When it comes to building a home theatre, perhaps it's no surprise virtually all the attention (and thus, budget) goes to the high-definition television itself. After all, it's the visual centerpiece of the room, the one piece that draws your eye to it -- and that competitive neighbour you're trying to show up.
But as any home theatre enthusiast will tell you, in order to get the most of your setup, there are also a few must-have accoutrements to adorn your media room with, and a few nice-to-have goodies, too, depending on your individual priorities.
A few considerations:
Sound advice
Rather than relying on your television's mere two-channel audio ("stereo"), an audio-video receiver such as the Pioneer VSX-9130TXH-K ($899.99; pioneerelectronics.ca) can split a movie's audio into up to eight channels (7.1 surround sound) when connected to speakers surrounding the room. An AV receiver also supports multiple audio technologies embedded on Blu-ray Discs, such as Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio, to help replicate a movie theatre experience. Featuring more than 900 watts of total power, this AV receiver supports satellite radio subscriptions and iPod connectivity, and also features HDMI switching therefore you can connect multiple high-def components to the box and use the remote to toggle between sources (and "up-convert" older sources, such as a DVD player, to near HD quality).
Remote possibilities
In case you've never laid your hands on the Canadian-invented Harmony Remotes -- now owned by Californian peripheral maker Logitech -- these powerful universal remote controls are first programmed by downloading codes from the Internet (when connected to a PC via a USB cable). Using it is just as simple: press one of the many (and customizable) "macro" commands, each of which performs multiple functions with just one button press, such as "Play a DVD," "Watch TV" or "Listen to Music" and the remote does the rest. The top-of-the-line Harmony 1100 ($599.99; logitech.com controls up to 15 devices and offers a large, colourful touch-screen with integrated sensors that turn on the remote when it's lifted off its charging base.
Feeling Blu
Not all Blu-ray Disc players are created equal. Samsung's curvy new BD-P4600 ($499.99; samsung.ca) offers more than just good looks. Oh sure, it's billed as the world's thinnest Blu-ray Disc player at just 1.5-inches thick, plus it includes an optional wall mounting kit, but more importantly it delivers incredible image processing, high-quality audio output options, 1GB of built-in memory to store files and a bundled Wi-Fi dongle so it can log online to access BD-Live extras over a Wi-Fi network (if the Blu-ray Discs support it). A nice bonus is the ability to access media from a nearby PC (music, photos and videos), while U.S.-based users can also stream Netflix movies and Pandora radio channels via the Samsung BD-P4600.
