home theater

When the Oscars go live at 5:30 p.m. EST / 2:30 p.m. PST, you can feel like you're right there on the red carpet, rubbing shoulders with Jennifer Lawrence and Ben Affleck, with an at-home, do-it-yourself Dolby Theatre.

A successful home theater system is a complete audio and visual experience. If you've got a big-screen-display-and-audio set ready to be installed, we'll show you how to set up an Academy-Awards-worthy home theater for your Oscar-viewing party — or, with a little bit of accessorizing, tinkering, and feng shui rearrangement, how to create one with existing equipment.

The Home Theater Trifecta

• TV Display — You'll need a big screen to watch the red-carpet bonanza and tearjerking acceptance speeches unfold. Large TV displays can cost a fortune (remember all of those quadruple-digit price tags at CES?), but there are solid smaller-size models that don't cost an arm and a leg, like the 32-inch Samsung UN32EH4003 ($284).
• Cable or Satellite — We've been talking about cutting the cable cord in favor of a media-streaming device like Roku, but those TV boxes are pretty useless for watching the Oscars. ABC won't stream the Academy Awards online, so you'll need a cable or satellite subscription this time around. Basic antennas [RCA Basic Indoor Antenna ($9)] are fairly cheap, however, and can be found at Target, Best Buy, Amazon, and other big-box retailers.
• Surround Sound — A good audio system can make you feel like you're in the audience next to George, Matt, and Brad. Ideally, a surround-sound experience needs two side speakers, two rear speakers, and one center front speaker. You can buy a complete theater sound set [Yamaha YHT-397 ($300)] or fashion your own with existing speakers using a male-to-male audio cable [Mediabridge 3.5mm ($8)] and an audio splitter [Belkin Splitter ($2)].

Read on for proper placement technique (red carpet may be necessary) and how to take care of your home theater once it's set up.

While many of you may have gone HD a while ago, I was content with my old, boxy TV for years. But thanks to a great Black Friday deal, I finally decided to upgrade. However, since I've never owned an HDTV before, I know that my TV upgrade saga isn't over.

There are a few things that I'll be buying to round out my viewing pleasure. While I'm not going for the ultimate home theater experience, I do have some necessities, including the ability to stream and watch content from my computer and keep everything hassle-free. Are you a new HDTV owner as well? Read my list of essentials after the break.

• The US is considering a nationwide plan to give high-speed Internet access to everyone — Switched
• Chinese iPad knockoff maker is filing plagiarism lawsuit against Apple — Gizmodo
• Take a tour of an adorable and pint-sized basement home theater — Unplggd
• This outdoor office is cool, looks like a pine cone — Dvice
• Imogen Heap wore a dress that sent its own tweets at last night's Grammys — Mashable

I did my research on surround sound systems before I bought one, and although I went with a wireless five speaker model, I was definitely intrigued by the sound bar units I came across. However, the price of these sound bars was a little too high for my taste (especially since sound bars are known for not quite getting the full surround effect), which makes this model perfect for a geek on a budget.

Making its debut at this year's CES, the iLive iTDP610B Speaker Bar is said to give you a 5.0 surround sound effect, without dealing with the hassle of placing five speakers around your living room. Coming packed with TruSurround technology, the iLive Bar not only projects great sound, but comes stocked with a DVD player and iPod dock so you can rock out to your tunes at optimum levels (just mind the neighbors, will you?). Fit for your 32" and 37" inch screens, the iLive Bar can bring your home theater together with one sleek look, and without all the wires. Oh, and did I mention the price? Only $200.

If you caught Avatar over the weekend (and really, who didn't?), then you've probably just seen the future of the movie-watching experience. However, I'm not just talking about the experience at the theater, where you pay upwards of $10 a ticket. The Blu-ray Disc Association has just approved format specifications to bring high-def 3D technology to your Blu-rays at home, which means you'll soon be watching all those 3D movies you've come to love on your own couch . . . and save a few bucks by popping your own popcorn to boot.

Of course, in order to get a great picture, you're going to need to invest in a set of quality 3D viewing glasses, high def TV set, and not to mention a Blu-ray player if you don't already have one. The BDA should be releasing its specification to manufacturers soon, so they can start producing Blu-ray players, discs, and TVs that optimize the home 3D movie experience.