KYJets

In the future, I plan on having all the necessary parts that make up a great home entertainment system, but for now I am devising a plan. If you had to buy one item at a time how would you do it? Rank them here. For example- 1. Big screen 2. DVD player 3. TiVo 4. Surround Sound etc.

das Monkey

Assuming you have a decent TV already, and a DVD player that at least plays:

TiVo
Big Screen
Sound
DVD

TV is more important than film, and TiVo will change your life. And no sense getting a badass DVD player without the equipment to experience it.

das

Brian Shannon

Personally it is all about the sound for me. The proper speakers make or break a theater setup. This is a point sadly lost on commercial movie theaters who think their big screens can make up for poor speakers and unbalanced sound.

You can fill a room with high quality sound and watch a 27"TV but a big screen HDTV with a progressive player is going to be wasted without a great sound system to complete the experience.

buffotoad

1. big sound
2. dvd player
3. big screen
4. tivo

Illinois Enema Bandit

as for the TiVo thing, it depends on how much TV you like to watch - myself, I watch far more film than I do broadcast television

buzzdalf

Ideal:
1. Tivo (you won't know how you lived without it)
2. big sound (good sound makes all the difference)
3. DVD (now that it sounds good, exploit it)
4. big screen (now you can see it from 50' away!)

The order I did it in:
1. sound
2. DVD
3. Tivo
4. big screen

RandyC

Difficult to just rank them, because a lot of the parts don't make a lot of sense on their own, or have less value to me without the other part.

I would not be as thrilled with my DVD player, without a good receiver system for example.

BUT...if you have to use the criteria of buying one item at a time, I would go this way:

1. Good receiver/speakers. That is the cornerstone of a good home theater.

2. DVD player. Even with a smaller screen set, a DVD player pumping sound through that good stereo is pretty cool. If you want a bigger screen, sit closer.

3. TiVo. I love my TiVo and before owning it, I would never have ranked it high, but it is truly cool for TV stuff. And if you spend time watching TV, this is very handy.

4. VCR. Yeah, they suck, but they are still handy. For the price, you can get a nice Hi-Fi S-VHS model pretty cheaply. And that way you can transfer stuff from the TiVo to Videotape, you have access to stuff not on DVD, and can trade/rent or whatever.

5. Larger screen. I am not a big fan of bigger is better. It's all about proportion and I find a lot of people can get too big and ignore other more important (to me) factors. I would trade off size for resolution and look into a 16:9 HDTV set.

6. Satellite Dish. More access to higher definition programming.

7. A great programmable remote.

skar

Importance:

1. Speakers
2. Display Device
3. Amplification
4. TiVo
5. DVD
6. Universal remote

Order to buy (assuming you already have a TV with at least composite and a DVD player):

1. TiVo
2. Receiver
3. Speakers
4. Sub
5. Remote
6. New Front Projection System (or a nice big screen)
7. New HTPC (or a high end DVD player)

BDB

Interesting, I already have 1, 2 and 3.
4 is next on my list, 5 I don't really care about.
and The next big purchase will be the Widescreen TV.
Hoping against hope to be able to pick up a Plasma....


so all in all I think Skar nailed it.

Scott

Tough call on this one, because everything is so interconnected. It depends on how often you want to upgrade. Will you want to invest in mid- to high-end immediately, or start a cycle of constant upgrading?

I would do this....
1. TV (will stand alone pending further purchases)
2. Cable or sat service
3. Receiver (worthless without speakers, but should be next)
4. Front speakers
5. Center speaker
6. Sub
7. TiVo
8. TiVo service
9. DVD player
10. Surround speakers
11. Universal remote (assuming that receiver remote won't work)
12. Rear surround speakers
13. CD player (depends on how much music you like)
14. Repeat cycle as needed (to include wide screen/front-projector)

ANDREMIKE

I am shocked how many people put Tivo at the top of their list. Tivo is really not neccesary.


The order I would do it in.

1. TV
2. Receiver/speakers
3. DVD
4. then TIVO
5. VCR if you don't already have one form the 90's

If you alread yhave a decent TV then make 4. buy a wide screen TV. and 5. TIVO etc....

ccoolidge

1. TV (be it widescreen, projection, tube, flat-panel or whatever, this is the most important aspect of a home theater IMHO)
2. DVD player
3. Receiver or Processor/Amp
4. L/C/R speakers
5. Sub
6. Surround Speakers
7. Cable or Sat system
8. Universal Remote
9. Tivo
10. VCR

I am also amazed at how many people put Tivo near the top of their list. I personally don't watch enough TV to justify getting one. I watch Football, and an occasional episode of The Simpsons, The Family Guy and NewsRadio. (all of these shows are aired on local channels, except for ESPN games) That's it. No other sporting events, no other sitcoms or shows, and rarely news. I'm truly amazed by those who place Tivo above DVD player...crazy, man. To each their own.

matchpenalty

I agree with one thing about the last 3 posts. There is no question in my mind the TV is the most critical aspect of any system. You also get enjoyment from it without all the other things, so you can piece it together when it makes sense.

It's personal preference after the tv in my opinion. However, my thinking goes toward the 'I can use it now and I get some additional critical capability, so I get more bang for the buck'

If you watch more movies, the dvd player will come second. If you watch more TV, especially recorded tv, a tivo/ultimate/replay would come next. This is where satellite could also come in before a unit, but with satellite being so cheap to install and similar to cable pricing, I will figure you can do that whenever you want. However, the PVR can be part of the satellite setup and Ultimate lets you record two shows at once which for me is the biggest issue compared to VCRs too. I have a replay and one day may get ultimate. Remember to get a DD satellite box if you plan to use it down the line too .. (prepare for expansion at minimal cost if possible) You can use both a DVD and PVR without a receiver and still notice a major sound improvement on the DVD.

Then comes the sound system. I really think this is best buying as a package rather than piecemeal. Since DVD and PVR aren't very expensive on a relative basis, you might look to get them at the same time. The big expenses are the TV and the sound system and the cabling/connection costs that go with them.

etp

#####1= Monster size HDTV/digital
#####2=proscan DVD(kenwood 5050 400+3 changer)=$800
#####3=quality cahnnel 6 amp rcvr( 7 if you can afford it, big bucks)
#####4=Large high quality front speakers
#####5=large high quality rear channel speakers
#####6=meduim size high quality center speakers

audrey

My take is totally different. While I do think sound is one of the most critical elements of a good HT, my purchase order would be:

1. DVD player (I don't see the point of having a receiver to listen to TV; but that's just me)
2. DD/DTS Receiver and speakers
3. Sub
4. Widescreen/HDTV display
5. Tivo (if you feel the need; I don't watch enough TV to make this worthwhile).

Scott

[pulpit] I can tell that those of you who wondered about the high rating of TiVo simply haven't tried one yet. Lots of folks have tried to describe that habit-changing experience, but few have captured it in a way to pursuade the non-believers. You simply have to try it to believe it. [/pulpit]