What pieces do you need to have a complete stereo system?

if you are on a tight budget, a complete home theatre system (samsung, philips, sony, etc) will do the work, but sound quality is not that good compared to buying it separately. If you want the real thing, you need to buy a separate receiver, Denon and Yamaha is the best for its price out there, then you have to buy a separate blu-ray/dvd player, any brand will do but preferably sony or samsung. then the speakers,, definitive technology is good, vienna acoustics, and my personal choice Martin logan. well, if you buy the home theater system, it will only cost you around $200 to $600 depending on what brand. but if you buy your system separately, you're looking to spend around $1200 and up, also depending on what brand. also, you have to consider the size of your room, the bigger your room, the bigger/louder the speakers you need. stand alone amplifiers are for high end high wattage speakers. you only need this if your choice of AV Receiver have a lower wattage per chanel than the wattage of your choice of speaker. well, it really depends on your personal preference and budget. if you want to enjoy watching movies like you're in the movie theatre, I suggest buying your system separately. i also suggest you visit bestbuy or magnolia, they will give you professional advice on what you need in your system.

You can buy a Home-theater in a box that includes everything or you can buy an AV receiver and separate speakers. It all depends on your budget.