 Use the manual. Everyone knows real men don't use manuals, but plenty of real men don't even understand they have wrongly configured wiring and compromised performance. It is better to use wiring diagrams and take the advice in your manuals seriously. The manufacturer can inform you how to get the best performance from their products.
Power. Get into the habit of powering down components before making connections. Sudden loads on live amplifiers connected to speakers are especially injuring. It is advised to power down the components involved in the connection first, when connecting audio and video cables.
Cables. Don't buy immediately luxury priced cables and wires that claim exotic materials will unlock performance. But don't purchase the cheapest, frail cables either. When connecting your system it's essential to use interconnects that have ends you can grip securely, some of the connections might be tight and often you'll need to pull them out or reconnect them from obstructed vantage points and in poor lighting. It's essential your finger tips can grab the plugs on the end of your interconnects so you're not pulling on the cable.
Space. If you want to buy a home theater, you need room for your equipment to put it all together. If everything is going in front of a wall give yourself some space to see behind the gear. Plan ahead of time how your components are to be located and then ensure the wires you have will reach before you start. There is nothing worse than having to disconnect everything from your receiver to move it because one component's wiring can't reach.
Stacking. If possible, avoid enclosed cabinets, open shelves look modern and are becoming a popular way to show your equipment while giving you easy access and allowing your equipment to breathe. If you have to stack components make sure not to block any vents. Damage from overheating forms abuse and could void a warranty. It is desirable to check components for heat from time to time after you've set everything up and start watching your first movie. If components seem to run hot, think over putting in a fan to circulate the air. Common sense can go a long way in component placement; take into account the weight of any component before putting it on top of another. A $30 DVD player probably shouldn't be used to support the weight of a 7-channel power amp.
Lighting. Make sure you have a portable flashlight handy so you can read labeled connections easily since your home theater area might not have a lot of lighting. Reaching behind components and making connections you can only feel can lead to wrong configuration and, at worst, can damage devices.
Speaker Wire. Longer runs of wire require higher gauge wire. This is the basic outline:
- 16 gauge for less than 100 feet.
- 14 gauge from 100 to 200 feet
- 12 gauge for greater than 200 feet.
Cabling Theory. Keep in mind that the basic theory behind wiring your system is simple. It's probably wrong, if it seems complicated. It may be confusing with all the buzzwords, names, standards and formats but it's not intricate once you've sorted them out. You need to connect devices together for a logical flow of signals. Do not forget simple things: left always connects to left, right always to right, negative to negative and positive always to positive. Inputs are always connected to an output.
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