Room lighting control it is an important aspect for home theater systems, especially if you have a front projector and a set up display. Video projectors often require a controlled lighting situation due to the lower brightness of their screens. Room ambience is another important lighting function during a viewing, as you most likely don’t want your guests to sit in the dark (unless it’s a Really creepy horror movie). Reflected room lighting is a consideration, just as you don’t want a glare to reflect off your screen, be it ambient light from a window or just reflections from a lamp inside your room. Ambient window lighting is important when determining your living room layout or designing a dedicated viewing room. Of course, a dedicated room would be better without windows, if you have the luxury of designing a room from scratch.
Glare control and image enhancement
Controlling room lighting is relatively easy with a little planning. If you want to incorporate your home theater system into your living room or family room, you will want to position your video screen so that any ambient light on the screen is reduced or eliminated entirely. Every time we move into a new home, one of my first considerations (much to my wife’s chagrin) is where we will place the television in our living room. Since video is my profession, I plan our living room layout around the TV and entertainment center (again to my wife’s chagrin). The TV is always placed at an angle away from the main room window to eliminate reflections from the window on the screen. Our living room lamps have shades that direct the lighting downwards and are low translucent to minimize reflections. Since I have a front projector and screen in the living room, in addition to the 32 “Mitsubishi we use for normal viewing, we have vertical blinds that do a good job of darkening the room. We also have velvet curtains that can be pulled down. both sides of the screen and do a great job of providing a controlled lighting environment for our projector. You will want to do much the same thing: have your video screen away from any window and use curtained blinds to control the daytime lighting of the windows. .
Set the mood
Wall sconces located on the sides of your room to create ambience while viewing in a dedicated movie theater are a nice touch and lend themselves to the theater atmosphere. Depending on the overall decor and theme of your dedicated room, sconces can be plain or elaborately eye-catching, just like movie theaters of yesteryear. Basic sconces can be found at your local Home Depot or lighting store. The most elaborate theatrical-look appliques are available in specialty stores. A dedicated room will benefit from remote control lighting, or at least add a touch of class to your theater. There are many varieties of remote control lighting that can be controlled with your standard controller or included within a macro-programmed command on one of the many macro-type all-in-one remotes, such as the Harmony H659, that I am quite delighted to own.
Regardless of whether you are incorporating a system into your living room or planning a dedicated room, the principles of home theater room lighting are the same. No glare or reflections on the video screen and enough ambient lighting for your guests while viewing. If you have any further questions about home theater lighting, please feel free to use the contact form at http://www.Home-Theater-Systems-Advice.com/contact.html and I will be happy to answer any of your inquiries to the best of my ability. You can also find more resources for home theater lighting and components at http://www.Home-Theater-Systems-Advice.com, from component selection tips for beginners to room design and acoustic considerations.
