subject: Home Theater Systems Available Today [print this page] These days more and more people are trying to replicate the theater experience of the big screen movie theaters at home by purchasing home theater systems. When it comes to getting one of these systems for your home, there are a number of options to choose from, and a variety of different types of systems available. It's important to choose well as it can be a costly exercise if the wrong system is purchased.
The first thing you will need to decide when choosing home theater systems is whether you would like to purchase each component separately, or whether you would like to get a package (commonly known as a home theater in a box or HTIB). You have more flexibility and it is easier to upgrade your system if you buy each of the components separately. However, it can be a bit difficult to hook everything up and get it working properly. With a home theater in a box the setup is usually very easy. These systems come with the source, amplification and speakers. Sometimes they include a DVD or Blu-Ray player, and sometimes these need to be purchased separately. It is better to stay away from many of the bargain HTIB sets since many of them do not provide quality much better than that you would get with a good TV, though there are a couple that get decent reviews.
It is important that you consider what your requirements are before you start deciding between the various types of home theater systems that are available. Do you want a Blu-Ray player or is a DVD player enough for you? You also want to figure out whether you want to have a speaker system with 5, 6, or 7 speakers, and which type of surround sound processing you want your system to support. Most systems support Dolby Digital 5.1 or Dolby Digital EX, though there are other options available as well. These are most commonly included in DVDs though.
Most people won't bother with getting home theater systems if they have a small television, or if they do they look into their options for getting a newer, larger flat screen as well as part of their theater system purchase. This means they need to figure out whether they want plasma or LCD TVs, or whether they want to just get a separate projector and screen (and if so, what type they want to get). As you can see, there are a lot of decisions involved, so it is best to do your research before making any purchasing decisions.
