Hey Everyone,

Like many of you i'm in the process of running all my electrical, audio cables etc for my dedicated theater room. I thought it would be good for not only myself but other's here if we could post a list of necessary cables followed by what should be run for future proofing.

My system includes:

Panasonic 58" Plasma 1080P
110" Motorized Screen (future) Pre-wiring now
Projector (future) Pre-wiring now
Pioneer Elite 82
Klipsch Speakers
SVS Sub
PS3
DVD Player
HD Cable Box

Here's what I have off the top of my head:

From Receiver to TV or Projector:

HDMI
Component
S Video
Audio Left and Right
Cable Connection

Cable Box To Receiver:

DVI to HDMI

PS3 to Receiver:

Hdmi

From DVD to TV: (so kids can watch without running entire system)
Component
Audio Left and Right

Speakers to Receiver:

2 Cable runs from each speaker (this allows future bi-wiring if needed)

From Modem to Receiver area:

Cat 5 (for upgrades, downloads etc)

Receiver to Sub locations:

RG6 to each possible sub location

Future Proof Speaker Setup:

Run (2) speaker runs for possible future REAR CENTER channel.

Anything i'm overlooking? I'm sure i've missed lots!

Please post :)

Thanks!

Hey Everyone,

Like many of you i'm in the process of running all my electrical, audio cables etc for my dedicated theater room. I thought it would be good for not only myself but other's here if we could post a list of necessary cables followed by what should be run for future proofing.

My system includes:

Panasonic 58" Plasma 1080P
110" Motorized Screen (future) Pre-wiring now
Projector (future) Pre-wiring now
Pioneer Elite 82
Klipsch Speakers
SVS Sub
PS3
DVD Player
HD Cable Box

Here's what I have off the top of my head:

From Receiver to TV or Projector:

HDMI
Component
S Video
Audio Left and Right
Cable Connection

Cable Box To Receiver:

DVI to HDMI

PS3 to Receiver:

Hdmi

From DVD to TV: (so kids can watch without running entire system)
Component
Audio Left and Right

Speakers to Receiver:

2 Cable runs from each speaker (this allows future bi-wiring if needed)

From Modem to Receiver area:

Cat 5 (for upgrades, downloads etc)

Receiver to Sub locations:

RG6 to each possible sub location

Future Proof Speaker Setup:

Run (2) speaker runs for possible future REAR CENTER channel.

Anything i'm overlooking? I'm sure i've missed lots!

Please post :)

Thanks!
One thing that is really helpful is 2 inch low voltage conduit. If you need to add some cable, it can often be done via wire tape if you already have the conduit.

I put conduit in my theater, but I only used 1 inch. I filled up the conduit from AVP to projector with HDMI and component. Now I want to run a cable for future IR control, but I have no room to push another wire.

If I was to do it again, I would have 2 inch conduit EVERYWHERE.

Also, these days it is probably sufficient to use component and HDMI for dedicated video runs. S-video and composite would only be useful for compatibility with that 10 year old VCR, but anyone building a dedicated room with wire runs is likely going to do a little upgrading of their existing equipment.

I'd add two rear speakers runs. More and more systems are supporting a left and right rear. Even though there isn't a lot of content, Dolby and THX processing make use of 2 rear speakers.

Finally, think about IR control. I have a little IR receiver built into the front corner, with ALL of my equipment in the back of the room. I can control all but one piece of equipment with one IR. Also consider sending that back out to things like lights. Lots of wires!

Hey Everyone,

Like many of you i'm in the process of running all my electrical, audio cables etc for my dedicated theater room. I thought it would be good for not only myself but other's here if we could post a list of necessary cables followed by what should be run for future proofing.
Thanks!

Not sure if it is necessary for everyone but you should consider placing a trigger wire for the motorized screen from the location of the projector to the power box for the screen, 20ga is fine.
Of course 120V for screen.
Maybe a sensor wire from the projector to the component rack.
Power for subs at several locations and coax to subs as well.
Cable and satellite cable top projector location?

Good suggestions guys!!!

Keep em coming...amazing what can easily be overlooked!

dont run cat 5 run cat 5e, or cat 6, and id run at the very least one cat 5e or cat 6 to both the projector and the tv, i ran two spares to my tv and i ended up making a 23 foot vga wire out of one. you should always run it there just in case, i recommend 3(although it is somewhat overkill, it will only cost an extra couple of dollars per run at most) cat 5e's or cat 6's(ideally cat 6) to the receiver, the projector and the tv for comfort

If I was to do it again, I would have 2 inch conduit EVERYWHERE.

i agree with him 200% it will make your life so much easier in the future, although if it was me i would just run some cheap pvc piping its just as good but more cost effective imo...