1. Prepare And Allocate Your Budget
Before you begin a home theater project, think realistically about how much you want to financially invest in the space. Your budget will determine which brands of A/V gear may suit your design, the types of materials you may choose, how customized your project can become, and even which contractors and vendors you should use to complete the work. Once you have established a budget, it is important to then allocate which part of that money is for the A/V gear and installation and which portion is to be set aside for the design and build aspect of the project.
2. Select Your Team Carefully
The best way to achieve a pleasing blend of technology and design in a home theater is to hire a both an A/V integrator and a designer. The integrator will handle the selection and installation of the equipment; the designer will tackle the layout and decor of the space. It’s possible and beneficial to find an A/V integrator and a designer who are from the same company. If you can’t, then look for individuals who have completed jobs together in the past. It becomes challenging to communicate clearly when all involved are not working as a team toward one goal. By sourcing everything through one company you usually can value-engineer your project (enabling the retailer to play with margins across the board) and get better service (the possibility of “fingerpointing” is eliminated).
3. Determine What Is Most Important
Providing your home theater design and integration team with a list of the features that are most important to you can streamline the project. For example, it may be top priority to seat 10 people, have a soundproof space, or have a home theater that’s kid friendly. All of these requirements will dramatically affect how a space is configured, the materials specified, or how the room is constructed. In a theater that’s designed with kids in mind, for instance, all of the processors and players could be placed in a nearby utility room where they’re safe, and the seating could include sofas and jumpseat ottomans.
4. Purpose Your Space
Deciding how you plan to use the space can alter many design and A/V decisions. Some people may want to dedicate their theaters to movie watching; others may want to be able to watch multiple sporting events at one time. One type of viewing might be best served with stadium-style seating and a CinemaScope screen, while the other might work better with a design that includes sofa-style seating, a back bar, and a tiling system that can display multiple streams of video simultaneously on one screen.
5. Direct Your Style
Choosing a “theme” or inspiration piece can guide many of your design selections. It could be a love of sci-fi flicks or a patterned carpet that incorporates several colors. Once this has been determined, it becomes easier for your integrator and designer to pull everything together into one cohesive design. A sci-fi theme, for example, might inspire you to incorporate sconces that look like light sabers, a fiber optic star ceiling, and a silkscreen image of the Enterprise on an acoustical wall panel.
6. Think Ahead
Be sure to think through to the very end of a project. If there is something that you may want eventually, but do not have the funds to support yet, start by installing only the infrastructure of your home theater. Run wires and conduit to possible speaker and TV locations or put a switched outlet in the ceiling to accommodate starlit panels.
7. Light It Up
The lighting in a theater will make or break the space. The room should include several different zones of lighting (sconces, recessed cans, step lights, cove lighting, etc.). Lighting can be used for functional purposes or to create special visual effects. Most importantly, home theater viewers should be able to control all of the lighting by the touch of a button from their seats.
8. Address the Sound
Home theater audio is just as dependent on the design of a room as the speakers themselves. Take into consideration the shape of the room and its construction materials. Audio will typically sound better in a rectangular-shape room than in a square one. Carpeting is always a better choice acoustically than hard flooring, and offers a way to introduce color and pattern into a room. Acoustical paneling options are almost endless. They can be silkscreened with custom images such as your favorite movie posters, chosen in colors and shapes to add visual interest, framed in beautiful wood trim, or installed over a track system to cover your entire wall seamlessly from the floor to the ceiling.
9. Locate the Gear
Where your A/V gear lives is based on several factors and one of them is the overall design of the space. Turning equipment racks into design elements has become very popular through the use of LED lighting and intricate millwork. Hiding equipment in a location relatively close to the theater is another option that can also create opportunities to add interest to a design: for instance, covering the walls with a millwork detail to make a “hidden” door to an equipment closet.
10. Pay Attention to Every Detail
Details matter and people do notice them. Be sure to think through even the smallest things, such as door hardware, outlet and switch plate finishes, and locations and paint transitions. Forgotten details stand out like a sore thumb, but when the small particulars are given the attention they deserve, they can really make a project shine. EH
Bethany Johnson is an interior designer at Gramophone, a home systems design and installation firm based in Timonium, Md. Photography Courtesy Of Gramophone
Bobby Saint says
I totally agree with tips # 1 about allocating and preparing a budget for your audiovisual project. It is important that you determine how much you’re willing to spend for the total project. This means shopping around and comparing prices of the equipment available in the market. Also, you may need to ask for some references from people you know who may have worked with a contractor to help with the installation. This way, you would be able to come up with a realistic budget and make sure that the project is successful. If I were to install an AV home theater in our living room, I would make sure to take this into account. Thanks.