OTHER TECH

Step 2: Choose your music This seems like a minor point, but in fact it's major. Stopping on the way to the audio/video store to buy some new discs to audition speakers with would seem to be a good idea, but it's not because you'd be dealing with unfamiliar music heard over unfamiliar speakers in an unfamiliar room. Without a point of reference, it's very difficult to critically evaluate how a speaker sounds.

To eliminate at least one of the variables, use music you know well because you've heard it many times. And it helps a lot if you've heard the tracks over different systems. If you've heard them over only one system, you'll be biased toward that sound, which might not be accurate. Using familiar recordings will allow you to hear any differences or colorations - like pronounced bass or a lack of treble - in the speakers you're auditioning. Click this link for a dozen Recommended Discs, but remember - they won't be the most helpful audition sources unless you play them enough to become familiar with how they sound.

A good set of surround speakers requires a sizable expenditure - usually not as much as a car, but often more than a set of good tires. Take the time to find a dealer you can trust, where you can get good advice, and that will cheerfully let you return speakers in case you pick the wrong ones. Start by checking the phone book, cruising the Web, and getting recommendations from friends who've recently bought A/V gear. And be sure to pick a store that has a selection of speakers already hooked up so you can compare different models - an important reality check. Try to avoid using several dealers. I chuckle when someone tells me he listened to a speaker at Store A, then drove across town and listened to a different speaker at Store B and preferred the second speaker. Auditory memory just isn't that good. Unless you're an audio expert, stick with one dealer.

You might want to kick the tires at a few dealers before deciding which one you'll use, though, so check out their showrooms and listening rooms. A store with all the gear lined up against the wall isn't the best place to buy speakers because the listening environment is simply unnatural. Instead, look for one with rooms resembling your own listening space. That'll increase your chances of finding speakers that will sound good in your home.

With all due respect to the megastores, their prices tend to be low, but their listening facilities are often poor. For serious shopping, you're better off going to a store that specializes in audio/video. It can be a mom-and-pop store or a mainstream chain, but it must provide a listening environment with decent acoustics as well as good electronics and the ability to switch between sets of speakers.

In my case, the choice is easy: a Sound Advice store is conveniently located just across the street from the University of Miami, where I teach. It has a number of rooms dedicated to various technologies, including two audio listening rooms (with sliding glass doors that isolate you from the chatter in the main salesroom), and I like the salespeople there.