A neat home theater could be cheaper than it looks. You could be at home and still feel like you are at the cinema without having to spend a fortune.
What you need to experience the wonder of surround sound and dazzling visuals at home is a TV, a media player, and a Soundsystem, that are affordable, yet of proper quality. The most important thing is to be smart about choosing your technology.
The truth is that the whole home theater could cost less than some TVs of premium class.
We’ve decided to help you achieve what you’ve always wanted and enjoy movie nights with friends and family from the comfort of your sofa.
How to Create an Affordable yet Expensive-Looking Home Theater
Looking for the cheapest technology on the market is not the best decision. One thing is true for sure: the experience won’t be near the experience in a cinema at all.
In fact, it won’t be even satisfying enough for you to have a good time.
Making such a great compromise with technology comes at the price of sound and visual quality.
Imagine sitting down at the comfy sofa after a day at work and playing that incredible new series on Netflix, only to realize that the sound is awful and the picture makes your eyes hurt.
Choosing the option whose price is too good to be true is a mistake, but still, it doesn’t mean that you need to aim for the more expensive options too.
Here are some tips on what type of technology to choose if you want to have that cinematic experience at home on a budget.
Budget TV options
There are some TV options that could provide quality of visuals that would make you forget you’re not at the cinema.
What you need to look out for in a TV for a home theater set is the size of the screen.
The goal is to find a piece with a large enough screen to resemble the cinematic experience, but still be affordable enough, so that it doesn’t blow your budget.
The good news is that you could find a decent TV for less than $1500.
Great affordable options with decent qualities include:
- TCL 5 Series/S555 2022 QLED;
- TCL 4-Series Roku TV (85S435);
- Hisense U8H;
- LG C2 OLED;
- Samsung QN90B QLED.
The quality of course should be 4K for the best experience, and the size of the screen can fall somewhere between 75-80 inches and around 100 inches.
The right size depends on the distance between the seating and the screen.
For example, if the seats are about 10 feet from the TV, you don’t need more than about 80 inches.
A True Cinema Experience
Although many people choose to have a quality TV with stunning pictures for their dream home theater, others prefer the authentic cinematic feeling of using a projector and a screen.
There are different types of screens, and you can choose according to what most suits your needs. For example, there are standing screens, and screens that roll down from the ceiling.
If you are trying to recreate the experience at the cinema, you will also need a projector. This is also the better option if the distance between the screen and the seats is greater than 14 inches.
In case you’ve chosen that option for your home, here are some options for projectors that won’t empty your pockets and will do a great job:
- BenQ HT2050A Movie Projector;
- BenQ HT2150ST;
- Epson Home Cinema 1080;
- Optoma UHD38 4K projector.
Compare the prices as well as the characteristics of the models in order to choose the most suitable one for your conditions.
All About the Soundsystem
The Soundsystem for a home theater should provide the surround sound typical for the true cinema experience. For that, you either need to have a few speakers ordered in a specific way, or you need to purchase a soundsystem that is ready to use.
The best way to establish good sound for a home cinema is by purchasing a soundbar. They only have one cable that connects them to the TV and have everything necessary built in.
Here are some good and affordable options:
- Vizio’s V-series 5.1 system;
- Vizio M-Series M512a-H6;
- Sonos Beam Gen 2;
- Sony HT-G700.
The Media Player
Getting a media player nowadays is not mandatory, since TVs and soundbars have inbuilt players. However, if you want to achieve a true cinematic effect, you would need such a piece of technology in order to get the maximum possible quality of sound and visuals.
Here are our recommendations for affordable media players for your place:
- Panasonic DP-UB820 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray player;
- Roku Ultra HD/4K/HDR;
- Nvidia Shield TV.
Now it’s time to find the best options for yourself and finally make your dream come true.
