hey guys im new

[sammywantsya]

hey guys like the title says im new here lol and i would like to start a home theater for my basement. im new to this home theater experience and would like to know a few things before i go out and buy some products to set it up. also lol im from New York area so i hope to make a good impression here at the forums

i have been researching through a lot online on how to build one. for me im not actually a DIY person. this is a big project that i cant do lol so I have to rely on someone else to put the stuff and rebuild from start to finish. By researching i have learned so many things that i didn't know.

i know prices can be rearranged from 5,000 to 10,000 USD so im am willing to pay that much if needed.

i hope you guys that are experienced can give a newbie some few pointers before i buy because i dont want to end up buying wrong items or incorrect feeling. im hopping to make some good friends here at the forum as i go through this long journey to make my dream come a reality. i'm a movie / comp buff lol so this would be a great idea to make a home theater.

 

[dkane360]

Hey, welcome to the forum! We'll be glad to help you out through this excellent journey . Got any questions to start with?

 

[Stripes]

Welcome

Start off by telling us your proposed HT room size (HDW) and shape. This will give everyone an idea of what will best fill that space with emersive sound and video.

Your budget of $5-10k is pretty gapped, kind of like saying you are looking for a car in the $20-40K range. From 5K to 10K you are looking at completely different systems.

With HT at least IMHO just go with your max price range and try to stay somewhere close to it, which most of us go over anywhere between 2-10X originally what we started with.

 

[ParadigmDawg]

Welcome!

Great bunch of guys on here. I have made some awesome friends on here in the past 4 years.

 

[sammywantsya]

thank you guys for the warm welcome i feel very appreciated
i feel happy that i can make cool friends here while i get things started.

sorry guys that i wasn't active this evening. i was just busy doing my own thing and that got in the way of things lol.

@ ParadigmDawg

thanks lol i hope that i can be a good use to the forum and hang here

@ dkane360
well the things i have researched like soundproofing the walls and rebuilding the basement i need a contractor for that i just have minor things that i would like to know but right now i have no questions as of yet but i will get to them if i have some things in mind.

@ Stripes
well i can show you guys the pictures of my basement and i hope that can give out on what you guys can think of any ideas that i should be implementing at this moment. im willing to pay 10 K or more if needed so in that price range i will go for. im trying to save money as i go through what im looking for as for as construction goes.

right now my first goal is to sound proof the walls and make my basement like a well i cant explain it. i just need walls to walls base well sort of. in the picture i hope you can see what i mean by that.

i know that it can be very pricey to hire a contractor and soundproofing it and then carpet the floors and raise the floors and get a front stage to rise up a bit. im willing to pay that much because my family loves to watch videos and there small tv they cant see a thing lol so having a big theater in the basement will be good thing to have as for me too. i got 2 jobs my real job and my online job so i make double the amount even triple . so im starting to save big. im willing to get things started prob next year of march i know its a long way to go but it will be worth it. i just need to get ready in advance.


i hope i made sense on what im talking about if you guys cant understand im sorry for that

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

If my budget were $5K, I would get 5 Infiniti Primus P362 speakers + Subwoofer + $2K 1080p Projector (like Epson/Panasonic) + Denon 5.1 receiver from eCost + BD player.

http://www.ecost.com/prod/Electronics/Receivers/Denon+71+CH+AV+Home+Theater+Multi-SourceMulti-Zone+Receiver+-+AVR2310CI/53205641.aspx?navid=155442295

http://store.audioholics.com/product/2021/66333/infinity-primus-p362-floorstanding-speaker--each-

http://store.audioholics.com/product/2028/66319/infinity-ps212-400-watt-powered-subwoofer

http://store.audioholics.com/section/76/1/xs_pricelh/blu-ray-disc-players

http://store.audioholics.com/product/3143/11/epson-powerlite-home-cinema-8500ub-projector

 

[sammywantsya]

If my budget were $5K, I would get 5 Infiniti Primus P362 speakers + Subwoofer + $2K 1080p Projector (like Epson/Panasonic) + Denon 5.1 receiver from eCost + BD player.

http://www.ecost.com/prod/Electronics/Receivers/Denon+71+CH+AV+Home+Theater+Multi-SourceMulti-Zone+Receiver+-+AVR2310CI/53205641.aspx?navid=155442295

http://store.audioholics.com/product/2021/66333/infinity-primus-p362-floorstanding-speaker--each-

http://store.audioholics.com/product/2028/66319/infinity-ps212-400-watt-powered-subwoofer

http://store.audioholics.com/section/76/1/xs_pricelh/blu-ray-disc-players

http://store.audioholics.com/product/3143/11/epson-powerlite-home-cinema-8500ub-projector

awesome tips mate ill def keep that in mind and do more research

 

[sammywantsya]

ive got another question is hiring a contractor to build the walls and soundproofing it and AC in the basement how much will that cost? plus with rise up stairs and the lighting with a front stage. i know im asking too much but i would just like to know a few things so i can save it up in advance.

thank you guys so much

 

[jostenmeat]

ive got another question is hiring a contractor to build the walls and soundproofing it and AC in the basement how much will that cost? plus with rise up stairs and the lighting with a front stage. i know im asking too much but i would just like to know a few things so i can save it up in advance.

thank you guys so much

There is soundproofing for a LOT of money, or there is almost soundproofing for a reasonable amount. The accepted bang for buck method that many use is as follows: staggered studs, filled in between with insulation. Double drywall, with green blue between them. AFAIK.

Also, it would help if you could say how much budget is towards the room itself, and how much for your components. How about HT seating? I agree that a 2k PJ is the bang for buck, but of course more money can you get more quality.

I would also look into AT (acoustically transparent) screens. Look at the DIY fabric for only $20/linear ft, from Seymour. The CenterStage XD. Your contractor(s) can probably throw that up in a jimmy.

Then get three identical, vertically arrayed speakers for your front stage. You now are not confined to a horizontally arrayed center speaker design. The benefits are numerous, and I've typed them here about 100x before so excuse me for not doing so again. You can run search functions there.

HVAC is where I have no idea what to say. Depending on the contractor(s) you hire, and how much they may know about different things, you can always pay a highly educated HT designer for a consultation. For instance, I don't know if he still does it, but someone like Dennis Erskine can draw you up blueprints, with everything placed, including HVAC, without ever visiting you. Provide him with all of the plans. I think it was something like $1k, but it might in fact be more, if he even still does that thing. Just one example... Of course if you want to spend the big bucks, and have him fly out . . . well then you should have a pretty sick theater for sure . . .
http://www.epichomecinema.com/about-epic-cinema.php

 

[sammywantsya]

There is soundproofing for a LOT of money, or there is almost soundproofing for a reasonable amount. The accepted bang for buck method that many use is as follows: staggered studs, filled in between with insulation. Double drywall, with green blue between them. AFAIK.

Also, it would help if you could say how much budget is towards the room itself, and how much for your components. How about HT seating? I agree that a 2k PJ is the bang for buck, but of course more money can you get more quality.

I would also look into AT (acoustically transparent) screens. Look at the DIY fabric for only $20/linear ft, from Seymour. The CenterStage XD. Your contractor(s) can probably throw that up in a jimmy.

Then get three identical, vertically arrayed speakers for your front stage. You now are not confined to a horizontally arrayed center speaker design. The benefits are numerous, and I've typed them here about 100x before so excuse me for not doing so again. You can run search functions there.

HVAC is where I have no idea what to say. Depending on the contractor(s) you hire, and how much they may know about different things, you can always pay a highly educated HT designer for a consultation. For instance, I don't know if he still does it, but someone like Dennis Erskine can draw you up blueprints, with everything placed, including HVAC, without ever visiting you. Provide him with all of the plans. I think it was something like $1k, but it might in fact be more, if he even still does that thing. Just one example... Of course if you want to spend the big bucks, and have him fly out . . . well then you should have a pretty sick theater for sure . . .
http://www.epichomecinema.com/about-epic-cinema.php

thanks so much for your advice

well for components im willing to spend about 5K or more

another 5K will go under construction so total will be 10K. i can go more if i needed to. so yeah thats one of my price range for a dedicated home theater in the basement. i will show pics later so that you guys can see on whats going down lol

thanks again i will go search into that stuff

 

[krzywica]

Your contractor(s) can probably throw that up in a jimmy.

I think you meant in a Jiffy. These are both examples of a Jimmy.

 

[sammywantsya]

i took some pics today to see if you guys can think of any ideas on what it should look like in the future. i took the pics with my netbook so it was hard for me to take pics.

i have to hire someone to do rebuild the walls and put in the soundproof and dry wall in so i can maximize the sound inside and minimize the sound outside.

my basement is kinda messy lol but when i hire someone to install alot of home theater and design it it will look awesome.

front door to come inside






back room left


back room center


back room with fireplace






front screen and stage predicition


hope you guys can give me ideas

so will 10 K will be enough with construction and home theater installments? i know some systems can vary like you guys said so i am going to spend 5 K on home theater tech systems and 5 K to construction work. hope it will be enough. if it does cost more i will pay more. because i want my basement to be the best in the house for home theater

 

[sammywantsya]

so any guys would like to give me advice? it would def help

 

[jostenmeat]

so any guys would like to give me advice? it would def help

It's hard to say for a number of reasons. There are choices left to the individual. For instance, some people love doing up the room, even perhaps theme based, but the components being used are not of highest quality. Then there's someone like me who would be fine with a black cave, especially if that gave me higher quality components.

I am apprehensive that $10k can get you BOTH a nice room, and nice components, ESPECIALLY if you're hiring out your work. DIY, you have a chance, and that includes both the soundproofing as well as speakers/subs.

So, I'll leave the room to you.

Audio starters:
Room, set it all up lengthwise, symmetrical as far as sides. Keep viewers away from any boundary, if possible. 38% or tad less of room length distance to your ears, doesn't matter front or back wall. This is for the sweetspot (multi rows gets into a whole different ball of compromise wax).

Video starters:
dark dark dark is best best best. Kill all ambient lighting, if daytime viewing is important. Rope lighting and stuff like that, well I don't like it since it compromises performance. Fiber optic stuff for the ceiling "stars", well that's a lot of work, and I'm not sure how much money.

Use this calculator for finding right screen size for distance. Again starting point, then you eyeball it for preference. I like it big, especially since most of my stuff is in 2.35 AR. (edit #1, use 36 degrees, aka THX rec, as your starting point.)
http://myhometheater.homestead.com/viewingdistancecalculator.html

To know if any PJ is going to be bright enough for the size, find real world lumens (look for reviews, not specs), then divide that number by the square footage of screen. That gets you foot lumens (edit #2, really called foot lamberts). You want a target of about 16 FL. Brighter for others, but don't go too much dimmer.

other decisions for you include number of viewers, and how you're going to decide on number of speakers and where they should be located.


So, while this isn't rocket science, there's a lot to think about, if you want to do it right the first time. Few do it right the first time, and that's me included, though I tried and succeeded in some ways (and perhaps failed in others). Everything will be like that though; it seems one decision always compromises another.

Peruse this subforum to see build threads. Remember to pick your jaw back up time to time.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?s=&daysprune=30&f=19

 

[Alex2507]

Where in NY are you? Is that your basement? The reason I ask is because it looks like you have a hard ceiling and to wire that something is going to need to be dug into but another layer of 5/8 drywall would help deaden low frequency noise from traveling anyway. A member just got through posting some pic's of a nice wainscoting detail he put up in his basement H/T. It looked very nice.

http://forums.audioholics.com/forums/showthread.php?t=63707

AcuDefTechGuy needs a shorter name but has some good ideas on gear for 5g.

Edit: ... and a thumbs up on pretty much anything Jostenmeat says too.

 

[jostenmeat]

Where in NY are you?

Hi Alex.

How do you know he is in NY?

 

[Alex2507]

Hi Alex.

How do you know he is in NY?

It's like with vampires ... in the NE we can sense each other.

Post#1 silly.

 

[jostenmeat]

It's like with vampires ... in the NE we can sense each other.

Ah, thanks, now it makes sense.

sammy, for your PJ placement, further is increased contrast, and closer is brighter. It seems most videophiles encourage further placement, so long as it's still in the "sweetspot" range. (Max shift/zoom may hinder performance). Some PJs like my own can have increased ANSI contrast with use of vertical shift, but I think +90% of HTs have it like that anyways (but not mine for reasons I won't bother you with).

Anyways, projector central has calculators to give you an idea. In my very limited experiences, they stay on the safe side, and their calculators are not always indicative of the whole range that is truly available. Prolly for good reason.

http://www.projectorcentral.com/Epson-Ensemble_HD_8500-projection-calculator-pro.htm

EDIT: buy all your cabling from Monoprice. There, now you have an extra $1,000 to play with.

 

[sammywantsya]

@ jostenmeat

thanks so much for your input with the positives and the downsides of things i really appreciate this because this will help me in a long run well i got so many ideas i would like to put on and i will draw a floor plan for you guys to see on how much i can get done. i want my basement to be dark like you said earlier and want to add walls so it can fill in the gap between the doors and the front screen.

@ Alex2507
i live at longisland NY and your right dude hahaha lucky guess
thanks for the tip bro and i will def look up into this
i have already seen his awesome theater while i was looking at the gallery section it is def amazing on how they can do things with hands lol.... which i cant do because im not usually good with that stuff

im so excited about it to make it a home theater next year time. so it will def get me focused until then. so any criticism you guys would take on go for it im all ears

EDIT: i have a few questions tho should i buy the equipment first? or do the construction first? in my opinion would it be better to buy the equipment then do the construction ?

thanks guys for your tips ^^ so excited to do this

 

[Alex2507]

Equipment gets better and cheaper with time so get it last. The longer you wait, the better.