Pro-Install

You know how it is. You've decided you want a dedicated cinema room in your house, so you call in the professionals. Then, when they arrive, they notice that the space you originally had in mind isn't quite as impressive and up to the task as your basement, which you'd already planned to be an all-purpose party space – and had got as far as installing cabling for PA speakers and disco lights. And fitted a dancefloor...

This luxurious cinema room is the end result of a full makeover by North Yorkshire's Harrogate Home Cinema, and is affectionately known as The Modeon by its happy owner. An existing customer of the professional install firm, the project arose when he decided to fulfil a long-term dream and convert the old playroom in his house into a dedicated movie den.  The initial stage of the build involved the creation of 3D visuals to ensure the owner was getting exactly what he wanted. Then, once a layout design was approved, Harrogate Home Cinema began creating the technical specification, working, we're told, to a 'strict budget'. We haven't been given the exact cost of the whole setup, but we imagine the said budget wasn't exactly miserly...

If you’re hunting for inspiration for your own home cinema project, or thinking of engaging a professional outfit to work its magic in your house, then there's no better place to start than the annual CEDIA Awards. Each year, they highlight the very best custom installations from the UK, Europe and beyond, covering everything from affordable media rooms and dedicated cinemas to whole-house makeovers, eco projects and even the crazy world of hi-tech yachts.

This subterranean cinema room, the work of ET Home Cinema from South Yorkshire, doesn't want to hide its light under a bushel - with the owner adamant that Bowers & Wilkins Diamond speakers were to be used for the front soundstage, there was little choice but to let these stunning-looking cabinets steal the show.

The professional cinema installs featured in HCC sometimes look like part of the lifestyle of the rich and famous – and 
here that's most certainly the case. 
This impressive 16th century barn conversion 
in Oxfordshire, brought up to 21st century standards via some cutting-edge home automation and AV hardware, is where British Touring Car legend and Fifth Gear presenter Jason Plato kicks back after a hard day behind the wheel. Because, although driving cars at ridiculous speeds is his passion, he's also a bit of an AV freak, and has been known to pop down to the Bristol Sound & Vision Show in the past.

In Part 1 and Part 2 you’ve seen how we designed and specified this mid-range home cinema room project. Now we’ve arrived at the delicate point of fitting the rear speakers and the projection screen casing. It’s a case of ‘all hands on deck’, as the massive screen arrives and we start to wonder whether the ceiling will hold it…

The proud owner of this stunning cinema room in South Africa – complete with unique 5000-element fibre-optic star ceiling – is a true movie-holic, to the point where the cinema was the first room to be completed during a comprehensive home-renovation project. In fact, the property already featured a home cinema, but during initial discussions with installer Sphere Custom it became clear that the existing room would not accommodate what the film-mad owner had in mind. It was decided instead to start from a ‘clean slate’, and a dedicated extension for the proposed 12m x 7m room was constructed.