Media room furniture: comfort and beyond in the home theater room

When one mentions media room furniture the fist thing that comes to mind is chairs. Big cushy, comfortable chairs that any reasonable human being would love to spend a couple of hours in (as the Berkline Reno seating pictured above). A definite staple in the world of home theater seating. And certainly, everyone seems to be an expert on what is comfortable: it just feels right! I will leave it to the masses to decide what particular chairs, sofas, recliners etc. are comfortable. There are, however, additional things to consider when purchasing furniture for the media room or TV room.

1. It is essential that no piece of furniture in the media room creates unwanted glare that will interfere with the viewing experience. Just because something looks good and feels comfortable it does not mean that it's the right thing for a home theater room! Leather chairs, for instance, should be banned from such environments (unless you only have one row of seats). Microfiber will look just as good, but the light will not be bouncing all over the room, causing fatigue and disturbing the sense of vision in a manner not intended by film directors. This principle goes across the board. If you are buying tables, trays, media storage units avoid polished surfaces or cover them whenever possible.
2. Avoid furniture that causes noise pollution. You may not notice this in a crowded show room of a furniture store, but many recliners can really disturb home theater audiences. Consider ottomans or over-sized chairs that provide plenty of space for someone to stretch out comfortably. Naturally, you should avoid swiveling and rocking chairs.
3. Even the heaviest of home theater furniture pieces can slide across the room over time, changing the configuration of the seating area that you have originally created. Unless you have plans to use your media room for purposes other than watching movies, consider properly installing the chairs. This may limit you to only certain choices of models and types of furniture, but if you are going for a recognizable "theater" look, it is essential.

See also:

• Home theater furniture pictures
• Media rooms pictures
• Media room lighting
• Media rooms - how to justify having one in your house
• Home theater - choosing the best room for your system

House Library Design

Home theater rooms - some more pictures with commentaries

This is my favorite home theater design in this entire set of pictures. All the components are surrounded by a traditional painting style frame. It works very well functionally, because you can easily connect all the components of the home theater system, hiding the cords behind the frame. You also get plenty of storage for your DVDs. A soft rug on the hard wood floor helps to keep the sound from bouncing around the room.


I like everything here in terms of media room decor except the floor and the walls. The floor is too shiny and prone to distorting the sound. Exposed brick is cold and uninviting. But the entire media room looks uncluttered. The stands for the back speakers are substantial and solid.



One obvious problem is the lack of central seating. Really bad for surround sound. And I hope the wood paneling does not rattle.



Notice that the projector is retractable. This must have cost a bundle to install. The location of the side and back speakers is VERY wrong. They should not be on the ceiling, for goodness sake!



I like the lighting here, as long as it is on dimmers. It is essential to control the intensity of light, because even different movies can make you want to change how to room looks and feels. This home theater really needs a large rug in the middle.


The seating is all wrong. Only a couple of seats are actually facing the screen. Using a footstool for the central speaker makes everything look cheap.



Not bad, but must we have those chandeliers hanging over our heads??

See also:
Home media room pictures