Home Theater Seating

Before you buy that piece of furniture for your home theater, it’s really important to take many things into consideration. In fact, there are six things you absolutely must think about before going ahead with any home theater seating purchase.

Measurements, measurements, measurements.
As with anything else in your rec room/home theater, you simply must measure before you can even start the process of looking for furniture. After you have the essentials in your home theater (TV, surround sound speakers, DVD player etc.), you should measure how much space you’ll be working with. It’s important here to measure the area about 10 feet out from the TV, as you don’t want the seating you purchase to be too close to the TV. While measuring the room itself, also measure the doorways to ensure that whatever furniture you purchase, you can actually get it into your home theater room.

The Height of the Seat Counts.
If you’ve ever sat up front at a movie theater, you’d know that it’s a tremendous strain on your neck. Now imagine purchasing a piece of furniture that has this same “strain” effect on you and your guests. It ain’t nice, which is why it’s a good idea to pay close attention to the actual height of the seat. A good rule of thumb is to get a seat with a height that allows you to stare straight ahead and see/hear everything. You’ll want to measure up from the floor (perhaps during the previous step) to a height where you can sit and still be comfortable.

Plush or Not so Plush? That is the Question.
When many people buy home theater seating, they go for very comfortable, plush furniture. But that’s really not the best idea for everyone. A seat that is too comfortable can cause you to fall asleep during that Romantic movie with your significant other—which is obviously never a good idea. However, a seat too stiff will be uncomfortable and won’t absorb sound as well as a very plush seat would. So what’s the answer? You simply need to make sure the seat can both absorb sound well and not put you to sleep.

Durability is Important.
Why would you buy seating that falls apart on you after a year or two of use? Yet that’s the way some home theater seating is, and it’s obviously a good idea to avoid it. To get the best durability, choose furniture that has a hardwood frame, as opposed to a softwood frame that will probably not hold up years from now. Yes, furniture with a hardwood frame will cost more, but it’s definitely worth it.

Look Matters.
If you have a specific theme in mind for your home theater (and many people do), then you’ll obviously want to go with furniture that matches the theme. This can be a little bit difficult, as not all pieces of furniture come in a variety of colors and designs. Generally speaking, though, furniture that is black or white will probably look good in any themed home theater, and virtually any colored seat will look good in the room as long as it doesn’t look out of place.

How Much Room Do You Have/What Furniture Should I Get?
Now that you know all of the above, you should have a good idea of the look and feel of the furniture you’ll be getting. But now the question is, what furniture do you actually get? Here again the measurements you took in #1 will be the key. If you have a big home theater, you might consider buying a couple of recliners, a couch and a sofa, as this will accommodate plenty of guests.

If your home theater is small, you might just want to stick with a couple of recliners and perhaps a sofa. You might still be able to fit a couch in your room, provided it’s the L-shaped kind (which is more space efficient than a regular couch). The bottom line, however, is to make sure you don’t over or under buy with the furniture—get enough of it so that you and your guests are comfortably seated, yet aren’t overcrowded.