The Home Theater You've Imagined, Installed in Your Cary Home
Intelligent Electronics has handled home theater installation in Cary, NC, and across the Triangle since 1994, along with the smart home automation and whole-home audio video that connect every room.
Your Home Is Ready for Its Next Chapter
Most Cary projects start with a home you already love. Maybe it's the bonus room that turned into storage. Maybe it's a new addition, or a remodel that finally opens up the kitchen. We see these projects often in neighborhoods like Preston and MacGregor Downs. Whatever you have planned, now is the right time to think about technology.
If possible, it’s best to plan your home theater and multi-room AV at the beginning of a remodel. When we arrive early to a project, we can easily install new wires and hide equipment without clashing with existing designs or reopening walls. Adding technology after the drywall goes up often means more compromises and a bigger bill.
When installing your home theater system, we always consider how it fits with your whole house. Every room you upgrade is integrated into a single control platform, from the theater to the speakers on your back porch. Managing everything is as simple as one command.
Want to see what's possible? Browse our gallery, then visit our Raleigh showroom to try everything in person before you decide.
Find the Right Theater for Your Space
A home theater installation often starts with one question: which room should it be in? Many Cary homes have a bonus room over the garage, which works very well as a theater space. It sits apart from the bedrooms and usually doesn’t require structural changes, though we can incorporate necessary room changes into our design process.
Every theater we design starts with acoustics, which is how sound travels and settles in your room. We configure audio systems and acoustic treatments for your space, aiming for the ideal level of immersion with no echo or loss. From there, we plan lighting and seating around the way you watch. Equipment stays hidden in a cabinet or nearby closet. When we connect the theater to your automation system, one tap sets the room for movie night.
Dedicated Theater Room
Ideal Use
Movie nights and big games with no distractions
Immersion
Full cinema experience
Construction
Most involved, often new walls and soundproofing
Seating
Tiered theater recliners
Media or Bonus Room
Ideal Use
Family movies and gaming
Immersion
High, with room for other uses
Construction
Moderate, and a natural fit for bonus rooms
Seating
Recliners or a theater sectional
Living or Great Room Theater
Ideal Use
Everyday viewing where your family already gathers
Immersion
Balanced with daily living
Construction
Light, working with existing walls
Seating
Custom sectional or your current furniture
Compare every format on our home theater page.
One App Runs the Whole House
Large homes in Cary come with a lot to manage. Home automation brings it together, so you manage the entire house from one app or keypad. This intelligent system trims energy use when rooms sit empty and gives you peace of mind when you're away. You don’t need a remodel or new build to start a smart home installation, either. We retrofit technology into your existing space, protecting your décor with a clean design.
Lighting Control
Set the mood in any room with one tap, or put lights on a schedule so they adjust automatically throughout the day.
Motorized Shades
Block the harsh afternoon sun and protect floors and furniture from fading. Automated schedules raise or lower every shade at once.
Climate
Cool the house down before you get home with one tap on your phone.
Security and Cameras
Check doors and cameras from anywhere, day or night.
Whole-Home Wi-Fi
Strong coverage in every room, all the way out to the patio.
Remote Access
Manage the whole house from your phone while you travel.
See how it all works on our smart home automation page.
Music and Video in Every Room You Love
Whole house audio video in Cary, NC, connects your favorite rooms to one central system. Stream any show to any TV. Play one playlist from the kitchen out to the pool. If you prefer not to see any hardware, we install speakers inside walls and ceilings and hide the equipment in a hidden rack.
- Kitchen: Background music while you cook, plus a TV that disappears when you don't need it.
- Primary Suite: Wake up to your morning playlist or wind down with a favorite show.
- Home Office: Clear sound for video calls and focus music in between.
- Home Gym: Workout music and a screen for classes, all run from your phone.
- Outdoor Living: Weather-rated speakers for the screened porch and pool deck.
Cary summers are long and warm, so outdoor audio gets plenty of use from April through October. Learn more on our whole house audio video page.
See It and Hear It Before You Decide
Our local showroom is about ten minutes from Cary. Walk in during business hours, or book a private tour and we'll have everything set up for you. Inside, you can watch a film in two working home theaters with Sony projectors and Paradigm speakers. One is built for dark rooms and the other for rooms with some daylight. Sit in theater recliners and pick your fabric. Bring your favorite music to the speaker studio and hear ten different speakers side by side. Then test our control systems to find the one that feels right. Builders and designers are welcome to bring clients along.
A Technology Partner That Keeps Your Build on Schedule
As an experienced home theater company, we partner with builders, architects, and interior designers across Cary and the Triangle. We work around your timeline and your design, meeting the quotes and delivery dates we give you.
As early as you can. The ideal time is before pre-wire. We'll review the plans with you and mark every speaker and screen location. Then we set wiring and mounting boxes during rough-in, the stage when framing is still open.
We plan around your finishes. Speakers can sit flush in the ceiling or hide behind fabric. Equipment can live in a closet instead of the living room. You approve the look, and we handle the engineering behind it.
You'll have one project contact who keeps you updated at each stage. We coordinate with your trades on site, so no one waits on us.
We program the system and walk your clients through it room by room. They get training at completion and support long after move-in day.
Frequently Asked Questions
Cost depends mostly on the type of room and the equipment you choose. A living room theater that works with existing walls costs far less than a dedicated room with new construction and soundproofing. A consultation gives you a clear estimate for your space.
Yes. A bonus room over the garage is one of the best theater spaces in a Cary home. Sound treatment keeps movie audio from carrying into nearby bedrooms. These rooms tend to run warm, so extra cooling may be needed. Lighting control lets you dim the room without leaving your seat.
Many Cary HOAs have guidelines for exterior equipment, so check your neighborhood's rules early in planning. We can install landscape speakers that blend into planting beds and tuck speakers under the eaves. We'll plan the layout around your HOA's requirements.
North Carolina requires low-voltage and AV wiring to be installed by a contractor licensed through the state's electrical licensing board. Intelligent Electronics handles the licensing and any required permits for your project.
Start with a mix of wireless and in-ceiling speakers. Most homes can get full coverage with very little wall work:
- Sonos streaming speakers need only a power outlet.
- In-ceiling speakers often install from the attic.
- Closets and crawl spaces give wires a hidden path.
- Small, sealed openings bring outdoor speakers online.
Look for a system built to handle a home of your size. It should run everything from a single app, and it needs to work reliably every day. We install Control4, a platform built to manage large homes from one app or keypad.
Yes. We work directly with builders and interior designers on remodels throughout Cary. We join early to plan wiring around your timeline. Then we keep your whole team updated through every stage, right up to handoff.
Start with the room, how you'll use it, and when to plan it. A dedicated room gives the full cinema experience. A bonus room or great room trades some immersion for everyday use. Think about how much daylight the room gets, how far sound will carry to the bedrooms, and where the equipment will be hidden. If you're remodeling, bring us in before the walls close so the wiring stays hidden. Then visit our showroom to compare screens, speakers, and seating in person.
Plan Your Cary Home Theater or Automation Project
Tell us about your space and how you'd like it to work. We'll call to talk through your goals and timeline, then set up a showroom visit or an in-home walkthrough. We serve Cary and the surrounding Triangle. Ready to talk now? Call us at (919) 481-4224.