Still not clear on a few things

Guys,

I have been lurking for awhile trying to absorb as much info as I can. I am to the point where I need to get my A/V cables installed so I can drywall so I am trying to get as much info as possible, now.

My build is a family room/rec room and if I figure out how to add pics I will try to get those on here. This is a very humble build compared to some of the awesome, dedicated HT's I have seen on here.

I am installing a new LCD tv and want to have the option to move it should we want to change the room around. I have laid out the two locations for that as well as the speakers that would need to be rearranged for the surround system to follow.

My question basically lies around the cabling, wiring and connectors involved with this. I see guys running CAT5, CAT6, coax cable and more for their drops, but how do you get a coax cable to connect to an HDMI port? Or any other RCA-style (component, composite) connectors?

Do I need these things called baluns? My A/V setup (AVR receiver, cd, dvd, DVR (directv) and ipod) will be located on a shelf in one location and I want to have a connection to reach to my main PC in another room at the other end of the house (same floor) for playing movies or whatever off the PC or recording to it from my DVR.

The family and rec rooms are really one 20x22 room. I want to be able to play music when we are playing pool or foosball or just for entertaining. I want to also have the family room side with the lcd (may add a projector down the road as well) with surround sound (7.1 but 5.1 would suffice) and be able to hook up a Wii or PS2 or PS3 as well.

Maybe I am asking too many things at once here. I am capable of installing all of this (though it sounds like I am not!!), but just need some direction. I haven't yet found a thread that hits on the specifics of that. If there are threads that hit on this or an excellent book I can pick up that will work.

Can anyone help?

Thanks!

Ok, in the interest of getting the sheetrock moving I elected for the smurf tube option. I thought I bought the 3/4" at Lowe's but I bought and installed 200' of the 1/2".

I only realized it when I went out and got more 3/4 and when I got home and began to run it---oops!!

So I exchanged that for more 1/2" and ended up running 390' of 1/2" and my kids think the tube is SO cool since you can literally whisper in one end and here it perfectly at the other end!!!

When I was at Lowe's talking to one of their reps I explained that I wanted at least 1" diameter for the TV hookups. He suggested that black sewer hose. The flexible stuff that you might use for a sump pump. It's 1 1/4" diameter and comes in 20' lengths for like $7.50. This was perfect in my case so I ran that for two (2) different TV drops.

I ran two lines of the tube from the A/V to the computer for data lines and ran the rest for speakers terminating them at speaker locations. I also ran a tube to the back deck for future expansion to a radio or speakers by the pool.

I determined the speaker locations based on the fact that the family room is nowsd set-up to have the TV mounted in two different locations. A) on the "long" wall with a shorter viewing distance. B) on the "short" wall above the fireplace with a longer viewing distance. We are installing with option A for now but can switch to B. Both have the 1 1/4" drops.

The speakers have been set-up to run 7.1 and be able to swap locations based on the fact that the TV would be moved to a wall 90-degrees to where we are going to mount it. I have created a color-coded chart for each smurf drop at the A/V cabinet.

That stuff is pretty cool and easy to work with.

I am going to run 2-wire speaker wires through all the speaker tubes and will get 25' HDMI cables for the two TV drops.

I am looking for suggestions as to what other wires I should run with the HDMI cables in the 1 1/4" tubes? CAT5e? Coax? All?

Thanks guys, I appreciate it!! Time to go home and start hanging drywall now!!!!!

Oh, one thing on the speaker locations. I can only find the standard-sized connector plates at the stores. I would HATE to have those giant plates at each and every speaker location. Does anyone make a more discrete way to connect the speakers? like a micro-sized connector or something?

Thanks again!!

Sorry for not mentioning it. Yes, I ran all of the smurf tubing as home runs. I am building an A/V shelf (not a rack system - I don't have that much money - or that much gear for that matter!!). I am trying to be basic as well.
The reason I ran the tube now is not only for future-proofing, but so I could get the sheetrock up and going and THEN worry about running all my cables (suggested early, thanks!). This also allows me to kind of "module-ize" the system. Meaning, I can run my TV connections and some speakers now and then run more speakers, the additional TV drops or the ones to the deck at a later date.
The "data" cables are b/c my computer is at the other end of the house (same floor) so if I want to hook up a media center or something I can do that.
However, I will get all my cables the length I need. The 20' 1-1/4" tube reached all the way in one run so no cables to my TV's will be longer than 30' and I can probably use 25'.
The A/V box will be on long, heavy duty roller tracks so I can pull the unit straight out from the wall in order to make/change any rear connections. There are other items in the way that prevent me from making the connections any other way.
Btw, I haven't found squat in the form of a "small-form-factor" speaker connectors!!