What is the best paint color for my home theater?

A wise man (oy!) once said, "Flat Black". He's right... however this can make your room seem like a cave. While it is optimum for movie time, it can be a bit dark when the lights are on.

I went through this whole color scheme issue with my HT and the colors I chose first came out God Awful ugly putrid crap. Those little color cards in the store never come out the same on your walls. I had this idea that red walls with some blue at the bottom would look great. I also thought a medium gray on the ceiling would look great. It just didn't turn out that great. The problem was that the red turned out looking a little pinkish and the blue a little purpleish. The ceiling gray was too light and reflected too much light causing a distraction while watching movies.

So... the remodel... I redid the whole thing! The ceiling is now flat black and the wall above the chair rail is a medium gray using a paint from Ralph Lauren called "River Rock". This River Rock paint has a texture to it that helps it diffract light so it creates no distractions from reflections during the movie and yet it doesn't make the room too dark while the lights are on. I used a dark blue on the walls below the chair rail, much more "blue" than the original purple crap I had used. I trimmed it all with Cherry crown molding, chair rail, and base board complete with decorative columns that contain the side surround speakers built in. It turned out great! I highly recommend the River Rock Paint (Home Depot) due to it's light diffraction abilities. Definitely flat black on the ceiling, flat black everywhere if you don't mind not being able to see in the room even with the lights on full.

I haven't updated my web site in a long time but you can see both the new and original color scheme here. http://www.mfk-projects.com/home_theatre.htm Scroll down to "the old look" and try not to puke. Don't make the same mistake I did, get it right the first time!

mk

Home Theater Colors

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RE:

What is the best paint color for my home theater?

I will be putting in a home movie theater into my garage. What paint color is optimal for movie viewing on the ceiling and the walls?

I assume you mean the walls and/or ceiling? Most go with a neutral beige or light brownish color for the walls, and just a basic white for the ceiling. You don't want something that's going to be distracting from the screen. You could also just skip the paint altogether, and just hang heavy sound absorbing curtains on the walls to cancel out echo from your speakers.

Some of the nicest rooms I have installed in to have been tonal reds or earthy colours like a tri-colour coffee/cappuccino/chocolate colours. The earthy colours work well if the projector is in a living room. It looks like nice interior design but is really projector friendly too.

The big challenge of course is finding colours that work well with the existing furniture and carpets. This is when a small investment in a bit of professional advice can save money and a lot of work in the long run.

The room should be painted in dark color. If you are projecting the picture to the wall or ceiling, then the wall or ceiling should be painted in flat white so the picture would be brighter. Hope this will help you out.

I'd go with a light tanish brown on the ceiling and red on the walls..

Navy blue.

Flat Black