How big does a room need to be for a home cinema?

Smaller than most people think. A spare bedroom can make an excellent cinema for two to four people. We’ll size the screen and speakers to the room you have.

Projector or television?

A projector gives the biggest picture and suits a room you can darken. A large television is brighter in daylight and suits living areas. We’ll recommend one after seeing the room.

A sound format that adds speakers overhead, so sounds can come from above you as well as around you. Most new films and many streaming shows are made for it.

Can I add a cinema to my existing home?

Usually, yes. Where there is roof space above, ceiling speakers and cables can go in without major building work. We’ll tell you honestly what’s possible after a look.

Will a home cinema disturb the rest of the house?

It can. We place speakers and subwoofers with the neighbouring rooms in mind, and can advise your builder on doors and insulation for a quieter room.

Can I control everything with one remote?

Yes. With Control4, one remote or your phone turns everything on, dims the lights and closes the blinds. No drawer full of remotes.

Do you build home cinemas across Melbourne’s north?

Yes. NorthTech is based in Thomastown and designs, installs and supports home cinemas across Melbourne’s northern suburbs.

Can I see a home cinema before deciding?

Yes. Our showroom is built around a working cinema. Visits are private and by appointment with Glenn.

Home cinema

See your cinema before it’s built.

Every NorthTech cinema starts as a proper, scaled design. We plan the screen, the seats and every speaker with you, and mark it up together until it’s right — before a single cable goes in.

Then come and sit in the cinema at the centre of our showroom, and hear what it will sound like.

Book a design meeting How our design works

Client

Can we fit four seats across the back?

Mark-up 1Glenn

Yes. Row 2 goes up on a 450 mm riser, so everyone sees the whole screen over the row in front.

What makes it a cinema

Four things, designed together.

The pictureA projector and a large screen for a dedicated room, or a big television for a living area. Sized to where you sit, not guessed.
The soundSpeakers in front, beside, behind and above you, so a helicopter really does fly over your head.
The roomControl of light, the right finishes on the walls, and seating set at the right distance from the screen.
One buttonPress “Watch a movie”: the lights dim, the blinds close, and everything turns on. With Control4, one remote runs it all.

Dolby Atmos

Sound from above changes everything.

7speakers around you
2subwoofers for the rumble
4speakers in the ceiling

Ordinary surround sound comes from speakers at ear level, so it can feel flat. Dolby Atmos adds speakers in the ceiling, and films made for it place sounds above you — rain on the roof, a plane passing over. It’s how we hear the real world, and it’s what film-makers intended.

You’ll see cinemas described with three numbers, like 7.2.4. The first is the speakers around you, the second the subwoofers, and the third the speakers overhead. We’ll recommend the right numbers for your room — bigger isn’t always better.

Because the overhead speakers sit flush in the ceiling and are painted to match, the room still looks calm when the lights come up.

Three ways to a home cinema

From a dedicated theatre to your living room.

Tell us where you’ll watch and we’ll show you where we’d start.

Where will you watch?

1. The full experience

Dedicated cinema room

Best for: A spare room, rumpus or purpose-built theatre

A room built for film: projector, large screen, Dolby Atmos and tiered seating. This is the cinema at the centre of our showroom.

What we use: Triad speakers, an Integra cinema receiver and a Dragonfly projection screen, all run by Control4.

Sound through the screenA woven screen lets the front speakers sit behind the picture, where the voices belong.
Screens up to 160 inchesSized to your seating distance, for a picture that fills your view without straining it.
Built for the roomSpeaker positions, light and wall finishes planned together from the start.

2. Our most popular

Living-room cinema

Best for: Family rooms and open-plan living

Cinema sound in the room you already use. When the film ends, the speakers disappear into the walls and ceiling and it’s a living room again.

What we use: Triad or Episode in-wall and in-ceiling speakers, an Integra receiver and your television.

No boxes, no cablesSpeakers built in and painted to match, so nothing sits on the floor or the cabinetry.
Daylight-friendly screensPrefer a projector here? A light-rejecting screen keeps the picture strong with the blinds open.
Music tooThe same speakers play music through the day, and join the rest of your home’s audio.About multi-room audio

3. Our simplest

Soundbar and subwoofer

Best for: Apartments, bedrooms and existing homes

A big step up from the television’s own speakers, with no building work. We mount it neatly and hide the cables.

What we use: Sonos Arc Ultra with a Sonos Sub, and rear speakers if you’d like them.

Dolby Atmos in one barUpward-firing speakers bounce sound off the ceiling for an overhead effect.
Installed in a dayWall-mounted with the television, cables hidden, and set up on your phone.
Room to growAdd rear speakers or more Sonos rooms later, all in the one app.

Our design service

How our design works.

It’s the difference between a room with speakers in it and a cinema that works. Every cinema we build goes through these four steps.

A floor plan with every speaker
A side view that checks every seat can see
A full equipment list
Cabling notes for your electrician
Revisions until it’s right

Send us your plansBuilder’s drawings, a sketch or a few photos of the room. We’ll take it from there.
We draw it to scaleThe screen, every seat and every speaker, with the sightlines checked from the back row.
Mark it up togetherSit down with Glenn — in our showroom cinema if you like — and change it until it’s right.
Build from the same drawingsYour builder, electrician and our team all work from one plan, so what’s drawn is what’s built.

The heart of our showroom

Sit in our cinema before you build yours.

You can’t judge a cinema from a web page. Book a private visit, pick a film you know well, and hear what Dolby Atmos, a big screen and a properly planned room can do.

Book a showroom visit

Bring your plansSend them ahead and Glenn will sketch a cinema for your room before you arrive.
Compare side by sideHear the difference between a soundbar, a living-room system and a full cinema.
Private, with GlennEvery visit is by appointment, so the cinema is yours for the hour.

Building or renovating?

A great cinema starts on the plans.

Most of what makes a cinema sound and look right is decided before the plaster goes up. Bring us in at the drawing stage and we’ll work with your builder and architect so the room is ready for it.

Choose the roomIts size and shape decide the screen, the seating and the sound. Fewer windows makes light control easier.
Set the screen and seatsWe work out the screen size from where you’ll sit, and whether a second row needs a step up.
Place every speakerAround the seats and in the ceiling, clear of joists, downlights and air-conditioning vents.
Cable at pre-wireSpeaker cable, a conduit to the projector, and power and network where the equipment will live.
Plan the equipment cupboardA ventilated rack, close enough to reach and far enough to stay quiet.
Finish the room for soundCarpet, soft furnishings and the right wall finishes stop echo — without the room looking like a studio.

Architect, builder or designer?

Working with design professionals

Common home cinema questions

How big does a room need to be for a home cinema?: Smaller than most people think. A spare bedroom can make an excellent cinema for two to four people. We’ll size the screen and speakers to the room you have.
Projector or television?: A projector gives the biggest picture and suits a room you can darken. A large television is brighter in daylight and suits living areas. We’ll recommend one after seeing the room.
What is Dolby Atmos?: A sound format that adds speakers overhead, so sounds can come from above you as well as around you. Most new films and many streaming shows are made for it.
Can I add a cinema to my existing home?: Usually, yes. Where there is roof space above, ceiling speakers and cables can go in without major building work. We’ll tell you honestly what’s possible after a look.
Will a home cinema disturb the rest of the house?: It can. We place speakers and subwoofers with the neighbouring rooms in mind, and can advise your builder on doors and insulation for a quieter room.
Can I control everything with one remote?: Yes. With Control4, one remote or your phone turns everything on, dims the lights and closes the blinds. No drawer full of remotes.
Do you build home cinemas across Melbourne’s north?: Yes. NorthTech is based in Thomastown and designs, installs and supports home cinemas across Melbourne’s northern suburbs.
Can I see a home cinema before deciding?: Yes. Our showroom is built around a working cinema. Visits are private and by appointment with Glenn.

Ready to plan your cinema?

Tell us about the room and how you like to watch, and we’ll recommend the right cinema — and explain why.

Start your home design