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As we all know plasma TVs are great and are an essential part of your home theater. It used to be that plasmas would get that burn in that looks so bad and the screens themselves would lose their brightness quite quickly but now those old limitations are gone.

Choosing a TV can be a challenging outing for many people and one the requires proper decision making. LCD TV’s are popular among many, but in order to take your TV watching to the next level plasma would be a preference that may make your eyes pop out with excitement. With the great amount of plasma TV’s available getting an idea of how much TV you can afford is important.

Bigger Is Not Inevitably Always Better With different sizes and features evaluate what your needs are and decide what’s the best fit. Consider the size of the plasma television that you decide on what have an impact on your overall investment. From an affordability standpoint plasma units that are less than 42 inches are usually cheaper. For a plasma TV monitor expect to pay anywhere from $1,000 to somewhere around $5,000 depending on the model. You can look to cough up a higher price for a TV plasma unit that is more prominent than 42 inches in size.

Rich Color and Audio Will Make You Happy
Having settled on the make including the size you now can focus on the exciting aspects of owning a plasma TV, which is how it looks. Each plasma television will have it’s own features and this will ultimately influence your choice. Features will include the amount of color saturation which determines how it looks. Well placed blocks of solid black add to depth, coupled with rich color in plasma televisions. This combination enhances the viewing enjoyment. Plasma TV’s have other features as well. To give better true to life color and depth to you favorite tv programs, plasma monitors use gas cells to provide the color. High definition broadcasts will have a smoother and crisper look to your picture image.

Ports in the Back are Crucial
While selecting the highest quality plasma that your money can buy, make sure you investigate whether or not the unit comes with accessory terminals usually located at the rear of the TV. Terminals in the back will let you include other electronic items like stereos, X-Box’s, Video Players and other accessory items. Picture in picture allows you to watch two shows at the same time. In some models its a mini screen in others it could be adjustable up to half and half.

Evaluating these different items will give you the foundation that you need in order to make a wise decision on a plasma TV monitor for your family viewing. Having a working knowledge of the main elements and feature of plasma sets will give you the ability to wade through all of the choices. Without a doubt you’ll be ready to choose a model and feel good about your decsion when selecting a plasma TV.

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Now that you know more about your choices in plasma TVs it is time to go out and look at all the choices that the local stores offer and see what is new. I can keep you up to date with these changes but the salesman at the stores will try to do that as well. Remember to know what you are buying before laying out that credit card.

There is more to improving or completing your home theater than just going to the local best buy an d getting a new receiver. Look at the following features before plunging in.

Your home theater receiver is the brain of your operation. Without the receiver, nothing else would matter. The receiver is the receptacle for all of the information that is brought into the home via satellite, cable, or antenna. Receivers do everything from the basics of being the channel hub to being the audio/video receiver for your television and the FM receiver for a stereo, as well as the “circuit hub” for everything that is involved in your system. Some of the more upscale and modern models include ports for connecting your XM radio or Ipod. With all of the bells and whistles available on these receivers, it is important to know what you want in a receiver before you ever start looking. When you do start your search, make sure that you do your homework and get all of the accessories you want as well as a good price on your new theater system.

Any receiver can handle a basic two channel stereo playback, but a good model will be equipped with Dolby Digital and or DTS surround sound processing. Both of these formats use five audio channels plus a special low frequency bass to present a more theater like feel and sound quality. Many DVDs are equipped to utilize these features of the modern home theater system. Many of the upper model receivers are equipped with Dolby Digital EX that will allow a greater filtration and presentation of the movie’s background noise and create a more realistic theater viewing.

The most common type of receiver -5.1-channel models- decode the audio information contained in Dolby Digital and DTS soundtracks and route them to front left and right, center, and surround speakers in your system via their five built-in amplifier channels. (The .1, or low frequency effects, channel in a movie soundtrack gets directed to a powered subwoofer with its own on-board amplifier.) Along with all of the attributes of the 5.1, the 6.1 include an additional amp channel that drives another surround speaker when watching a DVD equipped with Dolby Digital EX, creating the more realistic feel.

7.1-channel receivers are basically the same as 6.1-channel models, but they include yet another amp channel to drive a second back surround speaker. In this case, the audio information going to both back speakers is identical; it’s just distributed between the two back speakers to create an even more expansive rear sound field. The specifications for the new HD DVD and Blu-ray disc formats allow for soundtracks with up to 7.1 discrete audio channels. So while a 7.1-channel receiver might seem like overkill, right now it’s a more future-proof option than 5.1 and 6.1 models.

Since the receiver is the brain of your home theater, you want to try to get the most bang for your buck when purchasing a system. You may think now that you do not need all of the amenities involved, but in six months, you may wish you had all of the sound quality of that model you saw that was only $30 more. If you are interested, you may want to even get a model that allows you to change rooms within your system so you can switch to a different set of speakers that you have set up in your dining room or on the back patio.

Buying a top of the line receiver with all of the possible accessories is the easiest way to go, but there are negatives to this idea. If you are unfamiliar with a product and its accessories or the correct usage of either of them, you could end up damaging your new investment. It is best to do your homework and make sure that the product you are getting is the correct receiver for your needs and desires.

http://www.YourHomeTheaterSystem.com brings you real information on how to easily and affordably setup your very own home theater system just like the rich and famous. There’s nothing to buy, just real information for real people. Be sure to check out our home theater projector pages.

Here is some interesting information although it is in a press release from Best Buy so it has their own marketing spin on it. It seems that Best Buy feels that ease of installation is one of the big factors wehn it comes to buying a home theater although I think that this is probably not as true as most people worry about this only a few minutes before they make their purchase.

Hoem theater installation is really only a one time event, unless you move a lot, and either can be done by yourself or of course you can get a professional in to do this critical step. There is a cost and if you can justify the cost of installation then that is best overall. I myself have always done my own installations although there is really not too much to it in my eyes.

Women’s influence on consumer electronics purchases is quickly growing, and according to a December 2006 Best Buy Omnitel Survey, their interest goes well beyond aesthetics. In fact, when it comes to the technical aspects of setting up a home theater, women have even stronger feelings than men. For instance, 74 percent of women list sound quality as a very important aspect to consider while only 54 percent of men feel the same.

Women are clearly paying attention to the details of technology today and are taking an active role in the selection and performance of their home theater system. More women than men feel sound quality, ease of use, price, and installation services are “very important.”

Very Important Women Men
Sound Quality 74% 54%
Ease of Use 67% 45%
Price 69% 50%
Installation Services Available 38% 23%

“Deciding on an HDTV is an emotional purchase – we’ve heard from many couples that it can be as complex a decision as deciding on a car or even a house,” said Mike Vitelli, senior vice president of consumer electronics at Best Buy. “Best Buy understands our customers want their HD done right. That’s why we offer consultation, products and installation services to give our customers a home theater experience that fits their unique needs.”

If they can’t agree who gets control of the remote (38 percent of respondents say they are somewhat or very likely to argue with their significant other over the remote control), at least men and women agree that picture quality is the most important aspect of selecting a new HDTV. Eighty percent of men and women surveyed ranked picture quality as being very important in their HDTV buying decision.

While the technical side of the home theater is important, the survey found that both men and women agree that size does indeed matter. The majority (57%) of flat-panel TV owners surveyed agree that bigger is better when it comes to flat-panel TVs. Aesthetics matter as well. Both men and women flat-panel TV owners agree that they even like their flat-panel TVs when they’re turned off (52%).

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Here is another introductory article on home theaters from Kevin Hunt of the Hartford Courant. It is a good read if you are new to home theaters but may be a bit of a rehash for you experienced guys. The really nice thing is that the writer of this article goes on to setup some rules for choosing a home theater and then actually applies them to the Panasonic SA-XR57.

Surround sound starts with an audio-video receiver. Consider the number of channels, how much power you need and how to hook things up.

BY KEVIN HUNT

It’s not a crime to own an HDTV without a surround system, but don’t wait until lobbyists push through legislation.

Let’s keep it an unwritten law: It takes a big-screen television and surround sound to make a home theater.

Surround sound starts with an audio-video receiver. Here are a few things to consider when buying your first:

1. How many channels? A basic home theater has 5.1 channels, which translates to five speakers — left, center and right in the front and left and right behind the listener — and a subwoofer. The subwoofer plays only the lowest frequencies, producing the rumbling special effects of movie soundtracks, so gets only fractional credit (the .1 in 5.1) in a surround system. Think of it as the vice president of your surround system.

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I am not an Apple user but today I watched the release event of a host of new products including the iTV which will be a new wireless set top box from Apple. Here are the highlights of the event today:

Nano

-All models are 52% smaller in volume than previous nano. new charger, new armband, new lanyard
-8GB is $249 in all colors
-4GB is $199 in all colors but black
-2GB is $149 in silver only

iTunes 7

-3 different views of iTunes
-iTunes will give you cover art for free if you are missing cover art
-TV shows are now encoded at 640×480 (h264), up from 320×240
-New Cover Flow view. (LOOKS LIKE FLIPPING THROUGH YOUR CD RACK)
-You can update your iPod from right inside iTunes

Movies from iTunes

-Near DVD quality. Same encoding as TV shows at 640×480. If you have a 5mb/s broadband connection, it will take approximately 30 minutes to download a movie
-New releases 12.99 preorders and first week, after that up to 14.99
-most titles will be 9.99
-films from Walt Disney, Pixar, Touchstone, Miramax
-75 films online today, more every week and month
-Dolby surround audio in videos

iTV

-Apple is releasing its long-rumored set-top box in Q1 2007. It will be Wireless
-1/2 size of Mac Mini, built-in power supply, USB, Ethernet, 802.11 “wireless component video”, optical audio and HDMI ports, plus old RCA stereo audio ports. Works with Apple Remote
-Like a Mac Mini… iTV is its name
-Apple is now in your den, living room, car, pocket works with iTunes on PC or Mac. price will be $299
-iTV lets you get access to trailers and itunes store selected content from internet

Electronic home entertainment equipment installers and repairers, also called service technicians, repair a variety of equipment, including televisions and radios, stereo components, video and audio disc players, video cameras, and video recorders. They also install and repair home security systems, intercom equipment, satellite television dishes, and home theater systems, which consist of large-screen televisions and sophisticated surround-sound audio components.

Customers usually bring small, portable equipment to repair shops for servicing. Repairers at these locations, known as bench technicians, are equipped with a full array of electronic tools and parts. When larger, less mobile equipment breaks down, customers may pay repairers to come to their homes. These repairers, known as field technicians, travel with a limited set of tools and parts, and attempt to complete the repair at the customer’s location. If the job is complex, technicians may bring defective components back to the shop for thorough diagnosis and repair.

When equipment breaks down, repairers check for common causes of trouble, such as dirty or defective components. Many repairs consist simply of cleaning and lubricating equipment. If routine checks do not locate the trouble, repairers may refer to schematics and manufacturers’ specifications that provide instructions on how to locate problems. Repairers use a variety of test equipment to diagnose and identify malfunctions. Multimeters detect short circuits, failed capacitors, and blown fuses by measuring voltage, current, and resistance. Color-bar and dot generators provide onscreen test patterns, signal generators test signals, and oscilloscopes and digital storage scopes measure complex waveforms produced by electronic equipment. Repairs may involve removing and replacing a failed capacitor, transistor, or fuse. Repairers use handtools, such as pliers, screwdrivers, soldering irons, and wrenches, to replace faulty parts. They also make adjustments to equipment, such as focusing and converging the picture of a television set or balancing the audio on a surround-sound system.

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