HOME THEATER: AUDIO AND VIDEO

WHY YOU WANT A HOME THEATER

Nothing saved the audio business in the last twenty years like Home Theater did. Especially the receiver business. Most receIver companies made only stereo equipment at the time, and that business was nearing saturation. Enter home theater. Basically put, home theater was a way to approximate the sound you would hear in a theater to your home. Done well, it was pretty good. As with most things these days, the more the equipment costs, the better it’s going to sound. 

Originally, a home theater system consisted of front, center, and rear channels, and usually a subwoofer. This was called a 5.1 surround system. with speakers left front, center, right front, left rear and right rear. Thats the 5 in 5.1. The .1 is the subwoofer. Add a five channel receiver to power the speakers and a Blu-ray DVD player, and you were in business. Over the years more speakers and amplifier channels were added. Adding speakers on the side walls turned the system into a 7.1 or even a 9.1 system.

Today, surround formats went from the original Dolby Logic Surround to Dolby Digital Surround, and now Dolby Atmos. Dolby Atmos has the benefit of the sound engineer being able to place different sounds (called objects in Atmos speak) wherever he wants them. This requires even more speakers and amplification, but the results are astounding. This requires two more front speakers (named front height speakers) and two rear ceiling speakers (called rear back or similar). This creates an awesome experience if done correctly. Couple this setup with calibration software from Audessy or Dirac and you can stay home and watch movies - just like being in a movie theater! 

Many people don’t use BlueRay DVD’s now, in favor of streaming. There is nothing better, though, than the physical media, especially for the audio.

One of the first questions to consider is whether you will be dedicating a separate room for your home theater, or if it will be incorporated into active living space (like a living room). Isolating the sound into a closed room provides a more realistic movie experience, but both options can be rewarding.

WHY YOU NEED BENTLEY ELECTRONIC SYSTEMS TO INSTALL YOUR HOME THEATER

After a thorough discussion regarding your preferences and your space, Bentley Electronic Systems can remove all of the guesswork from your hardware decisions. Unlike a big box store, where the commission-based help tries to sell you, Bentley Electronic Systems carefully selects the right components and installs them. Couple the knowledge gained over years of service with our focus on customer satisfaction, and you can trust that with Bentley Electronic Systems you will have a home theater experience that will delight and entertain for years.