Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater Lets plan a theater space

But why do i need those specific formats?
DD 5.1 won't sound any different quality-wise.
I don't have a 6.1, 6.2, etc. system so the extra channels that come with those formats are irrelevant, and being more of an audio gearhead than most folks, this proves my point.

A lot of people don't even have a quality 5.1 system to begin with. Most i know that get into the surround sound buy a small HTIB setup and certainly have no plans to get more than that.

At some point i personally do plan to add two rear surround channels and another subwoofer for a 7.2 system, but that is my limit. Until i get to that point, the only limitation i have with my 12 year old Onkyo AVR is it does not have HDMI. However with the recent purchase of an Oppo bluray player which has both HDMI and component video out connections, i can continue to use the Onkyo for awhile longer yet.
Although i love the idea of getting a newer, larger flatscreen TV (another topic as to why i'm not atm), i was annoyed that to get a bluray functioning i may almost have need to buy a new TV and a new AVR!
So for a $300 bluray player i need to get/replace over $3k in new electronics??!!!

The big killer IMO for new home a/v electronics will come in connection types. They keep coming out with new standards and new connections almost every other year it seems.
A tv that could last 15 to 20 years is now almost defunct after 10 because it doesn't have newer connection types and/or a newer unit may not still have older connection types such that anyone replacing a broken DVDp for example, might be faced with having to buy a whole new TV as well.
Most consumers aren't happy with being pushed into that narrow choice.
It costs alot even at the lower prices at which one can buy a TV today. Replacing electronics at that pace is just stupidity.

Forward thinking; when we bought our TV back in 2002 we at least made sure it had component video in and 1080i resolution capable such that today, we do have a functioning large screen HD tv. Thankfully the brand makers didn't cut component video inputs off at the knees too quickly after HDMI was introduced or that TV would have had to disappear a long time ago.