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Why do I
need a home theater receiver? A
home theater receiver does a number of things:
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it allows you to select what you
want to watch or listen to (e.g., DVD-Video player, CD player,
VCR, etc.)
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it serves as an AM/FM stereo tuner
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it performs any needed
digital-to-analog audio decoding
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it performs any needed digital
signal processing on the audio signal
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it performs any needed
post-processing for the audio signal
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it amplifies the low level audio
signal to drive your loudspeakers
You can buy home theater receiver as a
standalone component (to which you can connect other components [e.g.,
DVD-Video player and loudspeakers] to form a home theater system), or
as a integrated DVD receiver with both DVD player and home theater
receiver built into a single chassis. These integrated DVD
receivers are frequently bundled with a speaker system, in which case
they are called home theater-in-a-box (HTiB) systems. A
standalone home theater receiver based system will provide better
performance (i.e., plays louder and cleaner) and offer greater
flexibility and expansion over time as your system grows.
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What
is the difference between a home theater receiver and an A/V receiver?
The terms “home theater receiver” and
“A/V receiver” (short for audio/video receiver) are generally
interchangeable. Both can handle audio and video signals. In
this web site (with home theater emphasis), these terms are essentially
equivalent. “Home theater receivers” are sometimes distinguished
from “A/V receivers” by the number of channels they process and
amplify. “Home theater receivers” can handle the inputs and
outputs for a 5.1-channel system and has at least five channels of
amplification. (The “.1” low frequency effects (LFE) channel is
not amplified and is output to an active/powered subwoofer.) “A/V
receiver” , however, refers to a broader class of receivers that handles
two or more channels of audio. From this perspective, think
of home theater receivers as a subset of all A/V receivers. “A/V
receivers” differ from “stereo receivers” in that the former can
handle video signals, while the latter is constrained to just audio
signals.
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What
features do I look for in a home theater receiver? There
are many aspects of a home theater receiver. Read our Home
Theater Receiver Buying Guide to find out.
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What is a
pre-amplifier and how does it compare to a home theater receiver? A
pre-amplifier performs source equipment switching, digital signal
processing, and post-processing functions. This is only a few functions
of a home theater receiver. Together, a pre-amplifier, a tuner,
and a power amplifier has the same equivalent functionality of a home
theater receiver.
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What is a power amplifier and how does it
compare to a
home theater receiver?
A power amplifier is a standalone
chassis that simply amplifies a low level audio signal to drive
loudspeakers. This is only one of the functions
of a home theater receiver. Together, a pre-amplifier, a tuner,
and a power amplifier has the same equivalent functionality of
a home theater receiver.
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What is
THX Ultra, THX Ultra2, and THX Select?
Read this
section and this
section of our Home
Theater Receiver Buying Guide. THX
certification and post-processing
are considered nice-to-have features.
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What
surround sound formats does a home theater receiver need to support?
All home theater receiver have Dolby
Digital and DTS decoding, which are
considered required minimums. If you are not familiar with the
surround sound formats, especially the extended surround sound
formats, read our Surround
Sound Tutorial first. Then read this
section our Home
Theater Receiver Buying Guide.
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How much
power in a home theater receiver do I need to drive my loudspeakers?
The amount of power that you will need
in a home theater receiver depends on:
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the size (volume) of your room
-
the sensitivity
of your loudspeakers
-
how loud you would like to listen
to movies and music
To figure out how much power you will
need, read this
section of our Home
Theater Receiver Buying Guide.
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What
is bass management? The bass
management function of a home theater receiver re-directs the bass
(low frequency) audio signals to the loudspeakers that can reproduce
these frequencies. Usually, the low frequency signals are
re-directed to full-size loudspeakers and the subwoofer. Read this
section of our Home
Theater Receiver Buying Guide.
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What is a
digital receiver? A “digital
receiver” uses the relatively new digital circuit technology for the
power amplification stages. All the other stages are similar to
conventional analog receivers. This has nothing to do with the
ability to handle digital sources such as audio CD, DVD-Video,
etc. The digital power amplifier is usually termed “class D”
by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Digital power
amplifiers offer better efficiency (consumes less electricity) and
usually runs cooler. A digital receiver can be slimmer than its
equivalent analog counterpart.
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Where is
the “sweet spot” (most value or “bang
for the buck”) in home theater receivers? We
believe that you can find the most value in home theater receivers in
the $400 to $750 range. Read this
section of our Home
Theater Receiver Buying Guide for more information.
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What
home theater receivers do you recommend? Generally,
we
recommend the Denon, Onkyo, and Harman Kardon
brand of home theater receivers. Read our Home
Theater Receiver Buying Guide and see these brands' current
home theater receiver models in our Home
Theater Receiver Comparison Chart for more information.
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