by Jonathan List

Created on: September 25, 2009

When you are buying a new sound system, there are a few things you should consider. I will not discuss brands very much, but I want you to know that some systems are tuned to work with matching speakers. This does not mean that your speakers will not work well with different systems, but that it sometimes pays to get the matching system and speakers if you want to get the most out of your speakers.

Rule number one of purchasing audio equipment: Do not buy the first thing you see the first time you see it. I know that this idea sounds simplistic, but when you start looking at audio equipment, you will quickly find yourself in a world that very much resembles the world of used automobiles. There will be presure to buy now and buy today. This is rarely a good idea and will rarely result in the system that is best for your needs.

Second, be very aware of how sounds acts in the room you are placing your new sound system. If you have hard floors and sparse furniture, soundwaves will quickly become overwhelming and 'noisy.' Noise is a concept you should understand a little before you make your purchasing decision. Noise as an acoustic phenomenon, happens when sound waves overpower a space and start to double-back on themselves. Since sound waves are a physical entity (ever feel that bass pumping from the car in front of you?), these sound waves bouncing across each other interfere with the quality of sound. This can make your top-end system sound like junk if it overpowers your room too much.

Third, be aware that your sound system will not be inexpensive. Do not forget that when you purchase your receiver (base unit) and speakers that you will need to wire all of these speakers into your house. Even if you can do this yourself, or if you are going to just lay the wires on the floor (which is a generally bad practice), the wires can be very expensive. Some of these systems will require heavily shielded wires to operate correctly. Some speaker wires can cost $.30 per foot. When you realize that you might need 400-500 feet of speaker wire for your new 7.1 system, this can get expensive fast.

Fourth, do not buy a system that is too large for your needs. While it might feel like a great idea to get the 7.1 system with all of its audio glory, you might find that your small living room forces you to trip over your speakers every three seconds. Even those neat speakers that 'hide' themselves on shelves and walls can become bothersome if there are too many of them for your given space.

Finally, do not be tempted to buy on marketing. Bose makes some good speakers and systems, but they are almost never the best bang for the buck. They are frequently more expensive than models from other companies, and Bose does an excellent job of making you think that you are buying quality while you are just buying a name. This is not to say that Bose is not the system that you should buy. I have a bose sub-woofer and have been very pleased with its performance. (Seriously, you should hear the recording I made of a Jet bus playing through that thing... Fantastic!)

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