Thumbs up on a new project

[ivseenbetter]

I will be moving into a new house soon. The wife has given me the thumbs up to use one of the new rooms as my own dedicated HT room. While I have trolled around here and posted occassionally I have read and learned a lot from this site. I will be building this room from scratch and it won't be a quick project but I am looking forward to tackling it.

While reading on this site and other sites I have picked up on important information for each piece of a HT I am wondering when building one from scratch where I should start??????

Spearkers? Amplifier? Reciever? Video source? Or perhaps room treatment?

If somebody wants to point me toward some good reading material to start me off I am definitely interested. In the meantime I will continue to daydream about the potential fun I am expecting to have.

 

[mazersteven]

You lucky dog. A dedicated HT room.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=19

 

[mazersteven]

http://www.hometheatermag.com/bootcamp/137/

www.htmarket.com

www.ultimateavmag.com

www.modernhometheater.com

 

[mtrycrafts]

I will be moving into a new house soon. The wife has given me the thumbs up to use one of the new rooms as my own dedicated HT room. While I have trolled around here and posted occassionally I have read and learned a lot from this site. I will be building this room from scratch and it won't be a quick project but I am looking forward to tackling it.

While reading on this site and other sites I have picked up on important information for each piece of a HT I am wondering when building one from scratch where I should start??????

Spearkers? Amplifier? Reciever? Video source? Or perhaps room treatment?

If somebody wants to point me toward some good reading material to start me off I am definitely interested. In the meantime I will continue to daydream about the potential fun I am expecting to have.

Your own HT room? Does that mean attendance is by invitation only, including family members? LOL
Well, you know what size it will be unless size if open for a reasonable one.
Do you planning first before you start, then try to take it apart what might be wrong or right with it. You need to know what you want with the budget you have. Consider a front projection system perhaps. With that certainly hi-def should be a part of it.
The room and speakers makes or breaks what you will hear, period.
allow for future expansions or upgrades that can be foreseen.

Get some inputs from the family as I bet, they will be there listening too

 

[ivseenbetter]

I don't think my HT will be an invitation only setup. I will want to show this sucker off when it is done! LOL.

Thanks for the input already. I will definitely be going HiDef. I have already decided on doing a FP system and really I just need to figure out how big of a screen I can fit. I am looking at a room that will probably be about 22' by 35'. I will be able to take better measurements when I move in to the place in a couple of weeks. I haven't decided on a budget yet. I will definitely be trying to get the most bang for the buck though. Right now I am figuring 10K but it may go up if a can justify it. I know 10K can be chump change compared to what others may have invested on a room my size. What I am hoping to do is get a decent setup with my current budget and then from there start upgrading a piece at a time so that dumping in more money seems more gradual.

Thanks for the reading material mazersteven. It's appreciated.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Everyone here knows that speakers & room treatment are the two most important things.

There are a bunch of factors, so I'm sure you must be writing down notes.

For my next HT custom room, the electrical circuits are also important. You can't just have one 15-Amp circuit for your HT room. Better get at least two 15-Amp circuits or one 30-Amp.

If I were to start from scratch, I would also get 5 identical full-range tower speakers, which most people won't be able to accomodate because the Center speaker SIZE is limited. I guess that's why they make smaller Center Speakers for the occasion. The only way I could fit a 53" tower center speaker is with a TV cadenza/stand that is 50" in height or to get a projector & screen placed 53" above ground.

If you get a TV & cadenza/stand, you might also consider getting wheels/rollers just in case you have to move that whole TV/stand.

And start auditioning to as many speakers as possible.

 

[AVRat]

I’m sure you’re aware that $10k will primarily cover the initial equipment including minimal acoustic treatments. Eh, eh, yeah $10k does seem like chump change for a room that size. What’s the ceiling height btw? You can probably spend 3-4 times that much just for minimally decent room isolation and acoustic treatment. The infrastructure of the HT is the main thing to get right up front. That way upgrades are a simple feat.

There are so many things you could do with a room that size:

3-tier/stadium seating if you’ve got the clearance.
False acoustically transparent screen wall w/ speakers placed behind
Front projection
2.35 AR screen
IB sub
Acoustic room treatment
Section it for lobby/concession, equipment, and HT rooms http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=731215


Your screen size will be determined by your viewing distance/preference.

 

[Phil Taylor]

I'd start by thanking my wife profusely and repeatedly Then realize that a lot of the info here is offered by audiophiles - hard core audiophiles (no offense guys and gals). 10K can get you a decent HT room - not audio/video-phile quality but still a nice system that will keep you out of the local cineplex.

I'm a budget-minded-video-oriented guy so I'd start with the display...

Some "ballpark figures" --
Panasonic PT-AE2000 1080p Projector ^$2700
Screen ^$1000
HD DVD ^$400
Receiver ^$700
Speakers ^$800
Acoustic foam/panels ^$500
Seating ^$2500

That leaves about $2K for wiring, installation, lighting, etc.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I'd start by thanking my wife profusely and repeatedly Then realize that a lot of the info here is offered by audiophiles - hard core audiophiles (no offense guys and gals). 10K can get you a decent HT room - not audio/video-phile quality but still a nice system that will keep you out of the local cineplex.

I'm a budget-minded-video-oriented guy so I'd start with the display...

Some "ballpark figures" --
Panasonic PT-AE2000 1080p Projector ^$2700
Screen ^$1000
HD DVD ^$400
Receiver ^$700
Speakers ^$800
Acoustic foam/panels ^$500
Seating ^$2500

That leaves about $2K for wiring, installation, lighting, etc.

What? Speakers for $800 out of the $10K budget?
No way.
Speaker are THE MOST Important thing. Out of $10K, I would not spend less than $5K on speakers.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Rough Draft:
1) Speakers $5,000
2) Epson 1080p Projector $2,500
3) HDTV 120" WideScreen $500
4) Onkyo 805 receiver $900
5) Samsung Combo Blu-Ray/HD DVD/DVD/CD Player $800
6) Acoustic Panels $300

 

[ivseenbetter]

This is all excellent information. I particularly like the rough estimates on how much to spend on each individual piece of the system. It helps me to guage what I am up against when budgeting this out. My budget is flexible. I can potentially double my budget as necessary. The key for me will be to show her something impressive with the money I have up front in order to prove that the additional investment will be worth it to her. Originally my 10K was only considering equipment and I was going to use a different pot of money for furniture and acoustical treatments.

Would I be going about this wrong if I just went in a phased approach?

Step 1 - put in the screen and the video projector with a basic stereo setup. (this step would give her the biggest wow part and get her more excited about investing in this project in my opinion)

Step 2 - put in a decent speaker package

Step 3 - put in acoustical treatments

Step 4 - upgrade as necessary on an as needed basis (this is where I will start to go from a mediocre set up to something impressive)

 

[rnatalli]

What? Speakers for $800 out of the $10K budget?
No way.
Speaker are THE MOST Important thing. Out of $10K, I would not spend less than $5K on speakers.

Definitely agree with that. I wouldn't skimp on treatments either in a dedicated room.

 

[mazersteven]

What? Speakers for $800 out of the $10K budget?
No way.
Speaker are THE MOST Important thing. Out of $10K, I would not spend less than $5K on speakers.

As soon as I read his post I was thinking the same thing. "You took the words right out of my mouth".

 

[mazersteven]

Would I be going about this wrong if I just went in a phased approach?

Step 1 - put in the screen and the video projector with a basic stereo setup. (this step would give her the biggest wow part and get her more excited about investing in this project in my opinion)

Step 2 - put in a decent speaker package

Step 3 - put in acoustical treatments

Step 4 - upgrade as necessary on an as needed basis (this is where I will start to go from a mediocre set up to something impressive)

Step 1 should be the room. I think the room is the most important part of a dedicated theater.

Room shape
Room dimensions
Room sound insulation, and acoustics
Room electrical, and wire layout

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

As soon as I read his post I was thinking the same thing. "You took the words right out of my mouth".

I just love your pictures.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

My budget is flexible. I can potentially double my budget as necessary. The key for me will be to show her something impressive with the money I have up front in order to prove that the additional investment will be worth it to her. Originally my 10K was only considering equipment and I was going to use a different pot of money for furniture and acoustical treatments.

Okay, one possible rough draft:

A Hi-Def Projector = $2,000
http://superpricedelectronics.com/product_info.php?products_id=331

A 120" 16:9 Projection Fixed Wide Screen Framed in Black Velvet = $600
http://www.focusedtechnology.com/permanent-screen.html

Definitive Technology Speaker System = $5,500 (this is where you get a hundred suggestions from our great Audioholics forum members w/ a note to audition before you buy)

Front Left & Right: BP7000SC w/Built-in Subwoofers (20Hz-20kHz +/-3dB)
Center: CLR3000 w/Built-in Subwoofer (28Hz-20kHz +/-3dB)
Surround Left & Right: BP10B (25Hz-20kHz +/-dB)

http://digitalcraze.com/results8.asp?Manufacturer=definitive technology&Category=&StartItem=1&ItemsPage=all

Blu-Ray/HD DVD Player = $800
http://www.onsale.com/shop/detail~dpno~7295840~discount~220.0000.aspx

Receiver = $1,300
http://www.amazon.com/Onkyo-TX-SR875-Channel-Theater-Receiver/dp/B000OBLARW/ref=pd_bbs_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1195523295&sr=8-1

Oh, yeah, other speaker companies to consider:
http://www.freewebs.com/acudeftechguy/systemsetupspeakerchart.htm

AV123, PSB, Axiom, KEF, B&W, Mourdant-Short, NHT, Paradigm, Klipsh, Infiniti, Polk, MB Quart, Aperion, Totem, Monitor Audio, Dali, Vienna Acoustics, Jamo, Martin Logan, Boston Acoustics, & a bunch others.

 

[annunaki]

Step 1 should be the room. I think the room is the most important part of a dedicated theater.

Room shape
Room dimensions
Room sound insulation, and acoustics
Room electrical, and wire layout

Right on the money here. Well laid out room with proper treatment can help make even the most basic of systems perform wonderfully. Check out this site if you are building the room: http://www.acoustics101.com/common/acoustics101v3_0.pdf

Does the $10K include the cost of construction of the room? If it is just for equipment that is great, but if it is for both you will have substantially less for the equipment if you build the room correctly.

 

[Tom Andry]

You might want to look through some of these articles for hints. We're in the process of updating some of the equipment right now. Overall, though, don't expect major changes.

 

[ivseenbetter]

The room is a great room that is upstairs in the new house we are moving into. It is pretty big and the wife says it is mine for this project. I can make changes to it and build false walls and whatever else I need to do. So technically I am not building the room from scratch...but I can improve on what is already there.

Well, I will have to look through these articles and the other info you guys have provided me and see if I can figure out how much room treatment is going to cost me. I was really hoping that the room treatment and design would be one of the later steps in the process. But, if I want to do it right I can sacrifice instant gratification for patience and a good game plan instead.

I'm still kind of playing with the idea of buying my equipment first and then doing room treatment just to see how much of a difference it really makes.

Regarding the question about my overall budget and room design: If I have to do the room design and treatment first then the 10K will include equipment too. Now, if after room treatment and design I may get more money if the wife still thinks it is worth it. We will see though.

 

[bpape]

You can treat the room later but you need to plan for it now.

As far as the other 'now' things about the room, the isolation is something you really need to think about. Having a room that you can use whenever you want AND having a room that keeps other sounds OUT is important in the grand scheme of things. This needs to be done during the construction phase.

Things to think about are:

- How are you getting HVAC into and out of the room quietly?
- How are you going to do the lighting without messing up the isolation?
- Electrical outlets, switches, etc. all also poke holes in your isolated space and need to be addressed.

Bryan