Building Your Very Own Home Theater: Where to Start?

Many people dream of turning that unused bedroom or basement space into an awesome home theater room. Looking at that empty space opens up a variety of possibilities that are only limited by imagination (and budget!) The biggest problem at this stage is knowing where to start. Do you buy the electronics first? How do you design and build the room? These and many other questions start to flood the mind and make your home theater plans seem like an impossible task. Don’t despair! There are some simple questions to answer that can help you focus your vision and build the home theater of your dreams.

How Will the Room be Used? – Will your home theater be used primarily for watching movies or sports? Will it also be used for video gaming? How many people will be able to use the room at once? Figuring out the use and capacity of your home theater will help you zero in the right size of screen, number of home theater seats, size of the sound system and other factors. For example, a small home theater that the family uses to watch movies will be different than one that you invite your friends over to watch the big game. The former might only need a few seats while the latter will need seats that are stain resistant (from spilled snacks and drinks). Knowing what components you need like a Blu-ray player, game console or media PC will also help you determine the cables and other accessories needed.

What Size and Shape is the Room? – The room’s layout will likely dictate the size of your home theater. Small or oddly shaped rooms may only be able to accommodate a couple of seats while others can have multiple rows. To find the optimal number of seats, use this home theater measuring article to calculate your aisle width, space between rows and distance from the screen. This will help you decide how many seats to put in and the size of the screen, (not to mention if you can put that tiki bar in the corner or not).

What Theme are You Going For? – Some extravagant home theaters are built around a theme like that of a pirate ship or drive-in theater. Others are just a bare room with furniture and components added. Whatever your tastes, figuring out the theme beforehand will save you money in choosing your colors and décor. For example, you may want to build the room around a beautiful painting or memento. This makes it easy to choose your color palette and decorating scheme. You can go all out and design your room from scratch, or use something like this Theater in a Box kit.

No matter what your plans, you should get a licensed contractor to help you build your home theater. A professional can determine the best way to shape your vision and will often think of little things that you might not have considered. Now, get out there and start planning your home theater, and when you’re ready, check out TheaterSeatStore.com to furnish it.