Home Theater for Unforgettable Evenings

A private cinema in your home, where every film draws you into another world.

Design

A remarkable home theater begins long before the screen goes in. Wiring, wall materials, acoustic treatments, and lighting control must work as one design. As your custom home theater design partner in Atherton and across the Peninsula, 54 Electric guides every decision.

White home theater projector mounted on the ceiling above a grey sectional sofa

Large home theater projection screen displaying a car on a road in front of modern seating

Home theater room featuring a custom fiber optic star ceiling over plush beige couches

In-wall home theater speaker mounted next to a screen showing a forest landscape

Tall rectangular acoustic wall panel mounted next to a large display screen

One With Your Interiors

Your theater should feel like an extension of the house. We work alongside your interior designer on every finish, down to the wood trim and wall fabric, so the room reads as one intentional design.

Assorted modern recessed lighting trims in various shapes and colors on white background

Clear Views for Everyone

We calculate riser heights and screen placement before construction begins. You and every guest enjoy an open line of sight, heads resting comfortably, and eyes on the story.

Modern ceiling light fixture with soft dimmed lighting in warm tones

Technology You Never Notice

The finest equipment stays out of view. Speakers rest behind acoustically transparent walls, and electronics live in a ventilated rack elsewhere, keeping your attention on the screen.

Great theater design starts with physics and the way people see and hear, well ahead of any equipment choice.

In the finished room, the technology simply fades away.

A modern glass-walled home illuminated at night with warm interior lighting, contrasting against the dark blue evening sky, showcasing a blend of ambient and accent lighting.

Finding Your Ideal Seat

We begin by locating your ideal listening seat, usually off the room’s center and clear of the back wall, where bass tends to pool and sound boomy.

Screen-Sized to Your Eyes

Screen size and height follow your natural field of view. When the image fills roughly 30 to 40 degrees of your vision, you take in every edge without turning your head.

Taming the First Reflections

A simple mirror test reveals where sound first bounces off the side walls. Absorption panels at those points keep dialogue anchored to the center of the screen.

Dialogue From the Screen

Tweeters, which carry the high notes, sit at ear height. The center channel angles toward your seats, so dialogue sounds like it comes straight from the actor on screen.

Even Bass in Every Chair

We walk the room to map where low frequencies land most evenly, then place subwoofers to match. A second subwoofer often fills the dead zones where bass would otherwise vanish.

Cool Electronics, Clear Picture

Final planning accounts for the heat your electronics produce, with discreet ventilation sized to keep everything cool. Lighting angles are set to keep glare off the screen surface.

Cinematic Lighting

Showtime calls for deep darkness and an image free of glare. Yet a pitch-black room with tiered seating invites a stumble on the way to your chair. Our lighting designs give you both, with smooth dimming and color control built on Lutron and Ketra.

Light Layered for the Story

Harsh overhead cans can flatten the most beautiful theater. We build your room in layers of light, each with its own role, so the space feels warm and dimensional before the first frame appears.

The Right Atmosphere at a Touch

Every fixture in the room connects to a central lighting processor, so you can tune brightness and color temperature with a single press. Sconces, linear strips, recessed fixtures overhead and step lights near the floor all respond together.

Foundational Ambient Light

This foundation layer sets the room’s overall glow, and it’s usually the first light you bring up when you walk in.

Cove Lighting: Concealed LED strips tucked into ceiling trays wash the ceiling in soft, indirect light, so it appears to float.
Pinhole Downlights: High-CRI fixtures, which render color faithfully, vanish into the ceiling and place discreet pools of light where you want them, free of glare.
Wall Sconces: Side-wall sconces bring a note of classic movie-palace glamour and quietly outline the room’s edges.

Lighting for Safe Footing

In a dark room with tiered rows, safe footing comes first. These low-voltage fixtures stay softly lit through the entire film.

Step Lights: Built into stair sides and risers, they keep every step visible in the dark.
Aisle Lighting: LED tape set into the floor’s edge nosing traces a gentle glow along the path to your seat.
Backlit Poster Frames: Placed at the entry or along the back wall, they showcase your favorite film art while casting a soft vertical glow.

Signature Touches Guests Remember

This layer gives your theater its personality and turns movie night into an occasion.

Star Ceilings: Thousands of fiber optic strands recreate a night sky, programmed to twinkle or send a shooting star across the room.
Backlit Acoustic Panels: LED strips set behind fabric panels give the walls a dimensional, sculpted glow.
Screen Bias Lighting: A soft halo behind the screen eases eye strain and makes the picture’s contrast look deeper.

Modern living room with warm layered lighting and contemporary furniture

Cozy living room with warm lighting highlighting seating and décor

Living room at night with dimmed lights and soft ambient glow

Lighting Control at Your Fingertips

You shouldn’t have to reach for your phone to dim the lights, and a wall crowded with switches spoils a beautiful room.

One tap on an elegant Lutron keypad, or a press of your theater remote, brings the space under your command.

Cove Glow

Raise or lower the hidden ceiling strips that set the room’s ambient mood.

Pinhole Lights

Call up focused light or take the room fully dark.

Sconces

Dim the wall fixtures that lend classic cinema character.

Step and Aisle Glow

A low path of light keeps guests moving safely mid-film.

Starfield Ceiling

Switch on the fiber optic night sky, twinkles and shooting stars included.

Panel Backlighting

Adjust the glow behind acoustic panels to deepen the room’s architectural lines.

Seat Lighting

Control lighting built into your recliners’ bases and cup holders.

Scenes on Cue

A luxury theater rarely relies on an on/off switch. A central lighting processor runs the whole room, and every keypad button calls up a complete scene.

Press “Movie” and the cove lights drift to zero while the sconces dim away. The step lights settle at 5%, then the star ceiling glows to life over a slow ten-second fade, like the hush before a premiere.

We program each keypad around how you live. An “Entertain” button sets a relaxed glow for drinks with friends, and “All Off” powers the room down instantly.

Immersive Sound

A blockbuster explosion rolls through your chest, then a single floorboard creaks somewhere behind you, and you turn to look. That is the experience a professionally designed Dolby Atmos home theater delivers.

Showcase or Conceal

Some homeowners love the presence of a striking loudspeaker, and we’re happy to give yours center stage.

Others prefer that the sound simply appear. For those rooms, we conceal speakers inside walls and ceilings using architectural designs from James Loudspeaker and Sonance. Every frequency arrives with full clarity, and you’ll never spot the source.

grey stone mottled wall backlit from mirror

grey stone bathroom wall with circular mirror

A solid blue circle representing a simplistic graphic design element.

Modern kitchen with warm undercabinet lighting and illuminated island accents

Pendant lights and window shades in a room with wood ceiling beams

How Many Speakers Should Your Theater Have?

The right number depends on the size of the room and how deeply you want the sound to surround you. If bass-heavy music and action films fill your evenings, a second subwoofer earns its place. For full immersion, upward-firing Dolby Atmos speakers wrap you in a dome of sound.

Most systems start with at least five speakers: a center channel, a front left and right pair, two rear speakers, and a subwoofer. To go further, we add ear-level speakers midway along the room, along with extra subwoofers. Dolby Atmos height channels then carry sound overhead and all around you.

Center Channel: Carries most of the dialogue, which makes it the heart of your system. It performs best directly below the screen or hidden behind it.
Front Left & Right: This pair flanks the screen and carries most of the score along with the main stereo soundstage.
Side Surrounds: Placed at ear level beside your seats, they handle ambient and directional effects so you feel placed inside the scene.
Rear Surrounds: Effects and motion arrive from behind you, closing the circle of sound.
Subwoofer: Reproduces the deep bass other speakers can’t reach, giving rumbles and explosions their physical punch.
Dolby Atmos Height Speakers: Upward-firing or ceiling speakers add a vertical layer, creating a dome of sound around your audience.

Bright kitchen with pendant lights and undercabinet lighting highlighting marble backsplash

Wall art illuminated by a slim picture light beside a potted tree

The Components Behind the Sound

Each component has its own character. One speaker may suit a rock lover, while another pairs better with a particular processor. As a StormAudio dealer, 54 Electric matches every component to your listening habits and builds a system that sounds as beautiful as it looks.

House exterior lit with vibrant pink landscape lighting at night

Surround Processor or A/V Receiver

StormAudio processors decode every audio signal and route it to the right speaker.

Front Left & Right Speakers

Carry the main soundtrack and stereo effects from ear level beside the screen.

Center Channel

Devoted to dialogue and anchored just above or below the screen.

Surround Speakers

Set beside or behind your seats to deliver atmosphere and directional effects.

Subwoofer

Handles low-frequency effects (LFE), the deep bass that gives films weight.

Height and Atmos Speakers

Installed in or on the ceiling to add a vertical layer for three-dimensional sound.

Power Amplifiers

Provide dedicated power to each speaker channel in higher-end systems for greater clarity and effortless volume control.

Acoustic Treatments

Panels and traps that control reflections and refine how the room itself sounds.

Speaker Cable and Interconnects

High-quality wiring that carries a clean signal between every component.

Bespoke Seating

Comfort shapes every minute of a film. Your seating should feel luxurious on the first night and hold its shape decades later. We work with exclusive home theater seating makers to build custom furniture for your private cinema.

Close-up of green leather home theater reclining seats with integrated metal controls

Built for Decades

Each chair rests on a solid hardwood or reinforced steel frame, and whisper-quiet motors handle every recline. High-density ergonomic foam over high-tensile webbing keeps the cushioning cloud-soft and true to form through decades of movie marathons.

Home theater room with two tiers of black leather seating and a backlit bar in the back

Made to Order

Have a particular color or fabric in mind? Our seating partner, Fortress, builds sofas and sectionals to order, entirely to your design. Choose your back height and recline style, down to a simple footrest extension, and we’ll source a setup that matches your vision.

Designed Just For You

Picture the most memorable theater you know, perhaps an opera house abroad, or one that exists only in your imagination. We’ll bring that feeling into a private cinema of your own, be it a Portola Valley retreat or a family home in Los Altos.

Adaptable Layouts

We design every arrangement around your room and your favorite way to gather. Modular pieces let you reshape the space for a lively awards-show party or a quiet film for two.

Materials With Purpose

Leather, velvet, suede, mohair, and chenille are only the beginning. We’ll guide you and your interior designer toward materials that support the picture and the sound. White fabric can reflect light onto the screen, while velvet absorbs sound.

Hidden Storage

Storage ottomans and footrests tuck away blankets and Blu-rays, along with any other movie-night essentials. Your room stays tidy without a single extra piece of furniture.

different views of a chair motorized at different angles

Powered Comfort

Find your ideal angle with one touch. Your powered seats can recline, adjust height and swivel, move the headrest and retract a touchscreen, and some offer massage.

black reclining couches with wooden tray tables

Tables at Hand

Tray tables come in dozens of configurations, motorized designs included, crafted in fine hardwoods or polished marble. Even these small pieces are finished to complement your theater’s interior design.

brown leather couch with blue LED lighting and cupholders

Every Comfort Considered

Built-in power and data ports keep your devices charged within reach. Soft aisle and reading lights add atmosphere, and extras like ottomans or lumbar pillows round out the comfort.

Room Acoustics

Give your speakers the room they deserve with acoustic treatments tuned for clear, comfortable listening.

Absorption Panels for Clearer Dialogue

Hard surfaces bounce sound around and muddy the mix. High-density acoustic panels catch those reflections before they reach you.

First Reflection Points: Panels on the side walls stop early reflections from blurring the direct sound of your speakers.
Fabrics: Breathable designer textiles coordinate with your seating.

Diffusers for a Larger-Sounding Room

Absorption tames echo, and diffusion scatters sound energy so the room never feels acoustically dead. The space ends up sounding far larger than its footprint.

Placement: Usually installed on the rear wall behind your seating rows for a full 360-degree sense of space.
Finishes: Wood or composite faces that match your theater’s millwork.

Bass Traps: Controlled Low End

Deep bass tends to pool in corners, where it usually sounds boomy or distorted.

Corner Placement: Bass traps tucked into each corner absorb long, low-frequency waves.
What You Hear: Punchy, controlled bass you feel in your chest and your chair, minus the rattle.

The Picture

The best home theater lets the screen fade so the story takes over.

A candlelit period drama and a bright championship game both deserve every detail the director intended. We build each display system around Sony laser projectors and Screen Innovations screens, or around the newest microLED video walls. As a Kaleidescape dealer, we add a Kaleidescape movie server for reference-quality films.

Projector or Video Wall?

For decades, projection was the only path to a cinema-sized picture. Today, microLED panels deliver bright 4K images at nearly any size you can imagine. So which belongs in your home theater?

MicroLED Video Walls

Brilliance Even With the Lights On

Direct-view LED walls have become the benchmark for media rooms. Each pixel produces its own light, so the picture rivals and often surpasses the finest televisions. Their modular design builds to whatever size or shape your room calls for.

Ideal For: Multipurpose media rooms and spaces with plenty of windows.
The Feel: Bold, saturated color and deep blacks that hold up in a bright room.
Standout Advantage: Nobody casts a shadow when walking past, a natural fit for championship games and gaming sessions.

Laser Projection and a Reference Screen

The Classic Cinema Experience

Purists love the soft, reflected light of a high-end laser projector. It recreates the film look of a grand movie palace, and its natural image stays easy on your eyes through a long double feature.

Ideal For: Dedicated, light-controlled theaters built as a true black box.
The Feel: One vast, unbroken image that opens like a window into another world.
Standout Advantage: Acoustic transparency. Speakers can hide directly behind the screen, so every voice comes from the actor on screen.

Image by Design

Every room brings its own dimensions, light conditions, viewing distances, and seating plan. We design the visual system around yours so the image looks cinematic from every seat.

Ultra-wide projection screen showing a tropical beach inside a modern home theater room

Display Choices

A dedicated black-box theater and a multipurpose media room call for different displays, so we match the technology to your space.

Laser Projection: Sony laser projectors deliver the organic, film-like texture purists prefer.
MicroLED Video Walls: Modular panels with sun-defying brightness and deep contrast, ideal for rooms with windows.
Size & Aspect Ratio: Custom formats, including 2.40:1 Cinemascope, let widescreen films fill the entire screen with no black bars.

Split view comparing an LED pixel grid on the left to stacked fabric screen samples on the right

Screen Surfaces

Your screen matters as much as your projector. Screen Innovations surfaces draw out every pixel and work in harmony with your room’s acoustics.

Acoustically Transparent: Fine woven materials let sound pass straight through, so your front speakers can live directly behind the image.
Ambient Light Rejection (ALR): Optical coatings absorb stray light from lamps and windows and return only the projector’s image to your eyes.
High-Gain Surfaces: Reflective layers add brightness for HDR (high dynamic range) content, keeping colors vivid in any setting.

Home theater room featuring brown leather seating and a fiber optic starry ceiling

Optics and Calibration

Immersion lives in the details. Professional-grade hardware keeps every image sharp and true to life.

Anamorphic Lenses: Motorized optics glide in front of the projector to widen the image for true widescreen viewing.
Video Processing: High-bitrate scaling cleans up lower-resolution sources and brings them up to 4K or 8K quality.
ISF Calibration: Certified tuning aligns skin tones and shadow detail with the director’s intent, as mastered in the studio.

Modern home theater with rows of black seats facing a large projection screen displaying space

Light and Atmosphere

A picture can only look as good as the room around it. We manage that environment to maximize the contrast you see on screen.

Motorized Blackout Shades: Lutron shades with side channels seal out light, turning a sunny living room into a pitch-black cinema within seconds.
Anti-Reflective Surfaces: We recommend and install wall materials that keep screen light from bouncing back and washing out black levels.
Architectural Integration: Motorized lifts and art-mode video walls let your technology disappear into the décor between screenings.

Man smiling while holding a slim black remote control

Automated Showtime

Movie night should feel like a retreat, free of technical chores. We link your visuals to the rest of your home’s intelligence.

The Movie Scene: One tap, or a quick word to Josh.ai, lowers the screen and powers up the projector, then drops the shades and dims the lights to 10%.
Automatic Masking: Your Kaleidescape system reads each film’s format and signals the screen to adjust its borders, framing every movie perfectly.
System Monitoring: Remote monitoring over your Access Networks home network alerts our team when a component needs attention, often before it ever touches movie night.

The Path to the Perfect Home Theater

As a home theater company rooted in Atherton and Los Altos Hills, we stay close to your project at every stage and long after.

A Private Consultation

Your project opens with a private, by-appointment consultation at home or in our Mountain View demo space, where we learn how you watch and entertain.

Your Design Proposal

Using what we learn together, we shape an initial design around your performance priorities and budget. It outlines the features you can expect, and we refine it based on your feedback before moving forward.

Engineered Plans

With the scope and budget approved, we produce in-depth engineering drawings along with blueprints for the interior details. Following those plans closely keeps the finished room faithful to the design you approved.

On-Site Installation

On-site, our project managers coordinate your home theater installation with your builder and interior designer, plus your architect when one is involved. Timing depends on the scope of your project and any changes made along the way.

Tuning and Final Walkthrough

Certified technicians calibrate every finished theater for peak audio and video performance, with the attention to detail that sets 54 Electric apart. Our project team completes a quality review and hands over full documentation. You’ll learn every feature hands-on.

Lasting Support

Long after installation, our small, nimble team responds quickly whenever you need us. We keep your documentation on file for future service and handle manufacturer warranties on your behalf. On-site and remote support keep your theater performing for years.

Prefer a Simpler Setup?

A multipurpose media room built around premium 4K HDR displays and high-resolution speakers can still deliver the immersion filmmakers and game designers intended.

Explore Media Rooms

Your Private Premiere Awaits

Movie night deserves a room built just for you. Schedule a private consultation with 54 Electric, and we’ll show you what your own home theater could look and sound like.

Schedule a Private Consultation