# My humble living room setup



## A/V (Feb 5, 2014)

Hey all,
Greetings from Down Under! Thought I would throw this up here just for fun. Nothing compared to the beautiful 

I have always LOVED audio and video which I think I must have inherited from my dad. Spending my teen years building speaker boxes and helping dad with his PA equipment at events. Now married with a 5 month old, I finally have built a basic starter system I am happy with for now.

The challenge with this is that I had to build it on a budget...and in a living room. That meant DIY and WAF as much as possible. I would have loved to build my own speakers like back in the day but just knew that trying to find the time to do it would be like trying to hit a flying kangaroo blindfolded.

So a 'value for money' system was in the mix. I ended up deciding on:
- Sony STR-DN1040 A/V Receiver
- Q Acoustics 2050i fronts, 2000Ci center (upright behind screen), 2010i rears (wall-mounted)
- SVS-PB2000 subwoofer (this thing is huge!). Plan is to get a second one asap.
- Sony BDPS4100 3D Blu ray player,
- Ben Q W1070 projector. (Gotta do something with that cord! But alas, we rent),
- 110" 16:9 DIY Spandex Acoustically Transparent Screen. (Brought out on the weekends and hung. 2mins to set up. Does not colour sound one little bit. Since these photos, I have made some 2.40:1 masking panels for it. Value for money with this type of screen is amazing. Especially considering most AT screens hit around $1500 as a starter, when for $150, you can have an AT screen that is 80-90% as good as a bought one. Made me think. Is the $1500 screen REALLY worth 10 times as much?)
- Behind the screen on the TV unit is a 42" Panasonic plasma for general TV during the week.
- Reclining leather lounge on back wall. I'd love to get it off the back wall, but alas, it would not work for the WAF. 

Being a living room setup, we never watch movies much during the week. The screen comes out Friday night, stays there over the weekend, goes back Sunday night and you'd never know any better. As we don't watch movies during the day, we don't have a problem with ambient light, as at night we close everything up and switch off all the lights.

Anyways, I'm pretty happy with my 'compromise living room' setup. I dream of the day I can have a dedicated room, but this will have to do for now. I'd love to hear your comments and suggestions.

*NEW FURNITURE & RUG. No coffee table now. Room layout hasn;t changed.*









Old furniture:








I have to do something about the projector leads! But I can't run anything through the ceiling.
















Notice center speaker standing up on end for attempted LCR setup.

























Planned acoustic treatment: (Sitting in the main lounge) I currently plan a horizontal absorption panel behind our heads on the main lounge, an absorption panel on the right side near the dining room corner, and absorption panels behind the main speakers on the wall. Bass traps are not really an option unfortunately (unless you can make them pretty. ). BTW, I usually throw a heavy blanket over the recliner on the left side closest to the speaker to help with some reflection/cancellation imbalance issues etc.

*Pics Update:* Go to page 2 for some 'behind the screen' pics.


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## A/V (Feb 5, 2014)

My speaker placement puts the L&R mains behind the screen itself.


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## A/V (Feb 5, 2014)

Heights


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## A/V (Feb 5, 2014)

Some screen shots with 2.40:1 masking and some ambient light for some context.


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## cobr (Oct 31, 2013)

G'day mate. Looks like you have an awesome set-up there. Maybe try to remove/wind up all cords as your toddler soon starts crawling around and pulling anything! What part of Oz you live? I'm from Perth but living in California now. Good to see some nice set up from Down Under


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## B- one (Jan 13, 2013)

Nice setup, I wish I could have a projector in my living room. Thanks for sharing.


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## A/V (Feb 5, 2014)

cobr said:


> G'day mate. Looks like you have an awesome set-up there. Maybe try to remove/wind up all cords as your toddler soon starts crawling around and pulling anything! What part of Oz you live? I'm from Perth but living in California now. Good to see some nice set up from Down Under


Good idea mate. She hasn't started crawling yet so still have some time to kid-proof everything which is good. Getting a new tv unit so I can lock away the BD player and AV receiver. Food in BD player drawer no good. :hissyfit:


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## A/V (Feb 5, 2014)

B- one said:


> Nice setup, I wish I could have a projector in my living room. Thanks for sharing.


Thanks mate. I'm sure you'll figure out a way. :T


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## B- one (Jan 13, 2013)

A/V said:


> Thanks mate. I'm sure you'll figure out a way. :T


I know how it's buy a new house .


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## zonecoaster1 (Jan 23, 2014)

Great use of the space. I imagine the screen size and distance + the fact that it's AT combine to provide a very immersive viewing experience. I bet it sure feels like a dedicated theatre room once the show starts. Nicely done.


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## BeeMan458 (Nov 25, 2012)

The things we do for love........home theater love.

Great setup. Congratulations on the "HUGE" AT screen setup.

...

Ya gotta love your screen as that's flat out awesome.


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## chrapladm (Jun 17, 2009)

Awesome setup. I look forward to doing a screen like this later on this year.


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## A/V (Feb 5, 2014)

Thanks for the compliments guys. As we know all too well, nothing is ever really...finished... 

Here are some 'behind the scenes' shots:
Covers on









Naked









Center channel horizontal for general TV viewing but goes vertical for movie nights









The hub


















Still some tidying up to do









Noise makers



























The vision









Watched Finding Nemo in 3D last night. At 1.78:1 it is such an engrossing movie in 3D! It was like a whole new film!


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## chrapladm (Jun 17, 2009)

Great pictures. I forgot to ask what material did you use for your screen?

I was going to go to Spotlight today anyways and figured I would see if they have it.


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## A/V (Feb 5, 2014)

It's 20%Spandex 80%Poly/Nylon? See if you can find the matte white. The only stuff I could get has a slight sheen to it. In some very bright scenes, it seems to wash out some of the contrast a little. Almost like it is 'spreading' the light onto the darker areas as well if that makes sense. With the black backing, the whites are like a slight off-white, but the blacks are very deep. I love deep blacks so that is why I chose the black backing as opposed to a grey/silver. Watching star wars and anything spacey is a pleasure. 

Good luck with your screen! DIY gives you a good feeling knowing you've saved a ton of money, and it's 90% of the way to a commercial screen 10 times the price.


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## rawsawhd (Apr 10, 2014)

Nice set up and multifunctional room. Clean looking... If you ever think of hiding the wire to the projector, I found a cable wiring channel at Home Depot. 3 screws per 4' section, snap the cover on and paint. Cheap and cleans it up nice..


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## afterlife2 (Jan 23, 2013)

Really nicely placed. Congrats!


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## willis7469 (Jan 31, 2014)

afterlife2 said:


> Really nicely placed. Congrats!


afterlife, I have to ask about your avatar. Who is that? (Looks like someone I know). Btw, I looked over your story, and would like to extend some sympathy. It's not the same but I've had 2 of my homes burglarized to the tune of 3 times. Painful. Nice setup btw!
Will


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## afterlife2 (Jan 23, 2013)

EDITED for OP thread flow.


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## willis7469 (Jan 31, 2014)

afterlife2 said:


> Thank you for your kinds words, Will. It's still tough somedays even still. Very sorry about your thefts. It happen to me as well in my second apt. about 15 years ago and it was rough. The only thing that was a bit funny in that situation is that they actually went in my fridge freezer and stole the meat I had inside.:rubeyes: Who does that? That pic in my avatar is Mr. Presley...


Stole meat from the freezer...WOW. Is nothing sacred? Lol
Now that you say Presley, I can't see how I missed it. Must have been taken when he was fairly young?


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## tripplej (Oct 23, 2011)

thanks for posting the pictures. you did a great job! I love the setup. Very nice.

I am sure you will have a lot of enjoyment in that room!


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## A/V (Feb 5, 2014)

New furniture & rug. Room layout hasn't changed. Just feels more spacious now. Even with the screen up.


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## afterlife2 (Jan 23, 2013)

Looking great!!! Enjoy it to the MAX!


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## chrapladm (Jun 17, 2009)

So it is an electric drop down screen?

Do you have any pictures of the screen up? Or is it in ceiling?

I only ask because I have wondered what others have done. I cant afford to do the screen I want but most likely will get a drop down/pull down setup.


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## A/V (Feb 5, 2014)

chrapladm said:


> So it is an electric drop down screen?
> 
> Do you have any pictures of the screen up? Or is it in ceiling?
> 
> I only ask because I have wondered what others have done. I cant afford to do the screen I want but most likely will get a drop down/pull down setup.


See page 1 for more pics & info with the screen, but here it is set up with the old furniture. It is a DIY AT Spandex screen I made. It is holding up pretty well considering it gets pulled in and out of storage 3 or 4 times every weekend. It takes about 2mins to set up including the masking panels for 2.4:1. (see first page).









Next on the list is twin Dayton 18" sealed subs to go either side of the tv unit. They are on their way to me from the US as of last night.


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## chrapladm (Jun 17, 2009)

Are you using aluminum extrusion or wood for the frame?

Was more curious on the frame and how it was hung. Either way looks great.:T


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## A/V (Feb 5, 2014)

chrapladm said:


> Are you using aluminum extrusion or wood for the frame?
> 
> Was more curious on the frame and how it was hung. Either way looks great.:T


It's just 40x20(ish) pine for the frame. Hung with chains & hooks. When the screen is gone, you would only know it was there by the two (almost invisible) hooks in the ceiling...and the projector. Can't hide that too easily...


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