Now that you have a fair understanding of the various components of a home theatre system and how they work systematically and in an integrated way, let’s get down to talking about our favorite topic – speakers! If you are reading this post, it’s likely that you are either 1) considering investing in a home theatre system and/or 2) value good quality AV experiences and want to know more about how to bring that alive in your home.
The speaker market has a dizzying variety of options for every kind of customer – starting from a novice to a refined aficionado. The range varies widely, in terms of size, aesthetics, sound signature, sound quality, price point, and application. You might note that we’ve mentioned sound signature and sound quality separately. That’s because quality is objective, and some speakers do perform objectively better than others. However, when it comes to premium speakers, sound signature is what is important, as all premium speakers perform well enough. Sound is intensely personal and what one person loves, another person might dislike. Look at the number of genres of music that exist. Pop lovers and jazz connoisseurs are going to disagree with what constitutes a good song, and both camps have their points.
It is worth doing your due diligence, and most importantly going to an expert to guide you. This is where we can step in to help understand your needs, demystify sound and audio, and help you pick the best set for your specific requirement. “Personalized solutions” has always been our mantra, and we encourage you to come to our showrooms with your own set of music, and hear as many different speakers are you need to before choosing the one you want to take home.
Furthermore, speakers, when properly maintained and used with care, can last for decades, providing long years of rich and fulfilling entertainment. This is all the more reason to choose your system with care.
At Cinebels, we have hundreds of speakers to cater to a variety of needs. While sound quality and signature are indeed a primary focus, we pride ourselves in also looking at speaker aesthetics, the look and feel, and how the speakers fit right into the aesthetic landscape of your home.
Some questions that we ask when helping clients narrow down speaker options are:
- Application: Where will this home theatre system be used? Will it be a dedicated home cinema room? Or a multi-purpose room with say, a bar or other such areas? Alternatively, is this a bedroom, or a living room?
- Aesthetic: We take time and pay attention to the aesthetic needs of the client as well as the room. If we’re working with a dedicated room, we check if speakers are needed behind the screen like a real cinema, or if floor-standing speakers can be accommodated. In smaller rooms, we consider not taking up floor space and instead employ in-wall or on-wall speakers. We also consider furniture-grade speakers or lifestyle speakers, if the space and client require it.
- Sound: This is mainly decided by the purpose the speakers and the entire system is going to serve, as well as the personal taste of the client. Is the system going to be used for a mix of movie viewing as well as for music? If primarily music, what kind of music? Rock, jazz, classical, Indian, dance – every genre has different tonal qualities and we recommend speakers accordingly
Some other generic tips to keep in mind when planning a home theatre are
- The importance of a good centre channel, as this is the channel that delivers the vast majority of dialogue, over 80%. Natural and crystal clear dialogue is critical for a top quality movie watching experience. Klipsch and Jamo are known to be hyper-focused on engineering this centre channel, as Klipsch uses its pro-cinema experience in delivering a high quality home cinema experience.
- Surround technology ensures delivery of ambient noise, and is important for an immersive experience. Jamo and Klipsch use Wide Dispersion Surround Technology to give superlative ambient surround sound, that makes you feel as though you are at the center of the events in the movie .
- Choosing a speaker with great dynamics helps produce lifelike sound, with a full range from the softest whispers to the loudest roars at the same volume level on the amplifier. Klipsch’s horn technology allows Klipsch speakers to deliver one of the widest dynamic ranges in the industry.
- Power is not important – a far more important spec is sensitivity. When a client asks about the power handling of a speaker, what they actually want to know is how loud a speaker can play. A more efficient speaker can play louder and with less distortion with less power. Sensitivity is an indication of speaker efficiency, and it’s generally better to go for a high sensitivity speaker. Klipsch speakers are amongst the most sensitive you will find. More on this in another blog!
Thank you for reading this series on home theatres. We hope it’s been helpful! As always, please feel free to email us at dm@cinebels.com for any questions.
