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New House, because I love this stuff. - Page 15

post #421 of 491
8/21/12 at 10:14pm
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My wife and I built some very heavy duty work benches/ table saw feed tables this weekend. I still need to build two more, add ply to the bottom shelf and paint them dark gray. This is the next step in getting ready for the theater build.



These are high strength shelves that need to be painted and mounted.



Half of a glue lam left over from nearby construction. This and a bunch of 2x12's will be installed in attic for cat-walks. Also part of getting ready for theater.

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post #422 of 491
8/21/12 at 10:21pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by BrittonYoder View Post

I ran Cat-6e un-shielded solid strand. It was Audioquest brand wire which I was extremely happy with. It is insanely expensive about $500 for a 1000ft roll, but the boxes pulled well and I like that the pairs were separated by a plastic divider. The closest thing I have seen to this type of construction is the higher-end version of pre-terminated GeekSquad brand wires you can buy at bestbuy. I think the cost and divider is overkill in 99.9% of situations. I would suggest reading this article that I have linked to below, I don't think it is something to live by or die by, but it is a great wealth of information.
http://www.atlona.com/pdf/Training/Twisted_pair_cat5_6_cables.pdf
I have installed more than 50 baluns and in some cases, I have used the best balun on the best cable and had problems, then switched to some cheap brand and had issues. In other situations I have had, only the most expensive products have worked. Here is my experience:
1. Atlona Baluns, 40 or so installed, 1-2 failures.
2. Binary Baluns, 4 installed, no failures.
3. Monoprice Baluns, 8 installed, no failures.
4. No Name Baluns from frys or where-ever, 13-15 installed, 40% failure.
I recommend using the Cat-5 tips even if you use cat-6 wire, it has increased reliability in almost every install I have encountered.
The reliability also has a lot to do with what is on both ends.
1. Receivers: I have installed hundreds and by far Denon/ Marantz have the least issues with HDMI in general (handshaking and driving long runs). I understand this reliability comes from higher quality LV power supplies which are involved in the +5v on HDMI. Yamaha has been the worst.
2. Cable/Sat: DirecTV works the best without question. DTV boxes have dozens of hdmi keys they can rotate through to get a good handshake. Any cable box made by motorola creates issues 10-20% of the time. AT&T U-Verse, well all I can say there is good luck. The hardware and picture quality of U-verse is the worst I have ever seen. When I used to work in the AV business, I would charge hundreds extra if the customer had U-verse. My recommendation, chuck it out the window. If you are determined to drink the cool-aide then just use component.


You say use cat 5 tips with cat 6 cable? ...As in rj-45s I assume...this is interesting...tell me more.....I've read the cat 6 rj45 are much better at maintaining a solid signal and rejecting "noise" etc.

Also...never knew that about the receivers and direct tv vs Motorola boxes etc. good info!


SnapAV cat6 also has the plastic pair divider. I figured all cat 6 did. Also the cat6 rj45s have the insert (load bar)for the rj45 that you slide each of the 4 pairs thru (almost like the ez rj45s)to get an awesome termination with less then 1/2 of untwist (more like a 1/4) on every termination. Makes it so easy. Some hate cat 6 terminations. I love it. I am faster with those then cat5.
Edited by gerard143 - 8/21/12 at 10:30pm
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post #423 of 491
8/21/12 at 10:34pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gerard143 View Post

You say use cat 5 tips with cat 6 cable? ...As in rj-45s I assume...this is interesting...tell me more.....I've read the cat 6 rj45 are much better at maintaining a solid signal and rejecting "noise" etc.
Also...never knew that about the receivers and direct tv vs Motorola boxes etc. good info!
SnapAV cat6 also has the plastic pair divider. I figured all cat 6 did. Also has the insert for the rj45 that you slide each of the 4 pairs thru (almost like the ez rj45s)to get an awesome termination with less then 1/2 of untwist (more like a 1/4) on every termination. Makes it so easy. Some hate cat 6 terminations. I love it. I am faster with those then cat5.

Funny you should bring the push through ends up. I had to terminate hundreds of cables and figured well I'll just spend the extra money and use the EZ RJ45 ends because it will save time. So my wife and I sat for an entire weekend terminating. We also tested all connections and they worked. Then when it came to installing the baluns nothing worked. I took pre-terminated cables and the baluns worked so I knew it was a termination issue. I tried mono-price cat-6 ends and ideal cat-6 2-piece ends and had only limited success. Lastly I tried ideal cat-5 ends from home depot and everything worked perfectly. Turns out the contacts in many baluns do not seat properly into the channels on cat-6 ends. SNAP AV all around is good stuff!
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post #424 of 491
8/22/12 at 7:58am
Those table cart things look pretty darn good! eek.gif
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post #425 of 491
8/22/12 at 3:32pm
Thanks Britton, et al. for the information on the Cat6 cable. I've been eyeing the Atlona units, and since that's what you used with success, I figured you would be the man to ask.

Now that I know I'm safe to use solid, unshielded, I'm going to go with the Cat6 offering from Black Box. I've never used their products before, but it looks like decent stuff without breaking the bank.
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post #426 of 491
8/22/12 at 5:09pm
First, Thank you for sharing. I am two weeks away from prewire on our new home in Texas and your post has helped immensely. Would you choose Marantz, Denon, or Pioneer Elite SC-65? Thanks again?
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post #427 of 491
8/22/12 at 5:59pm
Integra would be my top choice then denon or marantz as second
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post #428 of 491
8/22/12 at 6:48pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mspears02 View Post

First, Thank you for sharing. I am two weeks away from prewire on our new home in Texas and your post has helped immensely. Would you choose Marantz, Denon, or Pioneer Elite SC-65? Thanks again?

Marantz/ Denon are one in the same for the most part. I have heard that Marantz may use better OP-AMP chips or perhaps chips with even order distortion to give a warmer sound than Denon, but I cannot confirm this. Denon and Marantz are the best for features and HDMI in my opinion, but the amps in Denon and Marantz sound horrible unless you get into the flagship products 5308 or higher. All denon/ marantz products integrate well with control systems and have very robust discrete remote codes.

Pioneer and Yamaha sound much better than Denon/ Marantz at most price points. Yamaha typically uses large heavy power supplies, and older more inefficient class AB amps in their higher end products. There is a lot of heat produced, but the large power supplies and capacitors really make a difference with bass. I would classify Yamaha as one of the warmer sounding receivers if that exists. Pioneer, using digital amplification is very efficient, but also kind of sterile. It sounds incredible, but somehow lacks the soul of a big inefficient heat spewing amp. I think for someone theater driven, Pioneer. Music Driven, Yamaha. I have seen some issues with Pioneer and control systems, they don't play nicely together. On the other hand.. HDMI length and balun issues exist with Yamaha.

Better yet, but a mid-line denon or marantz and an emotiva AMP. That way when the receiver is old you can toss it and you still have a great amp... That is the best thing to do.

As for Integra, I like what they make. They are the same company as Onkyo... A bit higher priced, but maybe the perfect combination of all of the strengths I listed for the other brands. The dealer network is limited so unless you buy secondhand you will likely pay retail or close to it. If you are going to buy separates, Integra offer the first price point where things get serious, much better than the marantz stack I have. If you are going to buy one of their receivers, then I would just buy a denon/ marantz and an emotiva amp..

These are just my opinions, hope this helps.
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post #429 of 491
8/22/12 at 6:50pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NickTheGreat View Post

Those table cart things look pretty darn good! eek.gif

Thanks I am not a word worker yet, but need to get there for the construction of the theater.
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post #430 of 491
8/23/12 at 11:02am
Do you have plans for those benches ? I could use several of these in my new house.
Quote:
Originally Posted by BrittonYoder View Post

My wife and I built some very heavy duty work benches/ table saw feed tables this weekend. I still need to build two more, add ply to the bottom shelf and paint them dark gray. This is the next step in getting ready for the theater build.

These are high strength shelves that need to be painted and mounted.

Half of a glue lam left over from nearby construction. This and a bunch of 2x12's will be installed in attic for cat-walks. Also part of getting ready for theater.
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post #431 of 491
8/23/12 at 12:48pm
eek.gifeek.gifmad.gifeek.gifeek.gifeek.gif


i like the benches
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post #432 of 491
8/23/12 at 8:44pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks, built one too many if someone wants to come to Dallas and get it. cool.gif

I've been working on additional control solutions for our bathroom. I probably listen to the most music while getting ready in the morning. Card Access, a control4 partner offers this product which is water resistant. I purchased on and its pretty cool so far. This video is cheesy, but will give you an idea of the product.
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post #433 of 491
8/24/12 at 7:15am
This whole thread is greatness. We just sold our last house, and are building another one in McKinney, not too far from you (Settlement at Craig Ranch). I'll be looking into a Control4 solution in the future. I wanted to get to it now, but, the wife isn't all about hiring someone and paying the $25k for it now. She'd rather upgrade the granite, if you know what I mean.

But, I'm still planning on running my network cable's now though (builder has said I could to this), as well as my speaker runs.

Since you are right up the street, you are more than welcome to come assist and let me use your expertise!

But seriously, great setup, and it's truly inspiring.
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post #434 of 491
8/24/12 at 12:55pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mspross View Post

This whole thread is greatness. We just sold our last house, and are building another one in McKinney, not too far from you (Settlement at Craig Ranch). I'll be looking into a Control4 solution in the future. I wanted to get to it now, but, the wife isn't all about hiring someone and paying the $25k for it now. She'd rather upgrade the granite, if you know what I mean.
But, I'm still planning on running my network cable's now though (builder has said I could to this), as well as my speaker runs.
Since you are right up the street, you are more than welcome to come assist and let me use your expertise!
But seriously, great setup, and it's truly inspiring.

Pretty cool to see someone else building in McKinney. Would be more than happy to take an hour or two and sit down with you to go over your plans and wire drops. Also discuss other items I would do while in frame as it relates to AV. PM me if you're interested.
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post #435 of 491
8/24/12 at 5:57pm
At the risk of being redundant, I have to echo the praise for your set up. Just amazing.

Are you a contractor? I would be very interested in speaking with you in person at some point. We just now sold our house and will be building a new one starting in december or January here in Keller. Though your project is outside of my scope, I'm a big fan of Control4 and would like to implement a portion of what you've done. I have a very general knowledge of wiring and home theater design. It would be great to get some advice and maybe even a quote after the framing is in.

Again, your home is incredible.
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post #436 of 491
8/24/12 at 7:04pm
What iPad app is that that you are using/?

House looks awesome by the way!
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post #437 of 491
8/24/12 at 8:15pm
Britton,

This may have been covered in previous posts but here goes... First I love the clean theater you are modeling yours after. We had a builder create a purpose built theater last year when we did a major remodel. The one thing you must do, in my opinion, is to build your room with double walls with some form of damping. I chose green glue sandwiched between two layers of 5/8" sheet rock on each room side of the double walls . This is my second post on AVS and both about the Green glue I used. I have nothing to to with the Green Glue company but I can vouch for the fact that my movie room is extremely quiet. Not completely silent at reference level but most of that is coming through the single door into the room. I used two layers of mass loaded vinyl on the floor (along with double layers of plywood with green glue in between for the subfloor) and the movie has to be extremely loud for sound to penetrate through the floor down to the kitchen.

Anyway .. very nice project and can't wait to see how it turns out.
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post #438 of 491
8/25/12 at 6:51am
Britton,

I am building in Lantana right now and I have some decisions to make regarding wiring. The builder won't let me use anyone but his guy who I am not sure knows more than I do about the whole thing. If you like Texas raised Certified Angus I could make up for your time with some of it we produce. I am not going to approach anything close to the complexity of your setup but want to make sure I am "future proofing" with the wiring. Email me if you are interested.
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post #439 of 491
8/25/12 at 10:42am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lochness View Post

At the risk of being redundant, I have to echo the praise for your set up. Just amazing.
Are you a contractor? I would be very interested in speaking with you in person at some point. We just now sold our house and will be building a new one starting in december or January here in Keller. Though your project is outside of my scope, I'm a big fan of Control4 and would like to implement a portion of what you've done. I have a very general knowledge of wiring and home theater design. It would be great to get some advice and maybe even a quote after the framing is in.
Again, your home is incredible.

I am not a contractor. When I was studying, I worked doing design/ consulting/ sales in the AV industry and before that I did a lot of construction work during the first years of school and throughout much of high school. I got a degree in MIS, which gave me a lot of background with programming. I ended up coming out of school with the intention of working in IT, but wound up choosing to work with a large mechanical construction as a project manager.

I wouldn't mind helping with the pre-wire design. They go pretty quick. For a while I have tossed around the idea of creating a website where people could go for online consulting which would result in a pre-wire plan, statements of functionality by room, equipment location wiring diagram, equipment list and the methods to obtain the equipment (I have a lot of industry contacts still and seem to be able to get things for people for less than they can get elsewhere). Lastly, it would be possible to pre-program the system based on equipment, hook-up diagram, ect..... I probably don't have time to ever accomplish anything like this, but I don't mind helping people out with odds and ends... The thing is that if you know what you are doing a good pre-wire design can be accomplished pretty quickly if the person doing it knows what questions to ask. I like the steak offer, also home depot gift cards are also helpful, but in the end I don't mind just helping people out it is a really fun process.
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post #440 of 491
8/25/12 at 10:43am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mspears02 View Post

Britton,
I am building in Lantana right now and I have some decisions to make regarding wiring. The builder won't let me use anyone but his guy who I am not sure knows more than I do about the whole thing. If you like Texas raised Certified Angus I could make up for your time with some of it we produce. I am not going to approach anything close to the complexity of your setup but want to make sure I am "future proofing" with the wiring. Email me if you are interested.

I PMd you not sure what your email is.
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post #441 of 491
8/27/12 at 7:07am
I say all us locals get together to pick Britton's brain and check out his house... haha. smile.gif
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post #442 of 491
9/16/12 at 3:45am
Britton,

Absolutely Stunning build. Your attention to detail is great. You answered so many questions I have before I even knew I should be asking them.

I know there is a lot on your plate, but did you ever sit down and create a visio diagram of your system? It would be great to see a visual representation of what you ran, where, and for what.

Also. Which Alarm system did you end up going with?


Thanks Again
Dallas Knox
Edited by DallasKnox - 9/16/12 at 6:19am
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post #443 of 491
9/25/12 at 1:33pm
hey i got a quick question on the 400 disc ES. Is there any additional software you are running to support it or is this part of the Sony ES's hefty price tag?
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post #444 of 491
9/30/12 at 11:07pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ckellyusa View Post

I say all us locals get together to pick Britton's brain and check out his house... haha. smile.gif

Let's Do It!
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post #445 of 491
9/30/12 at 11:12pm
Thread Starter 
I haven't been on here much lately, but I have been making progress on the house and we had a major incident at work that pretty much killed any free time I would have had for the better part of a month.

Updates:
We made some more progress in the garage, its beginning to look like a tool and car show room.
Finished painting master suite. It rained all weekend here and it took just as long to paint the bathroom.
I have done a lot of work in the backyard. We ran 500+ft of pipe for sprinklers, drip lines, fire-pit, gas grill, electrical, waterfall, drainage ect....
I have also started the cat-walks in the attic.


I am going to post a few pictures tonight and will try for a few more tomorrow.
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post #446 of 491
9/30/12 at 11:14pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by DallasKnox View Post

Britton,
Absolutely Stunning build. Your attention to detail is great. You answered so many questions I have before I even knew I should be asking them.
I know there is a lot on your plate, but did you ever sit down and create a visio diagram of your system? It would be great to see a visual representation of what you ran, where, and for what.
Also. Which Alarm system did you end up going with?
Thanks Again
Dallas Knox

No visio diagram yet. It would take an entire weekend to get done, but I def want to do it at some point. Trying to get everything done. I have a GE concord system that came with my house now, but plan to upgrade to the ELK M1 Gold. You can do some pretty cool stuff with the Elk.
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post #447 of 491
9/30/12 at 11:16pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mattcandraw View Post

hey i got a quick question on the 400 disc ES. Is there any additional software you are running to support it or is this part of the Sony ES's hefty price tag?

The software I am running is via control4. The ES adds two way communication that lets the disc changer ID the disc and communicate the title and info to a third party control system. The non-es model uses the sony interface on the TV screen only.
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post #448 of 491
9/30/12 at 11:17pm
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I ran a grid of trenches, figured it was the best way. This area will have a patio and pergola soon.
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post #449 of 491
9/30/12 at 11:18pm
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Compacted gravel base. Patio will be 15x25'.
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post #450 of 491
9/30/12 at 11:20pm
Thread Starter 
You can't laugh at me, I threw this image together in about five minutes. The bed will be more of a hanging bench, but I was using that object for its scale.


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