Home Video (VHS, DVD, Blu-ray, 4k)

No I'm not watching Linus tech tips talk about how great Facebook is.

I'm certainly not wasting time on the ground breaking news that buying used can save money.

Not gonna watch the video but thanks for the post I agree with the sentiment. Most of my friends and family i know have soundbars and they work better than TVthan speakers but my old roommates don't seem to remember the 5.1 setup I had later in college accumulated over about a year costing around $270. I still have the sub to this day and just replaced the $95 center last month.

I took a road less traveled and use studio monitors for my TV. You can get 4-5” options for around $200-250 and at that price, they pack a punch. I’ve since upgraded to HS-8s , which admittedly are much more expensive, but for most, are complete overkill.

Most things I watch are only stereo anyway and having used a 5.1 in the past, surround is ultimately novelty for me.

I would always recommend paying attention to your room acoustics. Better speakers than what your TV has will make a difference, but beyond that you need to treat the room.

If you kill immediate high frequency reflections from walls, floor and ceiling to your listening position, and reduce energy of low frequency standing waves, you make a bigger difference than spending piles of cash on new equipment. And if you have a subwoofer, play around with the placement as even fairly small shifts can have a notable impact in your listening position.

Almost anything sounds better than TV speakers, but if you're going to spend the money, it really is better to just go to 5.1.

I've had a 5.1 setup for 20 years. Back then I was playing the original Xbox on 720p widescreen and surround speakers, and it was glorious. My first setup was the cheapest all-in-one speaker/receiver set available for a fresh college graduate earning next to nothing and deep in credit card and student debt.

I think I've gone through three sets of speakers now, three receivers, and two subwoofers. I like to stay up on technology, but you don't really have to upgrade very often or at all, if you like. I currently have some pretty nice Pioneer speakers with towers for left and right, and I wired my room for 5.1 outlets when I renovated my basement earlier this year. No more visible wires!

I thought about doing 7.1 or 7.2, but ultimately I didn't want to cut holes and try to fish wire across and down with how my ceiling is. 4K and 5.1 will probably always be enough for me.

So long as you have the space for a receiver, it should be the first thing anyone buys for home cinema.

It gives you so much flexibility.
And since everyone is gradually upgrading their non UHD ones, you can get a receiver with HDMI switching for very little now.