home theater

Best Buy ‘Bonus’ Means You Pay One Penny More

Best Buy ‘Bonus’ Means You Pay One Penny More

If you purchase this 55″ Panasonic plasma screen TV from Best Buy, they’ll throw in a home theater system for only only $150. This is an impressive deal, considering that the list price for that package is…$149.99. [More]

Here's What Happens When You Trust A Big-Box Electronics Store

Here's What Happens When You Trust A Big-Box Electronics Store

Ben’s father is the kind of lucrative and delectable customer that big-box electronics store salespeople love. Or perhaps they just love their bank accounts. A few months ago, Ben writes, his dad walked into an Ultimate Electronics store knowing that he wanted to buy a 3D TV, and…not much else about what he was looking for. Ben knows enough about electronics to conclude that the local Ultimate store sold his father products that he didn’t need, then botched the installation. [More]

Build Your Own Home Theater

Build Your Own Home Theater

Hi-fi curious? PC Perspective has posted the second of 6-part series that walks you through every detail of setting up your own ideal home theater setup, from the planning to stage to source materials to speaker configuration. Future installments will cover setting up a home media server as well. And if you need help picking out the components, bro-site Consumer Reports has an interactive home theater system buying guide that can help. DIY! It’s more fun and if you know what you’re doing, can be cheaper as well.

Building a Home Theater [PC Perspective via HardOCP]

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Best Buy is streamlining its high end Magnolia Audio Video stores by closing down Magnolia HQ, disbanding all current Magnolia management positions, and closing 7 of the 13 stores. [TWICE] (Thanks to Klay and Eric!)

CNET Says Cheap HDMI Cables Just As Good As Pricey Ones

CNET Says Cheap HDMI Cables Just As Good As Pricey Ones

CNET has weighed in and agrees with what we’ve been telling you: cheap HDMI cables are just as good as pricey ones.

Do you really need to spend that much money on a single HDMI cable? Absolutely not–those cables are a rip-off. You should never pay more than $10 for a standard six-foot HDMI cable. And despite what salesmen and manufacturers might tell you, there’s no meaningful difference between the $10 cable and the $50 cable…The editors at CNET are so confident that cheap HDMI cables offer identical performance, we’ve been using inexpensive Monoprice HDMI cables in the CNET Home Theater Lab for more than a year with no issues.

They recommend buying from Monoprice.

Bank Of America Won't Let You Access Your Money

Bank Of America Won't Let You Access Your Money

Silly Bill. He thought Bank of America would let him spend $5,800 on a home theater system just because he had over $10,000 in the bank. He tried to charge the system to his Bank of America Visa Platinum Check Card but was declined. Confused, Bill called Bank of America customer support for an explanation and had the sort of conversation that makes you want to drive a fork through your ear.

Are High-End Sound Systems Worth The Price?

Are High-End Sound Systems Worth The Price?

Audiophiles claim that their fancy-schmancy sound systems serve up rich melodic delicacies that our crud-laden ears just don’t appreciate. Slate asked if their high-end systems were anything more than effete indulgences.

HOWTO: Remove Annoying Announcers From Sports

HOWTO: Remove Annoying Announcers From Sports

If you’re like us and you’re sick of listening to Joe Theismann overstate everything on Monday Night Football, this might be the tip for you. Joe seems like he’s just stepped out of the womb, doesn’t he? Every touchdown is a game winner to Joe. Anyway, here’s a feature you didn’t know you were getting when you sunk that cash into a 5.1 system.