Twinseltown Theater - Page 8

Good point on the nailing. He's only 3, and doesn't have the strength to actually nail one in, but I can let him hold the hammer with me. As a father, I do hope that most of what we're doing is creating memories.

I, too, use AutoCad and Photoshop for many hours a day. Sketchup was extremely impressive! Enough so that I'm going to try it out for professional use. We could start implimenting perspectives of our projects. I'm terrible at doing the "structure" of a perspective, but this would lay out the bones for me! I'm thinking 2 hours is sketchup could save me 10 hours with rulers, etc. Definetely try it out sooner rather than later.

Not much happened in the room the last two days. I put a temporary top on the bar. I figure its going to make a fine workbench over the build.

We're actually entertaining in the room over the weekend, so I'm cleaning up and putting table clothes over things.

I've contacted seymourav, and got a quote on my screen. I'm looking at doing material only, and a DIY frame. They were priced reasonably, and are mailing a sample to me for testing.

Once I approve of the sample, I will start designing and constructing my screen wall. I'm excited about some of the new possibilities that acoustically transparency will provide for the design and aesthetics.

Satilliteguy, I just finished reading your thread. You've had a lot of demo to do that I didn't have. So you have a good reason. Looking good! Do you have any "inspiration" photos, or sketches of what you think the final product might look like? I'll stay posted on your thread.

Since my room is in operation during the build () I had to move all the equipment to the rear of the room yesterday. Preparing for finishing out the screen wall now. With that, the sub moved to the back wall as well. It sounds much better in that location. I can actually tell that I have a sub again. When it was on that concrete floor, it just disappeared.

I'm thinking of doing the false screen wall 24" out. In researching various speaker and subwoofer depths, it seems that 24" will give me room for most any choice I make. What depth have you guys all allowed for?

Picked up some conduit yesterday as well. One run from equipment to the front wall in 2" Carlon and a run from equipment to projector in 2" Carlon.

Dan, glad to hear you are happy with seymourav. My sample's not here yet. Hope it is by the weekend. Does it make sense to buy the fabric cut on an angle even if my current projector doesn't show a moire pattern? I think it does. Sort of future proofing?

Was able to spend about 4 hours in the room today. Here's a shot of the entry steps completed with the riser boards in place. I used 1/4" OSB to bend the curve. One final touch will be to put a bullnose board across the top riser.



I also got my electrical finished in the screen wall. Three general purpose outlets and one dedicated subwoofer outlet. Notice, I didn't run any speaker lines. With the false wall setup, I'm assuming everything can be run between walls.

I then went to work on the sheetrock, and got most of that done. Here's the screenwall as of this evening.



Question: If the sheetrock is being covered with insulation on the bottom and fabric up top, does the tape and mudding have to look pretty? I'm thinking I may do it myself, which will be extremely amatuer, but doesn't that work? If for some reason you guys say it needs to be pretty, I'll have to hire someone in.

Come on guys...show me the love. I've been working hard!

Next project: Front stage

Thanks BIG! Finally something I can take the easy way out on.

Thanks for the input oman and ryan. I haven't started pricing GOM fabrics yet. Have no idea? It may be cheaper to higher a drywall crew and paint than to get 100% material? Either way, I'll have GOM up to the top of acoustic treatment. But I do like a painted approach for soffits/columns and upper third of walls....hmmm.

Watched a movie last night with the kids. And I'll say this again, the riser and new sub placement have had a profound impace on the sound! WOW! I still think I'm headed to dual subs, but at least now you don't wonder if it's on or not!

So, thinking out loud here...30' room going up to 4' height for acoustic insulation, equels....120sf times 2 walls, 240sf and ten half that again for the back wall...so real rough number would be 360sf or 360 dollars. Double that for material up to the soffit.

Either way, doesn't sound like budget would be the driving factor here.

Like I said, thinking out loud.

Thanks BIG!

Good point Dan. I just measured, and I've got 76" between columns...

That's a 30% wastage going horizontal!

My wife is handy on the sewing maching, so seams won't be a problem for us. But I can't think of a way to do them that's not an eye sore...

Of course, 30% would be roughly another $100, which is probably worth it to not have seams.

You want to do things the right way, but all of these little decisions make a big difference in the bottom line, don't they.

I also need to thoroughly research why I need GOM. I'm thinking it must be fire code?

Dan, next time we see each other, I'm also ready to buy that Linacoustic off of you if you still want to sell it. How much did you have? I need about 50 liner feet (assuming 4' roll).

Thanks Dan. I'll take what you have. No rush.

Tonight I marked out the screen on the sheetrock wall and watched a bit of "Seabiscuit" in HDDVD. It is 2.35:1, and I watched it at 144" horizontal. At first, I was a little disappointed in the loss of PQ at that size, but after a half hour, my eyes adjusted to the "softer" image, and the shear size was enjoyable. The size fits the room proportions perfectly. The riser also worked well, as the middle row eye level ends up at 1/3rd screen height. Rear row at bar height will be right at the middle of the screen. It's funny how things fall into place when you plan them out.

I also played some standard DVD and it just didn't work out. Not enough resolution there for the size.

My projector is the Panasonic AE900, so I would think that by any charts or recommendations I'm well beyond its limits at 144". I'm confident, however, that the next projector and the one after that will all improve that I won't have to wait too long for the projector performance to grow into my screen size.

I was tempted to buy materials for the stage construction today, but held off. I'm still toying with the design.

Hey Scott,

We're changing our minds a bit. I like the contrast of paint vs. material, so now the GOM will only go up to the chairail and paint above that. But point taken, I only need to finish the top half of the room. I plan a "quick" tape and mud job for the bottom half though. One layer of drywall.

I tested out my sample of seymourav AT material. Compaired to my current high gain (1.4?) screen, it did take the edge off the bright spots. I imagine that could be compensated with settings somewhat. The fabric texture wasn't a concern at one times screen width.

Update:

Today I got part of the stage constructed. It will have a radial section on the front, but I've only built the rectangular portion so far.

I opted to go with 2x6's so that no riser would be needed. I'm hoping that the stage is actually used by the kids for family "performances", so I wanted to keep as much at one level as possible. Even as is, it won't be much room. The stage will be radial, and 4' at its deepest point.



I also opted for R13 fiberglass instead of sand. Many reasons.



I also installed a small 8,000BTU window unit in the basement. It's been a big help. I didn't think the basement would be too demanding, and my hunch was correct. This little unit is keeping 2000sf at 72 degrees. It makes for more pleasant work environment, and also enables us to put off the purchase of the central unit a few years. I know it's out of order for most builds, but I'm going to put in registers and returns years before the actual unit gets installed.

Another step down the path.

Paul, you don't like my decor? hahaha. It seems to be a common theme here on the forum, but some stick with it a little longer than others.

I finished the stage...well, almost. I got the curved part built now. I kept it simple. It's just one large 18' radius curve, and all at one level. Wanting it to be a usable stage for the kids kept me from doing fancy elevation changes and multiple curves.



I'm happy with it. The spaces work out well. Enough room on stage for a little Romeo or future Eddie Van Halen! And still enough room between the front row seats and stage to allow for kiddies on beanbags.

I've also been chipping away at the sheetrock. The walls are now done. I'll be leaving the ceiling open until I get HVAC run.

Thanks to Dan, I've got a local supplier for Linacoustic and will be doing the front wall soon. Today I'm going to practice mudding the sheetrock on that wall. It'll be covered up, so good practice.

I've been wrestling with an idea. Knowing that my projector budget will always be in the less than $3000 range, I know that I'm pushing the limits with a 12' screen. Even so, I'm considering getting my screen in a 14' size. This will completely overwhelm my current projector (AE900), but doesn't it make sense to plan for the future? How long might it be before a $3000 projector can handle this screen size? I'm guessing 4-5 years?

I would just mask it off to the limits of the projector de jour. Sounds like an easier solution than re-building a screenwall down the road. Or am I underestimating the impact of a 12' screen? I've watched it on the sheetrock at that size and it seemed very comfortable.

Just some ramblings.... would enjoy hearing your input.

tony

Scott, front row eyes are 13' from screenwall. So, I'll have a ratio of 1.1 to 1 if I go 12' horizontal (works nicely). If I went up to 14', I'd be at something close to .9 to 1.

Keep in mind, most viewing can and will be from the second row, which is at something more like 19 or 20'.

I remember not too long ago that 1.5x's screenwidth was recommended. That's changed with improved projectors and 1080p.

I just have to wonder if it might be smarter to build to what the "rules" will be?

On a side note, got a chance to visit a friends theater today and it proved to be a real treat! It was my first time seeing an RS2 in action, and was really impressed.

Scott, I just read a post of yours from this morning, and it reminded me....you do have specific experience in this screen size! I remember asking about this on your thread now. You're at 12' and 13' to front row eyes. Exactly one of my options.

Aside from size, I like the proportions of your screenwall. The screen takes up all but a foot on each side. It gives a nice "full" appearance. I'd have to go 14' on the screen to get that appearance.

Looking forward to your input.

I'm going to use OC703 as bass traps in the two front corners. Am I calculating right that I will get 4 triangles per sheet and at a 1" thickness will need 96 pieces per side for my 8' ceiling? So 24 sheets per side? cha-ching.