My house is currently under construction (first floor framed) and I am in the process of designing my basement theater and other A/V needs. I hadn't planned on doing a construction thread but with all the questions running through my head I figured it would be the best way to get expert opinions on everything I am waivering on.

Intro:
I am by no means an audiophile/videophile so for the most part decisions will be made on function/aesthetics as opposed to optimum performance. I am relatively new to the hobby, in fact I was almost forced into it because the home I bought in 2006 had a theater in the basement already. Now that I am moving and had to say goodbye to that theater, the wife and I decided we had to have one in our new house. How could you ever go back to not having one?? :D

Summary:
1. A non-dedicated theater in the basement. The space will be open so that the screen is viewable from the rest of the basement. I am looking at a 7.x system with a 120"+ screen (still TBD). The room will be 15' wide by 13' deep. Yes it is wider than it is deep. This was chosen based on the basement layout and wanting to use the room as more than just a theater. Fortunately it is open at the back so the seating placement is somewhat flexible.

There will be two towers, a center channel, and a sub(s) at the front of the room, two in-walls as surrounds, and two in-ceilings as rear surrounds. I'll use an IR repeater to work the components located in a rack near the back of the room.

2. A 5.1 system with a flat panel tv on the main floor. Speakers will be all in-ceilings. IR repeater to control components.

3. A pair of outdoor speakers, powered by the zone2 of the receiver used on the main floor.

4. A flat panel tv in the master bedroom. No speakers other than tv speakers planned.

Although this isn't my first theater, it is the first one I have had to design. There is a huge difference between working with a room that was already built and designing a room from scratch. The options are endless when you have a blank canvass. I am hoping to get advice on things like screen size/selection, speaker selection and placement, wiring routes, etc. but I'll continue in upcoming posts.

Thanks in advance!

Here is my main floor layout:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=148378&stc=1&d=1248300647
Anything green is a speaker location, the tv location is shown in blue, and grey is the location for the receiver, sub amp, and hdpvr.

The reason I want to house the hdpvr in the den is so I can connect one tv using hdmi through the wall, and connect a second TV in the master bedroom (not shown) using the component connection. I will have prewired component video with 2 channel audio from both tv locations down to the basement rack room. I will use an IR repeater to be able to control it through the wall. For the master bedroom, I will control the hdpvr using an RF remote.

The receiver is going in the den so that I have access to it from the listening location. For those of you that have a receiver on a different floor from where you are using it, how do you find it?
I also just recently realized that having it on a different floor will not allow me to use the Audyssey EQ calibration feature.

Here is a rough layout of the basement:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=148463&stc=1&d=1248375337
Green are speaker locations, blue are the projector and screen location, and grey is the rack location.

I am going to wire hdmi, component, and composite to the projector. In addition I'll add conduit from the projector to the rack, and conduit from the screen wall to the rack.

If there are any local people reading this, can you suggest a place to purchase IR repeaters? Also, have any of you had success getting a middle atlantic rack shipped here from buyrackgear or stayonline?

I would like to place the projector about 13' back from the screen, with a 120"+ 16:9 screen. For the projectors I have considered, this requires using a lot of zoom. Should I try to avoid using the zoom on the projector? Does it have much effect on picture quality?

thanks.

Hey Jay, glad you started a build thread. Good luck with the MA rack ordering from the states hopefully it goes well. As far as zoom it's not the end of the world but ideally you won't have to play with any of the "features" of the PJ in a perfect world. Of course in the real world it's tough to get perfect PJ placement and that is why they virtually all come withe additional capabilities to use offset, zoom etc... I wouldn't concern yourself with it to much but once you've made up your mind on the exact PJ you have decided upon you can do some AVS research here and make sure that zoom isnt' an issue or concern with the unit you've chosen. As a general rule I don't believe you want to use (or even approach) the extremes of any zoom, offset of any PJ though so keep that in mind if the one your looking at is near the max settings in order to give you what you want (again AVS research should be your best friend - pm some existing owners or try to get a demo of a local person or business of the PJ in action under that / those conditions to make up your own mind if it's acceptable.

Best of luck
Calvin

Missed the IR repeater - try giving double diamond a call and see what they have in stock (they are hard to beat price wise locally)

Cheers

Thanks for the tip on Double Diamond. I have been talking to them for a screen, projector, and TV but had no idea they had IR repeaters as well. Turns out they carry the Buffalo brand for a good price IMO.

I am having a really tough time deciding on the screen size. After going back and forth on a 2.35:1 versus a 1.78:1 I have decided to stick to the 1.78:1 ratio.

Now for screen size. If I plan on sitting 13' to 15' from the screen I think a 130" or so size screen would be ok right. That's about 9.4' width which would satisfy the 1.5 screen widths away rule.

This would make the height of the screen 5.25'. What is the recommended minimum distance from the floor to the bottom of the screen? There will be no riser or second row for the seating. I plan on building something like this:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=148561&stc=1&d=1248473778

The ceiling height will be 8.5' so depending on the minimum distance from the floor to screen bottom, I am afraid the screen will look jammed in there.

A rule of thumb would be to have 1/3 of the screen below your eyeline and 2/3 above. If your eyes are about 36" off the ground when seated your screen would be about 19 to 20 inches, which isn't too bad. You may prefer it a little higher though.

Greg

Jay is that picture from one of the local edmonton showrooms? I think I've been in that room or one very close to it...

On screen size I think you'd be fine with a 130" 1.78.1 at those distances
For a more detailed info and comparison use this handy tool for seeing what moving a few dimensions on the screen or the seats will do etc...

http://myhometheater.homestead.com/viewingdistancecalculator.html

Cheers
Calvin

A rule of thumb would be to have 1/3 of the screen below your eyeline and 2/3 above. If your eyes are about 36" off the ground when seated your screen would be about 19 to 20 inches, which isn't too bad. You may prefer it a little higher though.

Greg

So if my eyes are 36" off the ground and I want 21" (1/3 of 63") of screen below my eyeline, my screen would be only 15" off the ground. That is good to know as I wanted it about 20-24" off the ground and I thought that was too low.

Thanks.

Jay is that picture from one of the local edmonton showrooms? I think I've been in that room or one very close to it...

On screen size I think you'd be fine with a 130" 1.78.1 at those distances
For a more detailed info and comparison use this handy tool for seeing what moving a few dimensions on the screen or the seats will do etc...

http://myhometheater.homestead.com/viewingdistancecalculator.html

Cheers
Calvin

That picture is actually from my old house. I can't take any credit for it as the house came like that.

Thanks for the link and confirming on the screen sizes. I mentioned the screen size to a guy at work and he thought it was way too big so I second guessed myself. I see a lot of regrets from others on the forum about going too small on the screen. I didn't want to have the same regret. Plus I don't think I have seen anyone post that they wish they went smaller.

I did a model of my future theater to see how things would fit. There is no furniture or anything yet but I put the planned in-wall surronds (black boxes) and am noticing they will be slightly in front of the seating location. From everything I have seen they are usually directly beside you or slightly behind. Is it ok to have them slightly ahead of you? Should I switch those to in-ceilings as well (rear surrounds will be in-ceiling)?

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=148809&stc=1&d=1248733113

I picked up an 8" in-wall sub from another member on the forum. Thanks again Calvin for the sub and for showing me your setup. After reading your thread it was great to see everything and to meet you in person.

I may try to switch out the casing though. For an 8" sub, the grill/casing is about the size you would expect for a 12" sub. I am going to try buying a cheap 8" from monoprice and swapping the two. I have emailed the manufacturer about doing so and they said as long as it fits it should be ok. Has anyone else tried to do this? Results?

I also purchased the tv that will be going in the master bedroom once the house is done. I am using it as my main tv for now. It is the Toshiba Regza 40XV645U. http://www.toshiba.ca/web/product.grp?lg=en&section=2&group=6&product=9450&category=
I'll try to post some pics later.

I bought it after buying the LGPQ20 42" plasma. I wasn't impressed with the picture quality on the LG unit so I decided to try the Toshiba instead. I will be keeping the Toshiba and returning the LG. PQ is much better on the Toshiba.

jakkb,

Have you thought about di-pole speakers - might be a good fit for what your trying to do.

Was a pleasure to meet you as well and I hope I get a chance to visit your room once your all done :)

I haven't seen the grill casing swap out with the sub as your planning but I don't see any reason you couldn't do it and if Angstrom says it's a go! you should be fine.

Best of luck
Calvin

Here is a shot of where the main floor setup will be. There will be an in-wall sub in the bottom right part of the wall and the tv will be mounted on top of the fireplace.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=149161&stc=1&d=1249101763


And here is a shot of the future theater wall. The area with the window will be a bedroom, leaving a 15' wide space for the screen and speakers.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=149162&stc=1&d=1249101763


Looking at the pic of the basement reminds me of a question I had. Is there anything I should be doing to the joists or area around the joists that my projector will hang? Something to reduce potential vibrations from people walking around on the floor above?

Thanks.

Not much A/V stuff happening at the moment. Spent the last little while picking aplliances and plumbing fixtures, etc.

The house is almost ready for wiring. I am waiting for one quote before I make my final decisions.

I got one quote and was unpleasantly surprised at the cost. Close to $10K just for wiring. Sounds pretty high to me but I have nothing to compare it to. Can anybody comment on whether or not that sounds about right? I asked for 6 HD video zones, 11 drops of 2xRG6 and 2xcat5e, a 7.1 audio zone, and a 5.1 audio zone.

I sure hope the next estimate is a little more reasonable or I may have to abandon some of my video zones, maybe even the upstairs 5.1. Would be a shame.

If you know about where your projector is going to go putting in blocking between the joists could help stiffen the ceiling and make it more convenient to mount the projector later (you wouldn't have to hunt for the joists). If your trying to do hard-core sound isolation than this would necessarily work because you would want to couple the drywall to the joists.

Unfortunately, that estimate might be a little high but doesn't sound too far out there to me. That does usually include them terminating that with wall plates, etc. Will your builder let you pull any of your own wire?

Greg

If you know about where your projector is going to go putting in blocking between the joists could help stiffen the ceiling and make it more convenient to mount the projector later (you wouldn't have to hunt for the joists). If your trying to do hard-core sound isolation than this would necessarily work because you would want to couple the drywall to the joists.

Unfortunately, that estimate might be a little high but doesn't sound too far out there to me. That does usually include them terminating that with wall plates, etc. Will your builder let you pull any of your own wire?

Greg

Thanks for the suggestion. Do you mean to put blocking where drywall would normally go, or in the cavity between the ceiling and the floor above it?

Just got my second estimate back and it is MUCH more favorable. Roughly $4k, what a big difference. Now I am not sure if the first one includes termination, and the second one doesn't?? If that is the case, I am comfortable with terminating myself, especially if it saves me $6k! And my builder will not let me pull my own wire - liability issue or something like that.

Thanks.

I'm glad the next estimate was alot better. That must be a relief! Make sure the quote includes everything you thought it would.

The blocking would be just above the dry wall, If you placed as piece of 2x8 or 2x10 horizontally at the lower end of the joists, that will provide a nice mounting point.

Are you having the builder do the basement theater at the same time, or is this going to be down the road? Are you doing whole house distributed audio? I guess with having a 'home-theater' system on every level, you probably don't need to.

Greg

I'm glad the next estimate was alot better. That must be a relief! Make sure the quote includes everything you thought it would.

The blocking would be just above the dry wall, If you placed as piece of 2x8 or 2x10 horizontally at the lower end of the joists, that will provide a nice mounting point.

Are you having the builder do the basement theater at the same time, or is this going to be down the road? Are you doing whole house distributed audio? I guess with having a 'home-theater' system on every level, you probably don't need to.

Greg

Yes that was a huge relief. Wasn't sure what I was going to do had it been similar to the first quote. There are some details that need to be clarified but I think it will be ok.

I took a look at your thread and I know what you mean now with the blocking. Beautiful basement/theater btw.

Yes the basement will be finished with the rest of the house. I'll be taking care of the equipment however. I considered the whole house audio but abandoned the idea because of cost. Might reconsider now but will have to re-evaluate. Would be a nice feature for sure. Realistically it would only be an additional 2 or 3 audio zones.

I have run into a problem with my proposed 5.1 setup in the living room. The way it is framed, I have no room for a center channel in-ceiling (unless it's in the middle of the room). Would it still be worthwhile to do the remaining speakers even without the center channel? It is not the main theater so the sound is not critical. I just wanted something better than the TV speakers in this room.

Absolutely, running a phantom center channel works just fine. You won't miss it unless your sitting way off axis from the TV and it will definitely out-perform the TV sound.

Is the house sealed up yet? It getting cold fast here!

Greg

jakkb,

How did you make out with the in-wall sub? Also Greg (scopeguy) is swinging by on Friday afternoon to show me his JVC RS20 and if you're around and want to swing by for a quick look and a visit just let me know.

Cheers
Calvin

Absolutely, running a phantom center channel works just fine. You won't miss it unless your sitting way off axis from the TV and it will definitely out-perform the TV sound.

Is the house sealed up yet? It getting cold fast here!

Greg

Hi Greg,

That is great to hear. I will go ahead with it then.

The house is sealed. Just met with the electrician the other day and had a hell of a time explaining the powerbridge to him. He says he'll do it but I have to supply the parts. Found a local shop that has the male receptacle so I'll have to pick that up asap.

jakkb,

How did you make out with the in-wall sub? Also Greg (scopeguy) is swinging by on Friday afternoon to show me his JVC RS20 and if you're around and want to swing by for a quick look and a visit just let me know.

Cheers
Calvin

Hey Calvin,

Haven't done anything with the sub yet. I keep meaning to order that monoprice sub to switch out the case but just haven't gotten to it yet.

Thanks for the invite. Depending on the time I wouldn't mind coming to check it out. A projector like that is over my budget, but it won't hurt to look.

You don't have to pick up a powerbridge. I have one left over from my build. I ordered one from monoprice but didn't end up using it. I will bring it up on Friday and either give it to you, or I can leave it at Calvin's if you can't make it.

Greg

You don't have to pick up a powerbridge. I have one left over from my build. I ordered one from monoprice but didn't end up using it. I will bring it up on Friday and either give it to you, or I can leave it at Calvin's if you can't make it.

Greg

You're kidding me! That would be great, but you have to let me pay you for it or something. We'll work something out. I wanted to order this or the powerbridge but wanted to avoid anything that requires shipping because the electrician wants it asap.

Just let me know what time you guys are planning to meet. Thanks Greg.

I'm at work till 3:00 PM and I think Greg is heading over sometime after that but still before supper time (so between 3:30 and 5;30 is the timing i think depending on weather, traffic etc..)
Greg can likely give you a more definitive time :)
Hopefully we'll see you tomorrow.

Cheers
Calvin

I'm at work till 3:00 PM and I think Greg is heading over sometime after that but still before supper time (so between 3:30 and 5;30 is the timing i think depending on weather, traffic etc..)
Greg can likely give you a more definitive time :)
Hopefully we'll see you tomorrow.

Cheers
Calvin

Off at 3:00, what a sweet job. I am afraid I don't get home from work until 5:30 so I won't be able to make it. Would have been nice to meet up and check out that projector but I guess it won't work out this time. Have fun guys, I know you have been waiting a long time to see that thing in action.

I'm not sure exactly when I will be getting to Edmonton tomorrow. As Calvin says, it should be somewhere in the afternoon after 3. If it's at a time when your off work, would you be in?

Greg

Just give me a call when your back from work and perhaps Greg will still be over - your only a few minutes drive once your at home so worth a drive over IMO.
Hopefully we'll see you after work today (BTW I work 6:00 AM to 5:30 PM every day but Friday :) I get off at 2:30 PM on Friday so I'm home by 3:00 and it's a nice perk for the job for sure)

Cheers

Just give me a call when your back from work and perhaps Greg will still be over - your only a few minutes drive once your at home so worth a drive over IMO.
Hopefully we'll see you after work today (BTW I work 6:00 AM to 5:30 PM every day but Friday :) I get off at 2:30 PM on Friday so I'm home by 3:00 and it's a nice perk for the job for sure)

Cheers

I'm not sure exactly when I will be getting to Edmonton tomorrow. As Calvin says, it should be somewhere in the afternoon after 3. If it's at a time when your off work, would you be in?

Greg

I'll contact Calvin if there is a chance I can make it. The house I'm building is literally a minute from his, but my current house isn't as close.

If I can't make it, thank you guys again for the invite.

Jason,

Too bad you couldn't make it - we had a lot of fun and Greg ending up staying a lot longer then I expected (not sure when he left but I think after midnight). He did drop those parts off for you though so give me a shout and we can arrange a time for you to head over and pick them up next time your in the area.

Cheers
Calvin

Jason,

Too bad you couldn't make it - we had a lot of fun and Greg ending up staying a lot longer then I expected (not sure when he left but I think after midnight). He did drop those parts off for you though so give me a shout and we can arrange a time for you to head over and pick them up next time your in the area.

Cheers
Calvin

I'll try to come by this weekend if you'll be around.

Thanks.

Started ordering some stuff for the new house. Got an APC H10 power conditioner for the rack and ordered the Monoprice 8" in wall sub to swap the case out with the sub I got from Calvin. I'll take some pics once things arrive.

A friend of mine is going to the U.S. in about two weeks time so I might be ordering some rack parts for her to bring back. Just some accessories like vent panels and filler panels. Save me the shipping at least.

I am also considering the 3x5 component video matrix made by Impact Acoustics (I think). I saw in another thread that it is not a standard rack size though, it is somewhere between 2U and 3U. Kinda sucks but may have to live with it because its the best bang for the buck I could find.

Jason,

I should be home all weekend if you want to swing by and pick up those parts.

Cheers
Calvin

It was nice to see you again for a quick visit and chat this weekend Jason. Hopefully your build continues smoothly. Looking forward to your PJ selection and seeing the finished room :)

Cheers
Calvin

Received a shipment of speakers today. Got my in-ceilings for the great room and the patio speakers. Also received that monoprice sub to switch out the casing but unfortunately it doesn't fit. Turns out the sub I have is a 10", but I ordered an 8" to switch it with. Not sure whether or not I want to order the 10" now.

House is coming along, should be ready for A/V wiring in the next week or so. Also placed my order for the speakers in the theater. Hopefully it comes in soon so that I can make use of the pre-construction brackets before drywall goes up.

Also ordered the Impact Acoustics 3x5 Component matrix switch and some miscellaneous parts for the rack. I am trying to get my hands on the Panamax 5100-PM. Found a really good price at thenerds.net but they only accept US credit cards and only ship to US. Trying to coordinate with Amerifriend to bring it back for me. Hopefully it works out, otherwise I will go to something like a Belkin or APC product.

It was nice to see you again for a quick visit and chat this weekend Jason. Hopefully your build continues smoothly. Looking forward to your PJ selection and seeing the finished room :)

Cheers
Calvin

It's coming along, albeit slowly. There are way too many decisions to be made when custom building, which also has its obvious advantages. We are getting really anxious to get in too. Especially since I have started to order stuff, it kills me to have it all sitting around and having to wait months before I can install it.

I have heard rumors on the forums that the Canadian MSRP for the Panasonic 4000 will be, well $4000!! Man, what a shame that would be. We'll see I guess.

Some pics of the recent order of speakers:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=156450&stc=1&d=1256705128

The In-Ceilings:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=156451&stc=1&d=1256705032

The Patio Speakers:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=156452&stc=1&d=1256705032

Did the walkthrough with the A/V installer today to finalize locations of all the wiring. Man it's getting cold outside, and there isn't much daylight left after work.

Had to make some modifications to the original design based on framing. Ended up going with a 4.1 system on the main floor with 4 in-ceilings and an external powered sub as opposed to a passive in-wall.

For the theater room, stuck with a 7.x system. The left and right will be towers, a standard center, two in-walls for the surrounds, and two in-ceilings for the rear surrounds. Will use external powered sub(s) in this room as well.

Will also be wiring for wall mounted HDTV's in the master bedroom, living room, 2 in basement bar, and one other location in the basement.

Sounds good, two TVs in the basement bars, sweet, you can watch two games at once!

Next week the light issue will be even worse after work with the time change.

Do you have any new pics?

Greg

Meant to post these but Greg gave me a reminder.

Front view of the house

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=156498&stc=1&d=1256794595

From living room looking to front door and stairs

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=156499&stc=1&d=1256794595

Fireplace, TV to be mounted above

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=156500&stc=1&d=1256794595

Ceiling detail in living room

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=156501&stc=1&d=1256794626

TV location in master bedroom

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=156502&stc=1&d=1256794673

Pics of the basement.

Screen Wall, not much to look at at the moment.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=156503&stc=1&d=1256795044

The plan is for something like this.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=156506&stc=1&d=1256795605

Framing for the bedroom in basement and the rack. See that plastic bag under the framing for the rack, the powerbridge that Greg graciously supplied is in there.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=156504&stc=1&d=1256795044

Part of the bar and theater room. TVs will be on either side of the window.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=156505&stc=1&d=1256795044

Sounds good, two TVs in the basement bars, sweet, you can watch two games at once!

Next week the light issue will be even worse after work with the time change.

Do you have any new pics?

Greg

Yeah, didn't originally plan on it but couldn't find a logical place to center one, so the builder suggested two. Looks like I'll have to add another satellite receiver to the rack.

Is daylight savings next week? That means I'll have to take more time off to see the house now :(

Hope you enjoy the pics.

Thanks for the pics. I was surprized to see the one with the women walking through the house with out a hard hat on...our builder wouldn't even let us step on the lot during the building phase with out a hard hat :)

Looking good - like the oversized garage.

cheers

Thanks for the pics. I was surprized to see the one with the women walking through the house with out a hard hat on...our builder wouldn't even let us step on the lot during the building phase with out a hard hat :)

Looking good - like the oversized garage.

cheers

Hi Calvin,

Thanks. It was late in the day so there was no work going on at the time. But our builder has been really good regardless.

A triple garage would have been nice but this is definitely better than our previous garages.

The A/V wiring should start tomorrow. Still contemplating a distributed audio system, but I am running out of time to decide. Won't be the end of the world if I don't do it, just a little 'nice to have'. Not sure how much I am willing to pay for it. It will be decided in the next couple of days though.

The component matrix switch and rack parts I ordered have safely made it back to Calgary. That is where my friend that brought the stuff back for me lives.

The security and A/V wiring should have finished up today. I took a lot of pics of what was done yesterday, but I would like to go back and finish it off. Took over 400 pics in a couple hours! Luckily I borrowed an SLR to do that, my point and shoot definitely would not have cut it.

Decided against the whole house audio. It was a little pricey compared to my expectations so it was a no go. If they would have let me do my own wiring I would have done it for sure. Could have used products available from Breathe or HTD along with monoprice speakers and have it done at a quarter of the cost. It kills me to think what I could have done had they let me do my own wiring.

Should be ready for drywall any day now.

Collected some more equipment over the past couple of weeks:

Surrounds and rear surrounds for the theater.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=158645&stc=1&d=1258609894

Picked up a couple of budget 32" lcd's for the bar area and another HD receiver.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=158646&stc=1&d=1258609894

The video matrix and rack parts I ordered and shipped to a friend travelling to the US who brought the stuff back for me. Rack parts are some lacing bars, a couple of unloaded patch panels, and some brushed blanks.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=158647&stc=1&d=1258609894

There are a lot of tempting deals right now on TVs. I still need to shop for a 46" for the living room. Also looking for a sub for the living room and receiver for the theater. Paradigm had a sub that use to come in white that got WAF approval, but I think it is discontinued. Can't seem to find it on the website anymore so it's back to the drawing board.

It's been a while since my last post, but not too much has happened at the house. They are still drywalling at this point. Had some delays with permitting so not much happened in December.

I managed to pick up a few more pieces of equipment since my last post. My Mid Atlantic Slim 5 37U rack came in. It is still in boxes but I will be putting it together soon as it needs to be at the house so they can frame around it.

Also picked up a Sony 46" for the living room, a couple of 32" Samsungs for the bar (to replace the Dynex TVs), and a Pioneer VSX-9040TXH receiver.

One thing I noticed is that the receiver is about 17" deep, which is too deep for the standard MA 4U rack shelf, which is only about 15" deep. Does MA make a deeper 4U rack shelf? Maybe one that is the full depth of the rack. Maybe I will post this question in the Dedicated theater thread as well to see if anyone else has had this problem.

I have been debating over whether to use IR repeaters or an RF remote. I have been eyeing the Harmony 900 but won't make any final decisions till I move in.

I was watching this thread, and then it disappeared - good to see it back!

Was surprised at your MA question - I thought the standard shelf would have been the full depth of the Slim 5. Did a quick search on Google, and full length shelves look pretty common.

As for remotes, I decided on RF. I even got my father-in-law a Harmony 890 for Christmas (gotta remember to set that up). I went with the URC MX-880, and it is being programmed by an installer for me, but I am hoping to get the software after that so I can update the system myself. I went RF to avoid line-of-sight issues, and the need to have IR receivers + repeaters all over the house.

Thanks for reading! I planned on updating a few times over the holidays but then got tied up, and lazy.

I'll have to look again on the shelf. I bought them from a local guy so I suppose asking him would be the best way about it.

I looked at the URC remotes but numerous reports about people not being able to get the software to program it themselves turned me off. Hopefully you have better luck. I totally agree with you that RF beats having receivers and repeaters all over the place. For me I would need receivers on 3 different levels. Would be a pain for sure.

Looked through your thread on the weekend. Excellent job you did on the reno. I especially the built-ins. I noticed you got a Panamax 4300, did you buy that locally? I was hoping to get a Panamax 5100 but had a tough time buying it from the US, and wasn't willing to pay the Canadian price. Ended up buying an APCH15 from Costco. Wasn't my first choice but definitely get peace of mind buying from there.

I am envious that you are in your space and enjoying it already, will be a few months for me still.

I was watching this thread, and then it disappeared - good to see it back!

Was surprised at your MA question - I thought the standard shelf would have been the full depth of the Slim 5. Did a quick search on Google, and full length shelves look pretty common.

As for remotes, I decided on RF. I even got my father-in-law a Harmony 890 for Christmas (gotta remember to set that up). I went with the URC MX-880, and it is being programmed by an installer for me, but I am hoping to get the software after that so I can update the system myself. I went RF to avoid line-of-sight issues, and the need to have IR receivers + repeaters all over the house.

Just a quick update on the house. They are done drywalling, and painting should have started today. They tell us cabinets will be there Monday!

Possession is in mid March so we have about 6 weeks left. Still trying to decide on final layout for the screen wall so I'll be searching the forums hard in the coming weeks.

I'll be assembling my rack to bring to the house so they can frame around it. I'll try to get some pics of the rack assembly.

Exciting news. I hope you're taking photos so at some point you can give us a quick photo update, otherwise some of the boys here could turn ugly!

We likes our pix! :D

I looked at the URC remotes but numerous reports about people not being able to get the software to program it themselves turned me off. Hopefully you have better luck.

I didn't. Told the installer to take the URC back after using it for a day. Opted for the Harmony 890 for myself, but had my own share of problems with that (check out my thread for a good rant). Sticking with it, though.

Good luck over the next 6 weeks! Exciting time for you, I'm sure.

Sorry to hear that. I read about all the problems you had with the 890, man what a pain. You are much more patient than I am. I probably would have given up on it, but then again there aren't many choices without going into the higher end.

I am still debating on the 900. It doesn't seem to have as much of a range as it claims. I was hoping to use it on multiple floors, but it doesn't look like that will work.

Yes hopefully the next 6 weeks go smooth, but it never seems to go as planned with building houses for some reason. We just recently discovered we got a 2 stage furnace as opposed to the 2 zone furnace we had asked for :mad:. Still waiting to hear back on that to see if there is anything we can do to still get the multiple zones.

I didn't. Told the installer to take the URC back after using it for a day. Opted for the Harmony 890 for myself, but had my own share of problems with that (check out my thread for a good rant). Sticking with it, though.

Good luck over the next 6 weeks! Exciting time for you, I'm sure.

Living Room
http://photos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs168.snc3/19575_487902670144_831460144_11125926_4966724_n.jpg

Kitchen
http://photos-c.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs168.snc3/19575_487902660144_831460144_11125924_7218435_n.jpg
http://photos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs168.snc3/19575_487902665144_831460144_11125925_4825678_n.jpg

Screen Wall location
http://photos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs168.snc3/19575_487905310144_831460144_11125931_5988974_n.jpg

Rack Room
http://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs188.snc3/19575_487902680144_831460144_11125928_7821833_n.jpg

It's starting to come together. I Not much to see in the other rooms yet as most of them are just drywall.

Nice progress! I like the ceiling, are you going to put crown molding in the recesses or leave it?

That last pic reminds me of Rapunze! Nice wire bundle!

Thanks. Now that you mention it, crown molding would have been a nice touch but we are just leaving it. Would probably cost a mint to add crown molding.

Only us AVS'ers appreciate the wire bundle pics :)

Nice progress! I like the ceiling, are you going to put crown molding in the recesses or leave it?

That last pic reminds me of Rapunze! Nice wire bundle!

Great progress thread. Don'tcha hate it when you pop open some new threads and lose track of time reading them all?

Are you in Edmonton or Calgary? I'm about to embark on my own budget basement project too.

Jakkb,

You commented that the MX-900 didn't have the range to control the home. What type of RF Basestation were you planning on using. The MRF-350 and the MSC-400 both have an external antenna (RFX-250) that can be placed anywhere in the home to optimize the signal. If the house is very large you can also daisy chain additional RX-250s on different levels.

Thanks. It's coming along, the next month is when it'll get really exciting. You could spend a few months easy trying to go over all the threads. Definitely a great resource with some good info.

I am in Edmonton. I saw you just started a thread, good luck with your project.

Great progress thread. Don'tcha hate it when you pop open some new threads and lose track of time reading them all?

Are you in Edmonton or Calgary? I'm about to embark on my own budget basement project too.

When I mentioned range on the 900 I was referring to the Harmony 900. Sorry, should have been more clear. You bring up a good point though. I wonder if I can use multiple Harmony RF receivers and plug them into an IR hub of some sort. Then go from the IR hub to my equipment. I'll have to do some research on that.

Jakkb,

You commented that the MX-900 didn't have the range to control the home. What type of RF Basestation were you planning on using. The MRF-350 and the MSC-400 both have an external antenna (RFX-250) that can be placed anywhere in the home to optimize the signal. If the house is very large you can also daisy chain additional RX-250s on different levels.

I finalized the layout of the screen wall and sent it off to my builder last night. They will be building it out of mdf I believe. It should give me enough room to go up to a 16:9 125" screen.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=166607&stc=1&d=1265830018

Amazing looking home. I look forward to see more pictures!

Thank you. I want to get more pics too but they are usually done for the day by the time I am off work.

Amazing looking home. I look forward to see more pictures!

Looking at building again in about 5 years, love the look of that and from what I can see the floorplan is great.

Hopefully we will stay in this one a little longer than our previous ones. This is our 4th house (and 3rd build) in about 6 years. Boy am I sick of moving :(.

Looking at building again in about 5 years, love the look of that and from what I can see the floorplan is great.

local5o requested to see the floor plan for the remainder of the house so I thought I would post it here.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=167469&stc=1&d=1266468777

Great looking home! Thanks again, the layout is exactly what we have been looking for.

What is the sq footage of the main and upper level together?>

The main floor is 1160 sqft and the 2nd floor is 1225 sqft, 2385 total.

What is the sq footage of the main and upper level together?>

Possession day is going to be Mar. 19! Stopped by the house today and they are painting. What's left is staining, carpet in the basement and 2nd floor, and finish plumbing and electrical. It is starting to come together though. Sorry, didn't have a camera with me so no new pics :(.

I haven't purchased the projector or screen yet. I'll have to make my final decisions once I have moved. We have run over budget on upgrades (surprise) and the wife is shopping for furniture. So that leaves no money left for the fun stuff. At least for a few months.

What I do need in the short term is a few more mounts and IR repeaters (or an RF remote). I am leaning towards the IR solution for the upper floors. Any suggestions for repeaters are welcome. I am looking at the xantech line because it is so flexible and expandable.

Looking forward to some new pics soon.

yes i should be going trigger happy once i move in. the big move is this weekend but the A/V setup will be down on the priority list. gotta get all the essentials up and running first.


Looking forward to some new pics soon.

yes i should be going trigger happy once i move in. the big move is this weekend but the A/V setup will be down on the priority list. gotta get all the essentials up and running first.

Congrats on the new house. Taking possession of a new home on St. Joseph's day is a very good omen! ;)

Looking forward to following your new journey!

Looking forward to seeing some new pics. Hope things are going well (nice floor plan btw I hope to see it in person one day once you have the HT completed)

Cheers
Calvin

Thanks. Sorry I haven't updated the thread in a while. Still unpacking and getting things together and organized. Just unpacked the computer this weekend.

Pictures coming soon...I hope.

Congrats on the new house. Taking possession of a new home on St. Joseph's day is a very good omen! ;)

Looking forward to following your new journey!

Started to take some pics yesterday but my wife complained the house was too messy so I stopped.

So far I have mounted the tv in the living room, installed my in-ceilings speakers in the living room, and started to put together the AV rack. Waiting for some miscellaneous parts as well.

I also ordered a popcorn hour A-200 which should be arriving today. Can't wait to see it in action.

Yes your invite is still open once I finish the HT.

I accidentally drove by your house yesterday. Was out flying kites with the kids and didn't quite know where I was. When I was leaving I ended up in your crescent, which was good cuz I knew how to get out from there.

Looking forward to seeing some new pics. Hope things are going well (nice floor plan btw I hope to see it in person one day once you have the HT completed)

Cheers
Calvin

Ok, finally took some pics.

The living room:
The wires from the TV are temporary of course. Waiting for some parts to complete the wiring behind the TV.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=172238&stc=1&d=1270579320

The living room and dining room:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=172239&stc=1&d=1270579320

TV Mount:
The mount is a Vantage Point Extend. It is great for my application because I can push the TV flush to the wall but can get behind it when I need to without having to unmount it.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=172240&stc=1&d=1270579578

Kitchen:
That is painters tape on top of the hood fan in case anyone is wondering.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=172241&stc=1&d=1270579666

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=172242&stc=1&d=1270579666

Some more pics...

Stairs to basement:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=172243&stc=1&d=1270579869

Future theater area:
As you can see it is a complete mess right now. No rush to clean it up until I order a screen and projector.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=172244&stc=1&d=1270579869

Bar area where I will mount two 32 inchers:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=172245&stc=1&d=1270579869

And the rack:
Far from complete but at least its in there. It was an extremely tight fight, even had to cut the bolts that are meant to hold the leveling feet off.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=172246&stc=1&d=1270579878

My popcorn hour arrived yesterday. Spent about 30 minutes with it and so far it seems to work as I expected. Tried playing a couple of ISO images I made from DVDs and they all seemed to play fine.

Some pics:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=172247&stc=1&d=1270580243

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=172248&stc=1&d=1270580243

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=172249&stc=1&d=1270580430

Just looking into getting YAMJ up and running so I can put away all my DVDs :)

You new place is looking amazing. Love the ceiling in the living room.

Thanks :). Have you started looking to build?

You new place is looking amazing. Love the ceiling in the living room.

With the way the market is here in Michigan gonna hold off for a couple hears. Just gonna finish off the basement with a modest theater and enjoy for now. Still love the floor plan.

So far the floor plan is working for us. Haven't really made use of the space yet because there are boxes everywhere but hopefully we can get it sorted out this summer.

With the way the market is here in Michigan gonna hold off for a couple hears. Just gonna finish off the basement with a modest theater and enjoy for now. Still love the floor plan.

Slowly starting to fill up the rack. Disappointed that the two rack mount components I had don't rack mount very well so I had to end up using shelves for them anyhow. Need to order some more shelves now.

Also got the IR distribution working from the main floor to the basement. Next I need to install an IR receiver in the bedroom to get that TV functioning.

I like your build in rack, very nice.

Thanks. If you like that you will love these (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=788074&highlight=show)

I like your build in rack, very nice.

Very nice build! Any updates?

Very nice build! Any updates?

Thank you. Unfortunately no updates on the theater. Still haven't purchased a screen or projector. At this rate, the new models will be out by the time I do buy.

Have been spending a bit of time on filling up the rack with the components used in the rest of the house. At this point they include:

- Toshiba hdvd player
- sony dvd player
- Bell hdpvr
- Popcorn Hour A200
- 3x5 component matrix
- APCH15
- Onkyo 7.1 receiver
- Pioneer 7.1 receiver

Most of the components are in now, just ordered an Arkview hdmi balun to try out extending hdmi over cat5 from the rack to the main floor tv. If that works the ps3 will go in the rack, hopefully the controllers have enough range to work on the main floor.

Any updates on the theatre room?

Rory

Any updates on the theatre room?

Rory

I just checked and it has been about a year since i updated the thread - my apologies :o.

Updates? Where do I start?

First thing, we had a baby girl in February :D.

Now onto the theater stuff. I got some new equipment in the past year. Well some new, some used:

- PROJECTOR finally - Epson 8350
- Screen - 120" grey Elunvision
- 4x4 Shinybow component video matrix (to replace 3x5 one i had)
- Sherwood 5 channel amp (AM-9080). It's an older model but i thought i would give it a shot.
- Sherwood CD player. Older model as well.
- 3 URC remotes and an RF base station. Remotes are MX-880, KP-900, and MX-900. Base station is MSC-400.
- Windows Home Server for Movie and TV content

Right now I am moving some stuff around in the rack and programming the remotes. It seems like I am spending so much time working on this stuff I never get to watch anything.

Pardon the mess. I don't think some of that stuff has moved since we moved in.

120" Grey Elunevision

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=221874&stc=1&d=1315277046

Some shots of the projector. Epson 8350 and the mount is Peerless Precision Gear. Excellent mount by the way, the gears make adjustments so much easier than my previous mount.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=221875&stc=1&d=1315277046

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=221876&stc=1&d=1315277046

Shot of the TVs behind the bar. I don't think I have ever used them yet but maybe one day :).

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=221880&stc=1&d=1315277482

The rack is in transition but if I waited for it to be finished to post a pic it just might never happen.

So in the rack now is the following:

- URC MSC400
- Bell HDPVR
- Pioneer VSX9040TXH
- Onkyo TXSR604
- APC H15
- PS3
- 4x4 Component Matrix
- HDDVD Player HD-D3
- Popcorn Hour A200
- Sherwood CD Player
- Sherwood amp

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=221881&stc=1&d=1315277482

The only reason I am posting a pic of this remote is because I think the URC KP900 is one of my most satisfying purchases. It is a keypad style remote that attaches to it's mounting plate with magnets. You can pull it off the wall and still use it as a normal IR/RF remote.

Prior to this I was using the factory remote and an IR extender to turn on zone 2 of my receiver for music on the deck. I wasn't happy doing it that way so I found this and am very pleased with it. It is now the remote for my living room and deck.

RF control is a blessing! I have retired my Harmonies in favor of RF control with URC.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=221883&stc=1&d=1315278087

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=221884&stc=1&d=1315278087