Home Theater Equipment List: A Buyer’s Guide

Are you looking to set up a home theater for yourself? Let us help you put together a home theater equipment list with some great options.

Do you enjoy watching streaming videos at home during your off time? You are part of the 62% adult population in America that uses at least one video or music streaming platform.

If you want to get the best streaming video and music experience at home, I suggest you upgrade to a home theater. Experiencing your favorite music or movies in high-definition with surround sound is nearly as magical as watching it on the big screen! 

Let me help you make a home theater equipment list and suggest some great products for it.

Setting Up Your Viewing Space for a Home Theater System

A home theater system creates an immersive experience for the user. But before you buy one, you should consider a few things about your viewing space: 

How Much Space Do You Have?

The first step is to note the space that you have to keep a home theater system. Measure the dimensions carefully, leaving enough space to keep the TV, AV receiver, speakers/soundbar and subwoofer, and your wiring.

What Kind of Lighting Does the Room Have?

It is ideal to operate a home theater system under low ambient lighting. Try to position your primary lighting source behind the home theater to avoid screen glare and reflection. If you use a screen projector, then ambient lighting can create washed-out images and visuals. Try to keep ambient lighting to a minimum by covering your windows with black chart paper.

What Kind of Flooring Does the Room Have?

The flooring of your room also impacts your home theater system’s capability. Carpeting tends to absorb sound waves, thereby reducing the impact of your speakers. If your carpeting is only for aesthetic appeal, consider removing it or replacing it with thinner carpets. Hard flooring is ideal for home theater systems as hard surfaces are more reflective. 

Components of A Home Theater System

Display Device

Getting the right display device is the most important decision that you make. The first choice is whether to select a TV or a Projector.

There was a time when projectors were considered the creme-de-la-creme of movie viewing. Today, 80 inch + TVs with OLED and QLED technology at very reasonable prices have made projectors redundant. 

Secondly, projectors have a huge problem with ambient light – if you want to watch a dark movie, you have to shut off every window and door in the room; otherwise, you will never get to see it!

However, projectors still have a loyal fan base. And for those who are not satisfied with even 80 and 100 inch TVs, projectors remain the best theater-like experience.

AV receiver

The AVR is the heart of your home theater. It receives input signals from devices like DVD players and satellite receivers. It sends them the right amplification to your speakers while also sending the video signal to your TV/projector. 

AV receivers can power either a 5.1 or a 7.1 configuration (more on this in the speaker’s section).

Surround Sound Speakers

If you are a sound lover, soundbars may not give you enough depth or quality. Spend a bit extra and get yourself a set of surround sound speakers. 

5.1 and 7.1 are the more popular configurations of surround sound speakers. The number represents how many speakers you have. 

5.1 means two speakers left and right, one above, and two surrounds sound speakers at the back. 7.1 adds two more surround sound speakers on either side. 

7.1 is the norm these days and gives you a great surround sound effect even in a large room. 

Soundbars

Soundbars are all the rage these days. They take up very little space and create a surround sound effect for your home theater. With flat-screen TVs becoming the norm, there is little room in the TV for a good speaker; soundbars fill this gap.

Keep in mind that many soundbars do not have a built-in subwoofer for bass. Even if it does, you might want to buy one separately for that theater-like bass effect.

Depending on your room’s size and the quality of output you expect, there is a tradeoff between sound quality and price between Soundbars and surround sound speakers. 

A soundbar will augment the output of your basic TV system with multiple speakers in a compact space, giving you surround sound as well as good bass and low-frequency output, especially if it has an external subwoofer included. They are cheaper than a complete surround sound theater system.

However, soundbars do lack some depth in their audio signals. A home theater system comes in sets of two, five, or even more speakers. It gives you a much more immersive experience, though it comes at the cost of both money and space.

Media Device

A media device that can stream all your video apps such as Netflix and Hulu and have the option to go old school with a DVD/Blu-ray player built-in is ideal.

With the coming of Google’s Chromecast and Amazon’s Fire Stick, media devices these days have become much smaller. Secondly, most TV already has built-in apps for streaming, which is making media devices redundant.

Cables

You’ve got all the devices, but how will you get the system to work without the right cables! Make sure to get a high-quality, durable HDMI cable to connect your video input or AVR to your TV, and similarly select the best wiring for your speaker configuration.

Home Theater Equipment List: Top Choices

The primary criteria for selecting these items is value addition. We have selected them based on a frank evaluation of performance versus price. Most of these items are plug-and-play; you don’t need any setup for them.

#1 Kabeldirekt HDMI Cable: For Connecting Video Output

Features & Benefits

• Performance: This connecting cable has the capability of streaming video and audio in 4K quality. 4K video has a very high pixel rate of 4096×2160 pixels. Your video will run at a high frequency of 60 hertz or 120 hertz with this HDMI cable.
• Quality: The length of this HDMI cable is well over 50 feet. This connecting cable has a 7.1 surround sound audio with a high dynamic range. If you have a high-end TV, you can even stream audio and video in 8K quality at 60 hertz.
• Durable: This HDMI cable uses high-quality copper. This cable is machine soldered for high durability with gold-plated connectors for an appealing look. These gold connectors on this cable also provide metal shielding.

#2 Polk Audio Subwoofer

Features & Benefits

• Frequency Response: The subwoofer has a 40-160 Hz (-3dB) frequency response, which is considered good for getting a high-quality bass. For reference, 20-160 Hz is usually considered the best frequency response for bass, with a 3dB variance.
• Crossover upper limit (160Hz): Crossover limits the input frequencies that a subwoofer can process. This product has a crossover of 80-160 Hz, which means it can work well with systems that have other speakers to handle above 160Hz input. 
• Crossover lower limit (80Hz): The lower frequency has been set at 80Hz to ensure that the sound’s origin is nearly impossible to locate for most listeners, which lets the sound blend in with the rest of your soundbar or surround sound speaker configuration.
• Design: The ten-inch tall woofer system design, coupled with a unique directed port, helps add depth to your bass sound.
• High Volume Performance: Many subwoofers create cracked or distorted sounds at higher volume. Polk audio works perfectly loud music as well
• Plug and Play: With the free connecting cable, all you have to do is hook it onto your AVR or soundbar. 

#3 Goldwood 5.1 Bluetooth Surround Sound Speaker System

Features & Benefits

• 5.1 Surround Sound: The speaker system consists of five speakers (5.1). Each has an independent channel for input and output, making it a complete surround sound set.
• Stereo To Home Theater: The system can automatically convert stereo (dual-mode) sound to the home theater (5.1 formats).
• Plug and Play: You can stream music directly over Bluetooth without the use of any wires. For a TV or AVR, you will need standard RCA wires.
• Power output: The speaker system has a 700W peak power rating, with an RMS 
• (root mean square) power rating of 350W. A 350W power output will generate approx 120dB of sound. For comparison, that’s as loud as a thunderclap!
• Frequency Response: The speakers have a full frequency response range of 20Hz – 20KHz. The subwoofer system has a range between 20Hz-170Hz, and satellite speakers can deliver 120Hz – 20kHz. The speaker system can play deep bass to high treble equally well.
• Input modes: Apart from Bluetooth, the speakers also have SD card and flash drive input and the traditional independent wired input modes for each speaker.
• Speaker Design: Speaker circuitry can get damaged by nearby magnetic fields. The speaker enclosures in this system are designed with magnetic shielding and are computer designed. 

#4 Megacra Wireless Soundbar

Features & Benefits

• Superior: This soundbar consists of four full-range drivers. These drivers can deliver and carry crystal clear audio over a wider distance range. Along with four drivers, you even get two bass reflex ports and two tweeters in this soundbar.
• Customizable: This wireless soundbar has adjustable treble and bass features so that you can take control of your watching experience and set the sound quality as per your liking. This soundbar speaker is 40 inches long and compact.
• Functional: This soundbar’s power output is as high as 105 decibels, along with three audio modes specially created to enhance your experience. These three modes are music, dialogue, and movie modes.

#5 Fangor High-definition Projector

Features & Benefits

• Performance: This projector produces highly detailed images with a sharp texture and contrast. The full HD interface of this projector displays your video and images in 1920×1080 pixels clarity. The contrast ratio for the video is 6000:1 for a cinematic experience.
• Ergonomic: This projector is easy to use and connect because of its wireless connectivity feature. You can connect this projector to all other devices easily through an application. You also get built-in stereo surround sound speakers inside this projector so that you can use this projector with a home theater system.
• Superior Quality: The projecting lens on the projector uses a combination of six layers providing a high amount of refraction. It is a lightweight project with a weight of just 2.8 pounds, so you can also travel with this projector.

#6 SAMSUNG 85-inch Class Crystal UHD TU-8000

Features & Benefits

• Crystal 4K Processor: Crystal 4K is the new image processor in the TU8000 series, which offers the same benefit as a QLED TV if you leave aside the quantum dots. It’s a powerful image processor for high-quality video.
• Voice-controlled: The UHD TV is compatible with both Alexa and Bixby for voice commands.
• 4K UHD TV: 4K refers to the fact that the TV’s digital display has at least eight million active pixels (essentially a 3,840 by 2,160 configuration). 4K is four times 1080p, which is considered the standard for high definition video output. 
• Tizen powered: Tizen is an open-source standard for visual apps, which is considered technically superior to android. Samsung pioneered the Tizen program. In all, the performance of your apps that you can run on this TV is better than traditionally Android TV’s
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#7 Sony BDPS6700 4K-Upscaling Blu-ray DVD Player

Features & Benefits

• 4K upscaling: If you are looking to buy a 4K TV, you need a media device that can power that 4K TV to provide the best quality input. This device can upscale 2D to 3D and service 3D HDR video.
• Wi-Fi & Bluetooth Compatible: Who likes wires? Your media device should work with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth and be able to cast to your mobile device. 
• Services: This media unit lets you access your favorite content from Netflix, Pandora, Youtube, Amazon, and many other sources

#8 Yamaha AV Receiver

Features & Benefits

• Dolby Audio: You can enjoy crystal clear audio with this AV receiver. Dolby digital audio creates an engaging experience for the users as the audio from this AV receiver is cleared and boosted so that you can understand every little detail. 
• Ergonomic: This 7.2ch audio system is also wireless. You can use this feature to use or connect this AV receiver to a home theater. You can expand the range of this AV receiver as it establishes a wireless connection.
• Functional: This Yamaha AV receiver can stream audio in very high 4K quality at a frequency rate of 60 hertz. The Connection and installation process for this receiver is simple as you can control it with your voice.

Conclusions on the Best Home Theater Equipment List

We have listed above some of the best home theater equipment that will give your home theater high-quality audio and video output and last for a long time. 

Home theaters are like an assembly project. You get to build them over time by using the best of each item – be it your DVD player, your TV/projector, your AV receiver, soundbars, and other things. We have tried to make this assembly easier for you by giving you the best of many items in one place.

Last update on 2023-02-07 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API