Your living room is likely a place where you entertain guests, spend time with loved ones and unwind at the end of busy days. It’s also probably where you enjoy your favorite tunes, TV shows and films. With that in mind, it’s a good idea to be a smart shopper when searching for living room speakers. When you choose the right type, brand and model, that’ll improve the chance that you’ll experience media the way it was meant to be heard.
Decide if You Want Standalone Speakers or Built-In Options
Some speakers rest on tabletops, within media consoles and in corners of your living room. However, you can also do research about architectural designs. These are integrated into your walls or ceilings, which may be a useful perk if you lack space. KEF Direct has several types of architectural speakers, including some in round, rectangular and square shapes.
Select the Proper Size
The area of your room and the associated acoustics are two things to take into consideration when speaker shopping. If your living room is 400 square feet or larger, plan to purchase tower speakers or large bookshelf-type designs so the sound will fill the room. However, unless your living room is unusually large, it’s probably not necessary to go with speakers larger than 38 inches.
Test Them with Realistic Materials
Although you should expect to be able to test all home speakers before installing them in your living room, keep in mind many retailers have demo CDs specifically for that purpose. That kind of sample material can give a general ideal of how the speakers will sound once you bring them home. However, it’s preferable to take some CDs or DVDs from home into the store with you and let the salesperson know you want to hear how the speakers handle those specific media choices.
Upgrade Your Cables
Speakers usually include cables in the box, but that doesn’t mean the standard offerings are ideal. As a rule of thumb, plan to spend an amount that equals 10-15 percent of the total speaker cost to buy better cables. They’re likely to last longer without problems than what was included by default.
When possible, select cables with gold-plated connectors, instead of those made from nickel or tin. Gold is not prone to corrosion, and when metal gets corroded, sound becomes distorted.
Buying speakers for your living room should be a thoughtful process that’s driven by your needs and expectations. The more you do research in advance about what’s available, the easier it should be to find speakers that deliver sweet sounds.
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