full home audio

[Sdickson10480]

Hey everyone! First post here; happy to join. I'm a novice audiophile, but def need some tuning. I currently have my whole first floor gutted, with an open floor plan, and want to put in ceiling speakers throughout. I just want to make sure i do this the best i can.
My open space is roughly 15'w X 40' long. This consists of rec area; darts and pool, and kitchen. This area is open to a 19'x13' living room with surround and home theater w/projector.
It is not that important to have the living room on the same system as the rest of the floor.
The open area opens up to a large deck with speakers. There is also a detached garage that I would like to add speakers to, with the option to add more in the future. I will be running a conduit to the garage for wiring. Not sure which wiring would be best. I do plan to run a cat5/6 just to expand internet.

I'm not afraid to spend a few bucks to get this to work right. Open to options.

Most important is easy of control. I did plan on having an Apple TV, centrally located, next to an iPad to control the audio. Again, option to suggestions. Also, the iPad will already be in the wall to double as a scorer for the dart board.

Also stumped on how many speakers i should be in the main living area.

Any advice is appreciated!

 

[Sdickson10480]

FWIW, my previous configuration was an old receiver in the basement, ran of my desktop. This had an output to a 6 zone speaker selector. I wasn't disappointed with the set up, and planned on doing it again, but feel there's a better way to do it since the speaker selector isn't powered/amplified.
Thanks again

 

[TLS Guy]

Hey everyone! First post here; happy to join. I'm a novice audiophile, but def need some tuning. I currently have my whole first floor gutted, with an open floor plan, and want to put in ceiling speakers throughout. I just want to make sure i do this the best i can.
My open space is roughly 15'w X 40' long. This consists of rec area; darts and pool, and kitchen. This area is open to a 19'x13' living room with surround and home theater w/projector.
It is not that important to have the living room on the same system as the rest of the floor.
The open area opens up to a large deck with speakers. There is also a detached garage that I would like to add speakers to, with the option to add more in the future. I will be running a conduit to the garage for wiring. Not sure which wiring would be best. I do plan to run a cat5/6 just to expand internet.

I'm not afraid to spend a few bucks to get this to work right. Open to options.

Most important is easy of control. I did plan on having an Apple TV, centrally located, next to an iPad to control the audio. Again, option to suggestions. Also, the iPad will already be in the wall to double as a scorer for the dart board.

Also stumped on how many speakers i should be in the main living area.

Any advice is appreciated!

My advice is just don't. Those systems are horrors of yesteryear that end in tears. Go with a modern wireless system like SONOS for instance. The system you suggest will lower your property value, a wireless system will not.

 

[vader540is]

FWIW, my previous configuration was an old receiver in the basement, ran of my desktop. This had an output to a 6 zone speaker selector. I wasn't disappointed with the set up, and planned on doing it again, but feel there's a better way to do it since the speaker selector isn't powered/amplified.
Thanks again

Home Theater Direct – manufacturer of speakers and whole-house audio.

The HTD brand of speakers and whole-house audio systems have been sold direct to consumers along with free expert support since 1999.

www.htd.com

 

[mazersteven]

If you go in-ceiling I Highly Recommend these

Profile Aim8 Five In Ceiling Speaker | SpeakerCraft

Profile Aim8 Five is an in-ceiling speaker that features aimable speaker & easy installation anywhere you want. Delivers wonderful music experience. Buy it now!

www.speakercraft.com

 

[tmurnin]

Hey everyone! First post here; happy to join. I'm a novice audiophile, but def need some tuning. I currently have my whole first floor gutted, with an open floor plan, and want to put in ceiling speakers throughout. I just want to make sure i do this the best i can.
My open space is roughly 15'w X 40' long. This consists of rec area; darts and pool, and kitchen. This area is open to a 19'x13' living room with surround and home theater w/projector.
It is not that important to have the living room on the same system as the rest of the floor.
The open area opens up to a large deck with speakers. There is also a detached garage that I would like to add speakers to, with the option to add more in the future. I will be running a conduit to the garage for wiring. Not sure which wiring would be best. I do plan to run a cat5/6 just to expand internet.

I'm not afraid to spend a few bucks to get this to work right. Open to options.

Most important is easy of control. I did plan on having an Apple TV, centrally located, next to an iPad to control the audio. Again, option to suggestions. Also, the iPad will already be in the wall to double as a scorer for the dart board.

Also stumped on how many speakers i should be in the main living area.

Any advice is appreciated!

I’d get a 12-ch distributed amp and wire all your speaker zones to it with localized volume controls. The simplest way to do this would be to buy a Sonos Connect (or Port) for each zone you want to control differently (if you don’t mind having all the zones play the same music, you could get away with only one Port) and just use that to drive the amp. Your iPad can be the control center for your Sonos setup and it’s easy to use and expandable if you want to add other wireless speakers, etc later on. You can also control it with an iPhone so you don’t need to be right next to the system to control it as well.

you can get fancier setups from Control4 and the like, but unless you’re trying for extensive whole-home automation, I think Sonos works pretty darn well

 

[Sdickson10480]

I’d get a 12-ch distributed amp and wire all your speaker zones to it with localized volume controls. The simplest way to do this would be to buy a Sonos Connect (or Port) for each zone you want to control differently (if you don’t mind having all the zones play the same music, you could get away with only one Port) and just use that to drive the amp. Your iPad can be the control center for your Sonos setup and it’s easy to use and expandable if you want to add other wireless speakers, etc later on. You can also control it with an iPhone so you don’t need to be right next to the system to control it as well.

you can get fancier setups from Control4 and the like, but unless you’re trying for extensive whole-home automation, I think Sonos works pretty darn well

Thank you for your input. I think this may be the way i want to go. I'm going to look into it more.

 

[BMXTRIX]

You really need to figure out how many zones of audio you are looking at and how much discrete level control you want through those different zones and if you want more locations with speakers/stereo audio.

From what you are saying, it sounds like there is a huge open space and a theater space, and that's it. So, one surround zone with video and local sources, and then a second area with stereo only.

So, a single source with a speaker selector and amplifier for the speakers with volume controls in each area is certainly a very easy and basic setup which is commonly used. You get a controllable source, like a Sonos or Blusound product that's appropriate for you.

If you do have a list of multiple rooms with 2-4 speakers in them for stereo audio playback, then you may want to consider something like what Home Theater Direct sells.

Mid-Level Info Hub

Mid-Level Documents Mid-Level Owner's Manual Mid-Level Videos Mid-Level Playlist on Youtube Mid-Level Quick Start Video App & Voice Control HTD Home Audio App Control with Voice and Home Automation HTD Accessories compatible with HTD MC systems 2U Mounting Brackets Dual Stereo Balun (in-wall)...

www.htd.com

I don't think distributed audio systems 'lower' the value of a home when they are done right. I do think that many aren't done 'right'. Remember, when you buy something like what HTD sells, it should stay with the house when you move. It is needed to make things all work.

 

[tmurnin]

Thank you for your input. I think this may be the way i want to go. I'm going to look into it more.

The Sonos products work well, but they get pricey if you have to buy multiple Ports. You might be able to save some $$ by buying a used Connect or two on eBay