Home Theater system- What should I look for?

Question

I live in an 850 sq. foot apartment and am planning on buying a home theater system for my living room t.v. I'm not sure how I should shop for one and what I should look for. Should I go by how it sounds at the store? Does wattage matter?

I want pretty good sound, but I want to also make sure my downstairs neighbors don't hear the noise. Any advice would be great. Thanks!

Answer 1

There's lots of good advice here already, but anyway... going with a separate receiver makes sense.  Don't spend too much money there; something that does basic Dolby Digital and DTS is the main thing.  In the long run you're going to need a receiver that switches HDMI, and upconverts regular video and component video to HDMI, and unless I'm mistaken those features still cost a lot of money, so I don't see much sense buying anything above a minimal receiver today.  $100 might find you an older Pioneer model that will do the job.  I'd be wary of Harman-Kardon; there seemed to be an awful lot of busted or refurbished ones on eBay a while back.

Speakers; 4 will do the job in a pinch.  The receiver can be configured to work with various arrangements of speakers.  It's nice to find some kind of genuine close-out deal on speakers; I got mine at Radio Shack when they marked 'em down from $180 to $40, and they were a model that actually got good reviews from critics.  Two pairs of stereo from thrift stores will do the job, and midsize "bookshelf" speakers may deliver enough bass that you won't need a separate subwoofer.  Just be sure to configure the receiver to designate them as "large" or full-range speakers, and no subwoofer, or you'll wonder where the bass is.

If you go for a package deal, get one with a separate DVD player.  DVD players don't always last that long; they've got moving parts that wear, optics that can get dirty, and a laser that can wear out.  It's a whole lot cheaper to just buy another $40 DVD player than to replace or repair a receiver/DVD combo unit.

To avoid bothering the neighbors, use restraint with the volume control.  You may need to engage the dynamic range limiting feature on the receiver.

Answer 2

This is all in what you want to spend.  I do not like the HTiB (Home theater in a box) systems.  They do not meet all the demands that come to listening to movies and music.  

A nice solid AV Receiver (Denon, HK, Pioneer Elite, Yamaha and Onkyo) are some to name a few.  

Speakers are where you should really focus on, since that is where the sound comes from.

Paradigm and B&W are to name a few.

If you are at that amount of money, then look for a series of HTiB's on the net that are highly rated.  Best Buy has some decent ones for that price range.

Polk is a great one, just get a decent receiver for about 200 and you should be in business.

Answer 3

Thanks for posting your budget, that does help.. Also those who live below you will still hear the sound not much you can do even if you use carpet with sound damping so you won't be able to crank up the sound to the max 1/3 of the way though. Until they start taking the broom and hitting the ceiling to make you turn it down.

Sony Bravia™ Theater System

Model: DAV-HDX501W  - $477 (wholesale)

Audio Power Output: Amplifier: 1000W total;

Center Speaker: 143W (1KHz 10%THD);

Front Speaker: 143W x 2 (1KHz 10%THD);

Subwoofer Speaker: 285W (1KHz 10%THD);

Surround Speaker: 143W x 2 (1KHz 10%THD)



Panasonic DVD Home Theater

Model: SC-PT1050 $498 (wholesale)

Total Power: 1200W

Front: 250W x 2 (1kHz, 6 ohms, 10% THD)

Center: 250W (1kHz, 6 ohms, 10% THD)

Surround: 100W x 2 (100Hz, 4 ohms, 10% THD)

Subwoofer: 250W (100Hz, 6 ohms, 10% THD)

These two are the best you're going to get the next would be a BOSE for $1,499 higher than you wanted to spend and that's wholesale price. If you're club member at Costco, Samsclub or BJ wholesale those are the cheapest places to go next to online. You can order these from them online though. Just join..

These are complete systems with DVD an etc.. If you want to go the component route that will cost your more. AMP, 5 speakers including the sub you're looking at $399 to $499 for 7.1 plus the speakers could hit $1,000. Or you could be luckly and go into a Circuit City and find a deal on complete component for $499 which includes everything except the DVD.

Watts do play a part as you want it to sound rich.. 8 ohm system is ideal. 6 ohm isn't bad either. Most of the all-in-one systems have passive sub woofer meaning it has to use the amp on the system to get its power. Active would be the way to go as the sub has it's own built-in amp for power.

Example. Multi-channel Receiver rated at 500WATTs per channel full spread power no limits in a component device.

Buying a Sub Woofer that is Active! It could have 240WATTs AMP or higher. Plust the 500WATTs you got 640WATTs.

Answer 4

Have you checked out Crutchfield.com? They sell very good full systems within your price range. If you call they will take the time to explain and help answer your questions. I've purchased from them in the past and they have technical people that will take the time time to help. I especially like the fact that they support whatever they sell for the life of the product at no extra charge.

Answer 5

the receiver is the heart of the system i would start with a

Pioneer Elite SC-09TX $6,500.00

http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/C...

and match it up with a Sony BDP-S2000ES $1,299.99

http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stor...

as for speakers i recomend

front THIEL CS3.7 $4,950.00

center THIEL MCS1 $2,200.00

surround THIEL MCS1 $2,200.00 X2

sub THIEL SS2 $5,190.0............. ok $23,000.00  might be a bit much. that's why i sugest this instead

sony dav-hdx265 $249.99

http://www.crutchfield.com/App/Product/I...

Answer 6

Go to places like Circuit City and Best Buy to actually listen to the various systems at the various prices. Don't go by a certain brand name of speakers without listening to them. Everyone's tastes are different with speakers and a set that sounds good to one person might sound terrible to another. For example, I hate the sound of Bose (muddy bass, missing midrange, and hissy treble), but I love the sound of Klipsch (deep, tight bass; strong, clear midrange; and crystal clear, almost transparent treble).

Also, decide if you want stereo sound or surround sound. Surround sound requires the placement of rear speakers, which means running the speaker wires to wherever you place them. If you just go with stereo sound, you'll be able to afford better speakers, because you'll only need two of them.

If you decide to go with surround sound, I wouldn't go with anything more exotic than a 5.1 system. This is two front speakers (R & L), a front center speaker, and two rear speakers (R & L). The ".1" is the low frequency effect (LFE or subwoofer) channel. This requires a powered subwoofer, since the signal out of the receiver is a line output (RCA jack) instead of a power (speaker) output. A 6.1 surround system adds a rear center channel. A 7.1 system has front, side, and rear pairs of speakers plus a front center channel.

A couple years ago, I was able to find a used set of Klipsch Quintet surround sound speakers (front and rear pairs, and center channel) for about $200 and a used Klipsch SW-12 powered subwoofer for about $180 on eBay in almost new condition. I then found a reconditioned Yamaha 5.1 surround sound receiver for about $125. With shipping, they all came out to about $600 and the sound is awesome.

One thing about Klipsch speakers is that they're very efficient, which means that they put out a lot of volume with a relatively low wattage input. So, you don't need a high-wattage amplifier in the receiver. The Yamaha I got is 70 watts per channel and it's fine for a 350-square-foot living room with those Klipsch speakers.