Depending on how you've got your high performance home theater equipment set up, it can either provide great sound and picture quality, or lackluster results. If you've set things up wrong, you'll probably have to start taking components down and set them up all over again. That's why learning the ideal way to set up your home theater for your space is one of the most important things you can do before you get started. Here are some tips for good home theater room design that might help.
Home theater design can be broken down into four main components. These are: room design, acoustic treatment, construction, and system setup. Room design is one of the most important, and also among the most difficult to modify later. Therefore, it's best to get it right to start with.
Sound waves can bounce off of surfaces in your room, causing echoes or poor quality, especially if the room you're using for your home theater isn't a true rectangle. Avoid rooms that are l-shaped, or have vaulted ceiling or archways, as they can cause problems. If you don't have a rectangular room on hand, you can modify your existing one. This doesn't mean you need to have major construction done, however. Just blocking out a rectangular area to use as your home theater will be enough. If you're really dedicated, you may wish to consider raising or lowering the ceiling to get effective acoustics. Before doing so, you should talk to an acoustics expert, though.
In addition to room shape, one of the things that can help you get the best performance from your home theater is your chair. If this sounds odd, remember that your seating position determines how you'll interact with the sounds in the room. Your chair is responsible for your head position, and for where your eyes and ears will be in relation to the screen and speakers. The size of the chair or chairs dictates how many people are in the room, and how many people are in each chair, as well as where they'll be sitting. Since there are certain seating locations that are best avoided, take this into account when you pick your chair.
For the best sound, pay attention to the positions of the speakers in relation to where you'll be sitting. The best seats are usually considered to be those that are halfway between the front right and left speakers. This allows you to be centered between the sounds, providing the best stereo experience. You should place your subwoofer in the corner, to reach all areas of the room with the best sound.
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