Drew I love the speaker selection. I have the 22's up front with the 150 for the center and qs8 for the rears. I already had Phase Technologies for the sides so they stayed. Topped off with an SVS 20-39pci.
I have a question on your wood though. Is that solid wood ?
From your photo I think I know the line. If it is the wood line I'm thinking of, it's a beautiful wood with a lot of characterization the only problem is when it is time to refinish it has to be hand sanded and finished which gets awful pricey.
Just thinking ahead for ya.

Drew I love the speaker selection. I have the 22's up front with the 150 for the center and qs8 for the rears. I already had Phase Technologies for the sides so they stayed. Topped off with an SVS 20-39pci.
I have a question on your wood though. Is that solid wood ?
From your photo I think I know the line. If it is the wood line I'm thinking of, it's a beautiful wood with a lot of characterization the only problem is when it is time to refinish it has to be hand sanded and finished which gets awful pricey.
Just thinking ahead for ya.

Thanks. Actually the flooring is a laminate so there will never be sanding needed. We have real wood upstairs and the dogs kills it so we decided to go with either a laminate or engineered and we really liked the look and price point of the one we found.

Drew

I too have dogs and yes, they do a number on wood floors but not a big deal since they can be refinished over and over for many years to come. The engineered stuff can't be refinished or if it can, it can only be done once. I love wood floors, only way to go in my book, except for the basement. I put laminate in my old basement, not nearly as nice looking as wood but stands up pretty good to abuse and is the cheapest alternative. The bad thing is when you drop something on it and it chips. If it's a little chip you can just put some nail polish on it to protect it from spreading. If it's a big ugly chip, make sure you save some extra pieces in case you need to replace one.

Looks like some great progress. I'm going to start framing mine this weekend!

Is that window the only egress window in the basement? I assume you don't have a walkout basement since you removed the window to bring in the drywall.

Isn't it exciting making progress, ordering speakers, etc? It really makes you start itching to get it done! Looks good and I hope you like the Axioms. I was seriously considering them over the Ascends.

Is that window the only egress window in the basement? I assume you don't have a walkout basement since you removed the window to bring in the drywall.

No, there are 3 other egress windows in the basement all of them more accessible than the one in the HT room. Keep in mind that that framing I put in the window can be removed as it is not secured in with any nails/screws/etc. Only pressure is keeping it in place, so if it needs to come out it can.

No unfortunately I do not have a walk out.

Drew

Isn't it exciting making progress, ordering speakers, etc? It really makes you start itching to get it done! Looks good and I hope you like the Axioms. I was seriously considering them over the Ascends.

Oh yeah, much to my wife's dismay, all I want to do is finish :)

Drew

make sure you save some extra pieces in case you need to replace one.

Looks like some great progress. I'm going to start framing mine this weekend!


I agree with the wood floors. I really like them and wish I could use them in the basement, but for what I want the cost would have been around between $15 and $35 a square foot. Too much for me... I want old guinness barrels that have been reclaimed and turned into wood flooring. So I went the cheaper route and went with laminate. Good idea on the extra pieces and I will have a few.

Drew

Don't hang about too long ordering......my Ascends are back ordered for at least 3 weeks. I also ordered Axiom QS8's which were supposidly shipped on same day so hopefully you won't have same issue.

Mark

Glad to see you decided to go with the Axioms...please keep us updated on them once you get them. I am considering them myself as I have heard only great things about them and would love to get yoru feedback as well.

If I am not mistaken ...."Farm House" construction thread just put up the QS8's in his columns and likes them..although he is considering some form of deflection for the sound since they also fire from the top and bottom as well as from the sides...something you may want to remember when it comes time to place them.

Robert

Glad to see you decided to go with the Axioms...please keep us updated on them once you get them. I am considering them myself as I have heard only great things about them and would love to get yoru feedback as well.

If I am not mistaken ...."Farm House" construction thread just put up the QS8's in his columns and likes them..although he is considering some form of deflection for the sound since they also fire from the top and bottom as well as from the sides...something you may want to remember when it comes time to place them.

Robert

Yeah bpape has informed me of some other issues, such as the speakers being rear ported so I need to make sure I try and leave some space behind them. I will let everyone know how they sound. I will say that there customer service & tech guys were very friendly and helpful.

Drew

On another note I picked up all the cabinets for the bar. I bought 6 cabinets made of Alder and stained in a honey glaze. I will take some pictures tomorrow after I bring them into the basement. I also bought most, if not all, of my base molding and trim pieces. So I really only have a few things left to purchase like the padded flooring for the workout room, tile for the bathroom and the wood for the bar/counter tops.

Oh yeah I will be ordering a Panamorph U-80 lens for my PJ in the next few days. I have spent many hours going over the whole 2.35 thing and decided that the U-80 would be the best bang for my buck. Besides Shawn at Panamorph was very helpful and knowledgeable and was able to answer all my questions.

Drew

Here is a list of equipment I plan to buy over the next few weeks. If anyone has any experience or problems with any of the below listed devices I would appreciate any feedback:

Oppo DV971H DVD player
Onkyo TX-SR803 Receiver
Belkin Power Console PF60 Power conditioner
Panamorph U-80 anamorphic lens
Axiom 7.1 speaker package (3 M22's, 4 QS4's, 1 EP175)
UPS (possibly an APC unit)

Drew

Have you considered getting the Toshiba HD-A1 HD-DVD player, as long as you're going to buy a new DVD player "from scratch"? For not much more, you'll have the next gen, and it apparently is amazing at upconverting.

I have the TX-SR702 and like it quite a bit.. will probably use it for many more years, though add external amplification such as an Outlaw 7-channel amp or four Crown XTis.

I just got the PF60 as well, but don't have any experience with it. You may want to get something of an ND2 filter for the LCD screen, since it's quite bright if it's in your HT room.

I'm interested to hear your thoughs on a VC anamorphic lens like the U-80. I've always really only considered HE, so it'll be interesting to hear your thoughts.

I just bought a Tripplite rackmountable UPS w/LCD status panel for <$200 shipped (Provantage) that was quite a good deal. I especially like that it's rack-mountable.

Here is a list of equipment I plan to buy over the next few weeks. If anyone has any experience or problems with any of the below listed devices I would appreciate any feedback:

Oppo DV971H DVD player
Onkyo TX-SR803 Receiver
Belkin Power Console PF60 Power conditioner
Panamorph U-80 anamorphic lens
Axiom 7.1 speaker package (3 M22's, 4 QS4's, 1 EP175)
UPS (possibly an APC unit)

Drew

Looks good to me. I just bought the PF60 and Oppo and have the U80 already. For your UPS, seriously look at the Belkin PureAv unit. I got mine here for an incredible baragin! (http://www.provantage.com/belkin-ap30800-10~7BELD02T.htm) The price has went up over $20 in the past week or so.... I picked up the PF60 from the same website and they are an authorized dealer too so no warranty issues.

Have you considered getting the Toshiba HD-A1 HD-DVD player, as long as you're going to buy a new DVD player "from scratch"? For not much more, you'll have the next gen, and it apparently is amazing at upconverting.

I have the TX-SR702 and like it quite a bit.. will probably use it for many more years, though add external amplification such as an Outlaw 7-channel amp or four Crown XTis.

I just got the PF60 as well, but don't have any experience with it. You may want to get something of an ND2 filter for the LCD screen, since it's quite bright if it's in your HT room.

I'm interested to hear your thoughs on a VC anamorphic lens like the U-80. I've always really only considered HE, so it'll be interesting to hear your thoughts.

I just bought a Tripplite rackmountable UPS w/LCD status panel for <$200 shipped (Provantage) that was quite a good deal. I especially like that it's rack-mountable.


Tim, i want to wait a while on the whole HD-DVD and Blue-Ray compitition, so that is why I am going with the Oppo. I still have an old betamax unit lying around somewhere if you want it :) Also I will more than likely buy a ND2 filter for the Panny. So you still recommend using an external amplifier even though the Onkyo provides 105 watts per channel?

I will look into the tripplite thanks.

Drew

Looks good to me. I just bought the PF60 and Oppo and have the U80 already. For your UPS, seriously look at the Belkin PureAv unit. I got mine here for an incredible baragin! (http://www.provantage.com/belkin-ap30800-10~7BELD02T.htm) The price has went up over $20 in the past week or so.... I picked up the PF60 from the same website and they are an authorized dealer too so no warranty issues.


Jerrod, have you tried using the PJ without the lens and just zooming to get 2.35? If so have you compared the two? What is your opinion on using the lens as opposed to just zooming?

Drew

Tim, i want to wait a while on the whole HD-DVD and Blue-Ray compitition, so that is why I am going with the Oppo. I still have an old betamax unit lying around somewhere if you want it :) Also I will more than likely buy a ND2 filter for the Panny. So you still recommend using an external amplifier even though the Onkyo provides 105 watts per channel?

I will look into the tripplite thanks.

Drew
The problem with your betamax player is it can't do anything else.. :) I was thinking more of getting the Toshiba HD-A1 as an outstanding upconverting player for standard DVDs (like getting the Oppo), but you also have the benefit of it being able to play HD-DVDs immediately, for not much more cost.

Regarding the amp, it will depend on the sensitivity of your speakers. I'm using Paradigm Studios at the moment which like a lot of power, and will probably eventually build three DIY line arrays, so I want to be sure to have plenty of power. Initially, I will probably use the receiver to power the 4 surrounds at a minimum, and get either a 3-channel amp, or two Crowns. So you'd probably be fine with the Onkyo and Axioms. You can always add external amps later, which is a benefit (being able to spread out equipment purchases).

Drew can I ask why you decided to go with 3 M22's across the front instead of using a VP150 or 100 for the center.

Tim, i want to wait a while on the whole HD-DVD and Blue-Ray compitition, so that is why I am going with the Oppo. I plan on waiting as well, but I'm thinking about picking up a mega changer just so I'm not having to leaf through boxes of DVDs. I think it'll be easier for the kids as well.

Bud

Drew can I ask why you decided to go with 3 M22's across the front instead of using a VP150 or 100 for the center.

Sure, I wanted all three speakers to be identical. Meaning that I did not want one to be horizontal and two vertical. I am using an AT screen so all three speakers will be behind the screen.

Drew

Just pulled the plug on a panamorph U-80 lens. It should be here when I get back from vacation on the 13th. Also my wife and I have decided to go with Berkline 88's instead of the coasters. We could actually fit them in the room better than the coasters:

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/berks.jpg

I plan on using the AVS power buy going on. I am just deciding on buttkickers and the power option. I was thinking of using power on the from two seats and manual on the rest.

Drew

Jerrod, have you tried using the PJ without the lens and just zooming to get 2.35? If so have you compared the two? What is your opinion on using the lens as opposed to just zooming?

Drew

I've only used the projector once so far, and it was for an outdoor hockey game. Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals in HD! I hav eyet to really mess with it and all the zoom features. My screen arrived today, so by next Saturday I hope to have it, the projector and all the other electronics hooked up to start playing around. I'll be sure to report results on what I see.

Man, enjoy the vacation. Hopefully both you and your wife will come back refreshed, so that you will have a new desire to work on the HT, and the wife will feel like you have spent time with her, so that she is not jealous of your basement mistress :)

Yeah AVS has this uncanny power to take over your life doesn't it :rolleyes:
My says I am obsessed/addicted, but I can quit any time....no really..... Ok maybe I need some help. I keep telling her my addiction will subside when the basement is done. :D

Drew

MAYBE you need some help? Did you notice a very important word that you left out of your sentence? If you need a hint it's right after the word "my."

Just in case you're not sure whether AVS is taking over....

;)

Great work on your HT

Well, I am back from my vacation. Although the whole time we were in SD I could not stop talking about things to do in the basement. I guess I am addicted :rolleyes: Any how I have decided to purchase Berkline 088's in black leather. I have two places in mind to purchase them from as both are EXTREMELY good. I will let you know who in a few days. I must say that both their normal prices beat anything I have seen yet.

Any way we are going to go with a 2/4 configuration similar to what Bud did. The only difference will be we are going to get a wedge table between the two front chairs. I am going to go with a power recline option on the front and manual on the back.

Also bpape has finished looking at my room and should have my materials list in the next day or so. So stay tuned for that. I hope to get the soffit built this weekend.

Drew

Welcome back - hope your well relaxed. Still got just over 2 weeks before I go on vacation and boy I need it!

Cheers,
Mark

Well, I am back from my vacation. Although the whole time we were in SD I could not stop talking about things to do in the basement. I guess I am addicted :rolleyes:
Drew

Dude, I remember the days when I was building my theater, not being able to sleep because I was always thinking about what I could do different or what I wanted to remember to do. I found that getting out of bed and writing whatever my thoughts were on paper really helped me sleep. :cool:

I would be very interested in hearing who you go with for your Berklines!!

Welcome back!! Got here just intime to enjoy the 100 degree heat we're gonna get this weekend!

Sean

Dude, I remember the days when I was building my theater, not being able to sleep because I was always thinking about what I could do different or what I wanted to remember to do. I found that getting out of bed and writing whatever my thoughts were on paper really helped me sleep. :cool:


I just went to see the Pirates sequel and was struck by how preferable my modest little setup is. :D

Only back a day and already spending money... I just purchased the fiber and light for my star ceiling, the Oppo 971 DVD player, Belkin PF60 power center, Onkyo TX-SR803 receiver. I will purchase the Axiom speakers and the Berklines in the next few weeks. I wanted to take some advantage of the sales going on right now.

Well enough talk, I need to go to work building my soffits.

Drew

Well, Bryan (bpape) has finished my room analysis and I just bought all my room treatments, except the Linacoustic, from him. I would highly recommend using Bryan to analyze your room before you just haphazardly start putting up treatments. He is very knowledgeable and great to work with. Here is what he came up with for me:

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Room.jpg

So now I can start the room treatments along with the soffits. :D

Drew

Ok I feel a bit stupid here but..... a little explination of that last diagram of yours from Bryan would be nice. Im assuming the red and green lines are reflection points for different spreakers and possibly the sound path of the rooms current layout but how exactly does that tell you where to put what kind fo treatment?

Robert

Ok I feel a bit stupid here but..... a little explination of that last diagram of yours from Bryan would be nice. Im assuming the red and green lines are reflection points for different spreakers and possibly the sound path of the rooms current layout but how exactly does that tell you where to put what kind fo treatment?

Robert

Robert, that is a good question. I left out all of the details from bryans diagram that shows what/where to put the treatments. Bryan does include all of that information but since he does this as a business I did not think he would appreciate me posting that info. I may be wrong but wanted to err on the side of caution. Suffice it to say Bryan does a great job and makes it easy to understand what needs to be done.

Drew

Thats fine...I completely understand. I had actually begun preliminary work with Bryan then the project got unavolidably put on hold. I just wanted to make sure that what you got from him was easily understood. We hadnt gotten to that point on mine before we stopped...I hope to pick it back up with him in the near future.

Robert

Question about 2x8 that you used for the arc shape. Looks like you put many cuts so that you can bend it. What is the depth of the cut? What tool did you use for that?

Quite cool idea!!!


The sand filled box for the sub:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/sub-sand.jpg

Drew

Question about 2x8 that you used for the arc shape. Looks like you put many cuts so that you can bend it. What is the depth of the cut? What tool did you use for that?

Quite cool idea!!!
v1rtu0s1ty, see post #190 for the details. I would link but don't have enough posts yet!

v1rtu0s1ty, Justin pointed out the explanation in post 190. However it is called kerfing. All you need to use is either a circular saw or a sliding compound miter saw and make a cut every 1" along the length of the board. Your depth should be only 3/4 of the way through the thickness of the wood you are kerfing.

Drew

Ok, so I worked some on the HT this weekend, but it was slow going as I had many other distraction. You know the wife, a two year old, bar b q, etc. Any how I was able to get the framing done for the soffits and a little of the linacoustic hung:

Here is the 2x2 framing on the walls and the ceiling:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/soffit-frame.jpg

Here is the same shot with the 1/2" MDF hung:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/soffit-top.jpg

I still need to hang the bottom portions of the soffits. I will try to get around to that in the next few days. Oh, yeah and did I mention measure twice cut once? The MDF I installed in 1/2" to long. I needed 9-1/2" not 10". Oh well, thank goodness for table saws :)

Oh yeah notice my "thinking chair" It is very similar to Buds...

Drew

Here is a shot of the Linacoustic on the front wall:

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/front-wall-linacoustic.jpg

Now you may be wondering why I did not hang the Linacoustic from wall to wall? Why did I leave 17" of space on each side? Well to answer that question...I will be installing OC 703 in each corner. Each corner will have triangular 703 pieces from floor to ceiling. I will use about 40 pieces of 2" 703 in each corner. So the triangular pieces will be 17"x17"x24".

After I get those put in I will construct the proscenium and the front wall soffit.

Oh yeah, notice the cabinets in the picture? Those are the bar cabinets. They are made out of Alder and have a honey glaze finish.
Drew

Drew,

Amazing work so far, and I can't wait to see the next bit of your progress. I have a question regarding your stage. Would you offer some tips on how to cut the edge of the plywood sandwich to mirror the curvature of the framing? I'm about to build my own, but I'm just not sure how to go about cutting the plywood. I don't recall seeing how anyone else does it, but since you built such an elaborate and nice stage, I figured you would be a the one to ask.

Thanks!
Mike

Alder cabinets are great. You can stain them any color and they sort of take on the type of wood that has that stain color. I had alder cabinets installed in our kitchen stained in a cherry. The are really nice.


BK

Drew,

Amazing work so far, and I can't wait to see the next bit of your progress. I have a question regarding your stage. Would you offer some tips on how to cut the edge of the plywood sandwich to mirror the curvature of the framing? I'm about to build my own, but I'm just not sure how to go about cutting the plywood. I don't recall seeing how anyone else does it, but since you built such an elaborate and nice stage, I figured you would be a the one to ask.

Thanks!
Mike


Mike, there are many ways to go about it. I used a circular saw and a jig saw. What I did was lay the first layer of plywood down on the frame and used a pencil to trace the outside portion of the frame onto the plywood. Then I flipped the plywood over. To get the 2" over hang I used a tape measure and added 2" to several points along my traced route then just extended the line. I then used a circular saw to cut the straight lines and the jig saw to cut the curve on both pieces of plywood.

Drew

Dude, I remember the days when I was building my theater, not being able to sleep because I was always thinking about what I could do different or what I wanted to remember to do. I found that getting out of bed and writing whatever my thoughts were on paper really helped me sleep. :cool:

LOL, yep. I could use a tranqulizer and I'm still on the concept phase of a level 2 with Rives Audio! :eek:

My Listening Room/HT should be great if I live to see it finished... :p

BTW, it is great to see these threads on people's building experiences with their HTs. It is a relief to get a sense of how it will all play out as the project comes along. Thanks for sharing! :cool:

Well more toys arrived today. I got my Belkin PureAV Power console PF60 from ProVantage today:
http://www.provantage.com/fullsize/HW_99028.jpg

I also got a Belkin 375VA UPS 6-Outlet for the Panny PJ:
http://www.provantage.com/fullsize/BELZ02L.jpg

My starfield fiber and light also arrived but I was not home to sign for it so I need to pick it up tomorrow. Bryan shipped out all my 703 and scrim and it should arrive on Friday. Oh yeah my Panamorph U80 lens will be here tomorrow. The Oppo DVD player will be here on the 25th. See Christmas does come in July :D

For those wanting to get a power conditioner I would highly recommend Provantage and the Belkin PF60. The price can NOT be beat. I missed the super sale they had but still got it $250 cheaper than anyone else.

Drew

I have modeled the star ceiling and wanted to share my idea for some comments. The ceiling space I have to use for the star field is 9' x 12'. I ordered my light box and 120' of fiber from http://www.fiberopticproducts.com/Ceiling.htm .

The plan is to build 9 panels each 3' x 4' cover them with black GOM and mount them to the ceiling similar to the way Sandman did his. However I will put up 2" wood strips around the seams to make it look like window panels. So the finished look should be something like this:

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/star.jpg

Drew

v1rtu0s1ty, Justin pointed out the explanation in post 190. However it is called kerfing. All you need to use is either a circular saw or a sliding compound miter saw and make a cut every 1" along the length of the board. Your depth should be only 3/4 of the way through the thickness of the wood you are kerfing.

Drew

Thank you very much for your explanation. Is there any printer friendly of this thread?

Thank you very much for your explanation. Is there any printer friendly of this thread?

Click on "thread tools" either at the top or the bottom of the thread.
http://images14.fotki.com/v335/photos/6/649633/3402899/threadprint-vi.jpg

Bud

Drew - do you know what the lamp source is for the illuminator? I couldn't find it on their website. I assume it is incandescent of some variety. Also, did you get the same size fiber for all? Then you'll just bunch some together for different size stars?

Justin the bulb is an MR-16 75w halogen bulb. I bought the EG-48 cable which has many different sizes in it:

http://www.fiberopticproducts.com/Egpack48a.jpg

Drew

Picked up my Panamorph U85 lens tonight. The lens looks like this:

http://www.panamorph.com/images/Produc1.jpg

I will post some pics of it and the PJ in a day or so. I have been really busy at work so not much time for basement activity. Plus I will be out all next week for work.

Drew

I got home tonight to find 3 large boxes and a tube from Bryan. All my 703 and scrim for the HT. I also received my rails for the equipment rack. I will take some pictures of everything in the next day or so. I just finished texturing the walls of the workout room and the ceilings. I am full of drywall mud again. But this is the last time....for now ;) All that is left is venetian plaster and some painting...then all the walls will be done.

Drew

Click on "thread tools" either at the top or the bottom of the thread.
http://images14.fotki.com/v335/photos/6/649633/3402899/threadprint-vi.jpg

Bud

Thanks chinadog! :)

Well here are a few pictures that I took while working on the soffit, etc. I finished most of it but I still have to put on the bottom part of the soffit on the front and back. But that will have to wait as I am going out of town on business. Darn work getting in the way of progress ;)

Any how here is a shot of how I am building my soffits:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/lookingt_into_the_soffit.jpg

and here is an almost complete shot:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Soffit_with_lights.jpg

I changed my lights in the soffits yet again. Tis time I am using real can 2 1/2" can lights for the soffits rather than puck lights. Also I do not have the 4" piece of MDF up that will finish up the rope light tray. I will put that up when I get the GOM material.

I did not take a picture of it but the soffits are filled with insulation. however there are gaps in the insulation where the lights are as they are not rated for it. When I return I will paint the soffits flat black and then put up the black GOM.

Drew

I told you that I received all my boxes from bpape well here they are:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/OC703_insulation.jpg

Bryan had me cut most of the 703 into triangle shapes 17"x17"x24". So here is the layout on the 703:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/OC703_cut_pattern.jpg

So how do you cut 703? Well first off don't tell the wife...but use a steak knife..it works great :D
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/cutting_703.jpg

Then you get 8 nice little triangles for the corner bass trapes:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/cutout_703_for_bass_traps.jpg

Next just start stacking them in a corner:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/start_of_bass_traps.jpg

Until you get this:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/finished_left_bass_trap.jpg
and this:
[IMG]http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/finished_right_bass_trap.jpg/IMG]

All that is left is for me to secure them in the corners with 4 pieces of 1x2 that has a 45 degree mitre cut. I ran out of time but will get that done next week as well.

Drew

hi rooster, why do we need bass traps? And where is the recommended location to place these?

Justin the bulb is an MR-16 75w halogen bulb. I bought the EG-48 cable which has many different sizes in it:

Drew

Cool fiber - I like it!

One note on that MR16, if you're going to use a dimming system of some kind, or even a simple wall dimmer, if you keep the illuminator dimmed back to 95% of full output or less, instead of full output, it will roughly double the life of the lamp. A simple and inexpensive maintainence tip, since you will hardly notice the difference in brightness by dimming it back 5%. Also helps a bit with heat.

hi rooster, why do we need bass traps? And where is the recommended location to place these?
Check out the Acoustic Treatments Master Thread stickied at the top of this forum. Very, very good info, and one of the most important things to getting good sound in any room (especially dedicated).

Congrats on the U85. Being away for a while, I was shocked about Panamorph changing their models. I got the U80 on sale before they raised the price on it. Sounds like the U85 is a combination of the 80 and 150 right? I'm itching to set mine up. I'm sure you are too!

Congrats on the U85. Being away for a while, I was shocked about Panamorph changing their models. I got the U80 on sale before they raised the price on it. Sounds like the U85 is a combination of the 80 and 150 right? I'm itching to set mine up. I'm sure you are too!

Jerrod, yeah I set it up today to try it out since I am building the rear soffit. I wanted to make sure that placing the PJ and lens in the soffit would work, and thanks goodness it does. I will take some pics tomorrow to show you. The lens is a combo of the 150 and U80. Great lens and I got a great deal. Shawn from Panamorph rocks!!!

On another note I will be building the panels for the star ceiling tomorrow. I still need to order the GOM. Man purchasing equipment really blows away your budget doesn't it.

Drew

I did not get to the star panels for the ceiling today as planned but I did finish the soffit and made my 2.35 screen for the SMX 720 material. Here are some shots of the frame:

Here you can see the front of the screen. The white boarder is really 1.5" wood trim to keep the SMX720 material off of as much of the frame as possible. The frame was painted flat black and is made out of 1"x3" oak.
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Front_of_screen_frame.jpg

Here is a shot of the back of the frame which shows the brackets I used:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Back_of_screen_frame.jpg

The next shot is the frame layed out on top of the SMX720 material. I used a 20 degree angle but I am sure it was not necessary:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Screen_on_SMX_material.jpg

The next shot shows the material cut completely cut out and ready to be stapled:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/SMX_material_cut_out.jpg

I used a lot of staples. I followed the common pattern for starching canvas:
http://z.about.com/d/painting/1/0/S/5/canvas1.jpg

and what I came out with was this:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Screen_almost_done.jpg

Drew

Ah, reminds me of my oil painting days...

After finishing my frame - well it is almost finished, I still have to add the black velvet border, I went ahead and finished the front false wall/proscenium and the front soffit:

Here is a shot of back soffit looking into where the PJ/Panamorph lens will go. You will notice I am now using a chief RPA mount and I have a UPS plugged into my surge protector for the PJ:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/PJ_location_with_protection.jpg

After putting it all together here is the hidden door for the PJ in the soffit:
OPEN:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Back_soffit_with_PJ_trap_door.jpg
CLOSED:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/PJ_installed.jpg

Once that was finished I spent the rest of the day building the front. But first a shot of the side:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/soffit_front_done1.jpg

and the front:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Screen_in_place.jpg

Well enough for tonight.

Drew

Looks great Drew! I have a few questions though if you dont mind....

You mentioned a 20degree angle when you put the fram on teh material for the screen...what is this for?

I dont know anything about making your own screen so please understand but I thought there had to be some kind of black backing behind the white screen...is that correct, if so when will you be putting that in?

Thanks....Robert

Oh yeah....is that Sandmans material? I stopped following his screen thread a while back since it seened to be dragging out for a while when he was waiting on tests and different material to come in. I assume if that is the one he decided to go with that there was some reason for this choice? Where did you get it and what was its cost if you dont mind my asking?

Robert

Robert. Yes the SMX720 is Sandmans material. The 20 degree rotation was to prevent any possible screen door effect from the PJ. I decided to go with this material due to cost and the results of all the testing. I was one of the first to purchase the SMX720 and have had it rolled up for some time. The cost was right around $200 and the screen framed cost me another $120. So for $300 I think I got a great deal especially for an accousticaly transparent screen. I will not be using any black backing as there is no need with this material. Also remember I will be placing all three (LCR) speakers behind the screen.

Drew

Drew,

I finally stumbled upon the SmX forum and read quite a bit of it earlier, thanks for answering though. I may very well take this approach as well if I can decide between a standard flat screen and possibly the curved or even the other recently mentioned curved screen (cant for the life of me remember its name now but its curved both ways ...sides and top and bottom). The latter screen sounds nice but even more of a PITA than a regualr curved screen which already seems to be difficult enough to do unless you can figure out the curve and find some place to bend it for you like SandmanX did.

How did you handle the corners specifically when you were stapeling down the screen to the frame. It looks like you did a good job since I cant see the folds come together so I thought I would ask.

Robert

How did you handle the corners specifically when you were stapeling down the screen to the frame. It looks like you did a good job since I cant see the folds come together so I thought I would ask.

Robert

Ah, the beauty of a wife that likes to quilt, etc. She help me with the corners. There are a few ways you can work corners but all are a pain. I would caution against cutting excess material until you are 100% sure that you will have enough to fold over.

Drew

hmmmm ok, I was kinda hoping you had some pics of the corner process since your came out so nicely....maybe when the time comes I will consult an expert in such manners...my grandmother :D

Looks good Drew! I like how you have the projector recessed up in the soffit. I kinda wish I would of done that.

A word of advice, take that screen down or be very, very careful! Somehow.... I managed to get a drop of stain on mine. I have no idea how I did it, but I did it. Using some lacquer thinner, I was able to get 99% of it off.... but if you look closely you can see it on the bottom right of the screen. So, my advice is to take it down and don't be an idiot like me!

hmmmm ok, I was kinda hoping you had some pics of the corner process since your came out so nicely....maybe when the time comes I will consult an expert in such manners...my grandmother :D

Sorry no pictures of the corners. But I will take a close up of them and maybe that will help. Here is a link that may help you do the corners as well: http://www.artsparx.com/canvasstretching.asp

Drew

Looks good Drew! I like how you have the projector recessed up in the soffit. I kinda wish I would of done that.

A word of advice, take that screen down or be very, very careful! Somehow.... I managed to get a drop of stain on mine. I have no idea how I did it, but I did it. Using some lacquer thinner, I was able to get 99% of it off.... but if you look closely you can see it on the bottom right of the screen. So, my advice is to take it down and don't be an idiot like me!

Good advice thanks.

Drew

Hey! Man you are working fast, hope you have time to answer my question.
Can you tell me what your speaker placement is? Where did you decide to put your surrounds? How many feet from the screen wall is what I'm looking for. My room is approx the same size and I will have a door on the side near the seating. I am doing my framing now and already took a wall down because I wasn't sure about door location due to speakers. I plan on going with a 6.1 system with dipole surrounds.

Your HT and basement looks fantastic. Wish my kids would leave me alone so I could get some work done :)

Hey! Man you are working fast, hope you have time to answer my question.
Can you tell me what your speaker placement is? Where did you decide to put your surrounds? How many feet from the screen wall is what I'm looking for. My room is approx the same size and I will have a door on the side near the seating. I am doing my framing now and already took a wall down because I wasn't sure about door location due to speakers. I plan on going with a 6.1 system with dipole surrounds.

Your HT and basement looks fantastic. Wish my kids would leave me alone so I could get some work done :)

Thanks. Well to start I will be using an all Axiom 7.1 speaker set up. The front 3 (LCR) speakers will be behind the screen and are about 9 feet from the main seating area. The 4 surrounds are better than dipoles IMHO because they fire from the top/bottom and both sides. Any how the side surrounds will be mounted approx 5.5 feet up from the floor and approx 10 feet from the front of the screen. The back surrounds will also be mount up 5.5 feet and are 6 feet apart from each other. Hope that helps.

Drew

Thanks. Well to start I will be using an all Axiom 7.1 speaker set up. The front 3 (LCR) speakers will be behind the screen and are about 9 feet from the main seating area. The 4 surrounds are better than dipoles IMHO because they fire from the top/bottom and both sides. Any how the side surrounds will be mounted approx 5.5 feet up from the floor and approx 10 feet from the front of the screen. The back surrounds will also be mount up 5.5 feet and are 6 feet apart from each other. Hope that helps.

Drew

Ok, so you are going to put the side surrounds right next to the front seating row. Cool, thanks for your help. Those speakers you are getting sure do look nice. Can't wait to get results on how they sound.

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/PJ-soffit-open.jpg
I love the trap door idea for the projector. It allows for a smooth front. Are you putting any type of glass on the front or just leaving it open. I have not decided myself. Also, I think I'm getting the same Panamorph lens for my setup. Please let me know how you like it in action.

On your screen frame, I like the idea you had to recess the bracer boards back a bit so not to touch the screen or possibly show through. I may just have to steal that idea from you. Your SMX 2.35:1 screen will be awesome. I have my material coming soon. I'm sure you mentioned it before but how wide is your screen? 8'? 9'?

I love the trap door idea for the projector. It allows for a smooth front. Are you putting any type of glass on the front or just leaving it open. I have not decided myself. Also, I think I'm getting the same Panamorph lens for my setup. Please let me know how you like it in action.

On your screen frame, I like the idea you had to recess the bracer boards back a bit so not to touch the screen or possibly show through. I may just have to steal that idea from you. Your SMX 2.35:1 screen will be awesome. I have my material coming soon. I'm sure you mentioned it before but how wide is your screen? 8'? 9'?


I really like how the trap door turned out, but it was a pain to get everything lined up right. I still need to raise the PJ slightly. The Panamorph U85 lens ROCKS. I got a great deal and I must say I think it was well worth the money even though I did not budget for it. I will take some pics of it in action tonight.

The SMX720 material is really great. I would highly recommend it to anyone wanting a accoustically transparent screen. My screen is 100.5" wide by 45.35 tall. That is the outside dimensions. the viewable area will be 8' (96") wide by 3' 5" (40.85") tall. I still do not have my black border around the screen. The mill that makes black fidelio velvet is out and needs to make more. I purchased it from: http://www.bymichelle.com/fidelio.html. So I am waiting 4 weeks before I can get it. Unless anyone knows of another place to get it?

Drew

Drew,

You can get it locally at Jo-Ann Fabrics. Not sure how the price compares to what you're looking at. For an "in-stock" online option check this out:

http://www.denverfabrics.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=17143&Category_Code=TripVel&Product_Count=4

Drew,

You can get it locally at Jo-Ann Fabrics. Not sure how the price compares to what you're looking at. For an "in-stock" online option check this out:

http://www.denverfabrics.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=17143&Category_Code=TripVel&Product_Count=4


So you have a sku #? I have called 7 Jo-Annes in CO and none of them carry it. I gave them the sku# that I got from another AVS'er but they do not have it anymore. When I went to three stores their black velvet selections were really bad.

I may go down to Denver fabric and see the triple velvet in person. Looks good on the web though.

Drew

As promised here are some pics of the PJ and Panamorph U85 lens in use. Keep in mind that the PJ is not in it's final setting and is not calibrated at all. Although I thought the picture looked great, the pictures came out a little fuzzy. I really have to give two thumbs up to Ruben for finding that screen material, it REALLY ROCKS :D :D

So any how here is a picture of the PJ in the soffit showing a movie:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/PJ_in_soffit.jpg
I used the last bit of black spray paint up to paint the edges and interior of the PJ hole, so that is why you see a really bad paint job.

Here is a close up shot of the PJ and the lens:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/PJ_and_Lens.jpg

And another showing the PJ and lens inside the soffit:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Inside_soffit.jpg

Drew

Ok now for pics of the test movie...can you guess the movie? This shot isl with the Panamorph U85 Lens in place:

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/PJ_and_screen_test.jpg


Drew

Ok now for pics of the test movie...can you guess the movie?

Aeon Flux?

So the quality of the Panasonic and U85 combination is good on the SMX material then? I'm gradually convincing myself that a CIH setup is worth the extra money and was leaning towards that combo myself.

Looking great btw....

Tom

Tom, thanks. Yes, I believe the quality of the Panasonic/Panamorph on the SMX material is probably the best bang for your buck that is available. I am not disappointed at all.

Drew

I have not seen Aeon Flux yet, but recognized it right away. So, did you guys like the movie? I heard from a co-worker that it was a good movie.

Looking really good Drew!

Question for you on the 2.35. What are you using for the scaling, or are you just zooming?

So you have a sku #? I have called 7 Jo-Annes in CO and none of them carry it. I gave them the sku# that I got from another AVS'er but they do not have it anymore. When I went to three stores their black velvet selections were really bad.

I may go down to Denver fabric and see the triple velvet in person. Looks good on the web though.

Drew

Hmmm I can't find a sku. They no longer carry it? Sorry to have mislead you!

This place appears to have stock, but is not the least expensive I have seen:
Valley Fabrics (http://www.valleyfabrics.com/catalog/index.php?manufacturers_id=16&osCsid=b3a0416ba397af6d3a5bf4d1bb346a9f)

Screen shots look great! That is a very slick setup with the soffit. Looking good!

I don't recall, but are you putting your axioms in columns? If so, have you thought out how to make that workl given the up and down firing drivers?

I have the Axioms as well and would like have them hidden, but am still noodling through how.

I have not seen Aeon Flux yet, but recognized it right away. So, did you guys like the movie? I heard from a co-worker that it was a good movie.

I liked it but then again I like a lot of movies.

Drew

Looking really good Drew!

Question for you on the 2.35. What are you using for the scaling, or are you just zooming?


Not using a scaler per se. Just the built in function of the oppo DVD player and the Panny AE900. Seems to work rather well. Enough IMHO to justify NOT purchasing a scaler.

Drew

Hmmm I can't find a sku. They no longer carry it? Sorry to have mislead you!

This place appears to have stock, but is not the least expensive I have seen:
Valley Fabrics (http://www.valleyfabrics.com/catalog/index.php?manufacturers_id=16&osCsid=b3a0416ba397af6d3a5bf4d1bb346a9f)

Screen shots look great! That is a very slick setup with the soffit. Looking good!

I drove all the way down to Denver fabrics today and must say I was very disappointed. The brick and mortar store does not carry the same stuff they sell online. Infact they could not even tell me what half of the velvet they stock was made out of. Needless to say I did not purchase anything. I am hesitant to buy the triple velvet online unless someone can vouch for it being as good as the fidelio velvet??? If not I will just wait 4-10 weeks for my order :(

Drew

I don't recall, but are you putting your axioms in columns? If so, have you thought out how to make that workl given the up and down firing drivers?

I have the Axioms as well and would like have them hidden, but am still noodling through how.

Because of the width of my room I have chosen not to use columns. I would have loved to have used them but they just would not fit IMO. So the axioms will just be mounted on the wall and I will not have to worry about blocking the drivers.

Drew

Drew, I have been spacing out on reading everything, but if you are looking for a truely black velvet, SandmanX has found the stuff. You can read about it in this post:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8044804&&#post8044804
Here is the image he attached, showing his velvet, speaker grille cloth, black GOM and black commando cloth:
http://www.smxscreen.com/images/velvet/IMG_1056.jpg

Thats shaping up to look very nice Drew. I have been thinking about the more expensive dlp's like the Optoma H79 but the more I see that Panny and the lens the more I like it. I guess I have time, maybe something better will come alomng for a reaosnable price but everyone I see that has that same or similar setup says its great.

Robert

Drew, I have been spacing out on reading everything, but if you are looking for a truely black velvet, SandmanX has found the stuff. You can read about it in this post:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=8044804&&#post8044804
Here is the image he attached, showing his velvet, speaker grille cloth, black GOM and black commando cloth:


Scott, thanks but you have been spacing. That is the material I am looking for and there are only two places on the net to get it:

$19.95 a yard:
http://www.bymichelle.com/fidelio.html

and

$22.00 a yard
http://www.valleyfabrics.com/catalog/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=16&products_id=406&osCsid=b3a0416ba397af6d3a5bf4d1bb346a9f


They are out of stock and I was hoping to find another place that carries it so I could get it now not in 10 weeks.

Thanks

Drew

Drew,

I looked at a Panny 900U projector the other day and noticed the "softer" picture it shows. Some people call it more "film like". I was just wondering if you thought the U85 made things any more sharp or does it look the same? I'm really weighing between this PJ and the Infocus IN76.

Also, do you just have the U85 sitting on a lip inside the box and pushed up against the front by the projector lens (basically held in there with friction)? It's hard to tell from the pic.

Thats shaping up to look very nice Drew. I have been thinking about the more expensive dlp's like the Optoma H79 but the more I see that Panny and the lens the more I like it. I guess I have time, maybe something better will come alomng for a reaosnable price but everyone I see that has that same or similar setup says its great.

Robert


Robert you can't go wrong with the Panny. I spent many sleepless nights going over specs and looking at many PJ with $2k-$3k and I have to say the $1.4K Panny was the best money I have spent yet.

Drew

Check with Ruben, I thought he had some extra velvet. Maybe that was velcro, now that I think about it. Still, worth a shot.

Drew,

You could also contact JB Martin directly, the maker of fidelio velvet. Their contact info is:

EXECUTIVE OFFICE/SHOWROOM

JB Martin Company
10 East 53rd Street, Suite 3100
New York, NY 10022 U.SA
(212) 421-2020
(800) 223-0525
Fax (212) 421-1460



CUSTOMER SERVICE/MILL

JB Martin Company
321 S. East Avenue
Leesville, SC 29070 U.S.A
(803) 532-6277
(800) 532-0068
Fax (803) 532-8112

I would have called myself but didn't find this until after business hours.

Well, I made some progress today on the rest of the basement. I finished the walls in the bathroom and got all of the floor tile down. I just need to let it dry and then grout it. Then I can install the baseboards, vanity, and toilet. After that I will tackle the shower tile. Here are some pics of the nearly complete bathroom.

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Finished_Bathrrom_Wall.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Bathroom_Floor2.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Bathroom_Wall_2.jpg

I also got all 9 panels cut out for the star ceiling in the theater. So I will be building those this week with pictures of course. I also purchased 9 cans of venetian plaster for the walls in the game room, man that stuff is pricey, but hopefully it will give me the look I am after.

Drew

that bathroom looks good Drew....may have to borow your tile design for my basement bath...I really like that :)

Robert

Drew,

Nice faux finish on the bathroom. I love the tile job too. Can't wait to see your star-ceiling frames. I'm planning to start mine in a few weeks.

that bathroom looks good Drew....may have to borow your tile design for my basement bath...I really like that :)

Robert


Robert, thanks. No problem borrow away. I tried many different patterns before deciding on this one. The shower will use the same tile, just smaller 10x13. The floor tile is 16x16.

Drew

Drew,

Nice faux finish on the bathroom. I love the tile job too. Can't wait to see your star-ceiling frames. I'm planning to start mine in a few weeks.


Thanks. I am hoping to get a good start on them this week.

Drew

Do you have a day job? :) When in the world do you find the time to do all this work? I am consistantly amazed! I just got all the furring strips up on the ceiling and theater walls attached to them over the weekend and I thought that was good. Oh my two year old helped though.

I'm using several of your ideas for my theater. I love all the pics.

Do you have a day job? :) When in the world do you find the time to do all this work? I am consistantly amazed! I just got all the furring strips up on the ceiling and theater walls attached to them over the weekend and I thought that was good. Oh my two year old helped though.

I'm using several of your ideas for my theater. I love all the pics.

Yeah, I am one of the lucky guys that actually earns a living doing what I love and have been trained and degreed in. I do computer forensics and computer security for my own company. So when that and my two year old are not keeping me busy my wife lets me "play in my man cave" the rest of the time. I usually work both weekends and some at night. My goal is to get it all done by thanksgiving.

Drew

Yeah, I am one of the lucky guys that actually earns a living doing what I love and have been trained and degreed in. I do computer forensics and computer security for my own company. So when that and my two year old are not keeping me busy my wife lets me "play in my man cave" the rest of the time. I usually work both weekends and some at night. My goal is to get it all done by thanksgiving.

Drew

Nice, you are one of the lucky ones. I'm a civil engineer and I hate it. Anyway, keep up the good work!

Just in time for the weekend! I just ordered 16 yards of 408 Black GOM fabric for my star ceiling and front false wall. So I guess I will be building my 9 star ceiling panels this week and putting them up this weekend. :D

Drew

Just in time for the weekend! I just ordered 16 yards of 408 Black GOM fabric for my star ceiling and front false wall. So I guess I will be building my 9 star ceiling panels this week and putting them up this weekend. :D

Drew
Oh YEA!! Can't wait to see your progress.

Well the bathroom is darn near done. I still have the shower to do but all the tile is cut and I just need to put it up. I cut all the trim work and will put that in tomorrow as well. But here is a shot of what the finished product will look like:

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Bathroom_Fixtures.jpg

As for the shower I am using a product called Redgard. This is a waterproofing/crack preventing membrane. It gets it's name from the color. If you have never done a tile shower I highly recommend it. This stuff spreads right over your green board and will prevent any cracking from settling. So you tiles/grout will not crack.

Any way here is what it looks like:

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Red_Stuff.jpg

And here it is one the shower walls:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Shower_Red.jpg

I am going to wait on the tile because, well I am tired of working on the bathroom and want to get back to the HT. So it will be a star ceiling weekend for me.

Drew

that bathroom looks very nice as does the shower but yoru right....its time to move on to the more important stuff :D

Robert

that bathroom looks very nice as does the shower but your right....its time to move on to the more important stuff :D

Robert

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/shower.jpg

Forget the tile on the shower. Just add another coat of the pink stuff, a black light and make it your pre-show attraction :D

Forget the tile on the shower. Just add another coat of the pink stuff, a black light and make it your pre-show attraction :D


ROTFLMAO...(rolling on the floor laughing my ass off) :D That is very funny but somehow I don't think the wife will go for that, although I like the idea.

Drew

Ok, here is a start for the star ceiling. First I am going to try and mimic the eastern sky during winter. I want to see Orions belt. So here is the star pattern I will be using:

http://www.seds.org/Maps/winter_east.gif

Here is the same pattern but showing the constellations:
http://www.seds.org/Maps/winter_east_const.gif

I did not want to do a random pattern, although I could have. So I went with this one and I think it will be much easier than using my imagination (I am very right brained). Any way I took the above image and imported it into Gimp. I then blew it up to scale 9' wide by 12' long. I then segmented the picture into my panel sizes which are 3'x4'. So I have nine panels. The resulting image looks like this:

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/star-ceiling-pattern.jpg

I then cut each panel section into it's own image and divided that up into 1'x1' squares, so I had 12 squares per panel. Here is an example of panel 5, with orions belt:

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Star_ceiling_panel1.jpg

I have already cut the 9 panels and and started to dry out the grids on them. I will transfer the star pattern to them tonight and will post more pictures. Right now it is off to lunch with the wife and then HD for more 1x3's.

Drew

Drew,

What website or app did you use for your constellations? I've found a few places but nothing has been perfect.

EDIT: Never mind -- I found the main link HERE (http://www.seds.org/Maps/Const/constmap.html).

That eastern winter sky seems to be a popular choice.....I went to that site not long ago and liked that one too....course its what I see in winter too :)

Cant wait to see the build in process. Are you going to approach it like Sandman did or do you have a different idea in mind?

Robert

That eastern winter sky seems to be a popular choice.....I went to that site not long ago and liked that one too....course its what I see in winter too :)

Cant wait to see the build in process. Are you going to approach it like Sandman did or do you have a different idea in mind?

Robert


I like how Sandman did his so mine will be similar.

Drew

Yeah I think his way of doing it is pretty straight forward and simple and obviously looks and works great once finnished.

Look forward to seeing it soon.

Robert

Drew, Hope you are having a fun weekend. I am really drooling waiting to see the build pics for the ceiling. I move out of my house in 2 weeks, and into the new one in 2 months, so I am ready to start planning my basement in earnest, and these builds are keeping me sane for the time being.

Drew - looks like you have made some great progress while I've been away - but looks like you have 'bogged' down with the Bath like me. Bath looks`awesome - with I'd thought of adding some accents. Oh well too lat now. Just finished tiling and grouted the floor.

Can't wait to see your Star ceiling - thats on my 'to do list'.

Mark

Well, I have some bad news and some good news. First the bad: The black GOM will not arrive until Monday. So I cannot finish the star ceiling this weekend like I wanted :( But the good news is that all 9 panels have been cut out and are ready for the GOM. I will be hanging them temporarily tomorrow so I can see how it looks before it is final. The other bad news is I had to order more fiber. I needed an additional 25 feet. So if you are doing a star ceiling order extra - you will need it. What you don't need sell to an AVSer ;)

So any how here are some of the pics so far:

The star light box and fiber cable:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Star_ceiling_light_and_fiber.jpg

The first panel cut out:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Star_ceiling_panel_cutout.jpg

The panel showing the 1'x1' grid:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Star_ceiling_panel1.jpg

Oh yeah don't do what I did and put the grid on the wrong side. If you are doing a random star pattern it is ok, but if you are following a real pattern, like I am, it will be reversed when you put it up.

I wanted to minimize the depth the star ceiling was going to take. So I originally did not have furring strips, but that did not work out very well. Something about trying to hit a stud while holding a 3'x4' panel above your head..... So I ended up using 1"x4" furring strips:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Star_ceiling_furring_strips.jpg

I also painted the top of the soffit and the false front flat black. Here you can see the black soffit and the first panel in test position:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Test_fitting.jpg

Drew

Drew,

They look great so far. Do you plan to stick the fiber through then apply the GOM? Or will you wrap it with GOM and stick it through the board?

Drew,

They look great so far. Do you plan to stick the fiber through then apply the GOM? Or will you wrap it with GOM and stick it through the board?

Steve I am going to run the fiber through the board first as a test. I want to make sure that the pattern looks right. Then I will take the all down and wrap each panel with GOM then put the fiber through and glue them.

Drew

Looks good so far...How many of the cable runs can you get per light box?

Robert

Looks good so far...How many of the cable runs can you get per light box?

Robert

The light box that I have will hold 500 strands of fiber. Since I am using the EG-48 fiber (48 strands per bundle) that is 10 runs per light box.

Drew

Probably next years project for me, but I'm watching closely since my problem were the cans and the supply register. I see how you furred around it. Might have missed it, are you using MDF? If so, I guess that would explain the number of panels. It's probably easier to do a constellation on small pieces than one huge piece anyway. Have you thought about using that holeless peg board material (not sure what the name is).

Bud

Holeless pegboard material = Masonite

We use it for stage floors all the time in theater sets but I don't recomend it for anything that would be hanging with long spans between fasteners or furring strips, it is not very stiff, I think that it would sag, even if the panels were only 3' squares. 1/4" mdf would be a better 1/4" material it is a little stiffer. I would be curious about another product called Gator board. It is basically foam core paper product but you can get it up to 3/4" I think, it is very stiff and weighs almost nothing, it's also available in black, it would be easy to poke the holes for the fibers with straight pins or something. The downside would be that I think it costs more than many wood based options, but like I said it weighs very very little.

Keep up the great work Drew.

Later,
Brian

Have you thought about using that holeless peg board material (not sure what the name is). Masonite?

I always think Masonite is a brand name (like the doors), not the actual product, hence I always think its called something else.

http://www.pearlpaint.com/shop~ocID~500~parentID~500~categoryID~9863.htm

Brian, understand, I was thinking of furring 16 inches on center to prevent any bending. Didn't Ruben use masonite?

Edit: Here is how Ruben did his. http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=6586433&&#post6586433

Bud

Guys, I went with nine panels simply for ease of installation. Plus, since the end product will look like you are looking out a window, the seams will be covered with stained wood. The material I am using is 1/4" MDF. It is not very heavy but does bend, hence the 1"x3" border around the perimeter. It seems to work very well. I was going to use masonite but HD only carried 1/8" (too thin IMO).

Drew

How many runs will you need to do for the entire ceiling? I guess a better question is will one light box be enough for the ceiling or will you need two?

Robert

How many runs will you need to do for the entire ceiling? I guess a better question is will one light box be enough for the ceiling or will you need two?

Robert


One run per panel (9), so using the EG-48 cable I will be using 432 strands of fiber. So one light box will be enough.

Drew

Did you by chance run a UT server called "The Roost" about 5 years ago?

Did you by chance run a UT server called "The Roost" about 5 years ago?

Nope, not me.

Drew

Well, I received the 16 yards of black GOM today and the wife and I cut out the 9 panels each were 40"x52". I managed to put one together tonight and I must say it looks great. I would highly recommend using the 408 black GOM for a star ceiling. Man it makes a difference over just paint. So this week I will be finishing up each of the panels and then hanging them this weekend. I will post some pics of the progress soon.

On another note I will be picking up the carpet for the HT tomorrow.

Drew

On another note I will be picking up the carpet for the HT tomorrow.

Drew
Drew,

Are you installing your own carpet? Did I miss this from an earlier post? I assume you've done this before?

Drew,

Are you installing your own carpet? Did I miss this from an earlier post? I assume you've done this before?


Yes I am! And yes I have installed carpet before. Once to be exact. I am like you DIY to the max. Honestly the only reason I am tackling the carpet in the HT is that there will be no seams, so it should be very easy.

BTW I picked up the 20 feet of Masland quadrate tonight and it looks great. I also finished a few star panels and hung them up. I will post some pics tomorrow. I gotta say the star ceiling rocks. I do need to thank Sandman for the inspiration and the design idea.

Drew

Yes I am! And yes I have installed carpet before. Once to be exact. I am like you DIY to the max. Honestly the only reason I am tackling the carpet in the HT is that there will be no seams, so it should be very easy.

BTW I picked up the 20 feet of Masland quadrate tonight and it looks great. I also finished a few star panels and hung them up. I will post some pics tomorrow. I gotta say the star ceiling rocks. I do need to thank Sandman for the inspiration and the design idea.

Drew

Glad to hear it rocks. Can't wait to see the pictures!


Ruben

Yes I am! And yes I have installed carpet before. Once to be exact. I am like you DIY to the max. Honestly the only reason I am tackling the carpet in the HT is that there will be no seams, so it should be very easy.

BTW I picked up the 20 feet of Masland quadrate tonight and it looks great. I also finished a few star panels and hung them up. I will post some pics tomorrow. I gotta say the star ceiling rocks. I do need to thank Sandman for the inspiration and the design idea.

Drew
How wide can you get a roll? Do they make it 15'+ wide or wider? If they do, my room would be "seamless" too. Hmm, something to consider.

Steve, some carpet does and can come in 15' widths. The quadrate only comes in 12' widths I believe. Just ask the place you buy it from.

Drew

Ok, well I have got 4 complete panels finished and hung and man it looks great. I can't wait to get this finished. I said I would share some pics so here they are.

Here are three panels before the GOM fabric in place:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Test_fitting2.jpg

Here are all 9 panels up and in place. I was just testing to make sure they fit:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Test_fitting_all_panles.jpg

I got the black GOM on Monday and my wife helped me cut out the 50"x42" rectangles for each panel:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Cutting_panel_GOM_material.jpg

I sprayed the panels with 3m 77 spray adhesive. placed the GOM over it and smoothed it out then used a pneumatic stapler and stapled all the edges. Here is a finished panel with the fiber sticking through:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Front_of_panel_with_fiber.jpg

Here is the same panel but a rear view:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Back_of_panel_with_fiber.jpg

I then used finger nail clippers to cut each fiber:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Cutting_Fiber.jpg

I then cut the hole for the light and hung it up. One thing I did was to put the black GOM around the perimeter of the soffit to match the ceiling and it really looks good.

Drew

Drew,

Looks great! Can you shoot me a pic of the Orion constellation? I'd love to see how that turned out.

I'm really trying make everything as close to "natural size" as possible and wanted to get your impressions of your sizing. It appears your Orion is about 3' long and 1' wide? How do you like the size? Does it look like it's "natural" size when looking up? How high are your ceilings?

Drew,

Looks great! Can you shoot me a pic of the Orion constellation? I'd love to see how that turned out.

I'm really trying make everything as close to "natural size" as possible and wanted to get your impressions of your sizing. It appears your Orion is about 3' long and 1' wide? How do you like the size? Does it look like it's "natural" size when looking up? How high are your ceilings?

Steve, no problem I can grab a picture of it tomorrow when orion should be done. My ceilings are 8' and I wish I they were 10'. I am liking the way it is turning out but I am sure that it could be done better. I am wishing now that I had used different fiber than the EG-48. Don't get me wrong the EG-48 is great stuff but I think I started to use it wrong. I wanted some stars to be brighter than others, ie Orions belt. However, in order to do that I used some of the larger fibers and some smaller ones together to mimic real stars (most stars we see are not just one, but a grouping of stars that appear as one). So I should have just used the bigger fiber as a single and not messed around with using multiple strands. I think if you want to do that then make the hole bigger rather than using many small holes close to each other.

I will get some close up shots so you can see what I mean. I am probably to much of a perfectionist. as my wife thinks it looks perfect. Although then again I know were the flaws are.

Drew

I am probably too much of a perfectionist. as my wife thinks it looks perfect. Although then again I know where the flaws are. Drew, don't worry over it too much. Just enjoy how great it looks, and especially the oohs :eek: and ahhs :eek: from everyone when they first see it. As long as you don't say anything, everyone else is gonna love it. :D

Impressed as always. Great info, continues to be the best construction thread that I've seen. Keep it up! and thank you.

Drew, don't worry over it too much. Just enjoy how great it looks, and especially the oohs :eek: and ahhs :eek: from everyone when they first see it. As long as you don't say anything, everyone else is gonna love it. :D


Thanks Keith. Yeah I learned long ago to just let people enjoy the stuff I do and and not say a word.

Drew

Impressed as always. Great info, continues to be the best construction thread that I've seen. Keep it up! and thank you.


Thank you. I try ;) I am going to post some pictures of how to put up GOM fabric on a soffit. I did not get a chance to take any pictures of it when I did mine so I thought I would create a mock up for others to see one way to do it.

Drew

Drew it looks great....fine work on that ceiling!

Robert

Ok, The star ceiling is done...Well almost. All the panels are up and it looks great. I just need to buy the wood for the framing, stain it and put it up. That will be tomorrow. However, I do have some pictures to share :D

First I want to show everyone how I made the panels. 4 of my panels had holes for the can lights and 2 panels had cutouts for the HVAC return and supply. So I did have to throw some difficulty into the mix. Anyhow you have seen the panels in previous pics but I want to give some more info. It is FAR BETTER to drill the holes for the stars BEFORE you apply the GOM material. Otherwise you will have raised areas under the GOM that will not smooth out. So drill your holes.

Then flip it over and use a chisel to break away any raised areas. Make the board as smooth as possible. You can see where the star will be in the next picture.

Next use 3M Super 77 Multipurpose spray adhesive (buy the spray handle (works for all spray cans), it rocks!!):
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Spray_glue_for_panles.jpg

And spray a liberal amount of glue on the entire panel:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Glue_on_the_panel.jpg

Next carefully lay out the GOM material on top of the panel and smooth it out with your hand getting rid of any creases or wrinkles. Start from one corner and work your way to an opposite corner.
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/GOM_placed_on_panel.jpg

Next flip the panel back over and using your trusty pneumatic stapler with 3/4" staples proceed to staple the material all away around the panel. Stretch the material as you go:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Stretching_and_stapling_GOM.jpg

Of course if you are building panels that go over recessed lights you will have to account for that. It is easy just cut your hole and then cut the GOM in a star shape then glue each piece.

That's it.

Drew

I put my light box for the star ceiling in the small hidden room housing my main water line. It is loud and I did not want it in the room. I would caution anyone from putting the light boxes in your HT rooms as they are louder than you think. Anyway I needed a way to get each fiber line to the light box so I used man's best friend next to a dog - a Dewalt drill:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Fiber_holes.jpg

Ok so for the pics you have all been waiting for. Here is the ceiling without the wood trim:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Stars_turned_off.jpg

And here is a picture of all the lights off except the stars:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Stars_turned_on.jpg

Drew

Steve, these next two pictures are for you.

Here is orion on my ceiling:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Orion_close_up.jpg

And here it is close up with the constellation lines drawn in:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Site/images/orion-closeup.jpg

Hope that helps.

Drew

Wow Drew, that is amazing!! I had seen fibre optic ceilings on cruise ships before and thought maybe that would be something I'd throw into my room. But then I got back and one quick investigation turned up a price tag of $2k per panel so I just dropped it from my mental list. It never occurred to me that it would be something I could do myself, nor did it occur to me that I could do a particular star chart pattern -- even cooler!!

There's no time (nor budget) for it now but something I'll definitely keep in the back of my head for a future birthday present or father's day gift :D

Thanks for the how-to pictures as well, they make a big difference in visuallizing how to do something.

Mike

It looks great, you can hardly see the seems when the flash is off. Im sure they will further disapeer when the rest of the room takes shape.

How loud would you say the light box's are.....whats causing the noise?

Robert

Drew,

Looking good dude!

Bud

It sure is looking good :) Drew. Thanks for sharing your construction pictures.

Working with some 2'x4' quarter-inch hardboard/masonite yesterday, it certainly seemed stiff enough to use in 4'x4' panels for this project, especially with 1x2 nailers framed around the edges. I'd probably construct a test panel to be certain but if it worked for Ruben, it's probably good enough for me. ;)

Friday at lunch, I visited the local Zobo.tv store just for grins. Hadn't been there in several months and wanted to get a closer look at their star ceiling for reference. IMHO, their fiber optics stuck out too far from the panels and the twinkle was WAY too fast. It was like a wave constantly churning through the ceiling.

I wonder if a cluster of super-bright white LEDs wouldn't make just as effective a light source without generating all the heat and necessitating a cooling fan? Who's our local EE, and can they comment on this??

Wow Drew, that is amazing!! I had seen fibre optic ceilings on cruise ships before and thought maybe that would be something I'd throw into my room. But then I got back and one quick investigation turned up a price tag of $2k per panel so I just dropped it from my mental list. It never occurred to me that it would be something I could do myself, nor did it occur to me that I could do a particular star chart pattern -- even cooler!!

There's no time (nor budget) for it now but something I'll definitely keep in the back of my head for a future birthday present or father's day gift :D

Thanks for the how-to pictures as well, they make a big difference in visuallizing how to do something.

Mike


Thanks, Those $2k panels can do some amazing things though. The DIY method does save a lot of money but it is a lot of work.

Drew

It looks great, you can hardly see the seems when the flash is off. Im sure they will further disapeer when the rest of the room takes shape.

How loud would you say the light box's are.....whats causing the noise?

Robert


Robert, the cooling fan and the motor mechanism that turns the sparkle window is the culprit. The light gets really hot so you need to have a fan for it. The fan and the motor is loud..67 db. You definitely do NOT want it in your HT room. In my HT a converstation registers around 55-60 db. You can quite it down by replacing the factory fan with an ultra quite one. It looks like a standard 120 PC fan. Of course the power connectors are different. Of course one of the other problems is the vibration of the unit. If you set it in a soffit or attach it to your framing it will seem even louder. I built a special shelf for the light box that sits away from the HT wall so I hardly here it in the HT.

Drew

Drew

Drew,

Looking good dude!

Bud

Thanks, Bud. I am liking your progess on your bar.

Drew

Fantastic Job r00ster !!
You and Sandman are really raising the bar these days.
Terrific work it's pretty inspiring.
Looking forward to seeing more.
Cheers
Calvin

You are really moving along. Wish I could get more done but I have a 2 year old and a 2 month old, kind of puts a damper on free time.

You are really moving along. Wish I could get more done but I have a 2 year old and a 2 month old, kind of puts a damper on free time.

LOL! Yeah, try throwing in an 8yr old and 6yr old with the 2yr old and (in my case) 6mo old.

But, as I've learned the hard way -- taking your time is much easier on your wife. I was burning the candle at both ends pretty good and finally (before my wife just about made me quit the whole thing) I took her out for the weekend and now I'm only going to work after the kids are all in bed. I think it'll help me too to be honest, I've gotten to where I hate working on this thing. So it'll be nice to enjoy it again :)

Besides, the kiddos will only be young once and you'll have your room for a long time :D

Mike

Fantastic Job r00ster !!
You and Sandman are really raising the bar these days.
Terrific work it's pretty inspiring.
Looking forward to seeing more.
Cheers
Calvin


Thanks Calvin. Hope to have more soon.

Drew

LOL! Yeah, try throwing in an 8yr old and 6yr old with the 2yr old and (in my case) 6mo old.

But, as I've learned the hard way -- taking your time is much easier on your wife. I was burning the candle at both ends pretty good and finally (before my wife just about made me quit the whole thing) I took her out for the weekend and now I'm only going to work after the kids are all in bed. I think it'll help me too to be honest, I've gotten to where I hate working on this thing. So it'll be nice to enjoy it again :)

Besides, the kiddos will only be young once and you'll have your room for a long time :D

Mike

Yeah my wife is being extremely forgiving and totally awesome about the time I spend in "the man cave." She watches our two year old while I slave away ;) I told her that the faster I get it all done the fast we can enjoy it and the more time I can spend with her and my son :o I just hope to have it all done before he turns 3. :rolleyes:

Drew

Well, for today I went down to HD and bought 88 feet of 1/2" x 2.5" stain grade pine. This will be for the star ceiling. I will be making "window" frames for the ceiling. I spent the day staining and then putting on 3 coats of deft. Man does the basement smell bad. If it had not been so windy I would have done it outside. Oh well I guess killing a few thousand brain cells from the fumes are worth having a kick ass ceiling - right :rolleyes:

In between coats of stain and deft I started tiling the shower. Wow another pain in the rear. Now I know why people just buy the pre-made shower stalls. Oh well, it will look good when it's done. I will post some pictures tomorrow, after the basement airs out....

Drew

I hear ya on the tile. That's a nasty thing to do ... I still have to do the counter top for my bar and I'm not exactly excited about it.

I just hope to have it all done before he turns 3.

LOL! I love it!

Mike

In between coats of stain and deft I started tiling the shower. Wow another pain in the rear. Now I know why people just buy the pre-made shower stalls. You've got that right, Drew. I think they ought to throw in a pair of chain-mail or kevlar gloves every time you buy boxes of tile. (Maybe a coupon for a free two-hour back massage, too.)

Pardon my ignorance, but what's "deft"? :confused:

Steve, these next two pictures are for you.

Here is orion on my ceiling:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/orion.jpg

And here it is close up with the constellation lines drawn in:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/orion-closeup.jpg

Hope that helps.

Drew
Drew,

Just an outstanding job. It looks truly authentic. Thanks for snapping the pics of the Orion belt.

I actually got up early Friday morning before sunrise (kids were up anyway -- long story) and looked at Orion in person. It's currently in the Eastern sky just over to the right and down from the moon. If I do it "true" to size, the Orion belt is about 8 fingers wide (tall in your case since you did the winter sky) -- which equates to about 18-20" wide/tall on my 10' ceiling (actually about 9' with the sunken star frame). So what that means is you are just about perfect on "Actual" size for your constellation. Doesn't that make you feel better in your anal-retentive state? ;) :D I can say that because I am just as bad :eek:

Do you mean 18-20" wide/tall? Because otherwise you're not going to fit it all on your ceiling.. ;)

So what that means is you are just about perfect on "Actual" size for your constellation. Doesn't that make you feel better in your anal-retentive state? ;) :D I can say that because I am just as bad :eek:

Damn, I can sleep better at night now.. NO seriously. That ROCKS!!! Thanks :D :D :D

Drew

You've got that right, Drew. I think they ought to throw in a pair of chain-mail or kevlar gloves every time you buy boxes of tile. (Maybe a coupon for a free two-hour back massage, too.)

Pardon my ignorance, but what's "deft"? :confused:


Keith, ignorance is bliss. Especially when it comes to deft. Deft (http://www.deftfinishes.com/wood/clear.htm) is a wood finish similar to polyutherane but better in my opinion. It is self leveling and hides brush strokes really well. Plus it has the shortest dry time between coats of any finish out there. You can buy it at HD. But you need a well ventilated room to use it in. In fact the directions say to NOT use it in enclosed rooms as it can cause permanent brain damage. :eek: Maybe that is why I have to measure everything 4 times, and can't ever seem to remember where I put my tools and damn pencils. :rolleyes:

Drew

Do you mean 18-20" wide/tall? Because otherwise you're not going to fit it all on your ceiling.. ;)
Thanks for pointing out my typo. I changed it in my post. However, that would be one hell of an Orion -- definitely larger than life!!

And Drew -- I thought that might make you feel better. Now that I know what size this thing needs to be, I can finish the Star Ceiling "map" and get my fiber ordered. YEA!

Thanks for the explination...gonna have to think on how and where to hide that dang box when it comes time.

Keep up the good work...looking good!!

Robert

Well, I just finished up the ceiling. So now it is 100% done. :) I call it the windows to the world. Anyhow here are some pictures.

Here is the shot from the front looking back:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Ceiling_all_done.jpg

And here is the shot with no flash. You can just make out the framing:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/Another_star_shot.jpg

I think it turned out really well. Although I do like the look of the all black ceiling I think in the end this will be better as it will match the decor of the room. Plus it hides some of the seam imperfections, which only I noticed and bugged the heck out of me.

Drew

Ditto. The ceiling turned out nice. That's going to be my winter project.... It will be a bit tough to kind of retrofit the room, but all I'll really need to do is sneak the fibers around. I need to go back and read more about how you did it. I cheated and just checked out the pics...

Drew,

Looks great. Nice job!!

Mike

Drew, you probably answered this already, but what's the size of the overall star ceiing? Just the covered area.

Bud

Drew, you probably answered this already, but what's the size of the overall star ceiing? Just the covered area.

Bud

Bud, no problem.. The overal size is 9' wide by 12' long.

Drew

Looks great Drew. Can't wait to get started on mine.

Drew - turned out great. Hopefully get to mine before the end of the year.

Now if only my company had offices in Colorado or I could convince wife it was a great grat vacation spot :D

Cheers,
Mark

Drew - turned out great. Hopefully get to mine before the end of the year.

Now if only my company had offices in Colorado or I could convince wife it was a great grat vacation spot :D

Cheers,
Mark

Yeah, I am constantly getting job offers back there on the East cost. But the quality of life out here in the mountains is just too good to move. Although I do travel a lot and my HQ office is in Alexandria, VA. In fact I am going there next week. I am presenting a CLE to the Virginia Bar Association.

Drew

Ok, I got the tile done in the shower today. So I will grout it either late tomorrow or on Monday before I leave. Also my black Fidelio velvet arrived today :D So I can finish my screen. I gotta say that stuff is black. It is more of a black hole than a color. If you are doing your own screen with a black border this is the only way to go.

Drew

That velvet is sweet isn't it? I bought some leftover from a fellow AVSer and when I opened the package it was like a black hole sucking all the light out of the room!!

Just got to figure out how to hang the frame so I can take it off again (my screen has a bit of damage to it and I'll need to replace it someday but the budget is blown and gone at this point...).

Mike

What is everyone's thoughts on using the Fidelio for the star ceiling fabric? Assuming there's no acoustic ceiling treatments, GoM isn't required. I would imagine that the seams would disappear since the entire area would be so black you couldn't see anything.

The fibers wouldn't poke through easily so you'd have to use a sharp knife or other tool, but it might have excellent results. The cost difference is probably only about $40 as well.

I would think that would be amazing cool. Imagine how black your ceiling would become!! And then the little lights would just pop (or have their light sucked into the black holeness of the velvet ;) ).

Mike

Might have to fire treat the velvet for ceiling use, otherwise, why not?

Nice job Drew. That looks really sweet.

Bryan

What is everyone's thoughts on using the Fidelio for the star ceiling fabric? Assuming there's no acoustic ceiling treatments, GoM isn't required. I would imagine that the seams would disappear since the entire area would be so black you couldn't see anything.

The fibers wouldn't poke through easily so you'd have to use a sharp knife or other tool, but it might have excellent results. The cost difference is probably only about $40 as well.

Tim, The black GOM is fine, if done right you cannot see the seems at all in low light. The price difference is not that much greater - $12.50 for GOM and $19.95 for the velvet. But the one thing I need to point out is you can clean the GOM with soap and water. I even used goo gone to clean up an area that had some glue on it :) You would not be able to do that with the velvet.

Drew

Nice job Drew. That looks really sweet.

Bryan

Thanks Brian. I am glad to have it done.

Drew

I really wanted to get the screen finished today but alas it did not happen. I spent the day painting the ceiling in the rest of the basement and getting all of the can lights trimmed out. Then I spent what seemed like 10 hours cleaning the entire basement. Man what a mess. I have 5 huge garbage bags and 2 boxes full of stuff to get rid of. I guess I should have cleaned up as I went along :rolleyes:

Oh well it is clean now. Just in time for me to leave. I will be in VA for a few days and get back on thurs just in time for my brother-in-law and my wife's sister to come visit. He is going to help me pick up my wood floor on Friday (just does not know it yet ;) ). I will bribe him with Madden 07 in the HT, so I am sure he will say yes.

Oh, yeah if you need to cut a hole for say a shower head or other standard plumbing fixtures this 13/8" carbide tile hole saw is the best damn tool ever:
http://images.lowes.com/product/converted/010306/010306027069md.jpg
You can pick them up at both HD and Lowes and it works great. If you need to cut larges holes or shapes other than straight, pick up a carbide rod saw that attaches to your hack saw handle.

Drew

Great job on the ceiling Drew....looks fantastic!

Robert

Oh, yeah if you need to cut a hole for say a shower head or other standard plumbing fixtures this 13/8" carbide tile hole saw is the best damn tool ever:
....
You can pick them up at both HD and Lowes and it works great. If you need to cut larges holes or shapes other than straight, pick up a carbide rod saw that attaches to your hack saw handle.

Drew

I broke one of these while doing my tile. I used porcelain tiles, which I think is harder than ceramic and a pain in the butt to cut holes in.

Bud

The ceiling looks great. I am curious though...why do people get those star ceilings? Is it just for the "look" or does it serve another function?

Anyway once again, looks great:)

The ceiling looks great. I am curious though...why do people get those star ceilings? Is it just for the "look" or does it serve another function?

Anyway once again, looks great:)

Just for looks. Although by doing a star ceiling you don't have to worry about trying to get a perfectly painted ceiling ;)

Drew

Star ceiling looks great!

Once you get that screen up your world will change..... and progress will slow down!

Just for looks. Although by doing a star ceiling you don't have to worry about trying to get a perfectly painted ceiling ;)

Drew

hehe gotcha. what's the price (approx) for a star ceiling?

hehe gotcha. what's the price (approx) for a star ceiling?

It was right around $600 for the fiber and the light. The GOM was another $200 (but that was also for the soffit and front wall) and the wood was about $180.

Drew

Have not had a chance to do any updates or even work on the basement for a while. My brother in law came for labor day and he helped me pick up the wood floor and that is about all I accomplished. So this week I will try to get most of the painting done so I can start installing the wood floor.

I have finished the bathroom though so 1 milestone is done. The only thing left for the HT is to install the carpet and the GOM panels for the sides and build the rack.

Drew

Hope everything is ok. What happened to the thread?

Yeah, I have been really bad at posting lately. I have been extremely busy with work so I have not had much time to dedicate to the basement. But I am back on track now. For a little while anyway. I have made some progress. I should be don with most of the painting/plaster this weekend. So that will give me all next weekend for the wood floor.

The bathroom is 100% finished now. Here is what is looks like:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Finished_Bathroom1.jpg

here is the shower:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Shower_Tile2.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Finished_Bathroom2.jpg

Once I get the wood floor down I will install the bathroom door.

I also finished painting the bedroom/workout room. So the only thing left is to install the window sill and the padded floor:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Workout_Room1.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Workout_Room2.jpg

Speaking of flooring here are all 31 boxes of wood flooring:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Wood_Floor.jpg

Drew

Here are some progress pics of the plaster on the main walls:

I am cheating for the brick. I am using a textured wall paper and aging it:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Brick_on_Wall.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Brick_Over_Window.jpg

This pic shows the first coat of plaster on the walls:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/First_Layer_of_Plaster.jpg

Here is one wall done:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Finished_Plaster1.jpg


And here are a few more:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Hall_Wall2.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Hall_Wall1.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Pool_Cue_Wall.jpg

Thats it for tonight. Need to go and get some plaster done.

Drew

Nice to see you back.
Where did you learn the plastering technique. Looks great.

I finished up all the plaster except for the bar area. I will tackle that this week. But here are the pics from today:

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Finished_Plaster2.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Finished_Plaster3.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Finished_Plaster4.jpg

The pictures do not really do the walls justice. They look much better in person. I keep telling myself to spurge and get a new digital camera and replace my old Minnolta 35mm. Unfortunately the camera I want is $1k and I can use that for the basement so the camera will have to wait.

Monster, I learned plastering the hard way - trial and error. Actually it is not that hard. It is a lot of work though and I would not recommend to people who do not like to paint. Plaster is much harder and more time consuming than painting. But the results are astounding.

Drew

Drew,

I kind of miss the pink look :D Looks great.
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/shower.jpg http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/shower-tile.jpg

You did a very nice job with the plaster also. I have never seen the brick "like" distressing done except at restaurants. Very distinct and looks great.

Have you considered a faux finish on your DIY speakers? You could make them blend right in with the room ;)

Looking really good!

What brand shower faucet are you using? It looks very similar to mine. I think I bought a defective one from the beginning and didn't know it until I had everything installed and complete.

Drew,

Have you considered a faux finish on your DIY speakers? You could make them blend right in with the room ;)

That would be an interesting idea!

Drew

Looking really good!

What brand shower faucet are you using? It looks very similar to mine. I think I bought a defective one from the beginning and didn't know it until I had everything installed and complete.

Everything in the bathroom is by Delta.

Drew

Drew - plaster effects looks great. Glad to see your progressing - work, vistors and other chores are keeping me from HT build.

Cheers,
Mark

Drew,

I noticed that you have very similar dimensions to the HT I'm building, and at one point you seemed to have faced the same dilemma that I'm facing regarding seating vs screen size. I read most of your thread, but I didn't notice where you may have described the final outcome or screen size and how far away your seating is. Also, would you mind giving some comments on how you like the setup?

Thanks.

I was reading your thread and noticed you worked in theater. Do you work for a theater or a scenic shop or do you freelance? It was just nice to see someone else in my field and I wanted to say hi.

Your whole project looks great so far.

Brian

Hey Drew, good to see you are still at it. I was Jonesing for some updates. That plaster looks great.

Drew,

I noticed that you have very similar dimensions to the HT I'm building, and at one point you seemed to have faced the same dilemma that I'm facing regarding seating vs screen size. I read most of your thread, but I didn't notice where you may have described the final outcome or screen size and how far away your seating is. Also, would you mind giving some comments on how you like the setup?

Thanks.

sharerware, I ended up with a 2.35 screen that is 8' wide and 3.4' tall. I was originally planning on a 10' screen and thought that it would just be too big. I am very happy with the 8' wide screen, but only because it is a 2.35 aspect ratio. I will sit exactly 9' back from the screen which for a 10' wide screen would be to close IMO, but the 8' wide screen is perfect. I really like this layout. Of course if I could do it over and had more space I would definitely do a wider room. I would really like a room that is 25' long and 16' wide.

Drew

I was reading your thread and noticed you worked in theater. Do you work for a theater or a scenic shop or do you freelance? It was just nice to see someone else in my field and I wanted to say hi.

Your whole project looks great so far.

Brian

um, not sure how to respond but I don't work in theater. I do computer forensics and computer security for a living. I am a computer geek, with a passion for HT. It would be very cool to have this as a side job though.

Drew

Drew - plaster effects looks great. Glad to see your progressing - work, vistors and other chores are keeping me from HT build.

Cheers,
Mark


Hey Mark, thanks. I was just entertaining one of your countrymen (from Bristol) for the last three days. He was attending one of my training courses. Hope you can get re-started on your project soon.

Drew

Hey Drew, good to see you are still at it. I was Jonesing for some updates. That plaster looks great.

Michael, thanks. I was jonesing to get some work done. Hopefully I can get the floor in this weekend. How is your house situation coming along?

Drew

Michael, thanks. I was jonesing to get some work done. Hopefully I can get the floor in this weekend. How is your house situation coming along?

Drew

We have moved in with my parents while our house sold, and the new one is not complete yet. We are scheduled to close on November 3. I can almost taste it.

My theater will be awhile though. The honey do list is quite large for the new house.

Sorry Drew, I've been reading so many threads I must have got em' switched around.

Yor project still looks great though.

Brian

Worked on the wood floor today in the game room. Man Bud, was right. What a PITA! Oh well still far cheaper to do it your self. If you are going to do this yourself then invest in a really good pair of knee pads. My knees are killing me right now. But the floor sure looks good:

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Start_of_floor.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Start_of_floor2.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Floor_almost_done2.jpg


More later.

Drew

Wow, that does look really good!

Mike

What software program did you use to design the HT?

Wow, that does look really good!

Mike


Thanks, Mike.

Drew

What software program did you use to design the HT?


I used Visio for the 2-d stuff (floor layout, etc), and Sketchup and Blender for the 3d stuff. Although I did not post the blender stuff because I never finished it. I really just used Sketchup for some quick 3d perspectives.

Drew

I got all the plaster done this weekend and the floor is 100% done as well. I also started to install the bar cabinets. I need to go to a store and pick up a dishwasher before I set the remaining cabinets. I also got started putting together my pool table and foosball table. The only things left to do for thae basement are:

1. Stain all trim molding and doors
2. Install trim molding and doors
3. Install rubber floor for workout room
4. Install 3 window sills.
5. Install wood for bar
6. Install bar counter top
7. Install counter (granite/corian/silestone/formica) yet to be determined.
8. install sink in YTBD counter
9. Purchase Fridge
10. Have many beers in new bar.

Then I will be allowed to continue work on theater ;)

My goal is to have this all done by thanksgiving so I can watch fooball with the family on the big screen.

I will post some pics tomorrow.

Drew

I10. Have many beers in new bar.

Then I will be allowed to continue work on theater ;)

My goal is to have this all done by thanksgiving so I can watch fooball with the family on the big screen.

I will post some pics tomorrow.

Drew
I love sitting in the room drinking a few beers. The problem is I lose all drive to get more work done. I've been trying to stay "clean" since the room became functional. It's REALLY hard but I must trek on :)

I'm sure you are ready to resume work on your HT. Hope you make your Turkey-Day deadline!

On another note I picked up all the cabinets for the bar. I bought 6 cabinets made of Alder and stained in a honey glaze. I will take some pictures tomorrow after I bring them into the basement. [snip...]

Drew,

Did you ever post pictures of your bar design and cabinets? I've been looking around as I do my basement plan, and wanted to see what you've done. Thanks,

-Ryan

damn good job man!!!

Wow, that looks great. I just finished reading your thread and Sandmans. I need to buy a new house so I have somewhere to build a HT. A place for a HT is now a must have for my next house!

I meant to post these yesterday, but forgot. So here are the finished floor pics and some from the bar cabinets:

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Landing_done.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Hall_done.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Game_room_done.jpg


Here is the bar area:
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Bar_area.jpg

Drew

Wow, that looks great Drew!! Nice job on the floor, it's all really coming together quite nicely :)

Mike

I agree, this looks great! Thanks for the pictures.

-Ryan

My favorite part of the job and the easiest. That laminate T&G flooring goes down so easy and fast and will really stand up to lots of abuse. I put the Harmonics brand down in my old basement and it looked just like what you have. The hardest part was sealing the moisture barrier all the way around the floor.

Great job, looks great!

Who knew that staining doors would take such a long time. It seems like that is all I have been doing:

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Door_Finishing1.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Door_Finishing2.jpg

They are almost done though and I should have them installed this weekend. The new pool table felt came in this week as well so I will be putting together my pool table this weekend. The foosball table is already up :)

Drew

I knew ... now! :D Looking good!

Bud

I'm about a week away from sanding, staining and polyurethaning.......so I'm sure I'll know in a week. :D

The floor and doors are looking sweat!

Cheers,
Mark

Who knew that staining doors would take such a long time. It seems like that is all I have been doing:


Just wait till you get to the trim..... ;) I thought the doors took a long time & I didn't even stain mine, only poly.

Everything is looking really good. Wishing I had that wood floor.

I'm about a week away from sanding, staining and polyurethaning.......so I'm sure I'll know in a week. :D

The floor and doors are looking sweat!

Cheers,
Mark

Just don't use polyurethane, use acrylic for the top coat. Polyurethane will yellow over time and will ruin the stain color.

Who knew that staining doors would take such a long time. It seems like that is all I have been doing:

What kind of doors are those and where did you get them? They look nice.

Guy

Drew,

I just came across this thread today and read every post! I got a lot of great ideas from you. I am amazed on how great this is coming along.

If you get a chance I was hoping for a picture of your HT room ceiling with the can lights on.

Also I saw that you were looking at the Onkyo TX-SR 803, I have this receiver and wanted to let you know that I really like it. I have no complaints. I am running a 6.1 Klipsch Reference speakers setup.
I really like the multi-zone listening. Also the HDMI in and out is a great feature for my needs.

What kind of doors are those and where did you get them? They look nice.

Guy


Guy I got the doors from Home Depot. They are solid core pine. Each door was around $140.

Drew

Drew,

I just came across this thread today and read every post! I got a lot of great ideas from you. I am amazed on how great this is coming along.

If you get a chance I was hoping for a picture of your HT room ceiling with the can lights on.

Also I saw that you were looking at the Onkyo TX-SR 803, I have this receiver and wanted to let you know that I really like it. I have no complaints. I am running a 6.1 Klipsch Reference speakers setup.
I really like the multi-zone listening. Also the HDMI in and out is a great feature for my needs.


Thanks. I will get a pictures of the ceiling tomorrow in between hanging doors. Thanks for the info on the Onkyo. The only problem is Crutchfield stopped carrying that model.

Drew

I purchased mine at Circuit City. I think that they still carry them there.

Replacement, here is the shot of the HT ceiling with the can lights:

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album6/Large/HT_can_lights.jpg

Drew

I got some of the door finished and hung:

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Installed_Doors.jpg

Also here is a picture of the game room with the foosball table/pool table and the lights on the wall:

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Game-Room_with_lights.jpg

And here is a shot of the beginning of the bar framing:

http://home.comcast.net/~d.fahey/Albums/Album7/Large/Bar_framing.jpg

Drew

Wow! Things are really starting to come together. Looks great Drew!

Mike

Thanks for the pics of the cans, looks good!

Good looking progress Drew! Thanks for continuing to share. Since you and I are in the same locale, I'm curious what you did for HVAC in your HT space? I realize you probably don't need A/C in there now, but how were the temperatures when it was warmer out? I'm wondering if I should be considering a mini-split or second zone in my space as I'm getting ready to permit here in Broomfield.

-Ryan

Drew,

Room(s) look great. I love the game tables. What a great fun thing to add to your room. If I had the room, I would have done the same thing.

Good looking progress Drew! Thanks for continuing to share. Since you and I are in the same locale, I'm curious what you did for HVAC in your HT space? I realize you probably don't need A/C in there now, but how were the temperatures when it was warmer out? I'm wondering if I should be considering a mini-split or second zone in my space as I'm getting ready to permit here in Broomfield.

-Ryan


I put in one return and one register. It seemed ok to me during the summer. When the AC was on I had to close the vent because it really got cold in the HT which will be a good thing when I get all the equipment and people in. I thought about a mini split and just decided that since it was in a deep basement the one return and one register would suffice and so far it has.

Drew