Other Tech

With all the press that wireless technologies like Wi-Fi have been getting, it's easy to forget that hard-wired systems make the A/V world go round. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, adding a component to your system means running at least one wire.

A receiver is your home theater's brain as well as its brawn. It doesn't just power your speakers; it's also the switching center for your gear and decodes the various surround sound formats. After connecting your speakers and components, here are the steps to take to ensure your receiver produces all the sound you paid for.

It's no secret to regular readers that watching an HDTV on its default factory settings is like buying a high-performance car and never taking it out on the highway to let 'er rip.

Once upon a time, outside factors controlled when and where you could watch a TV show or feature film. Over the past 35 years, that’s evolved dramatically. The revolution began with the introduction of the VCR in 1976. Its ability to record and archive broadcast TV shows and movies on magnetic tape burst open the floodgates for entertainment in the home. Other formats followed, all the way up to our present-day high-density Blu-ray Discs. One thing they’ve all had in common, though, is their physical nature. That’s all changing now. Like it or not, we’re entering a transition phase from physical media to streaming and the cloud. Looks like a revolution all over again.

The longtime E Street Band guitarist and Sopranos heavy (hello, Silvio) meets ME in Las Vegas to discuss his Sirius satellite radio gig and why CDs are "the biggest fraud ever perpetrated on the public.

Computer networking isn't a subject you'd necessarily expect to read about in Sound & Vision.

There's more to setting up a subwoofer than just plugging it into your system and turning it on, but it's not rocket science. Follow the steps below, and you'll get solid, powerful bass with a minimum of headaches.