• Select Speakers & Set Up Surround Sound
• Choose Receivers, Amps, and Equalizers
• Play Your Music on Home Audio
• Stock Up on Home Audio Accessories
• Find Home Audio Components on halfvalue
• Buy Home Audio Components With Confidence

Select Speakers & Set Up Surround Sound

Set up your speakers

Set up your speakers around a primary listening position in your room. In a home entertainment setup, it will be directly in front of the television, ideally with some space between the position and a room's back wall.

• Front speakers: Place stereo speakers or front surround sound speakers to the left and right of your television at equal distances. They should face the primary listening position at a 30-degree angle. In a home theater setup, front speakers reproduce realistic sound effects and music that seem to come from either side of the action appearing on your TV screen. Full-size floor-standing speakers usually sound best overall. The large units should visually fit into your home, so pay attention to cabinet color and images provided in item listings. Choose bookshelf units if you want your speakers to sit on a shelf.
• Center-channel speakers: The center-channel speaker reproduces soundtrack information, including dialogue, music, and many sound effects. Place it above or below your television screen, in line with the primary listening position. Sound should project directly toward listeners and create the illusion of coming from the TV screen. Get the largest center-channel surround sound speaker you can, especially if you have large front speakers.
• Surround speakers: Surround speakers work with the front speakers to immerse you in music and sound effects. Position surround speakers to the left and right, and slightly behind, your primary listening position. You can use floor-standing speakers, bookshelf speakers, or smaller satellite speakers that fit nicely on end tables, stands, or even on your wall.
• Rear surround speakers: Set a single rear speaker in back of your primary listening position for 6.1 surround sound or use two rear speakers for 7.1 surround sound. Both rear 7.1 surround sound speakers reproduce the same back channel of audio. 5.1 surround sound speakers optimized for Dolby Digital and DTS playback (formats with five channels of audio) do not include rear speakers.
• Subwoofer: Making up the .1 in surround sound, a subwoofer comes in many sizes and reproduces a bass channel or low-frequency effects. People usually position the subwoofer out of the way of foot traffic. Some people prefer to place it in a corner for better bass response. Most units include their own power amplifier and subwoofers with larger cabinets and drivers produce deeper bass sounds than smaller units.

You'll find a variety of other speakers on halfvalue, including in-wall & in-ceiling speakers that allow you to hide your components, wireless speakers, and weatherproof outdoor speakers. Visit halfvalue's Speakers & Subwoofers Buying Guide for more tips and advice on choosing new speakers.

Choose Receivers, Amps, and Equalizers

Receivers power speakers and allow you to adjust settings such as bass and treble. You can connect them to multiple home entertainment devices, and most include a built-in AM/FM radio tuner. When shopping, decide if you want a stereo receiver or a home theater receiver.

• Stereo receivers: With two channels of amplification, stereo receivers output stereo audio from traditional CDs, cassettes, turntables, or radio to a set of speakers.
• Home theater receivers: Home theater receivers sit at the center of your home entertainment system, powering multiple speakers and decoding surround sound audio from DVD movies, HDTV, and multichannel audio discs. You can also listen to music from traditional CDs, cassettes, turntables, or radio. Learn which surround sound formats your home theater receiver should support in halfvalue's Receivers Buying Guide.

Amplify your audio

Audiophiles want ultimate sound control. Setting up a separate preamplifier, amplifier, and equalizer takes more time and expertise, but can give you the control you crave.

• Amplifiers: Get more power and step up your sound. An amplifier should offer at least 100 watts of power per audio channel, equally distributed throughout a system. You should also look at total harmonic distortion (THD), a measurement of amplifier signal purity. The number indicates how clean your music and movies will sound. Even though THD ratings typically fall below one percent, look for lower numbers, preferably below 0.1 percent, if you want the cleanest power.
• Preamplifiers: Pump up low-level signals before they reach your amplifier with a preamplifier. It'll decrease your signal-to-noise ratio, producing a cleaner sound.

Some preamps include an equalizer, which allows you to boost or attenuate an audio signal. You can also buy a separate equalizer to balance your audio signal.

Play Your Music on Home Audio

Buy the home audio components you need to play the audio formats you love.

• CD players: Play your favorite CDs one at a time with a single-disc CD player or put all your favorite CDs into rotation with a multi-disc CD player.
• CD recorders: Play back CDs and preserve your music with a CD recorder.
• Satellite radio tuners: Tune into more than 100 radio stations playing digital-quality music with a satellite radio tuner.
• AM/FM tuners: Listen to all your favorite local radio stations with an AM/FM tuner.
• Digital audio: Network your digital music and play it back over your home audio system with a digital audio server.
• Sony MiniDisc players: Play and record MiniDisc music and interviews with a Sony MiniDisc player and recorder.
• Cassette decks: Pick up a cassette deck and embrace your old audio cassette tapes.
• Turntables: Listen to your LPs. If your turntable doesn't have a built-in preamp, buy a receiver with a phono input.

Radios and compact shelf systems also make a good option for offices and bedrooms.

Stock Up on Home Audio Accessories

Pick up additional home audio gear to complement and complete your entertainment center.

Get the right cables

Discover devices that will protect your home audio system and connect your speakers, receiver, and other audio components in the Accessories & Cables section of Home Audio on halfvalue. You'll find power centers, surge protectors, and cables, including Monster Cables. The devices you want to connect to your receiver determine the type of cables you need to buy.

• Speaker cables: Connect your speakers to your receiver with speaker cables. To find out how much speaker cable you need, measure the distance between each component that needs a cable connection, taking areas that need extra length (windows, door frames, corners) into consideration. Buy cables on the long side—usually at least two feet more than you think you need.
• Subwoofer cables: Purchase separate subwoofer cables for the best low-frequency sound.
• Coaxial RF cables: Connect your standard TV antennae, VCR, turntable, or tuner with coaxial RF cable.
• 75-ohm digital audio cables: Transfer digital audio over 75-ohm digital audio cable. Make sure the inputs on your receiver are the same as the outputs on your audio source.
• Optical digital/fiber optic cables: Use optical digital cables, also called fiber optic or Toslink cable, to transfer digital audio from digital music players, progressive-scan DVD players, and HDTVs. Make sure the inputs on your receiver are the same as the outputs on your audio source.

Keep quiet

Headphones allow you to listen to your music and movies at any volume, at any time of day, without bothering your roommates or neighbors. Noise-cancelling headphones block out the noise around you while wireless headphones provide the most freedom of movement.

Take control

Replace your old remote controls or control your CD player, AM/FM tuner, DVD player, and television with a single universal remote control.

Find Home Audio Components on halfvalue

Once you know what you need, go to halfvalue's Consumer Electronics portal, click Home Audio, and start your shopping experience.

• Categories lists: Located beneath Product Finders, links in the Categories list help you navigate through a category. For example, the Home Audio Categories list contains links to Accessories & Cables, Amplifiers, CD Players & Recorders, Receivers, Speakers & Subwoofers, and more. Once you click a link, you'll find another Categories list on the new listings page that will help you narrow down your choices further.
• Product Finder: Located on the left side of certain listings pages, Product Finders have a set of drop-down menus that help narrow down item listings. For example, the Speakers & Subwoofers Finder allows you to search by speaker type, brand, cabinet color, and condition. Click the wireless checkbox if you prefer wireless speakers. The Receivers Finder, on the other hand, lets you search by brand, number of channels, and condition.
• Keywords: Let halfvalue find items for you by entering the keywords you want to find into the Product Finder's Keywords search box or into halfvalue's general Search box. Visit halfvalue's Search Tips page to get more information about searching with keywords.
• Let sellers help: Listings should include a clear item description and picture. If you need additional information, email the seller your question.

If you can't find exactly what you want, try shopping halfvalue Stores.