In this article
What TV backlighting does
A bright screen on a dark wall is hard on the eyes. Your pupils keep adjusting between the picture and the darkness around it, and after a movie your eyes feel it. Bias lighting — a soft, even light on the wall behind the TV — gives your eyes a reference point, so the strain drops and blacks on the screen actually look deeper by comparison.
It also looks great. A wall-mounted TV with a gentle glow behind it looks finished, especially against wood slat panels — and it works behind a multi-screen media wall too. Our TV LED backlight installation fits the strip, powers it neatly and sets it up so it just works.
Placement: why it's worth doing right
An LED strip stuck right at the edges of the TV makes a harsh outline and hot spots. Stuck too far in, the light doesn't reach the wall evenly. We place the strip a couple of inches in from the edges, in one continuous run, with proper corner connectors or neat bends, so the wall gets a smooth halo rather than bright lines.
Wall-mounted TVs are ideal: the gap between the TV and the wall lets the light spread. A fixed mount gives a tight, even glow; a tilting or full-motion mount gives a wider, softer one.
Power: the detail that makes it convenient
The best setup is one you never think about: the lights come on with the TV and go off with it. Most TVs have a USB port that's only powered while the TV is on, and a USB-powered strip plugged into it does exactly that. Some TVs keep USB powered in standby; there, we use a smart plug or the strip's own auto-on feature.
Either way, the strip's controller and cable are tucked behind the TV, and any extra power runs with the TV's cables — see TV cable concealment.
Rather have a pro do it?
Send a request — we'll confirm the exact price and a time that suits you by text or call. 3-year warranty on every install.
Color and brightness
For film and accurate color, the reference is neutral white near D65 (around 6500 K), set to roughly 10% of the screen's brightness. That's what we set by default. If you want color — to match the room, for gaming, or strips that follow what's on screen — we'll set that up in the strip's app instead.
Pair it with the rest of the setup
LED backlighting is a natural add-on to the same visit as a TV wall mounting, a soundbar or a floating shelf. If you have a Samsung The Frame, a soft backlight completes the gallery look — see Frame TV installation.
LED backlight installation in our regions
We install TV backlighting in Miami, Los Angeles, Dallas, Las Vegas, Houston, Atlanta, Chicago, San Diego, Charlotte, Salt Lake City, Seattle and Raleigh–Durham, with same-day slots and the same price everywhere.
