by Kristen Lavery

Created on: January 27, 2009

The home theater receiver is the most important part of any audio video system. A properly selected and set up A/V receiver, can seamlessly direct sights and sounds, maximizing performance and minimizing frustration.

When visiting a quality audio video retailer or integrator (an industry term used to refer to companies that specialize in recommending and implementing the solutions that they suggest), you will find yourself being asked "lifestyle" questions. For example, you may be asked if there are children in the home, or if you own any video game systems. The best sales consultants know the features and benefits of today's A/V receivers, and can match good choices to your lifestyle.

I suggest beginning your search by listing what you will have connected to your system.
Any "source component" like a DVD Player, cable or satellite box, or game console should be identified before shopping. Once you have a complete list, you can get a good handle on just how many inputs your new home theater receiver should have. Keep in mind that you should have some room for future growth of your system.

Secondly, you need to think about your TV. For instance, do you intend to upgrade any time soon? If so, you may want make sure your new receiver is as future-proof as possible. Where will the TV go? If you plan on wall-mounting your TV, it may be wise to have a consultant from your local audio video store take a look at the space. Since Home theater receivers can be the hub of the system, they are designed to switch what you see on your TV, as well as what your ears hear. A trained eye can make sure you don't forget any key design criteria that could cost you money later, or cause you to compromise performance or the aesthetics of your home.

So you have good Idea what you need to hook up, and where the TV and receiver will go. Now we can delve a bit into the features of today's AV receivers.

First, let's talk inputs.
Source components like the ones mentioned earlier, deliver their sound in various fashions. Most of today's sources offer a digital audio output in addition to traditional analog outputs. In order to take advantage of this better sounding output on your sources, your new receiver will have digital audio inputs. How many it has, the type that it has, and how versatile they are, are all factors in distinguishing entry-level Receivers with ones that are higher performance.

Video is also delivered digitally, most commonly over what is known as HDMI or High Definition Multimedia

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