An audio/video entertainment center that has a large-screen TV and hi-fi system with three speakers in the front (left, right and center) and left and right speakers in the rear. Starting in the early 1990s, video inputs were added to stereo receivers and preamplifiers. Today, almost all audio vendors make combination audio/video equipment for home theater listening and viewing.
Audio - Just As Critical
A good sound system is as important as the video display in a home theater setup, if not more so. In many homes, the audio is the more elaborate and costly portion of the system. Setting up the room for realistic audio can be a lot more challenging and time consuming than setting up the video, but the results are worth it. See 5.1 channel, Dolby Digital, digital media server and audiophile.
Home Theater Components
These are the typical components in a 5.1 audio (5 speakers/1 subwoofer) system. More speakers may be used (see 5.1 channel), and rather than an A/V receiver, a separate preamp and amplifier are found in high-end systems. If the TV is rear projection, it cannot be wall mounted. Except for the subwoofer, which always takes up some floor space, speakers range from tiny, wall-mounted units to floor models containing several speakers.
Wide Screen Home Theater!
Just as exciting as today's LCD and plasma TVs were the first "wide screen" CRTs in the early 1950s. Screen sizes jumped from 10" and 12" to the huge 16" screen you see in this 1951 Zenith floor model. Monochrome TV, of course. (Equipment courtesy of World Wide Stereo, www.wwstereo.com)
Audio - Just As Critical
A good sound system is as important as the video display in a home theater setup, if not more so. In many homes, the audio is the more elaborate and costly portion of the system. Setting up the room for realistic audio can be a lot more challenging and time consuming than setting up the video, but the results are worth it. See 5.1 channel, Dolby Digital, digital media server and audiophile.
Home Theater Components
These are the typical components in a 5.1 audio (5 speakers/1 subwoofer) system. More speakers may be used (see 5.1 channel), and rather than an A/V receiver, a separate preamp and amplifier are found in high-end systems. If the TV is rear projection, it cannot be wall mounted. Except for the subwoofer, which always takes up some floor space, speakers range from tiny, wall-mounted units to floor models containing several speakers.
Wide Screen Home Theater!
Just as exciting as today's LCD and plasma TVs were the first "wide screen" CRTs in the early 1950s. Screen sizes jumped from 10" and 12" to the huge 16" screen you see in this 1951 Zenith floor model. Monochrome TV, of course. (Equipment courtesy of World Wide Stereo, www.wwstereo.com)
 | Reproduced with permission from Computer Desktop Encyclopedia. Copyright (c) 1981-2008 The Computer Language Company Inc. All rights reserved. |
Additional Resources
- Actions speak louder than words and the message is disheartening
- Here's a rhetorical question: If you're holding a seminar about the benefits of green technology strategy, should you really be giving away a gas card as one of the incentives to sign up? I thought not. For shame! But, as Forrester Research points out in a new...
- Blog posts 2008-08-30
- ROFLthing 2008
- Have you ever been to an internet culture conference? Earlier this year, Harvard senior Tim Hwang threw one in Cambridge, Mass., and it was a massive success. This time, Hwang wanted to have a smaller get together in San Francisco to chat about memes. Welcome to ROFLthing...
- Blog posts 2008-08-29
- Inside India's CAPTCHA solving economy
- No CAPTCHA can survive a human that's receiving financial incentives for solving it, and with an army of low-waged human CAPTCHA solvers officially in the business of "data processing" while earning a mere $2 for solving a thousand CAPTCHA's, I'm already starting to see evidence of consolidation between India's major...
- Blog posts 2008-08-29
- Up close with one-to-one computing
- CNET News' Ina Fried traveled to Campinas, Brazil, to explore the Bradesco Foundation school, home to one of Latin America's largest one-to-one computing projects.
- Videos 2008-08-29
- Netbooks just want to be free
- At a trade show in Berlin, T-Mobile confirmed that it will sell an Asus Eee PC 901 netbook with built-in 3G. If the prices on these bundles come close to what's been rumored, they could start to catch on. In the UK, Asus already offers a free...
- Blog posts 2008-08-29
- Photos: Up close and one-to-one
- The Bradesco Foundation school in Campinas, Brazil, is home to one of the largest one-to-one computing projects in Latin America. by CNET News.com
- Image galleries 2008-08-29
- Comcast's Web limits: Saving bandwidth or stifling innovation?
- Comcast's Web limits: Saving bandwidth or stifling innovation?Beef it upWhy Comcast should beef up their network:Imagine its 5:00 PM on a normal Friday evening, you get home hoping to relax in front of the TV to watch a movie or two. You turn on the TV only to discover that...
- Discussion threads 2008-08-28
- The depressing future of the Internet
- A brief overview of how the Internet came about: some years ago, some military boffs thought it'd be awesome if computers could talk to each other, so the US could nuke the hell out of other countries without actually being near there. A smart professor from England then came up...
- Blog posts 2008-08-28
- Windows 7 pricing thoughts - Is Windows too expensive?
- Windows 7 pricing thoughts - Is Windows too expensive?It is an apt comparison>Your Ubunutu/Vista comparison doesn't pass the common sense test. Think about what you can get with Ubuntu-- Compiz Fusion for eye candy, drive encryption, MythTV DVR app, OpenOffice.org, ect. You have to get Ultimate Windows to get all...
- Discussion threads 2008-08-28
- Windows 7 must avoid the marketing trap that Vista stumbled into
- Windows 7 must avoid the marketing trap that Vista stumbled intoI agree "One OS to unite them all""One price to keep all happy" In the end it's just a marketing ploy different versions each with their own "missing" pieces. In many ways it looks like double dipping...
- Discussion threads 2008-08-28
- An IE8 Beta 2 Q
- An IE8 Beta 2 QWhat if you uninstall beta 1 first?Will you fall back to IE7 then be able to install beta 2 with a fallback to IE7?Can I uninstall IE8? Yes ... unless ...... you downloaded and installed IE8 Beta 1 prior to installing Windows XP SP3, in which...
- Discussion threads 2008-08-28
- Guns n Roses leaker faces prison time
- How he got ahold of them, he's not saying but LA blogger Kevin Cogill did get ahold and posted unreleased songs from a new Guns n Roses album, Chinese Democracy. Cogill awoke Wednesday to find five FBI agents hauling his ass into a federal district court, charged for...
- Blog posts 2008-08-28
- Steve Jobs death has been greatly exaggerated
- Steve Jobs death has been greatly exaggeratedNormal operating procedureAll major news organizations have prewritten obits for prominent people, with those notes about who to contact for comment in the event of that person's death.This is done so as to avoid inaccuracies that often pop up when the news media has...
- Discussion threads 2008-08-28
- How do we address the have-nots?
- How do we address the have-nots?It's the NetThe problem is no longer the availability of hardware: many computers are being dumped that can easily be made productive again, by installing a lean Linux on it like Xubuntu. So poor people can have a fine computer for free. That's easy to...
- Discussion threads 2008-08-28
- http://i.i.com.com/cnwk.1d/i/tr/downloads/home/dl_access_return_record.pdf
- If you get interrupted while working on a record in an Access form, finding your way back to it can be time-consuming. Here are two ways to bookmark the current record so that you can hop straight to it when you reopen the form.This download is also available as an...
- Download resources 2008-08-28
- AudioProc Demo (exe)
- AudioProc is a high quality audio dynamics processor intended to achieve a competitive 'on the air' sound signature resembling that of modern audio broadcast processors used by major market FM radio stations. AudioProc can normalize the volume and spectral balance of played material and provide a more consistent listening experience....
- Software downloads 2008-08-28
- IP LanTracker (exe)
- IP LanTracker enables users of home network routers to monitor their IP addresses and provide notifications on change. IP LanTracker provides both FTP and email SMTP with SSL for notifications. IP LanTracker also provides the ability to change the users IP address at preset time intervals via the router interface....
- Software downloads 2008-08-28
- CNC Code Shooter Mill and Lathe (exe)
- CNC G-code generator for cnc mills and lathes in one program, choose a processor file, add G-codes and M-codes as needed, combined mill and lathe into one program, added G76, G92, radius, rapid, new set up sheet, face, groove, new tool, turn, bore, mic over balls, set x, y, and...
- Software downloads 2008-08-28
- ViewBuild Decorator (exe)
- ViewBuild Virtual Decorator is our latest easy-to-use 3D virtual reality modelling solution. This software has been specifically designed as an entry level product to allow a basic drag-and-drop and point-and-click approach to computer modeling that will appeal to both professionals and home users alike. Virtual Decorator allows the user to...
- Software downloads 2008-08-28
- Kids NetLinks Adoption Edition (zip)
- Kids NetLinks Adoption Edition provides 20+ links to add to your your desktop, start menu or favorites. Add from 1 to all of them. Also update your home page to any of the links. Included is over 20 awesome child related wallpaper images to update your wallpaper with a click...
- Software downloads 2008-08-28
Neighboring Terms
Premier Vendor Content Whitepapers, webcasts & resources from our Power Center Sponsors
- Which solar technology will survive?
-
At the Cleantech Forum in San Francisco, Todd Glass of Heller Ehrman moderates a discussion, among tech execs, on the various solar technologies making a difference in the green movement.
- Watch the video >>
- Intel IT Data Center Efficiency Initiative - Going Green
-
"See how Intel is consolidating down to 8 global data center hubs through the use of consolidation, virtualization and standardization. The initiative is expected to save Intel $1.8B by project completion.
- See how Intel plans to save $1.8 billion >>
- BNET Industries
- Check out BNET's newest resource for managers and executives. Need to do research on your competitors? Don't have time to read every trade pub? BNET Industries is the new source for daily news, insights, and research on 11 major industries and 9,000 public companies.
-
- The technology industry from a different angle
-
- See what's hot in the auto industry
-
- Stay on top of the energy industry
