Self Made Home Theatre

Almost all home theater systems and sound surround speakers include the following types:

* Front left and right speakers

* Center channel speaker

* Surround speakers

* Subwoofer

These speakers work together to create the surround sound experience of a movie theater in

your living room. While there are many brands and models that do a great job reproducing

sound, you will want to be sure that the various speakers in your home theater system work well

together as a cohesive unit. Check out what each speaker's job is, and some of the things to

consider before buying.

These speakers work to deliver spectacular directional effects, like a locomotive rushing by, or

a bullet zinging past. They really help put you smack dab in the center of the action. Although a

5.1-channel surround sound system, with only one pair of surround sound speakers, is the most

common setup, most newer home theater receivers can power more than a single pair of

surround speakers - and there are surround sound formats to match. Today, many people buy

one or two additional speakers to use as "back surrounds" in a 6.1- or 7.1-channel system.

The best Specifications to look for:

* Speaker type. Ideally, your surround sound speakers should have the same performance

capability as your front left and right speakers, but that's not always realistic when you consider

room size and space. Most people use either bookshelf or satellite speakers (when the system

also has a subwoofer) for their surrounds. Both bookshelf and satellite speakers may require

stand placement or wall mounting.

* Dipole/bipole capability. Some higher-end surround sound speakers offer a dipole/bipole

switch (sometimes referred to as a "Solid/Diffuse" switch). These speakers feature two highfrequency

drivers that either fire in phase (bipole) or out of phase (dipole). Dipole/bipole

speakers take advantage of reflected sound to create a wide sound field, and they provide

greater speaker placement flexibility.

* Placement. Correct surround sound speaker placement results in a very realistic threedimensional

sound field; incorrect surround speaker placement can leave people asking, "Are

our surrounds even on?" Check our speaker placement guide and consider where you'll put

your surrounds and whether they'll need to be stand-mounted, wall-mounted, or even in-wall or

in-ceiling models.

* Voice-matching. Again, for the most realistic listening experience, it helps if your surround

speakers are from the same "family" or series as your main and center channel speakers, and

have similar tonal characteristics.

Powered subwoofer

If you are assembling a home theater, plan on including a powered subwoofer. Many Dolby

Digital and DTS soundtracks provide a dedicated channel of deep bass (sometimes known as

low frequency effects, or LFE). This bass is what makes the entire soundtrack feel larger, fuller,

and more lifelike - and gives special effects like thunder or explosions their window-rattling

punch.

Since most speakers can't deliver that level of bass on their own, a subwoofer is needed to

ensure that your home theater system delivers crucial low-frequency impact. A subwoofer is

also a wonderful way to enrich music listening - it can round out all types of music, from

classical to jazz to rock to R&B.

What to look for:

* Power. If you have a large room (or if you just crave that serious bass content) then you

should look for a sub with more watts in the built-in amp. Plus, as a general rule, the larger the

driver, the deeper the bass - so go for a sub with a big 10" or 12" woofer cone (or a multi-woofer

sub) for serious bass response.

* Placement. Low-frequency sound waves are omni-directional, so you have a great deal of

flexibility when it comes to subwoofer placement. If you have a spot in your room picked out,

consider the dimensions of the sub's cabinet to make sure it will fit. And remember that placing

your sub near a wall, or, even better, in a corner, can increase bass impact noticeably.

*Video-shielding. If you are planning to place your subwoofer anywhere near a tube TV, be

certain to get a video-shielded sub.

These above guides should help you decide what pair of sound surround speaker are good for

your home theater system when you finally decide to join the big league of home theater