I am building a new home and trying to do the correct surround sound/theater wiring before the drywall goes up. I have an opening over my fireplace. I was planning to house all the equipment (audio receiver, digital receiver, DVD and any other items you suggest in a closet. I had a friend come in and pull a CAT5e and coax from the TV location to the closet. He then pulled a coax from closet to outside service location. He also pulled speaker wire to 2 front and 2 rear in-wall speaker locations. He also pulled a speaker wire for an external center speaker as well a subwoofer location. Since I am not very knowledgeable about this setup, please advise if this will work or if there are better options.

One of the true reasons for the email is due to a visit to Best Buy today. They started talking about having two HDMI and one Optical cable installed from the TV to the closet. I must say I did not fully understand the difference between this and what is there now. Please help me with this first and then we can engage in selecting the actual electronics.

Regards, Kent

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Hello Kent,

Please read my linked articles to understand better the ideal locations for 5.1-channel and 7.1-channel home theater layouts and various connections, both audio and video:

Home Theater Layout

HDMI vs DVI

I'm bothered by your sentence: "I have an opening over my fireplace." Before you decide to put a flat-panel TV over the fireplace (I assume that's what you are planning), put a thermometer there and measure the temperature when the fireplace is operating. If it's over 90 degrees Fahrenheit, don't do it, as damage to an LCD or plasma set may result. Additionally, sometimes locating flat panels over the fireplace puts them too high up for comfortable viewing from a seating location. You want the video image to be at roughly eye level when you're seated.

It's time to retire your old stereo receivers unless you want to use one or both to power a stereo setup in a different room(s). They cannot be used effectively in a multi-channel home theater setup.

You will need to purchase a new Dolby Digital Audio/Video receiver. It will decode the 5.1 or 7.1-channel surround soundtracks that exist on most DVDs and all 5.1-channel soundtracks that accompany High-Definition TV programs and movies. We recommend AV receivers from Sherwood Newcastle, Denon, Harman/Kardon, Outlaw Audio and, for 8-ohm speakers, Pioneer and Yamaha.

Your room is relatively huge (7200 cu. ft) compared to the average living room (2200 cu. ft). If possible, I'd suggest you not use in-wall speakers unless you use a hybrid design like the Axiom W series, which overcome the limitations of most in-wall designs.

Given your room size, I'd prefer you use floorstanding front left and right main speakers such as the Axiom M60 or M80 towers, as these will have the power and dynamics to fill the big room. Do not use in-wall surrounds if you can avoid it. Axiom's QS8 quadpolar surrounds hang flush against the wall and are compact and unobtrusive. The main surrounds (per the diagrams I linked to) go to each side of your listening area, well above ear level (3 to 6 feet or more). The rear surrounds complete a 7.1 channel layout.

You'll need a good-sized subwoofer as well--the Axiom EP500 will do a fine job. Consider either the Axiom Epic60.500 7.1-channel system ($3,439 delivered) or the M80/500 system ($3,762 delivered).

You will need to experiment to find the best subwoofer location--it will depend on the characteristics of your completed room. See my articles on how to do that. The cable to the subwoofer is a shielded coax, not speaker wire. All subwoofers are powered so you'll need a nearby AC outlet.

You can use your existing DVD player as long as it has either an optical digital or coaxial digital output jack for the digital soundtracks. If the player lacks those, get a new one from OppoDigital on-line. It will have HDMI outputs as well as component-video outputs.Other excellent DVD brands include Sherwood Newcastle, Panasonic, Denon, Toshiba or Sony. HDMI (or DVI) carry high-definition digital video signals. One is not "better" than the other. Component video (3 cables sometimes bundled) also carry Hi-Def video but in analog form. Do not use long runs (more than 15 feet for any digital audio or video connections). You will need to hire an installer if you use Cat5 cable and longer runs. Axiom has recommended installers.

Kind regards,

Alan