Quark

Even on regular releases Rarewaves often runs out of allocated stock a week or two before release. For these two (and The Abyss which should be listed soon) long delayed from even blu-ray, I'd recommend getting in early.

AUD$48.99 plus shipping ~AUD$6.99. The price includes GST. Note use code RWBFCM10 for 10% off this weekend. Shipping isn't tracked and takes 2-3 weeks from the UK.

8 months is a ridiculously long wait - they deserve to be publicly named and shamed.

Yes you need a return air vent to get airflow. To reduce noise leakage you can use several different approaches e.g. https://www.soundproofingcompany.com/soundproofing_101/the-dead-vent Note that here in Australia using dead vent to a basement for passive cooling isn't likely to work, but the other principles in the link do apply. My room has sliding doors and with all the sound leakage compromises they bring I didn't bother with any soundproofing of the return air.

Agree, too much to spend when other issues may occur. You could pick up a brand new Epson TW9400 for not much more. If the budget is there, the new JVCs also throw a very nice image.

Yep, I might import via Rarewaves - they look to be the "cheapest".

It's a Disney title and they're not releasing any more physical media in Australia.

The best of both worlds would be a new stereo preamp with HT bypass on one of the inputs, plus a new receiver for the other channels. The P25s would become L&R of your HT system, as well as remain as your stereo speakers. The only potential downside would be how well matched your Magnum centre works with the P25s.

Most likely culprits are fingerprints on the disc or the player needs a firmware update (which may or may not be available).

Interdyn are the local distributor - try contacting them.

That's a pleasant surprise - first time I've heard of someone getting 4K to work through a joiner wall plate.

Presume you're only running HD resolution, not 4K.

For HDMI, optical and USB you're definitely better avoiding a joiner style wall plate. Instead use a brush style plate and one single cable for each connection. This is especially so for HDMI. For speaker cables you can use banana style joiner plates, but again I'd recommend brush style plates and a single cable.

Not when your speakers dip to 2.5

Specs say minimum 4 Ohm speakers.

Not familiar with the Nova 300, sorry.

Snap!

A used Elektra HD Reference should be close to your budget and is stable to 2 Ohm. There was one listed here a while ago - while the ad is expired it might still be available.

Minimum impedance on the 948s is actually 2.5 Ohm, so need an amp stable to this level, which narrows the field a lot. What's your budget?

Sensational room - well done!!

The old subwoofer crawl method is probably the most reliable in an odd shaped room, short of get a mike and measuring software. Sit a sub at or even on your normal listening position then crawl around the room to find the place(s) where bass sounds loudest and clearest. This is where your sub should be placed. With two subs you'll probably need to get one sub placed and then repeat the process to find the second spot.

Split battens - cheaper to buy lengths and cut to size. If you haven't seen these before one piece is attached to the panel and one to the wall they then clip together. Not suitable for attaching to ceilings.

OK, needs a service then. The ballast is the most likely culprit and worth repairing.

Would start with powering it off at the wall for 10 minutes, then try again.