Pete's Write

I had a chance to listen to the Ken Kreisel Subwoofers subs recently, thanks to the warm welcome of some friends and also watch a couple of bass gurus at work. They were also very kind enough to give a tutorial on bass, mid bass, and many other things. They now belong in my Hall of Wow... along with some other speakers I have heard. Just a pair of 8" ones, set up properly can give a very solid punch. That's in the higher frequencies than I expected, going up to 240 Hz, which was not what I had expected. They exhibit speed and slam, and will be very impressive in our small homes. If that's all you desire, then they will be able to show their superiority to some of our traditional favorites from Hsu, SVS, and even Rhythmik and JL Audio in this aspect. In the same room we also had the JL Audio F 113, and it was a different kind of sub. The JL Audio digs deeper, and gives that awesome rumble still, but will lose out in speed and because i...

 As One - Korean Movie review I like table-tennis and sports movies in general, and this combines the two into a movie based on a real story of the two Koreas, North and South combining in 1993 for the World Championships.. It's a simple premise, of two unlikely partners, so close and yet so different. The movie takes us through the throes of these foes, forced by political reasons to work together to defeat the mighty Chinese juggernaut, and bring home the gold medal. A touching movie with plenty of action, which I suspect was CGI, but it brought back memories of the battle of the Chinese involving Singapore and the PRC in the recent Olympics. Recommended for all Table Tennis fans and you don't need to know Korean to appreciate this movie. I have no financial interest or other interests in any of the items / events I write about.

Key of Life – 鍵泥棒のメソッド / Kagi Dorobo no Mesotdo This is a Japanese comedy which garnered much praise in Japan, and even if you do not understand Japanese, and have to rely on the subtitles, it is a movie that you may want to consider. The plot is relatively simply to begin with. A hitman loses his memory after a fall in a public bath, and a loser part-time actor capitalizes on the situation and tries to assume his identity. This is complicated by a magazine editor, who has set herself a goal of finding a husband in two months. There is more than meets the eye to the hitman, and he and the editor begin an unlikely relationship, and it is complicated by the people who want someone dead, those who are supposed to be dead and those who want to avoid being dead. The flow is rather good, and the choice of actors is impeccable, with a stone hard faced Teruyuki Kagawa playing the hitman in question, whilst the buffoon is played by Masato Sakai ...

This one was another show which is outside of my usual Micheal Bay-esque actioner, but it was an interesting viewing at 4 am in the morning across the oceans. Steve Carrell plays another 40-ish man whose wife leaves him and then he decides that he wants to go meet his first love. However the main kicker is that this show is set in the last days of the earth. In a scenario not unlike Armageddon, a large meteor is about to end life on earth. In three weeks time, to be exact, at the beginning of the show. So he journeys across USA looking for his first love, and he travels with a hypersomniac in the form of the Kiera Knightly, who looks very different from her Pirate days. Their travails form the main part of the story, as they look for old long lost parents, loved ones in the midst of an interesting portrayal of how people would be in the midst of impending doom. An interesting vignette is that of his cleaning lady, who doggedly continues h...

Something make you feel good, leaving a warm fuzzy feeling inside of you, such as chocolate, a warm glass of milk, lying in a pile of autumn or a good old Disney movie. Disney movies are meant leave you with this at the end of the show. The last movie I saw with this was “Up” and of the live action ones, I recall “The Rookie”. And Timothy Green comes in the same genre. Stanleyville, a non-descript little town in the middle of nowhere, with a population of 5197 forms the backdrop of this story, and it’s mainly famous for making pencils. A close-knit couple lives in it. Cindy works at the pencil museum, and Jim at the factory. They long for a kid, but have no success at this. Then comes Timothy, after they had written down what they hope to experience with the kid, and bury those notes in a wooden box in the garden. Timothy springs to life all grown up at 10 years old and he is full of life, albeit a spry wiry frame one. And he has leaves growing...

Sigourney Weaver plays a psychology professor who specializes in debunking those who claim they have powers or abilities to heal, predict the future or have special mental powers. Robert De Niro plays her nemesis, a sharp and dark power who claims he truly has special powers and in the course of the movie is willing to be subject to tests to prove his powers. The premise is decent, but the plot pacing is slow, and the kicker at the end comes too late. This is a more unusual movie, which doesn’t seem to be sure whether it wants to be a dramatic movie or a suspense thriller. And despite the presence of some heavyweights, they can’t quite save the movie from being a rental movie at best.

To Rome with Love – movie review Firstly I must declare that when I watched this, I thought of a friend, who goes by the nickname of WEB, yes you bro, when   I saw this show. Woody Allen is famous for using foreign locales for his shows, and he adds a sterling cast to the main protagonist in this movie: Rome. This is a romantic comedy, and it’s set in the perfect city for such a yarn. The city has a real old world charm, and is the venue for the intertwining lives of 4 couples, and brace of other characters, as we observe their lives in this city. We have a visiting girl who falls in love with not only the city, but a Roman, and his parents, including his father who just happens to sing beautifully in the shower. Then there are the girl’s parents, and Alec Baldwin, who plays this architect that bumps into a young American, who just happens to be staying at where he was too, many years ago when he was young. The young man stays with his girlfriend, and...

I have previously given my initial impression of the player, and this is a more in depth review of the audio performance, mainly using the RCA analogue outputs of the player. You can read up about the specs of the DACs in the Oppo from their website: http://www.oppodigital.com/blu-ray-bdp-103/   The DAC is the same as the BDP-93, the Cirrus Logic CS4382A (8-ch, 24-bit, 192khz). For the purpose of the audio test: Partnering equipment: Musical Fidelity A 5.5 stereo amplifier B &W 805s speakers Audioquest Sky cables I used a combination of Cds and SACDs: Diana Krall’s The Girl In The Other Room SACD; Peter White’s Playin' Favorites CD   and Oshio Kotaro’s Hand to Hand CD. These discs are well recorded and have excellent tracks with bass, good mids and resolution. As a CD player in analogue, you can compare it against CD players around the $3-600 range or basically one that will cost around half it’s selling price. As a transpor...

  Oppo BDP 103 review This is a review of a new freshly minted Oppo BDP 103 unit, and I have no financial interest in it, nor do I work for Oppo or any related company. First the technical blurb off the official Oppo Website: --> http://www.oppodigital.com/blu-ray-bdp-103/ I have highlighted the interesting bits in RED . High Definition Video and Audio from All Sources. The BDP-103 represents a marked evolution in OPPO's design and engineering. New to this model are exciting features such as 4k video up-scaling, 2D to 3D conversion, dual HDMI inputs and MHL compatibility. A new dual-core System-on-Chip processor delivers quick startup and fast disc loading speed. With improved network streaming applications and an enriched media playback interface, the BDP-103 is a versatile player that delivers quality picture and premium sound. Features Diversified Media Support: Blu-ray Disc - The high defi...