New Home Theatre - Advice, help, Suggestions (1 Viewer)

[logan8246]

I have a detached 2 story addon to my house we are building, just a small breezeway connects them. 630 square feet per floor. 1st floor is an open gameroom. Second floor has a couple of offices and one room that will soon be my Home Theatre.

The Home theatre is a fairly small space, it is 13 ft wide and 17 foot long and 9 foot ceiling with a 4 x 4 1/2 foot space off the back cornerthat I will put DVD shelves and the Media equipment (this is the space above the stairs from below)

I have been reading the "Things I wish I had done differently" thread and thought I would share my plans for my room in hope that I would not have to post on that thread in the future. (although i guess I already have one regret, and that is that I would have made the room just a foot or so wider and a few feet longer)

Here are a few pictures: (couldnt figure out how to post pictures, did a quick upload, but got an error message stating I couldnt post links yet)(tried attachment and files are to big, I will make them smaller and try and post or attach later.)

Front of room where screen will go.
I plan to build columns to enclose the Duct work going to the game room below. That should leave me roughly 11 feet between the columns for speakers and Screen.

Back of room. Hope to be able to fit two rows of seating, with the back row on a riser that I would build out of 2 X 10 and 3/4 inch plywood. to the right in the small open area would be the Media equipment and DVDs with a dedicated light switch for a single recessed light

right wall. I plan to have the door open into the hall way. Have an outlet box about 5 foot u p. I also have two on the wall opposite. I plan to build light boxes for Movie posters and wanted the cords to be hidden inside the box.

Equipment that I have or plan to purchase:
JVC dla-RS1 projector ceiling mounted. (still need to purchase)
Klipsch Speaker system - still trying to decide what models I need for this room size before purchasing.
Denon 2807 receiver (already purchased)
I have a xbox360 with HD DVD drive I use on my computer, but figure I will need to purchase a dedicated HD player. Any thoughts on this?

Screen: I read on the forum about Carada for a screen and have been looking at some of them there, but did not realize there were so many aspect ratios and have not decided on which one to go with.

Cables: Heard about Blue Jean Cables on the forum and am looking at their site also.

Buildout:
I plan to run PVC pipe in the walls for front speakers and PVC above ceiling for projector, just to make it easier to switch or add anything in the future.

I am going to try and make my own sound panels. I have been told that I can just buy some suede fabric for this. trying to decide if it should be applied directly to sheetrock or a thin plywood panel.

The bottom 3 foot of the wall will be wood and trim with the top of the wall alternating between painted sheet rock and fabric.

sorry about the length,
look forward to showing pictures and hearing any advice you may have or any flaws in my planning you want to point out.
thanks

 

[logan8246]

I have been reading for the last couple of days and just came up with a bit of concern. Any advice on the electrical needs? right now it looks like my electrician is going to have basically everything in the room on one breaker or at least all the media equipment. The lighting may end up being on a second.

Also, i only have one outlet on the wall that the screen will be on, I didnt really think I even needed that one.

I assumed the power cord for the projector would run through pvc pipe in ceiling to the media area (about a 6 ft run) and plug in there, or should I put an outlet in ceiling?

thanks

 

[Parker Clack]

As far as the screen goes Carada is a great choice. I would give David a call over there, tell him the projector you are going to get, your room size and he will give you the best choice for your room size and projector.

You can't go wrong with the cables from Blue Jeans Cables period.

If you are going to be ceiling mount the projector I would have your electrical outlet box run up to the projector. As far as the number of outlets you would need for the room that would be up to code for your area. Also, I am not an electrician but I would think that you would definitely need more than one breaker. Many people have their equipment on one breaker, the projector on another, the lighting on another. I would talk to your electrician about adding a dedicated sub panel that would have several dedicated breakers for your HT away from your main line. We do have several electricians on the site so I imagine they will jump in here with recommendations.

I would also lay a larger conduit to run your wires to your projector and from equipment to your speakers adding a bit more diameter to future proof the room and allow for upgrades in the future keeping the number of right angles of the pipe to a minimum.

I am going to increase your post count a bit so you can post images.

Parker

 

[logan8246]

Thanks Parker,
I know there is not a lot to see at the moment, but I am working on it

I will talk to my electrician about your suggestions Monday.

Screen Wall:
[url=https://static.hometheaterforum.com/imgrepo/c/c1/htf_imgcache_11861.jpeg] [/url]

Back wall with equipment cubby to the right:
[url=https://static.hometheaterforum.com/imgrepo/c/c5/htf_imgcache_11862.jpeg] [/url]

entrance:
[url=https://static.hometheaterforum.com/imgrepo/1/10/htf_imgcache_11863.jpeg] [/url]

 

[logan8246]

Struggling with what set of speakers to get. I have listened to polk, dynaudio and klipsch. Problem is, I have listened to them all at seperate stores and am really unsure of which one I liked the best. I was leaning towards the Klipsch but then read a thread in the speaker section stating that he thought they sounded to harsh in his home theatre.
I was looking to spend somewhere between $1000 to $3000 for speakers.

some of the systems I was looking at are:
Klipsch: 1 Pair RF-62, 1 Single RC-62, 1 Pair RS-52 and 1 Single RW-12 Sub
for $2644.00
Klipsch: 1 Pair RF-35, 1 Single RC-35, 1 Pair RS-35 and 1 Single RW-12 Sub
for $1999.00
I was also looking at the BIC speakers, BIC Acoustech Cinema Series 6 Speaker System which are only $799.00. Anyone heard these before?

Any suggestions in this price range or comments on the above?
Thanks,

 

[Shannon W]

You have a PM.

Shannon

 

[JJMJ71]

If you decide to go with Klipsch you should be able to pick the speakers up for less then the price that you have listed. You have to peruse the internet to find the deals, but you should beable to come out ahead.
Here is my speaker list:
2 - RF82
1 - RC62
2 - RS52
Total I spent: $1450

From all the great things I have heard about SVS subs I would check those out. Anybody that has one will tell you that they just love' em.

Hope this helps,
JJ

 

[logan8246]

Well, I made the plunge today and ordered my projector, the JVC DLA-RS1.
I got an awesome price from AVS. They just lowered the price while supplies last. I talked to 3 dealers in the Dallas Texas area and they were all wanting 5995.00 to 6295.00 so I am very happy with the price AVS gave me. If you have been putting off buying one, now might be the time. I am not sure If I am suppose to list the price, but if you want to know, let me know its ok to post and I will or you can PM me or you can call Jason at AVS.

Thanks go out to SherardP for the advice about contacting AVS on another thread. he helped me to save a bundle.

also, thanks for the info on the speakers JJ and Shannon

 

[homthtr]

What is your screen size going to be? That will determine where your video and power should go. I would just run one 5 conductor RGB cable to the projector. That is all you will ever need. Along with an Electrical outlet in the ceiling next to the video run.

 

[logan8246]

I am going to get a 110 inch screen from Carada. I need to order the speaker wire etc from blue jean tomarrrow and get the wiring done, so we can start closing in the walls. You mentioned running RGB, what about HDMI? I am going to ceiling mount the projector. So, are you suggesting that the outlet be on the bottom of the ceiling or should I build a small recessed box opening between two joist slightly behind projector?
thank

 

[logan8246]

If I am going to have a 110 inch screen, is the proper distance from the projector to the screen going to be 10.89 feet to 21.98 feet?

I was looking at the JVC DLA-RS1 manual online and that is the range they gave for wide to telephoto ( I am assuming that is what the W and T mean).


If those numbers are right, then I am going to ceiling mount the projector at the very back wall and have the outlet in the wall at the top rather than the ceiling and have the cables go through the ceiling at that point.

thanks

 

[logan8246]

Purchased speakers today. after alot of turmoil about which speakers to go with I finally decided on Klipsch.
I picked
RF82s for fronts
RC62 for center
RS52 for surround
RW 12d for sub
I am wiring for 7.1 but will just be installing 5.1 for now.

 

[logan8246]

Questions:
Attached is a diagram of the room.

1. Speaker placement:
http://www.thx.com/home/setup/speakers/71.html
http://www.dolby.com/consumer/home_e...omlayout2.html
Sound and Video recomends on a 5.1 setup to put rears on back wall

I want to wire for 7.1 but only put up 5.1 for right now. I was thinking of following the Thx.com sugestion and putting the surrounds to side of me, and then later putting two direct speakers side by side behind. The brown figures are where I was thinking of putting the spearks but that puts the dipoles 3'9" from back wall which seem to close to the rear speakers. The cubbyhole in back prevents me from equally spacing out rears unless I hang one of them from ceiling. What are you suggestions for speaker placement.

2. I was going to hang the projector center of the room about 15' 8" from the screen. Screen was going to be hung 5' 10" from floor to center of screen (DIY Network suggestion for screen placement) with a 8 inch riser in back. Does this sound ok?

3. Seating: I was going to put one couch against back wall and the 1st row at about 12 feet from screen, but I read in a thread that if I put back row against back wall, this will not be good acoustacally. If this is true, what is the minimum distance I should have back row from wall?

4. In the back cubby, where I will have equipment, do you think I should build a pocket door or something there. I dont have any AC Vents dropping into that section and was going to leave it open because of that. Could maybe build a partial wall or something or have a vent added.


Are these going overboard?

How to build a riser
http://www.audioholics.com/tweaks/do...ter-seat-riser

DIY Network
insulating walls by alternating bat insulation with fiberglass board insulation.



Thanks for you help, I have been trying to wire everything up and build columns last couple of days, but when I got ready to run the rear wires, I started having doubts. Thanks again.

Richard[url=https://static.hometheaterforum.com/imgrepo/3/32/htf_imgcache_12670.jpeg] [/url]

 

[JJMJ71]

Since you are working with limited space for the back couch I would keep it against the back wall. You have to consider the front couch as the sweet spot for watching movies. The way my 5.1 system is setup in my living room is basically the same as what you are talking about. I have my couch against the back wall and the speakers are at the back two corners of the couch.

So for your 7.1 placement I would leave your RS-52's along the side how you have it now and put the back speakers along the back wall equally spaced apart. So looking at the screen to your back right side of you, I would place the speaker 5' in and do the same for the other side of the room. If I am figuring correctly by your diagram you should have about 3' 6" between the two back speakers then.

What is going to be behind the wall that the back couch will be sitting against? Because you could mount the projector on the other side of the wall and have a 6" X 6" up to a 12" by 12" hole that the projector could send the image through. Kinda would look like an actual theater. From the other side you could have that as a closet and mount the A/V rack in the wall and have access to it from the closet then. You could always shelf mount the projector on the back wall, which would be easier to setup. Another thought for the A/V rack would be put a wall across the opening of the cubby hole and mount the rack in the wall. Then put a small access door from either the theater side of the room or the room adjoining it.

I hope I helped you to some degree, I really am not trying to make it more difficult than it already might be.

I am sure that other people can chime in on other possibilities for your setup!

Cheers,
JJ

 

[logan8246]

Hey JJ,
Behind the wall is stairs down, I had thought about building a shelf that went across the top of the stairway that I could put the projector in as you were saying but in the end, decided to ceiling mount it instead. The Theatre is actually part of a 2 story add on we are doing to the house, 1260 square feet total. posted a couple of floor plans showing the layout.

I used to manage a pizza place down in houston and I used to trade pizzas for tickets and posters with the local theatre. Occasionally they would let me into the poster room for some posters. Currently i have about 40 double sided movie poster and 2 Big Vinyl poster (one of The disney movie "The Rookie" and the other is "Sorority Boys") I decided to hang the Rookie vinyl on the wall you would be looking at as you head down stairs. Another reason I blew off the in wall shelf.
First Floor gameroom
[url=https://static.hometheaterforum.com/imgrepo/e/e8/htf_imgcache_12674.jpeg] [/url]
Second floor
[url=https://static.hometheaterforum.com/imgrepo/3/3f/htf_imgcache_12675.jpeg] [/url]

thanks for the info
Richard

 

[logan8246]

Finished building the columns around my AC Duct, and running all my wiring.
[url=https://static.hometheaterforum.com/imgrepo/a/a0/htf_imgcache_12876.jpeg] [/url]

Also ran all my wiring from ceiling down through PVC. Put in bracing to hang speakers and projector from.
[url=https://static.hometheaterforum.com/imgrepo/8/82/htf_imgcache_12877.jpeg] [/url] [url=https://static.hometheaterforum.com/imgrepo/7/70/htf_imgcache_12878.jpeg] [/url]

I am ready to start putting insulation in walls and sheetrocking, I am still a little confused about how to go about doing the wall treatments.
I know the front wall is suppose to be dead, all absortion. To do this, do I insulate it, hang my sheetrock, then put OC 703 on next and cover it with GOM or some other fabric?

Do I need to do some kind of treatment on the columns or can I just sheetrock them?

For the side walls, If i do treatment from the floor to ear level, does that mean I dont have to use the mirror trick to find the first reflection and put panels up?

Thanks

 

[logan8246]

Tape, Mud and Texture will be finished Sunday, we will then start painting this week, I hope to have everything finished within the next 2 or 3 weeks. I will try to post some pictures of our progress here in a day or two.

 

[logan8246]

Pick up a PS 3 60 GB today from best buy. Pick the 60gb for backwards compatibility via hardware rather than the 80 gb which uses software emulation. So now I am HD neutral. Total system now consist of the following
________________________________
JVC DLA RS1 1080P Projector
Denon 2807 receiver
XBox 360 With HD-DVD Drive (1080I)
Playstation 3 60GB (1080P)
Klipsch RF82s for fronts
Klipsch RC62 for center
Klipsch RS52 for surround
Klipsch RW 12d for sub
110 in carada bright white screen

 

[logan8246]

Well, we still have a ways to go to finish everything, but have most of it to usable point. We still have a lot of touch up paint, caulking, etc to do, but since we are doing most of it, it will take some time. I have included some pictures this time. If you look, you can see our pond through the window (pool table picture). I stocked it with Catfish and BlueGill back in march. Some of the catfish are hitting about 1.5 to 2.5 pounds now.

Gameroom:
still need chair rail, base and crown molding, all of which will be stained like the wood on the stairway. Still need wood blinds and a little touch up paint.






I never could find a DLA-RS1 projector that I could see being used. So I had to go on the reviews and just buy it blind.
I could not be happier. The picture on it is incredible


Media Room:
Need base and crown molding (stained), 2 Light boxes for movie posters (They will go over the plugs on wall about 4 ft up), Sound panels, Trim out columns on both sides of the movie screen, hang Curtains both sides of screen. Home depot still needs to finish carpet install on riser (I have remnants on it right now.) Need end tables and new seating (using some old couches I had for now), build a media cabinet and shelving in cuby hole at back of room





________________________________
JVC DLA RS1 1080P Projector
Denon 2807 receiver
XBox 360 With HD-DVD Drive (1080I)
Playstation 3 60GB (1080P)
Klipsch RF82s for fronts
Klipsch RC62 for center
Klipsch RS52 for surround
Klipsch RW 12d for sub
110 in carada bright white screen

 

[JJMJ71]

Your theater came out really nice! Now that you have the Klipsch in the room, what do you think of them? I will give you a report on the sound of my room once I get the last few acoustic panels up. The panels that I have up for the first reflection points seem to definitely help.

Are you running a 2.35 aspect ratio screen by any chance or is the picture just messing with my mind? I was thinking about going with that format, but I knew we would be watching HD TV on the projector also and our projector is 16:9 native.

Cheers,
JJ