For the devoted, Star Trek is a way of life. There are no fans more loyal than Trekkies. And just like every fanbase, Trekkies show their admiration by building shrines.
Any orthodox Trekkie will tell you building a shrine means one thing: a badass home theater. We’ve assembled five of our favorite Star-Trek-themed home theaters. From DIY projects to state-of-the-art home installations, Star Trek home theaters boast some pretty impressive features. We’re not alone after all.
The USS Bell
Within one ultra-exclusive gated Florida community exists a 35,000-square-foot mansion that feels a little like your very own private resort. The owner is Marc Bell, a producer and former owner of FriendFinder Networks (parent company to Penthouse), who happens to be a verifiable Trekkie. His home theater, named USS Bell, features a movie theater, full bar, and a Ready Room. This is just one of the standouts of Bell’s “complex” that also has a Call of Duty gaming room, nine-car garage, and its own personal arcade.
The Bridge: DIY Star Trek home theater
This Philadelphia-area home takes the Star Trek home theater idea to a new level. Not only does this look and feel like the Starship Enterprise, it’s a completely DIY project of homeowner Gary Reighn, who spent two years designing and building this 19-by-14-foot theater. The entire project cost around $15,000. Not bad for a space ship, right?
The Evergreen Ultimate Home Theater
Next up is one of the most expensive Trekkie home theaters out there. This one seats nine and even has an official name: “The Evergreen Ultimate Home Theater.” That word ultimate seems appropriate, but we wouldn’t go so far to say that this one aspires to replicate the specs of the Starship Enterprise. It does, however, provide plenty of A/V brawn, including a horde of monitors along the perimeter and ultra-plush chairs. They’ve even outfitted this home theater with concert-type lighting and motorized entryway doors.
Mike Schroeder’s videophile Star Trek shrine
Mike Schroeder didn’t skimp on the tech when he built his 20-by-50-foot home theater. The Star Trek home theater includes a $130,000 projector from Digital Projection and soundproof wall panels borrowed from airplanes (thus the Starship vibe). The bottom line here is this: It’s better than almost anything else out there, including most professional theaters. Schroeder also hung the ceiling on two-inch springs to completely soundproof the room and provide a killer interstellar ceiling design. We say, turn it up.
Trekking out an entire apartment
It took 10 years for Tony Alleyne to build the Trekkie apartment of his dreams. When the former DJ lost his job, he became an interior designer and used his own apartment as an example of just how far a little elbow grease can take you. He transformed this Leicestershire, UK apartment from average to Starship Enterprise, but not without conflict. The entire project cost an estimated $150,000. Even worse, when Alleyne divorced his wife (who owned the apartment), she ordered him to take down all the glorious Trekkie designs.
