Whole House Audio/Video

[darthjason]

I want some feed back on Whole House Audio/Video. I pre-wired my new home with 6 zones for audio. Each zone has speaker wire running to it from a central point in the basement as well as Cat5e to where the volume control etc. would be. I also have at least 1 Cat5e drop in each room 2 where I would typically place a video montior/TV. I am looking to phase in audio right now to at least 4 zones. What systems have people had the best luck with? Thanks.

 

[jcPanny]

A/V zones

Darth,
Did you run cat5 or Coax for the video? I have heard of a couple proprietary systems that run video over ethernet but 3 coax for composite video is much more common.

Your audio wiring sounds fine and your options will vary based on your budget. A simple system might include a Behringer A500 amp ($180) and impedance matching volume controls in each room ($30 each). However, all rooms would play the same source.
More complex systems from Russound, Niles, etc. will allow requre a distribution amp for 4-6 rooms and keypads that will allow you to play any source in any room. Expect to spend >$1k on the amp and >$100 on each keypad. You will probably also need to have a custom installer configure this type of system.

 

[darthjason]

I did run Coax as well, it just seemed that everything over IP seemed to be the future so... I put that in as well. Thanks for the imput.

Darth,
Did you run cat5 or Coax for the video? I have heard of a couple proprietary systems that run video over ethernet but 3 coax for composite video is much more common.

Your audio wiring sounds fine and your options will vary based on your budget. A simple system might include a Behringer A500 amp ($180) and impedance matching volume controls in each room ($30 each). However, all rooms would play the same source.
More complex systems from Russound, Niles, etc. will allow requre a distribution amp for 4-6 rooms and keypads that will allow you to play any source in any room. Expect to spend >$1k on the amp and >$100 on each keypad. You will probably also need to have a custom installer configure this type of system.