Comments on: What is the "amplifier" when talking about a home theatre sound system?

By: XenonAudio

XenonAudio — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 21:35:59 +0000

Let’s start from the pith of the matter. An amplifier is what
powers the speakers. In turn, a receiver is what controls
the amplifier and feeds it different sources (i.e. DVD player,
AM/FM tuner [built-in], and the TV). In turn, a home theater
system normally includes the TV, the DVD player, as well
as the speakers and surround sound receiver. Some of
the systems (a.k.a. HTIB) may have the receiver and the
DVD player built into one component along with the five
speakers and one powered subwoofer all in on box…
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References :
http://www.shopzilla.com/7S–Home_Theater_Systems_-_cat_id–11120000__keyword–htib

By: Larry M

Larry M — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 20:49:59 +0000

The amplifier is the power processing inside your surround sound system’s receiver. This is what sends the power to all of your speakers and processes all the sound decoding and signal for your devices in your home theater receiver. The Receiver is the actual core unit, where all of your components are connected, this is commonly referred to as the amplifier. So if you have a surround sound receiver, you have an amplifier. There are also some systems out there in which the amplifier is nothing more than the power supply for the speakers, and all the components are connected to another device called a Pre-Amp. All devices are connected to the Pre-Amp which is then connected to the amplifier to power the speakers.

If you purchase a Home Theater System with Receiver, DVD, Speakers, etc, you will have an amplifier built into the Surround Receiver.

I Hope this helped.
References :
I’ve been working in Consumer Electronics for 10 years, and now travel the country doing training for big box retailers for Home Theater, Digital Imaging, Car Audio and personal electronics. I am a consumer electonics geek, and enjoy home theater and digital imaging very much. I’ve recently started a blog where I will post questions and answers that I receive via email and here so that others can get help as well. Go to http://thehometheaterhero.blogspot.com to read my blog.

By: sk8rgrl02631

sk8rgrl02631 — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 20:02:59 +0000

Amplifier (aka "amp"):
An amplifier is an electronic device that increases the voltage, current, or power of a signal. Amplifiers are used in wireless communications and broadcasting, and in audio equipment of all kinds. They can be categorized as either weak-signal amplifiers or power amplifiers.

Weak-signal amplifiers are used primarily in wireless receivers. They are also employed in acoustic pickups, audio tape players, and compact disc players. A weak-signal amplifier is designed to deal with exceedingly small input signals, in some cases measuring only a few nanovolts (units of 10-9 volt). Such amplifiers must generate minimal internal noise while increasing the signal voltage by a large factor. The most effective device for this application is the field-effect transistor. The specification that denotes the effectiveness of a weak-signal amplifier is sensitivity, defined as the number of microvolts (units of 10-6 volt) of signal input that produce a certain ratio of signal output to noise output (usually 10 to 1).

Power amplifiers are used in wireless transmitters, broadcast transmitters, and hi-fi audio equipment. The most frequently-used device for power amplification is the bipolar transistor. However, vacuum tubes, once considered obsolete, are becoming increasingly popular, especially among musicians. Many professional musicians believe that the vacuum tube (known as a "valve" in England) provides superior fidelity.

http://searchsmb.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid44_gci211558,00.html
References :
http://searchsmb.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid44_gci211558,00.html

By: mississippi_delta_countryboy

mississippi_delta_countryboy — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 19:22:59 +0000

Sort of the center piece of the entire system. All the other components are connected to it. The receiver, CD player, TV, etc. audio output is connected to the amp. Then the audio output of the amp is connected to the speakers.
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By: benzeeno619

benzeeno619 — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 18:43:59 +0000

Older systems had a seperate amplifier. Now the amplifier is your all in one receiver. You plug your TV and components (CD, DVD, Cable, HDTV etc...) into it. Some have a dvd player built in.
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By: nutballmania

nutballmania — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 18:15:59 +0000

the amp is the the main power/heart of the system you can get lots of different types and power ranges but you need to make sure your speakers can handle the same wattage.they sometimes can be built in but usually seperate
there is an awful lot of info when chossing the correct one to be read online
try starting at google
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By: codemonkey812

codemonkey812 — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 17:26:59 +0000

The amplifier is the device that amplifies the signal from the audio sources. In a home theater system the amp is usably part of the sub-woofer. It will be the device where all the speakers plug into.
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By: James W

James W — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 16:42:59 +0000

the amplifier is the device which turns the weak input signal into one strong enough to play at the required volume from dedicated speakers. in the case of a home theatre system you have an amplifier as part of the system, otherwise you would hear but the faintest whisper from your speakers! in the case of pc speakers, amplifiers tend to be built into the speakers rather than seperate from them, but this isnt practical in big sound systems.
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By: bossman

bossman — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 16:34:59 +0000

it amplifies the audio into the speakers
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By: RAYMOND K

RAYMOND K — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 15:53:59 +0000

The amp is your main tuner. The unit that everything else hooks up to.
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