Thinking about building a home theater!
These days it’s hard to say which is more crowded on a weekend evening: the local cineplex or your neighborhood video store.
Movies are always a popular entertainment choice, whether viewed in the comfort of your own home or in a state-of-the-art theater. But now you can have the best of both worlds by transforming any room into your very own home theater.
One way to lessen the out of pocket impact of a good home theater system is to tie your investment in with your mortgage. If you plan ahead, you can finance a better system and avoid settling for a entry level system that may be limiting or quickly obsolete.
The room
A true home theater is a bit different than your typical television-viewing area. To approximate the movie theater experience, you need to maximize control of lighting, acoustics and viewing positions – constraints that are difficult to impose on a high-use living area. A basement is often the perfect choice since ambient light is usually not a problem, but any room which you can sufficiently darken will work.
The room dimensions will depend on your maximum intended audience and the screen size. In general, the optimum viewing distance is about twice the diagonal screen measurement (for example: a 48-inch TV is best viewed at around 8 feet).
Lighting
Always make sure your light sources are indirect and controllable. Automation is quite popular. Technology is available to automate the theater lights, close and open window treatments, drop the projector from the ceiling and lower the theater screen. All of this can happen with a touch of a button on a sophisticated remote.
Furnishings
Comfortable seats are a must. Small reclining chairs work well, but avoid high backs that will obscure views. Sectional sofas are not always a good choice; half the viewers will have sore necks turning to watch the movie.
Video essentials
Inexpensive viewing options include direct-view sets (32 inches is the minimum) and rear-projection big screens (from 43 to 80 inches). Expect to spend between $800 and $5,000 for a good set. Add some money for a high definition ready set combined with wide screen picture format. A high definition tuner would need to be purchased separately for $600 to $2,000.
If you are willing to spend more you can create a real theater experience with a 100″+ screen and a digital light projector (DLP) or cathode ray tube (CRT) projector. For prerecorded movies, you need a good stereo VCR. These days DVD offers superior video and audio quality and will also play music CDs.
Audio
Start with a Dolby Digital receiver. Then add a 5.1 surround sound system – six speakers for the left, center and right front, rear surround and a sub-woofer for the low frequencies. You can spend under $1,500 for a decent-sounding entry level system or more for a THX certified surround sound system that can be built to a 7.1 surround with additional speakers and amplifier. You can have the home theater of your dreams today and enjoy it for years to come.
