Located at the end of University Drive in Huntsville, Alabama, AVIQ was created for
audio enthusiasts seeking a simple, easy-to-understand way to set up their high-quality Hi-Fi
system. It is not just a store with high-end products; the AVIQ staff has years of experience
across many areas of the audio industry. In addition, AVIQ has a unique history that has helped
provide musical entertainment through concert piano performances and video content for
families. All these factors come together to create an environment that feels like a movie theatre,
with high-quality sound. During my guided tour, I learned about the latest technology curated by
the knowledgeable team, including Michael Burleson and Chip Bowen, who welcomed my
questions. Chip noted, “If you don’t feel lost in the music, we can help with that.”
It’s one thing to experience AVIQ’s demo cinema in their University Drive showroom.
It’s another to see that philosophy come to life inside a Huntsville home. As Matt Roha and his
family spent the 2020 lockdown together, they considered creating their own home media room
after staying in a vacation rental in Florida with a full surround-sound system and projector
setup. Seeing his wife and kids enjoy the vacation rental as a family made Matt realize that it was
possible to have a cinematic escape without owning a mansion.
Why should homeowners view a professional design media room as an investment rather
than a luxury? Michael was quick to assure me, “Well, if you're investing in entertainment,
you're investing in being able to entertain.” It's easy to think of such a niche as available only to
specific audiences, but at AVIQ, that misses the bigger picture. Michael highlights AVIQ's
tailored emerging technology solutions, emphasizing long-lasting media room designs and expert
knowledge to enable easy upgrades. For the Roha family, that mindset shaped their new
construction home in Huntsville. With inventory tight, they chose to build. When reviewing floor
plans, Matt identified potential in a bonus room within the McMullen layout. To support a true
projection setup, the builder squared the dormer to achieve more than 18 feet of usable
depth—enough to engineer a dedicated theater rather than a large television room. It wasn’t an
afterthought. It was built into the home’s structure.
That principle guided the Roha theater’s budget. Because it was anticipated that the
majority of material would be consumed using either 4K Blu-rays or via streaming, AVIQ's
recommendation was to place responsibility on a surround sound system (7.1) rather than to
spend too much on the projector. A riser for the second row of seats was constructed to maintain
direct sightlines during house construction, and the room was pre-wired for network services,
speakers, and electrical service prior to drywall installation. This type of advance planning
helped avoid retrofitting expenses at a later date.
Many DIY builders mistakenly believe that more is better, leading to future upgrade costs
due to underperforming equipment. As with any industry, it's imperative to consider how the
technology unfolding within it influences it, and that's critical in the AVIQ operating space,
which assesses what makes a worthy investment in home entertainment. Michael notes that one
of the top things to monitor is the quality of input to the various home systems. Chip adds
proudly, “The most important thing is what you feed the equipment. Michael highlights the
importance of server-based platforms for delivering studio-level streaming, allowing
homeowners to achieve cinematic sound that often exceeds Blu-ray quality. The key factor in AV
design is content quality, which drives optimal delivery.
Now, performance can be calculated easily, but the next most crucial factor AVIQ
considers is personal aesthetics. Everyone who walks through the doors has their own
personalization, reflected in the colors they prefer and the tone they aim to establish in their
spaces. Michael happily exclaims, “You know, if all you get is a piece of paper like this and it
says, here's everything I'm putting in your room and here's the price, you're not doing your job.
The professional won't do that.” Both he and Chip have strong customer connection skills. To
align aesthetic choices with personalized budgets, AVIQ meets with clients before starting
designs. At the Roha home, that collaboration spanned months. The finished space features
custom cabinetry, concession countertops from Stone Cutters Guild of Huntsville, a lit candy
counter, and illuminated poster displays from Glowbox and Digital Movie Boards. When guests
arrive, pre-show music plays through the WIIM system installed throughout the house, building
anticipation for the film.
The intended goal is to control the sound, not to completely absorb it all or muffle it.
Michael notes, “You don't want to suck all of the energy of the sound out of the room and turn it
into heat, which is what soundproofing does. It absorbs it, it changes.”Finding an appropriate
response to the challenges of sound treatment is about getting the right amount of treatment in a
room—not too little and not too much. A room can become "dead" (no sound) if it is overtreated
with sound-absorbing materials, or it can become "muddied" in sound if it is undertreated with
those same materials, so the quality of the sound will suffer. To avoid creating "dead" acoustical
areas (areas without sound), the seating was carefully measured during the bonus room design
(e.g., Roha project) to conserve acoustic energy and maintain vocal clarity for the 7.1 surround
layout used in this project.
The utility of these multimedia rooms lies in their multifaceted design. Whether you're
looking to watch Star Wars once a day or host a space for kids, a multimedia room can be
configured for any use! Some hosts may opt for a dedicated home theater, while others focus on
televised events to create a sense of suspension of disbelief.
Lighting plays a crucial role in this flexibility, primarily in three methods: pre-show
ambience, dimming control, and automation control. A reliable lighting system ensures anyone
can use the room without the frustration of confusing controls. In the Roha theater, Lutron
remote dimming allows the space to shift from bright family gathering to full cinematic darkness
in seconds. The wow factor begins the moment you step inside — eyes drawn first to illuminated
posters, then to the glowing concession counter before settling on the projection screen. For its
customers, AVIQ considers the existing wiring system to maximize what is already available and
deliver a high-quality lighting system. While seemingly inconsequential, this approach can
produce a warm, refreshing, and inviting room.
For homeowners considering a media room upgrade, the key consideration is the budget.
Success in this compartment isn’t defined by how loud the room can deliver or the size of the
speakers; instead, it should answer the question: What is the purpose of this intended space?
Michael says, “Someone says, for example, an audio system, they go, I want it to blow my hair
back, okay? Then you move to another situation where I don't want to see speakers. I just want to
have music playing in the background.” It's the combination of sound and sight that significantly
enhances a media room, moving it beyond luxury to a worthy investment in how a home is lived in and enjoyed.