Steps on how to start a very slick powered stereo

This is the advice that I personally recommend to you and may not fit your needs. If you have any questions, e-mail me here

First:
Before you start, know what you are looking for. Are you looking for pure driving power, loud sound, deep bass, or movie type surround sound? Ask yourself these questions first.

Next:
What is your budget? How much are you willing to spend?
My personal recommendation is Sony. They are the best for their prices. However, there are better brands such as Klipsch, Boston, Dennon; (their prices clearly state this) they range anywhere from eight hundred to in their thousands but again, they are more equipped and will probably perform a lot better. Still, Sony offers great quality products at great prices and they will still give you a great listening experience.

Then:
Look firstly for your receiver. § - VERY IMPORTANT STEP - §
Your receiver is your "brain" and "heart" for your system. After you know what you want make sure the receiver that you want has your needs. [ex. If you want great surround sound, make sure the receiver has the Dolby - Prologic or Digital, and DTS. This offers outstanding quality cinema sound.] Also make sure it can handle what you want. [If you want to have loud crisp sound, make sure that the receiver has enough "watts-per-channel" to produce what you want.] Ask the store if you may test it's abilities to produce sound. (The store employees should know a bit about the product you are looking at.)

Finally:
After you have picked out the receiver you want, it's time to look for the extras. (Speakers, CD player, DVD etc.)
Now it's time to build upon just having the receiver. Get yourself the speakers you want. Make sure they can handle what your receiver outputs so you don't blow them. For video quality I would definitely suggest getting a DVD player. It has the best quality- performance, sound, and picture there is to offer in these days. They can also play standard CD's. A DVD player comes either in a single tray (will play 1 DVD at a time) or in a 5 disk tray (Stores 5 DVDs).

And of course a great TV. Get one that offers good quality picture, a decent size screen, and make sure it has the RCA jacks you need to plug in your components such as a Playstation, DVD, etc. (Your instruction manuel should show and explain how this is done for any possible hook-up) Again, whatever fits YOUR needs.

If you need visual help, you can see my stereo here.

-- How I got Started --

I first got started by buying a all-in-one type deal. It came with a receiver, the 5 speaker surround sound, a 5-disk CD player, and a hi-fi stereo VCR. This was around $750.00. Well it was good but didn't have the surround sound capability that I wanted. So, I found a Sony Dolby Digital ready package that came with a center channel- 120 watts, a 50 watt sub woofer, and four- 100 watt satellite speakers. It was perfect. Well the days went by and the "Dolby Digital Ready" meant that I had to find an extra component to decode the digital signals. So, once again I had to upgrade. I ended up getting a 5x 100 watt Dolby Digital and DTS Sony receiver. The big one. It is the one I have now (look at it here) and I'll tell you I don't think I would get another. The bad thing about upgrading after upgrade is I spent well over two- thousand dollars on my whole system, so MAKE URE that you PLAN very carefully before comming up with what you want your stereo to be like.

Mainly - Get something that fits YOUR needs !!!

For more help from what other people think of their stereo products go to - www.audioreview.com it gives reviews and stuff on stereo products.