Sound Advice
By Don Lindich
Week 50, 2015
Q. I just read about the ZVOX SoundBase. Will the TV sound work without the SoundBase turned on? My husband hates using two remotes, so when he watches TV alone it is with just the TV’s speakers.
-Carol Leider, Zimmerman, MN
A. You will not cancel out the TV speakers unless you connect the SoundBase with the TV’s headphone connection. It is preferable to turn the TV speakers off though, and you can usually program the SoundBase to read your TV’s remote control commands. This means you can control everything with one remote. Also, some cable/satellite remotes have ZVOX codes available. I recently helped someone program a set-top box remote so the volume buttons controlled the SoundBase, but the other buttons worked the TV off-on and set-top box functions. That’s the ideal solution if your set-top box remote has codes for ZVOX.
Sound Advice mascot memorial: Anyone who has visited my website has seen the Sound Advice mascot, my miniature dachshund Gabby. She is featured there in pictures and videos and I have received many compliments about her from readers, many of you whom I have gotten to know over the years.
I have a loving family and wonderful friends, but Gabby touched me like no other. Sometimes a person and a dog bond in a way that defies description, and the connection Gabby and I had seemed supernatural. My mom gave her to me when she was 7.5 weeks old, and she passed away in late June a few months shy of her 18th birthday. She slept under my arm from the day I took her home and she had a happy, active, fun-filled life until the very end.
Gabby was the most beautiful miniature dachshund you have ever seen, with bright eyes that sparkled with happiness, love and intelligence. Even more beautiful was her sweet disposition and loving, gentle, playful spirit. She was also funny, athletic, and incredibly smart. Everyone who met her, adored her.
At mylittlegabby.com I have told the story of our life together. It is a memoir, a story of love, happiness and hope presented in 46 chapters and illustrated with pictures and videos. There are absolutely no advertisements or monetization links to detract or distract from the story, and I am keeping it that way forever. You will see how I dealt with some of her health challenges and even read thoughts about pets and the afterlife. You can also donate to The Jake Fund, a “pay it forward” fund that provides financial assistance to families so they do not have to euthanize pets in need of emergency or surgical treatment that would otherwise be unaffordable. I hope to grow the fund and help establish similar funds nationwide.
If you like my writing or have ever loved a dog, please check out mylittlegabby.com and consider donating to The Jake Fund as well. It would mean a lot to me. I’ve written almost 800 newspaper columns, a website with 600 pages and 3 books, but of everything I have ever written I am most proud by far of mylittlegabby.com. I put my heart and soul into it.
The Taj Mahal has been called, “A teardrop on the face of time.” It is no Taj Mahal, but mylittlegabby.com is my teardrop of great love. It will be satisfying to entertain others and help other dogs and their owners when they need it most, but most importantly I want the whole world to know how special Gabby was, the incredible bond we shared, and how much I loved her.