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Update 01/02/18: NEW HOUSE! NEW CHALLENGES! Back to the old setup for now, but with renovations on the horizon, it can only get better from here...
See this post for what happened!
Update 05/06/17: Not really a budget build anymore...
Presenting the all newly sound reinforced 'Value for money priority....sort of' home cinema!!!
So to summarize a very long absence of updates, this is where I am at now. My priority is always value for money, however this step took this to a whole other level. I decided that I wasn't going to get the cinema impact from my last setup. A recent visit to a brand spanking new cinema nearby confirmed that for me. So to alleviate my 'pain', I decided that the only way to get cinema power, low distortion & the dynamics I wanted, there was only one option. Use what the cinema's use. So here it stands. Totally overkill, goal achieved, and a permanent smile stuck...
New additions:
3x JBL 3677's
4x JBL 8320a's
1x JBL 4645C clone (diy)
1x ported 2x1260w's behind couch for impact.
Bean bags!
This was a long road. Had to get the JBL's shipped from the US to here in Australia. Ends up more than double the price of what you can get them for in the US. Still cheaper than similar offerings here like Krix. So totally worth it!
Update 01/03/16: Finished new theater build in the new house. So much more space! Pics to come...
Update 08/02/2016: We have now moved to a new house and the new dedicated theater is currently under construction!
Initial post: 14/03/2014
Hey all,
Greetings from Down Under!
I have always LOVED audio and video which I think I must have inherited from my dad. Spending my teen years building speaker boxes and helping dad with his PA equipment at events. Now married with a 5 month old, I finally have built a basic starter system I am happy with for now.
The challenge with this is that I had to build it on a budget...and in a living room. That meant DIY and WAF as much as possible. I would have loved to build my own speakers like back in the day but just knew that trying to find the time to do it would be like trying to hit a flying kangaroo blindfolded.
So a 'value for money' system was in the mix. I ended up deciding on:
- Sony STR-DN1040 A/V Receiver
- Q Acoustics 2050i fronts, 2000Ci center (upright behind screen), 2010i rears (wall-mounted)
- SVS-PB2000 subwoofer (this thing is huge!). Plan is to get a second one asap. UPDATED: Two Martycube's with Dayton 460HO drivers running on a Behringer EP4000
- Sony BDPS4100 3D Blu ray player,
- Ben Q W1070 projector. (Gotta do something with that cord! But alas, we rent),
- 110" 16:9 DIY Spandex Acoustically Transparent Screen. (Brought out on the weekends and hung. 2mins to set up. Does not colour sound one little bit. Since these photos, I have made some 2.40:1 masking panels for it. Value for money with this type of screen is amazing. Especially considering most AT screens hit around $1500 as a starter, when for $150, you can have an AT screen that is 80-90% as good as a bought one. Made me think. Is the $1500 screen REALLY worth 10 times as much?)
- Behind the screen on the TV unit is a 42" Panasonic plasma for general TV during the week.
- Reclining leather lounge on back wall. I'd love to get it off the back wall, but alas, it would not work for the WAF.
Being a living room setup, we never watch movies much during the week. The screen comes out Friday night, stays there over the weekend, goes back Sunday night and you'd never know any better. As we don't watch movies during the day, we don't have a problem with ambient light, as at night we close everything up and switch off all the lights.
Anyways, I'm pretty happy with my 'compromise living room' setup. I dream of the day I can have a dedicated room, but this will have to do for now. I'd love to hear your comments and suggestions.
Update: 6/11/14
FINALLY!...got around to finishing the cubes. Pretty happy with the finish. However next time instead of using spray cans, I think I'll have to go with a proper spray setup. Reasonably happy with the finish though.
NEW FURNITURE, LAYOUT THE SAME, EXCEPT FOR A COUPLE OF CUBES...
There are now TWO Martycube's with Dayton 18" 460HO subs providing some positive low end reinforcement, and the towers are now on the outside edges of the AT screen. When the boxes are painted they will gloss white to match the TV unit. Headroom is such a beautiful thing...







See this post for what happened!


Update 05/06/17: Not really a budget build anymore...
Presenting the all newly sound reinforced 'Value for money priority....sort of' home cinema!!!
So to summarize a very long absence of updates, this is where I am at now. My priority is always value for money, however this step took this to a whole other level. I decided that I wasn't going to get the cinema impact from my last setup. A recent visit to a brand spanking new cinema nearby confirmed that for me. So to alleviate my 'pain', I decided that the only way to get cinema power, low distortion & the dynamics I wanted, there was only one option. Use what the cinema's use. So here it stands. Totally overkill, goal achieved, and a permanent smile stuck...
New additions:
3x JBL 3677's
4x JBL 8320a's
1x JBL 4645C clone (diy)
1x ported 2x1260w's behind couch for impact.
Bean bags!
This was a long road. Had to get the JBL's shipped from the US to here in Australia. Ends up more than double the price of what you can get them for in the US. Still cheaper than similar offerings here like Krix. So totally worth it!






Update 01/03/16: Finished new theater build in the new house. So much more space! Pics to come...
Update 08/02/2016: We have now moved to a new house and the new dedicated theater is currently under construction!
Initial post: 14/03/2014
Hey all,
Greetings from Down Under!
I have always LOVED audio and video which I think I must have inherited from my dad. Spending my teen years building speaker boxes and helping dad with his PA equipment at events. Now married with a 5 month old, I finally have built a basic starter system I am happy with for now.
The challenge with this is that I had to build it on a budget...and in a living room. That meant DIY and WAF as much as possible. I would have loved to build my own speakers like back in the day but just knew that trying to find the time to do it would be like trying to hit a flying kangaroo blindfolded.
So a 'value for money' system was in the mix. I ended up deciding on:
- Sony STR-DN1040 A/V Receiver
- Q Acoustics 2050i fronts, 2000Ci center (upright behind screen), 2010i rears (wall-mounted)
- SVS-PB2000 subwoofer (this thing is huge!). Plan is to get a second one asap. UPDATED: Two Martycube's with Dayton 460HO drivers running on a Behringer EP4000
- Sony BDPS4100 3D Blu ray player,
- Ben Q W1070 projector. (Gotta do something with that cord! But alas, we rent),
- 110" 16:9 DIY Spandex Acoustically Transparent Screen. (Brought out on the weekends and hung. 2mins to set up. Does not colour sound one little bit. Since these photos, I have made some 2.40:1 masking panels for it. Value for money with this type of screen is amazing. Especially considering most AT screens hit around $1500 as a starter, when for $150, you can have an AT screen that is 80-90% as good as a bought one. Made me think. Is the $1500 screen REALLY worth 10 times as much?)
- Behind the screen on the TV unit is a 42" Panasonic plasma for general TV during the week.
- Reclining leather lounge on back wall. I'd love to get it off the back wall, but alas, it would not work for the WAF.
Being a living room setup, we never watch movies much during the week. The screen comes out Friday night, stays there over the weekend, goes back Sunday night and you'd never know any better. As we don't watch movies during the day, we don't have a problem with ambient light, as at night we close everything up and switch off all the lights.
Anyways, I'm pretty happy with my 'compromise living room' setup. I dream of the day I can have a dedicated room, but this will have to do for now. I'd love to hear your comments and suggestions.
Update: 6/11/14
FINALLY!...got around to finishing the cubes. Pretty happy with the finish. However next time instead of using spray cans, I think I'll have to go with a proper spray setup. Reasonably happy with the finish though.


NEW FURNITURE, LAYOUT THE SAME, EXCEPT FOR A COUPLE OF CUBES...
There are now TWO Martycube's with Dayton 18" 460HO subs providing some positive low end reinforcement, and the towers are now on the outside edges of the AT screen. When the boxes are painted they will gloss white to match the TV unit. Headroom is such a beautiful thing...

