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Klipsch's new THX Ultra2 speaker system boldly goes where poseur speakers fear to tread. Let's face it, the speaker industry is obsessed with producing ever skinnier and sleeker designs; you know, the sort of trendy speakers that look cool straddling plasma TVs. For their new high-end line, Klipsch's product planners took a different approach: The THX Ultra2's raison d'étre is the rapidly expanding custom-installation market. No doubt most of these big-'n'-brawny speakers will be tucked out of sight or flush-mounted in a posh home theater, but I'd bet a bunch of these systems will be sold to performance-oriented buyers. They're that good.

While HDTVs are a lot cheaper now than they were a few years back, the options are still limited if you're looking to score a high-def model for not too much cash. You can get a hefty direct-view tube TV for less than $1,000, but the screen size on that baby is likely to be only 30 inches or less - too small if you want an engaging home theater experience.

<I>Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Cate Blanchett, John Rhys-Davies, Bernard Hill, Christopher Lee, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Orlando Bloom, Hugo Weaving, Miranda Otto, David Wenham, Brad Dourif, Karl Urban, John Noble. Featuring Andy Serkis as Gollum. With Ian Holm and Sean Bean. Directed by Peter Jackson. Aspect ratio: 2.35:1 (anamorphic). Dolby Digital 5.1 EX, DTS 6.1 ES, Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround. Four discs. 250 minutes (film). 2004. New Line Home Video N6932. PG-13. $39.99.</I>