Title -- Copyright -- About the Author -- Dedication -- Acknowledgments -- Contents -- Introduction -- What You'll Find in This Book -- Who This Book is For -- How This Book is Organized -- 1 The Home Theater Difference -- Moving Up to Home Theater -- Movie Theater Sound in Your Home -- One Step at a Time -- More Than Just Movies -- Leverage What You Already Own -- Establishing and Sticking to a Budget -- Home Theater Components -- The Receiver-the Center of Your Home Theater -- Let Your Speakers Do the Talking -- Digital Picture and Sound -- Setting Up Your System -- Making the Most of Your System -- Enjoying the End Result -- 2 Surround Sound Formats -- Choosing a Surround Sound Format -- Dolby Pro Logic -- Dolby Digital -- DTS -- Dolby Pro Logic II -- 6.1 and 7.1 Channel Formats -- Audio Formats -- CD Audio -- DVD-Audio Soundtracks -- Super Audio Compact Disc -- What is THX? -- The Choice is Yours -- 3 Home Theater Audio Components -- Home Theater Receivers -- How Powerful is Your Receiver? -- Features and Inputs -- Home Theater Speakers -- Matching Your Speakers -- Speaker Types -- Floor-Standing Speakers -- Bookshelf Speakers -- Dipolar and Bipolar Speakers -- In-Wall Speakers -- Speaker Features -- Bi-amping/Bi-wiring -- Sensitivity Rating -- Frequency Response -- Flatness, Imaging, and Dispersion -- Connections -- Powered Subwoofers -- Home Theater in a Box Solutions -- Separates -- Remote Controls -- 4 Home Theater Video Components -- Televisions and Projectors -- CRT Tube-Based Televisions -- Rear Projection Television Sets -- Front Projection Displays -- Plasma Displays -- High Definition Television -- DVD Players -- Composite Video -- S-Video -- Component Video -- Personal Video Recorders -- Video Cassette Recorders -- 5 Setting a Budget -- How Much Do You Have to Spend? -- What Components Do You Already Own? -- Your TV.

Your VCR, DVD Player, or Laserdisc Player -- Your Speakers -- Establish Your Priorities -- My Ideal Budget Home Theater System -- Don't Forget the Extras -- Speaker Wire and Interconnect Cables -- Speaker Stands -- Entertainment Centers -- Calibration Hardware and Software -- Universal Remote Controls -- Demo Material -- 6 Selecting the Right Equipment -- Selecting a Television Set -- Choosing the Right Display Technology -- Features to Look For -- Selecting the Right DVD Player -- Selecting the Right Receiver -- Amplification and Features -- Inputs and Video Switching -- Selecting the Right Speakers -- Sensitivity, Resistance, and Power -- Frequency Range -- Connections -- Matching Speakers -- Speaker Components -- Tweeters -- Woofers -- Selecting the Right Powered Subwoofer -- 7 Shopping for Your System -- Local Merchants -- Advantages of Buying Locally -- Disadvantages of Buying Locally -- Internet Retailers -- Advantages of Internet Shopping -- Direct to the Consumer Manufacturers -- Disadvantages of Internet Shopping -- Shopping for Components -- Advantages of Buying Same Brand Components -- Disadvantages of Buying Same Brand Components -- Closeout Items -- Refurbished Items -- Auctions -- Used Components -- Things to Remember When Shopping -- 8 Connecting All the Components -- Cables -- Video Cables -- Coaxial Cables -- Composite Cables -- S-Video Cables -- Component Cables -- Audio Cables -- Analog Stereo Cables -- Digital Audio Cables -- Speaker Cable -- Making the Connections -- Creating a Wiring Diagram -- Hooking Up Each Device -- Connecting the DVD Player -- Connecting the VCR -- Connecting the Receiver -- Connecting the Satellite Receiver -- Controlling the System -- 9 Getting the Most Out of Your Home Theater -- Optimal Home Theater Environments -- Calibrating Your Home Theater System -- Tools of the Trade -- The Decibel Meter.

The Calibration Disc -- Performing the Calibrations -- Calibrating Your Video Monitor -- Adjusting the Brightness Level -- Adjusting the Contrast Level -- Adjusting the Color Settings -- Adjusting the Tint Settings -- Adjusting Scan Velocity Modulation Settings -- Adjusting Rear Projection Specific Settings -- Calibrating Your Audio System -- Positioning the Speakers -- Determining Setup Problems -- Understanding Reference Level -- Professional Calibrations -- 10 Using Your System -- Setting Your Remote to Control the Entire System -- Programming Your Remote to Use Preprogrammed Codes -- Using Your Remote's Learning Ability -- Programming Macros to Perform Common Tasks -- Understanding Discrete Codes -- Using Your Receiver's Video-Switching Capability -- Managing Your Cables -- Selecting the Right Audio Format -- 11 The Upgrade Path -- How to Maximize Your Upgrade Dollars -- Identifying the Weakest Link -- Upgrading Your Home Theater Receiver -- Upgrading Your DVD Player -- Upgrading Your Television -- Upgrading Your Cables -- Upgrading Your Remote Control -- Upgrading Your Powered Subwoofer -- What to Do With Your Old Stuff -- Continuously Changing Technology -- Moving to a High-End System -- Separates -- High-End Receivers -- Front Projection -- Appendix A Web Yellow Pages of Useful Home Theater Sites -- Product Review Sites -- CheapHomeTheater.com -- Keohi HDTV -- Remote Central -- Forums -- AVS Forum -- Digital Theater Forum -- Home Theater Forum -- Manufacturers -- Aperion Audio -- Atlantic Technology -- Axiom Audio -- Denon -- Home Theater Direct -- HSU Research -- Kenwood -- Klipsch -- nOrh -- Onkyo -- Outlaw Audio -- Sony -- SV Subwoofers -- Yamaha -- Online Retailers -- Crutchfield -- J&R -- OneCall -- Appendix B Real World Home Theater Examples -- Video-Oriented Home Theater Systems -- Simple but Striking -- A Bigger Budget System.

Solarc Inc.'s Home Theater -- Audio-Oriented Home Theater Systems -- Great Sound, Great Looks -- Home Theater System in an Apartment -- Appendix C Glossary -- A -- AC-3 -- A/V -- Amplifier -- Anamorphic Wide-screen -- Aspect Ratio -- Audiophile -- Average Picture Level (APL) -- B -- Banana Plug -- Bass Extension -- Big Screen -- Bipolar Speaker -- Bi-amping -- Bi-wiring -- Binding Posts -- Bookshelf Speaker -- Brightness -- Burn In -- C -- Calibration Disc -- Center Channel -- Clipping -- Coaxial Cable -- Component Video -- Composite Video -- Contrast -- Convergence -- Crossover -- CRT Tube-based Television -- D -- Decibel Meter -- Digital Input -- Digital Light Processing (DLP) -- Digital Signal Processing -- Digital Television (DTV) -- Dipolar Speaker -- Direct Broadcast Satellite (DBS) -- Direct Radiating -- Direct to the Consumer (DTC) -- Direct View -- Discrete -- Dispersion -- Dolby Digital -- Dolby Digital EX -- Dolby Pro Logic (DPL) -- Dolby Pro Logic II (DPL II) -- Driver -- DTS -- DTS ES -- Digital Versatile Disc (DVD) -- DVD-Audio -- E -- Efficiency -- F -- Flat Response -- Frequency Range -- Frequency Response -- Front Projection Display -- H -- High Definition Television (HDTV) -- Home Theater or Home Theater System -- I -- Imaging -- Imaging Science Foundation (ISF) -- Interconnect -- Interlaced Scan -- L -- Laserdisc -- Learning Ability -- Letterbox -- Lossless Compression -- Lossy Compression -- Low Frequency Effect (LFE) -- Lumens -- M -- Macro Commands -- Manufacturers Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) -- Mono or Monaural -- Monopole -- MP3 -- P -- Pan and Scan -- Passive Subwoofer -- Personal Television Recorder (PTV) -- Phase -- Plasma Television Sets -- Ported Enclosure -- Power -- Preamp or Preamplifier -- Preprogrammed Codes -- Progressive Scan -- R -- RCA Cable or RCA Connector -- Rear Projection Television (RPTV).

Receiver or Home Theater Receiver -- Red Push -- Reference Level -- Resistance -- Resolution -- S -- S-Video Connection -- Scan Velocity Modulation (SVM) -- SDTV -- Sealed Enclosure -- Sensitivity Rating -- Set Top Box (STB) -- Simulated Surround Sound -- Sound Pressure Level (SPL) -- Stereo -- Subwoofer -- Surround Sound -- T -- THX -- THX Certified -- Timbre Matching -- Time Shifting -- Torch Mode -- Toslink -- Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) -- Touch Screen -- Tower Speaker -- Treble -- Tweak -- Tweeter -- U -- Universal Remote Control -- Up Conversion -- V -- Video Cassette Recorder (VCR) -- Video Shielding -- Voice Matched -- W -- Wide-screen -- Woofer -- Index -- A -- B -- C -- D -- E -- F -- G -- H -- I -- J -- K -- L -- M -- N -- O -- P -- R -- S -- T -- U -- V -- W -- X -- Y.