Latest Home Entertainment Center Design Ideas
The home entertainment center is a great idea; costs of electronics are coming down, and it makes sense to turn movie night, video games or sports nights into an in-house family event without disturbing the rest of the house. The best-designed home entertainment centers are super comfortable and highly functional. But does it replace the living room or is the media room on its way out?
Having all the electronics in one room; in an orderly set up, to close the door and leave it all behind when you don’t need it sounds great.
Let’s look at some of the latest Theater rooms and you decide if its a fit for you and your family.
Organize the Space for Functionality
Seating should be lined up like a cinema, movie house or even a sports bar. You can create rows of seats, or create a semi-circle around the screen. It’s all about the screen and super-sized comfortable chairs, day beds or converted mattresses to seat as many bodies as possible.
Some people double up their theater rooms as storage, but if you really want a theater room, the focus is on entertaining and recreating the movie house experience.
That could include a bar or drinks area, a popcorn machine, cushions and throws for cold nights or scary bits. The home theater room above might be done on a budget, but it’s still very comfortable!
Add carpet to absorb sounds and it is a functional and family friendly entertainment room. The room below has all the trimmings for serious movie buffs. Its formal, comfortable and more grown-up.
Either way, the room should not feel overcrowded or confined.
How you decorate it is totally up to you. There’s everything from Hollywood to Western and even Out of Africa styles and they all look great for a special purpose theater room.
Bring Out the Gadgets
From Smart TV’s to Projectors, there are different types of gadgets to get your entertainment on the wall. Some of your decisions will depend on where you place your screen.
Are you intending on a dedicated space or are you happy to have your screen as a room feature?
A high-quality HD Smart LED television set is one option. Apart from size, you should look at the various smart features it supports, the screen type and quality.
But do you really need a Smart TV? Some people say that Smart TV’s are obsolete and now there are questions about internet security. So, read up before you spend your precious cash.
Flat panel televisions are easy to mount it on the wall with the rest of your equipment around it.
It takes it off the floor and out of the way, particularly if you have tiny hands around. More serious home theater advocates swear by projectors. The room below even has a curtain to hide the screen.
Next is the surround system. You can go fancy or functional or both. There are different models, styles, and companies that produce great sound systems for every price range.
The better quality sound, the better the movie experience.
The sound setup usually involves the wiring and installation of a surround sound home entertainment system. This can be anything up to 5 separate speakers, and a ‘base rich’ sub woofer to get the full effect of all the explosions on screen. 
Today media rooms are not complete if they don’t also house gaming consoles.
I can’t tell the difference between all the different models; whether it’s a PlayStation, Nintendo, or Xbox, or maybe you need one of each! Whichever is your favorite, hook them up to your television and your surround sound system for a truly in-house experience.
Lights and Action
Too much natural light can be an issue in your home entertainment center; causing reflections and glare where they are least wanted. Is strip LED lighting for you or do you like vintage style wall sconces?
You can add thick block out curtains to your windows, or use automated blinds. Or design your home entertainment room in the basement.
Replace standard switches with dimmers, to control your light source, day and night.
Some of these choices will depend on the existing design and style of your home. Some will depend on your budget. If you are building or buying a new home, you can factor the media room, into your build or purchase. If space is a premium, choose a guest bedroom as your home entertainment center.
How Serious are You?
Just like too much natural light can be an issue with reflections and glare, flooring can also be an issue. If you don’t have carpet on your floor, sound may bounce off the floor and walls and be very distracting.
Acoustics are so important that some homeowners create soundproof rooms; adding carpet to the walls to absorb sound.
Are you willing to go all out, or is your living area the perfect location to double up home media room? Or what about taking the whole event outside?
Go for Comfort
The idea is to enjoy the space! If you want some DIY ideas on how to build the space, watch this video for some great tips and pointers on working out measurements for a platform and seating.
For some, it’s all about the built-in bar, a wine cooler or a glass door fridge for drinks to see you through your movie marathon or all night gaming session, with flashing lights, peanuts, and coasters.
For others, supplies of popcorn, cheese and biscuits and sweet treats are all they need. But none of this matters if your media room doesn’t have lots of comfortable seating.
There are so many contemporary custom home theater lounge sets to choose from with drink holders and motorized recliners.
But don’t let that scare you; from bean bags to daybeds, single mattresses to old recliners, the emphasis is on comfort. So, don’t throw out your old settee, you might need it!