Another Newbie with HT questions (1 Viewer)

Man is there a ton of information here. Please bear with me as I am totally new to the home theater experience. I have been reading the posts for the past week and would like to run some things by the members.

I have a family room that I want to make a “home theater”. My wife is currently in the process of making new window coverings lined with black out fabric. The 7’ entrance from the kitchen will be hidden with a velvet curtain to give it the movie theater look.

I am interested in a front projector system (after seeing the screen shots here). The area of the room I plan to put the system is 18’ wide (with a cathedral ceiling). The screen will go between 2 built-in book shelves which is 6’ wide, wide enough for an 80” diagonal screen, and 1 ½’ deep. The first row of chairs will be at 12’ and the second behind that. The projector will need to be mounted near the back wall (with enough room for ventilation) which is 16’ from the screen. If this will not work with the projector mentioned below, I guess I could put it on a table.

I am looking at an entry level system to start (to keep the wife somewhat happy) so here are my ideas: Sanyo Z1/Boxlight Matinee 1HD (same thing from what I read), home made screen (following thread on AVS), and a Onkyo system HTS 760 with DV-SP301 (single disk DVD, or should I go with the DVCP701 (6 disk). Can speakers be laid on their sides to fit in a bookshelf (I told you I was new to this)?

Am I going in the right direction? Is there anything I am missing (I’m sure there is)? Any other entry level projector suggestions? (New Epson Home 10 looks ok but no better specs than Sanyo/Boxlight). Should I put the screen in the back or front of recessed area (viewing from around the room does not seem to be blocked by the recess. Would it help to paint the recessed area black?

Thanks for a great site!

The PLV-Z1 has a short throw distance, so 16' is too far to get an 80" picture. I don't own one yet though, that will be coming in a few months.

You should get a better sound system that an HTIB (home theater in a box) like that one. Get a decent receiver and some good speakers from a company like Paradigm. A real subwoofer is also a home theater necessity, look at SVS or Adire. Of course this is going to cost more than the HTIB, but the results will be a far superior and more enjoyable sound system.