Hello Ladies and Gentlemen,

I will have an addition made to my home that will provide me the space I’ve wanted for a deluxe theater as well as a gameroom. This space will be over my garage. Single family, all brick home on 1.5 acres. Neighbors are not a concern. Quiet neighborhood. The theater is what I’m trying to decide on and design at the moment. The only dimension of the room that is fixed is the width at 21 feet. Entry would be from the back of the room. All of the walls of the theater would be external walls except the rear wall. I would like to have three rows of seating. I have up to 15 feet of ceiling height. I would like at least 150" diagonal screen (16×9).

Video Equipment:
DirecTV HD Receiver
1080p projector - yet to be purchased
Blu Ray Dvd: LG BD370
Audio Equipment: (7.1 sound)
Receiver: Pioneer Elite SC-25 (150 w/ch x 7)
Speakers: Center DefTech CLR3000; Mains Deftech BP2000TLs, Surrounds Deftech BPX (2 pair)
Sub: Infinite Baffle (Eight 15" IB woofers in a manifold in the attic) driven by separate amplifier.

Objectives:

1. A high quality video and audio experience for movies and television.
2. Comfort (Temperature and Air Quality)
3. No distractions from things like HVAC.
4. Stylishly Themed Theater (I will take care of this part).

Areas that are not a concern:

Sound Isolation from the rest of the house.
Listening to music.

Questions are as follows:

Dimensions:

What would be the proper dimensions for this dream HT? My thoughts are that with a 150" diagonal screen, that the eyes (or back) of the first row would be at 15′, the second row at 22′, and the third row at 29′, which would put the back wall (or length of the room) at 32′. Allowing for 6" on each side for columns and 3′ aisles on each side, that would leave 14′ for seating on each row which should just fit 6 seats on each row (using Berkline Ritz for example).

HVAC:

I plan to run a dedicated HVAC unit to this space. How do you keep these as quiet as possible?

Insulation:

Looks like I will be using a combination of closed cell foam, insulated batting, and radiant barrier to thermally "isolate" the space from the garage below. The home is in the Dallas, TX area and it gets hot here. I will be hiring a professional to take care of this aspect, but input is welcome.

Sound:

What issues do I need to concern myself with here? Will I need an additional pair (or more) of surrounds? I’m allowing 3′ from the back wall to the back row of seating. Is this sufficient? I will be installing sound treatments including bass traps and acoustic foam (much of which I already have).

Video:

Is 150" diagonal big enough for this room? Recommendations for a projector that can throw that size of image are appreciated… DLP preferred.

Construction:

If I am not concerned with isolating sound from the rest of the house, do I need to worry about such things as double studs? Do I need to install double drywall?

Other:

What am I missing here?

Hello Everyone,

I’m new to this wonderful forum and this is my first thread. I just graduated from college and moved back in with my parents and currently taking a year or two off before going to a local grad school so I decided to transform my room into a place I can relax, study, enjoy movies, and so on. So I cleared things out of my room and added a desk and a bed. Then a futon. Next some exercising equipment. And yea, I think I will leave the pics to show the rest.

This was originally the den, but turned into my room. It’s about 12′x22′. I made it crowded in there so I decided to disguise the crowded feeling by going with a jungle/rain forest theme. Now I want to add a home theater system so now I’m feeling I am doing too much with the room. My mother says it looks like a pig pen in here aka ugly mess. Now I just need to make the best out of this and make it work.

Please feel free to tell me what you think of it and provide any advice or suggestions for improvement. Keep in mind that this is only a low budget project I tried to start. I’m just a fresh college grad with no money =(. Thanks!

Entry to the Pig Pen!

The door opens!

I will rotate in a 360 angle for view of the room. There goes my bed and just behind it would be the bamboo rack that I made. It’s leaning against a bookshelf covering an opening to the back living room.

There goes my new Panasonic TC-P54S1 1080p Plasma mounted to the wall! Too bad I currently have no components for it. It’s in the works though!

Now you are probably wondering what on earth is that pile of junk in the corner. Sometimes I don’t even know myself. I am actually attempting to sculpt out a tree. It’s still in progress so I will be adding more white hydrocal to it and either carve or cast tree barks. I’m hoping it will look a little like the Walt Disney Tree of Life, probably not though since I’m not a real artist.

Now nearly completing our 360 spin, here goes the mini bar that I made. I know, it’s sloppy, but I am a one man army with no money and carpentry skills.

There goes the futon. It’s in the chaise lounge form now. I designed this as a place for me to relax and read. I got carried away with the silk plants and now it looks like a jungle. Oh well.

There is the bamboo railing and more silk plants. This was suppose to be the front/porch of a bamboo house. Why on earth would there be a futon there? Beats me. It also has a palm thatch roof. You can’t see it in this pic though.

And here is my desk.

Why would I have this in my room? I really don’t know. Takes up a lot of space but the garage is jammed with junk. Don’t like it in the backyard so this will have to do.

There’s the chimney that I do not use.

I know, it eats up more space.

My desk again. Bamboo rack and clothes block the view of the Plasma TV. Not a big deal for me though.

The view of the "bamboo house" from the back. I should probably take the ceiling fan out since I do not use it at all. Or maybe I should add more silk vines across the ceiling and around the fan to give it that jungle theme within a home and not a pure jungle. Reminds me of of the movie Jumanji.

I placed a fridge under the mini bar. I know, I know, it has a unprofessional look. I mentioned I am broke.

There goes the corner of the room and view from under the bamboo hut.

So please help me create something that would integrate all of this junk seamlessly into a themed home theater. Maybe something from Indiana Jones? Jumanji? Anything?

As stated before, it will mostly be for me, that is why there is the weight set there. And my desk. And the bed. So it wouldn’t be your typical home theater with half a dozen seats or an entertainment room with a pool table etc.

Thanks a bunch!

Hello everyone, I’ve read as much of this forum as I can over the last few days, but am thoroughly confused and would just like to get some expert opinion.

Building a theater in the basement. I do not so much care about sound transmission from the basement to the upstairs, but more so about voices, tv, and footsteps being heard downstairs from the living room and kitchen above.

It seems like the obvious answer around here is…Drywall. More specifically - R19 Pink Batt, Resilient Channel, Drywall, Green Glue, Drywall.

HOWEVER. I am super paranoid about running wires, or something going wrong above the ceiling. I have water pipers, duct work, electrical run up there. Plus more importantly I have wires running up there to various spots on the first floor for video, audio, and networking, in addition to more wires running to the patio for video, audio, electrical, networking, and speakers.

So as you can guess, I would LOVE to do ceiling tile. But ceiling tile, even acoustical ceiling tile, is a big dropoff on sound transmission.

So what I was thinking was this, please give me your thoughts.

R19 Pink Batt
Fake Ceiling
Air Gap
Drop Ceiling

The air gap between the drop ceiling and the fake ceiling gives me room to run wires, put up lights, mount projectors, etc etc etc.

The fake ceiling, would actually be cut into 2×2 panels. This way, if I need to get access to anything above, electrical wires, water pipes, duct work, I can.

So the first question is, "is this dumb?"

The second question is, "what do I make the fake ceiling out of?" Remember I will want to slice it into 2×2 panels so I can have access above. Thoughts so far include MLV or Resilient Channel with Double Drywall and Green Glue. The benefit to MLV is that it is thin. The benefit to the drywall option is the price. MLV can be overlapped on the edges, Drywall I will need to seal somehow. Might there be other options?

It’d be nice if someone could just tell me what to do and never to worry about things going on above the ceiling

Well I spent the last three years renting a home with a large finished basement. In my 3 years here, I stuffed the basement with A/V gear equal to my salary - which amounted to: HC1500, A cheap non-HDMI Onkyo receiver (no model info at work) and a set of Rock Solid Solutions Speaker System (S100/C100/PB100) bought three years ago from a Craigslist ad. The only info I could find online was a review from 1997 CLICK

Given the wonderful housing market and generous handouts, I decided to buy my own place. The new place I moved into has no basement and the HT room I’ve been forced into is small or cozy as the wife says.

My goal - to make all of my equipment function well enough to pass this off as a DECENT dedicated home theater. I want to over build certain aspects to be able to handle upgrades down the road (SVS sub, new receiver, AE400000, etc).

Here are the room specs:

Cape Code Home
Bottom Floor
Crawl Space
No attic (room above)
Size: 135” x 139”
2 Windows (#1. 48”x73”, #2. 44” x 73”)
1 Closet (didn’t measure yet - smaller coat closet)
1 Door

I’ve attached a VERY rough and poorly completed power point layout of my room

Any help or advice would be great.

1. At present I’m still trying to decide on how to run speaker wire (crawl space and pull up, or run behind crown molding)

2. I don’t have seating purchased yet

3. I have not yet mounted the HC1500, but I’m shooting for a ceiling mount.

PS - Anyone in the NOVA area that is willing to give up their time for food and beverages - please feel free to lend a hand.

Attached Files

HT Layout.pdf (105.9 KB)

After several years of wishing and several more of planning, we have finally got our basement framed and I (with the the help of an experienced friend) have pulled the electrical wiring completed. My wife thinks that there is "no way I am smart enough" to figure out how to make my dream setup come to fruition without spending tons of money and without hiring a professional to do it all (which she says is a deal-breaker and we would just have to hook up the tv to the wall and call it good).

I am ready to prove her wrong and have been reading up as much as I can on the many threads in the forum. I now need the expertise input of forum members to sort out what I am missing and what I don’t know.

Please look at the uploaded images of the room designs and comment on what I might be missing and what I need / how to connect it all together. Keep it simple in your explanations as I am a newbie to a lot of this still.

BASEMENT FAMILY ROOM 11-0 x 17-0

• Wall Mounted Plasma HDTV with independent access to media server / HTPC
• Motorized projection screen mounted in tray ceiling. Screen wil retract down in front of TV when in use.
• 5.1 Surround Sound (In-Wall) with powered sub
• Mounted video projector
• Zone #1 Distributed Audio with 8-inch in-ceiling speakers
• Gaming systems. (Will connect directly to TV unless there is a way to place it in the hub as well)
• NECESSITY FOR ROOM: RADIO-FREQUENCY (RF) UNIVERSAL REMOTE BACK TO COMPONENTS IN HUB

PLAYROOM

• Zone #2 Distibuted Audio with 8-inch in-ceiling speakers
• Computer networked into media server / HTPC to access movies and control audio
• Wall-mounted HDTV with independent access to media server / HTPC

UPSTAIRS LIVING ROOM

• Wall-mounted HDTV with independent access to media server / HTPC
• Zone #3 Distributed Audio with 8-inch in-ceiling speakers
• Computer networked into media server / HTPC to access movies and control audio

UPSTAIRS MASTER BEDROOM

• HDTV with independent access to media server / HTPC
• Zone #4 Distributed Audio with 8-inch in-ceiling speakers

HUB (In Basement)

• Router
• Media Server / HTPC to store all audio files and movies. Will also have DVR capability.
• 4-Source and 4-Zone Audio Reciever for distributed audio
• AVR
• DVD/ VCR (The kids still use these relics)
• Blu-Ray Player with Netflix and Pandora streaming
• Satellite Receiver

I am looking mainly for comments and direction on the following:

1. Is the design of the hub (option #1 - mechanical room) the most logical and the most practical vs. hub option #2 in the closet behind the family room? I really do NOT want to have the components in the family room if at all possible. I like the clean look the design with just the mounted tv, in-wall speakers and motorized projection screen, so I really want this to work by using a universal RF remote.

2. If I use the mechanical room hub option, will HDMI be able to support that distance? (50 feet of cord length to family room tv and also to playroom tv)

3. How do I hook all this together to make it work? What specific cables do I need to make all of it work? (i.e. "Route 10 lines of coax from x to y and 2 lines of cat5e from x to z, etc). If this is too much off topic for this thread, let me know and I will inquire elsewhere.

4. I want each tv and computer to be able to independently access the media (i.e. kids can watch "toy story" in playroom while I watch "the italian job" in the family room and wife watches some girly movie in the master bedroom at the same time). I just don’t know what components I need to do this.

5. What else am I missing? What would you do instead?

Thanks everyone! Don’t let me down and let my wife end up saying, "I told you so, you idiot!"

Attached Files

	Theater Specs2 copy5.pdf (167.6 KB)
	Upstairs copy5.pdf (55.1 KB)
	Basement copy5.pdf (96.1 KB)
	FamilyRoom3 copy5.pdf (49.1 KB)

I started this out as another thread about installing surrounds into soffits… but after reading the responses, I think I need to get the entire theater figured out a bit better!

My unfinished basement is demanding I put in a home theater. I’ve been reading here for years now, and I’m finally in a house where I’m going to be for a while. The entire basement is unfinished with 9′ ceilings.

My plan centers around:

• 132" Wide (55" H) 2.4:1 Scope AT Curved Screen (Will build myself)
• Possibly a JVC RS35 with a anamorphic lens… and leaning towards a DVDO iScan Duo
• Klipsch RF-7 fronts, RC-7 center (already own)
• I’d like to get HT seating for 7, probably a row of 3 in front, 4 in rear.
• I really want a bar top behind the rear row

This is the empty floor plan of the basement:

This is the initial idea that I’ve been working on:

Here it is with the soffits that I’m thinking about in the white checks. The gray checks are HVAC ductwork that would be very difficult to move:

And some other views from a different angle:

My main concern right now is just getting all the main components (screen, speakers, seating, projector) laid out. The side surrounds are the ones that have been giving me the most trouble, as it seems however I lay out the room, there is a wall opening exactly where the surround needs to be.

Any thoughts?

Hey gang. need some help. Finally getting around to building out my HT in our new home built two years ago. attached is the current "shell" layout.
current unfinished dimensions are 18 ft. long, 14 ft. wide and 10ft high.

Here is what I am planning to do.

1. room in a room construction with three layer DD and GG with 1/2 inch DD (already have 1/2 inch DD in the house left over from construction)

2. currently have two door entrance but will be eliminating this.
First question………..where should a single sound door go? and what size?
would like to do a 36 in wide door… is this big enough for most HT chairs?
could go to 42 inches if needed.

3. existing floor is 3/4 plywood over 16 inch OC TJI’s, and then 3/4 inch particle board. would be willing to tear up the particle board…. but what acoutical underlayment would you recommend? Acoustic mat? nothing?
it would have to be thin as I don’t want to run into a problem with the door threshold.

4. had a sound engineer come out, did some measurements and told me that bass is going to be my biggest problem. He recommends putting in a lam beam under the floor in the crawl space, perpendicular to the floor TJI’s to help stiffen the floor. thoughts?

5. will be running both return and supply HVAC… assume I will need to run this in soffits on the ceiling.

6. ceiling height? any thoughts?

any input would be fab.
thanks!

Attached Images

SCAN0001.jpg (110.3 KB)

Hello folks, I am based in India (so material availability is scarce) and plan to build a dedicated HT for my family.
I plan to expand, improvise my HT over the period of coming 2-3 years.
We have a 105ft long and 35ft wide land in the city that is unused. So I am free to experiment with it.

Currently the following is the list of equipments I have and plan to install:
1. Optoma HD20 projector.
2. Yamaha RX-V863 receiver.
3. Wharfedale 10.1 bookshelfs & matching center. (7 channel config).
4. Velodyne CT-120 Sub. (Max 400w rms)
5. PS3.
6. Custom made HTPC.
7. Harmony 900 remote.
8. For room acoustics, to start with, keeping my initial budget in mind, I can:
a. Dry wall the entire area (Dry wall installed over normal brick and mortar wall).
b. Put thick carpet on the whole floor.

Two years down the line, I foresee the room getting upgraded to a dedicated HT with equipments equivalent to (subject to the technological progression by 2012):
1. Epson 8500 UB Projector. (May be 3d/4k whatever available at that time).
2.Paradigm studio/reference series or equivalent (7+ channels)/Dali Ikon 6.
3. Denon flagship pre/post combo.
4. Definitive Technology Supercube Trinity Sub. (Must have on my list).
5. For acoustics:
a. Updgrade to the concept of room within a room.
b. Stage, Riser et al.
c. Soundproofing as required.

I need help in:
1. Determining the ideal room size (L*W*H) & shape vis-a-vis my current and future requirements. (I can do modifications internally but changing the room structure will be both expensive and difficult). Hint: anything larger than 20*20 (Please guide about the correct ratio as I believe rectangular rooms are more suitable for HT applications.
2. Layout of the room (Location of cabinets(I need to have a separate equipment room), entry/exits.
3. Determining optimum screen size (for HD 20) and projector placement (to be mounted on a ceiling).
4. Optimum seating position. (Need a layout that can seat 10).

The usage will be:
90% blu ray playback.
Occasional HTPC, gaming(PS3).
SQ is a preference.

I would be grateful to all AVS members as this theater is the dream of my life and now I am starting on a journey with your help to realize my dream.
It would be a triumph if i can build a good HT here keeping in mind the limitations India has.

I am finishing the basement and figured I would share the dedicated cinema with you guys. I am hoping for suggestions and comments. I’ll start with the equipment I am going to use:

Integra receiver DTR-50.1
Panasonic Bluray BD 50
Epson 8500
Polk audio towers RTi-10
Polk center CSi-5
Polk surrounds FXi-5
Polk sub PSW505
Carada BW Criterion 114”

Room Dimensions 11′ 5" wide X 22" long

The interior side walls are 5/8 drywall - two layers with green glue (they are also insulated heavily). The ceiling is single 5/8 drywall mounted using sound channel. The ceiling is very heavily insulated. The door is a solid core door.

The projector will be on the top shelf of the cabinet in the back of the room. I did the throw calcs on projector central. I am mounting the screen about 1.5 feet in front of the back wall. So, the projector lens will be right at 20.5′ from the screen. That throw distance is right at the edge of the throw distance "green zone" with a 1.4 gain screen. Also remember that the room will be completely light controlled as I am blocking the windows with a homemade contraption (the idea is in my head, I have no made it yet).

I am probably a month from completion. There is still a lot of caulking and painting to do.

I am looking for acoustic treatment ideas, design ideas, or anything else you may want to add.

Here are the pictures:::::

Here is a rough sketch of the basement

Here is a shot of the theater while standing in the family room

Todays pic

Front wall of theater

after some sheetrock

Today

Back all of theater

After sheetrock

Today

and!!! my screen from Carada - arrived yesterday. It is 114” and the criterion series. I wont open it until I am ready to mount it.

Bring on the comments~~~~~

So here are a couple of pictures to give you a frame of reference. If you can’t read in the margins the 3 pictures are of the same room with different aspects included to avoid clutter and confusion.

The first is the raw physical size of the room. Its an offset T shape 16′4" wide on the right side, 11′4" wide on the right and 36′4" long front to back. And the walls will be 8′4" tall from a 9′ basement pour and finishing.

The second picture shows a first draft of the lighting setup. I’m looking at recessed lighting with three zones on dimmers to provide light near the screen far from the screen and over the seats independantly.

My main question is about the lighting….
1. Do I need more light fixtures to achieve full room illumination if necessary?
2. Are there already too many lights for the size of the room?
3. Is the spacing Optimal so far?
4. And most importantly since the room is an offset "T" if i keep light lines constant front to back they wont be equi-distant from the wall at one end or the other. However if I keep distances of lights from the walls I wont be able to keep parallel/straight lines though the center of the lights. THe question is which guideline should use?

Final picture is of the rough seating layout. Now I’m likely to add risers for rows 2 and 3 hence the absolute need for 8′+ ceilings and a likely projector placement from 15-25 ft from the screen. Thoughts on seating are appreciated they will likely be Berkline 12000 series recliners, with the Love seat version in front row middle.

Thanks for opinions since all are welcome, I havent finalized the lighting placement with electrician sub contractor yet and would like informed opinions before meeting with them.

Thanks again

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pi…8&id=600005660

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pi…1&id=600005660

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pi…4&id=600005660

Attached Images

	Basement Bare Layout.jpg (102.2 KB)
	Basement Lighting Layout.jpg (120.2 KB)
	Basement Furniture.jpg (106.6 KB)