Surround sound system HELP?

May 2021 4 166 Report

Surround sound system HELP?

I'm considering getting a home theatre surround sound system. I was looking for a system that would suit a small/medium sized room. All I really want it for is for playing music and playing xbox.

I was looking at the Onkyo HT-S5300 7.1 surround system but I don't know what I should be looking for.

Questions I need answered:

•What does the "7.1" mean in the name?

•Does all systems work with all rooms? Or are there different sized systems for small/large rooms?

•And anything else I should know.

All comments are appreciated

Consumer Electronics / Home Theater

Verified answer

7.1 means that the system has 7 satellite speakers and one subwoofer. A 5.1 has 5 satellite speakers and a subwoofer. Unless you have a very large room, no one really needs 7.1. You will have all the sound you need from a 5.1 system.

Do all systems work with all rooms? That's a tricky question to answer since their are so many different types of systems. For the most part, the system isn't nearly dependent as much on the room, but what you are going to use it for. But any system with an AV receiver and speakers will work for most rooms and set-ups.

Anything else?

YES

I would recommend not buying this system. Although they are not as good as they once were, Onkyo still makes pretty good receivers; however, their speakers aren't good at all. This can be said about the majority of audio name brands. They either make decent speakers or decent amplifiers. None really do both. So I would recommend getting a component system. This is a system that you buy each piece individually. A component system is more like building your own home, while an all-in-one home theater system is more like buying a trailer.

Also, since you don't have a very big room, I would go with a 5.1 system. The money you save not getting the 7.1 can go toward better quality speakers. Check these out.

Receiver:

http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&expId...

Speakers:

http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=polk+audi...

Throwaway1192

As other people said, 7.1 means 7 speakers and one subwoofer. I personally would not recommend getting a 7.1 system because there just isn't enough 7.1 content out there. I have built myself a 5.1 system with an Onkyo reciever and JBL speakers and it works just fine for me. In my opinion, 5.1 is all you need.

If you can find a 5.1 system, I'm sure you could save money or get a higher quality system for the same price as your current choice.

As far as size of room, its not really a concern. As long as you have somewhere to put the speakers so that they are more or less evenly spaced away from where you will be sitting you should be fine. For example, you don't want most of the speakers 7 feet away and one back speaker 15 feet away. Thats a bit exagerated but you get my point.

Hopefuly that helps!