About a week ago I got a call from a friend who wanted help purchasing a stereo system. We planned an outing to go to the stores, though I had a sneaking suspicion the best option would be to purchase online. In the end, we did purchase from Amazon. Other than a tasty meal courtesy of my friend, I didn’t get anything for the recommendations. There are links in this post to the same products at Amazon and I do receive a tiny commission if you buy something from the links.

The goal was a “stereo system” and I was originally told a budget of $500. I knew that would be tough as there would be a lot of limitations to fit the budget. We discussed how the stereo would be used and the pros and cons of various features. Afterwards, the budget was increased a bit to get a great system.

First up was a receiver. It would be used to play radio and would also be connected to a television and a DVD player. Most receivers we researched included Bluetooth connectivity so they could play content from a phone. Those that included WiFi were priced higher and we decided that having WiFi was worth increasing the budget a bit. The list was narrowed to 3-4 receivers and we finally decided to go with the Denon AVRS730H 7.2 Channel AV Receiver with Built-in HEOS wireless technology. It provided everything needed with extra features should she decide she wants to do more with it later.

A receiver by itself needs something to produce noise. Yes, headphones are one option. Most people want some speakers and this system is designed for surround sound. We looked at various individual speakers and there were some great options. But they would have cost more and may not have been as well balanced as purchasing an entire system. We decided to get the Klipsch HDT-600 Home Theater System.

It would be nice if either of the components were to include all wiring needed, but I know that isn’t the case. We’ll definitely need some HDMI cables and possibly a few others. One thing I knew we’d need is speaker wire so we got a 100 foot spool of it. We definitely exceeded the original budget, but the end result is a system that absolutely rocks and will give her years of entertainment.