Christmas & Holiday Gifts For HT & Vinyl Lovers

This post contains affiliate links. Please see my full disclosure here.

After the less than joyful holiday season in 2020, this year hopefully will be more normal with a well earned happy time for friends and families to get together and celebrate the season of gift giving. 

So what do you give to the vinyl and home theater lover in your life?

With a nod to a range of prices and levels of quality here are some suggestions to help you.

Prices shown are MSRP. Many products are currently significantly discounted. Click on the image to see the current Amazon pricing.

Mini Projectors: $50-$150

So you always wanted that large screen and the projector to go with it, well here is a low cost option that will provide a good image for the price and comes with a screen and built in stereo speakers. Plus it is suitable for those outside movie parties.

The TMY V08 throws 4:3/16:9 images up to 220″ and has a lamp brightness of 7500 lumens (approx. 180ANSI lumens). This is a native 720P HD LED projector that can support 1920×1080 Blu-ray HD signals and its LED light source is good for 60,000 hours. It is very easy to use and setup and supports a vey good range range of video sources. See my review here. 

For a few dollars more, the DBPOWER 8000L is a more upscale model and is claimed to have a native 1080P display with 8000 lumens (approx. 200ANSI lumens). Better options for movie viewing and gaming if the purse fits. 

Check out this Amazon link to see a range of these mini low cost LED projectors.

Buyer Beware: Some of these mini projectors use misleading technical information regarding, in particular, the NATIVE panel resolution and describe the brightness in a way that can be confusing to a newcomer. Check your facts before buying. 

Soundbars – $300 to $1300

Are you short on space, the “better half” doesn’t want unsightly speakers or are you living in a rental and cannot install surround & immersive speakers? Then the Soundbar can give you a terrific pseudo surround and/or immersive sound experience. These long “thin” rectangular “bars” can quite effectively simulate both surround and immersive sound channels. Just make sure that it supports all the connectivity and functions you want like 4K/8K, ARC, eARC, optical, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, voice control etc. and that it has the right number of speakers to properly support the formats like Dolby Atmos and DTS-X. (See my post on channel identification here). Some come with built-in subwoofers, most can support an additional subwoofer, wired or wireless, and many can support additional wired or wireless speakers for additional rear channels. 

Samsung HW-Q800A: MSRP $499.99 (limited offer)

Powered 3.1.2ch Q800A Q Series Soundbar – Dolby Atmos/DTS: X with Alexa Built-in. Includes a separate subwoofer.

This Soundbar comes with a separate small sub to give you that extra “punch” and it supports both the surround and immersive sound sound experience. Just plug in your HDMI source and using the built-in controls or the small remote control select your source and your off. Additional rear surrounds may be added later.

Sony HTX8500: MSRP $299.99

Powered 2.1ch sound bar Dolby Atmos/DTS:X, 4K, with built-in subwoofer

Check out these Amazon links to see a huge range of Soundbar options without and with subwoofers

Confused by the number of speakers/channels that describe a sound bar – x:y:zch? Then take a look at this post.

Some Soundbars come with a small internal sub, but if they don’t then take a peak at the following small/micro sub options, (make sure your Soundbar has an output that can feed a subwoofer). 

Small Sub Woofers – $150.00 to $1,500.00

Many of the above sound bars may be purchased with an additional Wi-Fi connected sub as an option. For those that do not come with a sub or if you want a little more impact, check out the following wired options.

There are many low cost subs to choose from but here a few smaller sealed and ported options that will provide you with excellent performance without breaking the bank. 

POLK: PSW10 MSRP $149.0

• 10″ woofer
• 50 watts RMS
• Response 40-200Hz

KLIPSCH: R120SW MSRP $299.99

• 12″ woofer
• 200 watts RMS
• Response 29-120Hz

DEFINITIVE: DN8 MSRP $499.00

• 8″ woofer
• 200 watts RMS
• Response 35-200Hz

SVS:

• SB1000Pro MSRP $499.99
• 12″ woofer
• 300 watts RMS
• Response 24-260Hz

• SB2000Pro MSRP $899.99
• 12″ woofer
• 550 watts RMS
• Response 19-240Hz

Short on space and looking for something really small but with BIG performance then check out these Micro Subs (First Look post here):

Cambridge Audio Mix X301 MSRP $450.00

• One 8″ woofer and one 8″ passive radiator
• 300 watts RMS
• Response 31-200Hz

SVS 3000 Micro MSRP $899.99

• Two 8″ woofers
• 800 watts RMS
• Response 23-240Hz

KEF KC62 MSRP $1,499.99

• Two 6.5″ woofers
• 1000 watts RMS
• Response 11-200Hz

Streaming Hardware – $29.99 to $199.99

With streaming movies and music becoming ever more popular here are a few options that are worth looking at. Remember to use an ethernet connection for best quality and speed and to set your streaming box/device to correctly handle 4K and Dolby Atmos to get the most out of your system.

Top End

Roku Ultra 4K HD Streaming Box: MSRP $99.99

If you want a top quality streaming box that handles all your favorite streaming services like Hulu, Netflix, Disney+. HBO Max and more, the Roku 4K HD streaming box should meet your needs. The picture is great, the box is very responsive and it reboots very quickly if required. 

Just to fill the stockings

Here is a small selection from my 2019 vinyl Christmas stocking stuffers.

Real Vinyl Wall Clocks & Signs – $20.00 to $30.00

These unique looking clocks and signs are all made from real vinyl records. There are many stock images and many suppliers will cut the vinyl to your selected image. Here are two examples:

Vinyl Wrist Watch – approx. $5.00

If you are old school and like to carry time with you then these vinyl wrist watches keep you close to your favorite medium.

A Question of Balance – $12.00 to $30.00

So now you have your record player you need to make sure that the cartridge tracking weight is just right, not too heavy and not too light. My favorite, inexpensive vertical tracking force (VTF) scale, is the Riverstone or the Neoteck digital gauges.

Booze and Vinyl – approx. $20.00

A Spirited Guide to Great Music and Mixed Drinks.

Vinyl Coasters – from $7.00

You’ve mixed it, now were to put it?

Just a Little Body Bling – $7.00 to $9.00

You’ve decorated the house, office and clothes with your vinyl reminders, why not decorate your ears too?

Happy Holidays and a Merry Christmas to all of my readers.