Over the years, consumer electronics manufacturers have made advances in providing the best theater experience for homebodies. Enter the home theater system (HTS). Widescreen display. Loud booming high-definition surround speakers. High-definition video. Mmm… Delectable.

If you’ve been saving up and finally have the cash to invest in your own HTS. Here’s a quick guide to what you’d have to consider in buying your own HTS.

• Deciding to Buy

  Like any piece of electronic device though, better research on which brands are good in terms of audio-visual experience, durability, and price. Ask around. Visit online review sites. Read the specs carefully.

  Try visiting a few stores first to see what brands and models are currently available. See what would fit your needs. Survey the prices.

  In terms of budget make for allowance for retail prices (which you can also find online) and sales tax. Try to balance between buck-per-bang. It’s not also a bad idea to get extended warranties if you are going to buy those expensive high-definition TVs.

• HTS-in-a-Box

  If you’re planning on revamping all the audio-visual (A/V) electronics in your home, then HTS-in-a-box might just be the one for you. You get all the needed components for your basic HTS – a display set (optional), surround speakers, video player, and connectors. This offers you the easiest route since you’re assured that connectivity won’t be an issue. However, for a real quality setup, you might have to consider purchasing components separately.

• Display

  When buying a TV or a projector set, one thing that you always have to consider is space. You might want a real large display but will it fit your viewing area? There’s also such a thing as optimum viewing distances and angles. Here’s a viewing distance calculator to help you out.

  Make measurements of your viewing space and bring them along for reference. You might also want to survey entrances of your home, transporting your new TV and squeezing it into your viewing area may cause you unexpected problems.

  For the display you have choices between LCD displays, your typical CRT TV, projector system, or HDTV.

• Surround Sound Speakers

  A large display doesn’t quite deliver the oomph when not paired with loud but crisp and clear sound system. The more common ones today are the 5.1, 6.1, and 7.1 setups (The .1 refers to the sound that goes out to your subwoofer). The latest high-definition sound setups go up to 22.2. Here’s more information about sound setups.

• DVD, HD-DVD, Blu-ray

  High definition is the name of the game as far as home theater experiences go. The DVD is sadly becoming a thing of the past with the introduction of HD-DVD and Blu-ray. So you might want to consider them. (Oh yeah, if you happen to plan to watch porn on your HTS, you might not want to consider Blu-ray).

  Take note that not all models can play back all your video formats (starting from CDs, to CD-R/RWs, to VCDs, to DVDs…). So if you have quite the video collection, better bring some of them and try them out. You don’t want to get an expensive player that doesn’t play most of your collection.

• Connectivity

  If you have no idea what the heck are composite video, s-video, DVI, and coaxial cable and connectors are, here’s a gallery that shows you which ones are which. You might have to consider which ones go where. Make sure that your display can connect to your video player. This goes the same for all of your other components.

  Are expensive cables the better route to go? On a very technical perspective, yes. These cables often feature thicker shielding which prevents interferences that might garble display and affect sound quality.

  If cables give you a headache then you might also want to consider wireless setups. These, however, would take more from your budget.

  You might also want to put in your old VCR/VHS so you can watch those old recordings and home videos that you might chance to keep. For such a set-up you might need an A/V receiver to manage all your connections.

• Home Theater PC

  Here’s another new addition to the HTS. You can now have the option to throw in a real PC into the mix to handle all the processing and decoding of digital video formats. This is usually a top-of the line CPU with really powerful processor, video card, sound card, and lots of memory.

• Acoustics and Lighting

  You might also want to prep your viewing area by installing sound proofing or acoustics enhancing material. A dimmed area would be the best for optimum viewing pleasure so you might want to think of installing blinds, dim lights, and other works for your space.

• Get Expert Help

  If you’re having a hard time figuring out how you’ll design your HTS, then better ask for professional opinion. Don’t be afraid to ask than make a very costly mistake.

• A Sound Investment

  Building you HTS can be as cheap as the lowest priced HTS box set, or be as expensive as buying a good car. This would definitely be a financial investment. Make sure that you have everything budgeted out before you commit yourself to a purchase.

  You might also want to check out for promotions and sales in your area so you could shave off a good amount from the original price.

If you finally have everything checked, go out and get yourself an HTS. Make sure you enjoy every minute you spend watching movies at the comfort of your own home knowing that you’ve made very wise choices.