Spaceman Theater build - Page 34

Originally Posted by Spaceman 

Thanks, Larry. Spreadsheets are great at keeping my OCD in check. Dollars and cents aside, it actually became very interesting to see just how much "stuff" goes into one of these rooms. I thought it would be useful for someone just starting their planning/budgeting to see every single item. It will either get them excited or send them crying to their mommy.

Originally Posted by Spaceman 

Thanks, Jim. Hope to have you and other Houston AVS members over when I no longer have light switches hanging out of columns and panels missing from the walls. If you're lucky, I might even put some hardware on the entry door so light doesn't spill through the door knob hole.

Originally Posted by Spaceman 

Thanks, Randy. I'll be sure to send you an invite.
Have any owners of Berkline 13175s found a nice cup holder adapter to accommodate drinks larger than a soda can? Most of the ones I've found are meant for your car and are pretty fuggly. I'm thinking a nice, sturdy drink tumbler with a narrow base might be a more attractive option, but haven't found any that I like. The stainless steel thermos/mug style is readily available but not really what I want for the theater.. The Tervis tumblers would work but their base is too large. Looking to see what others have come up with.

Originally Posted by Spaceman 

Thanks, Randy. I'll be sure to send you an invite.
Have any owners of Berkline 13175s found a nice cup holder adapter to accommodate drinks larger than a soda can? Most of the ones I've found are meant for your car and are pretty fuggly. I'm thinking a nice, sturdy drink tumbler with a narrow base might be a more attractive option, but haven't found any that I like. The stainless steel thermos/mug style is readily available but not really what I want for the theater.. The Tervis tumblers would work but their base is too large. Looking to see what others have come up with.

Originally Posted by farkem 

Originally Posted by Spaceman 

EDIT: added build summary and thread index to 1st post

Before & After:

Existing Floor Plan



Proposed Floor Plan (orientation rotated clockwise 90 degrees from existing floor plan).  Click on to open larger image.




Proposed Ceiling Plan




Screen Wall






Back Wall (was originally going to be the screen wall)







Left Wall





Star Ceiling (Night Sky Murals)



Room Summary
2nd floor build to replace builder-grade media room.  Scope of work included:
-removal of existing wetbar, carpet, & drywall
-removal of all existing electrical wiring, including outlets, switches and fixtures
-temporary removal of all ceiling & exterior wall insulation
-adding a new dedicated 20A circuit
-upgrading existing 15A circuit to 20A and rewiring entire room (new outlets, switches, dimmers and fixtures)
-installing conduit to equipment closet, projector, speakers, riser and stage
-adding new wall to create media closet
-adding perimeter soffit and coffered ceiling
-relocating entry door
-creating arched opening to new media closet
-adding 3 additional hvac supplies and 1 return
-adding insulation to interior walls and reinstalling insulation in ceiling and exterior walls
-new drywall
-adding stage, riser and false wall
-adding acoustic treatments to front, side and rear walls
-building 4 decorative columns, including 1 to hide equipment rack
-installing 7.1 speaker system
-hiding acoustic treatments/speakers behind custom-made fabric panels
-installation of baseboards, wall trim & light trays
-painting soffit and ceiling
-painted star mural
-installing new carpet
-installing new door
-installing screen, projector, & related av equipment

Dimensions (after drywall, before installing treatments/panels)
Width: 12’-7”
Length: 19’-2”
Height: 7’-9” to bottom of perimeter soffit, 9’ to bottom of coffers, 10’ to top of coffers

Finished dimensions (after installing treatments/panels)
Width: 12’-4”
Length (back wall to front wall): 18’-7”
Length (back wall to screen): 17’-10”
Height: same

Color Scheme
Dark brown wall fabric: Guilford of Maine FR701-Chocolate
Light brown wall fabric: Acoustex Designer Series-#60 Cocoa
Black fabric on screen wall: SyFabrics Plush Triple Velvet-Black
Trim & Door: Behr Premium Plus Interior Eggshell-Mouse Ears Black
Ceiling: Behr Premium Plus Interior Flat Enamel-equivalent to SW Jute Brown
Light tray: Behr Premium Plus Interior Flat Enamel-Bitter Chocolate
Soffit: Behr Premium Plus Interior Flat Enamel-Mouse Ears Black
Carpet: Main floor/riser: Masland, Style:Quadrate I, Color:Times Square  Stage: Masland, Style: Signet, Color: Black

AV Equipment Summary
Projector: JVC RS45
Projector Mount: Chief 5" Designer Ceiling Plate #CMA-101, 3" Fixed extension column #CMS-003, RPA281 mount and SLB281 bracket
Screen: 115”wide 2.35:1 SeymourAV frame w/CenterStage XD screen fabric
LCR Speakers: (3) Atlantic Technology 727 In-wall
Side surround speakers: (2) Triad In-wall Bronze
Rear surround speakers: (2) Triad In-wall Bronze
Subwoofer: (1) Hsu Research VTF-2 MK3
Receiver: Denon 4311CI
Blu-Ray player: Panasonic DMP-BD655
CD-Changer: Technics SL-PD888
Power Console: Belkin PureAV AP21100-12 (PF31)
Remote: URC R40
Lighting Control: Insteon

Soundproofing: None

Acoustic Treatment Summary
Front wall: (2) 17”x17”x24” corner bass traps cut from 2" Knauf insulation board (3 pcf), 1 layer of 3.5 mil poly sheeting sandwiched between (2) 1” layers of JM Linacoustic (floor to ceiling between bass traps)

Side walls: 1” JM Linacoustic inside fabric panels, floor to ceiling from screen to 1^st row, floor to ear-height from first row to back wall

Back wall: (2) 2” layers of 3pcf insulation board. First layer against wall consists of Knauf insulation boards.  2nd layer facing room consists of Certainteed CertaPro boards with FSK facing.  1 of the back corners includes (1) 17”x17”x24” corner bass trap cut from 2" Knauf insulation board (3 pcf).

Riser as bass trap: 2x12 perimeter frame with 2x8 joists, fully insulated with (7) 4x10 vents along back wall

Cost Breakdown: 
Project was all DIY, with the exception of adding a dedicated breaker, adding 3 additional HVAC supplies and 1 return, hanging and finishing drywall and installing carpet.

Room Improvements: $13,370.34
AV Equipment: $9,667.05
Seating: $3,124.93
Tools & Supplies: $1,267.81
Project Total: $27,430.13 (as of 1/1/13)

For a complete line item breakdown, refer to the attachments below.

Excel Spreadsheet:
Home Theater Expenses.xls 91k .xls file


PDF Version:

Home Theater Expenses.pdf 22k .pdf file



Build Timeline & Index:
Phase 1: Research & Design - 2 Years
12/3/09 - 12/1/11

Phase 2: Demolition/HVAC modifications - 2 months of actual work spread over 2 years
1/2/10 – 2/7/10 – begin demo (wetbar, walls)
2/18/10 - hvac modifications
2/19/10 – 12/1/11 – project on hold
12/1/11 – 12/31/11 – complete demo (ceiling, electrical, doors)

Phase 3: Construction - 1 Year +/-
1/1/12 - 2/10/12 - framing: walls & coffered ceiling, soffits & ceiling, curved soffit at screen
1/28/12 – revised floor plan and preliminary elevations
2/10/12 – 2/29/12 – electrical, including low voltage conduit
3/1/12 – 3/30/12 – insulation
4/1/12 – 4/12/12 – drywall
4/11/12 – revised plan to include 2.35:1 screen
4/16/12 – 4/26/12 – riser
4/27/12 – 5/1/12 – stage
5/11/12 – 5/21/12 – corner bass traps - 1, 2
5/24/12 – front wall acoustic treatments
5/27/12 – front wall speaker boxes
5/29/12 – 6/21/12 – revise fabric panel design, fabric & carpet research (round 1)
6/24/12 – 7/2/12 – rear wall acoustic treatments, surround speaker boxes
7/3/12 – 7/13/12 – coffered ceiling trim/light trays, more light trays, more light trays, completed light trays
7/16/12 – columns
7/17/12 – 7/30/12 – furring strips for fabric panels
7/30/12 – 8/15/12 – fabric & carpet research (round 2)
8/17/12 – 9/10/12 – begin fabric frames
9/5/12 – final selection of fabric & carpet
9/9/12 – 9/12/12 – false wall
9/12/12 – 10/2/12 – more fabric frames
10/3/12 – fabric panel color schemes
10/7/12 – 10/18/12 – painting of soffit and fabric frames
10/10/12 – lighting control
10/18/12 - ceiling paint
10/19/12 – fabric dispenser
10/23/12 – 11/4/12 – adding fabric to frames, more fabric, more fabric
10/26/12 –bulb selection for soffits
11/5/12 - 11/11/12 – door threshold/hardware research
11/11/12 - 11/12/12 – repaint ceiling, paint door
11/13/12 – 11/15/12 – carpet bids
11/19/12 – paint ceiling & floor registers & return grill
11/30/12 – star ceiling
12/11/12 – carpet install
12/17/12 – mount projector & screen
12/19/12 – temporary rack

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Original 1st Post:








Well...I officially broke ground on my theater last weekend, if laying plywood in the attic counts. I also ripped down some drywall to see what was lurking behind a wall I want to remove. Before I get too much further with demo, I'd like to get the rest of my plan on paper. In order to do that, I need some constructive criticism. I'm attaching a plan of the existing room as well as a plan showing some options I have in mind. Because my room is not very deep, I am having to place the 2nd row fairly close to the back wall, so I have some concerns with acoustics. I'm also not sure where to locate the rear speakers since the 2nd row is so far back. I'm also fairly close to the screen in one option and I'd like to hear from those of you who are sitting at 9' or less to hear how large your screens are. I have a few questions/comments included on the attachments, so any feedback would be appreciated.


I'm looking forward to many more posts as I plan to document my build as it moves along. Hopefully some more demo this weekend.

Originally Posted by Spaceman 

Hopefully when you come visit with your camera, we can come up with some better "after" photos.

Originally Posted by Spaceman 

[
Well, a pro is the one that installed the 12" grille on the 12" duct, so maybe I need a different pro. When you say that long runs reduce pressure drop, do you mean reduce the amount of draw? This thing pulls plenty of air. If I was to get rid of the slack in the duct and make a straighter line to the air handler, wouldn't the flow increase, thus get louder? I'm going to head up there this morning to take some pics and also experiment with a few things. I'll report back with my findings. Thanks for all of the suggestions so far.

Originally Posted by Spaceman 

HVAC question:
The 4 supplies in my room are working great and seem to provide a sufficient amount of air to adequately cool the space. The airflow is low enough where it cannot be heard blowing through the supply vents. The problem is with my return. Due to space constraints in the rear soffit, I only have a single 12" return connected to a 12"x12 return grille. Like the supplies, it does it's job but a little too well. When I insert the filter into the grille with the fan running, it literally sucks the filter out of my hands. It's quiet enough when the filter is clean and the grille is not installed, but once I install the grille or the filter gets just a little bit dirty, there's a pretty loud whistle. What is the best way to address this? Is the flex duct undersized? I believe it's 12" dia.
The grille I have is identical to this one. http://www.amazon.com/Filter-Grille-Return-Grill-Cover/dp/B005R372BA. Are there models with a more open louver pattern that would not restrict air flow as much? Are dampers ever installed on return lines to reduce the amount of draw?
As additional background, the HVAC guys originally installed this return on the opposite side of the room (further away from the air handler), before I had the final layout of the room figured out. When I relocated it to the rear soffit, closer to the air handler, I didn't bother reducing the length of their flex duct run. I simply have lots of slack up in the attic. I probably have 25'-35' of flex duct between the air handler and the return when in fact I probably only need 15'. Not sure if this matters. Any ideas?