Home theater

If you bought your TV within the past few years, and you live anywhere close to a city, chances are you can get better HDTV than you've ever seen, for free.

The key, of course, is you need one little thing that you probably already have.… Read more

I remember the sound of the very first Zvox sound bar, the 325, for one really good reason: it sounded amazing. Zvox still sells it for just $249. The "secret" to the Zvox sound isn't radical new technology or wildly innovative design; no, Zvox speakers are just a lot bigger than most of the competition's sound bars. The 325 is 17 inches wide, 16 inches deep and 4.8 inches high. Yes, folks, when it comes to sound quality, size is a biggie. Zvox speakers always sounded great, but were light on features, the new models … Read more

I view the rising popularity of sound bar speakers as proof positive that more and more people are rejecting the notion of deploying five or more speakers in their home theaters. It's not just the number of speakers, people are also not thrilled by the idea of running wires to the far corners of their home theaters. Truly "wireless" surround speakers are a recurring fantasy, but I've yet to see a wireless surround speaker that doesn't have at least one wire; most have two (one for signal, one for power), which as far as I … Read more

High-end audio shows are a great way to see and hear the very best gear. I'm getting good feedback about the goings-on at T.H.E. Show: Newport being held this weekend at the Hilton Hotel at the Orange County Airport in California.

There are oodles of outrageously priced, groovy turntables; gorgeous amplifiers; and statuesque speakers on display; and lots of great music to buy. More than 100 high-end audio companies will be demonstrating their best products in rooms throughout the hotel.

T.H.E. Show: Newport is also presenting a series of seminars on computer audio; tips on … Read more

It's possible that you've been so consumed by L.A. Noire or MLB 11: The Show that you haven't realize that your PS3 can do more than just play games. With a few tweaks to your settings, and some software set up on your computer, you can stream music, videos, and photos from your computer(s) to your PS3 over your home network. Here's how:

Set up your PS3 Step 1: Make sure your PS3 is connected to the same network (via Ethernet or wireless) as your computer. You can check your connection by going to … Read more

The Wharfedale Diamond 10.1 is easily the best speaker I've heard for $350 per pair. Wharfedale started making loudspeakers in 1932, which makes it the second-oldest still-surviving speaker manufacturer in the world (Tannoy is the oldest). The entry-level Diamond Series speakers debuted some 49 years later; the Diamond 10.1 we're reviewing today is from the latest incarnation of the line.

Wharfedale not only designs and builds all of its own woofers and tweeters in-house, it also designs and manufactures nearly every part of its speakers, including the crossover networks' resistors and capacitors. Even the bolts that … Read more

Jolida may not be the most recognizable name in consumer electronics, but the little company has been selling overachieving budget-priced audiophile tube gear in the U.S. since 1992. I have a few friends using Jolida gear, and they're all enthusiastic supporters of the brand. I reviewed the Jolida FX10 all-tube amp late last year.

The Jolida JD301RC ($425) is a 30-watt-per-channel integrated stereo amplifier. It's a "hybrid" design that uses a pair of vacuum tubes (12AX7) in its preamplifier section, and National Semiconductor MOSFET transistors in its power amp stage. The JD301RC has four line-level … Read more

If you are a Sony PlayStation Network (PSN) customer you are probably getting a little paranoid. First there was the data breach from last month that exposed customer data and forced Sony to take the network down.

And now, just days after Sony got the service back up and running, it has taken the PSN password reset service offline because it was allowing people to change other customers' passwords if they knew their e-mail address and birth date--information that was stolen in the attack.

Sony says the hole in the PSN password reset site was not exploited in active attacks, … Read more

Magico, based in Berkeley, Calif., has established itself as a major American high-end speaker manufacturer in just a few years. The company builds state-of-the-art speakers with truly innovative technology. I've listened to a lot of large and not-so-large Magico speakers over the years, and was never less than astonished by their sound. The company is just now introducing its smallest speaker ever, the Q1 ($24,950 per pair). The Q1's cabinet is an extensively braced-aluminum-and-copper design.

It's a small monitor speaker, but it's sold with an integrated stand. Mounted on the stand, the Q1 measures 44 … Read more