I can remember the home movie theater at the Jenkin household back in 1976. Oh yeah, scratch that! Not only didn’t we have a home movie theater, we didn’t even have a garage. The closest you got to a movie theater experience was praying that you didn’t burn the Jiffy Pop shaking on the open flame on the stove and hoping that the VHS rental was actually rewound by the person before you as the tape popped into the VHS system.
The new wave of mega mansions scream of home movie theaters. Some of them come close to replicating what you would see in a real theater with high end popcorn machines, prints of movies we love hanging on the wall, and even a plush set of drapes that pull back as the movie begins. The most important MTV Cribs feature that home movie theaters must have are the plush remote control seats equipped with Big Gulp cup holders and a tray for you put your food or theater candy on while you enjoy the next Vince Vaughn & Owen Wilson movie.
Just what does a home movie theater cost?
According to www.eleganthometheatersystems.com, for a dedicated Private Home Theater or Cinema using high end professional equipment, including construction of a rear seating stage and a front wall designed to conceal speakers, acoustical wall panels on all walls, new carpet, remote lighting control, AV equipment rack installed in wall, RF remote control system, audio and video calibration, all labor and training of your family to us the theater.
- For a Media Room the cost starts at $10,000
- For a Private Home Theater the cost starts at $26,000
- For a Private Cinema the cost starts at $40,000
(14.5W x 20L x 9H room example)
Recently on Christmas, our whole family went to see a film at the new AMC North Point Mall theaters. The first thing that struck me as being incredibly positive is that I could actually reserve our seats. No more fighting to save seats or having to spot five seats in a row while the previews are running. The second neat feature is that all of the seats had the MTV Cribs remote control seats. No more elbow wresting with the person next to you and no more someone putting their foot in your back for the entire show. There was so much room you could even take off your shoes. What was most amazing to me, is that the hike in price was only an extra $1 above what we would normally pay at $12 a seat. Without snacks, a family of five could see a feature film with no hassle for $60. (Remember my tricks by the way on popcorn in other blogs and get the $1 movie candy at the local drugstore).
At these prices and real home movie theater experience, our family could go to six move during the year and spend $360 with no discounts or matinees. With the average Private Home Theater costing $26,000, just think about how many years you could be going to see movies for just a fraction of the cost.
I know most of you who have a home theater will start justifying it because you can watch sporting events, highlights on ESPN, the Discovery Channel, and reruns of Breaking Bad or the Soprano’s. However, if you are debating whether to install a home movie theater and are worried about breaking your budget, head out to one of the new AMC’s and check it out. You might just find out that it makes sense to go to the real theater when you want to see a movie!
Written by:
Ted Jenkin
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