DVD-Software.info

[Ablang]

January 6th, 2005

Gadget Freak: Golden Receivers

by PC World Contributing Editor Dan Tynan

Speakers get all the glory, but your audio/video receiver is the hub
of your home entertainment universe. Yet many guys swap out receivers
as frequently as they change hairstyles--once every 15 years.

Today, for $300 to $400 you can buy a receiver that powers your
speakers and controls your radio, TV, video players, digital
recorders, and other components. Here are five things many buyers
overlook.

Get the hookups: The biggest mistake is choosing a receiver with the
incorrect connections, says Grant Garrett, an agent with Best Buy's
Geek Squad high-tech troubleshooters
(http://pcwnl.pcworld.com/t/339437/15377830/968164/0/ If you want to
plug in a DVD
player and a digital video recorder, buy a unit with multiple
component (red-green-blue) inputs. HDTV lovers should look for
higher-quality DVI or HDMI hookups. Have a separate DVD-Audio or Super
Audio CD player? You may want a high-speed FireWire port. And if you
want to blast MP3s on your stereo, look for ethernet jacks or Wi-Fi
card slots for connecting to a home network, or a USB port for
plugging in a portable player.

Try stereo a la mode: Surround-sound modes are like reality TV
shows--every time you turn around, you see a new one. Here's some
simple advice: If you have only two speakers, look for
"virtualization" features that simulate surround sound using just two
channels. Want to play your old CDs or VHS tapes on a surround-sound
system? Look for a unit that features matrixing, which uses Dolby
ProLogic II or DTS: Neo6 to convert two-channel recordings into
multichannel sound. To learn more about surround sound, check out
Crutchfield's excellent consumer guides
(http://pcwnl.pcworld.com/t/339437/15377830/968165/0/

Zone out: If you want music in more than one room, get a receiver that
supports remote zones, advises Bob Hazelwood, product manager for
Cambridge Soundworks. For example, some 7.1 systems let you set up a
5.1 home theater in the den and hang two speakers in another room, so
the kids can watch Finding Nemo while you listen to the Flaming Lips.
Look for a unit that uses existing amplifier channels for multiple
zones, so you don't need another receiver to drive the second set of
speakers.

Be acoustically correct: Most of us can't afford to hire a hi-fi geek
to perfectly place all our speakers, says Mohsin Imtiaz, a marketing
manager for Texas Instruments, which makes the digital signal
processors in many receivers. But if you get a receiver with built-in
"room correction," you can place a microphone where you'd usually sit;
the unit then optimizes speaker settings to match the room's
acoustics.

Take it easy: You shouldn't need a Ph.D. in stereotronics to operate
your gear. An easy-to-use receiver usually has a well-designed remote,
notes Lance DuChateau, consumer marketing manager for Best Buy. Look
for one that groups similar functions (like play, pause, and rewind
for DVD playback) by color, and that lets you program macros so you
can press a single button to perform complex tasks (like turning on
your TV and DVD player and switching inputs to watch a movie). The
remote gets bonus points for an LCD, or if the buttons light up so you
can see them in the dark.

Follow these tips, and you can walk into any stereo store with
confidence. And while you're out, stop by the hair salon and update
your style. You know you need to.

Read Dan Tynan's regularly published "Gadget Freak" columns:
http://pcwnl.pcworld.com/t/339437/15377830/364470/0/

===
"Her chest is ahead of her by 2 or 3 feet--it gets there
before she does."
-- Joe Simpson on his daughter Jessica