[Avatar26]

After 4 years in our house, my wife and I are finally stretched for space and decided to finish our basement. With twin 2 year olds, space got tight quick!


The space is very open, but has some quirks. I have already decided that I am going to build in office in a small area behind the stairs so I can free up a bedroom upstairs for guests. We also had the bathroom plumbing stubbed in during initial construction, so the placement of the bathroom/closet is also a given. That leaves a very large area intended for a family room/home theater area/play area. I am struggling with the layout, best equipment setup for the area, and speaker placement due to the support posts.


Anyone have ideas before we start framing in the walls? Suggestions? I am all ears, have never taken on a project this big before. BTW, budget is not a factor at this point...


Blank Layout:



Layout with LCD and built in cabinets (not sure I want to go this route yet):

 

[Avatar26]

UPDATE:



Came up with another layout that may suit us better. This allows for standard speakers to be hidden in the wall behind acoustically transparent cloth. Also allows for a projector screen to be hidden away in a soffit in front of the LCD.


Need some thoughts, any challenges or benefits with this? I know what I like from a picture/sound quality perspective, but am not an expert...

 

[stack1234]

just curious, what software did you use to create those layout plans?

 

[Avatar26]

Punch Home and Landscape Suite, works well for rough drawings and 3D representation. Hasn't been easy to work with soffits and the like, though.

I am not a CAD expert by any stretch, so creating the custom cabinetry and speaker enclosures is not on my to do list...


For reference, I have not decided on specific equipment for this build yet.

Hoping to use existing equipment initially since a significant portion of the budget is going towards construction, but want flexibility for future upgrades.

Equipment I plan to use initially is:


2 x Polk RT600i (L/R)

1 x Polk CD245i (center)

2 x Polk RT25i (surrounds)

Sony KDL46V5100 LCD TV

Sony BDP-S350 BluRay Player

TiVo HD

Still need to purchase 2 x 10" subs (need to purchase to replace single Polk PSW450) and a new AV receiver (looking at Denon CI series).


Image below is a rough 3D representation of the HT area, but planning to add a soffit in front of the HT bump out for the PJ screen and also plan to build in the cabinet below the screen or frame it in and drywall/paint it.



Counting on the experts here to poke holes in my plans before we go beyond the point of no return. While this isn't a dedicated theater area, want to create a "wow" experience once we install the PJ and screen. LCD will be used intially and then only for TV viewing during the day/with kids.

 

[BeerParty]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Avatar26 /forum/post/18183719


Image below is a rough 3D representation of the HT area...

You need to make the picture smaller so it will fit on a standard sized screen - at that size it's impossible to read your post.

 

[Avatar26]



Quote:
Originally Posted by BeerParty /forum/post/18191580


You need to make the picture smaller so it will fit on a standard sized screen - at that size it's impossible to read your post.

Done. Now can we get some constructive feedback on the project please?

 

[imjay]

I'm am guilty of being a "broken record" re the theater thing but you appear to have space to implement a true "theater" experience instead of having to settle for watching television.


We have a 60in HDTV but it's just a little television in the scheme of Theater in the Home so we also have a projector and screen and when we dim the lights and light up the Theater sized screen we know we are having the WOW of a theater experience.


Even if you have to project across just the 13 ft. width of the room you can still achieve a near 120 inch diagonal movie image and just take our word that you will never regret having a Home Theater for movies instead of a television.

Best of Luck

 

[jpdeuce]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Avatar26 /forum/post/18191863


Done. Now can we get some constructive feedback on the project please?

Better yet, use the direct link from imageshack in the insert image tool instead of the one you are using, so that the big picture shows up here. With so many threads to read through and differences in everyone's project, if you want constructive feedback, and a lot of it, it will help to make it easier for people to take it in quickly.


For instance (except they need to be edited for about 7-800pix width):

 

[Avatar26]



Quote:
Originally Posted by imjay /forum/post/18193465


I'm am guilty of being a "broken record" re the theater thing but you appear to have space to implement a true "theater" experience instead of having to settle for watching television.


We have a 60in HDTV but it's just a little television in the scheme of Theater in the Home so we also have a projector and screen and when we dim the lights and light up the Theater sized screen we know we are having the WOW of a theater experience.


Even if you have to project across just the 13 ft. width of the room you can still achieve a near 120 inch diagonal movie image and just take our word that you will never regret having a Home Theater for movies instead of a television.

Best of Luck

If it weren't for my 2 year old twin boys, I would say absolutely. Unfortunately, we need the space to be versatile and mostly destruction-proof... I do, however, have the Office area slated for a future small theater room. First things first, need to finish the main family room. Here are some new screenshots of the ideas as they evolve...

 

[jpdeuce]

As for the constructive feedback, I think you are orienting the room the wrong way. In my opinion, you aren't using the dimensions appropriately. I would be putting the screen on the left wall and utilizing the width of that room to get a couple rows of seating, or building something behind the seating to complement the area...for instance kind of play area for the kids to hang out while something is on the screen. Otherwise, I think you are going to have a lot of wasted space on the sides.

 

[Avatar26]

This past week, we made a ton of progress on our project.

Settled on our paint colors, most of the flooring, wood stains, cabinet designs finalized... Walkthrough with the subs is tomorrow, and then we go full speed ahead!


We have made some compromises on the home theater side of the project due to our young children and the need for as much "usable" space as possible. The upside: my wife is warming to the idea of a projector. I can always rip up the office later and build a small dedicated theater in that room.

That said, the layout is not bad and the equipment upgrades will be a welcome change. Planning on replacements below:


Harman Kardon AVR 146 ---> Denon 2310CI or Marantz 6004 (yes, I know about the POD)

Polk PSW202 ----> 2x Martin Logan Dynamo 10"

2x Polk RT25i surrounds ----> 2x DCM TP2525LCR for surrounds


"Before" pics coming in the next 24 hours now that things are cleaned and moved. I'll do my best to chart progress throughout the project!

So excited about a new, larger HT area I can already taste the popcorn that will accompany my first run after construction is done. Any ideas on best movie to watch first in the new setup?


Updated renderings below:

 

[BeerParty]

Why is the viewing area in the middle of the space? Like jpdeuce said, it seems like an odd way to break up the room. Do you have plans for the sides already? If not, could you try drawing up the theater moved to the right (up against the stairs) so the space to the left could be left open for the kids? Maybe even install a railing between the theater area and that space to make "two" rooms?

 

[Avatar26]

Short answer? WAF. I couldn't sell that layout to the wife, it was my first proposal.

Part of her reasoning is seating. She refuses to have risersin the "family" room and the space would be too narrow for more than a love seat and a chair (sofas will not fit through the door). It also would mean that anyone going to the office would have to walk past the screen or all the way around the basement.


I also attempted the wall with the electricalnpanep and window to no avail.

Upside is, the office would make a nice cozy 4 seat theater sometime down the road.

Spending virtually noting on the office so I can tear it down later and build a small theater room (could comfortably do a 100-110" screen there with 4 theater seats).

 

[BeerParty]

Actually, I was not talking about using the room on the far right in the picture, I was talking about using the space immediately to the left of the stairs. Instead of having the room centered in the large space, shift it to the right about 4 feet so the "leftover space" is all to the left (in the picture) of the seating area.


This would get the theater space further away from the windows and leave a large space over there for other uses. The downside is you would have to walk around the seating when you came down the stairs if you wanted to get to the bathroom and unfinished area.

 

[Avatar26]

So you are saying flip the screen to the opposite wall?

Our concern there was that natural light would be more prevalent in the screen area.


We did our walkthrough last night and now m wife is thinking about how nice it would be to convert the office space into a very cozy theater with 4-5 seats.

Again, with WAF a major consideration, the screen area will have to be on the wall it was placed on in the acreenshots above.


Framing started this morning, will post some pics soon...

Starting to think the cozy little dedicated theater in the "office" space will be a go as a DIY project in the near future, which I would love.

 

[Avatar26]

Before pics here:
http://img24.imageshack.us/slideshow...=img0950pt.jpg


Framing will be done tomorrow, more pics coming later this week as we begin wiring etc...

 

[BeerParty]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Avatar26 /forum/post/18233675


So you are saying flip the screen to the opposite wall?

No, what I was suggesting is to take your current layout, as is, and just shift the screen and the couches to the right. If you look at your floor plan, there is about 6 feet of space between the couch on the right and the stairs. Move your screen and your couches to the right (keeping your orientation).

 

[hanesian]

It's entirely your call, but if you really want more feedback try posting full size photos so all people need to do is look. It's not easy to see the little thumbs, and you lose lots of us if you don't make it easy to see what you're doing, right here - without bouncing to another site. With the thousands and thousands of posts on this forum every day, that's just the reality. Just a friendly suggestion.


Good luck!

 

[Avatar26]

Framing is 95% complete, here are some pics:


New home for the our Sony LCD and (hopefully) soon a projector screen.



Long view of the new family room.



Tomorrow is a big day, plumbing and tricky electrical work will be done as well as the HVAC changes. Then I get to pull wires! Learning a lot from the folks who are expediting this project, and I am now firmly convinced that the office space in the basement will soon become a DIY theater project (small one, 4 seats). The more I learn, the more fun it looks like to do a DIY project.

 

[Avatar26]

Ok, we are running behind schedule (shocking...).

Most of the plumbing, electrical, and A/V work is done for now. A few minor adjustments needed tomorrow, but no big deal.

HVAC folks are coming tomorrow as well. Things are really starting to take shape now and I have to start seriously considering what equipment I will purchase to drive my shiny new multi-purpose room...


Future wine/snack bar - plumbing is in! Just a little cement and then it will be time to tile in preparation for the arrival of the bar.

A few pictures of the proscenium as it continues to take shape. You can see, about 75% of the wiring has been pulled already and we have tubing in place for more down the road. There is also PVC running over the proscenium to the future site of a projector.