There is no job more awesome in this world than the one that helps people realize a lifelong dream.  We at Rapallo are in the business of just that and we love it!‘This is the best place ever!’ are Gabe’s words as soon as we walk through the door for this interview, a few weeks after completing his new home.Gabe and his wife have moved away from the rat race now that the kids are grown up and have moved out. They went for the dream home and got exactly what they had it mind.  For Gabe’s wife that meant a kitchen with a sea view, for Gabe it was a home theatre that topped the list. Once they started planning the home theatre a multi-room audio system was added to the project.

To start off with, we would like to wish you all a happy and healthy 2017.As we are sporting a bit of a tan behind the computer and still getting the sand out of our togs, we at Rapallo are currently watching what is the talk of town at CES in Las Vegas.  CES is THE spot for consumer electronic brands to announce new and potentially innovative products to the world. It tends to be an indicator of where the market is going and we intend to bring back a full report of what caught our attention as far as AV goes in a week or two.

Some of the questions we get asked most often is: Do these Speakers pair well with this Amplifier? Will this Amplifier power my Speakers? How do I know these Speakers will sound good with this amplifier?As speakers and amps are such an investment, you want to make sure they work effectively and sound good! There are a few points that we think are important to consider when calculating an amplifiers power. Unfortunately, it isn’t as simple as looking up a couple of figures on the amp specs and comparing it to the speakers you intend on using it with.

There’s a lingering sentiment in the audiophile community that subwoofers are only for home theatre and the benefits to music playback are suspect or even negativeIt’s true that lesser subwoofers are not designed to optimally handle the speed, detail and nuance of certain music, but it’s certainly not the rule for subwoofers in general.A great subwoofer elevates the listening experience in a way no other audio component can.Below is a list of six different reasons why a properly engineered subwoofer, is important to music playback.

A new AVR  or AV-receiver might be on the top of your Christmas wish list. It is arguably the most important part of your AV set up and home theatre. Brands seem to launch updated version of their AVR’s just about every year. But deciding on what you really need as opposed to being pulled into the next fancy marketing thing, when it is time for an upgrade can do anybody’s head i In the end, you want to make sure you have considered every aspect so that your AVR with work in perfect unison with the rest of your set up. Nobody wants to spend unnecessary money, while at the same time, we want to get the best performance for our needs. A few weeks ago, we bumped into an excellent article on AVS forums which quick-fired 10 points to consider when shopping for AVRs. It is almost a ticking list of things to consider. We thought it was just excellent and wanted it share it with you, adding our own comments, examples and experiences.I mean, nothing beats a comprehensive (albeit a bit lengthy) overview that is specked with insider information. Right?

TVs don’t tend to sound great. That’s one of their disadvantages: as they get slimmer and more beautiful, there’s less room for proper speakers. The result is usually something that looks very nice but sounds a bit weak. Whether you have top-end 4K TV, a HDTV or something more basic, the problem is the same. Fortunately, there’s an easy solution.

Summer has arrived, Christmas is only weeks away, so now is the time to think about those BBQs you are going to have outside.  Or here’s the ultimate question: how are you going to spice up the parties with music? Excellent outdoor speakers are just a must for any Kiwi who remotely cares about their favourite sounds outside around the pool or on the deck.

SVS recently launched their long awaited Prime Elevation Speakers. While brands like Elac, Klipsch and Definitive Technology subscribe to emerging audio formats such as Dolby Atmos®*, DTS:X® and Auro 3D®, Ed Mullen from SVS has made a different argument from the very beginning of height effect speakers. What’s interesting is that Gene DelaSalla from Audioholics is entirely on the same page and he’s not hiding it either.SVS recently launched their long awaited Prime Elevation Speakers.

So you have a bookcase full of CDs, you have thousands of songs downloaded on your computer at home, maybe you have spent some time ripping the CDs to your PC and subsequently you have a music streaming subscription such as TIDAL, or Spotify.  Here is your dilemma, you don’t want to totally forget about your beautiful, collection of Compact Discs, or disregard your iTunes collection of songs. This recent problem gave birth to a new type of hi fi component: The Network Audio Player.

Once the stuff of the future, these days laser projectors are becoming more and more commonplace in the world of home theatre. Sure, they are still quite a bit more expensive than traditional light bulb projectors. But a lot is moving when it comes to projectors. Terms such as “laser”, “LED” or “hybrid” are used commonly. But what is what?  What is worth your penny at this stage? And what does the future hold?Time to shed some light in the lay of the land in light-generation for projectors.