The main reason why would you want to have an AV receiver in your home theater system is to enjoy the amazing surround sound. It can make you feel like you are in a sports event, or right in the action movie scene you are currently watching.

There are some specific things you need to be aware of when choosing the best AV receiver for your home theater system so let’s see what they are.

Connections are important

If someone tells you that it’s not good to have a large number of inputs and outputs, he is wrong. With new devices and gadgets coming out every single day you really don’t need to be in a situation where you can’t connect them to your home theater system because all the connection ports are taken. So, when you are looking for a good AV receiver make sure it has at least four HDMI ports, and in case you want to connect a turntable it needs to have a phono input.

It is a good idea to have a list of all the components you have and plan to connect when buying an AV receiver. And also check with the manufacturers whether there are any compatibility issues.

Is your AV receiver ready for your TV?

When you buy a new AV receiver it must be fully compatible with your current TV and hopefully, with the TV you are going to buy in the future when you decide to replace the old one. Here are some of the features your Av receiver should have.

4K support

At the moment, one of the best high-resolution formats is 4K video. It really gives you a crystal clear and detailed picture.

Large screen TVs are becoming more affordable and your AV receiver needs to be able to switch 4K signals. This will allow you to send media from all your video sources and not to worry whether the video quality will be affected.

Integrated Wi-Fi connection

Although we prefer wired connections sometimes it is not possible to make it happen. Therefore, a Wi-Fi connection is a real life-saver in such situations. You will be able to use all the smart functions of your TV, like streaming videos from YouTube or other streaming services, without the need to run wires through the walls.

Number of channels

Although you will get good results with only two channels a true surround sound system will greatly improve your audio experience. Basically, with a larger number of channels you will be able to add more speakers and the sound will be much better. In case you need to buy speakers as well, it is good to read some of these recommendations.

So, just to be safe make sure your new AV receiver has 7 channels, or at least 5. A seven-channel receiver has better chances to provide almost theater-like experience at the comfort of your home.

Power

When it comes to power there is no reason to worry too much about that. Generally speaking, you won’t notice a significant difference between AV receivers of different power.  However, it would be recommended to aim for 100 Watts per channel.

How about wireless multi-room audio?

Today it’s pretty easy to have audio in every room in your home and the best part is that you don’t have to drill through your walls to achieve that.

You can do this in two ways. Most AV receivers have a wireless capability and they can be controlled through an application installed on your smartphone or tablet. When you are buying an AV receiver, pay attention to whether it supports Wi-F connection. It will make it easy to play a different song in each of your rooms simultaneously.

In case your receiver doesn’t support Wi-Fi connection initially, you can easily add this capability to your system. Some of the best audio companies in the world produce compact boxes that can be connected to the receiver and make it possible to stream any music through the system. At the same time, they will let you stream radio stations over the internet.

Dedicated Apps

Most audio systems today can be easily controlled through a dedicated app installed on your smartphone or tablet. The best thing about them is that they give you full control over the system and you can customize them according to your needs. Everything is being done through the wireless home network so it doesn’t matter where the AV receiver is located.

Ventilation is important

AV receivers tend to heat up so it’s important to make sure the ventilation is good enough. It is highly recommended to leave at least 6 inches above for ventilation. Heat makes the electronic devices last shorter, so this is why it’s important to take care of your equipment and make sure it can vent properly. In case you don’t have enough space for proper ventilation you can buy some fan kits which will help the air circulate and prevent overheating. This will easily prolong your Av receiver's life.

We hope that this article will make it easier for you to buy the best AV receiver. There are many different options on the market today so choosing the right one can be pretty difficult, especially if you don’t know what you should pay attention to. Luckily, once you learn a little about AV receivers, the buying process will be much easier.