Well i thought id share my venture into my first true dedicated home theater. My wife are in the process of building our first house, and owning our first home for that matter and i decided my requirement for the house was to have a partially finished basement for my dedicated theater. the house should be done mid may so ill continually update until its finished. questions and comments are welcome. thanks guys.
The closet under the stairs will house equipment and ill be running a sanyo z4 with def tech 7002 supertowers powered by a denon 2807 but will probably upgrade to one of the new onkyos later in the year. the surrounds in the 7.1 setup will all be inwall and the can lighting will be on a dimmer switch likely to be upgraded to something ir controlled once i get moved in. Ill be projecting onto a 106" 16x9 screen

im only 23 and im just starting out so take it easy on me when comparing to other theaters within this thread , many of which are absolutly jaw dropping


progress pics
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7dd32b3127cce826ec4e0ebc900000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7dd38b3127cce82350cb3fec500000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da20b3127cce82e639b0369000000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da20b3127cce82e64fcb36d000000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da20b3127cce82e65aa3762a00000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da20b3127cce82e1e279974900000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da20b3127cce82e1e337d79f00000025100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da22b3127cce8291ec62a62100000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da22b3127cce8291ef0867e200000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da25b3127cce8298f5788ded00000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da29b3127cce82b610b12a2c00000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg

the home theater seating/sectional
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7dd05b3127cce82d402fd790800000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg

the wedge is joining the two theater couches, so i think ill eventually build a riser and put one couch on the floor and the other on the riser and just leave the wedge towards the back for extra seating

no opinions or suggestions :confused:

Here is a comment....will you come over and do mine? Looks great so far!

That's looking awesome! Have you done all the construction yourself so far?

noooooo im definatly not a construction type guy, im an engineer but electrical. Plus they included this finished portion of the basement as an incentive since the new housing market has been so slow around here. Its actually painted now and id imagine carpet will be going in within the next week or so and ill be painting the walls a deep red/burgundy mid may and the speaker install will be done in june.

initial paint coat was put on yesterday
entry into basement
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da34b3127cce834a49c1cd2700000025100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg


back of theater painted

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da34b3127cce834a483f8d4100000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg

i couldnt get to the house today before the model closed, so wasnt able to go in because its locked up now. hopefully tomorrow ill have a bunch of cleaner pics with it prepped for carpet work because the baseboards went in today

What are you going to do about sound reflections? Are you going to make some fabric frames and have them mounted post painting?

i havnt really taken accoustics into much consideration. Like i said this is my first forray into a true home theater and depending on how it sounds i may just do it post
painting with some wall treatments. i havnt really looked into it that much, but im hoping its not quite on the scale of it making a drastic difference

Dude, looks sweet so far. Is it just me or does it look like your basement is flooded?

yeah there was some water after the last storm, i guess one of the drains got clogged, but they cleaned it out and they are replacing the linoleum in the bathroom because it got under it. its dry now and was only wet for a few hours, but i was pissed nevertheless. oh well it comes with a 10 year dry basement gurantee so if it leaks they pay

updated pics
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da01b3127cce831265412ec600000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg


http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da01b3127cce831265e2af5500000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg



http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da01b3127cce831265a72e2000000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da01b3127cce83127a666e7600000025100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da01b3127cce83127aafef8f00000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da01b3127cce83127b502ed800000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg

update. lighting was finished yesterday and carpet should be put down on friday, we close the second week of may so ill try and update as much as i can since it should move pretty fast now. especially after i move in and start painting
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da05b3127cce8333560e2c9c00000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg

Keep the photos coming! Until theater-related stuff starts going up the space is a bit hard to picture - lots of white walls, halls and doors.

Looks good so far, but are you planning on keeping everything white?

The reason I ask is white reflects a lot of light and can result in a washed out image. You should at least plan on having the screen wall be a dark color, especially if you are going front projection.

Looks great so far. Do you have a floorplan that you can show us?

Laters,
Jeff

thanks for the comments i was beginning to think no one liked me :p

im planning on painting the walls a dark red and the furniture and home theater equipment will be black. im trying to convince my wife to let me paint the ceiling a flat black but shes not too accepting of that. the window will be covered from the outside so no light should get in.

are there any positioning requirements for bipolar speakers such as the definitive supertowers??

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da07b3127cce832261557d6400000016100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg


this is a quick and dirty layout without dimensions for those interested

couple questions? how easy is it to install a new lutron IR faceplate instead of the turn knob lutron faceplate i have?

also im needeing a new receiver for this and am currently debating between the denon 2807, the onkyo 605 or waiting for the onkyo 875 at the end of june.

now my blu ray player is a ps3 so it can send uncompressed audio as bitstream with the current blu ray specs and my hddvd player is the 360 add on so that wont matter at all. opinions please. the 605 looks awesome but the 875 seems godly for the price.

carpet went in so updated picture time

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da09b3127cce83d55fee0a0000000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7da09b3127cce83d55d4d0aa200000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg

Looks good so far.
Who makes that sectional? I've got something like that in mind, but havent seen it yet.

i got the sectional at sofa express. its kind of nice because both the ends are seperable "theater" couches

update. the house is finished and we close next week, so within the next month or so i will be in and the theater will take shape

painting is done. getting the speakers in the next couple weeks and waiting for the new onkyos to street

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7db06b3127cce842f8bc0b8e700000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg


http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7db06b3127cce842f8cbbf80700000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7db06b3127cce842f88fe797000000026100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg


http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7db06b3127cce842f83e739f400000025100AbMWzlu1Ys2Lg

I am curious about several things, first why are there SO many outlets I don't think I have ever seen so many outlet boxes.

Also you said you had not thought about acoustics, did you think about sound isolation?

Light ceiling is not just a problem from outside light but rather light reflected from the screen. so hopefully you can convince her to go a dark color on ceiling, even if not black.

where is the screen going in that picture and with the curved seating arrangement does that mean some people have to watch the movie sideways, I mean looking to their side?

most of the outlets are speaker wire outlets. center and two mains. plus a box for the coax. one is an IR repeater, the other three are outlets since all three front speakers are powered.

im going to see how the projector looks with a white ceiling and if its overly bad ill paint it black, she said shes ok with that but wants to see it first.

as the couch is set up now yes people would be looking sideways, but its not setup how i want it, we just put it down there. im thinking of

1. face the center wedge directly at the screen and have the two couch ends angle in
or
2. split up the sectional have one couch in front and the other behind it on a riser and just use the wedge up fron as an extra seat

the setup just finished today so i snapped a couple quick pics. turned out to be exactly what i wanted and my god do the definitive super towers kick major ass

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_0514.jpg

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_0604.jpg

deleted the pics on accident so im reupping them. also i got the riser initially built, im carpeting it this week as well as attaching the dimmable rope light. the popcorn machine should be here this weekend as well. all in all im highly pleased with my build and look forward to spending alot of time down here with family and friends

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_0631.jpg

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_0632.jpg

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_0640.jpg

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_0644.jpg


http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_0617.jpg

Looks great, are you using a subwoofer?

Your theater looks fabulous truffleshuffle83.

In my theater the walls are quite dark in color (similar to yours) and as a result we decided to paint the electrical faceplates the same color as the walls (but we left the electrical switch plates a lighter color). I think it looks great that way in our theater and may be even better in your theater since you have quite a few faceplates adorning your front wall.... it would help them disappear rather than excentuating them as you are by painting them the color of the trim (white). Then again maybe you just love it that way.

That's a minor thing though since the lights are rarely on anyway. :)

Nice job.

the towers are definitive supertowers, so there are two 12 inch supercube woofers

also im thinking of painting all the trim/faceplates and the ceiling black, but i kinda just want to relax and utilize the theater before i start another project down there

Where did you get the popcorn wall hanging that is pretty cool :)

Looks very nice!

thanks for the kind words guys, i know its not on the scale that many of the dedicated theaters are in this thread, but im super proud of it.

the wall art is from bed bath and beyond, they also have film reels and a clapboard

Very nice color, I have that same popcorn thing in my concession room. yup Bed and Bath.

Nice Job.

also im thinking of painting all the trim/faceplates and the ceiling black, but i kinda just want to relax and utilize the theater before i start another project down there

Nice job.

I also went with a white textured ceiling (matches rest of house) and I've been happy with it for the past year. At first I WANTED black, but I'm somewhat glad I didn't do it.

got the posters and popcorn machine in today, just need to carpet the riser and attach the ropelight

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_0886.jpg

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_0882.jpg


http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_0902.jpg

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_0520-1.jpg

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_0517-1.jpg

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_0883.jpg

not sure if you mentioned it before, what type of seats are those? Looks very nice.

The seats are actually a "theater sectional" from Sofa Express. It wouldnt work as a complete sectional so we took one half and the wedge and put it on the back riser and put the other half of the couch up front. Seems to work out better this way anyways because you can kinda lay out a little bit on the wedge since its fairly large.

finished up carpeting the riser this weekend as well as running the ropelight along the base. broke it in with some friends and family with a UFC fight and some drinks.

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_0972.jpg

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_0974.jpg

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_0975.jpg

well i took the plunge this weekend and painted the ceiling a deep flat black, i sold the z4 and replaced it with a RS1, so ill update the pics later this week

Very nice! You made great progress in a short amount of time. It has taken me over 1 year and I still don't have drywall up.

updated pics.
finished painting the ceiling black this weekend, now im just waiting on the new projector to arrive

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_3580.jpg

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_3583.jpg

I am curious how you feel now that you have painted the ceiling black. I know you are waiting for your new PJ, but what affect did the black ceiling have on your red walls, did it tone down the red (from the pics, it looked really bright red with the white ceiling)

well at first when i had all the drop cloths over the walls i was kinda disappointed, but once i pulled them down and now that ive seen it more im really starting to like it. hopefully the results are worth it, although i wont be able to say for certain since i didnt A/B compare with the old projector.

i think the red walls still really pop if you see it in person, it just dramatically cut down on reflections in the room


i also had the can lighting dimmer in these pics

Hey! That's NICE! Good to see a lot of hard work pay off. The new black ceiling is a definate plus and will be worth it.

thanks, im pretty pleased with how home theater 1.0 turned out

all setup with the new projector and done buying for awhile....at least thats what i tell my wife
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_3652.jpg

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_3650.jpg

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http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa317/truffleshuffle83/IMG_3666.jpg

WOW! It turned out great. Nice job!

Laters,
Jeff

Looks good how do you like the new pj?

Looks good how do you like the new pj?

well i went back and forth for months between the epson pro cinema UB 1080, the black pearl, and this. truthfully this thing made me more giddy than the first time i got a projector. at the end of the day every projector has pros and cons, but this just fits my needs and looks amazing

looks superb mine sux argh i hate pillars

yeah the next time ill have to have a bigger basement with no soffit interference