Sound and Vision Magazine

If you’re interested in audio and you’re anywhere in the Northeast U.S., the New York Palace Hotel is hosting what’s looking to be this year’ best audio show east of the Mississippi:  the New York Audio Show. The show takes place this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday (April 12, 13, and 14).

It's kind of amazing that a component that hasn't changed much outwardly for 20+ years can change so much internally in the course of just a couple of years. I'm talking about Pioneer's surround-sound receivers, which I first encountered in 1989 ... and which still looked almost exactly the same when I walked into the demo room at the company's Long Beach, Calif., headquarters last week to check out its four new affordable models.

But they don't work the same. The new receviers, priced from $249 to $599, are even more packed with technology than the generation they replace. Fortunately, though, Pioneer's taking some steps to help consumers deal with all that complexity.

Projection screens come in virtually any size, and affordable solutions are available that exceed 100 inches diagonal. And even though much marketing hype continues to push flat-panel LED and OLED technology, here are five reasons why a front projector still makes the most sense for home theater.