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Post by jcisbig on Feb 16, 2016 12:43:11 GMT -5
Hey All,
I'm about to start framing out my home theater in my basement and I was looking for some general tips and suggestions that anyone who has done the same might have. The room will end up being about 15ft wide by 21ft long.
1) What's the best way to wire things so that the least amount of electrical interference messes with my audio?
I was planning to run five separate circuits for A/V equipment. One 20A circuit that my HTPC, TV, Blu Ray Player, UMC-200, UPA-7 and Wii will run off of. Two separate 20A circuits for future monoblocks. (I'll plug my XPA-2 into one of these circuits for now). The last 20A circuit will be for two HSU 15H subwoofers, and I'm hoping to add another 2 of those subs in the future, for a total of 4 subs. The last circuit will be a dedicated line for my Epson 5030 projector and power for the screen to go up and down. Please let me know if I need to rethink any of that.
2) What do I need to consider before committing to an acoustically transparent screen?
I'm planning to drop an AT screen in front of a wall mounted TV. I want to do this so that I can mount the center channel near the middle of the screen so that voices and such sound much more naturally located vs. mounting above or below the screen. I have the TV mounted on the wall for the times where we want to play Wii while standing up (otherwise we'd be in the way of the projector). What are the upsides/downsides to Acoustically transparent? My room will be dedicated with full light control.
3) Colors
I haven't figured out exactly what colors I'm going to paint everything, but I do know that I'll have a flat black ceiling and front wall. I still need to figure out what color to paint the walls and what carpet I should get. I was going to get a thicker darker colored carpet. I'll also have black leather home theater seats in the room on risers.
4) Cable Chase
I'd like to put in some kind of cable chase from the front wall up to the projector in case I need to run additional cables up there at some point. What would you recommend for this?
5) Anything else I need to consider?
Thanks!
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Post by teaman on Feb 16, 2016 13:08:51 GMT -5
Sounds like a well thought out plan. If I were able to do my home theater room in the basement over again, I would add more speaker wires to allow for future considerations such as Atmos. Because I went full drywall upgrading with more wires is pretty much off the table. Good luck!
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Post by jcisbig on Feb 16, 2016 13:31:54 GMT -5
Hmm, that's true. I guess I could consider making preparations for Atmos or something. However, the idea of putting that many speakers in my room seems pretty insane (and expensive!). I certainly love audio and it's immersiveness, but putting 14 speakers in a room seems pretty crazy! I'll give that some thought though!
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Post by valgolfs on Feb 16, 2016 13:40:49 GMT -5
I went front wall black and grey side walls and carpet in my new room, looks great. Going to leave ceiling white for now. Enjoy your stuff.
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Post by ÈlTwo on Feb 16, 2016 15:31:19 GMT -5
Even if you don't install the wires, consider pvc runs for future speaker wiring. With a diagram, you could just go up, cut the pvc and pull a run of wire for either the walls or the ceiling.
I would opt for PVC for the cable chase to the projector as well.
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Post by jcisbig on Feb 16, 2016 17:52:23 GMT -5
I went front wall black and grey side walls and carpet in my new room, looks great. Going to leave ceiling white for now. Enjoy your stuff. Sweet! Can you post a picture? Or link to one?
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jlafrenz
Global Moderator
I don't want to jump in, unless this music's thumping
Posts: 7,722
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Post by jlafrenz on Feb 16, 2016 18:57:05 GMT -5
1. Keep your wires in separate stud bays from electrical wiring. If you must go into the same bay, keep in on the opposite side of the bay. Same for ceiling joists. The amount of 20A circuits you have will be more than enough. Just to give you an idea, all of the equipment in my signature is on a 15A circuit. If you have the option to do what you are talking about, it certainly won't hurt anything.
I would opt to have your outlets a bit lower in the theater than they may be in the rest of your home. This way they will be hidden behind the subwoofers easily. For the projector, you may want to consider adding a battery back up to this outlet. You could simply make a pigtail from the outlet that plugs into the battery back up. I would consult your electrician on this one.
Be sure to pull a wire between the projector and screen so that you can use the 12V trigger on the projector to automatically drop the screen when the projector is turned on.
2. I would take into consideration what specific gains there are with the screen and what will work in your room. This goes for all screens not just AT. What type of speaker will you be using behind the screen?
3. Many will recommend darker colors. Staying with a flat finish as you mentioned is a good plan.
4. A cable chase is a good idea. Go you your local electrical supplier and get flexible 1.5" or 2" conduit. There are various brands and some refer to it as Smurf tube. Avoid using standard PVC that you would traditionally think of used in plumbing or electrical. You have to use 90 degree adapters to turn corners and it will be a pain to pull cable through later. The flexible allows you to make a smooth curve and often already has a pull string in it.
5. Acoustic panels
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Post by andyman on Feb 16, 2016 22:44:42 GMT -5
Insulate everywhere. Ceilings , inside walls , outside walls and especially around heating and cooling ducts. Found Roxul Safe & Sound to work great !
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Post by 509Paul on Feb 16, 2016 22:49:28 GMT -5
Is there a benefit going with 6" insulated walls vs. 4" insulated walls when considering sound absorption?
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Post by andyman on Feb 16, 2016 23:08:33 GMT -5
I'm sure 6 inches would offer better sound proofing but how much of a difference, I'm not sure.
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Post by ÈlTwo on Feb 17, 2016 0:28:48 GMT -5
You would be better off with 4 inches of insulation and isolating, decoupling, and damping the drywall from the framing using isolation clips, drywall furring channels and green glue between two 5/8" layers of drywall.
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Post by fbczar on Feb 17, 2016 0:56:40 GMT -5
You would be better off with 4 inches of insulation and isolating, decoupling, and damping the drywall from the framing using isolation clips, drywall furring channels and green glue between two 5/8" layers of drywall. When you consider decoupling the drywall using isolation clips think about your goals. Is your primary goal to soundproof the room or are you trying to make the room sound great, or something of both? Do you really need extraordinary soundproofing? Decoupling systems soundproof really well, but can result in walls that absorb more than reflect. Trying to make a subwoofer system perform well in a room designed to be soundproof through absorption can be problematic. As with everything concerning sound rooms there are trade offs, but after fighting the results of a room designed to be sound proof via isolation clips I would be careful. I am sure the key is a good balance of absorption and reflective surfaces. However, there can be no doubt creating Sheetrock walls and ceilings that are basically sound absorbing diaphragms may not give you the low bass sound quality you hope for. Personally, I think the room within a room building technique is a much better choice than isolation channels if you have that option.
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Post by doc1963 on Feb 17, 2016 1:33:18 GMT -5
You would be better off with 4 inches of insulation and isolating, decoupling, and damping the drywall from the framing using isolation clips, drywall furring channels and green glue between two 5/8" layers of drywall. +1 on this advice. "Decoupling, insolation and damping" are the keys to effective sound deadening "between" adjoining rooms. This is completely different than "room treatment" which absorbs/reflects sound "within" the room. +1 also for the suggested Roxul "Safe & Sound". In my experiences, it works far better than fiberglass batts or blown in. Since you're in a basement, you'll want superior sound deadening between floors. Therefore, I would avoid ceiling pots (lighting). Stuff (using Roxul Safe & Sound) and seal the ceiling and opt instead for wall sconces. As for painting, I would highly recommend against "painting" the front wall flat black. This I can tell you for certain... flat black paint will show every scuff mark, finger print, speck of dirt and dust ball you can possibly imagine. After doing this myself, and discovering the after effects I've described, I opted instead to have a set of "teared" jet black drapes custom made to cover the entire wall framing (what was then) my projection screen. If you're talented with a sewing machine (or have access to someone who is), you can make them yourself. They look wonderful...!!! Painting the ceiling black will be okay (I did that too), but it doesn't cut as much reflection as you would think. Paint does not "absorb" light. Black will simply make it "less reflective" to a certain degree. If you do decide to paint it black, do yourself a huge favor and have your drywall primer tinted a dark gray. Apply that first and let it dry thoroughly, then apply your paint. If you this, you will only need to apply one (possibly two) coats of black paint. If you don't, then plan on several coats. Black paint does NOT cover well. Especially over white primer.
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Post by fbczar on Feb 17, 2016 6:35:30 GMT -5
Excellent advice on the lighting doc1963.
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Post by ÈlTwo on Feb 17, 2016 9:04:26 GMT -5
My response was with respect to 4" or 6" of insulation for soundproofing the theater from other rooms, as doc pointed out room treatments would be recommended for sound inside then theater.
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Post by ctau on Feb 17, 2016 11:32:54 GMT -5
I love my acoustically transparent screen. Visually the weave is undetectable unless you are standing right in front of it. The imaging is far better than when I had my speakers below the screen.
Make sure you really need/want to have that wall mounted tv behind your screen. I would suggest a fixed screen if at all possible as it will be cheaper, less likely to wrinkle, and will look better in your space.
If you are ceiling mounting your projector you may not have issues with the wii. I would definitely try it out before buying the screen to see if it's an issue. I have setup a wii in my last two home theaters and haven't had an issue with blocking the projection while playing.
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Post by drtrey3 on Feb 17, 2016 14:09:04 GMT -5
If I was setting up a room from scratch I would focus on 5.1 rather than 7.1 (leaving out other surround schemes.) I have 7.1 and do not really notice much difference at all between 5 and 7.1.
Trey
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Post by simpleman68 on Feb 17, 2016 14:30:49 GMT -5
A lot of good advice here. I used gobs of Roxul in all the walls and ceilings. I also used decoupling barriers between the ceiling joists and paneling. For wire runs, I used 1" Carlon (Home Despot, Blowes etc stock it) This way I can always upgrade wires, HDMI cables etc as the ceiling is covered with fabric to stop glare from the projector. It's one of my favorite aspects of the build. Just posted my HT build pics here with links to progress pics. Feel free to mull for ideas. I know I ripped off lots of great designers for my build because I'm not one of them. lol Scott emotivalounge.proboards.com/thread/45960/simpleman68-completed-basement-theater-pics
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Post by jcisbig on Feb 17, 2016 18:19:05 GMT -5
Thanks for all the advice everyone, keep it coming if there's more! I framed the front wall of my HT today!
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Post by jcisbig on Feb 17, 2016 18:20:07 GMT -5
A lot of good advice here. I used gobs of Roxul in all the walls and ceilings. I also used decoupling barriers between the ceiling joists and paneling. For wire runs, I used 1" Carlon (Home Despot, Blowes etc stock it) This way I can always upgrade wires, HDMI cables etc as the ceiling is covered with fabric to stop glare from the projector. It's one of my favorite aspects of the build. Just posted my HT build pics here with links to progress pics. Feel free to mull for ideas. I know I ripped off lots of great designers for my build because I'm not one of them. lol Scott emotivalounge.proboards.com/thread/45960/simpleman68-completed-basement-theater-picsI saw this when I was in Menards a few days ago, I was worried about only having 1" diameter to pull wires through. Have you found it to be sufficient?
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