Theater 3.0 - Rise of The Popcorn Machines! - Page 7

Thanks for the tip. Yea, if you can grab some more info on them, I'll definately check them out. My issue here is that I don't have rear access to the rack since it butts up to the bathroom wall, so I need to get one of those fancy pants slide-out and rotating ones, which is what makes it so pricey. If they carry something like that though, I'm all ears.

The seating is the Pepper line (I think they've since changed the name to Playback) from Palliser. They're based out of Canada, but I ordered them through Stargate Cinema in Maryland. I've used them several times in the past and have had nothing but good experiences.

I just sent them an e-mail asking about the AXSR, but I'll probably go check them out on Saturday. That Craigslist link is nice, but I'm not sure how I'd make something like that work in my space though. The floor of the rack enclosure is elevated about 9" or so off the ground. Plus, I had the area framed and drywalled to match a 43U AXSR spec sheet. Guess we'll see.

We do need to get back together soon though. I'm pretty flexible in the evenings this summer, so if anyone's game, just let me know.

Went ahead and e-mailed that place in Golden Valley to see what they could do for me. Quote came back at almost $1300 oh well....

Hey, $300 is $300. Thanks for the link!

I've actually used a lot of Raxxess stuff in the past for my music gear, and my last theater rack was built from some Raxxes rails that I got from Sweetwater. They make good stuff - I just never knew they made a rack like this. I need to do some research on the size of the rack and the install requirements. I didn't see anything on the B&H page, but I'm sure I can find it. I cut the area out of the closet to match the MA rack, but I'd be surprised if it's much different.

Nevertheless, the wife will be very pleased that I found a way to save some cash here

I don't need it immediately, but when I asked the guy about it, it sounds like these types of racks are pretty much special orders all of the time. I guess it's possible that one might come in damaged or be returned or something, but it sounds like the chances are small.

That Smarthome rack is actually a couple hundred bucks cheaper than usual. The only downside (and I hate that MA does this) is that the service rails and stand are required for installation, which adds $300-$400 the final price. It's a racket I tell ya!!

Actually, yes I'll get some pictures taken soon, as I know us guys are all about the visuals.


I ended up ordering a handful of speakers. I went with a pair of Klipsch CDT5800CII's in-ceilings for the side surrounds (The RS10s will act as rear surrounds mounted to the front of the soffit. Also, I switched the center channel over to a Klipsch RC62II. I did run into a small problem when installing the right side surround. It looks like when we pulled the wires through that the hole in the ceiling was a bit too close to some ductwork. Because of that I needed t move the speaker back about 5-6 inches. The end result is a 1 inch hole in the ceiling next to the speaker. I'm planning on picking up one of those patch kits and then trying to mimic the orange peel texture as best I can to fix it. Once the ceiling is painted dark, we should be fine and I doubt anyone will be able to notice it.

I've also been working on getting the 2nd row bar designed, which I think will really start to anchor the room in place. Here's a very initial design:



I had some concerns about the proposed 4x4 across the front, which seemed like overkill to me, so we're looking into some steel bars or different types of supports that wont interfere too much with legroom. I haven't yet decided if the granite counter will be curved like in the diagram or just a rectangular piece either. My main concern is the ability to seat 4 while still having adequate space to move between the support column near the larger bar and the 2nd row of seating. Also, the trimwork was designed to play off of the speaker columns a bit.

On a final note, I was reading through my latest issue of Home Theater magazine and came across some new automated blinds from Lutron called Serena. They are much more affordable than most motorized blinds, so I've requested some color samples to see if it might be something I can end up doing myself.

One step closer!!!!

I was using a 3rd RB35.

So it looks like the guy doing my bar is booked on a larger job until the end of October. I decided to move forward and get the painting done, as well as ordering the rack and bass shakers. If all goes well, I should have everything in place by the end of October and can then install the 2nd row bar and top. The next step would then be locating some decent stools before moving on to the back half of the basement. The only things I'm certain on as of right now for that area are an on-wall electric fireplace and a couple of conversational chairs. I'm also debating on putting some type of stone, slate, or tile work up around the fireplace to give the wall a little more warmth.

Very minor update tonight, but I DID manage to pull the speaker cable for my bass shakers under the carpet from the bar column to the seating area. Plans for the next few days are to do some touch-up work on the walls so that I can get the painter in here before ordering the rack. We also bought a couple of seats for the rear corner of the game room area. Pics to come!

More progress as the room slowly comes together. Yesterday and today the 2nd row bar began to take shape. First up was the 2x4 framing of the structure:





While I would have preferred to had the bar centered over the 4 seats, it ended up not being possibly because of the column in the center of the basement. I wanted a decent size passthrough and decided to make it 36". From there, the options were to either center the seats over the bar, which would make the seating area off-center from the screen, or move the bar and keep the seats centered. I ultimately decided to line the bar up with the edge of the very last seat. This will still allow for some kind of decoration behind the first seat, while still maximizing the width of the opening. Here's a pic:



Now the location was determined, the next step was to remove the carpet around the perimeter and anchor the structure to the concrete. Next, the bar was wrapped in 1/2" birch:



From there, I wanted to incorporate some of the design from the columns up front, so we chose to do some picture frames made from 1x3's. I also added a 6"x6" footrest at the base of the bar that was made from a 2x4 and 2x6 frame that was then wrapped in 1/2" birch:



The front of the far had slightly larger frames, and I added some more frames to the sides to tie it together. The corners were trimmed out and bar's now ready to be stained and covered with a granite top. I'll be matching the color to the stage and going with a lighter, beige color granite top.




My bass shakers and sub amp arrived today as well, so I'm planning on taking a look at the frames of the seats to see where the best place to mount them would be. I haven't ordered the rack yet, but will be glad when that's here so I can start getting everything organized.

So I wanted something pretty unique and from Vegas SOMEWHERE in the theater. I wasn't sure what it would be, but we recently picked up some new furniture for the basement and were in need of a lamp for one of the tables. I had decided to start looking for Vegas themed lamps and ran across an actual room lamp that was sold at The Sahara casino when it shut down. What better conversation piece than something from where the Rat Pack hung out?

No problem. I don't think youre the only one. This room feels really dead compared to my 2.0 thread when it was in the other room.

I haven't ordered yet, but B&H has a similar roll-out rack made my Raxxess. It's the same specs and about $300 cheaper, so I'll most likely end up going with that one.

Plans for the upcoming week are all about filling nail holes with putty, sanding, and staining the bar. The granite company is coming out tomorrow to make final measurements, so we should have a top in place in about a week. Here's the color that I"m going with, Venetian Gold Original.

Thanks. I took some time yesterday to fill all of the nail holes in the bar, so this week I'll be sanding and staining. Although I haven't received a confirmation since my visit on Friday, someone from the granite company is supposed to be here in an hour to measure and place the order. I had Sherwin Williams color match some stain to the flooring on the stage. With probably a single coat of poly, I think we'll have a pretty good match, so I'm looking forward to seeing the contrast between the darker wood and lighter counter.