The Little Headphones that Could

What to look for on shelves

Let's talk about home theatre

When you talk to an audiophile about home theatre, you'd better prepare yourself for a journey into incredulity. Speaker cables and interconnects can cost tens of thousands of dollars, and realistically, they're about the cheapest components in the whole setup. Heck, a friend's uncle has a pair of speakers that cost over $100,000. So of course you'll want to get the most out of your sound setup - you'll play it often, and you'll play it loud.

Of course, there are the alternatives. You could use a standard two-speaker setup and lose much of the effect, or go with headphones, and put up with sound and music seemingly playing inside of your head.

The point is, good equipment is expensive to come by and not always appropriate to play. If you want a complete Dolby Digital 5.1 setup, complete with 6 speakers, Dolby decoder, and digital optical interconnects, you're going to be paying an amount that physicists jokingly refer to as "nontrivial." Turning up the juice at night might also drive your neighbors nuts.

Here's the good news. Now, you don't need to be in the philanthropist class or soundproof your pad just to enjoy AC-3 digital. Sony has come to the rescue with their new MDR-DS5000 headphones. Featuring a wireless infra-red design and integrated Dolby Digital decoder, the DS5000s are looking to replace not just your standard headphones, but also any other equipment that might be lying around as well.