Jonno Fraser
Home Cinema & Custom Install Editor
Based in Brisbane, QLD
G'day, Jonno here. I spent the better part of twelve years as a custom installer building theatres — everything from a media room squeezed into a Queenslander to a fully blacked-out, acoustically-treated cinema with a hundred grand of gear behind the screen. The thing nobody tells you is that the room matters more than the boxes, and I'll bang on about acoustics until you're sick of me. If you're planning a theatre, talk to me before you spend a cent on speakers.
23 published articles · most recent August 17, 2026
G'day, Jonno here. I spent the better part of twelve years as a custom installer building theatres — everything from a media room squeezed into a Queenslander to a fully blacked-out, acoustically-treated cinema with a hundred grand of gear behind the screen.
The thing nobody tells you is that the room matters more than the boxes — and I'll bang on about acoustics until you're sick of me.
If you're planning a theatre, talk to me before you spend a cent on speakers.
Articles by Jonno Fraser
Building a home cinema budget: the spending order that actually pays offWhere to put the first dollar in a home cinema build, and why most people spend it on the wrong box first. A spending order from twelve years of installs.
Desktop headphone setups: getting the desk itself right firstBefore you chase another DAC or amp, sort the desk. Reflections, cable strain and monitor height quietly wreck more desktop headphone rigs than gear ever does.- Open-back headphones and a shared house: when the leak actually mattersOpen-back headphones leak sound both ways. Here's how much, when it genuinely matters in a share house or apartment, and when it's a non-issue.
Subwoofer crawl vs measurement: how to actually find the right spotThe subwoofer crawl is a good starting point, not a finish line. Here's how I actually locate sub placement on real jobs, and when to trust the numbers instead.- Headphone listening rooms: why the space around your head still mattersHeadphones bypass room acoustics for the direct sound, but the room you sit in still shapes fatigue, focus and what you hear. Here's why.
Speaker format by room: when standmounts beat floorstanders (and vice versa)Choosing between standmounts and floorstanders isn't about budget or looks. It's a room-shape and listening-distance decision, and I've watched it wreck good systems.
Clock sources and jitter in home cinema: what actually mattersJitter gets blamed for everything from harsh treble to flat soundstages. Here's what clock sources actually do in an AV receiver and where the worry is misplaced.- Room modes explained: why your bass sounds wrong and how to fix itRoom modes cause boomy, uneven bass in almost every listening room. Jonno Fraser explains what they are, how to find them, and what actually fixes the problem.
- Desktop headphone rigs: how to build a serious listening station around a laptop or PCBuilding a desktop headphone rig that actually performs means more than buying good cans. Jonno Fraser walks through the chain from source to ear.
- DAC output stages: what voltage, impedance and topology actually do to your soundThe DAC chip is only half the story. What the output stage does to that signal — and how it interacts with your amp — matters just as much.
- Headphone amp topology explained: what the circuit actually does to your soundDiscrete Class A, op-amp, tube hybrid or pure valve — Jonno Fraser breaks down what headphone amp topologies actually do and how to choose the right one.
- Clock sources and jitter in home cinema: what actually matters for AV digital audioJitter, clocking and word-clock inputs: do they matter in a home cinema system, or is it audiophile folklore? Jonno Fraser cuts through the noise.
- Where to spend on cables, racks and power: what actually moves the needleCables, equipment racks and power conditioning: Jonno Fraser cuts through the folklore to explain where your dollars genuinely improve a home cinema or hi-fi system.
- Atmos speaker placement: how to position every channel correctlyJonno Fraser breaks down how to correctly position every Dolby Atmos speaker channel — from the LCR front stage to overhead heights — in a real home cinema room.
AWOL Vision Aetherion Max and Pro: A Serious UST Challenge to Hisense and the Laser TV Status QuoAWOL Vision's new Aetherion Max and Pro UST projectors bring tri-laser DLP, Dolby Vision Gaming and 240Hz to the laser TV fight. Here's what AU buyers need to know.
Hisense debuts a 6,000-lumen tri-laser 4K flagship and a pro-grade UST at CES 2026Hisense unveiled the XR10 long-throw and PX4-Pro UST at CES 2026, pushing its TriChroma RGB laser line further than ever. Here's what AU buyers need to know.
BenQ W5850 Review: Laser Phosphor 4K for the Dedicated Cinema RoomBenQ's W5850 brings laser/phosphor to the W5800 formula at US$6,999. Is the step up worth it for serious Australian cinema rooms?
XGIMI TITAN Noir Max headlines its CES 2026 lineup with a dual-iris contrast systemXGIMI's TITAN Noir Max debuts at CES 2026 with RGB triple-laser, a dual-iris contrast system and up to 100,000:1 dynamic contrast. Here's what AU buyers need to know.
Epson QB1000 review: the sub-$12k laser cinema benchmark arrives in AustraliaEpson's Q-series flagship QB1000 is now established in Australia at AUD $11,900. We dig into whether it truly resets the benchmark below $12k.
Yamaha trickles AVENTAGE anti-resonance tech into budget RX300A and RX500A receiversYamaha's new entry-level RX300A and RX500A AV receivers inherit the flagship AVENTAGE A.R.T. Wedge — a rare and meaningful trickle-down at under $600 USD.
Denon's 2026 X-Series adds the AVR-X2900H and AVC-X3900H with wireless rearsDenon refreshes its mid-tier X-Series with the AVR-X2900H and AVC-X3900H, bringing Dirac Live, Auro-3D, IMAX Enhanced and wireless rear channels to the mainstream.
Onkyo returns to AV separates at CES 2026 with a 15-channel flagship processorOnkyo unveiled a 15-channel THX Dominus processor and new receiver line at CES 2026, signalling a serious return to the AV separates market.
CEDIA confirms its 2026 Australia Tech Summit and Smart Home Awards on the Gold CoastCEDIA's 2026 Australian calendar is locked in: the Tech Summit and Smart Home Awards head to the Gold Coast in late October.