Did a DIY bath room ceiling speaker installation project this weekend for some Monoprice 6.5" circlular ceiling speakers. Thought I'd share some techniques which worked well :
1) Planned the speaker location in the room based on anticipated acoustics, room limitations, and asthetics. Noted the install location relative to air vents, light fixtures, etc. which could help locate the spot when in the attic.
2) Went into the attic and scouted the desired speaker location. Noted the direction the ceiling joists run and any obstacles (pipes, cross beams, etc.) not visible from the room itself.
3) Returned to the bath room and used a stud finder to lightly pencil mark the ceiling joists which border the install location. Also used a tape measure to ensure the location avoided obstacle(s) found in step 2.
4) Used the manufacturer supplied template to pencil mark the speaker cut out hole.
5) Drilled a 7/64" pilot hole in the center of the circle and pushed a straightened coar hanger into the attic a couple feet to make finding the pilot hole easier.
6) Returned to the attic, found the coat hanger wire sticking up through the insulation and double-checked proper clearance from ceiling joists/obstacles before returning below to cut the drywall.
6) Returned to bath room and used a Roto-Zip with a circle cutting attachment to cut the hole. The coat-hanger pilot hole held the center pin of the circle cutting attachment. This worked real well and easily cut a professional looking, smooth edged hole.
7) Wired and installed the speaker--job complete.
Time for a jacuzzi and some jazz!
XEagleDriver
