I bought my house in Aug 1st and went straight to work on the basement

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/before.jpg

the old owners thought they new what they were doing when they finished the basement but it was horrible, dark damn they basement was split down the middle 1 half being the rec room the other half the furnace room laundry room and rough in for bathroom

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P7270015.jpg


I ripped down the drop ceiling and the wall dividing the basement

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P7300033.jpg

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P7300035.jpg

having the ductwork and plumbing all exposed on the storage side of the basment I had to drop the ceiling below the ductwork , so I built drop peice that would allow me to maintain the most head room below the ductwork

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P7310001.jpg


I relocated the laundry room into the rough in for the bathroom, we already have 2 and don't see a point to have one in the basement

the corner where the sewage pipe and electrical was I built a small storage room to isolate that ugly corner of the basement

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P7300034.jpg
I also defined the room while also allowing me to hide some vents that could not be relocated, and I wanted to hide the bulk heads
this allowed me to put pot lights in as well for a nice touch

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P8020006.jpg


Well its time for drywall and lighting

the corner where the furnace was there was enough room behind the furnace to use as a component closet


http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P8040002.jpg

Installed the Pot lights and primer on the walls
http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P9020090.jpg

removed the carpet and added paint

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P9020091.jpg

laid the flooring and finishing touches


http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P9100006_renamed_31690.jpg

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P9100006.jpg

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P9100005.jpg

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/PC170155_renamed_1966.jpg


I am replacing the 58 dlp with a projector and 100 inch screeen

here is the audio rack behind closed doors, don't mind the messy wires

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/PC170156.jpg

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/PC170157.jpg


I leave a window open in the room and being winter time allows to the room to remain cool for the equipment

Awesome! I love these kinds of threads ( I love these type of projects)...The basement is night and day better than it was before.

Great job with the lighting and paint selection...the basement looks like a warm inviting space instead of the dank uglyness that was there before.

Keep us up to date with the updates.

you did the drywall etc yourself? if so +++ to you then, most people dont have the balls to tackle something like this. to deconstruct and go from an idea to reality. looks very nice, great color and the laminate (looks like lam) is a great color too. for what you spent you can pretty much double that in value you added to the home if you ever sell. i close on my house (building) in feb so ive really got the bug again.

question for you. with the utils next to your components, you might want to think something along the lines of a filter for your stuff. if your ac or heat pump or whatever that is is pulling air in there you might get a lot of dust and stuff on your receiver, etc. you could get some perforated metal that computer servers go in, the back part and fab up some type of pre filter to that. just thinking out loud.

nice work.

jp

Great work! Looks really nice. One comment on the bathroom:

don't see a point to have one in the basement

When you get a little older you will!

Tom

yeah I did all the drywall myself, and I have a friend that does drywall for a living he did all the mudding and taping, I didn't want to tackle that myself because I never done it before and I wanted it to be perfect, everything else was done by myself and friends. I am in the Heating And Air conditioning business so the hands on work that I have done for my career has paid off. I am no builder by any means but I can work more then just the dummy end of a tape measure.

Thanks for the feed back. I just sold the TV ordered the optoma 6800 aka hd72 and 92 inch motorized screen. I expect it to arrive in about a week or 2, hopefully sooner.


I am going to situate the screen infront of the window (cover it up) and my wife wasn't thrilled about selling the dlp, but I ensured her that it was for the best, so she finally agreed but wants the screen infront of the window, so that she can arrange the basement a little better in the future


as far as the audio and video rack, Its not that bad in terms of the ducts and dirt, I am replacing the furnace in the spring and I may block that entrie area off so that I can have a cleaner area for my equipment. As far as the electrical,

I ran a direct power line to the equipment you can see the cheap surge protector I use.

Here is my custom made 106" screen made with blackout cloth, my projector comes with a 92 inch GWII and is on backorder so I had to make a custom until then

Projector:HD6800 aka HD72

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P1050166-1.jpg


http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P1050173.jpg
Aeon Flux HD DVD through Xbox 360 addon

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P1050177.jpg

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P1050176.jpg

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P1050183.jpg
Gears of war outputting 1080P

EDIT Lets update this page

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P1012882.jpg

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P1012879.jpg

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P1012891copy.jpg

How do things sound with the hardwood (laminate?) flooring? I'm thinking about installing hardwood in my theater eventually because I'm not a big fan of carpet, but I'm worried that the sound will suffer.

That's really nice. The only thing I don't like, is that speaker on top of the sub... that has to change.

That's really nice. The only thing I don't like, is that speaker on top of the sub... that has to change.

Yeah thats going to change this was a last minute clean up, the projector need to be wired in the ceiling and the speakers will be mounted on little shelves.


How do things sound with the hardwood (laminate?) flooring? I'm thinking about installing hardwood in my theater eventually because I'm not a big fan of carpet, but I'm worried that the sound will suffer.


to me it sounds really good, although I wouldn't take just my advice, I don't have a trained ear for high quality sounds. I am using a cheap 5.1 speaker system(pleases my listening needs) as far as echoing I don't hear anything

on thing I do notice is the reflection off the light on the floor and walls and ceiling is high, I am sure it effect the screen a little, but once again this is my first PJ so I am overall extremely happy.

I used Flat paint and choose those colors because the basement is not a dedicated HT room and wanted a warm inviting space

Looks Great!

What are the dimensions, including height of the viewing area?

Nice setup! Makes me want a basement...

Laters,
Jeff

If it is, why are you outputting 1080p from the Xbox? The picture is getting upconveterd by the XBox only to be down converted by your projector...

because I can, lol is there any technical problems with upconverting, then down converting, its pointless I know, buts is there any problems doing that equipment working harder?

Wow! Great remodelling job. What a difference. Xavier, what stereo cabinet is that? I'm looking for that exact one to mount in my wall. My remodel job was nowhere near as extensive as yours. It's amazing what a change in paint color can do. The previous owners painted the entire basement baby blue, even the trim, doors, and baseboards. You can see a before and after picture in my gallery.

thanks Todd, the cabinet is actually a part of my old wall unit its looks similar to this

http://us.st11.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/everythingfurniture_1928_697992295

mine was getting old and weak from all the moving, so i just cut the bottom cupboard off, and made it work

Thanks. I'll keep an eye out for one of those towers.

because I can, lol is there any technical problems with upconverting, then down converting, its pointless I know, buts is there any problems doing that equipment working harder?

When you upconvert the system is making up data that isn't there. When you downconvert it takes information out. It would seem that what you put in would just be taken out and no harm no foul, but that isn't what happens. When you downconvert from an upconverted picture you will actually lose some of the real data and keep some of the made up data. Hence Degraded Picture Quality. Now if you have decent converters and a generous personal tolerance you may not notice the difference. It is just generally better for picture quality not to do that. You can get a 1 to 1 pixel mapping if you just put the Xbox on 720p. Of course if you ever upgrade to 1080p make sure you reset the Xbox.

Then again, this is your system. If you are happy with the picture quality as it is do nothing!

When you upconvert the system is making up data that isn't there. When you downconvert it takes information out. It would seem that what you put in would just be taken out and no harm no foul, but that isn't what happens. When you downconvert from an upconverted picture you will actually lose some of the real data and keep some of the made up data. Hence Degraded Picture Quality. Now if you have decent converters and a generous personal tolerance you may not notice the difference. It is just generally better for picture quality not to do that. You can get a 1 to 1 pixel mapping if you just put the Xbox on 720p. Of course if you ever upgrade to 1080p make sure you reset the Xbox.

Then again, this is your system. If you are happy with the picture quality as it is do nothing!


thanks Vincent, another question I haven' t been able to get answered is this projector is capable of accepting all signals, but what does it downconvert to? only 720p. HDDVD movies are best displayed at 1080i (or P), does that mean its also being down converted to 720P

Xavier, looks like you were in the same situation as I am. My basement is currently nice, but not laid out very well. I have the almost identical set up of side tv stands as well.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated keeping in mind I really dont have a budget for this(hahah). Sorry the second picture is rotated.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/NeoOiler/basement-exist.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/NeoOiler/basement-planned.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v608/NeoOiler/basement-planned-iso.jpg

Thanks

Ryan

I suggest moving the wall that the screen will be on to line up flush with the blue wall this create a nice clean look also if you move that wall it will allow you to add a audio video component closet, get a av rack with tinted glass (search around I am concerned about reflection of the glass so close to the screen), perhaps go with a wooden cupboard door painted to match the walls, and a harmony remote that will allow you to use it through wood.

Also figure out where your mount is going to go, and prewire power outlet, as well as all the necessary video wires. I did this all after I did the drywall, but I had a bulk head that allowed me to gain access to the joist space I needed.

here is a example of what I would do with wall

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/basement-planned.jpg



I am no expert but I love having my AV rack in the wall nice to manage wires I always hated turning a av stand around to access wires and adding components or gaming consoles, I am sure everyone can agree.

Also one thing I didn't do during renovation is I never ran speaker wires because I wasn't 100% sure what layout I was going to use. and I didn't need to redrywall outside walls so running wire would have been hard. if you are redoing any of the outside walls running wire now then later is a good thing. Also if you do a AV closet run 1 or 2 14/2 gauge wires directly back to the panel on there own dedicated circuit. I ran only one and it also feeds my projector. I did a amp draw on the circuit while everything was turned on and at most I draw 4amps. I think 1 line would be suffiecient

I run, on 1 circuit
60watt lightbulb
Projector
AV receiver
Xbox 360
DVD player
Xbox HDDVD player
Gamecube
xbox 1
joytech Audio Video control Center
total amps 4
max 15 per line.

Here is my layouts http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/basement-1.jpg


I also want to add that my Wife was not thrilled about selling the 58" dlp and going to a projector she didn't believe the quality would have been anywhere near a hdtv.

all I can say is she loves its so much, that she actually admitted that I was right and she was wrong haha one for the record books.

Nice job. Looks great. One question: how cold is that basement in the winter? From the early demo photos it looks like there was no insulation on the walls.

I would enjoy seeing a picture of the front of your audio rack....

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P1012931.jpg

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P1012933.jpg

The basement isn't that cold there is insulation 3/4 of the way down the wall on that one particular area of the basement that wasn't finished. I hook up a small heat dish when we are down there, just to take the chill off

here is some pictures to update the progress of my HomeTheatre v1.5

painted the ceiling black, covered the stage floors with cloth(not sure if I am gonna stay with it) hanging over the edge for now until the GOM arrives should be here next week to cover the skirt of the stage and columns

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P1010050.jpg


http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P1010047.jpg

trying to decide if we should keep the orange, any recommendations of color?

I am going to trim out the ceiling and floor.


3 pot lights above the screen go in this week sometime when I get a chance.

how did you make the rack?

Looks great so far, but the big question is what kind of WAF are you getting? does she feel like the space is going to be more warm/enjoyable??

I mean that was the whole point of this right?:D

The wife is liking it more.

it is beginining to feel cozier down there, the biggest disappointment about this basement is I have very limited choices when it comes to couches. The basement door is in a hall way and makes it very hard to get anything into the stairwell, and also the stairs turn half way down. So I am limited to small 2 seater couches and any thing about 7' long.

I am gonna make the best of this room for the next 2-3 years then I am building a house. and HT 2.0 will be so much better.


The AV Rack part of on old wall unit that I modified to sit in the wall

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P1010050-1.jpg

here is the GOM FR701 installed, I still need to add a panel above the screen that's why you see the strip of wood, I am putting pot lights above the screen soon.

I like the improvement.

As far as the seating goes you'd just about have to purchase individual theater seats. But I read in your other thread that you are going to build a new house later on and do a new theater so it might be best just to wait til then. My basement steps turn at a 90 degree angle half way down so I fully understand what you mean about limited choices on seating.

I just bought a sectional couch with a shayze lounge, its being delivered this week, hopefully it fits down the stairs. will post the pics if I successfully get it into the basement.

It will be a big step to making this a comfortable theatre.


I have 2 theater seats that recline, I like them when I am gaming, but I really like to lay down and get relaxed on a couch when I watch a movie.

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P6023143.jpg

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P6023145.jpg

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f257/xavieryz/P6023146.jpg


Got the Trim all done and had the movers bring a couch to the house that wouldn't fit down the stairs, so its back to the drawing board for seating.

I might pick up a 5 piece sectional that will definately go down.

I got the pot lights in above the screen and just have to wire in the switch and power.

I am going 1/4 round trim where the fabric meets the walls and ceilings to hide the staples and clean up the corners.


Any suggestions how to reduce the shine on the ceiling right above the screen. I just noticed the high amount.

I used Flat Black paint on a piece of press board, the same as the ceiling

That's really cool I,ve also setup Home theater on my basement for that I,ve taken help from a contractor for which I've taken help from homecontractorsdirect.ca/ but I must say you've done a great job...

Absolutely amazing transformation. Thanks for sharing. I am in stage 0 of building my HT room. We are presently looking for a new home to buy. My only input is that it must have a closed in room for my HT. (wife has final say on everything else.) I am complete novice in Home Audio. All I know for sure is that I'm sold on Klipsch Speakers. Everything else is up for grabs. Once I buy a home and begin, I will start a thread for experience support. Xavier, you have given me reason to believed that I can make this dream a reality.
Thanks again

Good work!!

Not sure if it has been mentioned or if it is seen in one of the pics but make sure you have plenty of ventilation for your furnace.

My setup is a very similar layout, I will be checking back to get ideas!