Last Updated on October 2, 2021 by Sean Donlevy
Are you looking to build your own home cinema? There is a lot to think about in order to make your home cinema perfect. Therefore, we have created a guide with the most important things to think about when building your home cinema.
Think about the sound insulation and acoustics!
For a home theater to work well in a multi-dwelling home, there are some things to keep in mind. The sound from a home theater system is quite loud and can be disturbing to the surroundings. Even inside the room, adjustments may be needed to create a good sound environment, which is a prerequisite for a successful home theater!
The floor
If you want to insulate the floor in the basement, you should put a damp protection mat underneath. Then cover the floor with cellular plastic sheets (thickness 30 – 100 mm) and on top of this floor chipboard 16 or 22 mm. This construction is called a floating floor. As a surface layer, you can add a textile mat, plastic mat, laminate, or wood. Sound control is possible with a textile mat.
The ceiling
If the middle joist is of concrete, it is advisable to install a sound-absorbing ceiling, 40 mm. The roof does not have to cover the entire existing surface. Either you attach the ceiling tiles to an existing roof, which is only possible if you have a low ceiling, or you place the panels in a suspended profile structure.
Hanging sound-absorbing ceilings also provide good sound attenuation of low frequencies/bass tones. The default color for these discs is often white, but they are available in different colors for supplements. Certain ceiling systems can be painted without destroying the sound control capability. Use a darker color to avoid disturbing light reflections.
Acoustics are important
Acoustics is one of the most important factors for home theater. The room itself should be quiet and well cushioned in order to achieve a good sound environment. Without attenuation, you have a negative impact on sound quality. A basic rule is that hard surfaces provide strong sound reflexes and poor sound experience.
The conditions differ depending on where you choose to place your home theater. If the surrounding constructions of the room are properly insulated from the start, it may suffice with adjustments in the room such as strategically placed textiles, rugs, or a sound-absorbing ceiling. If insulation is lacking, the discerning cinema chooses to proceed thoroughly and builds new walls, floors and ceilings, and interiors of course!
Many people choose to place a home theater in the basement or recreation room where common materials are concrete, clinker, and plaster.
Walls
If you need additional insulation of the source surface walls, follow the instructions in the section “Isolate basements”. If you need to sound insulate the partitions in the basement, new regulator walls will be built inside existing walls as usual with center dimensions 600 mm between the joists.
Leave an air gap of a few cms between the walls to minimize the risk of sound bridges. Suitable rule thickness is 45 or 70 mm. Use a rubber sill insulation underneath the horizontal floor rule and on top of the upper horizontal rule against existing ceilings. This reduces the ability of the bass tones to propagate further in the house. Be sure to insert pipes and boxes for power cables before installing the wall boards (plaster or shavings or a combination of these). Double layers provide better sound insulation (particleboard is good if you need to hang heavy things on the walls).
A painted fiberglass fabric or paper wallpaper is a good surface layer but may need to be supplemented with some sound-absorbing textiles on the back wall and the long sides of the room.
There are special acoustic panels for wall mounting, but also a separate, textile foundation wall with built-in insulation provides good sound control. For best attenuation of low frequencies/bass tones, please place the wall of the foundation 200 mm from the wall. Be sure to create air circulation behind the foundation wall if placed against an outer wall to prevent condensation and mold.