Hawaii Home Theater Construction - Page 7

Thanks Ted. I'll make sure to get it dry. It's bad enough when new, i cant imagine it being any less effective.
On a different note, do you have any links to doors that you've made sound proof? I saw Bigmouth's work on a door that referenced you in the same thread. Basically, looking for ideas to overcome the weak link in that wall... the door.

Jim,
Thanks for the encouragement. Once I get to the next step I'll be in the deep end of the pool. I'm still trying to figure out how I'm going to do the finish work. You've set the bar pretty darn high.
Take care all.

The work on the walls continues. I thought this was a pretty cool photo of the doorway entering the theater for anyone thinking of noise control for their first theater. I'd love to make them even more thick but I have to say enough is enough at some point....



Oh, and TMcG...thanks for checking out the theater. I agree with you, without doing a lot of the work yourself.... you just wouldn't appreciate everything as much at the end of the day.
Edited by psychdoc - 12/17/12 at 10:49pm

Some updates.... Some pics of the family....... The only person missing was my wonderful little boy who was at school;



The wife and our dog Nui ("Big" in Hawaiian) sitting on the supplies that were just moved to the other side of the room


Myself with Nui and my little girl



Some pics of the room with all three layers and Green Glue on all the vertical walls




The ceiling starts to go up. Putting MDF on the ceiling is very time consuming (and heavy) A helpful reminder for anyone wanting to use 4'x8' sheets of MDF: they are not 4'x8'!!! Just like "2x4's"... they are slightly off. In this case it's just beyond an inch longer in length (97"x48")

If you look closely, there is a back edge of regular plywood. In that area within a future soffit will hang some very heavy items so we went with a 2' wide strip of plywood there
Edited by psychdoc - 12/20/12 at 9:11pm

Hi all,

Hi BllDo... yes, that tip about Fastenal was great. It was very expensive (145 bucks for 1000 screws) but at least the ceiling is safe from falling down. And yes, I will be very glad when this portion is done. After each 4x8 panel I need to take a 5 minute break. Here is another pic of the MDF creep across the ceiling:


Thanks for the concern Big...TMcG is correct regarding the plans and when the room is finished it will pass inspection. Lastly, TMcG... you are correct, I will be using a soffit along all the edges of the room which should also help with the sound. It's all good.

Here is an update photo of the MDF ceiling. It’s almost finished. A small section behind the screen and the left hand far corner still needs to be completed. My dad has had the unenviable position of helping lift all this MDF to the ceiling. Drilling a million screws into the ceiling and into the Hat Channel has not been fun at all. Still, I’m glad it’s turning out so well. Moving on to the drywall and Green Glue soon.

Update...
The holidays are slowing me down significantly. The hardest part of the walls and ceilings for me was the MDF. It's heavy and unforgiving. Thankfully the walls are done and the MDF on the ceiling is now complete. I still have 2.67 buckets of Green Glue reserved for the ceiling drywall. Here are some quick pics:

The far left corner is done


The true brains of the operation. Don't tell his momma I let him hold the drill for the photo You can also see the space behind the screen that will be necessary for the 80" TV for the wall


Photo of the ceiling again

Green Glue (three tubes per 4x8) is going on the final layer of the ceiling.


I put up 12 sheets today. Now that the holidays are over and my kids' b-day parties are about over hopefully I can get back in there and get going.

That's what happens when you think 5 screws will hold the thing jussssst loooong enough to screw in portions covered by the lift..er, nope! CRRAAAAASH! At least the drywall lift protected me from the thing. If you look closely, you can see lots of GG wasted. Learning point: all four corners must be screwed in before lowering the lift.
Edited by psychdoc - 1/21/13 at 12:33pm

Another shot of the work completed. The soffit will be upcoming on the list...

Thanks Chrapladm! Work is moving forward bit by bit. As always, I'll add photos as I get something worthy of posting. On a side note, I've been watching movies and setting up speakers in stereo mode. Even though it's not a full speaker system it's played at loud levels when used. The room isn't done but, I must say, I'm pretty happy with the level of noise control. One concerning item that was unintended was the creation of a black hole on that side of the house. Usually when you hear an unusual noise in the house you keep on listening to it and it turns out to be the wind, the dog, or something like that. Now, you hear nothing.....ever It's a bit unnerving to hear nothing at all as I move throughout the second floor then I round the corner and suddenly all the noise from the first floor hits you in the face. It was a lot of work but this stuff really works!!!!!!! Will it stop all the noise when all 11.4 speakers are rockn'? Nope! But, I'll be able to listen late at night at a reasonable level and not hear the dreaded movie killing, buzz kill phrase "TURN IT DOWN" from the wife. Consider this completed mission a success! Now on to making this thing look pretty and sound good!

I've been taping and applying lots of joint compound then sanding. Repeat the cycle. I've been doing this mostly to make a really flat surface as almost all of it will be covered by the finished wood layer or acoustic treatments. You can see the sanded seams in next few photos. Question: If I raise the surface of the finished wood using 2x4's mounted on the wall in order to have the wall flush with the acoustic treatments will the hollow air pockets under the finished wood actually create a triple leaf effect?

The next item is the soffit. As usual, this will be my first attempt at something like this. Everything I've done before was a first so if this thing turns out well at the end then ANYONE can do it. The blue lines show the boundaries that I'll mount 2x4s against.


Most of the tools I've been using are borrowed and created. No one in Hawaii has space for a workshop unlike some of the threads I've seen here. I'm creating a nice work bench I can use to cut all the 4x8 finished wood pieces. Low budget but it should work.


Lumber for the soffit. I'm slowly buying the materials and I'll need a bunch of things soon (hopefully).


Here is the wood I was thinking of using although I have two concerns. It is quarter sawn Sapele. It is beautiful! As usual there are potential drawbacks with Sapele that include 1) it might be too busy on a large scale and 2) it is a medium shade which might be too light for a home theater. Here is a pic I took when visiting a local lumber store. Any thoughts from people out there that might have worked with it or been in a similar situation regarding their wood being too busy or bright for a home theater?


Here is a pic of the room filled with a bunch of equipment. One step forward, two steps back.

Thanks guys for the feedback. I had to chuckle when design1 suggested I could stain it darker. I must be getting tired... that makes so much sense and is obvious. They have finished and unfinished versions.... I have no idea why I was thinking of using just their finished versions. Sometimes common sense isn't common (especially late at night). Thanks design1. With that, I'll need to figure out how to stain a large project consistently and evenly although I think I've heard that a pro can come in and spray it on...

The soffit around the front and side walls will be 34" W x 11" H limited largely by the entry door. It will have a lower lip that sticks out another 4" on the bottom that will have a vertical trim piece attached. Behind that trim piece I plan to have LED rope lighting that rings the inner perimeter of the room. Within that central area I currently hope to place a FOSI Starfield that will be 12' wide and about 17' 11" long. The back wall soffit will be slightly larger than the other three walls as it will include the projector, Cineslide with ISCO lens as well as the AC components.

Any other opinions regarding Sapele, especially from anyone familiar with it or the possibility of a triple leaf effect if I pull the finished wall inwards in order to make it flush with the acoustic treatments would be more than welcomed.... Have a great day all.
Edited by psychdoc - 3/4/13 at 12:07pm

The soffit starts to take shape...

More supplies coming in. Here is my stack of OC 703

Lots of details. Fun for me but hopefully it helps the new guy out there thinking of doing this with no experience at all (like me).

Thanks chrapladm.... sometimes I think I'm the only one looking at this stuff with any real interest.... which would actually be ok as it's a lot of fun for me to see the progress. I really have never done anything like this ever before. Up until now, the greatest woodworking accomplishment I've ever had was making a wooden sign with my name on it in 8th grade wood shop. Everything I'm doing I need to read about and ask lots of questions... mostly to my retired dad who really can do this stuff at a pro level- makes me think this sort of natural skill must skip a generation. We'll see what it looks like when it's all done, it's way too early to think it will turn out well but I'm hopeful. The slow pace is killing me though.....