 The acoustical performance of your home theater room is an important element for a clear and optimal home theater sound. No matter how good your sound system is, if the environment within which it is operating is not geared towards good quality sound, it will sounds terrible.
The quality of sound within a home theater environment depends on such factors as room size, composition of the floors, walls, ceiling materials, windows and furnishing. Dispersing excessive sound energy can be achieved through the proper amount and placement of decorative sound absorption surfaces. Nowadays there are many companies that offer a wide range of materials to improve sound quality in any home theater environment.
It was discovered that there are “hard” reflective surfaces that harsh echo-filled sound, versus the “soft” very absorptive type that leads to a dull sound. A high level of sound reflection that leads to echo and very poor sound quality is represented by the room with all hard surfaces such as ceramic or wooden tile flooring, gypsum partitioning and concrete ceiling, etc. One of the ways to avoid such problem is to introduce a certain amount of soft furnishing to absorb some of this echo. Sound absorption control is achieved by changing the sound features all over your home theater room.
If you want to have a great acoustic in your home theater room you should think over purchasing some soundproofing products. Among them, vinyl barrier products, which are designed to block airborne noise (street traffic, music, voices) from entering through walls, ceiling or floor. These products are made from of heavy, limp vinyl and are supposed to be used as a part of the wall, ceiling or floor structure, and than covered with sheet rock, paneling or some other finished surface. There are vinyl barrier materials, which are available with a peel-and-stick backing for easy installation.
The following are just some more practical guidelines that could be useful in improving you home theater room acoustical performance, and which is better to take into consideration while creating your home theater room design:
- Carpeting is important, especially between the front speakers and the listener to catch the first reflective sound waves.
- Placing acoustical wall panels or curtains close to front speakers will be also useful. Remember, that it is better not to paint acoustic panels, this will reduce their effectiveness.
- Soft furnishing like sofa and cushions will also contribute to absorb some of the echo.
- At the same time, it is better to have ceiling made from an all-hard materials. It will help to carry the sound from front to back and as a result, carry the sound from front to back while helping to further diffuse the surround within the room.
- In conclusion, it is good to have 50% of the total room surface area absorptive.
| 
