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Always Wanted To Have A Home Cinema? Here Are Some Helpful Tips

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So, you’ve always wanted to have a home cinema. You can take many routes – whether that’s installing a projector and screen, or just buying the equipment outright. Regardless of what route you take, there are tons of choices out there for any budget. Let’s explore!

Projectors

The first thing you’re going to want to do is to install a projector. These are the most expensive routes, but also provide one of the best picture quality options. If you want to automate your projector, invest in smart home systems when creating your home cinema. The two main kinds of projectors are LCD and DLP (the older kind). LCD projectors tend to be more expensive than DLP projectors, but also provide a higher quality picture. However, DLP projectors are often brighter than LCD ones, so they work better for more light-filled rooms. Additionally, you can choose how much power you want to use on the projector – lower power means longer bulb life and cheaper replacement bulbs.

Seamless Projector 

These projectors have no borders around them – it looks like the picture comes right out of the wall itself. These are great if you want an ultra-dramatic look or want an installation where having seams in the wall would be detrimental (bathrooms, etc). If you want to use one in a family room or other place where people are walking around, you’ll need to make sure it’s wall-mountable (it will say that in the description). Otherwise, it would be like having pooling water on your floor – not fun.

Screen 

There are several options for screen surfaces out there, from white screens to seamless projectors which don’t have borders around them. The more expensive screens tend to provide higher quality images and closer-to-the-real thing colors. If you choose a projector screen, ask about how it calculates gain (how bright the image is projected) so that you know how much light (and power) your projector will use. Here’s an example of what different screen surface types look like:

Ceiling Mount 

This lets you mount your projector on the ceiling, instead of having it on another piece of furniture or taking up space on a table. The benefit to this is that your screen doesn’t take up room, either. Plus, you can go really big with a projector mounted to the ceiling – no need for a huge projector stand! This type of mount also allows for less light to get into your room from the sides and bottom, which means you save power and get a brighter picture.

Installing Your Screen

Once you’ve chosen your screen surface and installed it properly, install your projector. If this is a ceiling mount, you’re all set! If you have an overhead screen or one on another piece of furniture, remember to readjust the height so that the picture fills up the entire screen area. A misaligned projector can mean bad projected images which aren’t worth watching. For more information about installing projectors and screens, here’s our video on how to do just that!

Budget

As with any home improvement project, it’s important to know what your budget is. From there you can make decisions based on the features you want which fit within that budget.  No need to overspend on a quality projector if you can’t afford it or don’t have the budget for installation. If your budget is small, but you still want a high-quality picture, consider a rear projection TV instead of a projector.

Seating

You’re going to want to have someplace for people to sit comfortably while they watch their movie. If you have a lot of space, then just setting out some pillows would be enough. However, if you don’t have a giant open area available to place your row of seating, consider building steps or using risers. You can also build your own custom-sized chair or couch for this purpose. With the proper equipment,  installation, and furniture, enjoying movies at home has never been easier! 

Image source: Pixabay

If you’re interested in watching movies at home but don’t have the kind of space where you can install anything permanent (like an entire room), there are options out there for portable projectors and screens too! Whether projecting onto the side of your house or hanging it from your ceiling, these let you watch movies anywhere – no installation needed! Just remember to account for the amount of light your room will let in – if you’re planning on projecting onto a wall or side, make sure that you can block out as much light as possible. Remember: the darker the room is, the brighter and deeper colors appear on-screen!

 

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