Sunday, October 9, 2011

Installing Home Theatre the Tough Way

By Martin Cruze


The pull of home theatre is forceful and the end result potential pleasure. How hard can it be in these modern technology days to save the effort, the time, the money and just bolt it all together yourself. Of course , the iPhone age has made connecting all things electronic a breeze. I believed the sales pitch and decided to not contact my local electrician to loan a pro hand. It started off agreeably. Enviably massive flat screen TV? Check. Potent speakers and amplifier that would have the neighbors bitching until morning? Check. Enough wires to wire up a small power station? Check.

With all my new kit in hand, all that was left to do was truly put it all together. OK, I admit that I am no tech guru, genius or pro electrician, but I am rather good when it comes to absorbing and following instructions. Equipped with a heap of instruction manuals and a fresh brew I got to work.

To make a long story down, I failed completely. What occurred between starting on this mission and finally giving up is a little bit of a blur, but here goes.

The first issue was all that language! Somewhere between routing, anamorphic and network, I developed a little bit of a brain freeze. Not to mention the confirmed fact that I could've played Scrabble with all the undecipherable acronyms like ADSL, THX and DHCP. Phew!

When I wrapped my head around a couple of these foreign terms (yes I admit that I had to make use of the search and Google more than a few times), it was onto making all the different parts come together in one single working, pleasant system. Well, my dreams of home-based theatre system glory were in tatters once again when I realized how unsuited the varied components can be when you can't get to first base even with the jargon. It's as if the manufacturers deliberately made it extraordinarily confused, I believe only for their own bizarre entertainment. In short the television is off doing its own thing, while the CD and disc player is going in the other direction, and in the meantime the satellite receiver is nowhere to be found. Each wants to be in charge of the various functions, but the more that you try and shed light on your options, the further you spin into a deep, dark hole of a system overload.

As I sat there encircled by loose wires, random elements and a few remote controls, I realised that installing a home-based theatre system isn't actually a DIY kind of job. I only wish That I had come to that conclusion earlier. With no regard for how much I tell myself I am in a position to do things on my own, this is one case where I had to confess yielding and called on the provider to get me someone to help me out of this deep technical hole I had dug myself into. Help was then mercifully at hand. After hours of trying, a handful of not-so-nice words, and one or two cups of coffee I came to one simple conclusion: Some things really are better left to the professionals.




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Mini dvd players , Home entertaining tips , Video multiplexer , Mp3 player , Digital multiplexer 2012

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