• A great home theater system can seriously transform your living room into a moving-watching center.
  • Of all the sets we researched, the Klipsch Reference speakers and the Pioneer receiver bundle offers the best value for money and sound quality.

TVs may have built-in speakers, but getting a home theater system can seriously improve the quality of those family movie nights. Not only will the sound be louder, but it will sound much better with a lot more emphasis on the lower-end of that audio. The multiple speakers in the room will make whatever you’re watching feel much more immersive, too.

Thankfully, while there was once a time when buying a home theater system meant spending thousands of dollars, these days you can get a decent system for only a few hundred bucks. Still, if you’ve decided you want to invest in a home theater system, you’ll want to consider a number of different things.

For starters, you’ll want to decide whether or not you’re looking for an all-in-one home theater system, called a Home-Theater-In-A-Box (HTIB), or if you want to buy the speakers and the receiver separately. That’s what audiophiles sometimes do to make sure they get the best quality for each aspect of the system. For this article, we’re only talking about HTIB systems, because it gets a little more complicated when we’re considering separate speakers, receivers, and other components.

Next up, you’ll want to think about the inputs and outputs on the receiver. If you’re buying a HTIB, it’ll offer all the outputs to the speakers that you’ll need for that system, but inputs may be a different story. You might, for example, have multiple HDMI-enabled devices you’ll want to use, or you might want to use analog inputs.

Thirdly, you’ll want to think about how the different components of the system speak to each other. The cheaper systems will likely use cables, and you’ll want to manage those cables around the room. Some systems, however, stick to wireless solutions, so you won’t have to worry about cable management. Some systems also allow you to wirelessly connect from your phone, so you’ll be able to do things like play music from your phone on your home theater system.

Whether you're looking for a basic cabled home theater system, or a full wireless speaker system with all the bells and whistles, this list should have the right system for you.

Here are the best home theater systems:

Updated on 10/24/2019 by Christian de Looper: Added two new home theater systems, updated prices, and improved formatting.

The best home theater system overall

Between the Klipsch Reference speakers and the Pioneer receiver, this is a versatile setup that should sound great in any home.

If you want a high-end home theater system that sounds great, then it's worth checking out this system, which combines the awesome Klipsch Reference speakers with the Pioneer VSX-LX303 receiver. All that you'll need to buy separately is some speaker wire, but that's easy to come by.

There are plenty of things to love about this setup, but it all starts with the speakers. Klipsch has been making premium home theater speakers for years now, and this pack offers a full 5.1 setup of Klipsch Reference speakers. These speakers boast a powerful bass response with plenty of detail in the high-end, which is great for watching movies and listening to music.

The Pioneer VSX-LX303 receiver is pretty powerful too. While this pack comes with a 5.1 surround setup, the receiver is capable of 9.2 channels, so you can expand if you so choose. The receiver also supports Dolby Atmos and works with Sonos, so you can stream music to it straight from the Sonos app. When it comes to inputs, the receiver has a whopping seven HDMI inputs and two HDMI outputs.

Pros: Great sound, versatile receiver, well-designed speakers

Cons: Still a bit pricey

The best mid-range home theater system

Foto: sourceAmazon

The Yamaha YHT-5950U offers great speakers and a relatively versatile receiver for a stellar price.

Yamaha has been building high-end home theater systems for years, and it shows. The company now offers a range of excellent value-for-money home theater systems - like, for example, the Yamaha YHT-5950U, which comes with everything you'll need for immersive, high-quality audio.

There are a few reasons why this is such a great system. To be clear, if you're looking for the best audio, and have deep pockets, there may be better options out there, but the Yamaha YHT-5950U, in our view, represents the best value for most people.

Perhaps the most important thing about it is that the speakers sound great, offering plenty of bass through the included subwoofer and a detailed high end in the other speakers. The receiver also boasts plenty of inputs and outputs, including four HDMI inputs, which should be more than enough for most.

The system is relatively modern too. It offers Yamaha's MusicCast wireless tech, AirPlay 2, Bluetooth, and Spotify Connect, so you can easily play music on your system when you're not watching movies.

We're not the only ones who love this system. It has an average rating of 4.3 stars on Amazon, which is pretty awesome. The only real downside? You can't really expand to a 7.1 setup without getting a new receiver.

Pros: Excellent value, solid sound, wireless features, versatile

Cons: No 7.1 support

The best budget home theater system

Foto: sourceVIZIO/Facebook

The Vizio 36-inch 5.1 SmartCast Sound Bar System is super easy to use and set up, plus, it delivers surround sound at an excellent price.

Soundbars are great, but surround sound systems are even better. So what if you combine the best of both worlds? That's where the Vizio 36-inch 5.1 SmartCast Sound Bar System comes in. The system is inexpensive, easy to use, and it sounds great, too.

Perhaps one of the best things about the system is that it's very user-friendly. Simply unwrap all the components and plug them in, and you should be pretty much good to go. You can plug your sound sources directly into the soundbar, which is a nice feature.

Thankfully, the system sounds good, too. It comes with a nice big subwoofer, so you'll get plenty of that low-end, but the highs are still crisp and detailed, too. Now, it's important to remember that this is a budget system, so you can't expect cinema-level sound quality. Still, the system does deliver a far better sound quality than you would expect at $250.

The system is smart, too. Not only can you play audio directly from your TV, but with the SmartCast app, you can also beam music from your phone, too, making for a much more versatile system than a traditional soundbar.

Plenty of other reviewers loved the Vizio SmartCast system. Our great experience with the system was backed up by the 4-star review on TechHive, as well as the 7/10 score over at Wired.

Pros: Easy to use, inexpensive, well-designed, wireless features, surround sound

Cons: Sound quality could be better

The best wireless home theater system

Foto: sourceEnclave

The Enclave Audio CineHome HD offers great sound quality and some nice inputs, but its main advantage is its excellent wireless support.

There really isn't a completely wireless home theater system on the market just yet, but the Enclave Audio CineHome HD is about as close as it gets, with a series of wires that sit safe and out of the way behind the TV.

One of the great things about a wireless system like this is that setting up the device is extremely easy to do. Simply connect the center speaker to the TV through the HDMI port, and then plug each speaker into a power outlet.

One of the main disadvantages of a wireless system like this one is that turning it on isn't instantaneous. Instead of simply turning on, the system also has to find the other speakers and connect before you'll be able to take advantage of the surround sound. Still, turning it on doesn't take too long, and the sound quality is worth it. In fact, some reviewers argue that its sound quality rivals the likes of Onkyo, which happens to be our top pick on this list.

When it comes to inputs and outputs, this system is decent but not amazing. You'll get three HDMI inputs and one HDMI output, so it's not as I/O heavy as other systems on this list.

Pros: Almost completely wireless, excellent sound quality

Cons: A little pricey, takes some time to power on

The best high-end home theater system

Foto: sourceBose

The Bose LifeStyle 650 is the crème de la crème of surround sound speaker systems, featuring excellent support for streaming platforms, lots of inputs, and an amazing sound quality.

Looking for the best sound quality, period? Well, then the Bose Lifestyle 650 is for you, but you will need to pay a pretty penny to get your hands on it. In fact, you'll need to pay a whopping $3,999.

Of course, the advantages are numerous. Bose is known for its amazing sound quality, and the Lifestyle 650 sound system is no different. Audio separation between the speakers is much better than on most other home theater systems, and while the speakers are small they can get really quite loud.

Design is also pretty important, as these speakers will be sitting in your living room. Thankfully, they look good, too, featuring a nice classy and minimalistic look. They're pretty subtle, so they shouldn't look out of place in any living room.

On the receiver, you'll find six separate HDMI inputs, which support the latest HDCP standard, which is compatible with 4K video. You can also make use of the two optical inputs, optical output, RCA, and even aux port. Out of the box, you'll get support for Spotify, Deezer, Pandora, Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, and Sirius XM. And, the system has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, and you can pair your phone or tablet quickly and easily through NFC.

There really aren't too many downsides here except for price, but if you can afford it, you won't regret getting the Bose Lifestyle 650.

Pros: Amazing sound quality, great wireless support, classy design, lots of inputs

Cons: Expensive

The best Dolby Atmos 5.1 system

Foto: sourceFocal/Facebook

The Focal Sib Evo surround sound system doesn't just look awesome - it sounds absolutely amazing, and it's one of the best ways to get Dolby Atmos audio in your home.

Looking for a seriously high-end speaker system that boasts surround sound and Dolby Atmos? The Focal Sib Evo speaker system is for you. Featuring five speakers plus a subwoofer, the speaker system is sure to make your home theater a whole lot more immersive than it already is.

Of course, before we go on, it's important to note that you will need to buy a receiver to use this speaker system, and the receiver will need to support Dolby Atmos. We recommend something like the Onkyo TX-NR575.

Once you have everything, you will need to set the system up, and that takes a while. It is, however, very worth it. Once you're getting audio from the different sources, it'll not only sound phenomenal, but it'll be super immersive, too. We found that the setup process was a little tedious - the cable connectors aren't the most user-friendly, for example.

Still, the real reason to buy these speakers is the way they sound. You'll get plenty of bass, thanks to the included subwoofer, as well as an excellently crisp high-end that's sure to bring out the detail in music, movies, and video games alike. The soundstage is very wide, too, which helps deliver some of that realism.

Plenty of reviewers loved the Focal Sib Evo system, too. Trusted Reviews gave it an awesome 4.5/5, while Home Theater Review went a step further with a 5/5 rating.

Pros: Amazing sound quality, very immersive, nicely designed

Cons: Long setup, expensive