Okay, I promised you a blurb for your use, and here it is. Some blurb ... it's probably too long; I am a bit prolix, as you are aware from my emails. What you might want to do is use the penultimate paragraph beginning with "I would recommend..." and leave it at that. I would like to be identified by initials, as shown, if that's okay. Finally, if it's unusually important, you may give out my phone number as a reference. xxx-xxx-xxxx from mid-May to mid-November; otherwise xxx-xxx-xxxx in Tennessee.
Thanks for everything, Bill!
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Most of us want to benefit from the sea change going on in home entertainment, but unless you're under 30 or a tech geek, it's hard to keep up. Three businesses are merging: Internet, TV, and digital sound, and the result can be an extraordinary "Home Theatre" in your family room. Ads and brochures, however, tout arcane advantages and numerical measurements - unprocessed bitstream, DivX, Dolby 7.1, aspect ratio, HDMI, composite, 720p, DVI, Plasma, etc.
My wife and I like so many others, decided that it was time for a large flat screen TV with gee-whiz sound. We thought it would be a fairly simple task - after all, we had a great stereo system. Then we faced the reality of the new jargon and a receiver manual that ran 134 pages (just the english version!). One entry from another manual began, "YCbCr (4:4:4): If your TV supports the YCbCr color space via HDMI...." It was clear that we needed to call in the first team to get us were we wanted to be.
After some checking, we phoned AV Systems of Maine, and we soon had a consulting meeting that gave us every confidence that we were dealing with THE experts. Not only could they craft precisely what we wanted, they could do so quickly and - wonder of wonders - except for the TV screen itself and in-wall speakers, the entire system would be "invisible" - no wires, black boxes, and tangential mess. The receiver, cable box, Blu-Ray player, and AppleTV unit were to be tucked in a handy closet along with some throw-back devices: a VCR, laser disc player and mini disc player (few folks have even heard of the last two!).
The following week it all came to pass in one long, 11 hour day. The AVSM team worked their magic tirelessly, and did some things we didn't feel were possible. Access panel in the back of the closet? No problem. Get the wires from here to there? Sure - we'll string them in the crawl space. But the remote can't see inside the closet, can it? It can with this gizmo. It was fascinating to see them work. When it was over, we had a system that was far beyond our dreams. The only drawback is that you have to force yourself to leave the house!
One other thing is important. When the fellows arrived they came in with all manner of tools: screwdrivers, splicers, drills, saws, lights, etc., etc. Among these was their own vacuum cleaner. I mention it because they are extremely mindful that they are in your home, and they want to keep it as clean as possible during and after their work. That vacuum was pressed into service many times during the day.
So, in sum, I would recommend AV Systems of Maine without reservation. Their hallmarks are (a) extreme technical expertise, (b) reasonable pricing, (c) outstanding, creative work - they deliver what they promise, and (d) professional courtesy.
One last point... as I wrote this, I worried that the reader might feel that I was a family member, or an invented customer, or whatever. Nope. I'm real and was not asked to do this review.
ASR
New Harbor, ME
