Most people love a trip to the movies. A modern digitally equipped cinema is without doubt the best place to view a film. The scale of the screen and the superior display combine with the professionally installed sound system to transport us from our hum drum lives and immerse us in the exciting world that the film creates for us.
A visit to the movies can be quite a truly breathtaking experience, but is it possible to recreate this in the comfort of our own homes? If you would like to do this you will have to invest in one of the numerous home cinema systems available.
Home cinema systems usually combine a display (normally an LCD or Plasma screen) with a source (Satellite decoder or Blu-ray player for instance) and an audio system (Digital Amplifier or Receiver and speakers). This will allow you to go a way towards recreating the movie experience in your own home, of course how successful this is achieved will be directly linked to your budget, the time spent on planning your system and your time and effort spent on installing the gear.
The cornerstone of all home cinema systems is the display so anyone thinking about embarking on this type of project should invest the highest part of their budget here. So as to enjoy the experience fully you must look at obtaining the best size display possible.
This could be achieved with a far more traditional LCD or plasma screen but projectors are becoming ever more popular as pricing makes them a genuine alternative to a large screen. Ensure you buy something that is HD ready and includes a free to air digital tuner. If your budget allows look into the chance for a 3D display as 3D films and television are set to be always a growth area in the next 10 years.
As far as the source for your system goes you may already have a DVD player that may suffice to truly get you started. In future you might consider an HD source, this consists of Blu-ray players, many games consoles and of course some satellite decoders. An HD source will provide top quality pictures and sound, something all home cinema systems need.
colowin88 The final part of your home cinema system is the sound reproduction system. You can purchase reasonably priced solutions that include a powered sub-woofer and satellite speakers, these speaker systems will be the first rung on the ladder into hearing the sound track of your movie in the way the director intended. Assuming you have a larger budget a separate amplifier or more to eight separate speakers provides the optimum experience. Nevertheless, you must take on board that complex home cinema systems will be expensive and take some effort to install successfully.
The best thing about a home cinema system is that it could be built up and added to over time, this can allow any movie buff to progressively gain more enjoyment from watching films in the home, then all that is required is a good supply of popcorn!