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How To Create The Ideal Home Theater System For Your Needs
While There May Not Be One Objective Best System, Here’s How To Create A Home Theater Setup That Fits Your Budget, Space, and Viewing Habits
So you finally decided, you know what, I think I’m going to create my own personal sound system.
While still underrated in my opinion, it’s definitely awesome for anyone that wants to.
But what’s the most suitable one that’d allow you to get the most bang for your buck?
Well unfortunately there’s no magic formula where its a one size fits all; it’s going to be a little more hands on than that.
Fortunately however, what I can do is provide you with as much info as possible so that your decision is easier and you know what works for you.
A home theater, as I’ve mentioned before, can primarily be thought of in 2 aspects; the video & audio.
That means deciding on the screen and what form of sound you prefer (speakers, soundbar, etc)
So this is going to be focused on how you can create your ideal system that fits your needs, space and preferences — be it a cozy living room or surround sound for a dedicated media room.
Hopefully it’s helpful so lets get into it!
(If you’re curious about the actual differences between the experience of a home theater and movie theater beforehand though, this should help)
Now before we get into any type of equipment talk, room details etc., we’re going to start with arguably, the single most important thing, and that’s….(drum roll) the budget!
Like with many things, your budget is going to be one of the biggest deciding factors in what you ultimately decide upon.
So in knowing that, obviously it would be impossible for me to just throw out some arbitrary number, but what I can do is give an idea of factors to keep in mind.
Keeping In Mind Other Factors That Play Into Budget
First off you’ll want to take the more personal approach and take the time to consider external factors like your room size, potential seating, etc.
By doing that, you’ll be able to get a better grasp on what the overall budget could be.
Prioritize By Setting Smaller Brackets For The Most Important Components First Within The Overall Budget
For the person who’s financially conscious, it’s going to boil down to common sense.
If you spend most of your budget on let’s say, two really top of the line left and right speakers, then buy whatever receiver that might not even provide them with enough power, that’s obviously going to hamper your potential experience.
The benefit of setting a budget in the first place is that you’ll at least have a bracket to work in to get the best components.
So let’s say you’re like you know what, x dollars is my maximum for a receiver for example.
Awesome, that makes your choice a lot simpler because from there you know what to get within your particular range.
Keeping The Budget Flexible Can Be Helpful In Future-Proofing Too
At the same time, keeping your budget somewhat flexible can also be helpful since it might save you potential headaches in the long run; especially if the thing you get is actually quality and built to last — rather than simply breaking after a short period of time.
For example if you get a product that’s built with durability in mind, (higher grade components, better wiring, etc) chances are it’s going to hold up better than something that might be lesser quality and seem like a good idea at the moment.
Not just that, but if you plan on upgrading years later, some of your current equipment might be able to carry over so then that’s something less you have to worry about.
Understanding That You May Feel Compelled To Upgrade Early
So I’ve mentioned this before, but one of the things that I wasn’t aware of until getting into the hobby of home theater was that temptation to upgrade early.
Even after buying something, seeing industry coverage on a new subwoofer or TV would often compel me to at least consider it.
So while I’m not saying this will happen in your case, be aware that that desire for something newer could arise even if you’re content with what you have.
In fact, here’s 5 things that would have been helpful knowing beforehand.
Deciding On The Type Of Display You Want To Use
When creating a home theater, what I like to do first (besides measuring the room and setting a budget) is deciding on the type of display I plan use.
I recommend doing it this way since it allows you to then base the location of your seating and speakers on that choice rather than the other way around — which could result in having to move things again.
But the 2 options for the visual aspect of your eventual theater room is using either a TV or projector.
While this is a very broad generalization, I’ve found that TVs are good for really bright rooms or for when you’re not looking for a screen size bigger than 100 inches.
Projectors are great for really large or small rooms since they can both provide that extra screen size while simultaneously helping save space since the device itself is smaller than a TV.
But again, I want to emphasize this is a generalization and that there’s tons of nuance where you might prefer one over the other since there’s so many variables and not to mention types of TVs and projectors.
For more specifics with choosing in that regard, these should hopefully offer some insight.
Are You Choosing A Premade Theater System Or Creating Your Own?
The next thing you’re going to want to do is ask yourself, are you looking to take the easier route and simply purchase a premade home theater?
Or are you looking to make your own system?
If it’s the former, then premade setups often referred to as home theaters in a box, can still offer a good listening experience even for surround sound or Bluetooth support.
But if you’re thinking more long term, and want to create a more custom system that’ll serve you for years to come then read on.
If Your Deciding To Create Your Own, Determine The Content It’ll Be Used For
Something important to consider is whether you’ll primarily play music, watch movies, game, or some combination of those?
That’s a big factor that’ll dictate the type of system that’s best to start with.
If your emphasis is just on music, then you’ll be more concerned with stereo sound which would simply be 2 speakers.
These can be bookshelf or tower speakers — which can also be wired, bluetooth or wireless depending on both the speakers themselves and the room they’ll be in.
But if you’re going after a more complete system, then you’ll want to start with a 3.1 or 5.1 setup (the first number denoting the number of speakers and the last, the amount of subwoofers) for now until you get more comfortable then decide where to upgrade from there.
Your Room Is A Big Factor In Determining The Type Of Speakers & Equipment That’s Best
Another huge factor that impacts the setup and equipment that works best for you is your room size.
Whether it’s the seating distance from the TV, to the size of the speakers, the room is what influences everything within in some form.
Measure The Room For Its Length, Width, & Height
So what I highly recommend after you’ve decided on a budget and type of system is measuring the size of your room with a tape measure for its length, width, and height.
This will give you specific parameters to work within in terms of buying your equipment, optimization, and set up.
Acoustic Treatment Of The Room Can Help Audio Quality
From my personal experience and honest opinion, your room is going to have the biggest impact on experienced sound quality.
The sound waves created by your audio sources will travel throughout the entire room, and any object in that room affects the sound you hear in one way or another.
Take for example your living room.
If there’s hardwood floors and the sound is reflected off that, what you hear will seem harsher than if there’s soft carpet present; in which case would make the speaker’s tone seem fuller.
But it could be the exact opposite, still be hard on the ears, and seem hollow depending on the characteristics of a room.
Basically what I’ve found from my years of home theater experience is that there’s never a guarantee for how a speaker will sound in every room.
That’s one reason why someone might think a particular speaker is less than stellar when in fact, their room may just need some acoustical adjustments to better accommodate their new purchase.
Simply put, it’s always going to be different, and you’ll find out what needs to be done when you get into the setup process.
One thing I recommend is to add more soft fabric objects to the room if you detect any kind of echo or if there’s lots of hard surfaces.
This can be the addition of an extra chair, couch, or even acoustic panels.
Though sound travels and reflects, when that reflection hits a soft surface it gets absorbed.
This can be a great counterbalance to a surplus of hard surfaces in the room — allowing for a perceived improvement in the listening experience.
But I will say that adding too much can worsen perceived audio quality too, so it’s important to keep that in mind.
The Room’s Seating Area Matters Both In Placement & Overall Design
While we’re still on the subject of rooms, your seating area also matters in terms of its placement from the speakers & the TV, and its overall design.
Where you sit in the room is going to have a measurable effect on what you hear; with the size of your TV also influencing the ideal place to sit for screen visibility.
Now figuring out the best listening area placement would be a lot to explain here, but to make things easier, here’s a unique calculator I made that determines optimal seating distance and front speaker placement simultaneously.
Deciding Whether You’re Using Physical Or Digital Media
You’ll also want to have an idea of if you’ll primarily be watching physical media formats like Blurays & DVDs — or going mainly digital with streaming services.
Besides the consideration of room space, this will allow you to map things out beforehand so you have a better idea of the overall entertainment experience you’re ideally going for.
There’s benefits and drawbacks to both which you can read about here if curious.
The Room’s Size Determines The Best Fitting Speaker
Your room size itself will also determine the best fitting speaker as some need lots of space to operate.
If you have a smaller or even medium room size, let’s say 16×20, then you’ll be able to get away with a bookshelf speaker.
However when you approach the large room territory, over 25 feet, then you’ll most likely want to start looking at floor standing speakers since they would sound better for your application.
Typically they produce more bass, have a broader range of sound, and can go louder; with the only tradeoffs being their size and potentially price.
If that sounds like something that would be more applicable to your current situation, then this may help you.
Alternatively, although these are often installed by professionals due to placement logistics and wiring involved, you could also use ceiling speakers for your surround sound system.
This can be helpful for wider room coverage in larger rooms or to simply to save space in a smaller one.
Using A Center Channel Speaker Has A Big Impact On Soundstage
If your focus is watching television and movies, listen when I say this, one thing you don’t want to skimp on is the center channel speaker.
The center channel is going to be where the majority of dialogue and some music/sound effects come from, and will act as the foundation of your entire setup.
Ever watch a movie and you’re like wait… what did they say?
Can you rewind that?
Yeah that’s the job of the center so that you don’t miss those important details.
These are some to check out if you’re thinking about adding one to your setup.
The next thing that’s really important is the subwoofer.
A good quality subwoofer will provide that visceral, larger than life feeling that enhances the experience and makes things that much more dynamic.
It’s going to be responsible for producing that convincing bass thump that you feel in movies.
Picking a good subwoofer isn’t terribly hard either, since there’s many quality ones.
But for me personally, a rule I follow, and something that I would recommend to you — a subwoofer that can at least reach into the 35 Hertz range with no discernable distortion is definitely one to look into.
The lower that frequency, called hertz, (abbreviated to Hz) the better.
This means the sub can dig deeper the lower that Hz number is — in turn giving you a much smoother and richer bass.
Also the higher RMS the better (which is basically the continuous amount of power that the subwoofer can produce; you’ll often see this mentioned where it lists the specs.)
To make it easy for you, I even did an article on these too explaining all of this.
The AV Receiver Is Important Since It Controls All Of The Components
Now after you’ve done that then you’ll want an AV (audio & video) receiver.
In short, a receiver is where the sound is processed and output, so buying one that’s suitable is important.
Look At Its Ohm Rating
What I mean by this is say for example you unknowingly buy a speaker that has a rating of 6 ohms, (simply put, this is a measure of electrical resistance)
If you purchase a receiver that only is rated to handle 8 ohms, there might be some problems with providing it with enough power; thus it may not work properly or sound much quieter than it’s supposed to.
So if anything, when buying a receiver, you want to match the ohm rating to the one of whatever speakers it is that you are buying, unless it states that it can do that as well as lower ratings.
Consider Its Watts Per Channel
Wattage per channel is something you may also see when buying a receiver, and this simply means how much power it can provide each speaker it’s connected to — with generally the higher the wattage per channel, the better.
Know What Devices You Plan On Connecting To It
Yet another thing will revolve on you deciding what you plan on connecting to your receiver.
Are you going to be connecting a few gaming consoles and or a Blu-ray player to it?
If so then you’ll likely want to invest in a few HDMI cables, some speaker wire (16 gauge speaker wire unless it’ll be going over 35 ft. then use 14) and an RCA cable that’ll be used to connect the subwoofer. It’s a lot simpler than it sounds and I even talk about that here as well.
Understand What Features & Settings You Want It To Have
There’s all kinds of receivers out there that naturally have varying amounts of features & settings, but understanding what you’re specifically looking for it to do can help narrow down the search.
For example some have lots of DSP modes to alter the sound signature, some have support for playing multiple sets of speakers simultaneously, and some support upwards of 13 channels via Atmos & DTS:X with multiple subwoofers so it’s subjective.
But by creating a rough list of things you’d want in one, you can then use that as a point of reference in your search.
Using An External Amplifier For Additional Power
Of course there’s also the option of connecting an external amplifier if your speakers are exceptionally power hungry or you’re using a lot of them — which can help offload what the receiver has to handle for better volume levels.
Or you might prefer using one so it handles the signal separately to get every bit of extra performance out of them.
However I’ve found the degree to which it enhances this to vary widely since it depends on listening levels, the listener, the amp, and even the speakers.
Choosing Surround Sound Speakers Is Less Stringent
In terms of the surround speakers that you’ll be using, luckily you do not need to dedicate a large portion of your budget to these.
I won’t say that any speaker will do, because that’s far from true, nor will I say that their only job is to solely produce ambient noises and effects since that would be misinformed as well — but what I will say is that in comparison with everything else, they aren’t necessarily in the top 3 of most important things (left & right channel, the center, and the subwoofer)
There’s 3 Main Types Of Surround Speakers
There happens to be 3 types of surround speakers that you should be aware of and that isBipole, Dipole, andMonopole speakers.
Unfortunately, this is where controversy arises because there is a general disagreement as to what surrounds are best and under what circumstances.
While I can’t provide you with concrete evidence on what is the best, I can provide you with anecdotal experience. At my old place, I had a speaker that could act as both a dipole and a bipole speaker (pretty cool little thing admittedly.)
Problem being, there were no instructions on how to actually place the things so it was up to me to figure out.
So I put them on the side of my seating position on bipole, and what I found was that the feeling of surround sound was lost since I could tell where the sound was coming from.
In dipole, it sounded much better where that feeling was there.
A few years later I tried these same ones but in a bigger room this time.
What I found then was that bipole was the better option because dipole sounded too diffuse, and when something happened in the movie like a the sound of a car passing behind you, directional cues with bipole were much better.
By no means is this definitive, but basically long story short is the best surround speaker is going to depend both on the room they’re being used in as well as the capabilities of the speakers themselves.
Timbre Matching Can Improve The Soundstage Too
One more quick thing that I forgot to mention that is not talked about too much is the concept of timbre matching.
In short, timbre matching is the matching of at least the front 3 speakers (left, right, and center) so that the sound that is projected is uniform and tonally even.
It’s ensuring they’re all from the same manufacturer and line basically.
The reason this can be pretty important is that if you bought mismatching speakers for your left, right, and center, one may have a certain sound signature that favors treble, while another might sound bass heavy/muddy — and together this might potentially sound somewhat disjointed.
You really want to strive to make them all the same speaker if you can.
Nothing more jarring than having one speaker sound exceptionally louder than another one.
Buying the speakers from the same line often provides a smoother soundstage, and makes things that much more engaging when something pans on screen and sounds the same directionally — giving a better experience overall.
The Option Of An Outdoor Home Theater
For those of you out there with an outside area like a backyard or patio, an outdoor home theater is also an option.
With this setup, components like the receiver still stay inside, while the outdoor specifically designed speakers are mounted outside and connected via special wiring that’s designed for that purpose.
Indoor and outdoor speakers are different in functionality, so here’s more on that aspect.
If you find yourself constantly having to switch between remotes to operate your devices, a potentially helpful alternative is a universal remote.
These remotes can allow you to control components like your cable box, TV, and receiver all with a single remote.
In my opinion, using one offers a level of convenience that’s really easy to appreciate — especially if you have lots of gear and have trouble keeping track of remotes.
But you know, hopefully all of this helps, and now have a much better grasp on creating that perfect system that will work specifically for you.
It may be a lot to consider, but don’t feel overwhelmed at all, because if you still have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask.
Check out Recommendations too if you want a few ideas to point you in the right direction.
Oh and quick little pro-tip; writing down your budget at the top of a note, then as your shopping, writing down each item you plan on getting under it gives you a visual making things easier to know if everything still is within the limits of your particular budget.
That and just taking notes beforehand on what you’re looking for definitely helps too.
But that’s if for now.
Like always if you have any questions, comments, concerns, or something helpful you found out, mention it in the comments down below as it may help someone else too.
Hey everyone it’s nice to meet you. I'm Jay, writer & founder of the site Easy Home Theater. I've been with this hobby of home entertainment for many years now. I decided to create this site to be a helpful resource, and share everything that I've learned from personal experience with you. I also happen to be a huge gamer, lover of all things tech related, and a major fitness buff (love weightlifting)
I am just getting started on my man cave in the basement and this is going to be a top priority of mine. I must say though, i never would have guesses that so much could go into a sound system that now I have no idea where to start. Is there a specific type that I should look into since I will be putting it in a basement with concrete walls with low ceilings?
First off, man caves are awesome so congrats on that. But yeah there’s a lot to it, but that’s only because you always have to decide what’s right under what circumstance. With your situation it’s going to be a good thing and a bad thing and here’s why.
The good news is you would be able to play stuff in that room pretty loud without worrying about annoying people in the next room; so that’s awesome. Concrete is really good with isolating The bad news though, is that hard surfaces tend to reflect sound a lot more than carpeted ones, so the sound in the room might be a little harsh until you get some plush furniture and carpeting in there.
So to answer your question, I would say that the speakers themselves won’t be the biggest focus in your case. But you’ll definitely need to add a lot of soft material to the room otherwise it might not be as great as you want it to be. That’s what’s really going to matter. Things like those foam sound panels help too since they absorb sound rather than reflect it.
I actually had no idea for ratings (ohms) and I also remember that my other theater system had some compatibility issues. While I am buying, I will be careful about it. Do you have any tips for evaluating the quality-price ratio for speakers?
Yeah compatibility is definitely something to be aware of. Hmm as much as I don’t like to go on specs alone, I’d say the specs would be an indicator in this case. What I mean by that is if you have 1 speaker at a certain amount that’s rated at 80 watts, then another rated at 100 watts, I’d go with the latter because it’ll pump more sound. The type of material would be something to look at. If possible, always get a speaker made of wood since they tend to sound better on average. Now the quality of that sound is hard to predict beforehand (especially since everyone hears differently) which is why even I still look at reviews to see what other people are saying since they already own it. That’s always a safe bet I’d say.
To be completely honest, I’ve never thought that are so many things to consider when choosing a system.
Like, 70% of the everything you’ve written here was completely unheard of to me.
Not anymore, thanks for that!
Now I know what a timbre matching is…who would have thought?
In your opinion – which one of all those systems is the best? Which one you would take in your home if you have to choose?
Thanks for sharing!
Hi Jay,
I tell you what – you have the best references and awesomely detailed info an avaerage guy or girl could ask for when it comes to audiophiles.No jargon crap just straight forward day to day lingo (wording/language) which makes our lives alot less complicated.I am gripped by your posts/blogs,detailed useful info whatever you wanna call it.It makes me wanna read more and more as it hypnotizes me and sucks me in to reading more..trust me I hate reading..why read when you can watch a Coen Brothers or a Tarantino movie right!?! Your stuff is different my friend..good different..so cheers to that and cheers to not falling asleep whilst reading.
I have a 7.1 Yamaha Dolby Atmos speakers setup all hooked up to the projector with also a Yamaha Dolby Atmos receiver atm..obviously 1 x centre,2 x floor standing,2 x bookshelf,2 x ceiling speakers and 1 x sub woofer.I suppose it sounds okay but unfortunately it’s not what I was expecting.I mean the Dolby Atmos 3D sound I was expecting more of an oomph or boom or bang but when watching movies the centre and floorstanding speakers I suppose are not bad but I actually need to stand up and lend an ear to the ceiling speakers and check to see if they are still on and working and even the rear wall mounted book shelf speakers I have to put my ear on from time to time to see if they are working or not.I actually cannot really hear the ceiling nor the bookshelf speakers when I’m watching a decent blockbuster movie.I mean they are on and they work but is it just me or do I need to turn them up I don’t know.I had all this professionally installed and they did a really good job installing it and I’m sure they also configured all the speakers as you would but I think maybe I’m expecting too much from my Yamaha.I’m actually thinking of buying 2 x more ceiling speakers and 2 x floorstanding speakers and place them around the rear on both sides plus buying 1 x more sub woofer and obviously buying a new receiver to cater for all of the above.This would be an 11.2 or 7.4.2 or did I just make this 7.4.2 up in my head?? Whatever it is I just need more sound from above and sides/behind as the front 2 x floorstanding speakers and the centre speaker are pulling their weight but the other guys aren’t.What would be the best thing for me to do here – either throw in some more speakers or just bite the bullet and settle for a not so good Dolby Atmos experience??
Please help!..Thank you.
Hey Sunny I appreciate that so much, thank you! Funny thing is though you actually worded that exactly right, they are actually called 11.2 and 7.4.2. And with Atmos, the thing is in the technological sense, it’s not a particularly mass adopted technology, at least not yet.
Not every movie supports it which I’m sure you know, but the thing is, since each movie is mixed differently, there might be varying degrees of utilization when it comes to Atmos. That being said, from my personal experience, when it comes to Atmos, having at least 4 ceiling or height speakers seems to be the magic number since it gives a much more convincing 3D effect than 2, and it seems louder overall.
So if you can, in my personal opinion I’d do 4. I use to use 2 as well, and had the same issue you did. But when I added the extra 2 it made all the difference. No guarantees mind you, but this may be the case in your situation. That being said, are your speakers calibrated?
Because if it’s a Yamaha receiver you’re using, then id try running YPAO again and seeing if that helps. Also if it sets your speakers to Large in the speaker calibration, change it to small and leave the sub at large.
This basically makes sure your speakers aren’t trying to reproduce the same sounds the subwoofer is. And in regards to the volume thing, it’s definitely not just you because with my rear surrounds, even in really loud movies sometimes I wonder if they’re on or not.
But I think it’s just that they’re not used as much in most movies. In regards to my recommendation, I’d definitely add the extra sub since I’m a huge proponent on going dual, and I’d add an additional 2 ceiling speakers to see if that helps. My thoughts though are there might be settings issue.
Also check to see if Adaptive DRC is on and if it is turn it off because that could be causing problems too.
I am just getting started on my man cave in the basement and this is going to be a top priority of mine. I must say though, i never would have guesses that so much could go into a sound system that now I have no idea where to start. Is there a specific type that I should look into since I will be putting it in a basement with concrete walls with low ceilings?