High Performance Theater

The goals for this theater were to provide a high-performance viewing space with comparable acoustics for music. Labeling this client a music buff would be a huge understatement, as the client owns a high-tech recording studio, so acoustic performance was paramount.

The room, located in the basement, started as the extra bedroom. A major house-wide renovation was underway, so this was the perfect time to transform the room into the ultimate theater space. The first order of business was to remove the entire original ceiling in order to build the tray and the ceiling structure to accommodate the fiber-optic star field. The challenge here was the floor joists above supporting the kitchen. This step turned out to be the most time consuming, as we had to install and finish the drywall one four foot section at a time so that we could install the fibers between the floor joists. The ceiling was then painted to resemble the night sky. The fibers were trimmed at different lengths to give the sky more realistic depth. In order to keep the ceiling clean looking, we decided to build the projector housing into the tray. The dipole speakers are also hidden in the ceiling.

Video performance is stunning with a Runco
Vx-1000c DLP projector/processor and a Stewart Firehawk screen. Audio is equally impressive using Lexicon power and processing and an Atlantic Technology in wall 7.1 channel THX rated sound system. All speakers are hidden behind the paneling including the two in-wall subwoofers, which provide thunderous bass. Ease of operation, being the most important aspect of any theater referrals are expected from, is accomplished using a Crestron ST-1700C touch panel. Source components included DVD, VCR, DBS, DVR, Multi-format CD, and AM/FM tuner. The original adjoining closet was used to house the racks and the door was relocated to the rear with access from the mechanical room. All audio and source components were built flush into the left side wall and installed into a Middle Atlantic custom rack. The lighting is automated into the control system using a Lutron Grafik Eye and a Crestron ST-LT interface.