Feeling surrounded by questions instead of ambient sound?
You've come to the right place.
We have suggestions on how to shop for everything surround, from receivers to speakers to full home-theatre systems.
- Home theatre in a box (HTIB)
- AV receivers
- Where will I put all these speakers?
Home theatre in a box (HTIB)
If you're building your home cinema from scratch, one of the simplest ways to get started is to invest in a home-theatre-in-a-box system, or HTIB. They come in many shapes and sizes (and not always in one actual box), but most combine a 5.1-speaker package with an AV receiver that has an integrated DVD player. The only missing piece is a TV.
HTIB types: Cheap thrills | High on style | Component packages
Upside: Affordable; compact; comparatively easy to set up.
Downside: Won't rock the house; spotty build quality.
Budget-priced HTIBs almost always feature small speakers and subwoofers. Sound quality isn't always stellar, but they are good for bedrooms and other small rooms and some low-end HTIBs sound pretty decent.
Power ratings fall within the 25-to-50-watt-per-channel range. That's enough to fill a small room with sound; just don't expect massive loudness capability from a wee HTIB.
Surround formats are limited to basic Dolby Digital/Pro Logic II and DTS/DTS Neo:6, while connectivity options are typically restricted to just two or three A/V inputs. If you have an HD-ready TV and are looking for the best possible picture quality, make sure the DVD player has component/progressive video outputs.
Upside: Elegant appearance; features galore; comparatively easy to set up.
Downside: Still won't rock the house; limited bass output; sleek-looking electronics usually have limited connectivity options.
A number of manufacturers offer sleek HTIBs with petite satellites (12 cm tall or even smaller). At the other extreme, you can buy HTIBs with tall yet incredibly slender floor-standing speakers. Some HTIBs tuck their amplifiers inside the subwoofer, which allows the manufacturer to trim down the receiver/DVD player component to truly svelte sizes.
Single-play and DVD-changer models are available. Single-play models are the most compact and smoothest-running, and they tend to be the most reliable. The changers, which typically hold three to six discs, may be either single-tray-loading or carousel-style mechanisms. Tray changers can be almost as compact as the single-play models, though they're usually noisier and slower as they go about their disc-changing operations. Carousel models are faster and quieter, but the drawback is they grab a lot of shelf space; many are 43 cm wide and 38 to 46 cm deep.
Component packages
Upside: Solid build quality; features similar standalone components; generous connectivity.
Downside: More involved setup; clunky component styling; speaker packages usually far below the quality (and price) of separate speakers.
Rather than combine the receiver and the DVD player in one compact unit, some manufacturers offer HTIBs built around separate components. This approach forfeits most of the space-saving allure of the classic HTIB, but there are performance advantages to the separates route.
With component-based HTIBs, their larger size lets designers fit in more power and significantly greater connectivity options. Component systems provide inputs for a larger number of external sources (such as satellites, VCRs and cassette decks) than one-piece HTIBs.
A few companies sell receiver/DVD player combos that don't come with speaker packages, which affords you the flexibility of selecting exactly the speakers that work for you.
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lumfish
25/09/2004 03:01 AM
i dont know where to buy 2 yamaha mid_range tweeter speakers for my system
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joehabbaki
22/09/2008 11:35 PM
if i was to buy something for a small business so i could get equal sound to play music what would i have to buy and what will i be looking at? could some one email me at j_habaki@hotmail.com
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