Tower speakers, a power-monster amp, an 80 inch 4K TV… it’s fun to dream big when it comes to your home theatre, but for students the reality is your home entertainment centre desires may need to be scaled down… for now. Space and budget likely mean you’ll need to think smaller and smarter when it comes to building your after-class escape—whether it’s at your own apartment, a socially distanced dorm, or in your family home. Fortunately, it’s possible to build a chic, cool, functional and simplified home theatre where you can have space for yourself in three easy steps.
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Step 1: mount your TV
Not only does it save valuable space in a dorm room or small apartment, using a proper mount for your TV allows you to create better viewing angles.
Small spaces can be ripe for problems when it comes to getting a good angle on your TV; windows are usually in the worst places, the hand-me-down sofa is probably too big, and your cardboard-box-TV-stand is too weak.
Getting the TV off the furniture and onto the wall will help. There are versions for every size TV and a wall mount lets you tilt it to reduce glare and get the perfect viewing angle.
If you think you might need a bit more versatility, go for a full motion mount. With these one you get not only tilt functions, but also side to side movement with fingertip light control so you can get a good look at the TV from anywhere; even in a studio apartment.
Still on the lookout for the TV that’s right for you? We’ve got that narrowed down for you. Read the blog on the Top 5 Best Small TVs for Dorms and Apartments.
Step 2: mount a soundbar
Stage two for a great but simple and smart home theatre is the audio. Since the thinner TVs today get, the harder it is to build them with great audio, the key is a good quality sound bar, then mounting it to the wall below your newly wall mounted TV so the space saving continues. In a pinch, you can also install it on a shelf, depending how many holes you’re allowed to make i the wall.
Step 3: make popcorn, put away the books, and kick back with a stream
Once the weekend hits, you can take some time to enjoy your home theatre set up. Pick up some new releases or load up Netflix — even tee up some streaming content from a dedicated streaming device to your new set up, then make some popcorn with a popcorn popper.
Getting your home theatre components up and out of the way will go a long way to opening up more space in a tiny student apartment. But there are plenty of home theatre hacks for making more room. I’d love to hear yours for a future article, so drop me a note in comments below.
