My best movie theater experience began with my first visit to an AMC dine-in theater in New Jersey. The only problem? I needed to drive 2-hrs to and fro to savor the experience. Rather than continue to burn the extra gas, i happened on a far better idea... why not turn the empty basement (packed full of useless boxes anyway and starting to gather dust and bugs) into my own movie theater? The benefits - i get to watch what i want, when i want, with who i want... i get to sit in my own rocking recliner chair. It costs $0 in gas costs, i can pause, rewind, increase the volume, play on my computer or even cook as i watch. The only problem - home theater equipment (at least for the newbie - like i was) can cost you a fortune.

In the subsequent posts, i intend to chronicle my journey from complete newbie to a fairly informed home theater enthusiast. enjoy.

Interesting.....

Cool. Waiting.

Many people are going this route (HT setup). With the proliferation of decent HD home theater projectors and projector screens, the cost of setting up a decent home theater is not as astronomical as it used to be, unless you are aiming for all the bells and whistles that come with a dedicated light controlled HT.

Once you get this thing up and running, you will probably have a hard time watching your sports/movies or even anything on TV. Nothing beats watching sports/movies/netflix/playing games/heck even surfing the web... etc on a giant 120/150/180/200 inch screen

grafikdon: Many people are going this route (HT setup). With the proliferation of decent HD home theater projectors and projector screens, the cost of setting up a decent home theater is not as astronomical as it used to be, unless you are aiming for all the bells and whistles that come with a dedicated light controlled HT.

Once you get this thing up and running, you will probably have a hard time watching your sports/movies or even anything on TV. Nothing beats watching sports/movies/netflix/playing games/heck even surfing the web... etc on a giant 120/150/180/200 inch screen

Except they cost an arm and a leg to get really decent ones.

Unfortunately i could not find my old photos to show what the room looked like - so i figure a description should suffice. It was basically a rectangular room with tiled floors, whitewashed walls, two tiny basement windows and dimmer lights (dimmer lights are excellent fixtures for a movie room by the way).

I first started out by making a list of stuff i would need and fitting them into my budget. The overall goal was to ensure that i did not spend more than $5000 max in setting the room up (hint - if you have a bigger budget, i would suggest $12,000 at a minimum, if not, start with $3,000 minimum and then upgrade slowly over time).

My bad

My list

1. Rug - absolutely essential for a room with tiled or wood floors. There is nothing worse than $10,000 speakers with horrible acoustics. Notice how virtually all movie theaters have rugged floors? That is because rug absorbs sound and makes your speakers sound many times better. I figured i could get a decent 8' x 11' from Lowes or Homedepot for no more than $200. I ended up getting 2 and layering them one over the other. the thicker the better.

2. Speakers - I needed the sound to be as close to a real movie theater sound as much as possible so this was an absolute had to be good! First thing was to decide what format i wanted... had to be 7.1 surround sound including 2 floor standers, 1 center channel, 2 dipole side surrounds (Axioms are awesome) and 2 rear monopole surrounds.

I got an AWESOME deal on B&W speakers from a NY fellow. Total system cost - < $1000!

3. Seating - this ended up being tougher than i expected. The first set i got where made of wicker. Beautiful set (see photos)! But i ended up not going with them.... eh its hard to recline on wicker chairs...

Rattan furniture with floor standers and center channel - all 3 cost less than $250 (true market value - $1600)



Axiom audio QS8 surrounds - about the best in the market to be honest - these i was willing to pay close to market price for ($300). Good speakers can be worth the investment.

Oh so beautiful seats

Nice looking sitting-room.

Are those speakers that i see on the chairs? Which kain parole be that?

@OP, so people are looking for food to eat and you are trying to build home cinema mtchewww,

No offense ohh, but this ain't no cinema or theater, in my books, a theater would have a large widescreen not a 60 inch t.v. i 'm talking large wide screen with projector, you also need soundproof walls, or materials to put around the worlds to sound proof it. Also, the theater should have sort of a darkish color to enhance the lightnening of the t.v., not total black ohh, but sort of a brownish dark. matter of fact you could install sound proofing material on all walls but one, then focus the projector on the unpainted wall, to serve as a widescreen.
Nevertheless, i gbadun your surround system ohhh, for three hundred dollars that looks like a steal my brother, i hope it works as good as it looks. Also since its 21st century, try and get HD system or even 3d system ehnn..pray that God should hook you up.

nice

home theatre doesn't cost much, except you want to go for the very expensive ones. my sitting room is a mini theatre, and it doesn't cost me a fortune to do it.will upload later, when I get home.

GeneralJ: @OP, so people are looking for food to eat and you are trying to build home cinema mtchewww,

Lol........No beef the guy na. It's his money o. Go hustle your own.

OP, sorry to criticize you. I am a fan of interior decor.

Those chairs and table is garden furniture. Its meant to be displayed outside or in your balcony overlooking the garden or whatever.

I would have adviced you to opt for bean bags and one or two lazy boys and invest your money on a bigger screen. Lazy boys are not that expensive though

See pics. You tried shaaa.

Guys chill let him land na, stop going by these pictures, I'm sure there's more to come...

No rug on the floor, still sounds like crazy. Live streaming, 30TB storage device, ps3 connected to wifi. Once u take a sit u wont want to get up.

martyns303: No rug on the floor, still sounds like crazy. Live streaming, 30TB storage device, ps3 connected to wifi. Once u take a sit u wont want to get up.

ode.lol

Quite okay but you really need a far bigger screen...Dat tv is too small to pass for a mini home cinema...1Luv

I love your furniture and there is no rule that says cane furniture cannot be used indoors. It is a refreshing look. TV should be bigger though

tatiana009: I love your furniture and there is no rule that says cane furniture cannot be used indoors. It is a refreshing look. TV should be bigger though

I get your point, but there is also no rule that says that couches cannot be used in the kitchen. But we use common sense and advice from those who create the pieces.

Contact any interior designer that you know, they will tell you patio furniture is patio furniture. Some modern patios are also indoors, hey.
So cane furniture is generally meant for patios not for living room or TV room.

nice one op...bin thinkin bout making one mysef....dont knw if i should use a projector and a screen or get a fat plasma 3D sceen....and ur sound seem tite...topic just on point...following closely....please get some lazy boy for seat, mayb add a buttshaker to it...

Nice one! More pics pls! N try to be less technical for newbies like me

redcliff:

ode.lol

See player hating

Are you insulting our intelligence by calling dis mini sitting room a cinema room wit dis 32inches LCD,Damn I can see some black american's don't like to spend dis money.Pls come to lekki in lagos and see mad cinema room in dere home or mansion.This looks like d LG LED Screen I used and I can tell it's not compare to get a bigger screen tv for cinemas.

chineloSA:

I get your point, but there is also no rule that says that couches cannot be used in the kitchen. But we use common sense and advice from those who create the pieces.

Contact any interior designer that you know, they will tell you patio furniture is patio furniture. Some modern patios are also indoors, hey.
So cane furniture is generally meant for patios not for living room or TV room.

As long as it works for him and he is happy with it he can put a couch in the kitchen sef. The important thing is that the furniture is functional in the space it is put. In a kitchen the person would have to have enough space so it isn't near the cooker where things can pour on it. There was a time when people taught that putting a tv in the kitchen was ridiculous but now so many people do so. If anything is done with flair it will even become the new trend. Personally I love the look of the cane furniture in his TV room. The only reason why most people use them outdoor is because they can withstand rain. There is no logical reason why the OP can't use them in his tv room. His house, his rules and it looks good so kudos to him.
The 1st thing a good interior decorator will tell you is to work with your personality and let the room reflect your taste. Op's chairs are classy and I like them so each to his own.

Nice concept.

Good you tried.