Setting Up/Controlling Audio Around Pool and Patio

If budget is an issue....

You can run low voltage wire used for outdoor lighting as speaker wire. I would recommend the heavier gauge. IT is rated to be buried. However,if you are going to bury it, I would recommend conduit in case you ever have to pull another run.

In general, I bought a cheap RCA 5.1 home theater in a box and a small plastic cabinet designed to store garden tools that had two shelves and swing open doors. I drilled a few holes and created an outdor entertainment cabinet. I can leave it out there all the time. I even hooked up a DVD player and bring out my small projector for movies. ANd I jsut added a ROku for al lof the streaming stuff.

Good luck!

You can control it with iTunes, the iPod and AirPlay. Download apple remote from the app store. You'll need wifi access too.

One word... Sonos!

This is the best gadget ever.

Sonos will cost you a bundle. Get a Marantz receiver with AirPlay then use an iPhone to send music from itself or any of up to 5 networked Macs' music collections with music sharing enabled to your receiver. You can select your music from the music app on the iPhone. If you need more zones like around a pool area then connect a multi zone amplifier to the receiver.

You can also use Pandora to send music via AirPlay into your home system. Apple's Airplay implemented with an AirPlay capable receiver pretty much makes Sonos obsolete.

I second that!

And I too have a custom outdoor cabinet. Here's my 5.1 outdoor setup which not only works fantastically and can blow the whole neighborhood away, but which is relatively high end but cheap enough to tackle (probably). And, if you can manage to buy all used equipment off of Audiogon.com, you'd be all the better

1 - Suncast 6' double-door cabinet (paid about $80 - caulked all connection points and added a shower curtain liner hanging from the top of the inside to the bottom of the inside to protect from water entering the double-doors when closed and poked 4 drainage holes in the floor, raised the sub and power strip using a 2" thick piece if styrofoam packing material, and one 1x1" cut out with the flap still connected from the top (made 3 cuts, not 4) for the power cable, and all wiring - wiring protected by sump-pump hosing)

1 - NAD all in one L73 5.1 DVD Receiver (paid $500 new - 5x45W or 2x60W - sits in the cabinet - wpc rated MILES below what they can do - these things ROCK)

4 - Klipsch AW-650s 85wpc 6.5" 2-way outdoor water resistant speakers (paid about $1100 new for all 4 but I've seen them around new for as low as $382/pair - come in black or white and rarely in brown - these are AMAZING outdoors due to the horn tweeters/treble capability which is particularly important outdoors - 2 in the corners of the property with about 150 foot speaker wire runs each, and 2 behind the viewers as surrounds with about a 20 foot speaker wire run each - you ought to hear what it's like for movies, outside, under the stars, in the dark, when a group of horses comes running up in surround mode, with audio approaching from one side of the yard seemingly from acres away, crossing the entire yard, and exiting the other side - unreal...)

1 - Klipsch RC-52 II indoor center channel (paid about $175 on Audiogon - sits in the cabinet)

1 - Velodyne DLS3750RB 180W 10" sub with remote (paid $180 used off craigslist - MASSIVE in-home sounding bass - sits in the cabinet - I have 3 other Velodynes in my in-house setup!)

1 - PS3 (used from craigslist - for Blu-ray, Netflix streaming - sits in the cabinet - I have a 10'x20' screen I custom built used with an Optoma projector that sits across the 18x36 in-ground pool about 40 feet away - also amazing to go gaming on a 10'x20' screen!!!)

1 - Optoma HD71 720p DLP Home Theater Projector (used $500 on Amazon - brightest lumens I can find for early starts to movie night or full moons - excellent picture with Blu-ray even in 720p)

1 - iPod dock (sits in the cabinet)

1 - iPod (sits in cabinet)

1 - Cable box (sits in the cabinet - have cable wired to projector or 32" flatscreen hanging off the wall of the house over the Jacuzzi)

1 - 32" Insignia LCD (new from Best Buy for $175 with 4 years of protection from Geek Squad for $29.95 that covers everything but dropping; even water and moisture damage - whew! - cover it with a velcro grill cover for rain/snow)

This posting might beg many more questions such as wire gauge, above or below ground, how I made the projector screen etc. etc. So, ask away if you're interested. Obviously, one can swap out for cheaper products but this sounds nearly high-end to me even though I have a somewhat high-end in-houses system (although I AM looking to replace the 3 indoor subs with 1-2 JL Audio Fathoms). In-home system consists of

- PS Audio P5 Power Plant Power Regenerator
- PS Audio xStream Statement Power Cables throughout
- Parasound HCA2205at 230wpc 5-channel amp
- Anthem AVM20 processor (need to upgrade)
- 5 Joseph Audio speakers (2x RM25 SI Signature Mark II, 2x RM7 SI Signature and 1 Cinergy center)
- 3 Velodyne subs (2x DLS5000RB 15" 600W with 3000W peak, and 1x 15" SPL series)
- Paul Speltz Anti-cable speaker wiring (except subs) and Anti-IC Interconnects throughout
- Oppo Digital BDP-83 Blu-ray/SACD/DVD-A player
- Wadia dock for iPod
- Hi-fi Tuning Supreme Fuses in Parasound, P5, and Anthem (Oppo was hard-wired and would require sending in)

Hey Winston...check this website out...www.outdooraudio.com
I've used the amp and remote (while in a pool)..works great!
Good Luck!