Home Theaters vs. Media Rooms — Which one is better?
April 25, 2023
The Experts at Beltmann Know Best
Searching for a way to blend your social gatherings with the best of today’s technology? If you’ve got a dedicated and flexible space, a media room (instead of a home theater) might just serve you well.
The term Media Room has come to mean more than just a place to watch movies. It can also be a gaming room, a place to listen to music, entertain friends, or watch sports, a family hangout space, and of course a way to enjoy a cinematic viewing experience as well. Because of its flexible seating and usage, this makes the media room a much more versatile option for many homeowners.
As realtor Neveen Michael of Keller Williams in suburban Chicago explains, “Media rooms offer so much more flexibility and are visually more appealing and better for conversations and interactions. And, with improved technology, the projectors and wires are no longer needed to create a fabulous sound and picture experience in a room.”
In addition, if you’re planning to list your home or hope to move soon, experts believe that you can re-coup of to 65% of the project costs — especially if you’re converting a previously unused space in the home.
Generally speaking, a media room consists of a large flat screen TV or projector screen, paired with high quality speakers and movable chairs with cozy, comfortable seating. The cost for these items could start around $1,000 upward to $100,000, depending on your style and projected budget.
Dedicated Home Theaters, on the other hand, are designed to mimic an actual movie theater: they tend to have seating (in rows) that all faces one direction, low light or even no windows, and minimal social interaction. They also focus on the screen and, often more importantly, the surround sound.
A new home theater should have access to audio and video content from a variety of devices and sources including:
• Cable and satellite services
• Broadcast TV
• The Internet
• Blu-ray Discs
• DVDs and CDs
• Digital and video cameras
• iPods/iPads and portable devices
• Laptop computers
• Gaming systems
Making your home theater adaptable, able to secure content from any device or source, is important to determine early in your planning. Having built-in bookshelves for A/V system storage is another plus.
For both a media room and a home theater, having a high-quality projector and a built-in sound system is key to successfully converting this type of room. How do you decide what’s the most suitable option? Check out this previous post to gauge what’s best for your particular needs.
Contact Us
If you’re ready to get moving, we’d love to have a conversation. At Beltmann, we love helping our clients prepare for any upcoming moving and storage needs, whether that’s across town or across the globe, doing things yourself or via a full-service or relocation. Just contact us for a free contactless quote.
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