We Have Just One Word for You: Acoustics

In a famous scene from the 1960s classic The Graduate, a young Dustin Hoffman gets some advice from his father’s friend for his future: “I just want to say one word to you. One word. Plastics.” No, this blog isn’t about plastics, and that secret is out anyway. But we do want to talk about one word that can’t be ignored when it comes to home theater – acoustics.

Home theaters present some unique challenges for audio performance. Today’s theaters have many speakers, as many as 16 when you count surround speakers, subwoofers, and height speakers. Each one of these needs to evenly cover a certain area, blend with the overall soundtrack, and not cause sound imperfections that don’t belong. The layout, finishes, and furnishings of the theater also significantly affect the sound. It's not just a matter of choosing excellent equipment and calibrating it correctly, and sometimes the space needs acoustic help.

If you are a builder or designer, it’s wise to consider acoustic treatment early in your plans for residential projects in Charlotte, NC. Why? We’ll get into it below. 

Add Immersive Sound to Your Home Cinema Experience

Surround sound is prevalent these days in just about every kind of video entertainment. For broadcast TV, Dolby Digital has been the standard sound format since the transition to digital in 2009. If you have a compatible soundbar, home theater receiver, or other audio processor and the right speakers, you can enjoy surround sound on many shows, from broadcast to cable to streaming. How well those shows use the extra channels of audio, however, varies greatly.

But you may already know all that. What you may have heard of but not know as much about is Dolby Atmos and another competitive surround format called DTS:X. These are often called immersive surround formats because, well, they are more immersive! While regular surround sound is great, a good Dolby Atmos (or DTS:X) soundtrack might blow you away. So, what is immersive sound, and why is it a great upgrade for your Charlotte, NC home theater? That’s what we’ll get into below!