# New Build - 2nd House - Help me do it right



## landoll (May 19, 2011)

I have just moved into a new house and am excited about building out my second HT. The first time resulted in a good HT but based on what I see in these forums - I could do a lot better. I am a decent handyman and will be doing most of this myself but I am a novice at several things including acoustics. I look forward to your advice as I engage in this project.

Room:
Upstairs dedicated room that I will be able to control light and keep rather dark.
3 sides adjacent to either the outside or a bathroom.
1 side (side with the door) adjacent to bedroom (I want to soundproof this side).
Dimensions: 17'10" x 20'9" with 9' ceilings

Equipment:
Carada 118" Brilliant White Criterion Series 16:9 screen
Panasonic AE2000U Projector
Yahama RX-V765
Infinity PS-10 Sub
PS3, XBOX 360, HDTV Cable Box
Still need to buy (7.1 speakers) - looking to spend about $1000 on speakers. I also like the idea of two subs.

Questions:
1) Room layout: Background. I am planning two rows of seats (reclining with foot rests) with a bar height counter in the back. I would like a riser for the back row (I'm thinking 1' will do). I would like to fit my stand up video game and pinball in the room as well (or else they don't get in the house.) I have laid out most of this on the attached sketchup but I have yet to plan for the following:
- equipment closet
- soffit ceiling
- sound proofing the entry wall (I figure I may need to build a second wall along it for soundproofing).
- columns along the side walls (I like the look of floor to ceiling rectangular columns - and they seem to be a good place side wall speakers).
Question: Help. I am looking for advice on the planning of this space first. 
a) What should I consider when planning on ceiling soffit? Is this just for lights or does it provide acoustic improvements as well? (9 ft ceiling but back part of HT will have a 1 ft riser). What do I make these out of?
b) where is the best place for an equipment closet. I was thinking about building out cabinets on the sides of the screen (screen against the wall but stage and marque coming out 18"-24", match that with side cabinets that come out just as far with one of those side cabinets being an equipment closet.
c) I have seen postings about bass traps and sub cabinets but I do not know much about this. Are these recommended for my set up? Where could I put these?
d) Regarding the riser - any specific tips or requirements on how it is built? I was simply going to pull up the carpet and construct it with 2"x whatever and plywood on top, but now I am wondering about how it is attached (should there be felt underneath?) and what it is filled with (do I need to put in insulation or foam?)

I look forward to your advice. I am sure there are more details necessary.


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## Ted White (May 4, 2009)

Welcome to HTS! You'll like it here. For soundproofing, you might consider some of the points referenced here: http://www.soundproofingcompany.com/library/articles/room_within_a_room/

More articles found here: http://www.soundproofingcompany.com/library/articles/

Feel free to ask questions. Consider starting a build thread. That will lure many eyes and good opinions.


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Welcome!

a) What should I consider when planning on ceiling soffit? Is this just for lights or does it provide acoustic improvements as well? (9 ft ceiling but back part of HT will have a 1 ft riser). What do I make these out of?

Soffits can certainly be used for acoustic purposes - primarily broadband bass control. Easiest way is to just frame them, fill with insulation, and wrap in cloth.

b) where is the best place for an equipment closet. I was thinking about building out cabinets on the sides of the screen (screen against the wall but stage and marque coming out 18"-24", match that with side cabinets that come out just as far with one of those side cabinets being an equipment closet.

In general, you'll want it somewhere out of your field of view so the lights aren't distracting during movies.

c) I have seen postings about bass traps and sub cabinets but I do not know much about this. Are these recommended for my set up? Where could I put these?

Absolutely. Sub(s) are almost a requirement for effective HT presentation. You'll need to experiment with placement as even changing a few inches can drastically impact performance. Bass control is also required in pretty much any room. Front corners and rear wall (and soffits) are good places.

d) Regarding the riser - any specific tips or requirements on how it is built? I was simply going to pull up the carpet and construct it with 2"x whatever and plywood on top, but now I am wondering about how it is attached (should there be felt underneath?) and what it is filled with (do I need to put in insulation or foam?)

That's fine. No need to attach it but you will want some sort of padding to stop any rattling (though the weight should do a good job if the lumber is relatively straight.) Just fill it with fluffy wall insulation. No need to compress it but fill it. Make the top from 2 layers of 3/4" MDF to make it nice and solid and to keep the riser from generating its own resonances.


Read more: New Build - 2nd House - Help me do it right - Home Theater Forum and Systems - HomeTheaterShack.com


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## sga2 (Nov 14, 2009)

Some thoughts on location of equipment closet... 

Connectivity and Wiring: Most of your wiring will converge at the AV rack. Its placement may significanly affect how much wiring you need. This is of particular concern with HDMI cables you plan to install - you want to keep those as short as practical for signal quality and cost - but all of the other cables (speakers, coax for subs, any auxiliary connections, etc) will add up especially if you're planning to serve a second (or 3rd) zone with the AV gear. Ditto for power circuits.

Ease of Access: If any one of the candidate locations allow for direct rear access to the equipment (maybe through an adjacent space or closet), you should consider using it unless there is an overriding reason not to. 

Temperature Control: If possible, avoid locating on an outside wall unless you are going to have plenty of ventilation. The cavity on an outside wall/attic might be 20-30 degrees hotter than an inside wall which makes temperature control more difficult.

Visual Impact: Some of your AV gear probably have very bright lights that are difficult to dim/turn off or which you may want to keep on for quick status checks. For that reason I put my gear in an adjacent closet with solid door. Also helps knock down equipment noise, too.

Regards,
sga2


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## robbo266317 (Sep 22, 2008)

Hi, Welcome to HTS.

Cheers,
Bill.


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## landoll (May 19, 2011)

I think I missed something. Is this a build thread? Perhaps this becomes a build threat as I start posting pictures of the project in progress.


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## landoll (May 19, 2011)

*Build Progress and Next Steps: Sept 2011*

Finally ready to start on this project. I'll be clearing out the room soon and plan on the following order for my build:

1) Sound-proof walls and floor prior to constructing soffits, riser, bass traps, and screen stage.
My first task is the near wall (theater room entrance). I am planning on keeping the outside of this wall intact because it is shared with a hallway and a bedroom that I don't want to disturb. So I plan on performing this modification from just one side (the theater room side) of the wall. My plan is as follows:

Cut away drywall from the inside
Build a second wall 1" from existing wall using hat channel and RSIC-1 clips and staggered studs
fill wall with R-19 insulation
complete wall with two sheets of staggered drywall, separated with Green Glue.
2) Sound-proof floor. This is a second level theater room with the family room below. A good portion (about 50% of the floor will have good sound proofing when I get to building a riser but the front of the room is simply a hollow floor. I am looking for the best way to sound proof this floor. Here is my current plan.

Ignore the back of the room that will have the riser built over it. I am assuming that sound proofing the riser will suffice.
For the front of the room, rip up the carpet and pad, cut out access panels in the sub floor, and install R-19 insulation between rafters, then screw access panels back down.
Cover floor with staggered 3/4" 2nd layer of subfloor, using some type of insulator glue or rubber (not really sure here).

I am looking for advice on my plan here. Especially on the floor. I saw some posts regarding triple leaf effects but the article link was gone. So I believe this may be a problem but I am not sure why. I also saw a post (thread) about requesting an alternative to insulating the the floor without removing the subfloor (wife's demand) but I did not see a reply. I guess I am in the same boat here. Advice on insulating the floor without removing the subfloor?


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## Ted White (May 4, 2009)

Remove the drywall from original walls, come in 1" and build a new single stud wall. That's a double stud wall, the gold standard. No clips are required. R13 fiberglass, double 5/8" drywall and Green Glue

Second story floors generally are covered in Acoustik Mat, then subfloor layers with Green Glue.


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## landoll (May 19, 2011)

Thanks for the quick reply. Just so I got this right:

Wall:

Remove drywall - got it.
"come in 1" and build a new single stud wall" - set a new top and bottom plate 1" from existing wall. Is is necessary to stagger the studs? Can I just screw the top and bottom plate in or do I need to glue these?
 Fill with each wall with R-13 
 Top off with 2x drywall separated with Green Glue - got it

SubFloor:

Is it still a good idea to remove sections of the subfloor to push in insulation?
2x layers: So I can then apply the green Glue and then a second layer of subfloor?
Is it reasonable to ignore this treatment for the back of the room that will be covered with a riser (with 2x subfloor)?
Acoustik Mat: that is applied on top of everything else? Right?


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## Ted White (May 4, 2009)

Pretty close. No staggering of studs. You will have two parallel rows of studs (two framed walls) separated by 1". If building next to a foundation, the foundation counts as the outer wall. So just come in 1" and build your "second" wall.

You would roll out Acoustik Mat over the whole floor after walls are built AND DRYWALLED. Then the stage and risers are built within these sealed confines. Make sense?


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## landoll (May 19, 2011)

Covering the windows: 

I have a row of windows on two sides of this room (total of 8 windows). This is a dedicated theater room so I plan on completely covering them up, not black out curtains but building out window frames for a black out.

Q1: What is the best material to face the outside? I want to go with a white color for the outside so the house doesn't look funny. For the inside I plan on black. I was thinking a simple 1" frame covered with material fitted to the inside window frame. 

Q2: I am also considering a second material frame around the window. This frame would be larger than the window frame (the window is recessed). The frame would provide sound installation and double as an acoustic panel. Is this is good idea?

Q3: Acoustics. I am not sure I have the spend for a full wall to wall paneling for acoustics. I can and will keep all hard surfaces out of the HT. Can I get by with acoustic panels and soffit?


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Targeted treatment can certainly do a good job. No need whatsoever to do every square foot.

As for the outside color, white is tough to beat, never fades, etc.

Bryan


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