Your home theater setup (pictures if possible).

[Morris Schæffer]

I'm about to move into my own appartment and so I'm thinking of getting a new TV (HD ready just don't cut it anymore), new surround sound speakers (preferably with rear floorstanding speakers) and a new Blu-Ray player.

So what do you guys have to watch movies? Post some pictures if possible and mention product names so we can google them. Talk about whether you're happy with your hardware, how the picture quality is etc...

[Skitch]

I have a 50" Panasonic Viera I nabbed for $875. Its pretty great.

[Ezee E]

I need to invest in some speakers.

[Dukefrukem]

oh man... give me a month to post pics while I move into my new house

[bac0n]

I'm currently in the midst of a major home theater upgrade - new TV, new receiver, new PS3, and I'm swapping out the old entertainment center which takes up an entire wall and can hold a TV no larger than 27" for a smaller one that fits nicely in the corner and places no size restrictions on the telly.

I've been struggling with the TV, and am planning on taking it back Monday for a different one. Eventually I plan on running the HDMI & stereo cables through the walls and mounting the TV on the wall too, but that's a project for a little later on when I have some more important projects tackled and have had an electrician come out and put in another outlet.

[Spun Lepton]

I live in a very small apartment, so I don't need much. I have a 40" Sony LCD and a PS3.

[Morris Schæffer]

I need to invest in some speakers.

I'd also like to get some killer speakers. What's infuriating is how in brochures everything looks so goddamn clean and cable-free.

I'll never be able to get it to look like that. Speaker-wise, I definitely want to get 5.1 dolby Digital speakers with the rear speakers perhaps being floorstanding. That was I won't have to attach them to my wall.

[Scar]

Maybe I'll post pics of Spun and bac0n playing games/watching movies on my set up while Jess serves beer.

[DavidSeven]

Does anyone else think some of these newer TVs are making HD channels and blu-ray DVDs look terrible? A couple of friends have newer, higher quality TVs, and everything they watch looks like a soap opera or home video. It looks too real. Maybe I'm stuck in my ways and need more time to adjust, but I sincerely hope this is not the wave of the future.

[Skitch]

Closed stand.


Open stand.


Autographed BB poster in hall.


VG's, soundtracks, and CD's.


Dvd cave part I.


Dvd cave part II.

[D_Davis]

My basement is currently being remodeled, so the projector and screen aren't set up right now. As soon as it's done, I'll post some pictures. The screen is 100'', and the projector is pretty nice. It's an older one, and only goes up to 1080i, without HDMI, but I really like the picture. It just looks more movie-like - I like something to enhance the qualities of film, and so it really feels like I'm watching a movie. Movies on my HDTV just look too crystal clear, although not nearly as bad as those on a 120hz TV.

[megladon8]

My basement is currently being remodeled, so the projector and screen aren't set up right now. As soon as it's done, I'll post some pictures. The screen is 100'', and the projector is pretty nice. It's an older one, and only goes up to 1080i, without HDMI, but I really like the picture. It just looks more movie-like - I like something to enhance the qualities of film, and so it really feels like I'm watching a movie. Movies on my HDTV just look too crystal clear, although not nearly as bad as those on a 120hz TV.

I've long thought about going the projector route when I move out (which - fingers crossed - could be sooner than I imagined a month or two ago!).

Is there still the problem of bulbs dying, and needing to spend several hundred dollars repairing/replacing them? My uncle has a projector, and when one of his bulbs died a few years back, it cost him $750 to get a new one. Admittedly it's an ancient projector, but still...

[D_Davis]

I've long thought about going the projector route when I move out (which - fingers crossed - could be sooner than I imagined a month or two ago!).

Is there still the problem of bulbs dying, and needing to spend several hundred dollars repairing/replacing them? My uncle has a projector, and when one of his bulbs died a few years back, it cost him $750 to get a new one. Admittedly it's an ancient projector, but still...

They cost about $250-300 for my projector. I've had to change one once, but it was because the projector had a problem and short-circuited. It was out of warranty, but I insisted that Panasonic pay half because the bulb had more than 1/2 it's life left. They did. I haven't turned the projector on in over a year because the basement has been in various stages of completion ever since.

I would imagine that newer projectors have less expensive bulbs. Also, the price of projectors has come down a lot. When I got mine, there weren't very many people using them for home use. People at Circuit City thought I was crazy! However, now I see projectors and screens everywhere.

[megladon8]

I remember in grade 9 a bunch of my friends smoked pot for the first time and watched House of 1,000 Corpses projected onto the side of a barn.

A couple of them freaked right out.

[Morris Schæffer]

Guys, do high-quality HDMI cables really provide a visibly superior picture?

[Ezee E]

Guys, do high-quality HDMI cables really provide a visibly superior picture?

Yes. But you can get them cheap on amazon.com

[Dukefrukem]

So here's some quick pics of my setup. I'm in desperate need of new speakers so I'm hoping someone here can point me in a direction where I can grab 5 sets of speakers and a new center channel. You can't see the sub in the pics, but it's a 10incher, in the corner.

Link to Album here

[Ezee E]

Gotta put some artwork or something above that fireplace!

[Dukefrukem]

Gotta put some artwork or something above that fireplace!

The whole place is bare. It's starting to annoy me. I have one picture hung in the kitchen.

Now... about those speakers? What's everyone using? I'm using an old Cambridge Soundworks set that I got back in 1999.

[Scar]

Guys, do high-quality HDMI cables really provide a visibly superior picture?

Yes. But like Ezee said, buy them online.

[Morris Schæffer]

Ok, thanks guys. What would be a superior brand that amazon offers?

[number8]

Does anyone else really want this thing? Phillips 21:9 (2.35:1 aspect ratio) TV.

[Raiders]

Not really. I like HD TV shows to fill the whole screen. If the TV has a technology to make it so the unused portions of the screen are completely black and unnoticeable, then that might convince me.

[[ETM]]

I've never been bothered by black bars, but the possibility of burn-in is a concern. I don't watch nearly enough movies in that format to consider it.

[Dukefrukem]

Building an A/V closet. Pics of progress will follow.

Here's how my current stack up looks. Comments are welcome.