PHOTOS BY SCOTT JACOBSON, LARRY OKREND AND MIKE BERGER AND COURTESY MANUFACTURERS

You've decided to embrace the latest home theater technology. You can't wait to experience movies in breathtaking surround sound, watch your favorite TV shows in high definition and listen to your CDs in every room of the house (not to mention sparking the envy of your friends as they admire your state-of-the-art entertainment setup).

But as you look around your house, the prospect of cutting into walls, fishing wires through the attic and organizing all of the necessary components leaves you in a cold sweat. Never fear - with the right gear and a few pointers, you'll find that the process is not as daunting as it appears, and both your ears and your eyes will appreciate the results.

Surround yourself with sound
Whether your passion is music or movies, the heart of any home entertainment system is the receiver. Capable of accepting signals from many devices, a receiver not only picks up radio broadcasts and sends the sound to speakers but also decodes embedded information such as the Dolby Digital Surround signals that make a home theater come alive.

At the rear of the receiver, you'll find an array of ports into which you plug system components such as tape decks, CD and DVD players and digital satellite radio receivers (such as those from XM Radio). These satellite systems offer more than 150 commercial-free digital channels that cover listening choices from 24-hour news to comedy, music and talk radio. But what's truly innovative about the service and its related devices is that one receiver can be used both in your home and in your automobile.

Thanks to adapter kits, portable receivers such as the Delphi XMSkyfi2 can be plugged directly into a home entertainment system as easily as it can interface with an automobile stereo. For your home, it's a simple matter of plugging the stereo cables into an open port on the receiver and mounting the antenna or you'll use what's referred to as FM modulation, where the satellite receiver uses a blank FM frequency to broadcast its signals directly into the car stereo.

Once you've chosen a receiver, you'll need to hook up a set of speakers. With the advent of home theater surround sound, which requires multiple speakers strategically placed around the room, the bulky speakers of the past have become impractical for most installations because they can't be properly positioned. To get true lifelike sound from a home theater, you'll need to install either on-wall or in-wall speakers.

On-wall (or ceiling) speakers can be easily mounted with kits available at most home electronics stores. The mounts usually include swivels that let you aim the speakers so that they deliver the best sound possible to the TV viewing area. For a typical installation, you can use drywall anchors to secure the speaker mounts to the walls and then attach the speakers to the mounts.

In-wall speakers require a bit more work to install, but they are less obtrusive in your decor. You'll need to cut holes in the drywall, run speaker wire and possibly solder a few connections (see photos, opposite), but the result will be a speaker system that's positioned to provide the best response while taking up the least space. (For more information on how to position home theater speakers, check out Bose's Online Learning Center).

If your goal is to have music available in every room of the house, it may not be practical to run the necessary hundreds of feet of speaker wire. Though wire-management devices can help hide cables, a wireless system may be a better solution.

Wireless entertainment systems let you pipe music into almost any room that has a wall receptacle. Usually consisting of a transmitter and a series of receivers (one for each room in which you want music), a wireless system typically operates by radio frequency. The transmitter and receivers communicate via the radio frequency and automatically establish the radio link that allows the stereo system to broadcast music to each of the intended rooms. All you do is plug the units into the wall receptacles.

But why limit yourself to listening to music only while indoors? Exterior speakers can lend a simple deck or patio the ambience of an outdoor living room, and they're no more difficult to hook up than indoor speakers.

Choose a speaker location that's somewhat sheltered from the elements, and use speaker cable that's rated for outdoor use. When hooking up speaker cables to the receiver, place them on a separate channel so you can shut them off when they're not needed. If your receiver doesn't have separate channels, you may need to purchase a signal splitter from an electronics store.

See clearly now
Your ears are only half of the equation when it comes to home entertainment options. Technology such as high-definition television (HDTV) and LCD screens are raising visual clarity to new heights. Although broadcast television offers limited HDTV programming, most cable and satellite providers offer many high-definition channels for customers willing to pay a premium. (For more information on how HDTV functions, check out Sony's online HDTV resource center.)

When hooking up a high-definition television, the correct cables are essential to achieving the best resolution. Never use a coaxial cable to hook up a DVD player or satellite receiver to a HDTV unit. Instead, use component video cables. (Some older DVD players and televisions do not have component video jacks, but most new units do.)

Component video consists of three signals carried by three separate cables. The first is the luminance signal, which transmits information about brightness or black and white; it is referred to as the "Y" component. The second and third signals are called "color difference" signals; they indicate how much blue and red are present relative to luminance. The blue component is referred to as "B-Y" and the red component is "R-Y." (Green doesn't need to be transmitted as a separate signal because it can be inferred from the Y, B-Y, R-Y combination.)

If your video equipment does not have component video jacks, it may support what's referred to as "S-video." An S-video cable carries two separate signals, one for luminance (Y) and one for chrominance or color (C). Keeping luminance and chrominance information separated on two wires prevents most of the signal degradation that is inherent in coaxial connections, and the resulting images are substantially sharper (though not as sharp as with a component connection).

In addition to making the proper video connections, you'll need to take a careful look at lighting. Too much ambient light in the room can cause glare on the TV screen and detract from the image. On the other hand, if the room is too dark, the high contrast of the screen may strain your eyes.

Ideally, a home theater should have soft ambient lighting controlled by a dimmer switch. If you primarily rely on floor lamps, buy external dimmers that plug into wall receptacles. For ceiling-mounted lights, replace the standard wall switch with an in-wall dimmer. You may even want to consider installing simple recessed lights outfitted with eyeball fixtures that can be focused away from the screen. Most recessed lights are available as retrofit units that simply require you to cut either a 4- or 6-in.-dia. hole in the ceiling.

Save your sanity
After you've hooked up the components, it's time to take command. If you rely on separate remote controls, switching from one device to another can be a hassle. "People buying a high-definition television today are likely to be frustrated by all the adjustments they have to make every time they simply want to switch from watching a TV program to watching a DVD," says Bryan McLeod, vice president of Logitech's remote control division. To avoid headaches, he recommends using a universal remote control (photo, right) that can operate any component with an infrared (IR) receiver, allowing you to switch functions with the push of a button.

However, many home theater systems hide components behind cabinet doors that can interfere with IR signals. If you want to be able to keep the entertainment center doors closed while using the system, you can install a repeater such as the Micro Link Kit available from Rockler (photo, left). The kit consists of a sensor that mounts in the front wall of the entertainment center and emitters that adhere to the IR sensor windows of individual components. Installation involves simply drilling a small hole in the entertainment cabinet for the sensing eye.

Even more advanced technology is on the horizon. For example, wireless communications systems such as WiFi (a trade term created by the Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance) and BlueTooth (a technology that enables data connections between devices such as desktop computers, wireless phones and electronic organizers) can allow homeowners to control all aspects of their systems, from movies to music to Internet downloading, with a home computer. There are even whole-house systems that use a home computer to integrate security, lighting, motorized window shades and all major appliances for direct control right from your couch. Although these systems may be cost-prohibitive for the average homeowner now, in a few years they will become more common.

As with any new technology, installation is a minor challenge - the real feat is wading through the sea of available options without becoming overwhelmed. After all, you don't want to overspend on a system that's so complicated you won't be able to enjoy it. But with a little research and careful consideration of your family's preferences, you can avoid overbuying and create an entertainment system that enhances your entire home.


STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS

INSTALLING A SATELLITE RADIO RECEIVER
 
Step 1: To hook up a satellite radio in your home, simply plug the unit’s RCA stereo cables into an unused port at the back of the receiver.
 
Step 2: To install a satellite radio in a car, plug the unit into a power outlet and tune the radio to an unused FM channel.

IN-WALL SPEAKER INSTALLATION

Step 1: To install in-wall speakers, start by cutting a hole to the dimensions indicated on the speakers’ installation template.

Step 2: Fish speaker wire through the wall from hole to hole. If necessary, use a soldering iron to attach the speaker wires to the backs of the wire plates.

Step 3: Insert the speakers into the hole and tighten the mounting screws. Some speakers (such as these from Bose) can be painted to match the wall.
 
Step 4: A dimmer for ceiling lamps offers optimal control over ambient light and helps eliminate glare on the TV screen.
 
Step 5: Recessed lighting outfitted with eyeball fixtures allows you to aim lights where they won’t interfere with TV viewing.
 
Step 6: The Micro Link infrared repeater kit enables you to control devices hidden behind cabinet doors.