Home Theater Upgrades for an Immersive Viewing Experience
ShareUpgrading your home theater can give your home a luxury living feel without a lot of effort. With the right equipment and setup, you can create a true theater experience to enjoy with your family and guests. Here are some ideas you might want to consider adding to your space for a more immersive viewing experience.
Replace Your Television
For a true theater experience, consider replacing your television with a screen and projector system. Large projector screens make it easy to view fast-paced films as they were meant to be seen. Invest in a projector mount for the ceiling of your home theater to create a more cinematic experience. Projectors with built-in Wi-Fi let you view streaming media content on the big screen, so be sure to look at all available features before selecting a projector. When selecting a screen, take viewing angle and fabric color into account. The best screen will have a wide viewing angle to make it easy for everyone in the room to watch movies and shows. A true white screen will reflect light better to create high-quality images.
Install In-Ceiling Speakers
In-ceiling speakers can create rich, clear audio while adding a more theater-inspired look to your space. These speakers sometimes come with paint-ready housing, so you can match the trim to the color of your ceiling for an immersive look. Installation can be complicated, so you may want to consider hiring a contractor for this part of your home theater upgrade. Be sure to space the speakers throughout your seating area to ensure a better listening experience for everyone in the room. You can supplement your ceiling speaker system with built-in wall speakers to create a surround-sound setup.
Build Hidden Cabinets
To create a seamless look for your home theater, hiding electronic components is essential. Hidden cabinets offer a perfect solution to this problem. You can build cabinets in the wall behind your screen projector to house DVD players, cable boxes, and other devices. It's important to add cable management grommets to the shelves to make plugging in your devices easy. If build-in cabinets are not an option for your home, consider adding tall hutches or cabinets to either side of the screen to keep components out of sight. You can run cables and cords behind the shelves and projector screen to create a low-profile look.
Add a Touchscreen Control Panel
For intuitive control of your home theater experience and a truly luxurious look, consider installing a touchscreen control panel on one wall of the home theater. Some speaker systems come with control panels, while others offer compatibility with a wide range of speakers and home theater equipment. Be sure that all your components will work with your control panel before installation. A home theater contractor can help with this step of the process. Once mounted on your wall, this control panel should let you adjust the volume, turn speakers on and off, and select programming from your streaming media player. Advanced control panels may also work with smart home systems to dim lights with just the sound of your voice.