New construction home basement theater (1 Viewer)

[NGreen08]

Hi all,
I had a new construction home built 2019/2020, but did not have the basement finished during construction because at the time the money tree was running out and didn't have a solid plan on what was going on with the space. Fast forward to now almost all wall construction is complete. I am looking to add a theater in a large space but I am very new to the home theater setup. I have attached a rough sketch of the space and will make a better one in Autocad once time allows. I am seeking feedback and help on setting up this area to be the best it can be for movies/games. I do not have any of the components or brands picked out for anything. I am open to any suggestions on paths to take. Room is 16x22 with 9 ft ceilings.
Here is what I am planning so far.
Screen - Electric retractable in ceiling.
Projector - Short throw 4k
Speakers - ceiling preferred (rear wall is open to wet bar area)
Component cabinet - in wall with smoked glass door.
Wiring - "smurf tube" for upgrades.
Insulation - safe n' sound rockwool.
Lighting - Leviton smart switches with can lighting
Shades - smart blackout shades
Remote - harmony elite

There is so much more to do, but I don't know what next steps I need to take to keep this project moving forward. TIA

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

Welcome to HTF, Nicholas!

Offhand, I'm wondering why retractable screen since this is a dedicated space in basement. Retractable usually means compromise to quality (on top of higher cost and setup/maintenance trickiness). Unless that's a definite must-have (typically in a mixed-use living space/room, not dedicated space in basement), I'd say don't do that.

Also, don't go for all in/on-ceiling (or even in-wall, especially for the front channels) unless absolutely necessary (other than for as-intended Atmos ceiling channels/speakers). Most of them should ideally be at listener height/level, not high up on walls/ceilings, and the front channels will usually be best w/ freestanding speakers -- given your room size, you could set up a false wall w/ acoustically transparent screen to hide those front speakers... as that may yield the best results.

How many rows of seats do you intend? 2 rows? What kind of gaming?

For PJ, don't do short throw unless you really cannot install it overhead. Short throw PJs usually compromise quality... although they're probably good for extra brightness (on top of the setup flexibility) that might often be needed in a mixed-use living space/room... which shouldn't apply in this case.

_Man_

 

[JohnRice]

I strongly suggest against in-ceiling speakers, except for the Atmos ones, as Man said. That will ruin the entire project.

The component area needs to have ventilation. That’s important.

 

[NGreen08]

Thank you for your replies so far. As far as the screen I do plan to use it as a living room as well but that will be the “tv” for down there so I am not opposed to a fixed screen if that would be a better option.
With the rear wall open I was trying to avoid wiring running along the floor so that was why the thought was ceiling speakers.
There is a 2x6 wall framed inside the exterior wall on the screen side.
I have not really thought of seating, but want it to be something for the family/kids and their friends to come and enjoy as well.
I plan to do a ceiling mount projector, knowing the long throws are better I will plan for that.
I have added a pic of the space that may help (never mind the mess of lumber/tools)

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

So is that a current pic and the dry walls/ceiling aren't in place yet? If so, you can just run much of the wiring behind the dry walls and inside/above the ceiling. Shouldn't need to run them along the floor. I guess you can hang speakers off the ceiling just for the (2) rear surrounds if you must -- that should probably only be necessary if you plan to have a very deep, substantial space in the rear for something other than HT usage (and probably more than just a bar or the like). But the rest (of the front and side channel speakers) should generally be seated audience level, not high up on walls/ceiling.

_Man_

 

[JohnRice]

If you can run speaker wire through the ceiling for in-ceiling speakers, then you can run it to a small conduit to come down from the ceiling to small shelves that have the side and rear speakers on them. Or, run it from the ceiling down inside the wall. Just use CL2 wire, even if code doesn't require it. The additional cost is negligible and it will last a lot longer.

It's extremely common for people to come here planning on a very elaborate home theater, but wanting to severely compromise it by using in-ceiling or in-wall speakers when conventional speakers will be significantly better, offer a lot more options and honestly just as easy (actually, easier) to incorporate into the room.

 

[Wardog555]

https://www.dolby.com/siteassets/technologies/dolby-atmos/atmos-installation-guidelines-121318_r3.1.pdf

Ear level base layer or as close as possible is critical to the atmos experience.

Dolby atmos has TWO layers of speakers. One is the base layer that is the traditional 5.1 etc and there's a second layer of overhead usually ceiling based speakers.

The thought of ceiling speakers for everything is mind boggling and shows a absence of piriotizing the home theater experience.

Hope this helps.