# In Wall vs External 7.1 system



## sagababa (May 7, 2011)

Hello,

I am new to this forum and this is my first post.

My wife and I are building a new home and planning to create a home theater in the basement. I have asked the builder to prewire a section of basement for future 7.1 installation. My plan is to put most of the speakers and media section in the wall. I wanted to check if there are any advantages/disadvantages doing so as against the external speakers. 
Thanks for help in advance!

Sagababa


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## hgoed (Mar 22, 2010)

I can't comment on the speakers, but I would make a suggestion--having just had a build of my own--make sure your pre-wire has either chases in the walls for more wires if needed. Or, at least wire double what you think you need. I'd suggest at least cat5 cable which has four pairs, vs the typical zip cord speaker wires. I really wish I had done that up front, and now my options are limited.


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## nova (Apr 30, 2006)

Welcome to Home Theater Shack. My opinion, the biggest advantage/disadvantage is price to performance. In-wall systems can sound fantastic but typically cost much more than comparable in-room speakers. Have you done any research into your theater or are you just getting started?


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## robbo266317 (Sep 22, 2008)

Welcome to HTS.

Cheers,
Bill


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## sagababa (May 7, 2011)

Thanks for your inputs!
Mark: I am just starting out. I have a budget upto $3000 for receiver, subwoofer and speakers. If I am doing the In-Wall, I will need to work with my builder to let them know where to keep the open spaces (and of what size) so that I can put my speakers in the wall. I can mount the side speakers up on wall. 
I have a 9 ft basement which will be finished.(I did an extra 1 ft upgrade) & the size of the room is 19X15 with left side of the room open.


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## nova (Apr 30, 2006)

With that budget I would highly recommend in-room speakers. You will have many more options for good speakers and the flexibility to move them to help correct any room issues you may encounter.
Does the 19 X 15 include the open part of the room?


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## hgoed (Mar 22, 2010)

If you look around this site, it might already have occurred to you to consider your own propensity for addiction. The first taste of a good system is nice, but if you're like many, you'll want more. External will give that option at the cost of a clean aesthetic.


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## zacjones (Mar 25, 2007)

Clearwave Loudspeakers makes an in-wall version of the Dynamic series, but you would have to have them installed professionally or DIY them. As far as speaker building goes, these would be very easy to build as they won't call for a lot of finish work -- only the baffle shows on the speaker. The design calls for an enclosure recessed into the wall with a flush mounted baffle. You could do the Dynamic 4T for mains, 4CC for center, and 1S for surrounds for $2500 or so. That's a little over budget, but you could get by without a sub for a while if you went that route. If you did those dynamic in-walls all the way around, it's unlikely you would be wanting to upgrade later. Ideally you would build your front stage wall out a little to make it between six and eight inches deep to facilitate integrating a cabinet with reasonable depth into the wall, and allow you to flush mount the baffles right into the wall. This would also allow you to recess your flat panel or projection screen into the wall, a very nice look as well. If you're considering in-walls and want high performance, take a look at them. The in-wall theater has a very custom look to it and could be fantastic if done right, but it's more work, more money and more difficult to get right. 

http://www.clearwaveloudspeaker.com/Dynamic/4T.html

http://www.clearwaveloudspeaker.com/Dynamic/4CC.html

http://www.clearwaveloudspeaker.com/Dynamic/1S.html

Good luck!


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