This week at CEDIA 2008, THIEL Audio unveiled zöet, a plug and play, multi-room, premium home theater system that anyone can set up and use in under an hour. Perfect for the non-technical but discerning consumer, zöet self-powered IP-addressable speakers can be located throughout the home and connected to the zöet dB1 distribution processor using existing in-home Ethernet, its own lossless proprietary wireless network, or both.

zöet requires no drilling and the entire system can be operated from a simple and intuitive remote control, eliminating the need for a specialist to get the system up and running. You can make changes and upgrades yourself via a web interface as well as automatic firmware updates, making visits by experts a thing of the past.  read more »

You've got your new large-screen HDTV set up, and you have plenty of your favorite DVDs waiting to be viewed. Now all you need is the right sound. When you sit down to watch a movie -- or live music concert -- in your own home theater, you want to feel as though you're in a real movie theater. The audio is just as important as the picture quality, which means you should take great care in shopping for the right receiver and speaker pieces. As you shop for audio components for your home theater, first check out "HDTV – A beginner's guide." Then, consider the following points:

The AV receiver
Most average home theater users don’t need to buy separate tuners and amplifiers for the different channels. The easiest and perhaps most cost-effective way to get several pieces all in one package is to go with an audio/video receiver, which lets you plug in most, if not all, of the pieces in your system, including your television.  read more »

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Sonos Improvements Announced
New equipment ebbs and flows into a reviewer’s hands with such frequency that I have rarely purchased any such products—always expecting that a better device is just around the corner. The whole-house wireless music system developed by Sonos is one of those rare exceptions; after testing the product I actually bought a system with my own hard-earned money. I can truthfully tell you that when it comes to distributed audio throughout the house, Sonos is the best.

For those of you unfamiliar with Sonos, it is a simple, yet sophisticated and relatively inexpensive family of products designed to wirelessly broadcast your music throughout your home. It is so simple and easy to use that the complete installation of a Sonos system can be finished in less than an hour. Using an elegant, iPod-like wireless remote you have complete control over the music you want to hear and the rooms in which it will be played.  read more »

Incorporating home theater systems into an existing space can be tricky for many consumers. With technology constantly updating and design elements always changing, it can be difficult to purchase the right home theater for an existing room.

As the “LG Techorator,” Doug Wilson is helping consumers understand how to integrate design and technology in their homes. “Techorating” is the concept of combining technology and interior design so that a “techorated” room works together as one, unified space.

According to Doug, individuals often don’t take sound into consideration when upgrading a room with new technology. When consumers invest money in a home theater system, they should ensure they are getting a great sound experience.  read more »