Hey everyone on AVSF! I've been a forum lurker for a year or two now, using the various threads for recommendations on A/V equipment, firmware updates, tips and tricks, etc; I think that I've accumulated quite a bit of knowledge from the massive amount of experts on these forums, and I thank everyone for that!

However, my expertise deals largely with computers, communications, and video; once you get me into the realm of sound, I'm largely befuddled on what everything means (To put it into perspective, I only discovered around the time of CES 2006 that the .1 in 5.1, 6.1, 7.1, et al, refers to the LFE track or Subwoofer usually). So, before I go on a hunt for a new A/V receiver and speakers, I figured that I would ask a few questions on the Audio Theory forum.

My current setup goes something like this: I snagged a Sharp LC-46D64U on Black Friday for my Primary Display, and currently utilize a Denon AVR-1803 receiver I picked up on Open Box special. It's hooked up to a pair of generic Sony HTiB speakers I picked up on open box clearance at Circuit City, with the subwoofer being the only thing I paid full price for (A Yamaha YST-SW215). The speakers are spread throughout the room somewhat close to the picture recommendations (Surrounds angled behind me, rather than to the side; it's a 5.1 setup, just to clear any confusion), though after reading some article and threads, I've realized placement may not be ideal.

Here's what I know I'm doing wrong:

1) Speakers are not at proper height
*There's a good reason for this; this setup is currently in my bedroom, as I don't make enough at my job to move out on my own (I'm a Shift Lead at Hollywood Games/Game Crazy); therefore, the TV is mounted on the wall opposite my bed, and very close to the corner of the room; the front right is in the corner under the TV, the center is on the left side of my PC workstation, about an inch higher than the FR, and the FL is an inch higher than the center and sitting on the right side of my workstation. The RS and LS are worse off, with the RS on my bedside table and level with my pillows, and the LS about six inches higher on my dresser, next to the other side of the bed.

2) Calibration was best guess
*I have NO idea how to calibrate sound properly.

3) Three of the speakers are labeled 'Surround', with the other two being the FR and Center channels.
*Hence why the whole HTiB was half a Benjamin.

So, here are my questions, I suppose. Yes, I have a lot of them, but I can't seem to find a thread with the basics of sound laid out.

Terms and Definitions
Starting with Music...
What does 44.1/88.2/176.4 mean?
What does Bitmapping mean?
What is a Super Audio CD?
What is a HDCD?

Moving to receiver jargon...
What is 96kHz?
What is 24-bit sound?
What does 'Bitstream' mean for audio output?
Why do watts matter?
Does the subwoofer connector style matter?
What do I use those "Front Right, Rear Right" labelled Phono plugs for, aside from Surround Sound Computer Audio?
What speaker connector should I use, or is the screw-down method just fine?
Why do I use a thicker or thinner gauge cable?
What is a 'closed loop' system?
What is the 'Ground Loop'?
What is the deal with WMA Pro decoding, and why is it rare? Is it worth spending the extra cash for it?
How do I use an Equalizer?
What is Neural Surround?

Moving to equipment...
Is the THX Certification really worth it?
What is the difference between a 'Full-Range' Speaker or a 'Satellite' Speaker?
I've heard that removing the Center Channel could provide a better surround effect. True or False?
What is an Amplifier or Preamplifier, and when/why would I use it?
Di-pole, mono-pole...what does it all mean, and what should I use?
Is it worth the extra monetary investment for a 6.1 setup? 7.1 setup?

And finally...
Is it possible to build a great or reference sound system on a small budget?
What's the (roughly) ideal setup for video games? Music? Movies? (Not looking for lots of details, more of a rough layout of what I should look for equipment/spec-wise.)

Thanks again for any and all input! Just as an aside, I do mostly video games, though I'm starting to get into music and movies a bit more; also, the old equipment I mentioned here will be recycled into the bedroom Frankenstein system when I move out; the living room will get the new setup and proper love and attention (And sound-proofing, so I can crank it up without waking the neighbors, new job allowing).

RTFM, to start with. The Denon manuals are a bit obscure but full of info. For definitions, try Google/Wikipedia.

Actually, I formed these questions /after/ reading the manual that came with my Denon Receiver; it did contain a wealth of information, true, but these are the questions I'm still confused on.

Well, you have a wealth of very basic questions which demand that someone with time and patience address. Although all the answers are somewhere here on AVS, perhaps another member will address them for you.

Wow, that's a lot of questions, and I don't think I can endeavor to answer all of them, but I'll take a stab at a few.

When you are looking at numbers like 44.1 kHz or 96kHz, this is referring to the sampling rate. Basically, a digital signal is a series of snapshots of the analog waveform, and this number refers to how many snapshots per second. 44.1 is CD quality, and so that translates to 44,100 snapshots per second. 96 kHz is a higher sampling rate, so it takes more snapshots, and theoretically, can give a more accurate sound. Most stuff you come across isn't encoded at that high of a sampling rate. Which brings me to SACD and HDCD, these are both high-resolution audio formats, and they need special players to play them. Both formats are relatively rare today.

Bitstream refers to the way audio is passed over the digital output. In the case of dolby digital, it refers to whether the information has been decoded or not. Sending something in bitstream format means it has not been decoded yet. It is usually preferable to set a DVD player to bitstream output to let your receiver do all the decoding/processing.

Watts is a measure of power. Theoretically, the more watts, the louder you can go. But practically, it's a lot more complicated than that. Other things affect that a whole lot more. And, you will almost never actually use something like 100 watts of output into a speaker.

The subwoofer connection on the back of a receiver is usually an RCA connector, which means that the output is unpowered--meaning you need a powered sub. This is pretty standard. You can use different speaker connectors if you'd like, although they are just for convenience sake--if done properly, the screw down method works fine. As a general rule, thicker cable is better, but it only becomes an issue over longer runs. On short runs something like 16 AWG cable is fine. There is a sticky on ground loops at the top of this forum.

A lot of these other questions are just too in-depth to answer sufficiently. I'd recommend searching the forums, google, and wikipedia (as suggested above) to get a general idea. When you get to some more specific questions, we can try to answer them, but the list you have is pretty overwhelming. Oh, one other side note to point out is that "soundproofing" is next to impossible in most home situations. It's expensive and difficult to accomplish. Many people use sound treatments, which makes it sound better in the room, but it doesn't change much about how much sound gets out. Anyway, I hope that helps, and happy searching!

Whoa! That's a lot of questions to ask in one post. Also, it's asking for a hell of a lot of audio theory in one thread. You're all over the map, dude.

I'll answer a tiny, random sampling of them that I can.

First, Kal's right, of course. Read the F***** Manual is a great place to go for answers to your particular receiver's setup, and Google and Wikipedia are your friends for definitions and some basics regarding theory.

OK, as to your questions in the music terms and definitions sections, here goes.

Q: What does 44.1/88.2/176.4 mean?

A: They refer to audio sampling rates in kHz. 44,100 Hz is the long ago established standard for CD audio. The others are multiples of it. Wikipedia has a nice entry for "sampling rate" that explains the rest, and it even contains a nice chart for comparisons.

Wikipedia has entries for each of your other audio definitions questions as well, just as Kal suggested. They are better than definitions I could provide you succinctly. Try "Bit mapping," "SACD," and "HDCD," respectively. You'll get nice info on each and save other posters from posting long explanations here.

Q: Is it worth the extra monetary investment for a 6.1 setup? 7.1 setup?

A: In a bedroom setup? In a word, "No." Move your rig to a much bigger dedicated HT room or even a larger living room setup and the answer may change. Until then, it would absolutely be a waste of money, time, and effort in your case.

I'll leave others to tackle any other remaining questions. That's all I can reasonably handle in a single post. Good luck, man, and enjoy your HT.