You’ve finally decided to turn that unfinished basement into a state-of-the-art entertainment room. You’ve taken all the measurements and figured out your budget; now you need to start making design choices that maximize your space and your money. The number of possibilities can be overwhelming, but with a little focus and planning, you can set up an entertainment area that’s exactly to your (and your family’s) specifications. Start turning your design dreams into a reality.
Ask Yourself, “Why?”
Good design requires a focused idea that you can work around. It’s tempting to try to make the space all things to all people; avoid that impulse and try to identify the key components that will make you and your family happy. If you love music, then you might need to consider additional shelving to store your vinyl. If you’re a sports fan, your resources might be better spent on a second TV in the bar area. Once you know exactly why you want to create an entertainment room, you can begin to budget appropriately. You might keep yourself from overspending on something that seems cool at the time but just ends up collecting dust.
Choose the Right TV
The TV is the centerpiece of the entertainment room, but you don’t necessarily need to throw a ton of money at the biggest TV you can find. You want to pick a TV that fits your room. If you’re trying to create a smaller, more intimate space for movie nights, then a 65-inch screen that completely dominates the room might not be the best choice. Focus on the quality of picture, not the quantity of surface area. As the Dish Insider’s Guide pointed out in a recent article, it’s hard to argue with the picture quality on a 4K Ultra HD TV. You never want to call a piece of technology “future proof,” but a 4K TV is likely to sustain you for a very long time. They have extremely fast refresh rates for viewing sporting events and clever upconversion technology, so your old DVDs look just as good as an HD cable stream.
Sexy Tech Is the Best Tech
Every piece of technology you include in your entertainment center should have a nice balance of form and function. Not only should it admirably perform the task for which it’s designed, but it should also be pleasing to look at. Take the Harman Kardon Aura, for example. Not only does it provide omnidirectional sound that will fill any space, it also looks like a work of modern art. The device also connects wirelessly through Bluetooth or Airplay, so you can move it around to suit your needs and tastes. Want something with a more vintage look that retains all of the modern features? This Marshall Stanmore looks like a classic, heavy-duty Marshall Amp but still has Bluetooth connectivity under the hood.
Use Sound-Absorbing Materials
The day will eventually come when the kids will be up late playing video games at full volume as you try to sleep upstairs. Anticipate this scenario by incorporating sound-absorbing materials, like high-pile rugs or curtains, into your design. You can even take this a step further with some acoustic panelling, which has the added benefit of improving the sound quality in the room.