There might have been times in your life when you longingly admired a $20 million dollar beach house or did a triple-take at the Bugatti Veyron. Let's face it, everyone loves great stuff, even if it might not be for you. Martin Logan's new speakers, the Neoliths, are an offering in this same class.

These speakers are something that could be presented as art forms, let alone incredible examples of acoustic alchemy. We won't go into great detail as Martin Logan has done a fine job in the link below.

http://www.martinlogan.com/neolith/index.php

As much as we'd like to have a pair of these gems, we're going to go without and stare and dream like most people. However, we can let you listen to a pair of Martin Logan speakers that don't cost $80,000/pair (that's right...the Neoliths are $80,000/pair) and that sound AMAZING. Want to see why Martin Logan is revered in the audio industry? Give us a call and let San Diego's leading dealer of Martin Logan present what good audio sounds like.

San Diego Home Theater and Surround Sound Installers Aire Theater Designs proudly serves all of San Diego County including Del Cerro, Allied Gardens, Talmadge, Kensington, Hillcrest, Mission Valley, Fashion Valley, La Mesa, El Cajon, Blossom Valley, Lake Murray, Friars, North Park, Balboa Park, Clairemont, Kearny Mesa, Mission Bay, Mission Beach, Pacific Beach, Ocean Beach, Imperial Beach, Pt Loma and Downtown San Diego. We also gladly serve those in North San Diego County which includes Carlsbad, San Marcos, Vista, Elfin Forest, Oceanside, Escondido, Encinitas, Cardiff by the Sea, Solana Beach, Del Mar, Olivenhain, Rancho Santa Fe, 4S Ranch, Santaluz, La Jolla, Poway, and Rancho Bernardo.

It's probably been a while since you've bought a new audio/video receiver or maybe I'm being assumptive and this is your first foray into surround sound. No worries...we'd be happy to help. Your audio/video receiver is the heart of your music and entertainment system. Making the right choice here assures sonic excellence and also provides you the flexibility to hook up future components. However, dealing with the big-box stores or attempting to figure out what to buy on the Internet can be painful (aside from this article, of course). Here's a quick guide to picking the right audio/video receiver.

What is it: Your receiver acts as the hub of your audio/video system. All of your components like cable boxes, video games, Blu-ray players, streaming devices, etc. hook into the receiver and it provides the sound for your speakers. Pick your receiver based on:

1) How many devices you will be hooking up to it?

2) Will you be connecting other areas/rooms of speakers?

3) How important is it to get the best surround sound experience you can?

Brand to Buy: Yamaha. Why? In a nutshell, they rarely break, provide great sound and have plenty of inputs. You can Google different brands, models, histories and other facets but we've already done that. We've also performed thousands of installations and sold receivers for over 20 years. We know what is the best NOW. NOTE: If this ever changes, we'll let you know and we'll change our mind. However, for the time being, Yamaha is our choice for the best receiver at the price point.

GOOD: Yamaha RXV377. 4 HDMI inputs, 70 watts X 5 channels @ $249.99. Buy this if you are on a budget, will be hooking up four components or less and aren't hooking up speakers in any other areas of the house. NOTE: Plan on how many components you will be hooking up not just now, but in the future as well.

http://usa.yamaha.com/products/audio-visual/av-receivers-amps/rx/rx-v377_black_u/

BETTER: Yamaha RXA740. 6 HDMI inputs, 90 watts X 7 channels, video upconversion, multi-source/multi-zone @ $649.99. Buy this if you will be hooking up 6 components or less or if you will be hooking up speakers in other areas (ex: Outside, other bedrooms, etc.). This is also a good choice if you have older components as it plays nicely with legacy video formats (Wii game systems, VCRs and certain cameras come to mind).

http://usa.yamaha.com/products/audio-visual/aventage/rx-a740_black_u/?mode=model

BEST: Yamaha RXA2040. 8 HDMI inputs, 140 watts X 9 channels, improved audio processing, Dolby Atmos @ $1599.99. Buy this if you are hooking up 8 components or less and if you want the best in today's surround sound formats. Our earlier article about Dolby Atmos goes ito depth about the latest surround sound mode. This receiver also sounds noticeably better than step-down models due to its particular high-end construction.

http://usa.yamaha.com/products/audio-visual/aventage/rx-a2040_black_u/?mode=model

http://www.airetheaterdesigns.com/blog/item/125-atmos-in-san-diego

Now you're dangerous...you've got some good information. Stop by or call one of our product experts and let us simplify your decision to purchase a surround sound receiver. Aire Theater Designs, San Diego's Yamaha and surround sound experts.

San Diego Home Theater Installers Aire Theater Designs proudly serves all of San Diego County which includes Del Cerro, Allied Gardens, Talmadge, Kensington, Hillcrest, Mission Valley, Fashion Valley, El Cajon, Blossom Valley, La Mesa, Lake Murray, Friars, North Park, Balboa Park, Clairemont, Kearny Mesa, Mission Bay, Mission Beach, Pacific Beach, Ocean Beach, Imperial Beach, Pt Loma and Downtown San Diego. We also gladly serve those in North San Diego County which includes Carlsbad, San Marcos, Vista, Elfin Forest, Oceanside, Escondido, Encinitas, Cardiff by the Sea, Solana Beach, Del Mar, Rancho Santa Fe, 4S Ranch, Santaluz, La Jolla, Poway, and Rancho Bernardo.

This time of year, many people look for gifts to augment their TV sound. Soundbars can be a good way to do this. However, soundbars can be the good, bad and the ugly if you go to one of the big-box stores as some of these speakers actually sound worse than the TV. At Aire Theater Designs, we only sell QUALITY stuff. Below are our GOOD, BETTER and BEST soundbar options for the season.

GOOD: Polk Audio 5000 series soundbar. The $399.99 option creates natural sound with deep bass that blows away the sound from your TV.

•  2 full-range drivers in center speaker
• 120 watt wireless subwoofer w/6.5" driver

BETTER: Sonos PLAYBAR soundbar. This $699.99 option provides a wide field of sound with very detailed accuracy. A GREAT option for movies and music.

•  Immerse yourself in sound with a 9 driver complement consisting of 6 drivers and 3 tweeters
• Access to Sonos's streaming services. Listen to MILLIONS of songs easily with your phone, iPad or computer as a controller. This is the world's best jukebox!
• NOTE: You can add deep, impactful bass with the addition of Sonos's wireless SUB subwoofer. Price :$699.99

BEST: Definitive Technology SoloCinema XTR soundbar. This $1599.99 option has no-compromise performance and build quality. Their claim is "great for the price of good"!

•  6 high-quality full-range drivers + 3 X exclusive aluminum dome tweeters
• 200 watts of amplification for soundbar
• Aluminum enclosure to minimize resonance
• 250 watt wireless subwoofer w/8" high-excursion driver for DEEP bass

 Here are some links:

http://www.polkaudio.com/surroundbar-5000-instant-home-theater/d/1210C3384

http://www.sonos.com/shop/products/playbar

http://www.definitivetech.com/products/solocinema-xtr

 Looking where to buy a soundbar, San Diego? Call San Diego's leading dealer for soundbars and Sonos, Polk Audio and Definitive Technology. We'll happily get you on the right path to good sound.

San Diego Home Theater Installers Aire Theater Designs proudly serves all of San Diego County which includes Del Cerro, Allied Gardens, Talmadge, Kensington, Hillcrest, Mission Valley, Fashion Valley, El Cajon, Blossom Valley, La Mesa, Lake Murray, Friars, North Park, Balboa Park, Clairemont, Kearny Mesa, Mission Bay, Mission Beach, Pacific Beach, Ocean Beach, Imperial Beach, Pt Loma and Downtown San Diego. We also gladly serve those in North San Diego County which includes Carlsbad, San Marcos, Vista, Elfin Forest, Oceanside, Escondido, Encinitas, Cardiff by the Sea, Solana Beach, Del Mar, Rancho Santa Fe, 4S Ranch, Santaluz, La Jolla, Poway, and Rancho Bernardo.

In addition to the sales updates below in our earlier post. We just had some new deals come up. The additional sales are listed here. Call your sales rep for INSANE pricing on Sony and Samsung TVs. NOTE: No rainchecks on close-out deals. When they're gone, they're gone. P.S. NEW SALES START 11/16/2014 ON SONY TVS DROPPING PRICES EVEN FURTHER THAN SHOWN BELOW! IF YOU LIKE SONY, GIVE US A CALL FOR THE LATEST DEALS!

It's time for football, a LOT of food and crazy Black Friday deals. However, we don't believe in working on Black Friday and will be with family and friends. Therefore, we'll be offering Black Friday deals BEFORE Black Friday! Call your sales rep for INSANE pricing on Sony and Samsung TVs. NOTE: No rainchecks on close-out deals. When they're gone, they're gone. P.S. NEW SALES START 11/16/2014 ON SONY TVS DROPPING PRICES EVEN FURTHER THAN SHOWN BELOW! IF YOU LIKE SONY, GIVE US A CALL FOR THE LATEST DEALS!

About 23 years ago, home theater changed with the advent of Dolby Digital. This format allowed you to hear sounds behind you and added deeper, lower bass to your favorite movies. This format allowed us to hear movie soundtracks in a way that was almost like being in the theater. Since then, the "Internet" became popular, we've landed vehicles on Mars and the stock market has gone from 3004 to 17000+. However, the surround sound landscape remained relatively stagnant. However, we now have access to the biggest improvement in home theater in 23 years...Dolby Atmos!

In a nutshell, Dolby Atmos gives you height and multidimensionality that you can only get in the best theaters. If you already have a surround sound system, we can give you this spectacular new format with the addition of an Atmos-capable receiver and a few new speakers. Here's a link to Dolby that details all the particulars:

http://www.dolby.com/us/en/technologies/dolby-atmos.html

We love movies so we will be retrofitting our showroom for Atmos shortly to let you hear the difference that Atmos can make in your home. Love movies too? Come visit San Diego's home of the latest technology (and soon Dolby Atmos) at Aire Theater Designs. P.S. Our Dolby Atmos theater is live and kicking! We are by-appoinment-only so feel free to give us a call, schedule an appointment and hear how a combination of Yamaha Aventage, Definitive Technology and Dolby Atmos and your ears can improve your life.

San Diego Home Theater Installers Aire Theater Designs proudly serves all of San Diego County which includes Del Cerro, Allied Gardens, Talmadge, Kensington, Hillcrest, Mission Valley, Fashion Valley, El Cajon, Blossom Valley, La Mesa, Lake Murray, Friars, North Park, Balboa Park, Clairemont, Kearny Mesa, Mission Bay, Mission Beach, Pacific Beach, Ocean Beach, Imperial Beach, Pt Loma and Downtown San Diego. We also gladly serve those in North San Diego County which includes Carlsbad, San Marcos, Vista, Elfin Forest, Oceanside, Escondido, Encinitas, Cardiff by the Sea, Solana Beach, Del Mar, Rancho Santa Fe, 4S Ranch, Santaluz, La Jolla, Poway, and Rancho Bernardo.