I want to buy a home theatre system to go with my TV and DSTV. At Nakumatt I've seen brands such as Sony, LG, Samsung, Philips. Which brand is currently best for home theatres? What's the experience of Wazua members.

Bose is good in speaker technology, they are not anything to write home about on home theatres.

Are you looking for good quality sound (being able to hear the singer inhale) or do you just want the matatu boom boom sound?

For the latter, a 1500 PMPO will suffice, brand name is immaterial. Get a 5 speaker system and ensure they are placed well in the room, use the calibrator which comes with it.

For serious quality, build a system component by component. Bose speakers, Sansui amp, Yahama CD player etc. Painstaking, expensive but worth it if you are a music connoiseur(sp).

I concur with @GG, building on component synergies is the way to go.Got a friend with a customized piece with components of Harman Kardon,Pioneer and Bose...tho cant quite recall which piece is what.That sound and quality is superb and i think its worth the time and every dime

I would have to sell my house to afford a B&O home theater

Here's some info that will help you choose a system.

I would not advice you to get a system that has a built in DVD or Blue-ray player.

The disadvantage of getting the one that has a built in player is that if a new standard is introduced, you will need to get rid of the whole system in order to get the new standard, but if the player and the sound are separate, all that you will have to do is just replace the player.

Example:

Currently, Blue-Ray players are slowly phasing out standard dvd players, just as the standard dvd players phased out the VCR.
More content is being released in HD (720p Res:1,280x720 pixels) or Full HD (1080 p/i Res:1,920x1,080 pixels).

Along with the blue-ray players, there are also HD or Full HD displays that are required in order to enjoy the picture details in the high resolutions found in HD or Full HD technologies. This is so because there would be no point of having a blue-ray player or HD / Full HD signal with a standard display.

So, if the sound system is separated from the player, all that you'll need to do is just replace the player.

FYI:

- Standard DVD players are 480 p/i Res: 720x480, so viewing it on a HD or Full HD display would require up-scaling the image, this is the reason why they do not look sharp.
- The same goes with viewing HD content on a Full HD display, except that this time it is better than viewing 480p on Full HD. The greater the difference, the greater the distortion.
- Blue-Ray is Full HD and supports 3D
- In DSTV, Surround sound is found in certain channels only, such as the HD channels.
- Multichoice currently supports HD or 720p. We hope that in the not-far future, they will upgrade to Full HD or 1080p as well as increase the number of channels that will have HD or Full HD.

- Make sure that the sound system has these connections.
- Optical
- Coaxial
- HDMI

- DSTV decoders output surround sound via the optical and coaxial connections.

-Consider getting an AV Receiver.
- It will be your media control center, highly configurable, where everything plugs to and from it. It can route both analogue and digital audio and video. You can hook up your TV, Decoder, DVD / Blue-Ray, Gaming Console, Surround speakers, Computer, Phone, MP3 player...
- You can get one that is bundled with speakers, or you can get one without speakers, thus allowing you to choose the speakers that you want.
- Make sure that the receiver will have the output power that will meet your demands as well as it having all the connections that you will need
- If you will be sourcing your own speakers, make sure that the speakers output capacity is not less than the receivers output power.
- Select quality cables. If you chose a bundled system, you may need to replace the bundled cables. Movements over time do cause cables to weaken, and even cut. Invest in well protected cables that are not only strong, but can transport a good signal, preventing interference that cause noise. Optical and coaxial cables will not have any interference from the environment, since they are transporting light signals, but in such a case, you are to look out for build quality: nothing should break or cut easily.
- Some speakers are active or powered, meaning that they have their own built in amp. You will not need active speakers if you get a receiver that has a built in amp.
- Make sure that you have a good sub that can effortlessly handle at least 20Htz without distortions, and that the speakers can also handle the mid's and the high's without breaking a sweat - Giving you a good full sound.
- Recent AV Receivers have multiple HDMI's connections. (A single HDMI cable can support both Full HD video & Surround sound simultaneously). Optical and coaxial are audio only, capable of surround, but no video.
- Blue-Ray supports 7.1 With the AV Receiver, you can have 7.2. The second sub ensures that the bass is uniform throughout the room. In addition to the front and rear speakers, side speakers can been added to make it 7.

So, getting an open highly-configurable system is much better than getting a closed multi-purpose system, for you do not know what will be of the future innovations.

- If you do not have one, get a quality / original surge protector.

- 3D has not yet fully stabilized, but it's getting adopted in different sphere's even in gaming. There are different standards, hence users will need different hardware to make different 3D technologies work. Some of the current challenges include, but are not limited to: Viewing angles, glasses-free, flicker, color richness, out-of-screen 3D and in-screen or depth 3D. Different technologies have overcome different areas, we are waiting for the champ to emerge, one that will solve all the issues.
- You can watch anaglyph 3d using any display device. You do not need a 3D display to view anaglyph, all that you need are a pair of anaglyph 3d glasses and the content.

@D32, darn right you need good cables:

www.monstercable.com/home_av/home_theater.asp

With these you will be able to hear the lyric soprano Kiri Te Kanawa or coloratura soprano Mariah Carey taking in a deep breath before belting out an aria on a note not yet documented in the musical world.

@jaggernaut, you may want to visi www.WhatHiFi.com

You'll get plenty of info.

My advice is: choosing a hi-fi system is like choosing a school for your kids. Don't take anyone's advice at face-value. Go out and listen to different units and hear which caresses your ears best. The comparison between two units is best done in the same shop. Humans have very poor memory of sound quality!

Secondly, decide whether you want to focus on sound quality or the selection of automatic features. Generally you will find that a machine with many features will not sound as god as one without.

Im biased towards harman kadon as well. However if you just want a system that looks good and is for TV and DVDs only then Lg or Sony will do.

You could also create your own "Poor Man's Surround" system this way:



"Receiver" = Your kawaida stereo amp

"Potentiometer" = a volume control resistor