Hi folks. I almost pulled the trigger on the $299 970 this weekend, but then realized I really don't know what I'm doing. So I'm turning here, not necessarily for direct help but primarily for suggestions as to how to get help myself.

Though tips are appreciated.

Here's the deal: Where are some places a total newbie can find the "basics" of building a home system?

(Starting at under $1k)

Here's my larger question in case you have your own tips.

I've longed for a solid home system for a long time. I am a singer and have done my share of recording, but never invested in anything at home. For the past 8 years we have listened to music through... gasp... our TV speakers.

So while even an iPod dock-with-speakers would be a step-up I'd like to make some smart choices. But I'm having a hard time understanding what I might want and what I might not. Pre-amp? Amp? Receiver? Subwoofer? We have kids who sleep while we watch TV, so maybe a sub doesn't make sense?

I am also pretty sure I just want a 2- or 2.1-speaker setup for now. I won't use surround sound, and the bulk of our listening is music. (70% music; 20% TV; 10% movie)

One other note: ALL of our content will come straight from a single source: windows HTPC. I have our music library ripped in various high-quality formats; TV in HD via an antenna; Blu-Ray drive. This is really getting into the weeds but this is what my outputs look like:



Anyway, I thank you for the pointers!

john