Home Theater

What is a Home Theater

A home theater is a setup of audio and video equipment in your home that reproduces the image and sound of the movie the way it was intended. The technology of the movie theater is adapted to the home environment, providing you with limitless entertainment options far beyond the traditional TV.

Why do I need a Home Theater

Many people assume "home theaters" are reserved for the Hollywood elite, whose mansions are admired on MTV's Cribs. This is simply no longer the case. With the current high-definition displays and digital sound receivers, home theater systems and dedicated theater rooms are popping up everywhere, regardless of the size of your home or personal budget. Home theaters can be integrated into just about any room of your home depending on your needs or desired entertainment options. It has been estimated that over 20 million American households own a complete home theater system.

There are several benefits to having a home theater:

• Home theaters improve your TV viewing experience by bringing the movie-theater experience into the comfort of your own home. Your average TV with 4 inch speakers hardly captures the full effect of a major motion picture or today's more advanced video games, not to mention high-definition programming.
• Home theaters provide an alternative to a costly night-out at the movies. A family of four might spend $65 to $100 on tickets and concessions for one outing to the movies!

What is needed for a Home Theater

• Video Display Screen - This can be anything from a 27" CRT display to a 60" Plasma, DLP or LCD all the way up to a 300" front projector.
• Video Sources - These include any source device such as a DVD player, cable or satellite box or any other device that connects to the main receiver.
• Surround-Sound - This starts with a good receiver that will be the heart of your entire system. It will do all of your audio and video switching and processing. Your surround-sound will consist of two main speakers, one center channel speaker, a subwoofer and depending on the situation, up to four rear and side speakers. All this allows you to create a more theater-like audio experience.

Control - This is the brains of your system. If you and your family can't operate your Home Theater then it is not worth having. This is one of the most overlooked items and is by far the most important. It consists of one control that operates the entire system from the comfort of your chair. It can be personally programmed for your favorite channels, music, and other settings all at the touch of a button. It can even be programmed to control things like the lights, the drapes or blinds and temperature of the room.

Don't forget the cables and a good power filtration unit. These items are what make any system look and sound amazing. Your equipment is only as good as its connection. The better the cables and power filtration you have, the better the signal your equipment will receive.