Speakers first

Right out front it is best to admit that component systems are more expensive than HTIB's, more complex, and generally bulkier too. However these very real negatives are forgiven by enthusiasts because they can sound as good as or even better than the local Cineplex.

If performance is your most important criteria, the best way to buy a theatre system is to start at a HiFi store that has a speaker selection room and listen to different pairs of speakers via a comparator. Always start the system buying process by listening to speakers first. There are far greater differences in sound between speakers than between receivers or any other component. Speakers vary widely in size, style and price and you want end up with speakers you'll enjoy listening to and be happy to have sitting in your lounge room.

Speakers also vary greatly in terms of how much power they need. So you must pick your speakers first and do it on the basis of how they appeal to you and whether they are going to be able to thrive in your own room on the music and movies and volume levels you like. Demo speakers with familiar music and listen to the main stereo pair. The specialist store salesperson should be able to help in this process.

Once you have picked your main speakers, be sure to stick with the same brand when matching the centre speaker. For the rears you have more options. If the manufacturer of your centre and mains makes a pair of rear speakers that suit your needs - great. However matching is not essential for the rears. The option you choose will more be driven by your room and space requirements. You can choose low profile on-wall, in-wall and in-ceiling speakers, or consider placing the rear speakers on a bookcase or on stands. You are really only limited by your dwelling and the ease (or difficulty) of the cable run.

Once you have picked your five speakers you should purchase a subwoofer that is appropriate for your room size. The subwoofer plays a vital role in creating excitement and a sense of scale, so unless you have a very small room, steer clear of subwoofers under AU$700 as they don't play low, loud or tightly enough.

Amplifier second

Once you've picked speakers appropriate for your situation and know how hungry for power they are, your choice of amplifier becomes easier. But simply having enough juice to run your speakers is not the only thing you will be thinking about. Fussier aficionados will want to audition similarly priced surround receivers, as sound quality differences do exist, but these differences are not as great as with speakers.

You must also think about how many sources you are going to hook up to the amplifier. Allow a bit of growing room for a new games console and DVD recorder. Look at what sort of video switching exists, as this will be vital for owners of TVs with just one or two AV inputs but loads of video gear. Also check if the amp up-converts composite and S video to component video further minimising cabling hassles.

Another nice-to-have feature in amplifiers these days is an automated microphone based set up. This is a great feature for getting your system delivering its full potential.

And finally give some thought to the quality of the amplifier's remote control. Most surround receivers come with a form of universal remote control, but can it be seen in the dark? Does it have the ability to learn new devices to make it useful down the track, or is it restricted to only knowing the codes of the currently available devices?

Source components last

DVD players, recorders and set top boxes have the least noticable differences between models and brands when it comes to sound quality. These digital devices normally have their audio feeds converted to analogue in your surround receiver rather than in the device itself.

Here you should examine equipment more on the basis of its feature sets and ease of use. Specification lists are pretty similar in this competitive market.

Virtually all DVD players and recorders now come with progressive scan and can play a decent variety of recordable disc formats but only some are multizone (which means they can play discs from different regions).

If you are shopping for any of the above items, the things to look for are a healthy array of connections (ideally including HDMI). For DVD recorders and standard definition set top boxes, a hard drive makes for truly useful digital storage and recording flexibility. Having twin tuners in your set top box is also mighty handy for those rows over what's on TV. At the top of the High Definition (HD) market there are twin tuner HD set top boxes from Toshiba and LG that can record HD video onto a hard drive.