From a blank floor plan to a fully calibrated Dolby Atmos theater — we walk every step with you, because the best rooms are never an accident. Two hundred theaters built. Twenty-two years in the field.
Every theater is custom, but most builds fall into one of three tiers. Scope depends on room size, structural work, and gear selection. We quote fixed scope, fixed price before anything is ordered.
Drag the room dimensions. Pick your display. Choose a surround layout from 5.1 all the way to 11.2.4 Reference Atmos. The 3D preview places every speaker where Dolby's published specs say it belongs — relative to your seats, not your walls.
Three reference points from SMPTE and THX, drawn to scale for a typical Montgomery County media room. Find the row you'll actually sit in, and the right screen size falls out of the math.
Every theater is different. We design around your room, your seating, and how you actually watch — not a template. Here's how a SWAT build comes together, from the first walk-through to the years after install.
We come out and walk the room. Ceilings, walls, HVAC, and whatever's already in the space. We ask how you watch, who's usually with you, and what the room needs to do.
We map the layout on paper first — seating, speaker placement, screen size, Atmos geometry. You see exactly what you're getting before anything is ordered or pulled.
Pre-wire, rough-in, any framing or acoustic work, and a clean rack build. Every cable gets labeled and documented so future service is simple.
We calibrate the room with measurement tools and tune it by ear. Simple scene-based control — one app, one remote — so the whole family actually uses it.
Every system comes with 24/7 remote monitoring through OVRC. Most issues get fixed before you notice. When they don't, Rick's number still works — same one from day one.
SWAT LLC is the best in the business. I used this company to install my 5.2 surround sound system and they were absolutely phenomenal. Very knowledgeable, white glove service — left my place after installation as if they were never there.— Chuck C. · Washington, DC · 5★ Yelp Review
Every project is quoted fixed-scope, fixed-price after we walk the space. The number you see after the walkthrough is the number you pay — no change orders, no surprises.
Media rooms are dual-purpose spaces with great AV gear. Dedicated theaters are single-purpose rooms with acoustic treatment, tiered seating, and full light control. Both can run Dolby Atmos — the difference is the room itself. Media rooms live inside existing architecture. Theaters are built around the sound.
For a media room, often no — soft furniture and carpet do most of the work. For a dedicated theater, yes. Bass traps in corners, absorption at first-reflection points, diffusion on the back wall. It's the single biggest difference between a room that sounds pretty good and one that sounds like a master. We treat every reference build.
A media room upgrade — typically one to two weeks. A converted dedicated room — six to ten weeks depending on construction scope. A ground-up reference theater with acoustic design — three to six months. We give you a real schedule at design lock, not a guess.
We're brand-agnostic and hold dealer accounts with virtually every major manufacturer — Trinnov, Anthem, Denon, Marantz, Sony, JVC, Kaleidescape, JL Audio, Focal, Revel, Paradigm, and more. We pick the gear that fits the room and the budget, not the gear that has the best margin. If a mid-tier Denon is the right answer, we'll tell you.
Manufacturer warranty on every piece of hardware — we handle the claim on your behalf if something fails. One year labor warranty on the install. And every OVRC-equipped system gets free 24/7 remote monitoring for life — most issues are fixed before you call. That part isn't an upsell. It comes with the install.
Every theater begins with a conversation — about how you watch, who's with you, what the room needs to be when it grows up. Tell us about the space and we'll handle everything from layout to calibration.
Real-world residential installs we do in Montgomery County run $15,000 to $80,000 depending on room scope. A dedicated theater with acoustic treatment, projector, Atmos speaker layout, and lighting control typically lands $35,000 to $55,000. A family media room with a 75-inch TV, soundbar, and integrated lighting can be $8,000 to $18,000. We scope every project to the room and the budget before quoting.
No. Most of our installs in 2026 are family media rooms — open to the kitchen or living area, dual-purpose, designed to disappear when the lights come up. Dedicated theaters are still the right call when acoustics, light control, and immersive seating matter more than dual-use. We design both.
Soundbars in 2026 are surprisingly good for casual viewing — a Sonos Arc Ultra or Bose 900 will satisfy 80% of households. A real surround system delivers genuine Dolby Atmos with overhead height channels, precise dialogue clarity, and the ability to feel the room around you during action scenes. The gap is biggest on movies; smallest on news and sports.
Yes. A real theater is a room — speakers, acoustics, lighting control, seating, and projection have to be designed together. We coordinate with builders, designers, and your existing trades. If you've got an architect on the project already, we plug into their workflow.
From contract signature to final calibration: 4 to 10 weeks. Family media rooms come together in 2 to 4 weeks. Dedicated theaters with custom millwork and acoustic build-out run 8 to 14 weeks. We stage gear in the warehouse before truck day so install week is mostly install — not waiting on backordered Sonos.