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What would you add to your new home theater?


cornfedksboy

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So I humbly suggested to my wife that we create a dedicated theater room in our basement, and shockingly she agreed!!! The room will be 11 X 22 with 8 foot ceilings (except for about 4 foot where the duct work and beam are located bisecting slightly off center). The entrance is towards the rear and currently only studs are in place.

I have some questions if anyone can help:

Since the room will be directly below my son's room and the master, we need some good sound absorption. What would be a cost effective way to treat the ceiling and walls?

Do I need to be concerned with the 11 X 22 dimensions as being 2 squares? Will I need to build up something in the back?

I will have a side wall where components could be accessed from the rear. Is this recommended?

Any other things you wish you had added to your room at square one? What am I not thinking about?

I have a reasonable budget, but I do need to keep the mods light in case we need to sell and have to convert the area back into the two bedrooms it was probably intended for.

Thanks in advance!

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I'd put in lots of hookups in the walls. I'd say 3 sets of double speaker (for possible bi amp) for the front wall, 3 sets of one speaker posts along the other 3 walls for current and future surrounds (9 total), a subwoofer (rca) in each corner of the room, a giant plate or 2 with plug ins for everything that comes out of your reciever including the 4 sub inputs from the corners, 12 gauge in wall rated speaker wire for all speaker hook ups, a tube going from the reciever area to the projector with fish wire for hdmi cables, a power outlet in the ceiling for the projector. I may be missing a few things but this is a good start to think about what you need. I bought all of the above from monoprice (best place by far for price) for around $400.

I didn't finish my room yet but the dimensions were 12 X 21 so pretty similar to yours.

I would seriously consider getting a acoustically transparent screen and putting your front 3 speakers behind it so you can go bigger with your screen size. Make sure you can block out all light for movies. People have made nice acoustically transparent screens in the 150 inch (diagonal 16:9) size for around $400.

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Thanks for the advice!! The items you mentioned for the future add-ons is WAY more than I anticipated. I hadn't considered the 6 speaker posts up front, but I like it! Nine surrounds seems extreme in a room this size, or am I just not enough of a visionary? Four subs IS too much for me as I don't think I want THAT much bass in my basement. I was thinking two, one on each side wall.

You said "a giant plate or 2 with plug ins for everything that comes out of your receiver," what does that accomplish if I am running all of my wires through the wall and ceiling?

Roughly how far from my front wall should I position my projector for a 100 inch screen?

What did you use or would you recommend for sound absorption?

Thanks,

Jason

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ha ha. I said 4 plug ins for subs not 4 subs. If you start looking into subs, you'll find that sub placement is everything. You just want to have a lot of options to place the sub in different places without running cords all over the place.

The wall plate is just a bunch of different hook ups that serves as a pass thru from the outside of the wall to the inside of the wall. When you look at monoprice you'll see what I'm talking about. Basically your speaker outputs plug into the wall plate from your receiver and run inside the wall to another wallplate where you'll plug in your speakers. You will be buying all the bananna clips (the plug ins for your speakers to your reciever on one end and to your speakers on the other end) for your speakers at monoprice, they make all of the hooking up super easy. They come in bigger "plate like" structures that have all the hookups that you have on the back of your receiver. Some are enough for 5.1 some enough for 7.1 or 7.2 or even 9.2. I found that for future proofing I'd just buy 2 of the bigger plates and not use everything but have enough so that I'm not missing any of the hookups needed. The aren't expensive and look really professional.

They already have 9.2 receivers out now. You should take a look at how they set them up. I think you might even need a couple of plugs for speakers on the right and left top of the main wall too. I didn't realize that they were adding top left and right speakers to setups already when I said to only get 3 biwired plugs for the front. In any case the plugs are really inexpensive and adding enough now will save regrets later.

I was saying 3 on each wall for surrounds not anticipating 9 separate surround speakers but only that you want to have as many placement options for speaker as you can (same idea for the subs). I'm not sure how, in the future, they are going to setup home theater surrounds, so it's good to have many plugs so you are not running speaker wire all over the place on the outside of the wall.

You may also consider running an ethernet cable in the wall too. You could also check into running some sort of cables for running lighting controls (from your remote control) (I think they may use ethernet cables for that). In any case the cables are not expensive. The stuff adds up a bit but it's like $3 for this and 1.50 for that on the wall plates or $60 for all of the 12 gauge speaker wire with a rating that passes codes for in wall wiring.

I'd say it took me about 3 months of planning to be almost there with the setup. Seating arrangement takes a bunch of planning especially if you are going to have 2 rows of seating. If so, you'll need a riser and you'll need to know how big to make it so that you can see over the peoples heads and also still see the bottom of the screen from the back rows. There is a cool calculator online for this. Trust me this is not an easy no thinking process. The rewards will be 10 fold though.

Your projector will have distance requirements for each screen size. You can just call them or use one of the online calculators. For my 120inch screen I needed anywhere from 11 to 25 feet if I remember correctly. The closer you are to the screen the brighter the projector is. They say the sweet spot for the lens is somewhere in the middle though (modern lenses have a zoom range like a camera zoom). I went as close as I could with mine to keep the lumens high. If you look at the difference between really expensive ($30K) projectors (pjs) and cheaper ones is the amount of lumens and how black the blacks are. I chose my projector based on getting the most lumens (with best movie settings) and the blackest blacks at my price point.

I went with the epson 8500ub. The new model came out recently is the 8700ub which is pretty much the same but comes with an extra ($300) bulb for a lower price of $2200 (I paid $2500 with a $200 rebate and no extra bulb in January). If I were to buy today I'd get the next model down the epson 8350 which performs pretty much as well for picture quality as mine but has a reduced cost this year of $1300. It has about 100 less lumens in the best mode (than the epson 8700) but it actually has about 30 more lumens (in best movie mode) than the panasonic ae4000 which has won many awards at its $2000 price point.

I'm not sure on sound absorbtion. I was just going to add insulation to the ceiling and run double drywall where I needed some extra quiet. There are quite a few different ways to do sound insulation online. I'd check it out online.

I would highly recommend a bigger screen than 100 inches. Many people go to that size because they think they will get better picture quality and because they are thinking in terms of televisions. At 120 inches the picture quality is absolutely stunning. It's actually better than my 55 inch hdtv. I'm not sure how they do it but the picture looks unbelievably detailed. The great thing about projectors is that there is no limit on how big you can go. I'd say up to 150 inches without a problem at all and others have gone more like 170 inches and been satisfied. I would have no trouble going as big as possible up to 150 inches. Your room wall size and viewing angles will limit how big you can go. 100 inches is really just too small for a really engaging experience. If you are going through all of the trouble of having a projector go big. It takes a lot of work to get everything to go right. If you want to go smaller it would be much easier to just buy a big tv and call it a day. Televisions are much brighter than any projector, can be used in almost direct sunlight (no window treatments necessary) and don't require special mounts or placement of the pj and don't have bulbs that wear out in 3000 hours. I'd even suggest building an acoustically transparent screen and putting the speakers behind the screen so that you can go even bigger. I'd love to go bigger in my current setup but my speakers get in the way. You don't want to invite people over to your dedicated theater to be like wow at this distance from the screen it looks like our 60in tv at home. You want "Wow that was awesome, did you see the size of that screen!"There really isn't much of a price difference between screen sizes either. Especially if you build your own screen. Someone built an accoutically transparent 160 inch screen with nice borders for $400 in a day at home with his wife.

I'd also suggest one good sub instead of two (at least in the beginning). You have other things to spend money on. You only get something like 6db increase in volume from adding an extra sub (of course you get more even coverage). I'd still suggest one good sub first. Check out the AVS forum for what people are talking about. Trust me those subs are unreal. Some are as little as $400. I only paid $799 for mine and I can't imagine ever needing better quality or more bass.

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Thank you! That was a very detailed analysis and I feel much more confident in my direction!! I'll check out monoprice and see what all I can get there as well as some of the online calculators.

I'm glad you mentioned the Epson 8700 and 8350. I was considering both of those models at this time, but I was not familiar with Epson as an HD projector, though it got very good reviews. I am in the fortunate position with this room of having zero ambient light, and I am planning on some basic can lights with dimming control. I'll look into the remote lighting on-line as well.

Looks like you are going to have a great room! Thanks again, and any other advise is always welcome.

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With total control of lighting, I'd definitely get the 8350 and pocket the $1000 and put it torwards a killer sub like the Epik Empire I have. You can read abou that on the AVS subwoofer forum.

Initially I didn't know how much light was needed and was afraid that my pj would be a bit dim at 120inches. I have way more lumen output than needed. Brightness has not been an issue at all. I even have the pj on economy mode at all times without issue. If I were to start over, I'd do the acoutically transparent screen and go with a screen size of about 150 inches or 160 inches and use the 8350 or the 8700 or if I had lots of extra $$ the JVC for around $4000. If you don't do the acustically transparent screen, get the Da Lite High power 2.8 screen. Read about it on the AVS projector screen forum. It is fantastic. The fall off on the side (when viewing from an angle) is a non issue as it still seems plenty bright even at something riduculous like 20 degrees (like walking into the room near the front of the screen).

I wouldn't go with a non da lite high power 2.8 (make sure its the 2.8) screen unless it was acoustically transparent. You have plenty of depth in your room to do acoustically transparent. I wouldn't shy away from it.

What speakers and sound set up will you be using? The heritage speakers are unreal for theater applications. They have effortless instant sound when the big scenes happen on screen due to being extremely efficient. At a sensitivity of 104, the La Scalas have tons of headroom with almost any modern receiver. I'd say 90 or 100 watts would be more than enough for those speakers. I'm using a 130 watt per channel receiver and those speakers can play crystal clear at volumes where you can't hear yourself screaming at the top of your lungs and still have more volume when turning up the knob while remaining crystal clear. Really amazing stuff. I've heard the top Reference Series Klipsch speakers and they sound good, but really pale in comparison to the giant la scalas.

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I'm going to start with my icon wf-35 5 speaker system (don't have the sub or receiver yet). I also have the 3.1 series of the klipsch rf-62s. My new icons actually sound better to my ears so as long as I get the right sub that will be where I start. Once everything is set up I'll start saving for a 5.1 rf7 set-up, but that will be down the road.

I've been going back and forth on the transparent screen. I don't want to hide my beautiful Klipsch set up, but we'll see.

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With 11 by 22 square, with 8 foot ceilings, you will experience
room modes that sucks out low, mid and upper bass. The room robs your system of
energy. No amplifier or equalizer is powerful enough to fill these modes.





http://www.realtraps.com/modecalc.htm



Realtraps calculator shows that the worst mode above
normal is at 51-Hz (mid-bass). If you notice that an isolated line is higher
than usual, that means there are at least two modes at that same frequency.





Next, go the Hunecke calculator. This mode calculator is
not good for finding troublesome modes. It is hard to see what frequencies are trouble
spots. Yet the Hunecke calc is excellent for graphically suggesting the best locations
for placing acoustic room traps. Once you know where the modes are, click on
the Show radio buttons for frequency
closest to your worst mode.





http://www.hunecke.de/en/calculators/room-eigenmodes.html





It this case, the Hunecke suggests that placing deep bass
acoustic traps on four walls might have the best effect for decreasing the
effect of the 51-Hz mode. The next mode is at 102-Hz. The Hunecke image
suggests placing three room traps at equidistant from each other on the long
wall and at the mid-point of the short one. The floor and ceiling are the same
as the long wall. Consider placing traps on the ceiling too.





The best way to prevent sound from propagating up into
bedrooms above is to isolate them from the noise center below. A concrete block
ceiling would work. So would a double wall. You can also seal off the bedrooms
with a special sound proofing materials like CertainTeed’s Thermafiber Sound
Attenuation Fire Blankets covered by Acoustiblok sheeting. Fill the Thermafiber
between the joists and beams. After the batt is in, simply staple or nail the Acoustiblok
to the joists and beams. It wraps around pipes and fixtures. You can lay it
over lighting fixtures, just be sure to tape any cracks and completely seal the
ceiling.





http://www.acoustiblok.com/theater.php



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  • 3 weeks later...

I'd put in lots of hookups in the walls. I'd say 3 sets of double speaker (for possible bi amp) for the front wall, 3 sets of one speaker posts along the other 3 walls for current and future surrounds (9 total), a subwoofer (rca) in each corner of the room, a giant plate or 2 with plug ins for everything that comes out of your reciever including the 4 sub inputs from the corners, 12 gauge in wall rated speaker wire for all speaker hook ups, a tube going from the reciever area to the projector with fish wire for hdmi cables, a power outlet in the ceiling for the projector. I may be missing a few things but this is a good start to think about what you need. I bought all of the above from monoprice (best place by far for price) for around $400.

I didn't finish my room yet but the dimensions were 12 X 21 so pretty similar to yours.

I would seriously consider getting a acoustically transparent screen and putting your front 3 speakers behind it so you can go bigger with your screen size. Make sure you can block out all light for movies. People have made nice acoustically transparent screens in the 150 inch (diagonal 16:9) size for around $400.

I went to monoprice and got all the trimmings...2 HMDI cables with ethernet, 2 digital coax, 12 gauge speaker wire, a 7.2 wall plate (for the A/V closet), and all the other wall plates for the room and closet terminations. I bought the RW-12d and Onkyo TX-NR708 and I'm going to be saving up for the projector and screen. Thanks for your help!

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Nude Ladies

I'm looking to upgrade to a pair of those in the future. I am going to go ahead and mount the projector on a poll in preparation for a two with a set of great woofers!

I was thinking the same thing, use the last few feet in the back for a small bar with beer dispenser and a pole off to the side. [;)] Run the idea past the wife and see what she says. [:P]

OK if that don't fly be completely different and use NO seats, just swings from the ceiling, or like the 60's and just have giant pillows on the floor. [:S]

You had to expect some crazy answers when you ask a question like that.

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I just wanted to 2nd the Epson 8350, it is an incredible pj for the $. I have 130 inches on a wall 17ft away and it's nothing short of the best HT purchase I ever made.I can watch a game at 3 in the afternoon with an 8ft (22ft away)window and still have great contrast

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  • 7 months later...

My theater is also in my basement. The dimensions are approximately 17 x 24, although one side opens up to a planned bar area that is about 11 x 13. If I were doing it over (and staying in my home for some time) I would make sure I ran conduit to every spot where cable either enters/exits the wall or where there are speaker terminations. I did run one conduit but it 1) isn't quite large enough and 2) only runs to the projector. The conduit running to the projector is obviously more important than the ones that would run to the speakers as this is one area that is likely to undergo a number of upgrades over the years and having the ability to swap out the video signal cabling is very handy.

You may also consider putting in a riser in the event you are planning on a second row of seating.

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  • 4 weeks later...

HT is a visual experiance.

Put your money in the screen.

Dalite High Power as big as you can go. Perm wall model is cheap and easy and right.

Projectors come and go. A Pioneer FPJ1 (or JVC 2) can be had used cheap. Killer projector.

Center channel speaker is the most important. left and rights OK, surrounds can be $100/pair cheapos.

And now we get to Subwoofers. These things are just plain fun. Its one thing to hear the well come in on "There Will be Blood", its another to be standing at ground zero and FEEL why junior lost his hearing. A Def Tech Trinity puts you there. My audiences drop their jaws. :D

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