Home Theater Lighting

Home Theater Lighting. Is It Important?

When you go to a movie theater, you get your first indication that the movie is about to begin when the lights turn off. So what’s the big deal over lighting systems if we only plan to watch movies in the dark?

A good home theater lighting system enhances your theater room in a couple of ways. From a performance point of view, the home theater lighting system needs to provide light so that people can safely move around the room. You should also arrange the light sources so that they don’t cast any glare or light on the image, which would wash out the picture.

Beyond the performance issue, lighting provides an aesthetic benefit. The theater room should be an inviting, comfortable space, and a lighting system that sets the right mood is invaluable.

Home Theater Sound Proofing

Ultra Barrier Home Theater Sound Proofing

Ultra Barrier home theater sound proofing is an industrial grade composite of two pound mass loaded vinyl and one inch polyether foam designed to block / absorb sound in noise polluted environments. The vinyl is a flexible, high density material with a smooth surface created to reduce noise transmission. The vinyl barrier is resistant to most acids, mild alkalis and oils / grease. The foam acts as a de-coupler and an absorber. As a de-coupler, it dramatically limits vibration of the mass loaded vinyl. As an absorber, it captures noise radiating from structural or airborne sources. Ultra Barrier home theater sound proofing is available with a pressure sensitive adhesive (PSA) for an easy ‘peel and stick’ application.

Ultra Barrier home theater sound proofing is effective in any environment where high noise levels are problematic. This heavy duty barrier / absorber may be applied directly to drywall or attached to studs / joists prior to the administration of drywall. Stop noise transmission through doors by applying Ultra Barrier home theater sound proofing to one side of the door. Practical applications include, but are not limited to; generator enclosures, compressor rooms, air conditioning unit enclosures, etc.

Denon DVD-5910CI Audio/Video Reference Progressive Scan DVD Audio/Video/SACD Player

• DDVC (Dual Discrete Video Circuit) proprietary technology
• Digital Bass Management for DVD-Audio/MLP/SACD, High (12dB) and Low Pass (24dB) with Speaker Configuration/Level Control and Delay Time Control
  Selectable 40/60/80/100/120
• Multi-Directional diagonal filtering
• Advanced AL24 Processing
• DENON LINK III, for high-grade audio transmission
• THX Ultra®-certified
• 10-bit Precision Video Scaling™ by DVDO
• HDMI 1080p / DVI 1080i Digital Video
• Full digital bass management featuring AD Melody 100 Sharc™ processing
• Burr Brown PCM-1792 24bit/192kHz DACs
• IEEE-1394 ports

Denon DVD-2930CI Progressive Scan DVD Audio/Video/Super Audio CD Player

• Progressive scan featuring Realta REON VX-50 HQV™ by Teranex
• PC Mode selectable output (VGA/XVGA/WXGA/SXGA)
• HDMI 1080p video, multi-channel audio ready
• Denon Link III for unsurpassed audio performance with Denon Link enabled receivers
• Alpha 24 processing plus
• DiVx (v.6), WMA and MP3 compatible

Denon DVD-1730 Progressive Scan DVD Player

• CD-R/RW disc compatible
• Serial IR remote ports
• WMA-9 and MP3 decoders
• JPEG slide show viewer
• Kodak/Fuji Picture CD compatible

Home Theater Cables

Home Theater Audio/Video Cables

No home theater is complete without the cables that connect everything. Most components come with free cables that allow you to hook up your system and get it running. In most cases, though, these cables are worth what they cost. Upgrading to higher-quality wire can make a noticeable difference. Larger speaker wire passes more of the amplifier’s signal on to the speakers themselves, assuming that the length is relatively long (25 feet) or the speakers are hard to drive (less than 4 ohms). Cable runs of less than 10 feet might make less of a difference.

 

There are plenty of affordable, decent-quality home theater cables. Upconverted or high-definition signals should only be run over short lengths, though, with regular, not mini, sized cables. You should also keep line-level audio cables as short as possible, unless you’re using balanced cables, which can be longer. The only thing to do is to audition different brands available from your local dealer.

Home Theater Remote Control Technology

Home Theater Master-3000

The Home Theater Master MX-3000 offers some superficial similarities to previous touch screen offerings. A touch screen offers understandable controls, powerful automation and a delightful aesthetic alternative to the clutter of conventional remote controls on the coffee table. For an end user who surfs or loves to make fine adjustments to the home theater, the touch screen is constantly in their hands. The MX-3000 has a number of refinements to keep it comfortably in their hands. The most important is the use of advanced technology and materials to make the touch screen as light in weight as possible.

Powered by a 206MHz RISC microprocessor, the MX-3000 offers installers the first touch screen designed for animation. The powerful central processor enables quick, fluid page transitions and animated macros that entertain the client as your programmed automation goes to work configuring their system for them. The MX-3000 includes remarkable new RF technology that provides seamless communication between the remote and the components via RF. The MX-3000 consistently achieves a range of 75 to 100 feet without any interference, even in hostile RF environments with multiple satellite receivers, computers or PVR’s.

Home Theater Projection

Optoma DLP HD Home Theater Projector

Have you been dreaming of the day when you could get a high contrast, 1280×720p resolution DLP home theater projector? Well, you can stop dreaming, that dream is now a reality. With the HD70, Optoma continues to lead the industry in smashing through price barriers. This is a truly exciting release. With HD 720p projection now available at such low prices, just about anyone can afford to watch this fall’s football season in pure high definition. While small compromises have been made to deliver 720p DLP at this price, the HD70 is a solid projector that represents a major step forward in the quality of entry level home theater.

A few product details of the Optoma HD70 are it only weighs 5.9 pounds and is 3.7 inches in height and 10.4 inches in width. The lamp life is good for up to 3000 hours of play. This home theater projector includes a digital convergence, HDMI inputs, DVI inputs, S-Video inputs, component video inputs, composite inputs, RGB inputs and PC inputs.

Home Theater Sound

Bose CineMate Surround Sound

The Bose CineMate Surround Sound gives you an easy way to add great sound to your existing TV and player. It includes two compact speakers and an Acoustimass® bass module which work together with proprietary Bose processing to produce full, clear audio. You’ll hear the difference with all of your TV shows, movies, audio CDs, and even VHS tapes.

Bose made the CineMate exceptionally easy to set up and use. Special connectors ensure goof-proof hookup to your TV, and the included instructional walks you through the process step by step. The multibrand remote controls the CineMate along with your other audio/video components. The Bose CineMate surround sound includes 2 compact articulated array speakers, two, two inch drivers in each speaker, a bass-relax enclosure, Acoustimass bass module with five inch wooder and a one year warranty.

Home Theater Cabinets

BDI Avion Series 8529 / 8539

The BDI Avion Series 8529 / 8539 can support your flat panel or big screen while you can see the rest of your stereo system through the cabinets below. The cabinets have adjustable shelves that contain wire channels to allow you to direct the audio cables. To keep you system cool and running good, the Avion home theater cabinet is well ventilated.

Wheels are securely mounted and well hidden to allow for mobilization when cleaning or adding to your system. The home theater cabinet is 65 inches wide by 22-1/16 inches deep and weighing 200 pounds. Inside this cabinet the shelves are 18-1/2 inches wide by 16-1/16 inches deep that weigh 50 pounds. The bottom shelves are 18-1/2 inches wide by 20-1/2 inches deep weighing 75 pounds. This cabinet comes with a three year warranty.

Home Theater Seats

Home Theater Chairs

When planning and researching for home theater seating, one must consider the factors and qualities which make up a high quality theater recliner.

The overall weight of a theater chair depends on its construction and quality. Lower end chairs weigh approximately 75 to 100 lbs per seat. Many times, this can mean the chair has been constructed poorly using “thin wall” wood construction and a lightweight, rickety recline mechanism. Elite HTS seats are the heaviest weighing in at an average weight of 152lbs per seat and have a motorized recliner. This allows the user to recline the seat to a fraction of a degree thus offering much more freedom and control rather then a manually operated mechanism such as a lever design that will only have limited recline positions.

It is very important for any type of furniture to use “low memory foam” that is high in density so that it can provide support for many years. Elite Home Theater Seating offers soft, medium and firm foam options so that you can customize the chair according to your preferences.

One of the most common ailments for many people is lower back problems. It is imperative that the lower back

and spine are properly supported. It is important to find a suitable balance of body support and style when purchasing theater seating.

After all, that is the primary purpose of any type of furniture; to provide comfort and support.

Home Theater Seating Materials

Choose from a wide range of home theater seating materials for the perfect look and feel!

There are quite a few home theater seating material options, both for construction and upholstery. Depending on your room décor you can go in for metal, wood or plastic for your home theater seating furniture. Each of these has its own strengths and drawbacks in the areas of durability, acoustics and cost.

Metal home theater seating materials are available in brass, bronze, chrome, steel or iron. They impart an elegant, even old-worldly charm to your home. Molded plastic chairs are also quite popular for their contemporary look. Wooden frames have been a longstanding favorite with solid, kiln-dried hardwood frames being known for their durability.

Besides the variety of materials for construction of the furniture frames, there is wide selection in upholstery too. Fabric and leather are the two major categories of upholstery material. However, there are various different types of fabric and leather. There are virtually scores of options in fabric texture, color and pattern. Vinyl, micro fiber, polyester, acrylic, corduroy, cotton, nylon, polypropylene, satins, damasks, denim, velvet… the list is exhaustive.

Choose the fabric based on how much it will be used and make sure that the color complements the general room décor. Some fabrics have fabric protection too so that they are resistant to stains.

Leather too is available in top grain, natural, Italian, pull-up aniline, semi-aniline, pigmented or Nubuck. Each of these differ in their feel, fade-resistance, stain-resistance and, of course, price.

So depending on your room décor, budget and acoustics, choose the appropriate material for your home theater seating furniture and you will see it makes all the difference between ‘watching’ your home theater and ‘enjoying’ your home theater.