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Connect your Media Center PC to your home entertainment system


Connect your PC running Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 to your home entertainment system and enjoy your favorite entertainment in the living room. Watch DVDs and TV shows that you've recorded with your Media Center PC on your widescreen TV in stereo or surround sound.

Connect your Media Center PC to your TV

You can connect your Media Center PC to a TV or an HDTV-ready display and enjoy DVDs, recorded TV programs, and digital pictures on your TV.

Connect your Media Center PC to your sound system

Some Media Center PCs are sold with computer speakers that you can connect directly to your Media Center PC. However, you can also use the speakers that you already have.

To connect your speakers to your Media Center PC, follow the directions for your type of speaker setup.

Which speaker configuration do I have?

You'll know what type of speaker configuration you have by the number of speakers that are in your sound system. There are two general types of speaker configurations that you can use with Media Center: stereo or surround sound.

Stereo setup

A stereo speaker configuration has two main speakers that are connected to and powered by a stereo receiver. This is commonly referred to as a 2.0 speaker configuration. If you add a subwoofer, it is called a 2.1 configuration. A stereo speaker configuration works well for listening to music and watching standard TV.

Connect Media Center to your stereo system
Living room with stereo speaker configuration

Surround sound setup

A surround sound speaker configuration commonly has five speakers and a subwoofer that are connected through an AV receiver. This setup, known as the 5.1 speaker configuration, includes two main speakers, one center channel speaker, one dedicated subwoofer, and two surround speakers. Surround sound is at its best when you watch DVDs or listen to surround sound media like over-the-air HDTV or multi-channel audio.

Connect Media Center to your surround sound system
Living room with surround sound speaker configuration
When you connect your Media Center PC to your home entertainment system, you can enjoy your favorite entertainment on your TV and sound system.
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