Having the best home entertainment speakers on the market can enhance your movie and gaming experience. But to get the most out of your investment, you need to do your research and select high-quality Speakers that match your needs. The following 10 tips will guide you through this process, so you’ll know exactly what to look for when shopping around.
1) What are you going to use it for?
Before you can pick out your home entertainment speakers, it’s important to figure out what you plan on using them for. For example, if you have a big budget and want your TV room to sound like a movie theatre, then you’ll probably need multi-speaker setups with large woofers. On the other hand, if you just want something that can fill up an average-sized living room with music, then there are plenty of affordable options that will deliver impressive audio quality with only two small speakers.
Whatever type of setup you want in your house, figure out what kind of speaker systems would be ideal before heading out to buy anything. Just ask yourself: How much do I want to spend? What do I plan on using it for?
2) Buy a quality brand
You don’t have to break your budget on a speaker system, but you do want to make sure that any speakers you buy are made by a well-respected company with a reputation for excellent customer service. You can look at ratings or awards from testing magazines, such as Consumer Reports or CNET.
If you’re looking at smaller brands, check out how long they’ve been in business and how responsive their customer service has been. The last thing you want is great sound from a pair of speakers that aren’t backed up by good support—not only will they not last very long, but they could be more expensive than they seem if replacement parts are hard to find and repair costs run high.
3) Listen before you buy
Before you hit add to cart, it’s important to listen to a few seconds of music from each speaker. If possible, look up reviews online and read about how people feel about that specific model. Listening in-store can be helpful but doesn’t always give you a good sense of how well a speaker will work with your particular setup.
You may think you love one speaker, but when it comes time to sit down and enjoy some music, there may be issues that arise (bad sound quality, too much bass, not enough bass). The last thing you want is an expensive mistake on your hands.
4) Consider your space and furniture placement
Regardless of what type of speaker system you have or are thinking about getting, it’s important to know how to position them. For example, if you’re planning on putting some speakers into your living room, be sure to take note of how far apart from each other they will be—and in what order.
If there are speakers with more than one woofer, you may want to consider moving them a bit further apart from each other (so that those deep bass tones don’t get confused by your ears). Also, pay attention to whether or not there will be any doors or walls nearby—as these can impact sound quality. Ideally, you should place your speakers at ear level (between eight and 12 feet high) and across from your TV.
5) Look at other people’s systems (not just the speaker)
The key to finding good speakers is asking people you trust what they have and then actually listening to them. This sounds obvious, but a lot of folks will tell you about a great speaker they own—but when you listen to it, it’s horrible. It pays off to look at other people’s systems; not just their speakers, but also their receivers and any other components that might be part of their system.
If possible, attend some concerts or look at sound samples online. No one can talk about sound better than someone who knows what he or she is talking about, so do your research and make sure that your salesperson has an ear for sound quality.
6) Built-in Bluetooth is an advantage, but not essential
Many models, including high-end home theatre systems and wireless speakers, now have built-in Bluetooth capabilities. These are convenient if you have a phone or music player without Bluetooth capabilities—you can play audio directly from your device via your home entertainment speaker system. However, most home theatre systems and sound bars feature Bluetooth already; don’t worry about that when shopping.
If you buy a separate sound bar or another type of standalone speaker system with built-in Bluetooth capability as well as wired connectivity, it means you’ll need to choose one over another when pairing your music source to your speaker setup.
7) Subwoofers make all the difference in a system
A subwoofer is an integral part of a home entertainment system. It powers low-frequency sound, such as explosions and gunshots in action movies, or big drums in music videos. As any music lover knows, bass notes are what make a song come alive.
Subwoofers (also called subs) are loudspeakers that reproduce very low frequencies—typically from 20 to 120 Hz. For example, a pair of 12 subwoofers can easily move more than 1,000 cubic feet (28 cubic meters) of air each second—the equivalent of an entire room full of speakers!
8) Do your research online
If you’re in a rush to buy home entertainment speakers, take a few minutes to do some online research. This can save you from ending up with a dud—or from having to return them. Online reviews will help you see if any common problems crop up with your desired speakers, and any issues will likely be easy to spot online before making your purchase. Reviews may also be able to steer you toward better options if all of your top choices have their drawbacks.
Additionally, online forums such as Amazon’s community section offer an opportunity for buyers (and sellers) to discuss various products. Find out what other people like or dislike about specific brands or types of home entertainment speakers and compare that feedback against your expectations and preferences.
9) Get opinions from others
The best thing you can do to ensure you make a smart choice is to read reviews. Reviews are an extremely valuable source of information on any product—and people who have purchased home entertainment speakers won’t hesitate to let you know what they thought.
Take advantage of these reviews and see what others had to say. Was it easy or difficult to install? Did they find it difficult to connect with other devices? Did anyone complain about sound quality or volume? There are no right answers when it comes to picking out new speakers, but getting other opinions on which one will work best for your needs is certainly helpful.
10) Go ahead and splurge—it’s worth it!
So you’ve saved up enough to buy a high-quality home entertainment system and you want to make sure you get your money’s worth. Make sure that what you buy is truly high quality by investing in high-quality speakers.
Not only will it sound better, but it will last longer and look better in your living room or den. However, not all home entertainment speakers are created equal—tons of options and specifications can easily confuse first-time buyers.
Conclusion
It can be a daunting task to decide which home entertainment Speakers are right for you, but if you take your time and follow these tips, you’ll have no problem picking out a set that’s perfect for your living room. The goal is to make sure that whatever speaker set you to pick will sound great and will last. The best way to know how well they’ll stand up over time is by reading reviews of other people who bought them before you. A lot of products don’t live up to their hype, so do your research carefully and make sure that what you read sounds good to you before making a purchase.
