Home Audio

Vinyl records never were much use for music lovers on the go. Compact discs, on the other hand, are convenient and portable. Plus, CDs are not so easily scratched or damaged as their vinyl...

The sleekest home theaters tend to have most everything hidden from view. With the quantity of high-quality options for in-wall speakers, home theater owners not wishing to see the speakers have...

Multi-room audio is great when it comes to adding music to multiple rooms, without having stereo equipment everywhere. Installing speakers in multiple rooms calls for being able to control volume...

Building a subwoofer box involves engineering, cabinet design and acoustics. It is a demanding DIY project, but there's abundant help on the Internet to make the job easier. From enclosure...

Stereo still has a place in the surround-sound world. Of course, surround receivers play stereo as well as surround formats, but there may well be older equipment that still has legs. Adding an...

Many people who install in-wall speaker wire for their audio systems will terminate the wire at the wall with a switch plate or panel that has connectors you can use to plug into the speaker...

Radio has been around for decades yet it is still a mysterious technology for many people. The majority of the population still does not have a firm understanding as to how radios function, much...

You would think that with the switch to HDTV signals that the tried and true wire coat hanger antenna would become a thing of the past. Not so, Doyt Hoverman, an engineer developed a plan to...

A 5.1 receiver processes six audio signals to produce surround sound from a connected speaker package for home theater. The 5.1 refers to five speakers (front left, right and center, plus two rear...

Compact discs have a number of uses, from being a popular media for professionally recorded and packaged music to burning audio and data files from a personal computer. The digital data on these...

If you are experiencing cassette deck problems, there are solutions available. From maintenance to part replacement, you can keep your player in fine condition. Pinpoint the problem to find a...

CDs, also known as Compact Disks, only have one side of recordings on them. Unlike other media formats, such as vinyl records or cassette tapes, the music information is stored on one side of the...

Because microphones and speakers both function as electroacoustic transducers, you may use them interchangeably to an extent. Speakers are wired so that they do a better job sending audio out....

The vent area of a sub-woofer box is first determined by the size of the loudspeaker in (or to be used in) the box/enclosure. Finding those volume measurements is quite easy in the Internet age....

Disc jockeys use a disco mixer to alternate between connected audio components, such as two turntables, CD players or a combination of equipment. The volume on one device can be lowered with the...

5.1 surround sound provides you with a higher sound quality and a more realistic sound experience by controlling where the sounds are coming from. As SurroundAssociates.com explains, "5.1 is...

Your new 5.1 channel surround sound system looks intimidating; you brought it home, unpacked it, and now you've got a bunch of speakers, bundles of wires and a receiver that looks like it came out...

In the world of professional audio equipment, it can be difficult to distinguish exactly what some terms refer to. An extensive specialized vocabulary is widely used even in equipment made for...

Sony amplifiers can be part of a complete home theatre system in 5.1 surround sound, or simply part of a hi-fi system. The more components you add to the setup, the more potential problems you can...

Podcasts have made it possible to archive terrestrial and online radio programming so that you can listen to your favorite shows on the go and even create audio programming of your own. If you...

The cassette tape was introduced by the Philips Company in 1963. By 1968, cassette tapes had turned into a $150 million industry. The popularity of cassette tapes only increased with the...

Recording digital radio is fairly simple, as long as you've got the right hardware and software. In addition to an HD radio receiver, you'll need a digital recording device (like a PC or digital...

A digital converter box processes television signals into an analog format for viewing on older TV sets. When the box is connected to an audio-video receiver hooked up with surround sound...

You can hook up surround sound to show a subwoofer by connecting the speaker correctly to your home theater receiver. A subwoofer is typically used with a home theater system for the bass from an...

A powered subwoofer produces deep bass for a lively home theater experience, bringing realism to action movies and music. The fun of having a subwoofer comes from the rumbling, low-frequency audio...

Casio is known for its electronic devices, including many lines of music keyboards. Like any other piece of electronic equipment, the Casios occasionally experience operational hiccups and need to...

Broadcasters and music professionals that have been around since the early 1990s remember the good old days of recording music onto reel-to-reel analog tape. While today most audio recording is...

Most CD players come as-is, and once a newer version is available, you cannot upgrade any of the hardware or firmware on the music player. However, newer CD players will allow you to upgrade the...

The hundreds of types of CD players on the market include players with cabinets meant to be placed somewhere and left there, and portable CD players meant to be carried with you. Dozens of...

Digital coax and optical audio (Toslink) cables transfer digital audio from any source to a receiver or amplifier. Each supports multi-channel audio over a single cable. The question of which is...

The Bose Wave Music System plays music from your CDs or MP3s. Although the home audio system is relatively compact, the quality of sound it produces has been recognized as excellent by electronic...

Connecting a 200-watt audio amplifier to a PC enables the user to enjoy audio content on the computer through a set of stereo speakers. Whether the goal is to enjoy CDs played on the computer's...

Learning the primary types of audio jacks can help you choose which cables will be needed to install audio equipment. Audio components use a variety of plug styles depending on their purpose....

The Spider III 30 guitar amplifier is used for portable or home playing. Manufactured by Line 6, this 30-watt amp is packed with features that can produce a variety of effects and sounds. That...

When you build a home theater, you create a cinema experience in the comfort of your own home. While you may have to give up movie trailers, theater popcorn and sharing your armrest with a...

Commercial keyboard stands for your electric keyboard are expensive and usually have a utilitarian appearance. You can make your own keyboard stand to create one that's less expensive, more...

A computer subwoofer produces deep, low-frequency bass for a more realistic audio experience, whether watching movies or Web content or playing games. Computer subs are self-powered with their own...

Bose speakers are renowned for high-quality audio and also for the proprietary connection on the end of each cable permanently attached to the speakers. The connection is designed for a simple...

So you want to know how to bridge two or more home theater receivers. Whether you're just looking for some extra power for your music or movies or you want to connect receivers in different rooms,...

Virtually all subwoofers are equipped with standard RCA-type input jacks for connecting with an amplifier or AV receiver, whether for home theater or vehicle use. The cable plug inserts in the...

You can power on a stereo with a timer by using an outlet timer that you can program to power on the stereo at any time of the day. Using a timer with a stereo is a good way to make your house...

Many models of audio-video receivers for home theater are equipped with USB ports for connecting other devices, such as an iPod, a MP3 docking station or an external USB hard drive. The port...

So you've got all the parts you need for a home theater sitting in your house, but they aren't hooked up yet. Home theater systems can be intimidating; a bunch of speakers and a receiver that all...

RCA jacks are the standard connectors used with non-professional amplifiers and audio components. Speaker wire consists of raw copper wire with bare lead ends that can be inserted into retention...

HDMI is a bidirectional connection, meaning that proper operation requires communication between the sending component (Blu-ray player for example) and display. Without this connection, the...

Conventional means of amplification and recording require sound to be converted into electrical signals. Different microphones operate on different principles to achieve this conversion. The...

Overhang on a record turntable such as a Denon refers to the distance the stylus (needle) on the end of the cartridge extends in front of the tip of the tonearm for the most accurate tracking in...

Talking alarm clocks allow users to interact with them vocally. This means they announce the time and in some cases take verbal commands. Talking clocks were primarily designed for the visually...

Quiet surrounds, unresponsive subwoofers and disappearing digital inputs are all common issues to home-theater veterans. Fortunately, these issues are rarely indicators of hardware failure. The...