Bluetooth Speakers Reviewed stereophonicstuff 2022-09-30 | The price was right and the fact that multiple TikiTunes speakers can be paired together in what they're calling party-sync mode made these too good to pass up. Plus they have a flame light!
Jensen SCR-75 Portable Cassette Player stereophonicstuff 2022-08-26 | This Jensen cassette player isn't anything to write home about but it does have a belt clip for your on-the-go cassette tape playing needs!
Canon HV20 HDV Camcorder Overview & Accessories stereophonicstuff 2022-08-05 | Finding a working HDV camcorder is hard. Finding one cheap is even harder. Thankfully I found this Canon HV20 for an agreeable price, and was even able to buy some extras for it using the money I saved.
1988 Technics RS-T911 Cassette Deck stereophonicstuff 2022-07-22 | Unfortunately this Technics cassette deck had more than a few screws loose after being hacked apart by the previous owner before being left at the curb for e-waste recycling. Plastic was broken, the transport controls were jammed, the tape type selector microswitches were mangled, and various parts of the mechanism were incorrectly reassembled, likely from somebody's amateur attempts to repair/service it. Needless to say, it was a bit too far gone to be worth repairing.
Broken Sony DCR-TRV22 MiniDV Camcorder MiniReview stereophonicstuff 2022-07-15 | I really wanted to like this Sony DCR-TRV22, but mine like many others is plagued by image sensor and tape transport issues rendering it virtually useless. However, it still works well as an analog to digital video converter, so it's not a total loss.
Can A Dell Latitude E6500 Run Windows 11? stereophonicstuff 2022-07-01 | My Dell Latitude was never meant to run anything newer than Windows 7, yet I was able to get Windows 10 running on it several years ago. Since I can't leave well enough alone, I decided to try my luck again and install Windows 11!Despite initially trying to perform a clean install, I soon discovered that starting out of the gate with a Windows 7 that had all the drivers and utilities installed before upgrading, made things a lot smoother. Many of the programs and utilities cannot directly be installed in 10 and/or 11 (even with compatibility mode), yet if you have them installed prior to upgrading from Windows 7 to something newer, they work just fine. There's still a few hiccups every now and again, but all in all, I'm still impressed that a machine as old as this can run Windows 11, despite Microsoft's best efforts to pick and choose which machines can and can't upgrade and run the new OS.*At 17:52, I couldn't have planned that MiniDV tape glitch any better!
An Honest Review Of Topaz Labs Video Enhance AI stereophonicstuff 2022-06-17 | While standard definition video will never be able to compete with high definition, there exist several programs and utilities that promise to lessen the gap and improve the clarity and quality of older video sources. Considering that the majority of my camcorder "collection" are older non-HD models, Video Enhance AI seems very promising, offering numerous presets to choose from for removing halos, moiré patterns, aliasing, and most importantly, deinterlacing and upscaling videos. The results were quite impressive, having some of the best deinterlacing I've seen--just be sure to have a lot of patience.I've uploaded a separate unedited video showing the results of using Video Enhance on regular SD 480i video sourced from a MiniDV tape: youtu.be/vIOqrMz0KW0
Sony Handycam USB Streaming & Why You Shouldnt Use It stereophonicstuff 2022-06-04 | Many Sony MiniDV and Digital8 Handycams (even a Hi8 model too!) came with a mysterious USB port near the AV and Firewire jacks that offered the ability to stream video from the tape to your computer. It's not all it's cracked up to be, and trades off quality for convenience.It's also come to my attention that newer non tape-based Handycams came with USB streaming, though I don't have any and couldn't and therefore couldn't evaluate if the quality improved over the years. Still, for any kind of video transfer work whose quality you care about, don't use USB Streaming. Buy a Firewire card and cable or, in a pinch, just capture the video from the AV out jack(s) using a capture card or even an EasyCap.
Fujifilm Finepix Z90 Digital Camera - Its Not A Sony! stereophonicstuff 2022-05-28 | A simple point and shoot camera designed to look like the Sony CyberShot T series of digital cameras. While it's definitely not a Sony, the quality of the still photos and videos it takes are plenty serviceable. Just don't try recording video in 480p mode!
Evistr L157 Digital Voice Recorder Review & Audio Test stereophonicstuff 2022-05-13 | A small voice recorder for those times you can't or don't want to use a smartphone. This one offers oodles of recording time using the built-in memory, but the lack of any kind of automatic or even manual gain control is a bit of a deal-breaker.Still, considering what and whom it's intended for (like recording lectures), where you don't speak directly into the microphone like a news reporter, it's not that bad.
Dell Precision M6400 Laptop Overview stereophonicstuff 2022-05-03 | Upgrading this Vista-era Dell Precision M6400 to Windows 10 was no easy task. Despite the transition from Windows 7 being relatively simple, the issue of drivers and getting them to install and coexist happily in Windows 10 proved to be quite an adventure, and not one I hope to repeat anytime soon. Both the Bluetooth and Touchpad put up the biggest fight, but that's not to say everything was a cakewalk. I had initially planned to install Windows 7 on this machine and call it a day, but after learning of Google Chrome's support for the aforementioned ceasing to exist in January of 2023, I figured now was as good a time as any to make the jump to Windows 10, as a number of programs have already begun to phase out support for older version of Windows, 7 included.Thankfully, after much trial and tribulation, everything is up and running on my new-to-me Precision M6400 and my experience so far has been pretty positive. Sure there's been some low-level nuisance value stuff to contend with, like Windows always picking the worst time to notify me of a pending update restart, or not asking (by default) whether I'm sure I want to delete a file--little stuff like that. All things considered, I'm pretty content with how things turned out, and you'll be kept toasty warm during the winter months thanks to its blast furnace-like heat output which has lead to it overheating and subsequently locking up. I'm sure a laptop cooling pad could certainly help the situation greatly, but for now, propping the computer up on a slanted angle seems to have greatly reduced the frequency with which these overheating events occur.
The $20 Jensen SR-50 AM/FM Radio - Is It Any Good? stereophonicstuff 2022-04-23 | Portable AM/FM radios abound, with choices ranging from garbage to great from all the big names and no names. This Jensen SR-50 caught me mostly by surprise, as I've only ever heard of Jensen's turntables, such as the JTA-460. This one caught my eye since it had a digital tuner, AUX in, a telescoping antenna, and some other bells and whistles like nap, alarm, and sleep modes. The audio quality is about what I'd expect for a $20 radio. It's not audiophile approved, but it's decently balanced, even if a little too treble-y. Something I observed but neglected to mention in the video was the hiss that's quite audible when playing the radio at low volumes. It's actually rather obnoxious, since I planned on using this to play the radio in the background at my desk. Leaving the volume set to 1 or 2 causes the hiss to overpower the radio somewhat, and it really becomes annoying after awhile, especially when tuned to the classical station. It's not the station itself that's the cause off the white noise-like hiss--it's probably the the tuner or preamplifier that's noisy--yet it sounds exactly like a weak FM stereo station. If you play the volume louder, it drowns out the hiss. Of course, I didn't realize this until after the video, when I went to use the radio at a subdued volume.Something I also discovered is the number of reviews on Amazon talking about the poor battery life. I've yet to replace the batteries on account of them going dead, but I also haven't used the radio all that much. Perhaps that explains the presence of a DC power input?All gripes aside, it really isn't that bad. The FM tuner pulls in all the stations I listen to. The AM band has good frequency response, and definitely isn't tinny. Its sensitivity and selectivity actually surprised me, as its AM tuner was able pull in a station almost 500 miles away from me in Toronto, Canada! I never got a chance to test out the AUX input, but it's a nice feature to have. The nap setting pretty much functions like a stopwatch--you set the time up to 2 hours, after which point the alarm will go off. Sleep plays the radio for a predetermined amount of time before turning itself off, and one can even program two alarms with the choice of being awoken by an alarm beeper or the radio. The LCD display is backlit, but doesn't stay on long enough in my opinion, and there's no obvious way to adjust the backlight's timer. You can also set and use presets, which makes it a lot more seamless to go back and forth between stations. A headphone jack would've also been nice, but you can't have everything with a $20 radio that you can buy at Target while grocery shopping.Correction: At 11:46, I incorrectly referred to its internal AM ferrite loopstick antenna as a ferrite core. Since YouTube removed the ability to annotate videos, there's no way for me to fix that short of re-uploading the video.
HP Stream 14-CB115DS Laptop Review stereophonicstuff 2022-04-02 | Even though I wasn’t really in the market for a laptop a little over a year ago, the price was right, and I wanted something a bit more contemporary than my aging, but trusty, Dell Latitude E6500.While officially branded as a laptop, I would certainly lean toward considering it more of a netbook—let me be clear, however, that’s not a bad thing at all.In fact, for quite some time I was on the prowl for a decent netbook style laptop reminiscent of those that were once available with Windows XP. I wanted something that was lightweight and not too big, good battery life, and something that could do all the things a bigger, more expensive laptop could do without all the bulk. The HP Stream originally shipped with Windows 10 in S mode, a barebones version of the OS that only allows programs from the Microsoft store to shore up security. One of the first things I did was switch to the full version of Windows 10. Doing so is free and easy, but you can’t go back to S mode. That was no problem for me, as I needed to be able to run programs from outside the walled garden of the Store.I also needed to make some adjustments through the registry editor to disable Cortana and the built-in web search functionality that is shoehorned into the start menu search by default. I also turned off the lock screen to make logging into the computer just a little quicker. The performance is actually pretty good, with the computer being able to keep up with running office and productivity programs, checking email, and browsing the web. YouTube and other videos play smoothly at HD resolutions like 720p60 and 1080p60.The keyboard, while nothing fancy and not backlit, does the job and isn’t all that bad the more I type on it. The touchpad’s two finger scrolling is nice, but the left click (which you accomplish by clicking the lower left corner of the touchpad) is finicky on my computer. Sometimes it’ll confuse it as a right click and sometimes it won’t recognize it at all. The speakers are also decent, and the HP audio program can help improve the audio through EQ and other settings. Coming from mostly older laptops with worn out batteries, the battery life is quite good, even with the high performance power mode selected. The only major gripe I have with the Stream is storage space. The meager 64GB of eMMC memory goes fast, and with the constant updates to Windows, storage is quickly eaten up. I really don’t have that many programs or files, but as it stands, I currently have only 15GB remaining. This can be easily worked around by using an SD card with the built-in card reader and changing the locations of the folders for Documents, Pictures, Music, Videos, etc. I’ve also seen some pretty small and low-profile flash drives that I’m sure will work even better and faster.I was considering upgrading to something bigger and more powerful, but for what I need a laptop for, it’s been more than adequate. Microsoft Word runs just fine, playing music through its built-in Bluetooth is convenient, and checking email, surfing the net, and watching TV shows and movies is both smooth and responsive. Finally, Windows Update even reports that this computer can run the free upgrade to Windows 11! I haven’t made the jump just yet, as I’m not quite ready to get reacclimated to another OS, but it’s nice to know and something I’ll likely follow through with at a later date.
Sainsonic 2.4GHz AV Transmitter & Receiver Overview stereophonicstuff 2022-02-12 | Long forgotten, and recently rediscovered in my archives is this video recorded back in 2016 of a Sainsonic Audio/Video transmitter kit that was purchased for around $50.At the time, I had plans of operating a Part 15 radio station out of a detached building on the property. This building was devoid of an internet connection (something which has since been resolved), and therefore there was no way to feasibly operate a computer as a 24/7 jukebox whose output would be fed to my AM transmitter. I could've just put the computer in the building without connecting it to the internet, but that would've quickly become very inconvenient every time I wanted to make a change to the programming or anything else for that matter. The most practical solution would've been to run an ethernet cable to this building, but as I learned several years later, that would've required quite a bit of effort in running the cable, digging a trench for it, etc.The quickest and easiest solution I could think of was to operate the computer in the house and feed its output to the AV transmitter. I could then place the receiver in the remote building and use that to feed my AM transmitter.The performance, as I should've expected, was less than acceptable given the distance at which I expected to use it. I can't really fault the unit itself--I just had very high expectations I later learned where unrealistic. Furthermore, since the transmitter I picked up operated at 2.4GHz, it's signal was severely degraded trying to compete with all the wireless networks in the area. I soon scrapped the idea to operate a small part 15 AM radio station to move on to other things, but I'm strongly considering revisiting the idea.This video was rather disjointed and haphazardly recorded, which led to it being shelved originally. However, I recently found myself experimenting with QTGMC to upscale video and convert interlaced video to 60p for YouTube. Previously, I had only ever used QTGMC to upscale videos from my Sony Digital8 Handycams to 1280x720 60p. Never before had I attempted to take AVCHD 1080i video from my Canon camcorder and run that through the conversion/upscaling process to produce 4k60p video. This video served as the perfect test, as I still had the original, unedited files. The conversion process for this roughly seven minute video took approximately three hours and resulted in a 4.5GB file, but I definitely think the quality is worth it, especially when watching this on a TV. I'm certain if I didn't say anything about it, people would just assume I was using a 4K 60p camcorder and a non-linear video editor and computer capable of keeping up with those kinds of video files.
Abandoned Wayne, NJ K-Mart - Wayne Hills Mall stereophonicstuff 2020-04-26 | Taking a page from Dan Bell's abandoned mall series, here's my attempt at a cinematic look at a K-Mart location that unfortunately succumbed to the pressure of the ever-changing times in the retail industry. This video was filmed in early January 2020, less than a month after the store was shuttered permanently. It sat on the property of the Wayne Hills Mall off Hamburg Turnpike in Wayne, NJ which was torn down a year prior in anticipation of a new ShopRite being constructed in its place. The LA Fitness and K-Mart will be unaffected. Who knows what fate lies in store for the former Wayne Hills K-Mart...
Dell Latitude E6500 Windows 10 Upgrade stereophonicstuff 2020-01-23 | My Dell Latitude E6500 was last under warranty support in 2014. Needless to say, getting Windows 10 to work correctly was a challenge. Drivers directly compatible with Win10 were never released for the majority of its hardware, making it difficult to get things like the video and audio working out of the box, even with Windows' default generic drivers. Compound that with a pesky glitching and stuttering problem that was rearing its head during audio and video playback in the form of stuttering, all of which led to a far from seamless upgrade from Windows 7. There also was the matter of disabling Windows' built-in telemetry, Cortana, the pointless lock/logon screen, and the bothersome live tiles that advertise the Microsoft Store or the newest version of Office on your start menu, and countless other things I've lost track of. Can it be done, yes. Was it easy, no. At least now it's done and over with.P.S. If your audio and/or video is stuttering, hesitating, or glitching check your Intel Rapist Storage Technology (RST) driver. Microsoft was using its own generic version which was causing serious buffer overruns when monitored with a DPC Latency Monitor.
Westwood NJs Vintage K-Mart stereophonicstuff 2019-05-09 | Located in Westwood NJ, there remains a relic of a bygone era: a K-Mart that remains mostly unchanged since Sears' heyday as a (somewhat) big box retailer.Westwood's is one of only four remaining K-Marts in northern New Jersey, and unlike many others Sears and K-Marts, this location has seen little in the the way of updating or renovations. Not that I'm complaining! I only hope it sticks around, as there really aren't any other alternatives for those of us needing basic household items, food, and clothing without a visit to the other two elephants in the room of big box retail.This video was inspired by Vwestlife's many videos documenting older businesses that are either closing, approaching the end of their life, or are otherwise healthy contenders in the world of retail but have an overall "vintage" and "retro" quality about them that deserves to be preserved in video form.This video was a spur-of-the-moment type deal, and as such the only thing I had on me capable of recording anything approaching half-decent video quality was an iPhone 4s I use occasionally as a glorified iPod. What it lacks in video quality is made up for with the inconspicuous video recording it affords. One odd thing I did notice, however, was ghosting during several portions of the video after rendering it. The video the iPhone records is in fact progressive, and all the settings on the video editor side of things were confirmed to be configured for progressive video. The ghosting was most noticeable during the outdoor garden department scene. If I didn't know any better, I'd believe the video was at one point interlaced and then subsequently deinterlaced by blending both fields together, thus causing the ghosting. The only thing I can ascribe to this anomalous behavior is the iPhone's use of variable frame rate recording--at least it's the only reason that somewhat makes sense.I'd also like to tender my most sincere apology for the dreadful video quality. It didn't look THAT bad after rendering, but YouTube's compression really had its way with the video. In addition, I'd like to further apologize for the odd and awkward camera angles at times. Attempting to film inconspicuously in a store is easier than it sounds.
iTunes Downgrade = Optical Drive Malfunction stereophonicstuff 2019-05-06 | Upon downgrading from iTunes 12 to iTunes 10.7, my optical drive ceased working and even appeared as though it were physically disconnected from my PC--it didn't even show up under My Computer!After some troubleshooting, it was discovered that somewhere during the downgrade process, iTunes corrupted certain files in the registry necessary for the optical drive to work correctly. This was evident when viewing the optical drive's information under device manager, where the error "Windows cannot start this hardware device because its configuration information (in the registry) is incomplete or damaged" was displayed.Certain steps needed to be followed to remedy that; those steps are detailed in this video
Sylvania Wireless Bluetooth Speaker Review stereophonicstuff 2018-05-10 | Watch as I unbox and review a Bluetooth speaker from the same people that manufacture all matter of lighting equipment and bulbs. Did they miss the boat or is it a worthwhile contended? Find out by watching!*The mobile phone that made a cameo appearance in this video was smashed to smithereens shortly after the production of this video.**The claim of this being the shortest video on this channel was incorrect.***Recorded Oct 5, 2015*
QTGMC 4:3 60p YouTube Test stereophonicstuff 2018-04-21 | Proof-of-concept using QTGMC and rendering the video with a resolution of 960x720, it is possible to upload native 4:3 videos to YouTube, in 60p, without the need to render the video as 16:9 making letterboxing a permanent part of the video.
Sharp VL-L270 VHS Camcorder Overview & Video Test stereophonicstuff 2018-04-20 | A video thought to be long lost and rescued from the clutches of a severely failing hard drive; this was recorded something approaching three years ago.Overall not a bad camcorder, but the word heavy is a major understatement. Even resting this thing on your shoulder might leave you with back problems.
Panasonic RC-6050 AM/FM Alarm Clock stereophonicstuff 2018-03-29 | A cheap alarm clock with even worse audio fidelity. It's a lose/lose proposition. But at least it has woodgrain!
The Crosley Spinnerette Portable USB Turntable (w/ 6.5 g Tracking Force!) stereophonicstuff 2017-11-10 | Too bad the tracking force is so absurdly high.
ION Video2PC HD Video Capture Device Reviewed stereophonicstuff 2017-10-04 | Notwithstanding the dubious assertion of this being an HD video converter and unlike those EZ-Cap devices whose build quality and performance is as variegated as the brand names by which they are sold, the ION Video2PC's performance was commendable. Too bad it sells itself as something it isn't; there's no way you'll achieve HD quality video from an SD source, even with all smoke and mirrors surrounding ION's preposterous expectation that the upscaling, sharpening, and brightness and contrast adjustments available in the bundled video editor.I'm not too sure of the culprit behind the jagged edges (inherent in videos not correctly deinterlaced) as was evident during the AOL dial-up commercial. The way you see it in this video was as I saw it on my television.
iHome iP86 Alarm Clock Radio - Broken iJunk stereophonicstuff 2017-09-20 | It was nice during the twenty minutes it lasted for.
Sony 8FC-65W Alarm Clock Radio stereophonicstuff 2017-09-09 | This isn't just any clock radio: it's one with an analog clock (that still works) and outstanding sound fidelity. Too bad its alarm buzzer doesn't work!
An Honest Review Of OpenShot Video Editor stereophonicstuff 2017-09-02 | As much as I really wanted to take to the opensource OpenShot for video editing, it has quite a while to go before things will likely improve. Ignoring the rough edges, quirks, and GUI glitches, OpenShot shows much potential--that is, when it isn't locking up or doing strange things with the imported video files. Notwithstanding my serious reservations about uploading this video and the presumed backlash I will get for it, provided in unabridged form for your consideration is my honest review of OpenShot Video Editor.Created in answer to the influx of requests and propositions to try OpenShot that I have received since publishing my review of Honestech's Easy Video Editor, I hope this review will finally dissuade those people from making similar suggestions in the future. If you're fortunate enough to render a video successfully, the quality is quite impressive, thanks in large part to the wealth of configurable settings available for encoding. However, the oddly-implemented deinterlacing-as-an-effect leaves much to be desired, what with jagged edges aplenty. The layout of OpenShot is organized and simple, something too many programs get wrong by overwhelming a novice user with an agglomeration of tools, effects, and settings.Maybe in a year or so things will have improved to such as point as where one might actually edit a video easily, without needing to restart the program five or six times.
YouTube Bug 8/27: Nonfunctional Comment Notifications stereophonicstuff 2017-08-28 | As of August 15th, the usual emails received when somebody comments on videos of mine are no longer functioning--so too is the bell icon, though that thing has never worked correctly so it isn't as irritating as the former.
A Decade Later (Almost): Dell Latitude E6500 Laptop stereophonicstuff 2017-08-26 | Despite being released in 2008, when most people were still running Windows XP on Pentium 4 desktops, the Dell E6500 hit the scene. Aimed at the business market, durability, reliability, and accessibility were all major selling points that weren't overlooked during the design stage. In spite of its age, the Dell Latitude E6500 can accomplish almost anything asked of it. Throw in an SSD and some much needed ram and you'll have a machine ready to last another decade.Options of expansion abound by way of an Express Card, PC Card, SD Card, Firewire, E-Sata, Display Port, and an optional docking base.Windows 7, 8, or 10 all can be readily installed and operated comfortably. With a ram ceiling of 8GB, it'll be quite some time before you'll ever need or want more. And unlike glossy screens, you'll remain productive even when taking the laptop outdoors thanks to its matte display. Moreover, you won't find any glossy plastic on the E6500; businesses would never tolerate such foolishness.Addendum: For some reason I repeatedly described the textured surfaces of the laptop as "texturized." Please accept my apologies.
Ordro HDV-Z20 HD Camcorder FAIL (Review) stereophonicstuff 2017-08-08 | I've seen my fair share of inferior camcorders, but at least those didn't purport to record in high definition like the Ordro HDV-Z20 does. Its main attractions are a fixed focus lens, low-fi mono microphone, digital zoom, and poorly upscaled SD video.In response to the Ordro HDV-Z20's obvious interpolation if its image sensor's output to 1920x1080, the maximum resolution available for watching this review is 720p; 1080p would've been a wanton waste of storage space and bandwidth.
Sangean WR-2 AM/FM RDS Tabletop Radio Review stereophonicstuff 2017-05-24 | My incipient impression of the Sangean WR-2 was that of casual indifference; this radio looked just like every other knockoff of the famed Tivoli Model One--a contemporary table radio so many have taken to and held in high regard. Plenty of manufacturers have tried their hand at producing tabletop radios that are grossly inferior to those that were two decades their junior. Terrible sound fidelity and dreadful reception of AM & FM are two character traits in a radio I can't abide.Uncharacteristic of nearly all audio equipment manufactured in the recent pass which possess AM/FM tuners, the Sangean WR-2 can not only tune to weaker stations and those that happen to be sandwiched between their stronger neighbors, but the sound of its built-in monaural speaker is best described as imposing.R.D.S. is gratifyingly implemented, even allowing the clock to retrieve and update its date and time settings directly from an FM station utilizing R.D.S. clock time. This is doubly convenient when there exists the need and desire for the WR-2 to behave as a clock radio.Options for improvement are provided for in the way of external AM and FM antenna connections, and line-in and line-out jacks on the rear.It would be remiss of me to fail to take the price-tag of the Sangean WR-2 into my consideration. Fetching prices starting at $120, this isn't a purchase to make just to satisfy your curiosity. Moreover, with the Tivoli Model One Classic priced at $140, the decision of purchasing one or the other might need to be carefully contemplated.Astute viewers might've taken notice of the flashing R.D.S. indicator on the unit's display when tuned to 91.1 at 12:29. This doesn't contradict my caption, as this station makes use of R.D.S. to display little more than its call letters.A textual review of this radio may also be found at http://stereophonicstuff.mooo.com/reviews/sangeanwr2
Swann DVR-421 Pen Camera Review & Video Sample stereophonicstuff 2017-05-19 | Yes, not only is the video quality that bad but it pales in comparison to the highly distorted, garbled, unintelligible audio of the camera's internal microphone.
Broken Hitachi DZ-HS903 DVD Camcorder stereophonicstuff 2017-04-06 | It's been my experience that DVD camcorders are highly unreliable when compared to their tape-based predecessors. This Hitachi camcorder was and is no exception; of course, the presumed fall it sustained didn't help matters. Aside from the limitations imposed by the medium (roughly 30 minutes of recording to a disc), the MPEG-2 format used for recording video greatly hampers the quality, leading to highly compressed video that oftentimes looks worse than the bargain basement MiniDV camcorders they were supposed to replace!
Dell Inspiron 530 & Optiplex 7010 Shenanigans, Observations, & Modification stereophonicstuff 2017-02-09 | What promised to be the simple retirement of and subsequent upgrade from my Dell Inspiron 530 became something of a fool's errand. Its replacement, a Dell Optiplex 790, was heavily damaged during shipment, so much so that it refused to POST, much less even power on. It had somehow sustained such copious damage in transit that a great many areas of its metal case were heavily bent, warped, and damaged. It was recognized that sending a replacement computer was both fiscally and mutually agreeable. Some days later, a Dell Optiplex 7010 arrived, ready to take the place of my Inspiron 530 and its once-thought-to-be successor.As I was going to the trouble of implementing a new computer, I figured it would be an appropriate time to improve upon the Inspiron's beleaguered hard-drive and data storage situation. A "certified refurbished" Western Digital Black hard-drive was selected for the task. The use of a proper hard-drive health monitoring utility was all that was necessary to reveal the claims of its being "tested and having no errors" to be a falsity. Strangely, the Western Digital supplied hard-drive diagnostic (Data LifeGuard Diagnostic) software gave no indication of the existence of bad and reallocated sectors and "passed" the drive! Both CrystalDiskInfo and HDAT2 proved the aforesaid wrong, however! This being what it was, I sprung for brand new hard-drives from both Seagate and Hitachi. It would, at times, be argued that the lack of a 3.5" drive bay on a newer computer is a moot point. If your plans of ancillary peripherals include an internal floppy disk drive, you'd best look elsewhere. The motherboards on both the Optiplex 790 and 7010 lack the necessary 34 pin floppy disk connector. With all this being said, a 3.5" drive bay is eminently suitable for any of the 3.5" memory card readers available on the new and used markets. It is for this reason I soon developed plans of utilizing an adapter of sorts to convert one of the computer's two 5.25" optical drive bays to, as you'd likely guess, a 3.5" card reader. Adapters of plastic or metal are both available for sale; I ultimately decided to pay a few dollars more for an adapter made not of plastic but of aluminum. Of the many card-readers designed to be accommodated within a 3.5" drive bay, the TEAC CA-200 card reader was determined to be a satisfactory selection. Aside from being a name-brand model and not one of the many generic options available, it is very same model used in many of Dell's past computers--including my Inspiron 530-- which were so equipped. I really am pleased with how this aftermarket card-reader modification keeps up the appearance of being a stock configuration.Something I neglected to mention in the course of the video was the processor in use on the Optiplex 7010: an Intel Core i5-3570.In attempts at brevity, a look at the problematic WD Caviar Black drive was not offered in the video. Below is a consolatory indulgence:http://stereophonicstuff.mooo.com/images/wdblackhd
Whole House 3.0 Part 15 FM Transmitter Review stereophonicstuff 2017-01-26 | Limited options exist for persons wishing to have their own low-power FM radio station compliant with the F.C.C.'s Part 15 regulations. Of the many FM transmitters available for purchase, only a handful are legally operable within the United States. Those transmitters claiming to offer "long range" listening almost always transmit in excess of Part 15's limits while also interfering with licensed stations in the form of spurious emissions. Whole House transmitters are both in compliance of and certified for Part 15 use, unlike the majority of dubious FM transmitters currently populating online marketplaces. The Whole House 3.0 has had several modifications made to it, changing its appearance and functionality from its predecessor, the Whole House 2.0. Most of the changes are merely cosmetic in nature, though some changes have been made to alter its functionality. The ineffective auto gain controller found on the previous model that did little other than generate confusion and questions of whether it even did anything has since been removed, and an undisclosed and undocumented high-power mode was also added.The ability to switch the transmitter from stereo to mono audio is an appreciated deviation from the standard fare of low-cost and low-quality transmitters, as is the ability to modify its preemphasis setting to that used in the U.S. or Europe.In conclusion, it is a transmitter that makes the most of the paltry Part 15 allowances and restrictions. It isn't fair to blame the deficiencies of Part 15 FM broadcasting on it or any other complaint and/or certified transmitter. The Whole House Transmitter's limited range will be adequate for most uses, but you can dismiss plans of encompassing your town with it. Such shortcomings are precisely the motivation behind many people's AM broadcasting pursuits, which is under more liberal (as regards effective broadcast range) governance than FM.Oddly, somebody with a field strength meter similar to that in use by the F.C.C. recorded measurements of the Whole House transmitter's field strength, only to learn it eclipsed the maximum of 250 microvolts per meter measured at three meters away from the antenna. Take from that what you will.http://www.part15.us/forum/part15-forums/transmitter-talk/whole-house-30-fm-transmitter-field-testsPostscript: I'd like to apologize for the minimal sound test of the transmitter; issues of copyright and content ID caused all but a single brief sample to be removed. A test of its sound quality using processed and unprocessed audio sources in the form of a separate video will be forthcoming.
EVISTR L53 Digital PCM Field Audio Recorder Review & Sound Demonstration stereophonicstuff 2017-01-21 | The EVISTR L53 is a newcomer in the PCM audio recorder market, being just released in December of 2016.Its audio quality exceeds what you'd expect from a device priced at a modest $55. However, its two stereo microphones' self-noise becomes conspicuous when increasing their gain beyond conservative levels.Quality control does seem to vary between one example and another. My particular recorder tended to record its left channel of audio at a greatly reduced volume in contrast to its right. This became observable when later reviewing its recorded audio files. In fact, the brief sample of its line-input recording capabilities needed to have its left channel amplified in great measure during the editing phase to compensate for this. Much cannot be expected from a sub $75 audio recorder. Still, in many respects, the EVISTR L53 surprised me with its quality, construction, and qualifications. Serving not only as a mere field recorder, it has the capacity of accepting an external microphone, line-level devices (such as a CD player, audio mixer, etc.), or landline telephones as audio inputs. The telephone recording functionality can be expanded upon by enabling the voice activated recording and track separate capabilities found within in its menus. Whenever a telephone call is placed or received, the device will record without manual intervention. At the culmination of the call, the recorder will automatically create a file of that call and then prepare to do the same thing once more. All the calls will be recorded as separate files complete with time/date metadata. It is in this manner that one could quite possibly use this as a fully automated call recorder. Of course, this functionality isn't exclusive to recording telephone calls!Presenting an example of its noise reduction capabilities slipped from my memory during the editing stage; it isn't anything remarkable in performance. The end result is akin to Audacity's noise-reduction filter being used with its default settings.In closing, consideration should be made to the mention of Six valence chromium CR(VI), otherwise described as Hexavalent Chromium, being present in the unit's "shell and structural" parts. According to the manual, the levels of CR(VI) +6 used exceed the limits of the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directive set forth by the European Union for the explicit purpose of preventing and restricting the inclusion of these and similar dangerous chemicals from appearing in everyday products. Take from that what you may.
Canon Vixia HF11 HD Camcorder Review & Test Footage stereophonicstuff 2016-12-25 | A camcorder capable of excellent video quality is betrayed by an overly aggressive microphone gain controller, causing clipped and distorted audio. Rather strangely, the test footage recorded by the previous owner or owners contains none of the aforementioned microphone clipping.*The test footage was downscaled and converted to 720p 60fps.
Lenovo Thinkpad T400 Overview (With Smoke) stereophonicstuff 2016-12-19 | Several months earlier, in the interim of procuring a satisfactory replacement laptop to take the place of my Thinkpad R60 that was very nearly smashed to smithereens, I was afforded the opportunity to "test drive" a Lenovo Thinkpad T400 with Windows 7 Professional pre-installed.Generally speaking, it was a competent machine with ample power and performance to spare. The only cause of concern was the discovery of smoke unexpectedly emanating from somewhere within the laptop. Perhaps the "mystery" liquid that the monitor's display cable seemed to be saturated with was at fault. The machine continued to work without issue, but one of its three USB ports ceased functioning entirely.
1985 Sears SR-3000 Portable B&W TV stereophonicstuff 2016-11-17 | This neglected Sears portable B&W television was seen deserted and cast off to the outermost fringe of somebody's driveway, awaiting its eventual destruction by the trash collection when I rescued it.Dismissing its blemished appearance, its functional condition is in good health and its AM tuner is leaps and bounds better than what is usually slapped in as an afterthought in contemporary AM/FM radios and tuners.The irony of The S.O.S. Band's Take Your Time (Do It Right) playing at 15:52 is heavy. Had I actually taken the time (and done it right) by using a tripod with the camcorder, what followed shortly thereafter wouldn't have transpired. At the camcorder's expense, we get to see what exactly happens when a MiniDV camcorder is dropped onto an uncarpeted floor.
Sony DCR-TRV140 Disassembly, Repair, & Observations stereophonicstuff 2016-10-23 | Not being being one to be easily defeated--and not leave well enough alone--I forged ahead with my plans to repair a malfunctioning Sony DCR-TRV140. Parts were somewhat difficult to procure, and it was eventually realized that buying another broken camcorder would've been a cheaper and easier endeavor. Such was exactly the end result, with my settling on a camcorder plagued with a myriad of inexplicable issues; remarkably, the condition of the tape mechanism betrayed the otherwise dismal condition.Tracking down a service manual did take a reasonable degree of effort, what with all the illegitimate websites that seemingly show up whenever the word "download" is appended to a query submitted to any of the search engines available. With service manual, tools, and both camcorders in hand, I commenced in my Sony Handycam rehabilitation.Notwithstanding the several snags I encountered, all turned out well with the camcorder being fully resurrected and brought back to the land of the living. Of course, I now have the second donor camcorder from which several of its parts were sacrificed to repair the other, quietly awaiting its restoration. This is a dangerously circuitous scenario I've found myself in, since I can't live with the thought of discarding a camcorder that would be (and eventually will be) in functional condition after some intervention and the installation of working parts.
Jensen JTA-460 Stereo Turntable & AM/FM Radio Review & Test stereophonicstuff 2016-10-08 | If your only intent is to use this turntable for the listening to and playback of your 45, 33 1/3, and 78 rpm vinyl records using the integrated speakers, you'd likely be content. If you hold the sound quality of your music in high regard, expect to be left dissatisfied.Unless you enjoy the compression artifact laiden sound of low bitrate audio files, the USB recording functionality is worthless. The audio output through both the RCA and headphone jacks is sibilant and lacking in both the upper and lower frequencies, with quite a bit of emphasis on the mid-range. The tracking force is likely on the higher-end of the scale, and both the stylus and cantilever are fashioned out of plastic!The only compensatory characteristic is the sensitive and wide-band AM tuner complete with its miscalibrated display of the currently tuned frequency.
I/O Flex Cardbus Firewire Card & Ulead Video Studio SE 7 Quick Review stereophonicstuff 2016-10-06 | Ordinarily, I'd never go to the trouble of recording a video of something as dull as a PCMCIA/Cardbus Firewire card, but after reading a great many horror stories of system lockups, blue screens of death, and inexplicably sluggish transfer speeds when adding an external Firewire card to a Thinkpad T61 which wasn't equipped with an internal variant, this proves that it can be done. It seems some models of Firewire cards (specifically those with certain chipsets) refuse to coexist happily with certain Thinkpad models devoid of Firewire from the factory. Yet, this model from a now-defunct company works without flawIncluded in the box was an archaic copy of Ulead (not even Corel!) VideoStudio SE 7; it was only natural that I'd trouble myself with installing such an antiquated piece of software just to indulge in vain experimentation, exploration, and exploitation of it. Needless to say, it was a fool's errand.
Updated: Disable 60p High Frame Rate Mode On YouTube (Revert To 30p) stereophonicstuff 2016-10-06 | The method for disabling 60p playback mode on YouTube described in an earlier video of mine, while still working, is no longer an optimal solution due in large part to the necessity of reverting to using Adobe Flash Player just to revert to 30p.Using the plugin for both Firefox and Google Chrome called "YouTube Plus," short work is made of reverting to 30p playback on videos whose only HD playback options, by default, are in 60p. Unlike the previous workaround I detailed, this plugin can disable 60p on either the HTML5 or Adobe Flash players.Reverting to 30p proves useful when your computer or internet connection can otherwise handle HD video just fine so long as it isn't 60p!
