Home Theater For Dummies [Paperback]

Danny Briere (Author), Pat Hurley (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0470411899 | ISBN-13: 978-0470411896 | Publication Date: November 17, 2008 | Edition: 3

Overwhelmed with big screen TV and home theater audio options? What do you need to build the perfect home theater experience? Home Theater For Dummies, 3rd Edition shows you how to plan a home theater system and choose components that fit your budget and your room.

Beginning with the most basic information, this guide helps you choose what you need and put it all together. It explains DLP, 3LCD, HDMI, DTV, and HDTV so you can talk intelligently with salespeople at the electronics store. You’ll find out about Blu-ray, explore HD and satellite radio options, and see how to incorporate a Wii, Xbox, or Playstation 3 into your set-up. Learn to:

• Choose among plasma, LCD, and projection TVs
• Know the difference between digital TV and HDTV
• Assess and choose an LCD TV, a new 3D TV, or an HD radio
• Set up your audio system and TV for maximum performance
• Use a Media Center or Home Theater PC
• Fine-tune your system and add cool touches such as accessing home theater content from your cell phone
• Explore HD and satellite radio options, CD players, DVD-Audio disks, and options for old cassettes and vinyl
• Set up your system with the proper cables for each component, or learn what it takes to go wireless
• Calibrate your video with a calibration disk, an optical comparator, or a DVD containing THX Optimizer

Get the perfect home theater experience by following the expert tips and techniques presented in Home Theater For Dummies, 3rd Edition. You’ll be watching movies and listening to audio in no time!

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...exhaustive and uncomplicated..." (Camcorder User, August 2003)

"...clear and concise...a good read throughout..." (DVD Monthly, July 2003)

"...superb at demystifying the murky and often bewildering world of home cinema...written in plain English...worth the investment..." (Hi Fi Choice, July 2003) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Back Cover

What do you need for the perfect home theater experience? You need this book!

Overwhelmed with options? Annoyed by acronyms? Take charge with this friendly, easy-to-understand guide! It begins with the most basic information, helps you choose what you need and put it all together, and finally takes you through fine-tuning your system and cool touches such as accessing home theater content from your cell phone.

• Just for you — learn how to plan a home theater system and choose components that fit your budget, your lifestyle, and your room

• Alphabet soup — actually understand DLP, 3LCD, HDMI, DTV, and HDTV, and be able to talk intelligently with salespeople at the electronics store

• Game time — incorporate a Wii, Xbox 360, or PS3 into your setup

• Don't be Blu — know about Blu-ray, why the VCR isn't quite dead yet, and the amazing abilities of the PVR

• Sounds you like — explore HD and satellite radio options, CD players, DVD-Audio disks, and options for old cassettes and vinyl

• Be the cable guy — set up your system with the proper cables for each component, or learn what it takes to go wireless

• Tuning up — calibrate your video with a calibration disk, an optical comparator, or a DVD containing THX Optimizer

Open the book and find:

• The ABCs of home theater audio

• What the DTV transition is all about

• How to use a Media Center or Home Theater PC

• An update on MP3/digital music files

• What you want in speakers

• How to consolidate all those remotes

• Tips for taking home theater wherever you go

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 408 pages
• Publisher: For Dummies; 3 edition (November 17, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470411899
• ISBN-13: 978-0470411896
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #260,578 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

181 of 186 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't let the title fool you, this is a great book, June 16, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Home Theater For Dummies (Paperback)

I went out and got Home Theater for Everyone (Harley), Build Your Home Theater in a Weekend (Bruyn/Karabian), The Complete Idiot's Guide to Home Theater Systems (Miller), Use Your PC to Build An Incredible Home Theater System (Farkas and Govier), and Home Theater for Dummies (Briere and Hurley). (I've posted this review in each of the books).

There's a clear difference among these books, and approaches. In order, I would get these books:

1. (tie) Home Theater for Everyone; Home Theater for Dummies. This surprised me. I've heard a lot about Harley's book and it is great. It's getting dated though, and some stuff was simply way over my head for what I'm going to do with my home theater. But it's one of those books you have to read even if you don't understand a lot of it (and mind you, I've got seven computers in my house, a 100Meg LAN, multiple wireless systems, etc...I'm not scared of technical stuff.) It's not so much not understanding it, as much as it is that a lot of it while important to a magazine editor such as Harley, it's not something that you're going to use in putting in your home theater.

Home Theater for Dummies surprised me. I must say, I found it incredibly well researched, practical, and more homey and less academic than Harley's book. I think the title would keep a lot of the HT mags from reviewing it, thinking it beneath them. And the authors clearly know how to have fun (they have sections on how to create your own drive-in and another on bathroom theater.) They cover home theater PCs and Windows XP Media Center PCs, as well as wireless projectors -- so this is truly up to day at publication time because these are relatively new things. (Harley's book does not even mention HTPCs and gives relatively small coverage to personal video recorders (PVRs) which HT for Dummies covers well. I'd say just get this book, but no one would believe me.

3. User Your PC To Build An Incredible Home Theater System. This is a niche book for the techies that like to build their own PCs. Sort of like me :-) I found it knowledgeable and fun, but like I said, you would not buy this book to build a home theater.

4. The Complete Idiots Guide to Home Theater Systems. I liked this book's coverage of budgets and little facts in the book. However there was nothing on HTPCs, the pricing is already dated, and there was nothing in it not covered in Home Theater for Dummies. So if I have to choose between being a Dummy or an Idiot, I'd say I'm a Dummy.

5. Build Your Home Theater In A Weekend. This was basically a waste of money. It was a nice effort, but outclassed by the competition above. It's not worth a longer review.

If you are looking to put a home theater in your home, I'd recommend Harley and Briere/Hurley. Briere/Hurley also wrote Smart Homes for Dummies which they referenced in the HT book -- I'm getting that now, because it basically tells me how to extend my home theater all over the house. Since I spent a lot of money on my home theater, I'm betting, based on HT4Dummies, that their book is worth the $$$.

My two cents.

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Must read for newbie, June 8, 2005

By 

Donald Frambach (Ventura, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Home Theater For Dummies (Paperback)

Three months ago, my wife suggested that we upgrade our 15 year old TV to a "home entertainment center". So off we go to the local store to look at options. Spoke to a couple of salesmen who were worse than useless. In frustration, I bought this book. After a quick and pleasant read, I felt that I had a reasonable understanding of the options one has when setting up a "home entertainment center." We now have a v-e-r-y nice component system that is a breeze to use.
It isn't difficult to specify and install a system. However, now that I've done it, I realize that most people make a number of unneccesary mistakes. If you know all about this stuff then don't buy the book. However, if you have questions like I did then buy the book and you'll find that you'll end up with a system far superior to the ones owned by most "know it alls".

26 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great for novices, February 2, 2004

By 

Iron John - See all my reviews

This review is from: Home Theater For Dummies (Paperback)

Wish I'd bought this when I first started researching home theaters. I was a novice, having purchased only a couple of 27" analog sets in the past 15 years. Rather than starting with a book like this, I researched mine the time consuming way: talking to knowledgable friends; wasting time with sales droids at electronic stores, reading home theater magazines. About two months later things reached critical mass and I could finally make an informed decision.

My advice: buy this book, read it, and afterwards *still* do what I did. Only save the sales droids for last (by then you'll know more than they do), and look but don't buy. Then go home and buy what you want at Amazon.