by Leon Li

Created on: August 15, 2009

As the proud owner of a home theater system, I've come to realize that a home theater system doesn't rely on a good screen and sound system for value; it's the design of the surroundings and lighting.

First off, make sure that the screen isn't near any windows. A good place to put a home theater system is to use it somewhere that doesn't have windows, like a section of a finished basement. If there are windows, find a way to block it, like using a piece of black felt (though it's pretty expensive).

Now for the lighting. Sconces are an excellent way to light a home theater system. Particularly if you've got a couple of friends over, having them can be a great thing to display (not to mention show off). Along with sconces, if there was a way you could add recessed lighting, it would really look great, particularly if you have newly painted walls. Make sure that it all fits together though; make sure your sconces and recessed lighting mixes well with the color of your walls.

Having a dimmer really improves the value of a theater system, as it can replicate the quality of professional theaters.

Now often in a home theater system, lighting for the floor is a good idea. Particularly when your guest needs to use the restroom or you've dropped the remote in the dark, some sort of dim lighting near your feet is really helpful. A good way to do this is by buying LED light strips, and then putting them under the couch, so that the light will spill out onto the floor but won't distract you when you're watching a movie.

Here are a few of tips on lighting.

1. Try not to use fluorescent light bulbs, and if you do, use color filters for them, as fluorescent light bulbs, however energy efficient it might be, tend to not look as good.

2. Recessed lighting, however expensive, would increase the value of your system by a tenfold. However, if you want to save time on recessed lighting, you can get the pot lights installed.

3. Note that certain jurisdictions, there are fire safety regulations on pot lights, and you have to make sure that you're allowed to install recessed lighting.

4. If you don't want to go cutting holes into your ceiling, you can install spotlight bars, which aren't much different, except for the fact that you might need a higher ceiling. If you're going to use spotlights, sconces might not mix well.

5. Sconces should fit the mood or, if you have one, theme of your home theater system. Modern sconces are a good idea.

6. It's generally a good idea to have warm-colored walls, as you want your home theater to look warm and cozy (unless you've got an ice theme). A big warm-colored and woolly rug can be used to great advantage if you don't want to change the carpet.

Of course, this could be a huge project, costing anywhere from $800 to $2000, and could be very time-consuming if you wanted to do it all by yourself. The sconces and pot lights might cost a bit, along with any paint and rugs you want to go with it, but if you were to do it all by yourself, you could save yourself hundreds of dollars, as well as be a bit more creative with your design.

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