Hello all. I am planning my first ever home stereo installation and I need help. I have extensive remodeling experience, but ZERO stereo installation experience. Rather than stumble forward blindly, I am hoping to get some expert advice. That being the case, if any of what follows doesn’t make sense or requires further explanation, please say so.
Here are my current plans and questions:
Speakers: I am planning for a home theater in the living room (5.1), 4 outdoor speakers in the backyard, 1 speaker each (wall-mounted) in the following rooms: office, kitchen, breakfast room, master bedroom. I want to be able to turn these speakers on/off depending on the listening needs. The source for all of these speakers will be in the living room. I have run 12 ga cable to the first two exterior speakers. The longest run of speaker cable will be to the master bedroom, a run of approximately 100 feet.
Questions:
1. Is 12 ga big enough for the length of my cable runs?
2. What type of receiver should I be looking for? Ditto speaker selector, amplifier, etc. (I’m not necessarily looking for make/model recommendations so much as narrowing down what type of equipment I should be looking for).
3. Are these wall plates appropriate for the speakers I am planning (assume that all speaker wire will be run in walls/attic)?
http://www.monoprice.com/product?c_id=109&cp_id=10425&cs_id=&p_id=4012&seq=1&format=2
http://www.monoprice.com/product?c_id=104&cp_id=10425&cs_id=1042503&p_id=3326&seq=1&format=2
