Home Theater Equipment - What Three Unit's Do The Experts Say Are The Best.

The experts divide home theater systems by price, and it's probably wise to follow them down that road. Whether a Panasonic at a couple hundred dollars, or, Sony at a thousand dollars, or a more expansive home system, called multi-component multi-function at seventy five thousand dollars, there is a price tag that will match what you are willing to pay. The question then is, what are the best? We decided to take three divisions of cost and then check out the best in each. Best at l thousand or less, best at three thousand or less, and best at five thousand or less.

When talking about spending a thousand dollars, you want a system that passes all the tests with excellence; both Yamaha and Pioneer have Digital Home Theater Receiver units with the following specs:
YAMAHA HTR-5840 Features
Pioneer VSX-815-K
Analog Mix down
Straight/Effect Switch
2-Channel Stereo Mode
High Dynamic Power and Linear Damping
Wide-Range Audio Frequency Response for DVD-Audio/Super Audio CD
Subwoofer Phase Select
Speaker A, B or A+B Selection (Front L/R)
Front Panel Video Aux Terminals
Program Name and Sound Field Indications
3 S-Video Inputs
Wide-Range Video Bandwidth (60MHz -3dB)
Virtual CINEMA DSP
Luminescent Preset Remote Control Unit with Colored Buttons
Sleep Timer
40-Station Preset Tuning
Auto Preset Tuning
100 watts x 7 channels into 8 ohms (1 kHz) at 0.7% THD
Dolby Digital EX, DTS-ES, DTS 96/24, DTS Neo:6 and Pro Logic IIx decoding (including Games Mode)
192kHz/24-bit DACs for all channels
Component video switching: 3 in, 1 out
Digital inputs: 2 optical, 2 coaxial
3 audio, 4 A/V (including 4 s-video, 1 front-panel, and one 5.1-channel) inputs
Adjustable subwoofer crossover
2 sets of main speaker outputs
Support for WMA9 Pro
Lacks phono input
No on-screen display (OSD)
17-1/8"W x 5-15/16"H x 15-7/16"D
Warranty: 1 year parts & labor


When the specs are this complex, it really behooves a person to consider some elements of reasoning that may come into play - one unit specs its warranty, the other unit does not. Both units have outputs with variety, and input for S-video, but the option of optical input may be a pivot point to some people. In addition to these receivers, the experts emphasize the DVD player and in the $1000.00 and below category; they choose Samsung in the form of the HD850. Added to this array is Athena TECHNOLOGIES Micra 6 Home Theater in a Box. Total system cost with existing TV $1000.00.

The quality of the units examined for $1000 or less, versus the other cost factors being analyzed, isn't a reflection of the integrity of the manufacturer, rather, the more expense involved, sometimes is equal to a marginal increase in performance. As we move to the units favored at $3000 or less, some items do stand out. It begins with the viewing ware, Syntax Olevia LT30HVS 30" LCD HDTV which at $1000 is very nice.
For sound projection Yamaha YSP-1 priced for service at $1499.00, a Samsung DVD-HD950 for $200 brings in great picture clarity, the gem giving the whole system power under the hood is a Hsu Research STF-1 8" Subwoofer answering to $299. Total system price = $2999.00 making it an excellent choice under $3000.00.
Real differences begin to emerge as the price differential moves another $2000 higher, still within the range of a serious home theater acquisition, but yet less than an entire home makeover, this was an audiophiles analyzed system at $5000 or less.
Toshiba 46HM84 46" DLP Rear Projection TV - a rear end projection TV that has a picture equal to non rear end project, with, ease of install, $2099.