It’s Not a Midlife Crisis If You Have Room Correction.

🔊 Warning: This post contains high decibels, zero meetings, and traces of nerdiness.
What started as a fun side project in my garage turned into a full-blown home cinema – and somehow made me better at what I do for a living.
Turns out, chasing the perfect movie night teaches you a lot about AV, user experience, and why tech should just work – whether you’re in a cinema seat or a Teams Room.
🎬 Work-life balance? Some people meditate. I calibrate 🙂

My Hobby Has Nothing To Do With Work.

Except … wait … somehow … it totally DOES.

It all started with an idea: „Wouldn’t it be cool to turn the garage into a cinema?„ Fast forward a few years, and that “cool idea” turned into a full-blown passion project – complete with surround sound, acoustic treatment, a DBA of subwoofers you can feel, and the kind of vibe that makes you forget the outside world.

No PowerPoints. No meetings. No deadlines. Just a screen, sound, and that little sparkle in your eyes when everything just works.

But here’s the thing: even though it’s not a workspace, my home cinema has taught me a surprising amount about the world I do work in.

---

A Place to Disconnect… and Connect the Dots

When I step into the cinema, I switch off – but I’m still experimenting. I adjust speakers. I run room measurements. I play with DSP settings. I optimize acoustics. Not because I have to – but because I’m curious.

And in that process, I started seeing clear parallels to what I do at work: Helping people create seamless AV experiences where the technology fades into the background and the actual experience takes center stage.

Whether it’s watching Interstellar at home or joining a Microsoft Teams call in a meeting room – the core idea is the same:

Let people focus on the moment – not the tech behind it.

---

From Hobby to Community

But this hobby didn’t stop at the garage door.

As I started learning and experimenting more, I naturally began to share what I’d learned. First with friends. Then with others online. And eventually, something great happened: I connected with like-minded AV fans who also wanted to talk subs, screens, setups – and everything in between.

Today, we’re a small but passionate crew known as the Heimkino Nerds. We exchange tips, help each other improve our setups, laugh about questionable room layouts, and occasionally celebrate when someone finally gets their bass curve just right 🙂

It’s fun. It’s nerdy. It’s our kind of thing.

And it reminds me every day: Technology + Experience = Connection. Whether it’s in a home cinema… or a high-end Microsoft Teams Room.

---

So What’s the Point – Why Am I Telling You All Of This ?

My cinema was never supposed to be about work – and it still isn’t. But it fuels me. It sharpens how I think. It helps me see tech from the user’s perspective. And it reminds me what all this is really about:

Creating moments that feel effortless – no matter if you’re watching a movie, sharing an idea, or just having a conversation.

It’s about putting experience before specs, and people before platforms. Because when tech works so well that no one notices it, that’s when the real magic happens – in the cinema and in the conference room.

It’s also about curiosity. About geeking out. About testing things just because you want to know what if. And yeah – sometimes it’s about cranking the volume, shaking the walls, and smiling like a kid again.

That’s what keeps it exciting. That’s what keeps me learning. And that’s why this “just a hobby” turned out to be much more.

---

Got a passion like that?

One that unexpectedly feeds your professional mindset?

Let’s hear it – I’m always curious what drives others when they’re not “on the clock.”