astroglide's home theater: what i own, what i would buy today

[gusmahler]

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I assume I'll want the four speakers for the walls, a receiver (I don't even know what a receiver does), and a subwoofer?

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You may also want a center channel speaker. (or not, some people don't like them.)

What a receiver does is switch between sources (e.g., between your cable box and your DVD player) and sends the signals to the speakers. E.g., your DVD player has a digital output that the receiver will separate into signals for each of your speakers.

Search this thread for recommendations on home theater in a box (which has the receiver and all the speakers).