Almost more so than any other holiday, Halloween really lends itself to getting together to watch scary movies. There’s no shopping to do (other than the candy), there’s no big feasts to prepare (that’s what pizza is for, right?), and all you really have to do is plan for your costume and watch your favorite Halloween-themed movies!
Of course, if you’re that serious about your scary movies you probably want a nice big setup to watch them all in, right? If you’ve been considering any kind of home theater setup for your scary movie binging, we’ve got some tips here to help organize your theater room and get everything set up as it should be!
Prepare The Room
For a real home theater experience, you’re going to want to start with some minor room modifications. We’re not expecting you to have the budget for a full concrete soundproofing (I mean...unless you do), but there’s a few simple things you can do to improve the acoustics and lighting of any space. Try to add rugs, drapes, or even wall-mounted soundproofing material to help absorb sound and improve the acoustics, especially in areas with ‘harsher’ materials like bare concrete or wood. Heavy curtains are perfect for both blocking sunlight and helping to absorb soundwaves, but you want to be careful not to make the room too dark to avoid eyestrain.
Pick Your Components
This step could be a guide all on its own, but you’ll want to spend some time figuring out exactly what theater equipment you’re going to want in your theater before you make a lot of purchasing decisions. Do you want a plasma, LCD, or LED television? What about an external sound system - does your TV have different outputs for audio receivers, or do you need to buy a separate Dolby surround system? Spend some time really doing your research so you wind up happy with your purchase, as these can be a little pricey - and hard to return!
Plan Your Layout
The next step is to figure out where everything is going to go. You’re probably not going to have an entire basement to work with, so maximizing your space is going to be crucial here. Take a lot of measurements and try to plan around the TV, as that’s going to be the focal point of the room (makes sense, right?). Figure out where your couch/chairs are going, pick the best place for your speakers, and if you’re going to be watching a lot of DVDs or Blu-rays (or even VHS tapes!) as opposed to streaming Netflix or whatever, you’ll want to accommodate space for your movie collections as well.
Get It All Organized
Even if you don’t have an extensive movie collection, you’re still going to need some help getting everything tidied up around your new home theater. Home wire shelving is a good way to hold your bulkier electronics like your stereo receiver or a Bluray/media player, and will help you keep your cables organized. Obviously you’re going to need a TV stand to hold whatever massive HDTV you’ve found, and a lot of them come with storage underneath to hang onto Blu-ray players and movie collections. And if you’ve gone for a surround-sound system, then some decorative wall shelves would come in handy to hold onto your speakers to position them around the room better.
Decorate For Halloween!
Hey, you’ve gotta get in the mood, right? Throw a few pumpkins and skeletons around for atmosphere, and just...try to remember to take them down by the time your family comes over for Thanksgiving.
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