The best compliment to the sound and picture quality of a home theatre is lighting. When choosing a home theatre’s lighting equipment, there are many options to consider. Typically in a home theatre, people prefer a low amount of light or complete darkness during the film. Also, home theatres are usually a room unto themselves; they are built as a separate room intended solely for the purpose of entertainment. Most owners design the room with few or no windows in this room and only soft lighting options.
Home theatres provide more stylistic options for creativity than the design of most chain commercial movie theatres. For instance, many people use wall sconces, capped lights, fiber optics and other options to add subtle nuances to the décor and light of their home theatre. All of these selections offer versatility with low levels of light. Indirect lighting of any kind is best when designing a personal home theatre.
Two of the simplest choices are a three-way bulb and wall sconces. With the three-way bulb setting, the lights themselves can also be connected to a dimmer switch for soft lighting. Wall sconces can also be used for soft lighting. They are lined along the walls in whatever quantity the home theatre owner chooses, depending on the amount of light desired. The three-way bulb and wall sconces are simple yet effective options for low amounts of light with very little advanced technology. These two types of equipment are usually used in home theatres that are designed to be implemented into a living room. More advanced equipment is used in the single room version of a home theatre.
Another option is capped lights. These provide indirect overhead lighting and are frequently placed about four feet apart on the ceiling. Ceilings can be lined with sound-deadening panels to lessen sound waves and enhance the home theatre sound quality. In between these panels, capped lights are placed. They do not shine directly down, instead they are turned up and to the side so as to diffuse light to the walls and ceilings; they do not reflect off the screen and disrupt the view of the film. These are also good alternatives for low levels of light.
Rope lighting is a perfect compliment to a home theatre. It offers dim lighting in a fashionable style. Rope lighting is often used in conjunction with stadium seating. Lining the sides of the layered rows of seats, rope lighting is strung underneath. This looks similar to the lights along the commercial movie theatre rows. This lighting provides one of the lowest levels available. For more light, it can be used in addition to any of the other options listed here. It is an excellent addition to other home theatre lighting equipment.
The most creative option is fiber optics. Home theatre aficionados use fiber optics for numerous designs. For example, some have used fiber optics to mimic a starlit night sky on their ceiling. This ceiling design is perfect for a quiet and dimly-lit home theatre experience. It is one of the most versatile and imaginative choices to light a personal home theatre.
One final thing to consider when choosing lighting is the home theatre equipment itself. A projector will display brighter and will have a glare from other surrounding sources of light. A flat screen or plasma television will distribute the light more evenly with little glare. Plasma and flat screens are the best choices for home theatre owners who like to have the lights on during a movie. Projectors work well with no lights; both options provide an exceptional home theatre experience. Again, the equipment should be considered along with the overall theatre experience desired before deciding on specific lighting options.
Any of these lighting features can be used in combination with each other or alone. The perfect finish to these is to connect all lights and other movie equipment to a touch screen. The screen is capable of dimming lights, raising/lowering the projector, starting the movie, etc. All of this is available at the touch of a button. Home theatres can be as extravagant or as simple as the owner chooses.
