[AMR40509]

I've been out of the loop for awhile (getting old, working too much, having kids...you know)...


I'm building a new house - the floor plan is here

http://www.ballhomes.com/Floorplans/Hudson/


The eventual plan is to set up a theater room in the basement, but that's still a good year away (basement will be unfinished for now, we'll work on that project next year).


For now, I've decided to do something I hate...put a TV over the fireplace in the family room. The thought process is that for NOW that is a good spot, then when the basement is finished that TV will be removed and replaced with something (art??) and the only two TV locations will be the upstairs loft and the basement. The basement will be "done right" since I have 1700ish square feet down there and total flexibility to make the they way I want it with higher end stuff and a custom setup.


But for now, it's going to be a Samsung LN46C650 over the fireplace (yes I know it'll be too high, but I'll live with that for now).


Primary concern #1 - whatever audio setup I go with, it has to "look" fairly unobtrusive, or the wife will kill me as this is "her" space. Honestly, performance is a distant second place to that, as I'll eventually get my space when we do the theater and bar in the basement to do what I want with.


If you have a moment, check out the link above, you can see the room dimensions and the virtual tour. The built-in's next to the fireplace will be the same (size and color) as the tour. Wall color will be a little different, but only by a few shades (still a beige based) with the same white trim.


Right now I have the stuff I bought in like 2001 in college. Denon AVR-881 (I think that was the model number, haven't checked in years). The speakers I have now are, per the wife, too big and ugly. So speakers are getting ditched - which is why I'm here.


My thought process is that I will just go with front and rear channels, and no center. Basically, we are talking music (keeping in mind that I have very young kids, so it can't be cranked late into the night anyways) because I'm not trying to go down the full home theater road in this room.


I'm thinking that to keep The Wife off of my back, I need to go with white speakers. I'm actually considering putting the old Denon inside the cabinet (right side when facing fireplace) - and yes I know that airflow will be an issue and I'll want the door open during use, but honestly I don't think we'll be blasting it up to high temp (much). Also putting the blu-ray in there. Then putting the HD cable/DVR on the first shelf to the right.


What speakers would you use, and where? From a cost standpoint, I'm pretty flexible, but please keep in mind that overall scope of what I'm doing. I don't really need $1,000 per/speaker speakers.


I do plan to go in between electrical completion and drywall phase and run wire (speaker in that room, plus a bunch of cat6)

 

[cel4145]

NHT carries both bookshelf and in wall speakers in white. For example, the Classic Two .

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Maybe KEF ceiling speakers so the wife doesn't even notice?

 

[Kach22]

Since you could be putting your AVR in a cabinet I think a higher sensitivity 8ohm speaker would serve you better. I saw these white Boston Acoustic A26 bookshelf speakers that look like a great deal, you could buy 4 of them for $400. They are not entirely white, but I think they look good. Here are links to two places to buy them, pictures with the grill on/off at the different sites.

http://www.onecall.com/product/Boston-Acoustics/A26-White-Ea/Speaker/_/R-115578
http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/BOSA26WHA/BOSTON-ACOUSTICS-A26-2-Way-6.5in-Bookshelf-Speaker-Each-Gloss-White/1.html#!more

 

[AMR40509]



Quote:
Originally Posted by AcuDefTechGuy  /t/1420457/help-me-figure-out-a-setup-for-the-living-room-in-my-new-house#post_22222889


Maybe KEF ceiling speakers so the wife doesn't even notice?

I like the idea, but the problem is the house layout. The ceiling in that room extends up to the second floor, so it's like 20+ feet and I'm assuming would also be loud up on the second floor since it's open.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]



Quote:
Originally Posted by AMR40509  /t/1420457/help-me-figure-out-a-setup-for-the-living-room-in-my-new-house#post_22222910


I like the idea, but the problem is the house layout. The ceiling in that room extends up to the second floor, so it's like 20+ feet and I'm assuming would also be loud up on the second floor since it's open.

What about in-wall? L/R in-wall speaker next to TV & Center in-wall speaker above TV. Surrounds can be in-ceiling or in-wall.

 

[AMR40509]



Quote:
Originally Posted by AcuDefTechGuy  /t/1420457/help-me-figure-out-a-setup-for-the-living-room-in-my-new-house#post_22223141


What about in-wall? L/R in-wall speaker next to TV & Center in-wall speaker above TV. Surrounds can be in-ceiling or in-wall.

Good idea - that could work. How much wall depth is typically needed and how much sound pass through to get get into the room behind typically? The room behind will be a guest suite.

 

[ack_bk]

What about a decent soundbar and call it a day. Since you are not planning on even keeping the TV in the room, you may not want something like in-wall speakers which are pretty permanent

 

[ack_bk]



Quote:
Good idea - that could work. How much wall depth is typically needed and how much sound pass through to get get into the room behind typically? The room behind will be a guest suite.

If you go this route, get a speaker with a sealed engineered enclosure to prevent sound loss. Something like this:
http://www.speakercraft.com/products/architectural-speakers/in-wall/accufit-iwseries?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage_sc.tpl&product_id=105&category_id=54


This is meant to fit in a standard wall.

 

[Sdiver2489]

I bought Mythos 10's and XTR20B's for my system where WAF was a concern. I'm gonna try and sneak in 2x SVS SB12's hidden in corners.


I also have to say I wish homes were as cheap up here as they are in Kentucky! But at least I don't live in California!

 

[AMR40509]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Sdiver2489  /t/1420457/help-me-figure-out-a-setup-for-the-living-room-in-my-new-house#post_22223252


I also have to say I wish homes were as cheap up here as they are in Kentucky! But at least I don't live in California!

I have no complaints about KY pricing. That house will be sitting on a walkout basement on a 0.25ac. lot, pretty much upgraded to the max, for right around $350K

 

[Sdiver2489]



Quote:
Originally Posted by AMR40509  /t/1420457/help-me-figure-out-a-setup-for-the-living-room-in-my-new-house#post_22223316


I have no complaints about KY pricing. That house will be sitting on a walkout basement on a 0.25ac. lot, pretty much upgraded to the max, for right around $350K

We just bought a home here that is similar (.25 acres, walkout, brick...etc) but it was $364K not fully upgraded (but decently so) but 2700sq ft. Looks like its about $50-60K cheaper there. My brother lives in Lexington as well. Congrats on the new home!

 

[Kach22]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Kach22  /t/1420457/help-me-figure-out-a-setup-for-the-living-room-in-my-new-house#post_22222909


Since you could be putting your AVR in a cabinet I think a higher sensitivity 8ohm speaker would serve you better. I saw these white Boston Acoustic A26 bookshelf speakers that look like a great deal, you could buy 4 of them for $400. They are not entirely white, but I think they look good. Here are links to two places to buy them, pictures with the grill on/off at the different sites.
http://www.onecall.com/product/Boston-Acoustics/A26-White-Ea/Speaker/_/R-115578
http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/BOSA26WHA/BOSTON-ACOUSTICS-A26-2-Way-6.5in-Bookshelf-Speaker-Each-Gloss-White/1.html#!more

I forgot to talk about placement. It would be best if you can get the builders to run speaker wire in the walls and put wall plates with banana plug jacks near the speaker locations. I'd put the front two speakers on the shelves to the left and right of the fireplace; mount the rear speakers on the wall above the pass through to the kitchen and angle them down towards the couch. You could also mount two more speakers on the opposite side of the wall where the rear speakers are to play music into the kitchen (that is if your receiver supports 6 channels) and keep all the speakers in place after you finish the basement; if you plan on removing all the speakers when you do the basement, then the bookshelf speakers will work great as surrounds.

 

[AMR40509]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Kach22  /t/1420457/help-me-figure-out-a-setup-for-the-living-room-in-my-new-house#post_22223643


I forgot to talk about placement. It would be best if you can get the builders to run speaker wire in the walls and put wall plates with banana plug jacks near the speaker locations. I'd put the front two speakers on the shelves to the left and right of the fireplace; mount the rear speakers on the wall above the pass through to the kitchen and angle them down towards the couch. You could also mount two more speakers on the opposite side of the wall where the rear speakers are to play music into the kitchen (that is if your receiver supports 6 channels) and keep all the speakers in place after you finish the basement; if you plan on removing all the speakers when you do the basement, then the bookshelf speakers will work great as surrounds.

I'm feeling like this might be the best solution. My receiver just has 5.1 (with a/b) so I'm thinking the kitchen might get left out, but I think I'll go ahead and run the wire anyways in case I want to do it later. Then I was thinking about making the "b" channels the covered patio (with normal patio below that).

 

[mark1280]

My stepfather had the same dilemma. The speakers had to be unobtrusive but wanted something that sounded good. I recommended the Kef T series. They are super thin, but good quality. Check out the link.

Kef T series