Now, there's a reason people go to movie theaters, and it's one that likely factors into why I remember that part of my childhood so well. Watching movies in a cinema is nothing like the experience at home. At least, it was not back then. The big screen was essential to "losing yourself" in the fabricated reality of a big studio production. But, contributing just as much to the success of this movie magic was the concept of surround sound--having the aural component of the experience assault you from multiple directions at once. If I was an engineer I'd probably tell you that, by combining the sound from a number of separated speakers in a coordinated way, it is possible to create a spatial imaging component to the movie-going experience that your television just cannot reproduce. In layman's terms: surround sound just pulls you into the screen.
Today, wireless surround sound systems exist to do exactly this in your home theater, helping to reduce the difference between the movie house and "in house" movie viewing. More exciting, however, has been the recent development of an audio technology much simpler than any wireless surround sound system. I'm talking about tactile transducers, or Bass Shakers, as they are more commonly known. Instead of depending on a wireless surround sound system to deliver the sensation of "being there", tactile transducers generate very low frequency vibrational energy that can literally be felt throughout your body. Bass shakers allow you to experience every thump, thrust and shaking motion that the characters in your movies are feeling. By attaching a transducer to a solid surface, like the hardwood backing of a home theater lounger, these vibrations pack an emotional wallop when the storyline action steps up.
When that *thing* jumps out of the closet on screen, you'll be jumping out of your chair! When those naval guns start pounding in "Sink the Bismarck", or that T-Rex bellows in "Jurassic Park", you'll feel it in your bones. Once you have experienced a Bass Shaker at play, that plain old home theater surround sound system simply will no longer be enough for you.
If you are really adventurous, handy with tools, and have lots of time on your hands, you can buy tactile transducers separately and install them any place where you might also hook up ordinary speakers, including inside your car, if you like. But for the rest of us there is an easier option. Wireless Bass Shakers are built into many models of home theater loungers, including the Metro, Garrick, Este, and Rodeo models found on HomeTheaterSeatingGuide.com. No wires, no installation, no fuss. In fact, there's no need even to send your kids off to the movie theater by themselves anymore. Not when your family can share together all the thrills, and now spills, of modern day movie viewing in the comfort of your own home theater.