The Southern Comfort Theater By: Scott Fuelling Phoenix has been in business for almost 20 years. In fact 2014 is our 20 th anniversary. Keeping a small business alive for that long is a challenge in and of itself. Keeping customers for over 20 years is an even bigger challenge. We have been very fortunate in the fact we have done multiple projects for families. Sometimes it is the parents, children who have grown, relatives, friends and even co-workers who are referred to us. The one fact is we treat each client and each project individually, specifically designing the project for the needs, wants and desires expressed during our front end interview process. Previously working with a client obviously helps with a deeper understanding of lifestyle and preferences, but we always start off with a blank sheet of paper each time we start a new project so to speak. We literally design from the ground up, making sure nothing is overlooked, paying attention to performance levels across the board in every aspect of the project. For example: It does not make sense to have a high-performance speaker system with lower performing amplifiers and cabling. Nor may it make sense to waste precious resources in secondary or utility areas of a home that may only be utilized occasionally if ever. All of these questions are explored when we meet with our clients. We know what to ask and how to get the information necessary to make your project a success. Every few years I have the pleasure of working on a project I like to refer to as a unicorn. Sometimes these are very large and expensive, sometimes they are not. But they always share some common traits: The client wants the best solution for their needs, they do not want to cut corners in favor of a budget and they want the installation to be as much of a show stopper as the system and its performance. The Southern Comfort Theater is one such project. This theater is part of an even larger unicorn project, but it has the prowess to stand on its own and I will put it up against anything in the region in terms of performance, quality, fit and finish, operation and individual reaction to the experience.
When we started the total project scope, the client and I set this part off to the side. We knew this was to be very special and we wanted to spend dedicated time on it, away from the rest of the estate s technology. When we started the design, the specific instructions the client gave me included: This must be an extreme high-performance room that can be enjoyed in a darker movie style viewing environment, but also in a high-ambient light environment without any image degradation. The theater must have state of the art 3D technology. The client requested active 3D technology versus the passive found in the majority of the public theaters. The screen should have multi-aspect ratio masking to prevent letterboxing or screen glow. None of the finishes would be laminates or of second quality in any way. Only top grade wood, fabric and leather would be used and all items would be custom fabricated for the specific task to match the quality level throughout the rest of the home. A dedicated equipment room for the Theater was to be included in the overall design scope. This would not only house the gear for the theater, but also CD s, DVD s, Blu-Ray s and a high-end video editing system for business as well as personal videos. Unfortunately the area had already been framed and the decking was on the roof. This created challenges we had to overcome due to encroachments into the ceiling because of the valleys caused by the roof lines. These could not be modified this late in the construction process and the architect, completely unfamiliar with true home theater construction, had not paid attention to the ceiling line for the room. The client wanted a very high-end room and having a roof line drop down would not be acceptable. The first course of action was to design the room itself. We needed to layout the physical dimensions of the room, place appropriate seating and determine sight lines for the screen. After discussing the room with the client and his wife, it was determined we needed to provide a variety of seating options inside the room for maximum flexibility. A couch composed of reclining seats was set up for the first row to allow the wife to stretch out and comfortably watch a movie. The second row would receive four independent theater recliners with a center console, allowing a touch screen or ipad to be placed during use. These would also be deemed the reference seats for the room because of the central placement. The third row would have an independent theater recliner on the outside ends of the row with a love seat in the center. Lastly we provided a marble surface behind the third row of seating for bar stools. This space would be used for refreshments, overflow seating and for the homeowner to have a work surface for laptop and papers when he needed to multitask in the room. We also determined the need to add a popup that would provide an electrical outlet, network connection and telephone system jack, giving him the maximum flexibility necessary for his hectic lifestyle.
The appropriate screen size for the room was determined once the seating was laid out in CAD, providing a visual reference for future design elements to be added. A 152 custom Stewart Filmscreen Cinecurve 4-way masking screen was specified with THX audio micro-perforation, allowing the front sound stage speakers to be placed behind the screen. The screen was appropriately placed in the design to maximize the sight lines from all seating positions, providing the most comfortable viewing angle. The client did not want the projector located in the theater itself. In this case, locating the projector in the equipment room in the back of the Theater was the most desirable option because the Digital Projection Titan Reference DLP projector and anamorphic lens sled option is a sizable beast. With the capability of over 8,000 lumens, there was never a doubt the image would be bright and beautiful regardless of the ambient room lighting. A glass opening was placed in the rear of the room during the design phase to provide a discrete port for the projectors output to travel to the screen. The next step was positioning the side and rear channel speakers in the walls of the room. We knew there would be architectural columns so the placement of these speakers was critical in order to provide the best in sound field reproduction while ensuring the speakers fell inside the acoustical panel spaces between the columns. JBL Synthesis Bipole/Dipole in-wall speakers were chosen for these locations. We put in four sides and two rears to provide even sound field coverage and flow into the room. Since we knew the front sound stage was to be Meridian, we chose Meridian 2 channel power amplifiers for each pair of these speakers. We designed a room behind the projection screen to house the Meridian 7200 series Left, Center and Right speakers. The Left and Right were to be vertical towers while we selected a horizontal model for the Center channel. We also specified two JL Audio Fathom 212 dual 12, 3,000 watt powered subwoofers for the low frequency reproduction in the room. The space behind the screen was designed to place these speakers perfectly for the best sonic performance in the room. The subwoofers were placed in isolation cavities, completely independent from the LCR speakers to keep all audio bright and clear. The entire area was painted flat black and black acoustical foam was applied to all surfaces in the area behind the screen to eliminate any reflections or harmonic interference with the audio program. With the critical components and seating now placed in the room design, the next step was to design custom video gaming housing in the front of the room as well as a custom location with a removable cover for the sensor bars commonly associated with today s gaming consoles. These were placed for the most convenient access and use. The next step was designing the look, feel and décor of the room. The room is adjacent to an old English style sports pub so we wanted to make sure the overall feel tied into that space as well. With a double door in the rear of the Theater, this could be used as one large entertainment space and having common design elements would only enhance the experience when the areas are combined.
We worked with the homeowner and our preferred theater interior provider to design the room based on the color palates selected by the homeowner and his wife. Because all of the critical elements, components and measurements were already documented, it was a much easier task to place the elements into the design and solicit feedback from the client. Several renderings were provided, each showing a different view of the room and expressing some specialized stylization. Because the client had an accurate representation of what was being proposed, it was much easier to communicate likes, dislikes and desired changes amongst the team. Once the Theater interior design was completed, we started willing in the technology for the room, including specialized HVAC layout to prevent air flow noise, lighting layout and control, user control interfaces and of course the rest of the audio/video system. Everything was matched across the design, preventing any weak links. Specialized power and conditioning was placed in the Equipment Room to ensure no ground loops, electrical noise or voltage mismatches. Custom racking was designed to house all of the equipment along with custom cabinetry for media storage and a video editing desk specifically built for the space available. One area commonly missed by the average AV guy is true sound isolation and insulation. This is both art and science. Staggered studs, false walls, EPDM rubber liner, rubber channeling on the subfloor and wall studs as well as specialized insulation materials specifically utilized in high-isolation environments were all combined by the Phoenix team to prevent sound transmission into the rest of the home and to provide the best listening environment for the clients home theater experience.
Once the design was completed, coordination with the general contractor, his sub-contractors, the interior designer, the clients and all of our vendors started. It took over 12 months to complete the room and put the Theater into operation. The fun part of this project was the fact this Theater was completed prior to the completion of the construction of the home. The clients actually used the Theater regularly while the rest of the home was being completed. We completed the project, calibrated all of the audio and video components and programmed the control system. When we demonstrated it to the client the first time, he stated it surpassed his expectations and he continues to use it regularly to this day. This is what I find most rewarding. A satisfied client, who continues to enjoy his technology daily.