Home Theater Hacks

Brett McLaughlin

  • 出版商: O'Reilly
  • 出版日期: 2004-12-14
  • 定價: $850
  • 售價: 2.3$199
  • 語言: 英文
  • 頁數: 416
  • 裝訂: Paperback
  • ISBN: 0596007043
  • ISBN-13: 9780596007041
  • 立即出貨 (庫存=1)

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Description:

It might be the long lines at the theater, the $4.00 for a small bag of popcorn, or the cutting-edge technology that's now so readily available to the home market. Whatever the reason, the home theater market today is booming like the soundtrack to Star Wars! Want proof? A Google search for home theater reveals over three million results. Yikes!

It's simply undeniable: More and more people prefer watching their favorite movies, television shows, and videos from the comfort of their own sofas and couches. What's also undeniable is the inexperience of most people who choose to install or upgrade their home theaters.

Until now, the knowledge, technique, and experiences of those who've encountered similar conditions to yours could only be accessed through laborious web searches, stacks of magazines, and water cooler conversations. Home Theater Hacks from O'Reilly is the perfect remedy for this group.

A smart collection of insider tips and tricks, Home Theater Hacks covers home theater installation from start to finish, purchase to experience. Just imagine: no frustrating trial and error process and better yet, no expensive appointments with installation experts. Home Theater Hacks prevents both by imparting down-and-dirty technique not found anywhere else.

The book begins with a quick glossary of terms so you can speak the lingo when you go shopping, and then dives right into hush-hush, insider tricks. It's all covered where to find the right audio and video components, how to deal with speakers and wiring, understanding cable connectivity, mastering remote controls, how to fully grasp TiVo, and so much more. And to top it off, each of these insider tips is presented in a concise yet delightfully entertaining style. Bringing the Jurassic Park dinosaurs into your living room has never been so easy!

A seasoned veteran with numerous O'Reilly titles under his belt, author Brett McLaughlin leaves no stone unturned in helping you customize your home theater experience to your own personal environment.

 

Table of Contents:

Credits  
Preface  
Chapter 1. Buying Gear 
       1. Master Theater-Speak  
       2. Audition Before You Buy  
       3. Buy from Chain Stores with Skepticism  
       4. Buy in Person from Electronics Boutiques  
       5. Shop Intelligently at eBay  
       6. Find High-End Equipment Online  
       7. Buy Cabinets for Your Gear  
       8. Plan Your Room D嶰or  
Chapter 2. Video Components 
       9. Get the Right TV  
       10. Your TV's First Steps  
       11. Move Your TV Safely  
       12. Fix Panasonic's Picture Glitch  
       13. Figure Out Aspect Ratios  
       14. Avoid Cheap Projectors  
       15. DVHS on a Budget  
       16. Cover Black Bars with Letterbox Mattes  
       17. Improve the Picture on Rear Projection TVs  
       18. Paint Your Theater a Neutral Color  
       19. Backlight Your TV  
       20. Add Metal Plating to Support a Center Speaker  
       21. Squeeze Your TV into Your Basement  
Chapter 3. Audio Components 
       22. Get the Right Receiver  
       23. Watts Are Meaningless Without Context  
       24. Amplify the Front Soundstage  
       25. The Mythical Burn-In Period  
       26. Use Gain Offset to Regulate Volume  
       27. Use Dynamic Range Compression to Regulate Volume  
Chapter 4. High Definition 
       28. Ensure You Can Get HD Programming  
       29. Get the Right Type of HD Set  
       30. Add a Set Top Box  
       31. Properly Size Your HD Image  
       32. Get the Right Antenna  
       33. Erect an OTA Antenna  
       34. Don't Use Portable Signal Strength Meters  
       35. Resolve Problems After Buying an HDTV  
Chapter 5. Speakers and Wiring 
       36. Organize Your A/V Racks  
       37. Get the Right Speakers for the Job  
       38. Select the Perfect Rear and Side Speakers  
       39. Little Speakers Can Create Big Problems  
       40. Add Bass Shakers to Feel the Lows  
       41. Lower the Resonant Frequency of Aura Bass Shakers  
       42. Use Subwoofers as a Poor Man's Bass Shaker  
       43. Convert In-Wall Speakers to In-Ceiling Speakers  
       44. Banana Plugs Trump Bare Wires  
       45. Use the Same Speaker Wire Lengths (Not!)  
       46. Use Thicker Wiring for Longer Runs  
       47. Bi-Wiring and Bi-Amping Speakers  
Chapter 6. Subwoofers 
       48. Learn Sub Talk  
       49. Choose the Right Subwoofer  
       50. Match the Sub to Your Room  
       51. Hook Up Your Subwoofer Correctly  
       52. Optimize Subwoofer Placement  
       53. Use Multiple Subwoofers  
       54. Remove Subwoofer Hum  
Chapter 7. Connectivity 
       55. Cable Basics  
       56. Watch Out for Entertainment Centers  
       57. Don't Be Swindled into Buying Overly Expensive Cables  
       58. Use Your Receiver for Video Switching  
       59. Understand Component Video Switching  
Chapter 8. Calibration 
       60. Choose the Right Seating Distance  
       61. Get the Best Calibration Tools  
       62. Choose the Right Calibration DVD  
       63. Calibrate Speakers with a Sound Meter  
       64. Set the Receiver's Reference Level  
       65. Avoid Using THX Optimizer  
       66. Avoid Using Internal Test Tones  
       67. Set Your Speakers to "Small" in Your Receiver Setup  
       68. Hack Your TV's Service Menu  
       69. Clean the Optics on RPTVs  
       70. Reduce Focus Problems on RPTVs  
       71. Reduce Lens Flare on RPTVs  
       72. Focus Your Front Projector  
       73. Don't Mess with Odd Screws  
       74. Annual Home Theater Tune-Up  
Chapter 9. Do It Yourself 
       75. Build Your Own Speaker Stands  
       76. Add Rollers and a Stand to Your TV  
       77. Construct a Screen for Projection  
       78. Mask Your Screen  
       79. Construct Speaker Cables Using CAT 5  
       80. Home-Grow Your Power Cables  
       81. Build a 16-Bay UHF Antenna  
       82. Ground Your Outdoor Antenna  
       83. Build a Lens Hood for Your RPTV  
Chapter 10. Remote Controls 
       84. Add a Programmable Remote  
       85. Program Your Remote with ProntoEdit  
       86. Create Custom Graphics for Color Remotes  
       87. Learn IR Codes the Smart Way  
       88. Work around Proprietary Remote Systems  
       89. Disable NetCommand for Faster Response  
Chapter 11. HTPC 
       90. Choose the Right Display Resolution for Analog-Input HDTVs  
       91. Add Custom Resolutions with PowerStrip  
       92. Adjust the Overscan on Your HDTV Display  
       93. Play Video Games in Custom Resolutions on HDTVs  
Chapter 12. TiVo 
       94. Must-Skim TV  
       95. Navigation Shortcuts  
       96. The 30-Second Commercial Skip  
       97. Streaming Internet Audio Broadcasts to TiVo  
       98. Signing Up for the Home Media Option  
       99. Remotely Scheduling a Recording  
       100. Moving Shows Between TiVo Units  
Index  

商品描述(中文翻譯)

描述:
可能是戲院排隊長、4美元一小包爆米花,或是現在家庭市場上隨處可見的尖端技術。不管原因是什麼,如今家庭影院市場正像《星際大戰》的配樂一樣蓬勃發展!想要證明嗎?在Google上搜索家庭影院,會出現超過三百萬個結果。天哪!
無可否認的是:越來越多的人喜歡在自己的沙發上觀看他們最喜愛的電影、電視節目和視頻。同樣無可否認的是,大多數選擇安裝或升級家庭影院的人缺乏經驗。
直到現在,那些遇到與你相似情況的人的知識、技巧和經驗只能通過繁瑣的網絡搜索、一堆雜誌和茶水間的對話來獲取。O'Reilly的《家庭影院秘訣》是這個群體的完美解決方案。
《家庭影院秘訣》是一本內幕技巧的智慧收集,從安裝到體驗,從購買到完成,全面涵蓋家庭影院安裝的方方面面。想象一下:不再煩人的試錯過程,更重要的是,不再需要昂貴的安裝專家。《家庭影院秘訣》通過傳授其他地方找不到的實用技巧來防止這兩種情況發生。
本書以快速詞彙表開始,讓您在購物時能夠談論行話,然後立即揭示內幕技巧。全書涵蓋了如何找到合適的音頻和視頻組件,如何處理揚聲器和布線,理解電纜連接,掌握遙控器,如何充分理解TiVo等等。更重要的是,每一個內幕技巧都以簡潔而有趣的方式呈現。將《侏羅紀公園》的恐龍帶進您的客廳從未如此輕鬆!
作為一位經驗豐富的老手,擁有多本O'Reilly出版的書籍,作者布雷特·麥克勞林在幫助您定制您的家庭影院體驗以適應您自己的環境方面毫不保留。

目錄:
致謝
前言
第1章 購買設備
1. 掌握影院術語
2. 購買前試聽
3. 懷疑連鎖店
4. 在專賣店親自購買
5. 在eBay上聰明購物
6. 在網上找到高端設備
7. 為您的設備購買櫃子
8. 計劃您的房間裝飾
第2章 視頻組件
9. 選擇合適的電視
10. 您的電視的第一步
11. 安全搬運您的電視
12. 修復松下的圖像故障
13. 理解寬高比
14. 避免廉價投影機
15. 以預算使用DVHS
16. 用信封帶遮蓋黑邊