The fact that consumers are lapping up home theatre (HT) packages is largely due to three reasons. First, they are not very expensive anymore. Second, most people aren’t very satisfied with the sound of their television’s built-in speakers. Third, TV manufacturers have realized this demand, and are bundling these HT packages with the televisions that they sell…

However, getting a home theatre is something completely different from getting the best out of it. Here are some basic tips that you can follow, and make the best of the money you have spent.

Identify the setup you want
The most popular of the home theatre setups are of the 5.1 channel type. In simple terms, this means that there are 5 speakers and one woofer. There are 2.1 channel, 7.1 channel setups also available, and so are the likes of 5.2 etc.,. In other words, a lot of modification is possible as far as the configuration is concerned. However, the critical aspect is the size of the room, and the setup needs to be selected wisely. Too many speakers will make the sound overwhelming. On the contrary, too few speakers, or even ones that aren’t very powerful, will just mean the sound won’t be powerful enough to fill the room.

How much power is good power?
Well, this will completely depend on the room size, and how you will utilize that space. Some say that buying the most powerful set of speakers available will make the audio sound better. But that is just a crude way of going about it, and a waste of money to be more precise. The simple point is, if you room is big enough for just a 2.1 channel setup, buy one of those without any shame or peer pressure to buy something bigger.

Get the essential components
With any home theatre setup, there is a receiver unit, to which all speakers will be connected. Any external devices are also hooked up to this, allowing for audio pass-through. This is where the entire decoding of the audio happens. Then there will be a set of speakers. There will be 2, 5 or 7, depending on the setup. In the midst will also be a woofer, which is there to assist with the punch in the final sound. The woofer is also connected to the receiver unit, and should ideally kick in only when it is needed, and not keep thumping out sounds unnecessarily.

However, the lower end DVD-home theatre setups will not have any HDMI inputs. What they offer is a DVD player, and a couple of audio inputs to connect the TV audio output to.

Visualize the room post setup
Before you spend the money, it is crucial to understand how the home theatre setup will look post setup. You will need to factor in the existing furniture etc. Make a rough layout on a piece of paper, with an approximate positioning of the speakers. This will not only give you an idea of the space available to you, but also help in any tweaking of the layout, if required.

Placing the speakers
Speaker placement is extremely crucial, for the best sound output. Let us take the example of a 5.1 channel system to illustrate the point. The centre speaker needs to be placed at the centre of the wall on which the TV is installed. The two front speakers should be on either edges of the wall, directly facing the rear speakers that should be on the edges of the rear wall. The fact that the speakers can look at each other means that the surround effect will be much better. The woofer can be placed on any edge of the room, and not in the middle of the room.

Room Acoustics = makes or breaks the sound
Assuming that your room is not a dedicated home theatre zone, it is essentially just like any other room at home. There will be pieces of furniture and walls that have no absorbing material on them. Home theatre experts are paid to do this job, but for someone who isn't buying an ultra high-end HT setup, their services aren’t really deployed. You will need to reduce the area of the reflective surfaces with something more absorbing – more curtains, rugs or carpets will help.

Media centre console
It is ideal if you have some dedicated furniture where you can keep the components of the home theatre. Ensure you buy something with enough shelves for all the devices – the AV receiver, DVD or Blu-ray player, gaming console etc. Ensure that the components get enough ventilation, since most gadgets tend to heat up quite quickly.

The power game
Does your room have enough power sockets, to handle all the gadgets? If no, then you should probably invest in some extension cords. A surge protector (spike buster) is a good idea, since it’ll protect the sensitive electronics from any spike in electricity voltage. We suggest an equally powerful voltage stabilizer as well, over and above the spike buster. 

Careful wiring
With multiple speakers spreads across the room, the wires connecting the speakers to the receiver unit are obviously snaking across the room. These need to be installed with care. Speaker wires are thin and sensitive to any bad treatment, and a slight break will ruin the sound from that particular speaker. It is best to snake the wires across the edges of the wall or the floor, and use hooks to pin them against the wall. This will keep the wire protected and stable, with less chance of getting pulled or damaged. Also, the wiring needs to be stretched only to the extent that there remains some leeway. A fully stretched wire is bad news for its longevity and becomes more prone to damage.