Media Centres and Home Cinema

Media Centres bring your entire digital life into a central and easily accessible device, right in the heart of your living room. Play media stored in any location and watch it on your television or home cinema.

What can I do with a Media Centre?

Many cool things, such as :

Watch Movies and Video – watch all your favourite DVDs or HD movies without the need to swap disks because you have your entire movie collection available instantly

Listen to Music – catalogue your MP3 collection so that you can listen to any artist, album or genre. You can also take advantage of the thousands of free internet radio stations and streaming services

Browse Photo Albums – all of your photos available at any time on your computer. Enjoy your memories popping up while you listen to music or simply view them together as a group

Record and Watch Television – record and watch up to 16 channels from terrestrial, cable, satellite and high-definition sources. Plus, enjoy TV on the move by copying broadcasts onto your laptop or mobile and watching wherever you go

Enjoy Internet Content – access a range of internet content including YouTube, iPlayer, Apple TV, Spotify and so much more, sharing it to whichever device is most convenient

Backup and Store Files – if your media centre has internal or attached storage you can save all of your important files from your computer, so if you Laptop or PC gets stolen or damaged all your files are always safe

Share your Media –with all your digital media stored in a central location, it’s so easy to share with everyone, including your recorded TV, films, music and pictures, which can all be enjoyed anywhere

We can supply and install a wide range of Media Centres for every level, so working within you budget we can transform your entertainment experience!

How much does a Media Centre cost?

The price of a Media Centre is largely determined by the specific features you’d like to have, such as :

Flexibility – the ability to change how you view your libraries on screen and how you interact with them
Media Sources– enabling you to configure and connect to various sources to access music, video and pictures
Capacity – how much media will you need to store on the device?
Connectivity – would you like to connect to your television or audio system?
Definition – the quality of video and/or audio that’s sent to your television and audio system

With this in mind, we offer a number of solutions to cover your budget, from entry level Media Centres to high end all-in-one solutions, or off-the-shelf to custom built.

The Cost

Our prices start from as little as £99.99 but feel free to contact us for free advice or take advantage of our special offer where you can trial a demo unit for 7 days. Our solutions are completely tailored to your requirements, so you can rest assured that you’ll get the exact system you need. We’ll also make sure that you have all the cables and accessories you need to be up and running.

Why do I need a Media Centre?

The are many great things about having a Media Centre, such as :

Less Equipment – you’ll no longer need a Digital set-top-box (Freeview), Blu Ray player, VHS video recorder, DVD recorder, Hard disk recorder (Sky+, V+ box), Hi-Fi system (amplifier, speakers, cd recorder, tuner, MP3 jukebox), PC/web/email equipment or Digital photo frames
Easy Access – no need to manually search your CD or DVD collections, just browse on screen
One Remote – you’ll only need one remote control for all devices, which will control everything
Less Power – with only one device you save money due to reduced power consumption
Fewer Cables – save money on costly cables as all the functionality of many devices is built into a single unit, which also simplifies the connections to the television
Plus... – Your setup will look great!

How does it connect to my TV?

There’s a lot of choice when connecting a Media Centre to the TV but we can help you choose the best combination of Video and Audio that will work for you. Since most people already have High Definition TV’s, it make sense to get the best from your Media Center by using HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface), however, if that option isn’t available there are plenty of other ways you can get a great picture on your television.

Video

There are a variety methods to connect your Media Centre and each one will give you a different picture quality. Starting with the best :

HDMI – stands for High Definition Multimedia Interface and at present gives the best connection of all. It was designed to be backwards compatible with DVI and has the advantage of being able to carry digital audio and video all in one cable
DVI – DVI stands for Digital Video Interface and these cables are designed to create a digital to digital connection between a video or data source and a screen, giving superior picture quality over VGA
VGA – stands for Video Graphics Array. This cable has 15 pins and uses a normal RGB signal. They’re most commonly used to connect computers to Monitors
Component – component leads split the signal into three colour components, Red, Green and Blue, giving a superior picture over both composite and S-Video. The signal itself is referred to in different ways, such as Y, Cr, Cb or Y, Pb, Pr and RGB (Red Green and Blue)
S-Video – a round plug with four round metal pins and one rectangular plastic one. It differs from a composite cable because the video signal is split into two distinct components – luminance and chrominance
Composite AV (Phono) – phono leads have round plugs and are made up of three cables that split the entire video signal down one lead and the stereo sound down the other two (left and right)

Audio

The right audio connection will depend mainly on your specific set up. If you don’t have a home cinema with surround sound speakers then there’s no need to use an expensive audio connection. However, if you do, we can suggest the best method for you to connect your Media Center. The main options are :

HDMI – High Definition Multimedia Interface, which has the advantage of being able to carry digital audio as well as the video, all in one lead. This can be connected directly to the television or via an AV receiver. If the connection is via AV then you have the ability to swtich to other high definition sources, such as games consoles
Digital Audio – comes in two types of connection, coaxial (a round socket) or optical (toslink) and are capable of sending multiple audio channels over one cable. They can support AC3, Dolby Digital and SPDIF (Sony/Philips Digital Interconnect Format)
5.1 (6.1, 7.1) Analogue Audio – uses individual cables for each audio channel but can still provide excellent sound quality even if you don’t have a high definition picture
Stereo Analogue Audio – the simplest form of audio connection and is still probably the best option if you don’t have a Home Cinema or AV Receiver

With a combination of the right audio and video connections, your Media Centre can easily link into your Home Cinema/ AV Receiver. So, whether you decide to watch recorded television, films stored on your computer or the vast array of media on the internet, we can provide a Media Centre that will meet your exact needs.

How easy are they to operate?

Media Centres have been designed to provide the user with a simple and easy way to browse and watch any type of digital media. They provide the fun and convenience of the internet from the comfort of your armchair – no need to connect your computer or an external drive to the TV anymore.

Only one remote control

With a single remote control you can navigate around a simple and intuitive menu system to access all your media. No need for multiple remote controllers for your Sky box, music system, DVD player or TV, as one controller replaces them all.

You also have the choice of a traditional remote, a wireless keyboard or a full touch remote.

If you’d like to find out more, please feel free to get in touch!