Theater, 153" Screen Hit Entertainment Trifecta
By Lisa Montgomery
Dancing, karaoke or movie-viewing - this space caters to a trio of entertainment pastimes.

Clearly, one of the most exciting elements of this dedicated theater is the screen. Stretching a whopping 153 inches diagonally, it’s hard to miss, even among all the decorative eye-candy.

There’s a lot more to this 560-square-foot space than just a pretty picture, though. A dance floor and a professional-grade karaoke system take this viewing venue to a whole new level of entertainment.



“The owners love to dance are nuts about karaoke,” says Don Dunn of Merlin Home Technologies, Lutz, Fla. A 20-by-20-foot hardwood floor was installed in front of the room’s four dedicated theater seats, “but they can always wheel in more chairs when there hosting a big movie night,” says Dunn.

While accommodating of jitterbugs and tangos, the smooth, spacious surface wasn’t nearly as considerate of the theater’s audio system. Left to its devises, the sound waves produced by room’s seven James Loudspeakers would have bounced and echoed uncontrollably off the hard floor. Merlin softened up the harsh reflections by hanging beautiful fabric-covered acoustical paneling to the walls.

The karaoke setup would require even more design ingenuity. The speakers would need to sound amazing when the owners played a movie, yet handle the abuse from as many as four people singing - often loudly - all at a time. Furthermore, the display would need to be bright enough so that singers could clearly read the on-screen lyrics when the room lights were on.

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