A Quick Guide to Creating the Perfect Theater Environment with Your Local A/V Integrator
If you’re considering adding a dedicated home theater to your Newport Beach area property, it can be tough to know where to start. It’s not as simple as just buying a projector and screen and sticking them in a spare room. A private cinema needs to be carefully designed with the right equipment in the right places for that room’s unique layout. To learn about Audio Images’ process for ensuring that California homeowners get that larger-than-life cinematic experience in their home theaters, read on.
1. Choose the Right Room
The size, shape, and layout of a room are the most important factors in the quality of your home theater. Typically, theater rooms are rectangular-shaped without vaulted ceilings or windows. Square rooms negatively impact the bass sound from your speakers, vaulted ceilings can weaken the power of your speakers, and windows can let in sunlight that washes out the projector.
However, don’t let the fact that your home doesn’t have the ideal room shape and layout keep you from upgrading to a theater. There are plenty of tricks and tips to get around these constraints. For example, adding motorized blackout shades to the windows allows you to enjoy the sunlight when you want, while also keeping the room dark during movie time. Your home theater installer can offer guidance on how to best optimize the room you’ve chosen.
2. Choose the Right Equipment
Not all home theater equipment is created equal. To get that professional-grade cinema look, you need equipment capable of reproducing the sound and visual performance that will exceed the experience of a commercial cinema. Here are some things to keep in mind:
·Projector: These days, 4K Ultra HD projectors are a must-have. They provide four times the resolution of standard HD projectors, and when you compare the two images, the choice to upgrade to 4K is a no-brainer. It’s also important to ensure that the projector you choose is powerful enough to handle the size of the screen.
·Screen: You may be tempted to go out and get the largest screen that could possibly fit in the room, but hold off on that. Audio Images’ engineers assess the size of the room and calculate exactly where each seat needs to go for that perfect listening and viewing experience. The ideal screen size is based off those calculations so that the furthest seat back still gets a great view, but the screen isn’t so large that front seat viewers have to crane their necks to take it all in.
·Speakers: There are a lot of great audio manufacturers, such as Triad and Revel, who design speakers specifically for home theater surround sound. Again, these speakers need to be chosen based on the size and shape of the room so that you have sound that is vibrant enough for each movie-watcher without being overwhelming.
·Room Control: An often overlooked aspect of home theaters is smart home automation. With a smart home system, you can control every aspect of the theater using just your smartphone or tablet. And by everything, we mean even the lights and thermostat. That means that if you want to watch the latest Oscar-worthy film, all you have to do is sit down in the theater, pull out your phone, and press the “Movie” button. Immediately, the projector will turn on, the screen will lower, the lights will dim, and your chosen flick will start to play. This technology, provided by your local A/V integrator, really helps to create that immersive cinema experience.
The guidance above sheds some light on our beginning process for creating truly superior home theaters for our clients in Orange County. To learn more about the possibilities for your space, give us a call at (714) 258-7238 or fill out this quick contact form today.
