Make Sure You Have the Right Gear for Your Living Room

If you are looking to invest in some space-friendly home theater gear, you're in luck. There are screens and speakers that look and sound great at all sizes, and depending on what you get, you can always buy small and upgrade later if you move to a bigger place or decide you want to upgrade your equipment. The important thing to remember in a small space is to buy small as well. Look for speakers, receivers, and screens that work for your home, not your ego, and that are well reviewed and well regarded. If you can snag a deal on them, even better. We walked you through the process in our guide to setting up a home theater from scratch, but here are a couple of other things you might want to try or keep in mind: Consider ditching the TV for a projector. If you're really crunched for space and you're in the market for a new TV, consider a projector you can mount from the ceiling. Our own Adam Dachis has one in his home theater, and they don't have to be expensive. Here are our favorite projectors, if you need some suggestions. The Wirecutter also has some picks below $1000, and below $500. The benefit here is that you can just use a wall as your screen, and while there's more to building a good projector screen than just turning it on an empty wall, it's a great way to get started. Just make note of your viewing distance, and factor in the cost of replacement lamps to your projector budget. Invest in bookshelf speakers and a modest receiver. You mentioned you didn't have a ton of stuff to hook up, so you'll probably want a modest receiver for the gear that you do have, plus anything that might come later. Your TV may be enough to handle all of it, but if you're looking for futureproofing and expandability, a receiver is the way to go. Here are some of our favorites (I own and really like the Onkyo listed there) and The Wirecutter really likes the Yamaha we mention there too. Speaker-wise, consider a set of bookshelf speakers that are powerful enough for your space, small enough to mount, and expandable if you want to add more. Try these Pioneer speakers, recommended by The Wirecutter. I have these Audioengine P4 bookshelf speakers and like them a lot, if you want another option. Consider a soundbar if you need space over expandability. Soundbars can offer great sound, especially in small spaces, and they don't take up a lot of space. They're usually slim, self-powered, and amplified, so you don't need a receiver. If your room is small, it may be more than enough for you, no wall-mounting required. However, what you get in convenience you lose in expandability and customizability. Soundbars aren't like receivers—you don't plug in a ton of devices into them; you'll probably plug everything into your TV, then your TV into the soundbar. That means you're limited to the ports on your TV, and you (usually) can't add more speakers to your setup. Still, they're cheaper, easier to set up, and great for small spaces. We get into them (and their drawbacks) in this article, but they may be a great fit for you. When you do go shopping, take your measurements with you, and see if you can try or listen to any of the equipment you're thinking of getting before you buy. Even if you head to a local electronics or home theater store to do a little showrooming (as in, you play with the gear there and then buy it cheaper online), it's worth it to know how it'll all look and sound once you get it home. You never know, maybe the place you're shopping will match an online price just to get your business.