The Efficient Second Row
Two rows of theater recliners introduce comprises and expenses that can be avoided by using a Bar Table (aka Drink Rail) for your second row
Two rows of theater recliners, with the second row on a riser (stadium style), is a classic home theater look.
It is also expensive, introduces design compromises at every point in the design process, and is often unnecessary…..and is sometimes impossible to fit.
There is a “split the difference” solution for many rooms: A second row made from a counter height bar table or “drink rail,” with comfortable “counter height” seats. Here is an example of the concept from a user on AVS Forum.
Or this diagram from a social media post from Grimani Systems (which is a little weird looking because he hasn’t drawn in the counter height bar top table, yet):
Or these images from Pinterest:
Based on polls on user forums like AVS Forum, by far the most common audience size for a home theater is 1-4 people, with 1.5 people being the “average.” We can use this fact to make a better sounding, better looking (video experience), lower cost (sometimes by a factor of 2x) theater by optimizing the design and engineering for a one row theater — and accommodating occasional extra audience members via a Bar Table (drink rail) “second row” for those rare occasions when the audience doubles.
Save Space / Preserve Sound Quality
A single row of theater recliners require 6 to 7 feet of space. (The chair itself probably reclines fine in a 6 foot space, but anyone over 5 feet in height will have the space for their feet truncated if they don’t have space for the overhang of their ankles and feet.) That’s workable for one row. But it means that a second row ALSO needs an additional seven feet of space. But wait, it actually needs more than seven feet if you want to follow the best practice of keeping all seating 3 feet from a wall. Yep, your second row just became a ten foot obligation. Maybe 11 feet, if you want a tiny bit of space to be able to walk by a reclined person.
Save Money on Furniture
Theater recliners are not cheap. Good ones cost well over $1,000 per seat. Great ones cost $3 to $5,000 per seat. For those kinds of prices, getting a counter height bar table and six comfy stools can readily save you anywhere from $3 to $10,000 or more.
Save Money on Audio (output requirements)
Getting enough audio output to each seat is critical to achieving theatrical level results. This post shows you the math, but suffice to say, viewers at a counter height bar table are probably five or six feet closer to the main speakers than if they were in recliners. That means you need half as much amplifier power and much less output capability from your main speakers to reach the output level you seek for your audience. That can reduce the cost of amplification and speakers by as much as 50%. (The smaller distance possible from the back wall to the seating area can also help in this regard.)
Save Money On Construction
A riser costs time and money to build. And it costs time and money to remove it, when you move out of your home.
A riser can interfere with entry and exit doors, conflict with HVAC registers, electrical outlet locations, and even create permitting challenges with your local building inspector.
Preserve Video Presentation Quality For the Front Row
A second row of recliners, even on a riser, can compromise the video experience of the front row. You’ll need to raise the screen higher on the wall, unless you have a very tall room (10 feet or more) that allows you to have a very tall riser. That detracts from the ideal screen height for the front row.
Or, you will need to use a smaller screen, so that the second row can see the whole screen. Or you need to implement both of these compromises.
A row of counter height seats, on the other hand, helps preserve line of sight for the second row without raising the screen (and or shrinking the screen) as much as a riser with seats (with those eyes at a lower level).
Preserve Video Quality for the Second Row
The senes of immersion (field of view) occupied by the screen image gets smaller and smaller the further away from the screen one sits. A row of recliners places the second row audience further from the screen (versus counter height seats) by a few feet, better preserving the size impact of the screen.
Accommodate More People
The precise calculation will vary from room to room but typically rooms using a counter height bar top and seats for the second row will be able to accommodate 50% more people in the second row than a traditional set of recliners. This can make a significant difference for those “event” situations the occur on occasion, and turn a 4 to 6 seat theater of two recliner rows into an 8 seat theater when the second row is a counter eight bar top.
Having a Table is Nice
Finally, many folks find that having a table-like structure in the room is nice. Whether for eating a meal more comfortably than in a recliner, as the movie starts, or having a place for a video call that is quiet with few distractions, this modest horizontal surface can prove itself quite useful over time.