Audio receivers or AV receivers are common consumer electronic components of your home theater system. The only purpose of an AV receiver is to receive signals from an input device and send them out through output device. In simpler words the audio receiver gets signals from audio sources like VCR, DVD Player, video and interprets and amplifies it by sending them to an output source which comprises of your sound system and television.
5.1 channel home theaters have been used consistently for the last two decades and are seen as the standard when it comes to home theater. The 5.1 channels are left and right, a dedicated central channel to provide an anchor stage for dialogs, on screen sound and music vocals, and the last two channels are again left and right channels that are meant to amplify special effects and surround sound. There is a sub-woofer channel that amplifies extremely low frequency effects like explosion etc. 5.1 channels are ideal for a room that is less than 20 feet long.
7.1 on the other hand, are ideal if you live in a very large space. Seven point one channel has all the features of a five point one channel and instead of two channels for surround and rear channel, it has four channels dedicated for surround and rear. In simpler words side sound effect can be heard from the left and right surround channels, and the rear sound effect and ambience are directed to two back speakers. In an ideal setting, the surround speakers are set to the side of the listener and the back speakers are placed behind the listener, giving the listener more depth to the surround sound experience.
More and more blu-rays are made available in 7.1 channel information. But the 5.1 receiver is an equally fine option if you plan to use the set up in a small or average sized room.
The next thing when it comes to selecting an AV receiver is finding the watts being supplied to each speaker from the amplifier. Ideally A good home theater with surround system will be around 100 watts per channel, evenly distributed to each speaker.
Selecting a good unit is as important as the picture itself. The audio quality can enhance the whole movie experience and it is very important that you pay equal importance to both the audio unit as much as the TV screen. Buying an expensive audio system does not always mean the best system. Audio systems are quite expensive and while buying one first start by looking for a unit that matches the environment of your house. If you are opting for a unit to match an average size room, choose a 5.1 channel over a 7.1 channel. The 5.1 will give you a good sound effect, but the 7.1 offers more depth to the sound and makes the experience more enticing.
When looking for certifications for your unit you could look for certifications from THX. THX offer rigorous certification that extends from home audio receivers, speakers, acoustic material, microphones and HDMI cables. Look for Select2 certifications when opting for home theater components for a medium sized rooms.
Almost every DVD audio contains audio in Dolby digital format. DTS, Dolby Surround and Dolby Digital are different methods of creating a surround effect to enhance the movie experience. Dolby Digital and DTS are ideal formats when you have a 5.1 channel set up.
No matter if it is a budget home theater setup or a high-end AV gear, just the setup can make or break your viewing experience. Setting up the speakers is as important for the audio effect as the speakers themselves. Start by placing the sofa, the left and right speakers to make an equilateral triangle. The central speaker channel has to be placed close to the TV, in the absence of central speaker channel, place the front speaker close to the TV. The central speaker channel work best if placed properly on the centre. The rare speakers should be placed facing each other and placed behind the viewer. Lastly, the subwoofers which can be placed anywhere in the room, try and moving them around to find where it sounds best. Ensure that the rare speakers are placed higher than the front speakers for better effect. Also ensure that the surround speakers are placed high enough and not in ear length to avoid direct firing into your ears.