How to Wire a Home Theater

Having a home theater system can mean the difference between having just a ho-hum place to watch TV and being able to watch movies to a full-blown audio-video experience. Wiring a home theater system is fairly simple. The first step is knowing the difference between all of the audio and video connections.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Check to see what types of cables your amplifier can handle. They should be separated by component on the back of the unit. The round input with a bunch of holes in it is for SHVS cables; the small, square input is for optical audio; the red and white RCA inputs are for standard audio; the long, thin input is for the newer HDMI (high definition multimedia interface) cables; the yellow input is for analog (composite) video, and the red, green and blue cables are for high-end component video.

2. Determine the best cables for superior audio and video for each component. Newer components and amplifiers can handle the newer HDMI or component audio and video cables. These really are made for high definition setups, requiring a high-def TV or monitor and at least a 5.1 amplifier.

3. Familiarize yourself with the difference in quality of audio and video cables. Standard component audio and video cables are for low-end systems. Just above that are optical audio and SVHS (which are typically found on DVD players and VCRs). Next we have composite video and audio cables, which have separate cables for red, green and blue, and finally the ultimate picture and sound with HDMI cables.