Home Stereo Receiver Buying Tips
If you don't have a home stereo receiver or the one you have is a little old and doesn't have the required amount of inputs then you might be tempted to go out and purchase one.
Before you start shopping for your new receiver it's important that you take a look at the equipment you have now.
A home stereo receiver is fast becoming the
most important part of your audio visual equipment.
One critical aspect to consider is that a lot of
receivers are designed mostly for surround sound. If you
have vinyl records or listen to a lot of CDs make sure you
get one that can handle Hi-Fi.
There are so many different connection methods these days that it can be a bit mystifying to the newcomer. The most common ones are HDMI, RCA (most common type of socket for AV inputs), SVGA, and optical connections.
Take note of what connections the equipment you have now uses. You want to make sure that the receiver you choose has the connectivity you require.
The next step is to consider the power requirements of the speakers that you are using. The home stereo receiver needs to have a large enough power output to run these. The smaller the speaker set the smaller the power requirements.
If you need to purchase speakers as well then it would be wise to consider the size of the room where they will be situated. A smaller room will obviously require smaller speakers.
A home stereo receiver will provide at least
two channels of audio - right and left but most modern
home stereo receivers now have more channels for you to
play with. Depending on the home stereo receiver that you
choose you could potentially power speakers in another
room by running a cable to them from the extra channels on
the receiver.
How do you want to control your system? There is a growing trend to put all of the advanced functions on the remote control with only the basic controls on the unit itself. If you worry about losing the remote make sure that you can do everything from the unit itself. This is especially valid in a house full of young children. Remotes have a very bad habit of disappearing only to turn up in the strangest of places months later.
Get to know the lingo. It doesn't hurt to learn a little bit about stereo systems. There are plenty of magazines in your local newsagent. You could also visit online public forums and ask questions. People will only be too glad to help. Also visit the retailers with an online presence. Their websites usually have heaps of information that will teach you the basics and help you make a purchasing decision.
The modern day home stereo receiver is a complex piece of kit. This usually means that they are firmware upgradeable. Upgrading firmware is just like updating a piece of software on your computer. Some equipment will even allow you to do it through an internet connection. Otherwise they will have a USB or flash drive socket where you insert the flash drive or SD card with the downloaded software on it and run it directly from the receiver itself.
Narrow down your search to a few models and then go out and listen to them. Remember that cheaper is not always better.
By all means set yourself a budget but don't just go for the cheapest you can find. Your home stereo receiver is probably going to be with you for a few years so make sure you get the best piece of kit that your budget will allow.