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Sound system for man cave/garage info needed (1 Viewer)

scot9055

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First and foremost I am a newbie and have a minimal understanding on sound systems and entertainment set ups so with that said if anyone cares to offer any advice its greatly appreciated.

I have a shop that I have built for my so called man cave. I am looking to set it up with a decent sound system for cook outs and general gatherings. Nice sound system and would like to tie in the tv to it as well. Building is 100x60 but I only intend to set up in one end say 45'x25' with speakers and such. Also have an outside patio 25x60 to put in a few speakers and would like individual volume control for outside

Thanks ahead of time
Scott

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schan1269

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Are you amenable to the idea of foldable walls to enclose an area off for movies?Think the collapsible walls many high schools have.
 

scot9055

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No just an open area to hang out, just have people over from time to time to shake a leg.
 

Robert_J

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scot9055 said:
No just an open area to hang out, just have people over from time to time to shake a leg.
A small pro audio/PA system is all you need. It's tougher so it can survive in the elements. Yes, it's a shed/garage but the temperature and humidity swings are much larger than in the home. Go to Guitar Center (online or in a store) or Musician's Friend (online only) and look at the Behringer PA systems. If you just want to feed it music from an iPhone then all you need is a simple mixer. Get an amp or use powered monitors (depends on how close you are putting this to an outlet. If your budget allows, get a sub.

One thing to remember, the quality of the source matters. I have a friend that uses his iPhone as a source on his setup he brings out for parties and BBQ's (think Memphis in May tents). He commented to me that even though he bought all new equipment, the sound was still the same. Well, he was using music downloaded from the iStore (or whatever you Apple guys call it) at 92kbps. The bit rate was way, way too low. I used my phone as a source with music in Windows Media Audio format ripped from my CD collection at 320kbps and it sounded awesome.

Your garage looks awesome. I missed my college frat's alumi crawfish cookout last weekend and it was held in a similar type place. From the pictures, the karaoke looked to be the most popular aspect of the sound system.
 

scot9055

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Thats good info, but I wish there was a vendor on here that could throw out some part numbers so I could just kinda order all in some sort of kit form where it was all match up corretly!!
 

schan1269

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Match up cotrectly?Ohm load is all you care about. Buy a Behringer amp good to 2 ohm and buy whatever speakers You want.There are only two specs.OhmEfficiencyOn a building that size, I wouldn't buy anything under 95db. 98-101 would be ideal.
 

schan1269

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Since you haven't provided a budget...How about one of the several Mackie Thump packages from Guitar Center.Online in their "DJ Kit" dropdown.Anywhere from $500 to $1800.
 

Type A

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Nice shop and welcome to the forum Scott. I have to wonder what kind of end result you will get in a space like that. With so many hard surfaces, right angles and a large space my guess is the acoustic reflections, echo and surface vibrations will be extremely strong. I like Sam's idea of isolating a smaller area with partitions, seems to me that will go a long ways towards acoustic control. Spend all you like on the gear but in my opinion making that room perform, acoustically, will be the biggest challenge by far.
 

scot9055

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THANKS guys I appreciate the insight. Im definetely going to be looking at the dj kits I just didn't want to end up buying some stuff that wouldn't work together. Im a nuts and bolts kinda guy. OHMS and certain types of wires don't register a whole lot with me.Huge thanksScott
 

schan1269

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This is simpler than it sounds. In pro gear there are, essentially, two connector types...XLR (which has male/female)1/4And...there are 1/4 to XLR cables and male/female adapters. So if you were to just buy a big ole pair of "on sale" powered speakers and pick up "just some basic mixer"...You just have to buy the right cable.
 

JohnRice

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I agree with Robert about the need to dampen the sound, somehow. If all you want is music and 2 channel audio from a TV, as others have already said, PA type speakers and a PA amp. They are tough and built to fill large spaces like that. No home speaker is really designed for a 6K SF room with, what, 12-16' ceilings? You can go to guitar Center or online.

A reasonably priced speaker would be something like this Peavey. That's just a very general suggestion. You need two for each location.

An amp can be something like this Behringer.

I would suggest this DAC as source selector/pre-amp. I have one and it does an incredible job with compressed music files and it has XLR outputs, so it will easily connect to the amp.

For a second system, I would just duplicate this one and take it outdoors when you want to use it. There are several ways to connect them wirelessly. If you already have a wireless router, then you are half way there. An AppleTV in each system and iPhone, iPad and/or iPod Touch is one way, but not the only one.
 

scot9055

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Would this system sound good and do these speakers have good high and mid range sounds to go along with those 15" woofers?1of these Behringer EUROPOWER EP4000 Professional 4,000-Watt Stereo Power Amplifier with Atr 4 of these Peavey PV 215 Dual 15" 2-Way PA Speaker1 of these XDA-2 USB DAC/Digital Preamp/Headphone Amp
 

Robert_J

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Would this system sound good
Although we haven't auditioned these speakers, we wouldn't recommend something that sounds like crap. Most of us are recommending the same equipment we would buy if we were outfitting our man cave using the same requirements as you.
do these speakers have good high and mid range sounds to go along with those 15" woofers?
Those Peaveys look a lot like the ones in a club I frequent on Bourbon Street. The highs will make your ears bleed (figuratively speaking).

4 of those along with the Behringer amp (I have one in my home theater) will be more than enough sound for your entire cave.
 

JohnRice

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Just one note, using that DAC as a preamp gives a lot of flexibility but the system will only work with digital sources. I figured that wasn't likely to be an issue these days, and it really does an amazing job with comressed and uncompressed files. If you incorporate a disc player, you just want to make sure you get one with a digital audio (not just hdmi) output. The cheaper ones don't always have that.
 

Robert_J

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I'd suggest a cheap Behringer mixer with a mic input so that there can be sing-a-longs. I missed my frat's alumni crawfish boil this year but looking at pictures, the more the beer flowed the more guys wanted to sing. It was also held in a shop similar to this except with tractors and other farming implements.
 

JohnRice

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...that would also allow you to make announcements over the system.
 

scot9055

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Well I hope this goes well, this is what I got for my shop.4 of these Peavey PV215 2-Way Dual 15 Inch Speaker Cabinet 1 of these Behringer EUROPOWER EP4000 Professional 4,000-Watt Stereo Power Amplifier with Atr (Accelerated Transient Response) Technology 2 x 2,000 Watts into 2 Ohms; 2 x 1,400 Watts into 4 Ohms; 4,000 Watts into 4 Ohms (bridge mode)Precise Power, Signal and Clip LEDs to monitor performanceXLR and 1/4" TRS input connectors for compatibility with any sourceProfessional speaker connectors and "touch-proof" binding posts support most speaker wiring systemsSelectable low-frequency filters (30 Hz or 50 Hz) remove distracting infra-sound frequencies1 of these XDA-2 USB DAC/Digital Preamp/Headphone Amp The XDA-2 connects to all your digital music sources—computer, media player, CD transport, and more—and delivers audiophile-quality sound. With its precision analog resistor ladder volume control that maintains resolution even at low volumes, the XDA-2 is an ideal digital preamp. At the same time, its discrete, high-current headphone amplifier drives headphones with authority.Also got all the proper cables and related hardware. I20 connector, etc etc etc This stuff gets expensive and quick!!! Hope is rocks. Thanks for all the insight from you fellasScot
 

JohnRice

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That should do the trick. You may find you need a small item or two depending on what your music sources are.

Actually, what music sources do you plan to use? You never said.
 

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