So the question of the day is why do you need an AV receiver or do you need an av receiver? Or can your television do the job?
OK let’s cut the nonsense, an AV receiver will always do a better job, offering improved features, more connectivity, and better management of all your home theater components.
We went over everything a home theater receiver can do in a previous article, now let’s see whether having one is really all that important.
Do you need an AV receiver?
If you have a relatively new, relatively large flatscreen TV, an expensive model, it may actually work as the centerpiece of your home theater. The latest models come with smart features built-in — these are no substitute for a dedicated AV receiver, but can actually be enough for the simple user.
But for a full home theater experience, complete with the latest media players, streaming devices, surround sound speaker systems, and whatnot, you are best served by investing in a good AV receiver.
For starters, not having an AV receiver means that you will need a TV that has enough input jacks to handle all your different video sources like DVD, Bluray players, game consoles, and so on.
If you have a separate sound system, having an AV receiver will ensure that you put it to the best possible use at all times, when watching broadcast TV, playing games, or watching a movie.
To perform all these tasks, you can either employ a number of separate components, or use a single device that integrates all these functions — and then some. That single component is the AV receiver that can function as both the control center and power center of your home theater system.
While you can purchase a separate preamplifier, digital signal processor, and amplifier, even an AM/FM tuner for good measure, most home theater owners prefer to opt for the AV receiver for the relative ease of connecting one component.
Ultimately, the choice comes down to how elaborate a setup you are going for, and how many different devices make up your home theater. It’ll also depend on whether you are okay switching your various components to and from your television. This situation quickly gets more complicated when you bring gaming and other multimedia devices into the mix.
Here’s the bottom line
If you only watch basic TV (and cable) and the sound from your television is fine to you, you don’t need an AV receiver.
If however, you want better sound OR you have more than one component (Xbox, PS4 etc) that you want to use on your TV, you need to get a good AV Receiver.
OK so to recap, we have discussed the following topics:
Now let’s talk about separates.