How to Buy & Set Up a Surround Sound Home Theater System

Series Summary

A good home theater system can shake the foundation of any home. Putting one together correctly can be the tricky part. Space confinements are key in choosing the right system. Determining where to make the purchase and how much to spend is another dilemma. Finally, which is best plasma or liquid crystal display (LCD) televisions? In this free video series on home electronics, let an audio/video technician explain how to choose the right home theater system. From surround sound systems to plasma and LCD TVs, he discusses the differences in all. Learn how to install a home theater system, central channel speakers and subwoofers. Get tips for measuring space for the right-sized television and the differences between LCD and plasma TVs. Finally, watch the process for hooking up a new high definition (HD) television set and for hooking up a plasma TV.

Video Transcript

"Hi, I'm Charles, with ATX Audio/Video here in Austin, Texas. Today, we're going to talk about setting up and purchasing a home surround sound system. There's a few factors you should consider before purchasing one. One is room size. Dependant upon the size of the room will depend on the power output of the receiver you purchase, the size of the speakers you purchase, and the size of the subwoofer you purchase. The next thing to consider is your budget. Systems going to start as low as five hundred dollars for a basic home theater in the box with all components, and go to fifty thousand dollars or more, with individualized components. Third, is where to buy. You can purchase from a local retailer which offers you the advantages of returning products in case of damage. You can purchase online, which is usually cheapest, but lots of times they're, retailers are not authorized retailers of the products. Third, you can purchase from a custom installer, such as myself. When you purchase from a custom installer, you will get a customized report of your room, and what is needed to fully prepare your room. Fourth, installation; will you install this yourself, or will somebody else install this for you? If you're going to install this yourself there's a few tools you'll need to have, and the basic components of the system. For tools, you'll need wire strippers, screwdrivers, wire cutters or commonly referred to as dikes, and a sound meter is helpful in calibrating the system. Or you may choose to hire a custom installer to install this for you. They will know proper building codes for your area. They will be able to help you properly select the components for your room. They will also be able to answer any questions you may have, such as speaker size. For the basic setup of this home surround sound system you will have your receiver, your speakers, your speaker wires, and your interconnects, which are the wires that go from component to component; such as DVD player to receiver, receiver to TV. The speaker wire will go from the receiver to the speakers. There will also be one line that goes from the receiver to the subwoofer. Depending on the type of subwoofer you purchase, it will either be line level which will be a single cable, or it'll be speaker level which will be a pair of wires; usually red and black that will go to the subwoofer. And once your system is completely set up, you'll go into the calibration of it. Ideally, you would like to have all channels even; at the optimum listening position."