What is home cinema? Perhaps this is controversial, but I think it’s anything you want it to be

What is home cinema?

It sounds like a simple question, but it’s one that I think is worth considering during our Home Cinema Week, and I suspect you'd get wildly different answers depending on who you asked.

For some, it's impossible without an AV receiver, a projector and at least seven speakers. For others, it's a big TV and a Dolby Atmos soundbar. I'd even argue that, in the right circumstances, it can be a pair of headphones connected to a streaming box.

Perhaps that's controversial, but I genuinely think home cinema is pretty much anything you want it to be.

Now, before anyone thinks I'm trying to rewrite the rules, let me be clear: if your goal is the very best home cinema performance possible, the traditional route is still the right one. A quality AV receiver paired with a carefully matched speaker package and, if your room allows, a projector, remains the pinnacle of what's possible.

I'm fortunate enough to experience setups like that regularly. We evaluate AV receivers, Atmos speaker packages and projectors in a dedicated home cinema test room, and when everything comes together, there's simply nothing else quite like it. I've also owned a traditional 7.1.4-channel system myself, so I know exactly what that experience is capable of delivering.

But here's the thing: somewhere along the way, I think we've started to confuse the best home cinema with the only home cinema.

My own current setup is proof that those aren't the same thing.

When I moved house, I swapped my traditional separates system for Sony's HT-A9 wireless speaker system and a subwoofer. Is it as accomplished as the 7.1.4-channel system I had before? No. But it suits my living room far better, it took minutes rather than days to install, and it still produces a wonderfully immersive Dolby Atmos performance that regularly reminds me why I love this hobby.

And when everyone else has gone to bed, my favourite way to watch a film is with AirPods Max connected to an Apple TV 4K. Is that better than listening through a room full of speakers? Of course not. But it's very immersive in its own right, and it lets me enjoy late-night movies without disturbing the rest of the house.

That's still home cinema to me.

In fact, I'd argue that if you've deliberately chosen a setup because it helps you become more immersed in the films, TV shows or games you love, you're already part of the home cinema community.

Whether that's a flagship projector and a 7.1.4-channel speaker package, a premium Atmos soundbar, a wireless surround system or even a tablet paired with headphones capable of reproducing Dolby Atmos through spatial audio technologies, the goal is the same: to bring the magic of the cinema into your home.

The equipment is simply the means of getting there.

None of this is meant to diminish traditional home cinema. Quite the opposite. If you have the space, budget and enthusiasm to build an AVR-powered surround system, I wholeheartedly encourage you to do so.

But I don't think owning that sort of system should be the entry requirement for calling yourself a home cinema enthusiast.

After all, very few of us started there.

Most enthusiasts build their systems over time, upgrading piece by piece as budgets, homes and family life allow. Others discover that a high-quality soundbar or wireless speaker system gives them the balance of performance and practicality they're looking for. Neither approach is more legitimate than the other – they're simply different stages of the same journey.

One day, I still hope to convert my garage into a dedicated home cinema room featuring an AV receiver, a projector and at least 12 speakers.

Until then, I'll continue enjoying films through my wireless Atmos system. I'll continue watching late-night movies through my AirPods Max, too, and I'll continue recommending traditional separates systems to anyone who wants the very best performance money can buy.

Because I don't think those things are contradictory.

The best home cinema I've experienced has been in dedicated cinema rooms filled with high-end equipment. The home cinema I use most is in my living room. And some of my favourite movie nights have happened when wearing a pair of headphones.

They're all different. One is objectively capable of higher performance than the others. But all of them remind me why I fell in love with home cinema in the first place.

To my mind, that's what really matters.

MORE:

Check out all of our Home Cinema Week coverage

Here are the best projectors, best AV receivers and best surround sound systems

And here are the best TVs and best soundbars

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