Surround Yourself with Sound

Installing a new surround sound system in your home is not an easy task. However, if it is setup properly, a surround sound system will make your at home movie and television watching a more enjoyable experience.

Any time you can savor a job well done is good. So you want to hook a surround sound to your new 52 inch flat screen television? Where do you start? First you have to decide how much you want to spend. Are you looking for the ultimate movie experience and looking to impress your friends and family? Unless you are Usher or Lil Jon, you might not be able to build an actual theater in your house. So those of us on a budget can still get great results without having to sell a kidney on the black market.

The easiest way to go is to buy a pre made system that has already been put together with all the components that match and all the wires included. You have a couple of choices if you are going to go this direction.

First, you can get what is called a sound bar. A sound bar is a speaker that sits directly over or under your television and mimics a surround sound speaker by having multiple channels of sound. It usually has a separate subwoofer that sits on the floor next to the TV. It is a trick of sound that make your ears believe that they are hearing surround sound. An advantage to this set-up is the ease of setting up the system and only having a couple of components to hook up.

Another option for your surround sound system is a 5.1 channel system. The 5.1 system is made up of 6 speakers. Three separate channel speakers are placed in the front of the room, above and on both sides of the television. The subwoofer is usually placed in the front of the room as well, on the floor by the television. The remaining two speakers are placed in the back of the room, on opposite sides of the viewing area. This is the most common surround sound system, available with several different options, including wireless rear speakers.

The last of the all in one system is a 7.1 channel system. It is the newest version and is great for using with the new Blu-ray players. Many new Blu-ray movies are available in a 7.1 which means the sound in much more realistic and vibrant. It is basically the same five speakers that a 5.1 system would have, but with two extra satellite speakers for the middle, sides of the room.