What I'm about to tell you might not make any sense. In fact, it might even upset you a little. But I'm your friend, and I've promised to tell you the truth about your A/V gear, so it's a risk I'm willing to take. Here goes: Your TV doesn't look right.
By now you may have read Al Griffin's review of the Sony PlayStation 3 game console featured in the January 2007 Sound & Vision. Since Sony is the major driving force behind the development of the Blu-ray Disc format, it's no real surprise that Al found the PS3 to be a stellar movie player.
You can hardly buy anything without being presented with the chance to spend a little more to get a little extra. And as upgrades go, the A/V industry might be the reigning heavyweight champ. You can upgrade everything in our exciting, neurotic world - speakers, amps, controllers, cables, even the lens on your video projector.
Many people hide their A/V gear behind cabinet doors or put the system off in a closet somewhere. But how do you control everything when you can't point the remote at any of it? The oh-so-simple solution is to install an infrared (IR) repeating system, which carries signals from your remote to wherever your gear may live.
Having lived on both coasts, I've personally sampled from the buffet of natural disasters each has to offer. I lived through the 1989 World Series earthquake, standing in a doorway trying to decide whether to be more worried about myself or my large tube TV, which was doing the Hippy Hippy Shake on its stand.
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.
You've finally done it: You've decided to hire a custom installer to ensure your project goes off with nary a hitch. So now what? Where do you begin, and how do you find the installer who's right for you? If your install is relatively simple - like mounting a flat-panel TV or connecting an existing audio system - it shouldn't be too hard.
Audio distribution is the custom-installation industry's bread and butter. Sure, home theaters are sexier, but with only five or seven speakers, they can't compete with the ten, 20, 30, or more that need installing for a housewide music system.