# Home theater setup for opera



## Vlad (Feb 23, 2012)

Hello. I'm a new opera fanatic and I am thinking about buying a new TV and accoutrements for watching productions at home.anything I should be aware of? Any advice? Thanks!


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## Vaneyes (May 11, 2010)

55" - 60" Sony or Panasonic Full HD 1080p LED-LCD, w. Internet, WiFi. Dolby TrueHD 7.1 ch. AV receiver. Sony Blu-ray player w. WiFi. 7.1 speaker system. Quality HDMI cable, speaker cable, interconnects. Have professionals deliver and set-up, if you don't know what you're doing.

Bundling all this equipment plus delivery and set-up at a big box store will save you big time and money. You can't be shy about playing hardball. Good luck. :tiphat:


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## katdad (Jan 1, 2009)

If you've got the money, I'd recommend you take a listen to Bose speakers for your audio choice. Bose has a tradition of precise mid-range that's essential for the human voice. Bose come in several price ranges.

What you want to steer clear of regarding your audio is the more prevalent systems that have that pounding, intense, and monster bass undertone. It may work great for giant smashing robot movies but not for opera DVDs.


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## ZombieBeethoven (Jan 17, 2012)

If you are planning on opera or any other musical entertainment, speakers are important. Your front right and left speakers will be doing most of the work so that it where I would recommend spending your speaker money. 5.1 speakers systems are fun for movies, but for music the front two are critical. Very few display TVs in stores have their picture calibrated correctly. It makes it difficult to judge them. Audio/video receivers (AVRs) have become cheaper than purely two channel stereo receivers of the same quality.


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## Vlad (Feb 23, 2012)

Followup: for opera, do I really need surround sound, or is three front speakers OK? Also, would an old a/v received work, or does it need to have HDMI?


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## ZombieBeethoven (Jan 17, 2012)

Many recordings are in stereo, so just fronts are required. Some are 5.1, so surround can be nice. With unlimited funds you can purchase great speakers all around. Since my funds are limited, I decided to spend most of my money on the left and right fronts. A good center speaker can keep dialogue rooted in the middle of your picture. Personally, I am happy with letting the dialogue be delivered by the left and right front speakers. HDMI is merely a convenient cable type to deliver both audio and video signals from a source (blu ray or dvd) to an a/v and to a TV. If an old a/v provides a picture to your TV and audio to your speakers that you like, it will be sufficient. Newer a/vs may provide more options, but they may not be necessary for your needs. 
I suggest that you listen to some speakers. Find some that you like. Verify that your a/v can drive them. Unless you pick some speakers that are particularly hard to drive, there should not be any problems. Hook them up and enjoy.
Perhaps, I am being too vague, but I hesitate to suggest particular brands or models because it seems that everybody has their own preferences. There are forums devoted to audio visual science that go into great detail about these issues. I learned quite a bit reading some of them. I had even more fun listening to a few systems before coming up with my current system. Best of all, of course, is finally putting in a disc and enjoying a great performance!


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## Hoffmann (Jun 10, 2013)

If you haven't already purchased your new equipment, my suggestion is to opt for plasma over LED/LCD. Those much thinner alternatives offer, to my eye, more saturated color and a much less natural image. I would copy and paste the advice I followed from: cnet.com/tv-buying-guide - but I believe their content may be copyrighted. I am very happy with my Panasonic plasma set that I have had for about 5 years, and people almost always comment on the quality of the picture.


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