How to Get a Big Movie Experience In a Smaller Space
Take a lesson from the fabrics, color and sound systems found in over-the-top media rooms
I write about home technology and shopping, and love both. I'm the Tech Girl in Traditional Home magazine and contribute retail coverage to Forbes, Yahoo! and Dealnews, among others.
I write about home technology and shopping, and love both. I'm the Tech... More »
The words "home theater" often conjure up images of grand spaces worthy of a Hollywood movie mogul. But these days nearly every home, big or small, has some kind of space for watching movies. Why not turn this space into your own home theater, or at least steal some tricks to make it seem more like one?
More: Browse photos of media rooms
More: Browse photos of media rooms
| Creating a home theater doesn't require swathes of red velvet or a dedicated windowless room, but take some cues from rooms that do sport these features. Use heavy draperies and draw them when it's movie time. The fabric not only excludes outside light, it also absorbs extraneous sounds, eliminates echoes, and keeps the movie's soundtrack from seeping into the rest of the house. |
| Dark walls behind the screen provide much needed contrast that sharpens images. You don't need theater-style drapes or a backdrop, but painting the wall behind the screen a darker color than the rest of the room is both a good design move and a practical device that makes movie watching more enjoyable. |
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No matter how small the space, pay attention to sound. When TVs started getting skinnier, manufacturers began skimping on the internal speakers.
But movies are filled with a variety of sounds as well as special effects. Missing them means missing an important part of the movie itself. Five-channel home theater systems, available in a range of sizes and prices, deliver it all.
For a small space like this, a good-quality home theater in a box (HTIB) is all you need. Two small front speakers, two equally small rear speakers, a center channel (that's the box below the screen) and a subwoofer for bass that can easily tuck into a cabinet or corner or sit under a basket will deliver the surround sound that movie lovers need.
But movies are filled with a variety of sounds as well as special effects. Missing them means missing an important part of the movie itself. Five-channel home theater systems, available in a range of sizes and prices, deliver it all.
For a small space like this, a good-quality home theater in a box (HTIB) is all you need. Two small front speakers, two equally small rear speakers, a center channel (that's the box below the screen) and a subwoofer for bass that can easily tuck into a cabinet or corner or sit under a basket will deliver the surround sound that movie lovers need.
| Larger media rooms, or great rooms that double as them on movie nights, can handle larger speakers. Here, the three visible speakers are custom-installed into the walls. All we see are the grills, which are painted to blend into the background. The rear speakers are in the ceiling, visible only as round grills that look remarkably like can lighting. This is a more expensive option, but it's one that eliminates the visible components and frees up floor space. |
| These larger, more visible speakers offer superior sound quality. Such speakers are generally used for music systems but can do double duty as a movie sound system when connected to a TV. You can go all out and make the investment in five speakers for the full five-channel surround sound. It's not a great solution for a smaller space, but audio lovers will appreciate the more nuanced sound. These design and sound solutions are options for movie lovers with TVs. I'll cover projection solutions in my next Ideabook. But I'm curious, how have you made a home theater work within your everyday living space? Tell us below! More: Where to Put the TV 12 Mega Media Rooms for Super-Bowl Sunday 8 Ingredients of the Perfect Football-Party Room Browse photos of media rooms |
Ideabook published on Oct. 6, 2011.
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Since our house is quite small, we didn't want a screen dominating any room.