# Quijibo's Basement Theater



## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

Welcome to my theater build thread.
I've been loving reading others threads and getting some ideas and tips for doing my own.
Now that we've kinda settled into our new house, it's time to smash some stuff.
Here's the before and after shots of the space involved.

I have now tidied up lots of the wiring, and run power to the projector area, although I'll be waiting on sealing it off until I get my shipment of cables in so I can run an HDMI cable too.

Oooh this is already so fun.


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## Dale Rasco (Apr 11, 2009)

I look forward to watching the progress, looks like it is going to be a good one!


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## expepsilon (Jul 12, 2011)

Looking good. :clap: Are you doing the work yourself?

I recently did some work done in my home and watching it get demo'd to studs to rock and then paint, is definitely fulfilling.

I only wish I had made it more ht friendly like you're going to do.

Best of luck!! Hope you share more pics along the way!!


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

it's definitely a DIY project.
Ran out of Speaker wire tonight...


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## sga2 (Nov 14, 2009)

Looks like you're off to a good start.

Nice handle, by the way. Love me some classic Simpsons.

Regards,
sga2


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## igl007 (Jul 25, 2011)

I have just started my basement HT as well. Nice start!


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

sga2 said:


> Looks like you're off to a good start.
> 
> Nice handle, by the way. Love me some classic Simpsons.
> 
> ...


It certainly is a classic episode. 
Made some more progress today.


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

Well my shipment of a couple HDMI cables and Speaker wire arrived today so I was able to continue work on the room. Now just waiting for the mount. I also Picked up some Behr Silverscreen paint, and a couple paint samples to try to decide on colors to paint the rest of the room. Need to darken it down a touch. I'll be heading to "fabric land" for some black velvet for the front wall.
I also got a tip on a place in the city that sells OC703 panels at a "reasonable price" so I'll be able to get some treatments going too.

Full Room View:
I was able to get power run to where the projector will be mounted, and an HDMI Cable run there too.
Speaker wire has been run to the front speakers.










Rack Area:
Not much to say about it other than it used to be a closet.... so plenty of room for expansion 










View of inside the rack.
I made sure to leave plenty of room to stand in behind there to get easy access to wires and such.









Still need to run wires for surrounds.
I'll be adding a couple more surrounds when I find some at a nice price, but the wiring for the rears will be quite simple.


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

well, the projector will be getting returned to Costco.
Way too loud, and looks like I suffer from DLP-induced-carebear vision. (I see rainbows).
Looks like it will be LCD probably epson 8350.

Did some more work. getting prepped for paint, nothing exciting, just covering the big drywall holes.


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

not too much progress, just been doing drywall work (previous owner left high and low spots at pretty much every seam).
Installed a few new light switches, and ran some more wires for surrounds.
Furniture comes tomorrow, so I'll be able to get some paint soon, and decide on carpet (eventually).


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## TCinGA (Feb 17, 2008)

Nice choice on the the projector. I went with the Epson 8350 as well. For me its a great projector for the money. Be sure to check your distance from the projector to the screen and make sure it matches up with the screen size you are planning. The 8350 is really flexible with placement but check out the distance calculator at projector central.


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

Not too much progress lately. Got some furniture, and drywalling/mudding is ~90% done.
on to do list:
- Get door for top of stairs (keep kids/baby upstairs and sound downstairs)
- continue insulation of furnace room wall to reduce noice.
- decide on lighting
- decide on paint.
- decide on carpet.
- build subwoofer
- add two more speakers (looking for decent Bi-polar surrounds).
- acquire some room treatements and decide on placement.

too many decisions.


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## Dale Rasco (Apr 11, 2009)

Need some more pics!:T


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

Here's some new photos.
I decided to try the Behr Silverscreen paint that people seem to like.
wires across the back are tacked up until I finish painting and get some conduit to cover them up.


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

Anyone have thoughts on having a bit of a two tone paint job? Dark for the front half, and not as dark for the back half? Still trying to decide what I'm doing.


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

Looks like things are going great! 

As far as color goes, the only thing I could think of to detract from a two color idea is that it may appear like you have gone from one room to another - like in an open floor plan house (ie living room and kitchen are different colors). Other than that possible effect, I think it would look good.

Just curious - what are the room's dimensions?


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

Room is approx 12.5x21x7.5
I'm thinking I'll at least try the two tone paint job. Paint is cheap right? 
I really need to push the furniture out of the way and finish all the drywall work. It's close, but a little more work will make all the difference prior to paint.


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## igl007 (Jul 25, 2011)

Quijibo said:


> Room is approx 12.5x21x7.5
> I'm thinking I'll at least try the two tone paint job. Paint is cheap right?
> I really need to push the furniture out of the way and finish all the drywall work. It's close, but a little more work will make all the difference prior to paint.


Almost identical room dimensions as mine... Mine is 12.4x21x7.4
I thought about two tone paint also, but ended up with flat black.


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

Definitely want to see pics if you do decide to go with the 2 colors.

I am working with pretty much the same dimensions - 14x21x7.5. I think those longer rooms really lend themselves to a 2 color theme so I am anxious to see how it turns out!


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

igl007 said:


> Almost identical room dimensions as mine... Mine is 12.4x21x7.4
> I thought about two tone paint also, but ended up with flat black.


I've been following you build for that reason. Never hurts to see what people's ideas are working, and what isn't


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

I built a riser a little while ago for the back row, and had noticed it is common to insulate them. Just wondering if there's a big reason to do this, or if it just to make sure it is as dead sounding as possible.
I don't anticipate it being a problem in my room, but I am wondering what experience others have in this area.

Aside from that, the only progress I've made is returning the projector due to rainbows and a pretty loud fan (thank you costco for your amazing return policy). I need to liquidate some unused assets before I'll be getting another projector, as it will be almost double the price as the optoma I had found.


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

I seem to recall reading a thread discussing how the riser would become a resounding box from the low level bass - someone else can probably give better specifics but that is fairly close to what I read.

New pics! :T


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

awww.... my thread made it to page 2.... so Bump!

On a plus note, I have another projector. Was able to get approval for 'Santa' to bring on for Christmas, and I got a nice deal on an Epson 8350. but... it has to stay in the box for a month. I did plug it in and do a quick test to ensure everything worked though. and it did.

it's quiet.
no rainbows.
crisp image.
minimal light spillage (compared to what I had).

I will be needing a new mount however. Anyone have recommendations? I'd like to keep it as close to the ceiling as possible.


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

more pictures soon too. I promise.


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

I looked at Chief for ceiling mounts - it was a while ago but I am pretty sure that they have something that will work.


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

Peerless mounts are also very good..


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

Here's a couple of updated pictures of the room.
My wife is quite pleased with how it all turned out (as am I). It looks much nicer than the poor pictures. (battery was quickly dying, so I didn't have much time to play with settings on the camera if I wanted to get something uploaded tonight).

I built the riser out of 4 4x10s (8 ft) and a sheet of 3/4" plywood. Simple and strong.
just the right height.

I did a quick projector mounting, with the mount I got. (whatever the store ended up having, nice mount, good price. no hassle with shipping stuff).
I was able to move the projector back more so it will be much more protected from people standing up in the second row and hitting it. which would happen with the Optoma I had. The Epson 8350 really is very flexible placement wise. After a quick demo with Tron Legacy, I packed the projector up and took down most of the mount.

It's going to be a long 19 days until Christmas, but it will be a fun reaction to see the kids (oldest is 4, and she keeps asking when we're getting another 'jector' for family movie night. She even said she would donate her piggy bank to the fund.)


 




Things I still plan on doing:
- Watching for a carpet sale.
- running wires again for the surrounds.
- putting a curtain across the equipment closet.
- building a couple of stands for the tower speakers to bring them up a touch.
- and of course, a new subwoofer. Needed badly, but budget is shrinking fast. then again, who needs nice carpet?
- some sort of sound dampening material, and a door at the top of the stairs.


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

Looking good Q - hope the days go by fast! And, how sweet is that to offer her piggy bank!

I remember when I was looking at projectors comparing everything to the 8350 because, as you said, it is a great projector and so incredibly flexible for placement. Good solid choice. 

One suggestion I saw somewhere for your equipment enclosure - have you considered having a tinted glass door made? From what I read, it would be similar to putting a door on for soundproofing while still allowing your gear to be seen. I have not priced them out myself as of yet unfortunately so I can't say how much more it would be than a curtain - just thought I would pass the idea along.

Not sure if you are qualified for the GIK giveaway or not - might be worth giving it a shot since $600 for acoustical treatments would help offset your other costs and help to get that sub! :bigsmile:

Joe


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

I have an arhitect friend that has a source for fancy glass work. I'm not too concerned about being able to see the equipment all the time, and I think tht a couple yards of fabric and some wood dowling (which I already have) will be much cheaper than the fancy glass. Something to keep on the list for later though, as I'm sure it would looks pretty spiffy.

I don't know if I've signed up for the GIK givaway yet. I try to get into all those.


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

First of all, projector is awesome. 

Just purchased a couple of MACH 5 XMASS-18s for future sub upgrade. 

http://www.istonline.ca/xmass-18.html

nice looking drivers, for a nice looking price.


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

Well, I think I'm going to try integrating the subs into a stage that will also bring the mains up beside the screen more.

I think I'll be able to work the two 18" drivers into a box that's only about 12" high.

The whole stage will be about 12 and 1/2 feet wide. 

I've started doing some sketch-up work, and hope to have something drawn up in the next couple days.


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

subwoofer build thread has commenced.

http://www.hometheatershack.com/forums/ported-subwoofer-build-projects/53536-quijibos-dual-xmass-18-build.html


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

Here's my Sketchup of how the room will look with the stage in there.


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

Did you have to re-size your sketch at all to get it to upload? If so, how did you do it?


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

All I did was a print screen, paste it into photoshop and re-size to meet upload requirements.


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

Updated picture with new subwoofer (see the link in my sig for the build thread).



I still plan on putting together a couple small stands to put the speakers on to bring them up a bit more which I think will tie the front of the room together nicely.

I'll have to get an SPL meter and start playing with REW to see what the results are, but so far... I like it.


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

Nice look Ryan - well done! :TT


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## Quijibo (Feb 8, 2011)

well I ran some test tones tonight, and found there was a bit of a null in around the 65-75 hz range (using my highly trained ear  ) , so I boosted that range a bit with the behringer Mic 2200. It worked pretty good.
now, when I get an SPL meter and do some actual testing, then well see how things really look.

oh, and there was a rattle going on at around 77 hz, so I pulled the driver off.... I had dropped a screw in when installing the driver. rattle solved.


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