7 gutsy, feature-packed receivers to get your home theater pumping

There will come a day when we won’t need A/V receivers anymore. A new wireless speaker technology, already adopted by Bang & Olufsen and Klipsch, puts all the amplification hardware right inside the speakers, leaving only source switching and signal processing left to deal with — and you don’t need big black box for that. But that day is a ways off, so for now, the receiver remains the hub of a quality home theater system.

If you’re looking to upgrade, then research has probably led you to discover , somewhat frustratingly, that picking the right A/V receiver is kind of difficult. Even today’s entry-level models are packed with the sort of features that you had to pay a handsome premium for just five years ago. So, how do you tell which is the best anymore?

Since a receiver’s list of features isn’t the quality barometer it once was, the advice of professionals and friends has never been more valuable. Truth be told, most of the major manufacturers are turning out quality equipment at all price levels. What makes a receiver the right choice for you is a balanced blend of sound quality (and character), flexibility, and general user experience.

Read more: http://www.digitaltrends.com/home-theater/best-av-receivers