OTHER TECH

Where to put your speakers can become a problem with a flat-panel TV, especially if it's mounted on the wall. Fortunately, Definitive Technology, Mirage, Polk, Thiel, and many other companies have responded with slim speakers designed to hang with ultra-thin plasmas. In-wall speakers also go well with flat-panel sets, but they can be hard to mount in existing homes and can have sonic drawbacks if not properly installed.

"You have to decide what you're looking for," explains Ensemble Audio's Mixon. "In-walls are fine if you're only going to use them for home theater and not for music listening. But if you want the best of both worlds - a speaker that's great for both movies and music - on-wall speakers are usually the better choice."

Thanks to plasma TVs, you don't have to give up a large chunk of your precious floor space if you want a big screen. "It's amazing when I walk through my neighborhood at night and see how quickly plasmas have caught on," observes Addie Van Gessel. "Virtually every house has one. It's definitely a space saver." And once your TV gets thin, the rest of your system - and the space it occupies - can downsize too.