New to HT. I have a Receiver and Speakers, what else do I need?

[Jameson]

Hey everyone,

I just purchased my very first home theater, but I don't know what else I need. I have only a small ammount of knowledge about AV. Could someone please tell me what else I need for my home theatre, including how much of each thing? I know I need speaker wire, banana plugs, hdmi cables etc but I don't want to forget something or get too much of something.

By the way, these are the receiver and speakers that I have.
Yamaha HTR6160
Polk Audio RM6750

I've been reading the forums, so I know that these products are good, but I don't know how to set it up lol. Thanks all.

[Bageara]

A TV always comes in handy

[Jameson]

Are you sure I need one? jk...my tv isn't great (Digimate 32" LCD) but I'm planning on getting a 42" Plasma. I'm thinking the Panasonic TH42PZ85.

[red_5ive]

So I'm assuming you have an HDTV already. So next you need a blu-ray player, otherwise you'll get kicked out of this forum.

The Panasonic BD30 is a solid choice and is on sale at Amazon right now for $299 (normal retail is $399). Clickarama. If you care about extras such as profile 2.0 which the BD30 doesn't support (1.1 only), the Panasonic BD50 would be the way to go, but it just released and is a bit pricey.

If you like to game, then go with a PS3, which also supports profile 2.0. It's a very capable blu-ray player, but the only drawbacks are it doesn't bitstream HD audio (only internal decoding and output as pcm), possible fan noise depending where you put it (ventilation), and no analog out. But, your HTIB has HDMI 1.3 so the analog isn't a problem for you. The remote is also bluetooth so if you have an IR universal remote, you'll have to get an aftermarket IR to bluetooth device like the IR2BT or a dongle like the Nyko Blu Wave Remote. Note that the latter doesn't have power on/off capabilities.

For all your cabling needs like HDMI, RCA, optical, speaker cable, etc., go to Monoprice and avoid the overpriced Monster and other brand offerings from Best Buy and Circuit City.

Also, get a decent power conditioner/surge protector, at least an entry level one like this one from Panamax.

And Lastly, welcome to blu-ray.com.

[Jameson]

Thanks red. Are those all of the cables that I need?

[MacDaddyOJack]

What is your BD player, a PS3?

[red_5ive]

Originally Posted by Jameson

Thanks red. Are those all of the cables that I need?

I was just naming off common cables. You'll need the HDMI cable for sure when you get a blu-ray player, and actually you'll need at least 2, one from the BD player to the receiver, then one from the receiver to the TV. But heck, it might be a good idea to get maybe 3 or 4 while you're at it if you order from monoprice since the pricing is so good. You'll never know what else you might pick up that will use an hdmi connection (like a cable/sat HD box). It'll save you shipping in the long run. I initially only needed 2 myself, but I ordered 4 and now they're all being used.

The rest will depend on whatever other gear you plan to connect to the receiver.

[Jameson]

I don't have a bluray player yet. I still need to get one, as well as a new tv. My old tv is crap compared to what I want. I don't have a PS3, although I've thought about getting one because it is a BD player.

[Jameson]

I forgot to mention I have a PVR (Canadian to your DVR/Tivo) Cable box as well. I assume I'll need a 3rd HDMI cable to hook that up to the receiver too.

So correct me if I'm wrong. All I need is:

A blu-ray player
3 or 4 HDMI cables
Speaker wire (I think banana plugs are used for speaker wire?)
Surge Protector

Are RCA and optical just older technology that I don't need? Thanks again.

[red_5ive]

Originally Posted by Jameson

I forgot to mention I have a PVR (Canadian to your DVR/Tivo) Cable box as well. I assume I'll need a 3rd HDMI cable to hook that up to the receiver too.

So correct me if I'm wrong. All I need is:

A blu-ray player
3 or 4 HDMI cables
Speaker wire (I think banana plugs are used for speaker wire?)
Surge Protector

Are RCA and optical just older technology that I don't need? Thanks again.

To best answer on what cables you need you should let us know the make and model of what you plan to connect to the receiver. Also, verify that your dvr box has hdmi, otherwise you may need an optical cable and component video cables.

[Jameson]

My PVR box does have an HDMI connection. Although it isn't being used right now because my current tv is only a digimate 32" LCD DGL3201 and does NOT have hdmi connection on it. The PVR is connected with the TV with component cables. So it looks like I'll need to get 1 component cable to connect the TV to the receiver until I get my new tv.

So now I need these things? Can you confirm that banana plugs are used for the speaker wire?

A blu-ray player
3 or 4 HDMI cables
Speaker wire (I think banana plugs are used for speaker wire?)
Surge Protector
1 component cable

[red_5ive]

Originally Posted by Jameson

My PVR box does have an HDMI connection. Although it isn't being used right now because my current tv is only a digimate 32" LCD DGL3201 and does NOT have hdmi connection on it. The PVR is connected with the TV with component cables. So it looks like I'll need to get 1 component cable to connect the TV to the receiver until I get my new tv.

So now I need these things? Can you confirm that banana plugs are used for the speaker wire?

A blu-ray player
3 or 4 HDMI cables
Speaker wire (I think banana plugs are used for speaker wire?)
Surge Protector
1 component cable

Cool, then I think you have everything in check. As for banana plugs, yesh, you can pick some up for speaker wires, and I use them end-to-end myself. However, they're not necessarily required. I use them cause it just makes it a heck of a lot easier to connect speaker cable. I checked the back panel of your receiver and it will accept standard 4mm banana plugs. These are the ones I use: http://www.monoprice.com/products/pr...seq=1&format=2. Note that whatever banana plugs you go with they can add about 2" to 3" to the total depth of your receiver. Just something to keep in mind if it's a tight fit in your cabinet.

[Jameson]

Originally Posted by red_5ive

Cool, then I think you have everything in check. As for banana plugs, yesh, you can pick some up for speaker wires, and I use them end-to-end myself. However, they're not necessarily required. I use them cause it just makes it a heck of a lot easier to connect speaker cable. I checked the back panel of your receiver and it will accept standard 4mm banana plugs. These are the ones I use: http://www.monoprice.com/products/pr...seq=1&format=2. Note that whatever banana plugs you go with they can add about 2" to 3" to the total depth of your receiver. Just something to keep in mind if it's a tight fit in your cabinet.

My tv stand is open interface. Cool, looks like I'm set then. Just one last question before I stop bugging you. A set of banana plugs comes with 2 plugs, how many sets should I get? My speakers are 5.1 so I'm assuming 3 sets?

red_5ive thank you so much for your help. You don't know how much I appreciate it. I now understand things a lot better.

[red_5ive]

Originally Posted by Jameson

My tv stand is open interface. Cool, looks like I'm set then. Just one last question before I stop bugging you. A set of banana plugs comes with 2 plugs, how many sets should I get? My speakers are 5.1 so I'm assuming 3 sets?

red_5ive thank you so much for your help. You don't know how much I appreciate it. I now understand things a lot better.

You'll need 2 plugs per channel (+ and -), so a total of 5 sets. The banana plugs are color coded red (+) and black (-). Make note of orientation of the speaker cable from end to end (i.e., red to red, black to black) so that you don't cross the wires or your speakers will be out of phase. I don't know if that'll make too much difference with satellites with their smaller drivers, but better to do it right anyway.

[Jameson]

Crap I thought I was done with the questions. I was just looking at my PVR and TV and there's a red/white component cables connected through them for audio. Will I need an audio component cable? I'm guessing not, because I won't even be using the sound from my tv when the system gets set up, but I just want to make sure.

[red_5ive]

Originally Posted by Jameson

Crap I thought I was done with the questions. I was just looking at my PVR and TV and there's a red/white component cables connected through them for audio. Will I need an audio component cable? I'm guessing not, because I won't even be using the sound from my tv when the system gets set up, but I just want to make sure.

The PVR should pass the audio via HDMI so you should be all set. No need for the red & white RCA cable.

[BluPayne4400]

You're also gonna need more money from going broke on buying all the equipment you need.

[Stephan.klose]

Originally Posted by Jameson

I don't have a bluray player yet. I still need to get one, as well as a new tv. My old tv is crap compared to what I want. I don't have a PS3, although I've thought about getting one because it is a BD player.

If you are not planning to game you should get a stand alone Blu Ray Player. I myself got the Samsung BD-P 1400. That one is no longer available. But the new one, the Samsung BD-P 1500 is really nice. We have it connected in our studio to a Onkyo 606 and a Samsung 1080p TV (I don't know which one).. Really excellent picture and excellent sound..

If you haven't go a TV now you should go with Samsung too. At our store we have had the best results with either Samsung or Philips (which I don't think you can get in the US).. After those come Panasonic and Sony.. Don't get one of them noname TV's. You won't be happy with that.