Home Theater System Reviews

The Philips HTL5120 sound bar has a low profile and small footprint, with an integrated subwoofer and reasonable $250 list price.

2 expert reviews

The Definitive Technology SoloCinema XTR Sound Bar promises full surround out of three tweeters and six midrange drivers. The all aluminum enclosure, high quality drivers, and wireless sub have us intrigued as does the promise of support for lossless...

3 expert reviews

At $600, the Denon DHT-1513BA has a lot going for it. While it is a bare-bones receiver, it has discrete amplification (75watts x 5), 3D pass-through, GUI over HDMI, and multiple HDMI inputs.

2 expert reviews

4 expert reviews

As I've noted so many times in the recent past, soundbars are a viable step up from horrific built-in HDTV speakers, which have only gotten worse as flatpanel HDTVs have gotten flatter. Soundbars are especially suitable for people who don't like...

3 expert reviews

Vizio, how you've grown. When flatpanel HDTVs came along, you were among the first brands created especially to bring the new display technology to eager consumers. Now that butt-ugly direct-view and rear-pro sets are largely a bad memory, you're at...

3 expert reviews

Netgear's 3DHD Home Theater Wireless Networking kit features a 4x4 MIMO chipset from Quantenna

2 expert reviews

Once a year, I pack several Gucci suitcases with cash and FedEx them to the folks who develop licensed technologies for surround systems. Without these fine people, products would be festooned with fewer logos, toy critics like myself would have less...

2 expert reviews

Price: $2,500 At A Glance: Three-channel soundbar with coaxial drivers • Satellite surrounds, also with coaxial drivers • 10-inch wireless sub with distinctive round enclosure Slim Bar, Wireless Sub It goes without saying that the soundbar and...

2 expert reviews

Price: $1,100 At A Glance: Built-in keyhole brackets • Triple-voice-coil side-firing surround drivers • World's first seven-channel soundbar Seven Channels Plus When you hear that we can now add a seven-channel soundbar to the list of the many...

2 expert reviews

Why shouldn't respectability and innovation be on speaking terms? In loudspeakers, that's not as easy as it sounds. Much of the recent audio innovation in home theater has come in products that are designed to complement flat-panel TVs. These products...

3 expert reviews

To sum up, the VX100 model is designed for the home theatre and is built around flexibility that allows for a variety of home theatre setups. The customer or installer can fit an array of different combinations of optional input sets to suit the video...

2 expert reviews

Cooler Master's latest UCP series of high-end power supplies incorporate DC to DC converters and solid polymer caps to deliver clean power with high efficiency and low noise. Just what your new build may be looking for!

2 expert reviews

There’s no doubt you can find a similarly priced HTIB that will offer better 5.1-channel separation and localization, more inputs, and the option of upgrading the system at a later date. That’s not what the ZVOX 425 is about, and it will disappoint you...

2 expert reviews

There are two ways to look at compact home theater—a.k.a. in-a-box—systems. The dominant, mass-market HTIBs are a step down in cost and performance for those who are content to pay less and get less. If the system comes with fewer distracting bells and...

2 expert reviews

As consumer electronics technologies continue to morph into ever more complex forms, convergence is key. Elan Home Systems was founded in 1989 in Lexington, Kentucky, and convergence is their raison d'tre. In the past, they have brought together...

2 expert reviews

A more in-depth perspective of MythTV is provided in the following paragraphs and in additional articles in this series

2 expert reviews

One of the several local electronics stores within throwing distance from our studio is a chain called Fry's Electronics. It is a nerd's heaven, a kind of Best Buy, CompUSA, and a local computer repair shop all thrown in a Cuisinart. Every week, the...

2 expert reviews

The audio industry seems about to leap off a cliff. Permit me to suggest that this may be a rash decision. True, component audio sales have diminished, but that's no excuse for the industry to abandon its principles and give up on sound quality. What...

3 expert reviews

Discussions are fast and furious at the site. Looks like he's not the only one with an opinion on the matter.

2 expert reviews

CES 2005. Tired. Wet from the Las Vegas snowstorm. Hungover from the technology discussion the night before. Stuck in a hotel suite for a demo: yet another home theater audio system with no surround-channel speakers? Can't be any good. Wait, there's...

2 expert reviews

Hype aside, is it really possible to build a PC that is quiet and does everything that a high-end remote-controlled set-top box can do? And don't forget it's got to look good in your living room, too.

2 expert reviews

The M-Play 202 represents an easy-to-set-up way to enhance your multimedia PC experience, especially with Media Center Edition. Comprising a remote control and a display panel to manage your Windows-based music, video and photo applications, the system...

2 expert reviews

Following up on their return to the graphics card market, Diamond expands their product line to include "XtremeTV" tuner products. Can they ...

2 expert reviews

The iMON series from SoundGraph lets you equip any computer with a simple-to-use multimedia remote control. You can enjoy all of your PC's functionality from the comfort of your sofa.

2 expert reviews