Precision meets passion in iCubed home cinema

“The best home cinemas aren’t defined by the equipment they contain, but by how they make people feel. Our job is simply to engineer that experience”

So says Iain Martin, Director at iCubed Home Cinema.

For iCubed Home Cinema, this particular project represented something particularly rewarding: the opportunity to work once again with an existing client as they embarked on the construction of a new family home.

Having previously designed and installed the client's former cinema and wider AV infrastructure, the company was invited into the new project at an early stage, allowing the entertainment spaces and supporting technologies to be integrated from the outset rather than retrofitted later.

The brief itself was refreshingly straightforward. The client wanted to recreate the cinema experience they had enjoyed in their previous property, while refining the areas where experience had identified opportunities for improvement. The objective was not simply to install a large screen and surround sound system, but to create a room that genuinely captured the atmosphere and immersion of a private cinema, while remaining comfortable and effortless to use on a daily basis.

Alongside the dedicated cinema, iCubed delivered whole-home entertainment, integrated lighting control, CCTV and automation systems, ensuring a consistent user experience throughout the property.

“If each project teaches us something new,then the next one should always be our best yet,” quips Martin.

That philosophy shaped every stage of the design process. Rather than beginning with products, the company focused first on understanding how the room would be used, what level of performance was expected and how the space should feel once completed. Performance targets, room layout and aesthetics were established before equipment selection began.

According to Martin, balancing performance, interior design and budget considerations starts with listening to the client rather than selecting hardware.

"Our philosophy has always been to prioritise performance while ensuring the technology integrates sympathetically within the interior design of the room," he says. "A great cinema should not only perform exceptionally but also feel like a space the client wants to spend time in."
As a turnkey cinema specialist, iCubed undertook the majority of the design, installation and commissioning work in-house, maintaining control over programme delivery, quality assurance and cost management throughout the project.

The final cinema was built around a Dolby Atmos 9.2.4 loudspeaker configuration, selected to provide the optimum balance between room dimensions and the client's objectives.

Visual performance centres around a 3.0m acoustically transparent Cinema Build Halo Slim projection screen, paired with a JVC DLA-NZ500 native 4K laser projector. By positioning the front loudspeakers behind the screen, the build preserves accurate audio localisation and delivers a presentation more closely aligned with commercial cinema design principles.

Audio duties fall to an Arcam AVR21 processor and receiver combination, supplemented by a Blaze Audio PowerZone 508 power amplifier to provide the necessary processing and amplification channels required for the 13-channel immersive audio layout.

The loudspeaker system is supplied entirely by Artcoustic. Three Evolve 4-2 loudspeakers handle the front soundstage, while six Evolve 1-1 models provide surround duties and four Architect 2-1 speakers deliver overhead Atmos effects. Low-frequency performance comes from twin Artcoustic Sub3 subwoofers powered by a dedicated CPH1000 amplifier.

Sources include Apple TV, Sky Q and a Sony Blu-ray player, with provision already planned for a future Kaleidescape upgrade.
Control is provided via a Nice SC-150 controller and HR40 remote, while scene setting and room ambience are managed through Rako lighting control.

Martin says the specification emerged naturally from the design objectives rather than any allegiance to particular brands.

"Every product selected for this project was the result of the design process rather than the starting point," he explains. "Once the room layout, performance objectives and budget had been established, the equipment specification became a process of selecting the products that would best achieve those goals."

He points in particular to Arcam's implementation of Dirac Live room correction, which allows the team to validate and refine the room's acoustic performance rather than simply relying on automated calibration.

The room itself reflects the same performance-led philosophy. Cinema Build Hüggacoustic fabric in Ink Blue creates a calm and intimate environment, while brushed gold detailing introduces subtle luxury without distracting from the screen. The front wall remains acoustically transparent, concealing the loudspeakers behind the image.

A fibre-optic Starscape ceiling integrated within Cinema Build Pitch Black acoustic ceiling panels introduces visual drama while maintaining acoustic integrity. Full-height columns conceal the surround loudspeakers, preserving the room's clean architectural lines.

Additional architectural detailing supplied by HAUHAU sits outside iCubed's scope of works but contributes significantly to the overall atmosphere, introducing texture and depth to the front wall treatment.

One of the more interesting aspects of the project arrived late in the construction programme when structural investigations revealed that an existing chimney breast could be removed safely. At the same time, the entrance door position was revised, creating implications for subwoofer placement and low-frequency performance.

Rather than relying solely on experience, iCubed returned to the original modelling process and re-engineered the room using the revised dimensions.

"The room was remodelled, and the technical design process repeated to reassess loudspeaker locations, seating positions and low-frequency performance," Martin explains.

The revised analysis confirmed that the original performance objectives remained achievable, with only minor changes required to subwoofer placement.

For Martin, the experience reinforced the importance of maintaining a structured design methodology throughout every project.
"Because the cinema had been engineered rather than simply installed, we were able to validate every change before work commenced, ensuring the finished room still achieved the performance standards originally agreed with the client."

The final result is a cinema that balances technical performance with understated luxury. The suede wall finishes, brushed gold accents and fibre-optic ceiling create an environment that feels elegant without becoming theatrical, allowing the technology itself to recede into the background once the lights dim.

Perhaps the most meaningful endorsement came not through a testimonial or online review, but through the client's reaction during handover.

According to Martin, the response involved language that was rather more colourful than would normally appear in print.
More importantly, however, it represented the trust of a returning client who had chosen to place their next home entertainment project in the same hands as the previous one.

For any specialist cinema integrator, there are few stronger indicators of success than that.

All photos photos courtesy of Artcoustic UK and iCubed.