Laser Projector

La Scala Custom Home Theater
Audio Systems/Hi-end Audio, Media Rooms, Tech Trends

Advantages of a Dedicated Home Theater

The quality of content these days is unprecedented, as are the vast number of options we have in accessing digital entertainment. Is your home theater or media room making the most of the high definition audio and video available? With summer blockbusters now available for streaming and the holidays just around the corner, now is a great time to add the home theater you’ve dreamed of or to upgrade your existing theater so that you may enjoy the very best audio and visual experience! Whether you’re a movie lover, serious gamer or avid sports fan, a dedicated home theater is an exceptional space for home entertainment. And with technologies like Dolby Atmos and 4K, enjoying the sights and sounds in a room specifically designed for hi-performance audio and video create the ultimate entertainment experience! What’s the right choice for you? Home Theater vs. Home Media Room Your home media room offers a great space for enjoying some family-time movie-watching and for hosting your friends on game day. It can boast stunning OLED or 4K display quality along with Smart TV streaming and social media features. A well-designed and outfitted media room can also take advantage of exceptional audio through a surround sound or Dolby Atmos system. One potential downside however, is its central location; today’s open floor plans often place the media room adjacent to the kitchen. While this is great for engaging conversation, it is not ideal for either sound or picture quality as the room is open to the back and likely flooded with natural light. These features distract viewers from enjoying a truly immersive movie-watching experience. Creating an immersive cinematic experience A dedicated home theater includes technologies specifically designed to perform in the controlled space. Acoustic issues have been addressed for optimal sound as well as for noise-control from adjacent spaces. Custom seating is ideally positioned for comfort and viewing enjoyment rather than based on window placement or conversation. Speaker systems, like Bowers & Wilkins flagship custom theater series, can be positioned and calibrated in the defined space as designed.  This space is generally free of glare as it will rarely feature windows. If there are any windows, they will have been treated with black-out shades to maintain the perfect environment to soak in an afternoon football game or to binge-watch your favorite streamed series. In a purpose-built space, décor doesn’t depend on the rest of the house, so the sky is the limit (actually, it’s not; you can add a custom fiber-optic constellation mural on the ceiling!). A home theater is also a place that reflects your personality and style– from mid-century modern to transitional or something all “you” like the Millennium Falcon, Batman’s lair or a wine cellar reminiscent of the south of France. Here’s a little inspiration: CinemaTech Gallery. The set up can be one or multiple screens, or a hybrid of multiple screens for watching sports with a large projection screen that drops down for serious movie watching. Integrated controls allow the user to choose from a variety of streamed or local content. The content may be exclusive to the theater or shared across the home’s systems from a movie server. Theater Trends Aside from mind-blowing imagery and sound, what’s trending in custom theaters now? Wearable home theater & virtual reality – experiencing virtual reality through wearable technology that transforms your movie-watching experience. Social Media integration – Superfans of sports, gaming and original network series want to connect in real-time Seamless connectivity across a robust network Integrated control throughout the home, with access to content sources, control of security features, whole-house lighting, HVAC and more Voice Control – Limitless searching, command and control of the theater and smart home’s multiple features including the ability to order your showtime pizza via a voice control interface such as Josh.ai! Where will you be hosting holiday game-watching and cozy mid-winter movie nights? Give us a call and let’s get started planning the best seat in the house! Oh yeah, Josh, please start the movie!

Conference room display size
4K, Commercial Applications, OLED

Determining the Proper Display Solution, Part Two

What drives the technology in your meeting room? “Which screen type is better for my meeting room, an LED display or a projection system?”  It’s one of the first questions we’re asked when approaching a collaborative room project however, to achieve the best outcome it’s important to keep in mind that technology does not drive the best application but instead, the use and goals of the space will drive the technology. While ease of installation, price and total cost of ownership (TCO) are factors, the answer depends on the project’s goals and on the calculated proper screen size. Once the size is determined and the client and AV Designer have a clear understanding of the goals to be achieved, the type of display best suited for the application can be revealed.  Let’s take at look at what each has to offer. Flat Screens The main flat Screen display technologies are Plasma, LED, and OLED (organic light-emitting diode), with the most widely accepted being the LED LCD display. Plasma, still in use in a consumer “niche” market by video purists who believe it provides the truest contrast and color saturation, is no longer used in commercial applications. As 4K continues to become more prevalent however,  plasma will be going the way of the VCR. OLED, dating to 1987 was developed by researchers at Eastman Kodak, is the next great technology sweeping the flat screen market and will likely become the next standard. It may be a short-lived victory however as manufacturers are already looking ahead to direct view micro-LED technology as the next “big thing.” Although similar in name to OLED, QLED technology is dramatically different. QLED is essentially an LED TV that uses quantum dots to enhance key picture quality areas and boasts of creating deeper black levels and reproducing more colors than ordinary LEDs. LED Direct View technology is rapidly evolving. Originally making a splash on the likes of NY’s Times Square, over the past few years manufacturers have been able to provide smaller “pixel pitch” (ppx) panels that provide finer, more detailed picture quality.  These units are ideal for close viewing, making them a great choice for retail signage, auditoriums and Emergency Operations Centers or Network Operations Centers (EOC/NOC’s). LED Direct view is also perfect for spaces affected by uncontrolled ambient light. As the price continues to settle and the pixel pitch technology becomes smaller (Micro-LED), we will see more direct view applications in board rooms and smaller spaces. As shared in Part 1, there are guidelines and formulas for determining the proper viewing screen size in a conference room. Those best practices hold true for 4K displays/projection screens as well but, with the incredible resolution of a 4K display or projector, you’ll need to consider that 4 times the amount of pixels will be displayed (imagine duplicating that screen into a 2×2 grid on the viewing surface). What does that mean for your image? While the resolution is incredibly true and sharp, font size and detailed content such as spreadsheets, will need to be enlarged. Projection Systems There are three main types of projection systems in use: traditional lamp (HID, high-intensity discharge lamps) DLP, LCD projectors and the new laser projectors (laser phosphorous projectors).  Laser projectors are quickly gaining momentum in the industry because of their picture quality, long-life lamps and energy efficiencies. A laser projector can run 20,000 hours before displaying a noticeable degradation of light output, whereas a HID lamped unit’s degradation may be detected as early as 1500 hours. HID lamp changes are usually made every 2,000 to 3,000 hours so, despite the added initial cost of laser (approximately 30% over that of HID), it yields a lower TCO. LED lighted technology is still available, but its lower lumens are more appropriate for home theater than a bright office environment. Flat screen or projection – which is best for your meeting room? Just give us a call. We’ll uncover the right solution to make your meetings effective and productive.

Scroll to Top