Put your system (and your foundation) to the test with these spectacular subwoofer Show-Offs

Sure we all enjoy a carefully crafted surround sound mix that oozes ambience and paints a pretty phonic picture in the air, but what we all really love is head-slamming, rump-shaking, rafter-rattling bass.

With that in mind, this installment of Show-Off is all about giving you the lowdown on the lowest of the low—Blu-ray subwoofer demos certain to pin you to your seat, part your hair (assuming you have any) and rattle anything that isn’t nailed, bolted or Gorilla-glued to the walls or floor.

These spectacularly spooky Show-Offs will ensure your sub isn't the only thing going bump in the night.

Ah, Halloween: the weirdest of all holidays. The night when all the world turns into a Key West street parade and yard decorations run the gamut from tacky carved vegetables to toilet paper. Who could blame you if you decided to stay inside with the door shut tight and wait for the craziness to pass?

Holing up for the night doesn’t preclude you from celebrating All Hallows’ Eve entirely, though.

Our 10 Best Software Award winners.

Nothing less than our picks for the best demo material of the past year.

Escape from reality with these truly transcendental Show-Offs discs
    
With the unbridled verisimilitude of 1080p and uncompressed multichannel surround sound, the home theater experience at times verges on being unflinchingly lifelike. Sure, there’s a lot of appeal in that, but sometimes you might just want to be transported to another reality altogether.

With that in mind I give you four favorite Show-Offs that don’t just peel back your eyelids or rattle your naughty bits, they take you to another place entirely.

Let your projector strut its stuff with one of these visually stunning Show-Offs selections

Spec sheets and reviews can tell you a lot about a projector, but let’s face it: Without good content, even the most highly lauded, feature-packed projector in the world is little more than a bulky, expensive light source.

If you’re looking to impress your guests with your new projector, don’t bore them with stats, figures and features. Just stick one of these luscious-looking Blu-ray discs in and let the images do the talking.

The 10 Best Movies and Games of the Year

Digital hi-fi never really went away, but it’s back and better than ever after taking a bit of a beating.

If your golden ears have shied away from the digital domain before, though, it’s time for another listen. Not only are old formats like SACD finally reaching their full potential thanks to pure digital interconnectivity, the new high-resolution audio formats found on Blu-ray are making access to eerily  high-fidelity music playback easier than ever.

Progressive Scan
Take your home theater to new heights with these phenomenal prog rock concerts on Blu-ray and DVD

It’s snooty. It’s often dissonant. And if you try to tap your foot to it, you run the risk of dislocating your shoulder blades.

But there’s just something about progressive rock that makes for the perfect home theater demo, whether you’re into this often obtuse genus of music or not (and for the record, I very much am).