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What to Ask Before Installing an Apartment Home Theatre
Here is a guide, in the form of 5 questions, about all you ever wanted to know about bringing a home theatre system into your apartment
Pranav Iyer
7 April 2017
An architect and designer, Design Principal of Ground 11 Architects, sci-fi aficionado and avid model railroader.
An architect and designer, Design Principal of Ground 11 Architects, sci-fi aficionado... More
Much as we would like, not all of us have a huge house to live in. But that should not be a hindrance in bringing certain luxuries into our apartments – such as a home theatre. An apartment home theatre is a challenging project, thanks to the lack of space (usually), concerns of disturbing others (always), and the need to achieve best results within a reasonable budget (ideally). I have seen many homeowners stumble and make costly and uninformed mistakes while getting a home theatre room designed and installed.
Here, I list the key questions to ask yourself before you start shopping for your home theatre and some insights into what works and what doesn’t.
Here, I list the key questions to ask yourself before you start shopping for your home theatre and some insights into what works and what doesn’t.
1. What will I watch on it?
No, really! We will all reply with The Avatar and the World Cup final, but such occasions don’t come often. Your home theatre should be put together to meet your regular, day-to-day audio-visual entertainment needs, and not the once-in-a-year events that you fantasise about. The biggest mistake one tends to make is buying what seems to be ‘best’ without thinking about what it is best for.
For the average apartment dweller, television shows, sports and the occasional movie pretty much covers the basics. The first step is to decide what to buy based on what content you watch most often. Then you install a system that best serves that purpose.
Tip: You can always upgrade parts of your home theatre over time to suit the changes in the content you watch.
No, really! We will all reply with The Avatar and the World Cup final, but such occasions don’t come often. Your home theatre should be put together to meet your regular, day-to-day audio-visual entertainment needs, and not the once-in-a-year events that you fantasise about. The biggest mistake one tends to make is buying what seems to be ‘best’ without thinking about what it is best for.
For the average apartment dweller, television shows, sports and the occasional movie pretty much covers the basics. The first step is to decide what to buy based on what content you watch most often. Then you install a system that best serves that purpose.
Tip: You can always upgrade parts of your home theatre over time to suit the changes in the content you watch.
2. What parts make up a home theatre?
This one is simple but needs to be said. There are things that are absolutely essential and things that are non-essential, which we can add on later. Then there are the little bits that make it all work.
The absolute essentials, in order of importance, are a screen, a set of speakers, and an amplifier to make it all function together. A screen can be a television, a projector with its screen or both. In case of both, the television is used to watch the usual programming and the projector with a drop-down screen is used when we are watching home-theatre-worthy content like movies or sports.
We will not bother to discuss anything below 4K capability because, according to me, once you’ve seen a 4K screen, even a full-high-definition screen at 1920 dpi (dots per inch) looks lower in resolution. There is a noticeable drop in image sharpness and a slightly lower range of colours and hues. The 4K televisions and projectors are able to upscale 1920-dpi-resolution content to a much higher resolution.
The second member of the triad is the speaker system, where the price range is astounding, and so is the variation in quality. After a certain price point, however, you are paying more for the technology and the brand than the sound quality. For an apartment, a mid-range 5.1 speaker system (five small speakers and one for bass) is ideal, with smaller speakers giving you the full theatre experience at an affordable price.
The third is the amplifier, which is something like the Ring forged by Sauron himself – it brings them all together.
Tip: Choose wisely, for on that shall depend your complete set-up’s relevance for years. The amplifier/receiver has to last you years, should have inputs to allow most of your devices to connect to or through it, and should be easy to understand. More about this later.
This one is simple but needs to be said. There are things that are absolutely essential and things that are non-essential, which we can add on later. Then there are the little bits that make it all work.
The absolute essentials, in order of importance, are a screen, a set of speakers, and an amplifier to make it all function together. A screen can be a television, a projector with its screen or both. In case of both, the television is used to watch the usual programming and the projector with a drop-down screen is used when we are watching home-theatre-worthy content like movies or sports.
We will not bother to discuss anything below 4K capability because, according to me, once you’ve seen a 4K screen, even a full-high-definition screen at 1920 dpi (dots per inch) looks lower in resolution. There is a noticeable drop in image sharpness and a slightly lower range of colours and hues. The 4K televisions and projectors are able to upscale 1920-dpi-resolution content to a much higher resolution.
The second member of the triad is the speaker system, where the price range is astounding, and so is the variation in quality. After a certain price point, however, you are paying more for the technology and the brand than the sound quality. For an apartment, a mid-range 5.1 speaker system (five small speakers and one for bass) is ideal, with smaller speakers giving you the full theatre experience at an affordable price.
The third is the amplifier, which is something like the Ring forged by Sauron himself – it brings them all together.
Tip: Choose wisely, for on that shall depend your complete set-up’s relevance for years. The amplifier/receiver has to last you years, should have inputs to allow most of your devices to connect to or through it, and should be easy to understand. More about this later.
3. How do I deal with space constraints in the apartment?
Lack of space is a common challenge faced by apartment-dwelling creatures, and the home theatre system should be designed keeping this in mind.
Lack of space is a common challenge faced by apartment-dwelling creatures, and the home theatre system should be designed keeping this in mind.
- Small Speakers: You don’t want to see large black cuboids all over the room, do you? The only problem is, and you may as well make your peace with it, that the more compact the speakers, specially sub-woofers, the more they will cost (for the same performance than conventional speaker systems). You may consider premium brands that have incredible speakers that can safely get you thrown out of your house by a rampaging mob but are less than six inches to a side. Bose has speakers that you can mount under or within the ceiling.
- Wall mount everything: It is always better to save whatever space you do have in your apartment. Wall mount the television as well as the projector screen if possible. Most screens can be mounted on either the wall or the ceiling. A slot inside the false ceiling allows a motorised screen to disappear completely into the ceiling when the system is switched off, provided you link it with the overall home theatre control.
Tip: To take space-saving to the next level, you can use RF repeaters (which strengthen signal and increase range for remotes) to control equipment that may be placed anywhere in the house, as long as you run an HDMI cable (for carrying the sound and high-definition visuals) to your home theatre display. You can bypass that too with a DVDO Air wireless HDMI, as you can have your amplifier and player anywhere in the house and control them wirelessly.
- Compact amplifiers: For obvious reasons, this means buying smaller but dedicated amplifiers that are not strictly ‘all-purpose’. I feel, however, that an amplifier has to take care of possible upgrades and additions over the next few years, and should therefore have the following: three HDMI inputs, one HDMI output, possibility to connect a 5.1 or 7.1 speaker system to it, and an Aux (auxiliary audio input) for when you want to use your iPod.
4. How do I soundproof my home theatre space?
The simplest way to avoid the displeasure of quiet-loving people and neighbours around you is to have soundproofing panelling behind your speakers or television. De-couple your speakers, essentially by making sure an insulating material prevents their vibrations from being transmitted through walls and ceiling.
A more expensive method is to buy an amplifier that uses Low Frequency Containment (usually referred to as LFC), that basically reduces frequencies that may resonate with common building materials, thereby reducing sound and vibration transmission through walls into surrounding rooms.
The simplest way to avoid the displeasure of quiet-loving people and neighbours around you is to have soundproofing panelling behind your speakers or television. De-couple your speakers, essentially by making sure an insulating material prevents their vibrations from being transmitted through walls and ceiling.
A more expensive method is to buy an amplifier that uses Low Frequency Containment (usually referred to as LFC), that basically reduces frequencies that may resonate with common building materials, thereby reducing sound and vibration transmission through walls into surrounding rooms.
5. What accessories should I buy with my home theatre?
Now that you have the main parts of a home theatre system, it’s time think about accessories that can enhance the experience. We will skip over the handy-refrigerator-for-your-beer kinds, and move on to more germane items that are must-haves. A universal remote, such as a Logitech One, is a handy gadget to add to the list, as it will coordinate your hardware settings for the amp/receiver, television, projector with screen, iPod and your console.
Other accessories include a voltage stabiliser or UPS (uninterrupted power supply) that protects your system against power surges and outages.
An important upgrade is the addition of a virtual reality or VR headset that can be used for an unmatched and immersive home theatre experience. The three that are currently available are the PlayStation VR, that works with PlayStation-4s, and the Oculus Rift and the HTC Vive, both Windows-compatible. For the PS VR, you need a PlayStation-4, and for the other two, a fast computer with VR content.
Now that you have the main parts of a home theatre system, it’s time think about accessories that can enhance the experience. We will skip over the handy-refrigerator-for-your-beer kinds, and move on to more germane items that are must-haves. A universal remote, such as a Logitech One, is a handy gadget to add to the list, as it will coordinate your hardware settings for the amp/receiver, television, projector with screen, iPod and your console.
Other accessories include a voltage stabiliser or UPS (uninterrupted power supply) that protects your system against power surges and outages.
An important upgrade is the addition of a virtual reality or VR headset that can be used for an unmatched and immersive home theatre experience. The three that are currently available are the PlayStation VR, that works with PlayStation-4s, and the Oculus Rift and the HTC Vive, both Windows-compatible. For the PS VR, you need a PlayStation-4, and for the other two, a fast computer with VR content.
Upgrading from a manual to a motorised screen is also a fantastic investment. Otherwise, your choices are to buy a projector that has the ability to address full HD (high definition), and which has a keystone adjustment that allows you to mount it closer than normal yet get a non-distorted image on the screen.
Tip: Always remember to mount your projector in a way that the revolving blades of your ceiling fan don’t obstruct the projection.
In conclusion, it is possible to get a home theatre within a reasonable budget to meet your specific requirements, and an apartment can become an incredible pad to enjoy a movie with family and friends. It is fun to buy, easy to put together and exciting to upgrade.
Read more:
Over-the-Top (but Seriously Sexy) High-Tech Home Improvements
10 Most Popular Home Gyms on Houzz
Tell us:
What challenges are you facing for your apartment home theatre? Write in Comments below.
Tip: Always remember to mount your projector in a way that the revolving blades of your ceiling fan don’t obstruct the projection.
In conclusion, it is possible to get a home theatre within a reasonable budget to meet your specific requirements, and an apartment can become an incredible pad to enjoy a movie with family and friends. It is fun to buy, easy to put together and exciting to upgrade.
Read more:
Over-the-Top (but Seriously Sexy) High-Tech Home Improvements
10 Most Popular Home Gyms on Houzz
Tell us:
What challenges are you facing for your apartment home theatre? Write in Comments below.
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