Help me wire my home theatre system.

[kcrossley]

I'm setting up a new home theatre system in an unfinished attic and I'm completely clueless about wiring. I just had my electricians wire all of the outlets, recessed lighting, wall sconces, closet where the A/V components will be housed, and the projector.

Now I need to run the wires for all of the A/V stuff, which I've decided to do myself. I need to figure out what cables I should install for current and future use, and I need to install them before the insulation and drywall are installed the end of next week.

Here are the components I'm considering:
Sanyo PLV-Z5
Onkyo TX-SR804 7.1 Up-converting THX Certified A/V receiver
DVD (undetermined)
VHS player (undetermined)
Speakers (undetermined)
Apple Mac Book Pro
Apple iTV (maybe)

And here are my questions.
1. What types of cables would you run from the receiver to the projector?
2. Would you consider the RapidRun solution? http://www.rapidrun.com/
3. Is a 7.1 surround sound system really worth it or should I stick to 5.1?
4. What about a THX certified receiver? Is it worth it or a waste of money?
5. What would you recommend for the other "undetermined" components? 6. How should I connect my Xbox and Apple laptop, through the receiver or directly to the projector?

Thanks for your help.

Kelly

 

[Nick250]

Here is start from AudioHolics University. You can just scan through it and find what applies to your setup.

http://www.audioholics.com/education/cables/

Nick

 

[mtrycrafts]

One caution about that closet, audio components and video projectors.

They all like cool air. Projectors especially and don't like recirculated air or the bulb life will be short.

Another projector consideration is distance from screen. Light output on screen can suffer and distance may exceed max projection distance.

 

[highfihoney]

Mytry gave you some seriously good advice for the extended life of your system,ive personally seen a 30k system that sustained major damage from being constantly overheated in an audio closet.

Being that your room is a converted attic i'd suspect that you have no attic or plenum left for vents,you should look into a thermostatically controled powered roof vent that you can put over the closet,they only cost a couple hundred bucks & are easy to install.

 

[kcrossley]

That is good advice. Much appreciated. The attic is a conditioned space using a mini-split system: http://www.mrslim.com/Products/itemDetail.asp?ProductSubCategoryID=140&ProductCategoryID=24&ProductID=1492

But the closet is not conditioned at all. It will be insulated though. Will the roof vent be enough to cool the closet? The projector will be ceiling mounted and is not enclosed.

 

[mtrycrafts]

That is good advice. Much appreciated. The attic is a conditioned space using a mini-split system:

But the closet is not conditioned at all. It will be insulated though. Will the roof vent be enough to cool the closet? The projector will be ceiling mounted and is not enclosed.

Will the projector then not be in the closet? Sure sounded like it would be. If in the closet, what dimension, it may still be an issue depending where are the intakes and exhausts on the projector and what the manual calls for distances from surfaces around it.
Depending on the projector, the fan could be very quiet and not need an enclosure.
How about the distance from the screen?

 

[kcrossley]

Will the projector then not be in the closet? Sure sounded like it would be. If in the closet, what dimension, it may still be an issue depending where are the intakes and exhausts on the projector and what the manual calls for distances from surfaces around it.
Depending on the projector, the fan could be very quiet and not need an enclosure.
How about the distance from the screen?

The projector is a Sanyo PLV-Z5 and will mount on the ceiling approximately 15' from the 92" fixed screen. This is what ApexVisual recommended. The closet is approximately 32" deep by 12' wide x 8' tall with two 32" doors. There is a 32" x 32" shelf area within the closet which is raised approximately 24" from the floor.

 

[mtrycrafts]

The projector is a Sanyo PLV-Z5 and will mount on the ceiling approximately 15' from the 92" fixed screen. This is what ApexVisual recommended. The closet is approximately 32" deep by 12' wide x 8' tall with two 32" doors. There is a 32" x 32" shelf area within the closet which is raised approximately 24" from the floor.

OK, so the projector is ceiling mounted; that is good, free flow of air.
What is the minimum distance for that screen? Any issues with mounting it at the min distance?

Looks like the closet is not all behind doors. Will the audio/video components be behind those doors? Certainly a big closet so it would be easy to cool. Are the doors solid in the sense that no louvers are on them as that feature could solve putting a roof fan, or a fan to a space behind the closet, if there is one.

 

[kcrossley]

I'm not sure of what the minimum distance for the projector is, although this online calculator may help with determining that: http://www.projectorcentral.com/Sanyo-PLV-Z5-projection-calculator-pro.htm

As for cooling the closet, this should help get the cool air from the main room into that area: http://www.smarthome.com/30311.html

 

[kcrossley]

The ceiling where the projector mounts is 8' high. As far as mounts are concerned, will this work? http://www.mountsandmore.com/asp/show_detail.asp?sku=CF1122&PiID=129711 Will I need an extension rod? If so, what length? I've purchased Chief wall mounts before and I find that their quality is really good.

 

[jcPanny]

HT Setup

KC,
Post a total budget for the remaining equipment (Speakers, sub, receiver, DVD, etc.) and you will get plenty of suggestions.

An HDMI receiver will be nice since you will want an HDMI connection to the PJ. They start in the $500 range. I wouldn't worry too much about the THX badge.

Check out one of the Oppo upscalling DVD players ($150-220) or possibly a Toshiba HD-DVD player ($300) for your video source.

I would cross the VCR off the list for the HT equipment. A low resolution source like this will look crummy on a 100" PJ screen. Watch the old home movies in a different room on a smaller TV.

 

[mtrycrafts]

I would cross the VCR off the list for the HT equipment. A low resolution source like this will look crummy on a 100" PJ screen. Watch the old home movies in a different room on a smaller TV.

Yes, an excellent suggestion. Imagine watching a 240 resolution picture that large

 

[mtrycrafts]

I'm not sure of what the minimum distance for the projector is, although this online calculator may help with determining that: http://www.projectorcentral.com/Sanyo-PLV-Z5-projection-calculator-pro.htm

As for cooling the closet, this should help get the cool air from the main room into that area: http://www.smarthome.com/30311.html

Check that fan's sound level, I didn't see any numbers, and that needs to be a consideration.

Get into the projectors web site and see if they have an on line manual as some do. Then, you can check through it for mounting instructions as that section will show minimum and max distance based on screen size. And, it will let you know how far above the screen you can mount it without keystone adjustments, if that has it; try not to use that feature as it tends to distort the picture and may be visible.

Since mounting is a consideration, the screen should not be too high with reference to your eye height when seated. Your eyes should be about 1/3 up from the bottom of the screen; then, you can figure projector height.

 

[kcrossley]

Check that fan's sound level, I didn't see any numbers, and that needs to be a consideration.

http://www.suncourt.com/ThruWall208.html

Low is 49 dBA, High is 55 dBA. The room to room fan will be positioned at the front right of the room.

FYI, the Sanyo PLV-Z5's fan noise is 22 dBA to 27 dBA.

 

[mtrycrafts]

http://www.suncourt.com/ThruWall208.html

Low is 49 dBA, High is 55 dBA. The room to room fan will be positioned at the front right of the room.

FYI, the Sanyo PLV-Z5's fan noise is 22 dBA to 27 dBA.

I would use that Sanyo. The 49-55 dB is pretty loud background noise to contend with
Can you add a 2nd Sanyo in the component closet?

 

[kcrossley]

I would use that Sanyo. The 49-55 dB is pretty loud background noise to contend with

Yeah, I know. I searched the Internet and the only other room-to-room fan I could find was from Broan, which had pretty much the same noise output.