Sunflower State Cinema

Updates:  Currently working on shell

2013

April:           Joist muffler completed

March:         Subfloor treated with double drywall and green glue

                   4 20 amp circuits added to basement

February:     Hired new contractors to help on weekends

                   Ordered lots of building materials

2012

November:   Lots of demo

                   Completed decoupling of walls

October:      Soundproofing materials delivered

September:  Flood!!!!!!

                   Wall taken down again

August:       Decision made to contact thesoundproofingcompany and do it right the first time 

July:           JTR Orbit Shifter delivered

                  Wall put up to enclose room

June:          AVS Pro Theater Layout Service from the Erskine Group via Shawn Byrne delivered

 

First dedicated room with a front projector! I am utilizing the room layout service from the Erskine Group and started the process on 3-20-12.  

 

Soundproofing:

Walls

clips and channel on ceiling

clips and channel on rear wall that is connected to stairwell wall.

existing walls were naturally decoupled from the foundation

walls that were built used staggered stud approach

all walls attached to ceiling joists using IB3's

Floor

3/8'' serenity mat

3/4'' plywood

HVAC

joist mufflers for supplies

return muffler to be made

Doors

solid core

Zero International Auto door bottoms (best seals)

Zero International door seals

plan is to add layers of mdf/osb to door with green glue between

 

Lighting

12 cans in soffits inside of shell

rope light around soffit perimeter

step lights

 

Automation

Insteon dimmers for a total of 5 zones

ISY 994i/IR Pro

Harmony 900 RF

 

Dimensions:
Width 15'
Length 19' to rear wall.  There will be a small "projector booth" between the HT room and the storage area behind which will house my AV gear.
Ceilings 7'9"

 

Here is a basic version of the plans from the layout service. My plans are now changed slightly from this layout.  I will be making the length of the room 19' which means the small 3.5'x9' space in the back of the room where the projector is will be closed off making a "projector booth and equipment closet".  Several reasons:  the column in the back part of that space looked funny just hanging out in the middle of nowhere, I wanted to put the projector outside of the room for heat and noise and did not want to couple it to the ceiling bc the kitchen (and soon to be 3 little boys) are directly overhead.  This also allows me to do my AV rack outside the room and not worry about the noise, heat, or light pollution.

 

Click in pictures to enlarge.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Video
Here is a video that will probably help to give a better idea of the space I have to work with.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXnbZ...XLqSZoD5cbKHgo

Picture of the front wall where screen will be.

 

Here is a similar angle after the flood and some demo.

 

 

 

 

Picture from the front of the room looking at the stairwell and the space where the wall will go.

 

Same angle post demo.

 

 

Picture of the back of the room showing entrance to the unfinished storage area where the equipment rack will be.

 

Same angle post demo.

 

 

 

Equipment List:

Projector- JVC RS45
Speakers- Klipsch RF83, RC64,

   -Surounds.  Selling my RS62's and buying Triad in wall Bronze  
Amplifier- Emotiva XPA-5
Receiver- Denon 4311
Sub- JTR Orbit Shifter.  I also have a Rythmik F12SE for use as a balancing sub
Remote- Harmony 900 RF

Screen- 9 ft wide
EN4K if I can swing it.  Would love to have a 4-way manual masking system with panels for a Constant Image Area setup. The 16:9 image will be much larger than it would be with a CIH setup.  

I am ceiling ht limited in this room anyway and there is a support beam and a bit of HVAC duct in the front that drops down about 9'' from the ceiling. This may ruin my hopes of CIA and a taller 16:9 image.  I will do some experimenting with my projector to get the tallest possible image.

Seating-
-Primary row will eventually be 3 Theater Recliners at around 9.5 ft from the screen. I would like to have the second row seat 4-5 people on the riser.  I am leaning towards auditorium type fold down chairs to save on space. 

Sound Treatments-
As prescribed in the avs layout.  I will do Quest Perfsorb at first reflection points.  The rest is DIY panels.  Several 2 inch absorption panels and several diffusion panels.  

Stage-
I am copying the Sunset Cinema stage.  It will be 1 ft tall and approx 5 ft deep.  Filled with sand.  Do what I can to stop the Orbit Shifter from shaking the screen.  

Projector Stand
Would like to avoid a ceiling mount because of little feet in the kitchen above shaking the projector. Planning to build a custom shelf with lots of mass that would be behind the back wall and shine through a piece of glass in the wall. Throw distance would be approx 16'.

Please give me feedback on anything and everything. Thanks for looking.

Edited by jedimastergrant - 4/28/13 at 6:12pm

Petew,

Put another picture on the first post that got missed the first time.

That golden is named Konza after the Konza prairie in the Flint Hills of Kansas. My wife likes to say that he is a Konza Prairie Dog! I have another golden named Zoey and she is my best friend with four legs. I saw in your thread that you also have 2 goldens.

Your theater is looking good and I may do the same technique as your removable masking panels.

I am also considering using MFW-15 drivers in a DIY build. Thinking of 4 dual opposed cabs from ED with the Seaton/Motor City Modified Amplifiers.

I think the weave on the AT screen would bother me. Can you see the weave at 11 feet?

The RS45 does have 3 lens memory settings so I would not have to manual shift.

The bar for the back row would be cool but I don't think I will have the room.



If I do an AT screen I can see myself getting another RF-83 and selling the RC-64.

Carp,

Like I said in the subwoofer thread I will have to take a listen when you get a twin for the SubM. For those in this thread you might be interested to know that I have 8 month old twin boys and one of the reasons for doing a dedicated room was to keep them out of it and the destruction down to a minimum. If anyone has tips please share them with me. I am hoping to put most of the equipment in the unfinished storage area behind the room and try to keep the door to the theater room locked from the outside.

What would be more destructive? Twin boys or twin JTR Orbit Shifters?

I fell in love with the "live" sound a few years back and I think the dynamics of the RF-83's are perfect for home theater use. Also a reasonably priced speaker that is driven to outrageous levels with my Emotiva XPA-5.

I would love more help while I am in the planning stages and anything I can do to elicit more responses.....you guys just name it. More pictures? More video? Better diagrams? More direct questions from me? Cuz I gottem

I was expecting a lot more "Hey stupid! You are doing it wrong. Let me tell you how you should be doing it." Honestly I would like to know if I am making any big mistakes before I go do something soon like put a great big wall up.

Carp, I like that idea. We will have to do that with the Kuro/Def Tech STS's on the main floor. I will also try it with the dedicated HT.....but I'm still locking the dang door!

Case in point. I started reading a book on raising boys. It is titled Wild Things: the art of nurturing boys. The author has many children including twin boys. Here is an excerpt that especially terrifies me every time I look at my beautiful JVC RS-45.

"Parenting my daughter has been a relatively safe and peaceful journey. Her brothers on the other hand, are completely different beasts. I don't remember how many months old they were before they learned to climb out of their cribs; I just remember waking to the sound of a loud thud followed by screaming. I don't remember which of my twins first pulled the blinds off the wall; I just know I've replaced the brackets on several occasions. I've lost count of how many times they've broken the toilet seat by slamming it down or yanking it off the screws. (I kid you not.) One of my boys had been in preschool only for a short time before the school called to say that he had bashed his head open and would likely need stitches.
I've replaced doorknobs, mirrors, cabinet hardware, clocks, lamps, stereos, televisions, picture frames, bath faucets, consoles, refrigerator doors, kitchen appliances, dishes, glassware, bath towels, couches, ottomans, and chairs, and I've had the walls repainted....all before they turned five."

But, in all seriousness I am with you on kids having boundaries instead of baby proofing EVERYTHING and letting them run wild.

Just thought of something. If I end up getting twin Seaton Submersive HP's (and I would blame you for that) I could name the subs Double Trouble (which is what I sometimes call my boys). For that matter I could name the theater Double Trouble. I still have not come up with a name that I think will stick.

I like the idea of using a DTS-10 as a riser as well. I even know someone who is selling 2 of them and I think I can fit them in side by side. I wonder if I could get the horn to integrate well with multiple sealed boxes? Or an Orbit Shifter since it is also a horn if I go that route? I am worried about being able to localize the sound a little bit.

I will look into the monoprice plate.

I am hoping to go to Luke's this weekend. I want to look at his Stewart screen and the sound treatments too.

I had a carpenter come over a few days ago and I showed him some of the projects that I may delegate to him and he is going to come back to me with some quotes. I will need the wall, false wall, masking system, projector shelves, and riser. Possible projects include a soffit with a star ceiling, stage, and columns.

I am getting closer to the sub decision. I think the choices I have it down to will all be very good. The SubM are of course still in the mix.

I want to get started on the wall soon but I also want to make sure I have a cohesive plan in place before we start swinging hammers. And I am getting closer. There are just so many variables and I have a tendency to scrutinize the minutia. So I may need a kick in the A$$.

I would appreciate anyone's feedback on the room layout service that is offered from AVS. Do you think my room would specifically benefit from this service. Keeping in mind that my budget is modest compared to most in this thread. Am I making huge mistakes that can only be corrected with that kind of service?

My plan was to include a door in the wall I will build because the area behind the theater is an unfinished storage area. I would need to make another entrance into that room from another room so I don't think it is worth it. I am planning on putting my AV equipment in that unfinished storage area. There are unused 15 amp and 20 amp lines in there just begging for amplifiers.

I could use some help in deciding if I should put the wall flush with the partial wall already built or put it back another foot into the kids play area to create a little more space for seating. Any acoustical problems there with the wall being staggered that way? It might mean the difference between fitting 3 vs 4 chairs in the primary seating area and 4 vs 5 in the back row that will probably be right up against the wall and be comprised of narrow theater folding seats.

JPA,

I took your advice and updated my first post with a hand drawing. You are right the sketch ups were just confusing.

I just updated my drawing to show where the HVAC ducts are located. The front duct is 6.5 ft from the front wall and my false wall might be built right in front of the can lights which are 38" from the front wall.

I was planning to either paint the duct flat black just as you suggested or possibly even cover it in black velvet. I am thinking about putting in a soffit or large trim work around the area in between the 2 ducts and place black lights in there to illuminate a potential painted star ceiling. I really like the work done by Night Sky Murals.

If I did not state it earlier I will fix it. The ceiling ht is 7 ft 9 in.

I will ask about moving the vent. That would also give me a shot at maybe decreasing some of the noise created by the ducts.

I am leaning toward an AT screen and I will definitely get samples just as you suggested to check for weave or microperf. I am also extremely sensitive to sparkles and even the sheen present on quite a few screens. I basically have zero tolerance for it. I wish it wasn't so but it is just impossibly distracting for me.

I just started the layout service with the Erskine Group so now everything is subject to change.

I think you are right about the proposed door location needing to be treated. Can't I just place treatments on the door itself if a treatment needs to go there? Concerns that involve construction of walls etc are not included in this service so I will have to do the best I can. The door kinda needs to go there if I want to put 3-4 seats in the primary row and have enough space to go through the door without running right into the seats.

I will consider removing the doors in the back. My first plan was to put the AV rack under the stairwell just as you suggested. If not then I will have to do major rattle control and this may be frustrating. If I eliminate the doors then I will have to make another entrance to the storage area from another room and it all just adds up but we will see how things turn out.

As far as rear absorption/diffusion is concerned I was thinking about putting built in shelving in the back and I could put treatments on that. On the other hand I have become interested in building a small 2 person bar back there and moving my projector location to underneath the stairwell after cutting out a place for it to peek through.

The image from the projector will get through but what might get tight is the height of the people sitting on the riser in the back of the room especially when viewing 16:9 content. I will experiment.

Carpenter coming today to frame wall that will close off HT. Planning to do a staggered stud wall flush with the existing wall. Will plan for an exterior door with a threshold and weather stripping for some sound proofing. Will leave the HT side without drywall for now to run conduit and possibly electrical.

What else should I consider?

Dang. Keep'n me honest. Here ya go!

The space sure feels different with the wall in place.



We left the HT side without drywall for now just in case we can't fish line through the other side like we hope.

I am planning on an exterior solid door with weatherstripping and threshold for sound. Or maybe an older solid antique door that we can modify with weatherstripping and threshold. Any suggestions?