# MrLoofer's Garage HT Build



## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

This has been six years in the making. Finally been given the go ahead to convert our two car garage into a HT. The plan is to convert about 5/8 of the garage and utilize the room as a dedicated HT coupled with a desk where I can work in the day (in peace I may add!). This will be an opportunity to have a room dedicated to watching movies in the evening and working in the day, utilizing both the HT's lighting and audio system to make for a nice, calm working environment.

This is my "office" today:










My existing media room (AKA the living room):










The garage space where the HT is going. This is about 18.5' x 12.5' currently:










And this is the HT plan:










So the plan is basically to build a room within a room with decoupled walls, double drywall and green glue. Hopefully there will be enough space for a 2nd row of two seats, or small love seat, and a desk where I'll be able to do some work.

Pic taken at Home Depot earlier today where I hand picked the lumber (poor girl on her hands and knees counting all the 2x4s). All 3 of those carts were mine.










Framing starts Monday and I'll post more pics then.

Cheers.


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Looks like a nice project. Looking forward to following the progress. 

Bryan


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

If they're surround speakers on the side walls as shown in the plan, then they are far to forward..
They need to be back near the sides of the front seats..
Also I would move the rear speakers a bit closer together..

I'll be following your build with interest..


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

I have a question regarding a room within a room plan: We are framing the walls today with the intention that the ceiling joists are 1/4" from the existing ceiling, however we just found that the ceiling is not level and in one part about 1 ft of the new ceiling joist is actually touching the existing ceiling. Is this going to be a major problem as far as vibration or sound proofing for low frequencies?

Cheers.


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## Sonnie (Apr 11, 2006)

This is very very similar to my first garage build that I truly enjoyed. I would go even farther back with the surrounds if you ever plan to have anyone sitting in those rear seats, otherwise they will end up overpowering the fronts for those listeners. It is a difficult compromise, but what I found was a couple of rear corner surrounds was all I needed in my first room, which was 11.5' x 19.5'. I think I still have some of the old pics where I still had the speaker box connectors in the side walls after moving them back to the corners.

I would be worried about vibrating noises between the new and old ceiling where they touch unless they are wedged against each other pretty tight. It also would not hurt for your ceiling to not be completely level... it could have a slight slope from one end to the other if that would help keep the old from touching the new.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Hey guys - actually those are sconces not speakers, sorry the plan is not clear in that regard. I was however planning on 4 rear speakers, two mounted between both rows and two on the rear wall. Not sure yet but I plan on wiring for both. And Sonnie, yep your garage HT is what inspired me to do this in the first place 

Today we are hopefully finishing the framing. Still to do are the ceiling joists, the equipment rack and the entrance way including door. Then onto the riser and maybe electrical on the weekend. Our plan is to start drywall early next week.

Framing almost done:










New A/C mini split system. We plan on installing this ourselves with the help of my neighbor who's an A/C guy. I bribed him with beer and an invite to watch the first football game of the season in the HT. Anyone heard of Haier before? Got good reviews and I managed to pick one up for $600 plus tax.










Toys! These just came by Fed-Ex a few minutes ago and I can't wait to install them. The keypad is SO small but yet so beautifull!



















Has anyone got the same Insteon dimmer and keypads set up in their HT? I'd love to hear any tips on how to set it up. Have looked at the manual and it looks like Multi-Linking is the right way to go. I'm planning on putting a bank of 4 dimmers right outside the entrance so as to not penetrate my DD/GC walls of the HT then mount just the keypad controller inside the room on the other side of the door. There will also be one dimmer near the main garage door leading to the house which will control a sconce or light I'm planning on putting above the HT entrance door. This light needs to operate in two modes: 1) 100% brightness when turned on using the switch on the wall then 2) dimmed whenever one of the movie scenes is in use. The idea here is that during a movie if someone leaves the room then the entrance way is slightly illuminated but not enough to throw light into the room.

More pics to come..


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Completed framing the main room today. Here's a pic of my buddy drenched in sweat. It is in the 80s here in South Florida and so this garage starts acting like an oven by midday. 










Tomorrow we are framing the riser and the entrance way. I am not sure if my riser height is correct. I was planning on an 8" riser but may now go with 10" as the riser calc (www.theater-calc.com) recommends 9 7/8". 

I'm having a very hard time finding slim step lights can anyone recommend a cheap source for these?

Cheers.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

This is the area we're framing today. This will be the entrance/walkway from the house and will separate the HT from the garage. We're planning on putting in a nice laminate floor which will be raised up so it will be level with the door from the house. Notice how uneven the garage floor is? That might be a challenge..










To stay on schedule we need to finish the framing for this, the A/V rack and the riser by end of today then electrical with A/C installation tomorrow.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

The Fed-Ex man cometh:


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Yesterday we got the riser completed. The only thing left is to create a smaller riser to the left that will be about 4" height so will be level with the entrance door. We also got the entrance built and door framed along with the a/v rack. So all in all we are about 98% done with framing. We are planning on hitting up Lowes around lunch time to pick up all the electrical stuff and lighting. This afternoon we will be installing the mini AC unit then Sunday electrical and then drywall early next week.










Does anyone have any suggestions for rack ventilation? We're going to be building a complete enclosure that will be recessed into the 2nd half of the garage but we're not planning on putting any access door on the back. To the right of the rack is a cavity that we're going to use to feed all the cables coming from the ceiling. The cavity will also house all the power strips and transformers etc. This will have an access panel at the rear from the garage. Here's the thing: How well does this need to be ventilated? Should I be considering putting a couple of silent fans in the cavity and have them blow into the rack? What about an exhaust, do I need one? Should I let the air blow back into the room?


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Have a 'vent panel' at the bottom of the rack and another at the top. These are nothing more than simple plates with slots cut into them. Use a couple of low speed, low noise computer fans up top to push air out of the top plate and the natrural draw from the bottom and convection will take care of the rest.

Make sure that there is a reasonable amount of space behind the equipment to allow good air flow vertically.

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Hey Bryan - can you tell me where the vent panel would go on top/bottom? Would they go horizontal or vertical, like on the side right wall where it meets the cavity?

Cheers.


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Think of having a rack mount type of system. The very bottom plate across the bottom horizontally and the very top plate horizontally would just be slotted panels. They'll only need to be maybe 2U-3U high each most likely.

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Thanks Bryan, that helped a lot. 

Today was spent either at Lowes or discussing electrical with the electrician, so not much really achieved. We did however test out the Insteon dimmers and keypad, which was kinda cool. Tomorrow we hope to get some wiring done and A/C will now be installed Sunday.. hopefully.

Our target goal to complete the HT is April 22nd which is when Avatar on Blu Ray is released as I'm dying to see it in Blu Ray at home. Even though it's not 3D it should still be a pretty good demo disc and one to premier the HT with.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Hey guys -

I'm about to start wiring today and just wanted to check a couple of things first. I know that it's no problem running speaker wire (for passive speakers) and electrical in the same stud hole but what about the subwoofer cable? My existing sub has both low level inputs (RCA) and high level inputs (speaker wire) so I plan on running both just in case a future amp purchase does not have a dedicated subwoofer output (I'm assuming most do). For the RCA type I plan on running cat 5/6 rather than a really long RCA cable. To confirm this should NOT be run near the electrical cable, correct?

Cheers.


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

The sub cable is low level and should be kept away from electrical lines. In general, I'm not sure where ANY local code will allow more than 1 wire per hole - much less a mix of 110V and non-110V

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Thanks Bryan. We ended up running the cables seperate to be sure. I opted for a 25' RCA cable for the sub woofer and this won't get installed until tomorrow or Wed due to delivery. Hopefully we'll be drywalling later that day. My plasterer is due to come Thursday so hopefully we'll stay on schedule. Over the weekend we got nearly all the electrical done and the only thing remaining is the power for the PJ.

I am trying to visualize a color scheme for the room and right now am leaning towards black ceiling, dark blue walls (almost the color of the HTS forums background page actually!) with either greyish or black trim and a very dark carpet. I have to remind myself I need to work in this room too so have to be careful picking colors that will make for a good work environment. Any tips/suggestions on this most welcome.

Cheers.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Made a fair bit of progress today. We got all electrical completed including the Insteon system. The bank of 3 Insteon dimmers were a pain to fit into the 3-gang box but we got there in the end. Tomorrow we hope to get the A/C installed which means fixing the compressor to the concrete slab behind my house and running the copper pipe to the inside unit. Apart from that drywall is Wednesday - can't wait to get to that stage!










Temporary black plate on the keypad, I have a nice brushed metal one for the final install.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

So I seem to have hit a brick wall with the Insteon devices and the way I have wired them. I have a Keypadlinc controller and 5 dimmer switches in the following configuration:

Keypadlinc - main load for sconces.
Dimmer 1 - Light in entrance.
Dimmer 2 - Rope light.
Dimmer 3 - Screen lights.
Dimmer 4 - Track lights.
Dimmer 5 - Riser lights.

The issue seems to be that you can't dim the main load (Main on the Insteon Keypad) from another scene, without that is purchasing the additional Powerlinc module so as to program via software. In other words, you can't tap-link the switches to control the main source (sconces). Since the sconces are used in every scene and at different levels I now have to move the load to the sconces onto either another dimmer or join two of the other lights to free up a dimmer switch. Alternatively I may have to move the entrance light onto a standard switch outside the Insteon network in order to free up a dimmer that way. Confused? I am! I think I've made this way too complicated than it needs to be! :doh:


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## mdrake (Jan 31, 2008)

> Does anyone have any suggestions for rack ventilation? We're going to be building a complete enclosure that will be recessed into the 2nd half of the garage but we're not planning on putting any access door on the back.


I really think you will appreciate having access to the rack from the rear. 

Great job so far!! This is a blast to watch someone else do all the work!! :R

Matt


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## bigdady1955 (Feb 27, 2009)

It looks like you're doing a fantastic job and taking care to do things right. I did a similar garage conversion but would never have tackled such a project myself (I have two left hammers). Congrats.

My Theater Project

http://www.hometheatershack.com/for...nstruction/17202-my-home-theater-project.html


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Thanks guys! We've come quite a way in the past week. We're a couple of days behind schedule and due to prior commitments we won't be able to drywall until Monday. We will however be getting insulation done by end of this week, drywall by Wed then mudding by end of week and hopefully paint that weekend. Fingers crossed..

Here's a quick video of the inside now: http://www.vimeo.com/10941134


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## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

Does anyone have any suggestions for rack ventilation? We're going to be building a complete enclosure that will be recessed into the 2nd half of the garage but we're not planning on putting any access door on the back. To the right of the rack is a cavity that we're going to use to feed all the cables coming from the ceiling. The cavity will also house all the power strips and transformers etc. This will have an access panel at the rear from the garage. Here's the thing: How well does this need to be ventilated? Should I be considering putting a couple of silent fans in the cavity and have them blow into the rack? What about an exhaust, do I need one? Should I let the air blow back into the room?








[/QUOTE]

Parts express has rack mount ventilation fans with reusable filters on sale i think till the end of the month.:T


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

bambino said:


> Does anyone have any suggestions for rack ventilation? We're going to be building a complete enclosure that will be recessed into the 2nd half of the garage but we're not planning on putting any access door on the back. To the right of the rack is a cavity that we're going to use to feed all the cables coming from the ceiling. The cavity will also house all the power strips and transformers etc. This will have an access panel at the rear from the garage. Here's the thing: How well does this need to be ventilated? Should I be considering putting a couple of silent fans in the cavity and have them blow into the rack? What about an exhaust, do I need one? Should I let the air blow back into the room?


Parts express has rack mount ventilation fans with reusable filters on sale i think till the end of the month.:T[/QUOTE]

Cool, thanks! Do you have a link?


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Ok everyone here's the dilema of the day. I am debating over whether to put in a brand new fixed 16:9 screen or convert the 106" da-lite retractable high powered screen that I already have into a fixed frame and use that. The only issue with the latter is this screen has sagged somewhat over time creating a V in the middle of the screen. I'm pretty sure it could be stretched out though, but I have no clue if it would work without taking the retractable system apart and removing the screen. The screen itself has about a 2" black border on each side so there should in theory be enough to stretch over a DIY frame. Trying to keep costs low and seems a shame to buy another screen (my 120" Vapex fixed screen won't fit in the new room) when I can leverage what's there.

Thoughts?


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## mayhem13 (Feb 2, 2008)

Visit the DIY screen section. Mechman and Harp are two fo the most helpful guys on HTS....besides Sonnie and Prof. of course!


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## bbieger (Sep 15, 2009)

in terms of rack cooling, your definitely going to want fans in there. If I unplug my fans it gets HOT and I mean REALLY hot! 

I highly highly highly recommend you check out http://www.coolerguys.com/

They have virtually silent fans and temperature triggered on switches (they come on at 87 and off at 80) . I think I paid around $60 for three 120mm fans, the power converter, temperature switch, and extension cords.

When laying out the fans, you have to remember that air flows like water and heat rises. I have two inlet fans and one outlet fan. My inlet fans have a filter in front of them. By having more inflow than out, I have a positive pressure in the cabinet so air is flowing OUT of all the hinge gaps, door openings, etc. If you had more exhaust flow than inflow, then dust and what not from your room would get sucked IN to the cabinet. 

I have a three inch gap in front of and behind all my shelves for airflow. The input fans blow straight up the back of the cab and the exhaust fan is located in the center of the cab ceiling. The theory being that having air blow up one side of the cab (back in my case) you get a circular flow of air going.

I think you can google cabinet ventilation and probably find a diagram of what I am talking about.


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## bbieger (Sep 15, 2009)

mrloofer said:


> Ok everyone here's the dilema of the day. I am debating over whether to put in a brand new fixed 16:9 screen or convert the 106" da-lite retractable high powered screen that I already have into a fixed frame and use that. The only issue with the latter is this screen has sagged somewhat over time creating a V in the middle of the screen. I'm pretty sure it could be stretched out though, but I have no clue if it would work without taking the retractable system apart and removing the screen. The screen itself has about a 2" black border on each side so there should in theory be enough to stretch over a DIY frame. Trying to keep costs low and seems a shame to buy another screen (my 120" Vapex fixed screen won't fit in the new room) when I can leverage what's there.
> 
> Thoughts?


Totally do-able. Build a hard wood frame. Cut the old screen off and staple to the new frame. I would suggest you invest in a cheap air stapler if you have a compressor and DO NOT SINK THE STAPLES IN ALL THE WAY UNTIL THE SCREEN IS STRETCHED AND THEIR ARE NO WRINKLES!! 

I pulled about 50 staples out and re stretched my screen about 4 times before I got it perfect. Make sure your frame has at least one veritcal support in the middle to prevent sagging.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

bbieger said:


> in terms of rack cooling, your definitely going to want fans in there. If I unplug my fans it gets HOT and I mean REALLY hot!
> 
> I highly highly highly recommend you check out http://www.coolerguys.com/
> 
> ...


Awesome! I'm checking them out right now. I have to figure out where the fans will go and since I have the cavity on the right of the rack that's the ideal place to put them.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

bbieger said:


> Totally do-able. Build a hard wood frame. Cut the old screen off and staple to the new frame. I would suggest you invest in a cheap air stapler if you have a compressor and DO NOT SINK THE STAPLES IN ALL THE WAY UNTIL THE SCREEN IS STRETCHED AND THEIR ARE NO WRINKLES!!
> 
> I pulled about 50 staples out and re stretched my screen about 4 times before I got it perfect. Make sure your frame has at least one veritcal support in the middle to prevent sagging.


Any tips/links on how to build the frame? I think I might just give this a try since I tried selling the screen on Craigslist and no bites so might as well put it to some use! Worth a go eh?


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

My buddy and I took the day off yesterday to recharge our brains after frying them with electric and lighting wiring all week. The electrical work took way longer than we expected, mostly due to wiring the Insteon system and moving lights around. We had to move the light that was in the middle of the garage to the other side of the garage, install lights in the riser and after everything was done and because of the Insteon issue with running the sconces off the main load on the keypad and the fact that you can't really control that load properly from other scenes, we had to re-think the lighting and re-wire accordingly. It set us back a good day or so.

Today though we picked up the drywall and insulation and off loaded the sheets into the garage I apologize for the bad pictures but we've been working with the doors closed so as to not attract attention to ourselves by our nosy neighbors.










I have a feeling we've ordered way to much drywall. We had about 44 5/8 sheets and 9 1/2 sheets (for the other side of the garage).

I also grossly underestimated the budget on insulation. If I went with 16" studs we could have got away with 4 bags of R13 which was reduced to $20/bag, but because I went with 24" studs each bag cost me $60 instead!










So apart from picking up the drywall we managed to get all the little jobs done such as completing the entrance, moving lights etc. We also installed duct seal around each of the outlets for extra sound proofing.










Taking the weekend off and on Monday we'll be insulating and then dry walling Tues/Wed (hopefully). Once we get past that stage it'll start looking like a real room. Can't wait...


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## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

Nosey neighbors huh? I've got a few of them. There great!


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Yeah they're pretty nosy in these parts!

So I know paint is at least a week away but I've been researching various color schemes, trying to decide what I like and what will work in the room. I came across this youtube video of a HT with a two-tone neutral paint job and I fell in love with these two: 











The only thing is I wouldn't mind a bit of color so wondering if this would work a dark blue, or maybe even burgundy. What do you think?

The other thing is I really would like to put a rope light in some crown molding around the ceiling perimeter (I have it all wired via Insteon) but am afraid that a flat black ceiling will give a less than desirable light spill on the ceiling. Is it THAT bad with rope lights and black ceilings? Should I go with something like the ceiling in the last youtube video?

Your thoughts appreciated!


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Just getting some quotes on mudding & taping after drywall is complete. First quote was $600 for two guys for two days work. Is this reasonable? I am getting more quotes in the week but have no idea if that's good or not?


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

2 guys, 32 hours total - <$20 per hour if my math is right. Don't know about where you are but that's not bad here. Could do better but could do a LOT worse.

Bryan


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## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

mrloofer said:


> Just getting some quotes on mudding & taping after drywall is complete. First quote was $600 for two guys for two days work. Is this reasonable? I am getting more quotes in the week but have no idea if that's good or not?


I'd say not too bad if they are mudding tapeing and sanding and leaving the painting up to you, Thats not bad at all espespecially the sanding part thats such a yucky job ( i've been there) plus they probly have the tools to keep it less messy and dusty. But getting done in two days that seems pretty quick to me as i had to let each coat dry for 2 days before sanding inbetween coats of mud but then again they probly know what they are doing as i had no idea i just gave it a shot.:T


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Does it really take two full days to mud and tape? I would expect them to come in do a coat then come back and sand, but two FULL days seemed a little much (especially when the contractor told me he would use quick mud!).

As an update the insulation is up, the riser is complete and stuffed with pink stuff. Tomorrow we drywall!


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

To do it right, they'll usually do 3 coats with varying width knives.

Bryan


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## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

bpape said:


> To do it right, they'll usually do 3 coats with varying width knives.
> 
> Bryan


Bryan is right. to do it right there usally needs to be at least three coats spreading the mud wider as they go with different widths of kives and helping to feather it in so you end up with a smooth surface. I'd check with the guys doing the job to find out what there game plan is


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## the colors (Mar 28, 2008)

Well I can tell you due to just finishing my third coat of spackle, 1st 6" knife then 8" knife then finally 10" knife. Also you can let it dry as long as you want between coatings it will set up better another trick is put a fan in the room to set it quicker just make sure you dont lay the spackle to thick or it will crack when drying. Good luck and my arms are beat!


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## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

the colors said:


> Well I can tell you due to just finishing my third coat of spackle, 1st 6" knife then 8" knife then finally 10" knife. Also you can let it dry as long as you want between coatings it will set up better another trick is put a fan in the room to set it quicker just make sure you dont lay the spackle to thick or it will crack when drying. Good luck and my arms are beat!


Just wait untill you start sanding.:bigsmile:


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## the colors (Mar 28, 2008)

Just finished sanding and yes my whole body is wrecked....Now getting ready for painting, trim, carpet, then installing all components.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Mudding aside, we did manage to get the ceiling up today! Quite a milestone since buddy and I were not looking forward to it. We put up a two-layer green-glue sheetrock sandwhich and it took most of the day. There was only the two of us and we didn't even use a lift! (I'm going to be sorrree in the morning!).


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

I'm just in the process of finalizing my rear speaker placement before we drywall today. Does anyone know what the correct height for the speakers should be and also either the distance between the two rears on the back wall to each other? The sides I have between the two rows of seating.

Thanks!


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Surround height is generally around 6-6.5' off the floor.

Do you have full freedom on the rear wall and are you just doing 5.1?

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Thanks Byran - indeed I have full use of the back wall. I have all the wires run to a general area where they'll be and it's all wired for 7.1. The side speakers are limited to a certain area because of the entrance and equipment rack but the backs can be placed anywhere. This is where I had roughly marked them to go. The sides will actually be a little behind the middle of the two rows.


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Good deal. I personally like to get the speakers lined up basically on the outside arm of the outermost seats as long as things are symmetric and not terribly cramped to the side walls. Maybe slightly closer together depending on the situation.

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

So bring the back two a little closer together? Seating will be left corner of that riser all the way to the right wall so not very symmetrical at all


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Tough call. If not symmetric, then the ones close to the wall will suffer more if not to that side. I wouldn't go much farther apart though. I'd probably leave them about as is.

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Hmm. I'm wondering then if I should just wire in for 5.1 and have just two speakers further spaced on the rear wall. Would there be a big difference between rear 5.1 and 7.1 given the layout of my room and seating position? Granted most of the time we (more like I) will be sitting dead center of the screen anyway.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Quick progress update:

Drywall is taking a lot longer than expected due to the double layers and green glue. We should hopefully get all walls completed Monday afternoon. The plasterers are due in Monday night to start mudding and taping.










Entrance way:










When the mudders have been and gone I'll take some higher res pics with my Canon 5D Mk2 DSLR and post them here.

I decided to go with a fixed 110" Elite screen instead of trying to convert my 106" retractable. Eventually I'll upgrade to a nice Carada or something but for now the Elite will do until then. We will be building out the screen and speaker columns hopefully on Tuesday and then will start painting later in the week. Still have to choose my color scheme though but right now I'm leaning towards a nice burgundy or blue with black trim..

Cheers.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

I need to start thinking about my screen and speaker columns and ordering some GOM. Questions:

1. Are there any other providers other than fabricmate.com? 

2. Columns are going to be 6'(h) x 18"(w) which will house my speakers. I'm putting GOM on the entire fronts and so need to build a panel covered in GOM and attach using either magnets or grill guides. Any tips on doing this, not quite sure where to start..

Anything else I need to consider?

Edit: For reference this is the design I am replicating (this is Rob's HT over on AVS forum http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=897055):



















Cheers.


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## mdrake (Jan 31, 2008)

Nice work :T You are really moving along on this project!! 

Matt


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

mdrake said:


> Nice work :T You are really moving along on this project!!
> 
> Matt


Thanks Matt. This is end of week 3 (well tomorrow will be) so yeah not too bad. Once drywall is up that's the worst of it I think. Our plan is to get mudding, A/C, screen wall and paint next week. After that carpet and acoustic treatments. So I think we have at least two more weeks left. I haven't even thought about chairs yet! My first row is only 9' 6" wide and I'd like to put some kind of 4 seat configuration in there if I could. Any suggestions?


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

mrloofer said:


> I need to start thinking about my screen and speaker columns and ordering some GOM. Questions:
> 
> 1. Are there any other providers other than fabricmate.com?
> 
> ...


I'm afraid that is not a good design layout..for several reasons..

Enclosing speakers in columns like that with solid sides is going to present all sorts of problems..
For one, they are too close to the side walls, and they're fitted in a cavity..which will cause all sorts of resonances..
Also,there doesn't even seem to be enough room to angle the speakers..

If this is exactly what you plan on doing..particularly in reference to the speakers being so close to the side walls and in a solid enclosure, then I can only advise you to change your design..

To have columns at the side of the screen like that, the screen will need to be smaller and the columns wider, so you can move your speakers away from the side walls..
The other thing is the columns should not have solid sides, but be constructed as a frame with the GOM covering all sides..


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Hey Prof - the columns in the image above are, I believe, only 12" wide. I planned on having 18-20" columns which would allow me to move my speakers closer to the screen and also allow to angle them (my speakers are about 8" wide so that gives me 10-12" gap between the outer walls. Also in the sample image the owner drywalled the inside of each column and I was thinking GOM on both sides instead of just the front, but had not set this in stone. I was unsure what effect having GOM on both sides would have, although I sense better than drywall, but would this be needed if I was able to get away with a 10-12" gap from the wall?

Considering the above do you think it will be okay?


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## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

Looks like it's gonna be a pretty nice theater i'm getting great ideas from your build. Can't wait untill i finally have the chance turn my room into a theater rather then just a room with a screen and speakers. Great job!


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

mrloofer said:


> Hey Prof - the columns in the image above are, I believe, only 12" wide. I planned on having 18-20" columns which would allow me to move my speakers closer to the screen and also allow to angle them (my speakers are about 8" wide so that gives me 10-12" gap between the outer walls. Also in the sample image the owner drywalled the inside of each column and I was thinking GOM on both sides instead of just the front, but had not set this in stone. I was unsure what effect having GOM on both sides would have, although I sense better than drywall, but would this be needed if I was able to get away with a 10-12" gap from the wall?
> 
> Considering the above do you think it will be okay?


That's better but still not ideal..The recognized space between speakers and side walls is about 2' minimum..
I would definitely have GOM on all three sides of the column..unless the columns are going to be right up against the side walls, in which case there's not much point of having GOM on the wall side..


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

In addition, the hard sides are forming a cavity which will have a ton of resonances of it's own. If you can do it so it's more open, that would work much better - maybe just a frame with a shelf?

PM me on the GOM.

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Thanks guys. Is there perhaps some treatments I can put around the speakers to help limit any resonance there? I really want to go with this design and don't want my speakers in the open or free standing.


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

They don't have to be free standing. You can do the same design but make the side and top of the 'box' that the speakers are in just frame and cloth.

If you have to keep the box, fill it completely with absorption.

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Ah, yep that's what I think I'm going to do then. Thanks Bryan.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Are there any Insteon and Keypadlinc owners here?


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Mudders are here! Yippee! Was able to sneak in some "before" shots of my buddy's oh-so-awesome drywall work. Will post some "after" shots when the mudders leave.

Does everyone recommend something like Silentseal(?) for filling all the gaps on the other side of the wall (the garage space wall)?

Equipment rack and fridge is going here:










Control panel will have a hinged door which will be painted to match whatever color I choose for the wall:










Back of room with riser:










View from riser looking out of room into entrance:










View outside garage looking in:










Insteon dimmer switch bank (Track, Rope, Sconces, Screen - walkway dimmer is hidden in garage room):










Insteon 8 button keypadlinc:










Tomorrow we start building the stage and screen wall. Fun!!


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Inside rack is now built. Question: we left a small gap at the back, bottom of the cavity mainly for the heat from the fridge to go somewhere. Necessary or not? The walls of the rack are MDF then green glue then 5/8 drywall.










Stage being built today..





































Thinking of getting this framed and put outside the entrance. It's this or a movie poster either side of the door way.


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## patchesj (Jun 17, 2009)

I've got Insteon elsewhere in the house. Not sure yet for my theater lighting control.. The LED indicators on the dimmers might be a bit distracting..


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

One completed stage. Working on the columns for the speakers now.










Thinking about this for the color scheme:










Going with possibly a two-tone paint scheme: Black ceiling, red walls 2/3, bottom 3rd gray. Having a hard time with it though because ideally I need something to contrast the crown molding on the walls and ceiling and that means something like a white satin molding, which might be too bright. Still need to give it some thought.. Is there a way I can take a picture of my room and superimpose different colors on it?


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## mdrake (Jan 31, 2008)

I will give it a go.  

Matt


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Hey Matt - how did you do that? Way cool! If I upload a better angle can you do it again, or tell me how you did it?

Cheers.


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## mdrake (Jan 31, 2008)

Sure I can do it again... It was just a real quick job... no texture or anything fancy. I used the path tool in Photoshop to take out the walls and used that as a template to make a panel the same shape with the new colors. 

Matt


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Side columns built. Sub is a tight fit -- might have to downsize the sub!










Tomorrow we should get the top column (center speaker) completed and A/V rack shelves. Then we're pretty much done until paint!


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## mdrake (Jan 31, 2008)

Oh, by the way... very nice colors.  Very similar to my HT. It gives a nice warm feel.

Matt


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Thanks Matt. 

BTW does anyone have any experience with rope light on a black ceiling? I heard the light spill is not that great but wondering if it's bad enough to not even bother with it.


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## mdrake (Jan 31, 2008)

I have not tired it but a buddy of mine did and said it did not work to well. The dark color just adsorbed the light. 

Matt


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Yeah that's what I'm afraid of!


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

I have a dark grey ceiling and you can see the blue light, but it's not brilliant!


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Prof - does it look cool though


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

It does..and people do comment on it..:T


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

So today we planned on finishing construction, leaving just paint, A/C and carpet remaining but building the columns for the screen wall took us all day. We spent a lot of time deliberating over whether to GOM the entire column surface or dry wall parts of it and just leave a large enough area around the speakers to GOM later. So I have some questions: What do you recommend we do? If we GOM the entire columns (most expensive route) how is the fabric applied? Is it easier to build seperate panels and attach them at various parts of the columns? Is it better to staple the fabric around the columns? Any help appreciated as myself and buddy are at a complete loss as to what to do next!


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

What I would do if it were my columns is to staple GOM or Speaker cloth to inner sides of the columns..and make up removable framed panels of GOM for the fronts..
That way you have easy access to the speakers..
I wouldn't use any solid material anywhere on the columns..


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

There was a 40% off sale at Joann Fabric and I was able to get enough speaker cloth for just $30! And it looks fine to me, even better when the entire wall and frame is painted black. Can the same cloth be used for wall treatments/panels? I'm guessing it can.. Now it's just a case of making the panels. I'm off to HD to pick up a miter box and some furring strips to get the ball rolling. Have about 9 panels to make just for the wall!


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

I've been thinking about seating in general and would love to hear the thoughts of others on this. My intention was always to have the front row Berkline recliners with the only problem that it can seat 3 (I only have 9' width available). On the back row riser I've got my desk which only takes up about 55" width. Remember, this is going to be part HT part work area (I'm a photographer and this is where I'll be doing editing etc.). So on the back row I was thinking of putting two classic theater seats so if my kids want a few friends over the room can seat a max of 5 people. Then I saw these chairs on Craigslist and they are in excellent condition and the seller wants $75 for both. Should even fit in with my color scheme (I'm going theater red/black/gray).










What do you think?


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Just a quick update. Room has been primed and ceiling painted and first coat on lower part of wall. Tonight we finish the paint entirely. Then it's a week off and we resume trim the following weekend followed by carpet. So we're about 2 weeks from finishing now.


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## bbieger (Sep 15, 2009)

Excitng! Have you thought which movie you want to screen first? Remember to leave a 3/8" gap below your baseboard trim to tuck the carpet under 
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## ironglen (Mar 4, 2009)

If I'm not mistaken, won't you have to bolt those chairs to the floor? It looks nice though.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

bbieger said:


> Excitng! Have you thought which movie you want to screen first?
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


Jaws.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

ironglen said:


> If I'm not mistaken, won't you have to bolt those chairs to the floor? It looks nice though.


Yeah, that's why I gave up on them in the end. Going to go with some nice recliners both front and back.


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## bbieger (Sep 15, 2009)

I went with bean bags for the kids. Not exactly "home theater" or whatever but I have to say that they are REALLY comfortable. Got them f4rom a lady on the east coast that makes them to order. Very nice quality!!!

http://www.heavenlybeanbags.com/


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

We used bean bags in front of the first row for a long time when our kids were at home. Those were the ones their friends always fought to get rather than a nice, comfy recliner...

Bryan


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## the colors (Mar 28, 2008)

bbieger said:


> I went with bean bags for the kids. Not exactly "home theater" or whatever but I have to say that they are REALLY comfortable. Got them f4rom a lady on the east coast that makes them to order. Very nice quality!!!
> 
> http://www.heavenlybeanbags.com/


Great this is what I was thinking about doing for the kids instead of getting a couch. Two bean bags and a couple of nice chairs, thanks for the link.:bigsmile:


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Vent: well it seems like everything has been going wrong since last week. From the A/C being a pain to install and then losing the remote (had to order a new one online -- still isn't here so we're working with no A/C and it's 90deg outside!) to walls getting scratched, paint blistering and various parts of drywall falling off here and there. Very frustrating! For these reasons I'm taking a week off and not even going in the room at all. Seems like everytime I touch something it breaks! Ever had those days? /vent


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## the colors (Mar 28, 2008)

The best thing is to walk away for a bit, let the ideas stew in your head and go back with a purpose and finish. It has been 6years for me thats cause I had to dig out the basement.


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## mdrake (Jan 31, 2008)

the colors said:


> The best thing is to walk away for a bit, let the ideas stew in your head and go back with a purpose and finish. It has been 6years for me thats cause I had to dig out the basement.


Ya, I can relate to the home theater construction blues. : )
You guys are getting it done fast even with the set backs 
and so far it looks great!

Matt
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## bbieger (Sep 15, 2009)

ugggh. been there. I was in the final throws of my home theater.......

Working till 2am on a "school night". Ok, I'll just tack this screen holder block in place and call it a night. 

Time to swap the short nails for the long ones in the nail gun......

Hold block of wood in place (pinching the block and the stud it was getting nailed to with one hand, firing with the other). BLAM! :hissyfit: OUCH!!! 

There was apparently two long nails left in the very front of the gun (they don't slide out real nice when there is only a few) so they were an inch too long for the application. Shot a nail right into the pad of left middle finger--soo far that it slammed the underside of my finger nail. Man that smarts.. I still have the black mark on my fingernail (its about half grown out) and my theater has been done since Feb.
:rolleyesno:

Could always be worse, A guy I work with is missing a finger from a table saw.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Wow, got the call from Lowes today regarding the carpet - that $97 installation fee they advertise? Try more like $600! Looks like I'm either doing it myself or at least putting in the tack strips so it gets the installation price down a bit. Can't believe how much more the installation fee is. Is carpet installation that pricey for a HT?


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## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

mrloofer said:


> Vent: well it seems like everything has been going wrong since last week. From the A/C being a pain to install and then losing the remote (had to order a new one online -- still isn't here so we're working with no A/C and it's 90deg outside!) to walls getting scratched, paint blistering and various parts of drywall falling off here and there. Very frustrating! For these reasons I'm taking a week off and not even going in the room at all. Seems like everytime I touch something it breaks! Ever had those days? /vent


Yep just like everyone else we have all been there, it happens. I haven't done my theater room yet but i did gut and remodel (move walls, tear out walls, basically opened up the house) my entire house except for the room that will be my theater. But somtimes it seems in almost every project you take one step forward and two back. Best bet is just walk away for a bit and when you come back you'll be refreshed and respirited then things will just come together. Good luck and you've done an awesome job on the project with what i see is a well deserved break. :sn::T


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Thanks everyone for the kind and motivating words. I took the last few days off and went back in the room this morning to touch up some spackle so I could sand and paint later tonight. To think that because of a few stupid mistakes and rushing it created all this extra work. Oh well! Anyway tonight I at least intend to get the touch ups done and then off to HD tomorrow to get all the trim. Our intentions are to get the trim all done by this weekend. As a reward for my patience I went and picked up a new 7.2ch receiver and some surround speakers yesterday. So all is good!


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Thought I'd update with some recent pics (note the red is actually a deep burgundy color and darker than in these pics -- it's called "Red Theatre" by Sherwin Williams, and I LOVE it!):

Entrance way looking into the HT. The plan is to put a poster on each side of the wall and the spot lights will illuminate them. I also have to put another dimmer switch on the wall because these are way too bright when turned on.










Insteon keypad:










Sconces:



















Surround speaker (1 of 4):



















A/C unit (note still have to touch up where I had to spackle over the scratches made when installing the unit):










Last night I discovered a major issue with the A/C unit, in that the drainage pipe got squished when we ran the pipes through the wall. The water was draining out of the front of the unit and down the wall, which is pretty bad. The problem is there is very little room for maneuver because the pipes have been sealed up so we're going to have to carefully take it off the bracket and jiggle it around until we can seat the drainage pipe correctly. 

Will post more pics when trim goes up this weekend.


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## mdrake (Jan 31, 2008)

WOW, coming along really nice!!! :T

Matt


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

mdrake said:


> WOW, coming along really nice!!! :T
> 
> Matt


Thanks Matt! Things are slowly starting to take shape. I wish the carpet was in though as that'll be a huge transformation. Speaking of which I was shocked to learn from Lowes that they say I need 372 sq/ft of carpet for a 202 sq/ft room! I can understand the back riser and stage need a bit of cutting here and there but a 170sq/ft. difference! :coocoo:


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Ok, so dilemma time. Here's a pic of the two-tone color scheme:










I was going to go with all black carpet on the stage and dark gray on the main floor including riser. Now I'm thinking just all black, contrasted with a semi-gloss/silk black baseboard. What do you think?


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## mdrake (Jan 31, 2008)

Do you have a shot with the floor and the wall? I can photoshop it during lunch. 

Matt


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

mdrake said:


> Do you have a shot with the floor and the wall? I can photoshop it during lunch.
> 
> Matt


Thanks Matt. I'll try and get a clear picture tonight after the trim is up.

Cheers.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Just a couple of low-res pics of the trim we installed tonight. Tomorrow we're finishing up the door trim and A/V rack. I'll take more pics then.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

So today is the day to finally go order my carpet. I now know what style I want, I have a price (which is a LOT more than I budgeted) and I have the color in mind... sort of. So I'm undecided whether to go dark gray for main and all black for stage, or all black with pattern.

Here's two examples (from some forum members over at AVS) of the colors:

Dark gray with black stage:



















All black (same carpet and pattern):










And here's a higher res of my HT. 










I think both dark gray and black pattern will work (and maybe solid black on the stage) but which would be better?


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## mdrake (Jan 31, 2008)

A quick Photoshoping of the carpet...

Greay Carpet









Black Carpet


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Wow, thanks Matt -- that definitely helped with my decision! It's pretty hard to tell what the black looks like because it's, well, so black! But at the same token I wasn't too fond of the gray either. In the end I ordered plain black for the stage and the patterned black for the remainder of the room. This will keep with the black ceiling and match the dark gray on the walls better I think.


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## mdrake (Jan 31, 2008)

Funny, my wife and I liked the black and the patterned black as well! Your room looks GREAT!!

Matt


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

mdrake said:


> Funny, my wife and I liked the black and the patterned black as well! Your room looks GREAT!!
> 
> Matt


Thanks Matt! Looks like we both have good taste! 

Just thought I'd give an update, although I have no latest pics I'll try and take some tonight or tomorrow. Basically it's been really slow because my buddy who was helping me throughout has had to return to his regular job (a fulltime dad!) so we've been working on it whenever we can in the evenings. Last week we only had two evenings free to work on it. It feels like the room hasn't progressed that much but we're making progress and there is light at the end of the tunnel. The carpet was ordered last week and I'll be purchasing the chairs hopefully by end of this week. So really we've got until the carpet is installed to finish up the little jobs which is about 7 days. Here's what we have remaining:

Prior to carpet:

Complete A/V rack - hopefully today
Install remaining crown molding
Cover control panel with door
Touch up paint on screenwall (it might need a full coat), walls and trim
Clean up

Prior to or after carpet:

Finish speaker column grills
Complete entrance door trim, floor and baseboard

After carpet:

Erect screen
Install chairs
Acoustic treatment

So as you can see the list really is not that long and we should finally be done max 10 days from now.


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Light at the end of the tunnel indeed. Almost there. It'll be great to see it when it's all finished.

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Oh one more thing, we tested the crown with the rope light (incandescent from Lowes) and the light spill onto the ceiling wasn't that great. Is there a better, dimmable rope light out there that gives a better light spill on a black ceiling?


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Did you apply the 'cheat'? Try tin-foil laying in the tray bottom and wall side to help focus all of the light up and out. 

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Ooh, not tried that. Does it give a much better effect?


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Might still not be as much as you want but it definitely concentrates the light from the full perimeter of the rope up and out. 

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Thanks Bryan. I also think one of the mistakes we made was putting the crown too close to the ceiling, leaving only a 2" gap. I wasn't sure if the crown should cover up the wall/ceiling seam or not, so at the time we elected to put the crown so the seam is barely visible. When I get home I'll stuff some foil into the molding and raise the rope up a bit so it's not sitting in the bottom of the molding. I'll report back my results...

Cheers.


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## mdrake (Jan 31, 2008)

mrloofer said:


> Thanks Bryan. I also think one of the mistakes we made was putting the crown too close to the ceiling, leaving only a 2" gap. I wasn't sure if the crown should cover up the wall/ceiling seam or not, so at the time we elected to put the crown so the seam is barely visible. When I get home I'll stuff some foil into the molding and raise the rope up a bit so it's not sitting in the bottom of the molding. I'll report back my results...
> 
> Cheers.


I would be very interested to hear the results. If it works I am going to have to do it to my room. 

Matt


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

I usually recommend leaving as much gap as the crown extends out from the wall or maybe even more depending on your preference. Get as much foil in there as you can - wall side, crown side, under the rope - as long as you can't see the foil on the wall.

Bryan


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## the colors (Mar 28, 2008)

If I could add my two cents, try mylar it is much better than foil in reflecting light.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

So last night I tried the foil trick but I really didn't see much difference to be honest. I may try the double up trick and see if that's any better...


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Quick update and a few pics. Hopefully I'll be done with the trim tonight. I got some good clean up done since it's trash day tomorrow so was able to clean up the room pretty good. I also got the shelves painted and installed. Here's the thing with the shelves: I'm happy with how they look but I don't think they'll stand the test of time. I mean, I can only imagine pulling components in and out and scratching the surface of the shelves, after all they are just MDF and painted with a black satin. Does anyone know if there are any companies that can cut to size some decent laminate shelves of some kind?

Fridge was installed, finally! I went through 3 damaged fridges before finding one that was undamaged. The guy at HD said they had about 10 or so that had some kind of damage. They were only $130 each and they look quite fragile. Not sure how long these things will last, oh well!

Pics!

Entrance that still needs trim and touch up.










Rack and trim (wall needs touch up).



















Bryan, if you're reading this you can see how close the crown is to the ceiling. I think we put it way to close to get any kind of light displacement from the rope.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Ok guys, let's talk about acoustic treatments. I walked into my local HVAC supplier and they had some mineral wool panels sitting around. They are 24" x 48" and 2" thick. Can I use these as acoustic panels in front of and behind my speakers?


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

They'll probably work just fine in that position. Do you know what the density is on them?

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Hi Bryan. 2.5pcf? This is what it says on the specs:


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

That should be fine on the front wall.

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Thanks Bryan. I'm sure I'll be posting more questions when the time comes to install the panels.

Ok, onto seating. I'm deliberating over putting a row of 4 seats in the front or keep to just 3. 3 seats means I can center the row more with the screen whereas 4 puts the 4th right up against the wall (either way the 1st 3 seats will still be centered). There is room in the back for one seat as planned. So basically it's either a 5 seat total and occasionally some unlucky soul getting the one on the wall, or it's 4 total and someone always has to sit in the back. Note this is based on my family of 4 but I'm thinking if kids have friends over etc. the more seats the better. Acoustically that 4th seat will be the worst so should I even bother with it? What would you do, sacrifice max occupancy for acoustic reasons or vice versa?


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

No way to do 3 in the front and 2 in the rear? That would give you the 5 seats and keep everything pretty centered - rear row viewing between the seats in the front row, etc.

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Not sure, don't think so. Note there is a desk going in the back of the room and that eats the inches. I would love to put a full row of seats back there but the deal with the missus on getting this built was that I move my computers in there. So with the desk I have I can only fit one chair back there, which kinda sucks really. Maybe I need a smaller desk! 

Apart from that things are now moving full steam ahead as I got the call from the carpet installers and now they are here! And I also now have my chairs so who knows, maybe I'll get this all connected up tonight! Pics to follow soon!


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Just a quick update. The carpet is in, the screen is up, the chairs are in, the columns are done, the speakers are wired in. And we've watched about 5 or so movies the past few days. And it's awesome! In the end I went with 5 chairs and it works almost perfect if it weren't for the fact the person at the back doesn't get a full recline, but the times I've been in here by myself that's my favorite chair since it's a perfect distance from the screen. 

All I have left now is acoustics, cover up of the panel on the wall (see pic below) and various paint touch ups. So I reckon it'll all be done over this long weekend, after which I'll take some better pics. Until then here's just a couple..



















I also bought the Inteson PLM (Power Line Modem) and got all my scenes programmed as well as hooking up to my XBMC player, which is totally awesome. By using some 3rd party Insteon unix tools I was able to program it so that when I turn on XBMC it automatically dims the screen lights then when the movie starts the lights dim and when I pause or stop the movie the lights come up. I was able to do all this without the need of purchasing their IRLinc system (which saved me another $99). It works great and everyone loves it! I'll post a video of it in action soon..


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## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

Looks like the theater turned out awesome!


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## mdrake (Jan 31, 2008)

WOW nice work!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :T
Looking really good. The colors really work well together! 

Matt


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

That turned out really nice. Now take some time this long weekend and enjoy it.

Bryan


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## patchesj (Jun 17, 2009)

I have an Insteon PLM and run XBMC on my apple tv. Can you post/send details on the integration? Theater looks great!!


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Thanks all for the comments. The 2 pics I posted don't do it justice. I'll post more over the weekend.

@patchesj - I downloaded a suite of tools called plmtools (link here). All you need to do is put it in your home folder and follow the install instructions. Then get the 6 character reference for your light switches and put them in the configuration file. Then you can simply turn on/off your lights from the unix shell eg. insteon screen on 33 - will turn on your screen lights to 33%, or you can create groups/scenes and turn them on/off that way. Then all you need to do is create a shell script and put in your insteon commands (I called mine lightson.sh and lightsoff.sh) then find the .lircrc file which is usually in your home folder and create an irexec command to execute either of those two scripts whenever a button is pressed on your remote. Easy!! Note that my PLM was a USB model not sure how to do this for the serial version. If you need more detailed instructions shoot me a PM.

Cheers.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Quick question on acoustics: I ran the First Reflection tool with my room and speaker dimensions added and it looks like the front panels need to be mounted about a foot from the front columns. Does that sound right, or should I just put the panels as close to the columns as possible? Also do I really need to put panels all along the side walls as shown in the diagram below? I was hoping to put a poster in between the sconces on each side but that won't work if I need to make the wall all acoustic panels.


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Ideally, yes, you'd cover all of those areas to catch all of the reflections from the front 3 speakers to all of the seats properly. On the ceiling, it's your call but having the center above the screen, it would be good to have a panel that's pretty close to the center (not necessarily at the reflection points) to address SBIR.

Also, don't forget the broadband bass absorption and the deadening of the front wall. Front wall is to prevent reflections from the surrounds contaminating the front soundstage.

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Thanks Byran. I do intend to cover the inside columns and back wall with the 2" mineral wool I just purchased (perhaps even 4" around the sub?). One more question, do you think it's vital to have a panel or two on the rear wall also? I only have one seat back there.

Cheers.


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Panels on the rear wall behind the seating should be thicker as their primary goal is to provide help in mitigating problems with bass cancellations off that rear surface. I generally use something with a facing on it so as not to kill the spaciousness of the surround field.

2" on the front wall behind the speakers will be fine for those duties.

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Few more pics:





































Video walkthrough to follow..


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Video walk through:

http://www.vimeo.com/12136796


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## Tommy077 (May 15, 2010)

Just a thought about the desk for the office space... have you thought about getting a wall mount bracket for your monitor so you can possibly get a smaller desk? Not sure how much working room you need on the desktop, but it is a thought. For my office desk area, I have a laptop with a second monitor attached to allow my desktop to be larger for opening 2 windows simultaneously. I wall mounted the second screen just above the screen of the laptop since I don't have much room to the side of it. 

If you were able to do this with your monitor, you may be able to get a desk that is just a little smaller to allow for another chair on the back row.


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## Tommy077 (May 15, 2010)

Just another thought. I remembered you were saying something about the shelves for the equipment, to which may I suggest some glass selves. I have a friend that has an equipment rack with glass selves in it and it looks really cool. If I remember correctly, his shelves are about 1/2 thick.

The room looks really awesome and just makes me want to build a room in the basement for ours, but the ceiling is only about 7 foot down there.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Tommy077 said:


> Just another thought. I remembered you were saying something about the shelves for the equipment, to which may I suggest some glass selves. I have a friend that has an equipment rack with glass selves in it and it looks really cool. If I remember correctly, his shelves are about 1/2 thick.
> 
> The room looks really awesome and just makes me want to build a room in the basement for ours, but the ceiling is only about 7 foot down there.


Thanks for the comments. I think I looked at glass shelves and discarded the idea after reading some comments on other forums that they rattle during heavy sub action. Don't know how true this is, but I found that the shelves I've installed are working quite good. I may add some glass doors though in future..


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## mdrake (Jan 31, 2008)

Very NICE work!!! What software are you using to archive all your DVD titles on your pc? 

Matt


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Thanks Matt. I use a bunch of tools to rip my discs to my external drives which I then play through XBMC. 

AnyDVD for BD rips
DVD Shrink
BD Rebuilder
And a few others

BD movies take FOREVER to rip though but you can easily fit 100-200 movies per 1TB external drive.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Guys, anyone know the best way to mount an acoustic panel to the ceiling?


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

It would depend on how they're built, what's available to tie some sort of attaching mechanism to, etc.

If there's a wood frame exposed on the rear, you can simply use 2 wires across the narrower dimension of the panel toward each end and hang those 2 on 2 plant hooks into the drywall. 

Bryan


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## Tommy077 (May 15, 2010)

I did the electrical on a venue in Greenville, SC and he hung all his acoutiscal panels with "L" brackets. He did have the luxury though of having exposed joists. I would think though that if you did it with enough time, you could locate the studs above the sheetrock and still use the "L" brackets.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Thanks guys. I've been using the hangman bracket from Lowes for the side panels. It is sort of like a French cleat but doesn't keep the panel as flush as I hoped, but I'm thinking this might be a good option for the ceiling if I mount one bracket on each end, with the one end bracket reversed I should just be able to slide the panel into the brackets. Before I do this though I'm interested to hear how much of an effect the ceiling panel will have on the acoustics, I gotta admit with the side panels mounted I couldn't tell a whole lot of difference, but then again I've only mounted two along the first reflections and have not done the whole side walls yet.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

I'm having an issue locating a 4 gang black wall face plate. Neither Lowes or HD carry them (only up to 3). Anyone know what other B&M stores carry these? Such a shame to order one online - the shipping is always more $ than the plate itself!


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

I'd think you could get it from any lighting store that's local to you - no?

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Well in the meantime I decided to make my own 2.35:1 masks today, so I went to Joann Fabrics and bought a few yards of velvet and then some 1/2" foam board from HD. I had HD cut them to 6 1/4" x 8' and when I got home just wrapped them in the velvet and glued using 3M spray glue. The results below:



















They stay on simply by using friction.



















But WOW, what a difference it makes with the masks on viewing 2.35:1 content, now it really feels like I'm in a movie theater!!


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## mdrake (Jan 31, 2008)

Any updates or new pictures to share? 

Matt


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Well, I've been way to busy actually enjoying watching movies to actually do anything! In fact, the only thing I have remaining to do is to fix the front columns as the velcro I used is not strong enough to keep the panels together. Will probably start that little project over the weekend. Apart from that and wanting some new speakers and butt kickers down the road this baby is pretty much complete!


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## tjambro (Jan 16, 2007)

Your room came out really nice and I can't believe how quick you got the job done!

I really like your carpet, do you remember what it is called? You got it at Lowes right?


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

tjambro said:


> Your room came out really nice and I can't believe how quick you got the job done!
> 
> I really like your carpet, do you remember what it is called? You got it at Lowes right?


Thanks Tom. The carpet was Ruby Hill Ebony and was <$2sq/ft. at Lowes. I love it, especially with the premium 8lb padding. Kinda sucked that the width of my room was slightly over the 12ft roll size so I almost had to double the square footage for proper coverage. However, I was able to download a 10% coupon off the web which helped bring the total carpet cost in under $900. Not bad!


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## raZorTT (Jan 17, 2008)

Just read through your thread. Fantastic job!!

Did you end up getting the other panels in place for reflections? Did you notice the difference?

Cheers,
Simon


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## sparkymt (May 19, 2010)

Awesome job! I love your choice in carpet The 2.35:1 masking looks pretty slick. I understand that cost wise for carpet does cost more when the width is beyond 12', but it think every inch over that is worth it. If anything just to be able to enjoy more space.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

raZorTT said:


> Just read through your thread. Fantastic job!!
> 
> Did you end up getting the other panels in place for reflections? Did you notice the difference?
> 
> ...


To be honest with you I noticed little difference with the panels and not quite sure why that was, maybe because they are not in the right place, I don't really know. What I do know is that I think the audio sounds great and this is even with my 10 year old bookshelf speakers (I am planning on upgrading to some really nice L&R speakers by end of summer). What I can tell you is that the panels certainly help with the screen reflections on the walls and adds a lot more contrast to the projected image. Worth it for that alone!

What I will say is that I definitely need bass traps in the room so that's the next project..


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## tjambro (Jan 16, 2007)

mrloofer said:


> Thanks Tom. The carpet was Ruby Hill Ebony and was <$2sq/ft. at Lowes. I love it, especially with the premium 8lb padding. Kinda sucked that the width of my room was slightly over the 12ft roll size so I almost had to double the square footage for proper coverage. However, I was able to download a 10% coupon off the web which helped bring the total carpet cost in under $900. Not bad!


$900 with labor? That's excellent IMHO!! I'll definitely look for your carpet at Big Blue, thanks!


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## akakillroy (Jul 9, 2008)

mrloofer said:


>


You know this is the single most effective and impressive thing I did recently on my theater room. Without a doubt for those movies that are not native 16:9 this is a cheep and easy mod. I essentially did the exact same thing you did. Although even though there is a good deal of "friction" hold at the top I still had to add some Velcro tabs along the top edge to keep it from falling off over time.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Kinda excited to get my LED sign working within my HT. Had wanted to put some kind of digital poster outside the HT that updated whenever a new movie was being shown but that proved to be too difficult so I gave up. So my friend gave me one of these programmable LED signs for free and so I thought hmm, bet I could get that to work. Check out the video below showing how it's integrated into my media player in my HT and let me know what you think.






The first part shows what happens when you play a movie and the 2nd part when using the "Home Theater Experience" mode on my media player (XBMC).


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

That is just way too sweet. :T

You're having entirely too much fun. :nerd:

Bryan


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## tjambro (Jan 16, 2007)

That really is slick, and you didn't have to buy the sign!


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## raZorTT (Jan 17, 2008)

mrloofer said:


> Kinda excited to get my LED sign working within my HT. Had wanted to put some kind of digital poster outside the HT that updated whenever a new movie was being shown but that proved to be too difficult so I gave up. So my friend gave me one of these programmable LED signs for free and so I thought hmm, bet I could get that to work. Check out the video below showing how it's integrated into my media player in my HT and let me know what you think.
> 
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pbq2QBJJvcQ
> 
> The first part shows what happens when you play a movie and the 2nd part when using the "Home Theater Experience" mode on my media player (XBMC).


That's sooo cool. Do you have details on how you hooked that all up?

Cheers,
Simon


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Yeah, it was fairly easy. All you need is:

Betabrite LED sign 
XBMC media player
Kitchi-rss software ($29 from http://www.kitchi-rss.com)

Basically it works by connecting the sign via USB to your XBMC box. I then created a script that uses XBMC web API to retrieve the info for the movie that is currently playing and output it as an RSS feed. Kitichi-rss is a great bit of software that pulls data from RSS feeds and displays it on the LED sign. All in all took me a couple of hours to figure out and set it up.


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

OK. So spill the beans about your XBMC box - motherboard, drives, video card, etc. Is this HDMI-HDCP capable and I assume Blu-Ray capable?

This looks like way too cool a thing not to incorporate. 

Bryan


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Cheap Acer Revo 1600 Nettop from Best Buy: $199. As you can see I have two of them.










Although I think they discontinued it but I'm sure you could pick one up somewhere. It's a tiny white box but packs a lot of power. Has a built in HDMI and optical output to hook directly to your receiver/TV/projector. I have two of them, one is running XBMC Linux and the other running Windows XP. The Windows box (the one on the right) is purely a utorrent client used for downloading TV shows and streaming content to the XBMC box. I also use this box for any windows software etc. Hooked to it is a bank of 1TB external drives which is where I rip my DVDs/Blu-rays. I compress my Blu rays down to about 5-10gig, quality is still pretty good at that size.

Now, you don't need two boxes to get XBMC running. It runs on both Linux and Windows. So since the Acer boxes come free with XP you can get XBMC running on it in minutes and connected to your TV. Plug it into your router or wireless USB and you've got a media player that plays ALL formats without the hassle of setting up a HTPC.

More info here: http://xbmc.org


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## mdrake (Jan 31, 2008)

mrloofer said:


> Cheap Acer Revo 1600 Nettop from Best Buy: $199. As you can see I have two of them.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Have you tried LinuxMCE? This is the OS I want to try next as it looks like it will do both the media center and home automation.

Matt


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

Just installed these bad boys. Can't compare them to Buttkickers but these were only $40 each and are really, really good. I can't believe how much more immerse movies are with these things rumbling away under your crotch. Very, very impressed!


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## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

What are those called? Are they bass shakers? I can't remember but i have seen them and wonderd how well they work.


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

These are Aura Pro bass shakers and they are a fraction of the cost of Buttkickers. I have yet to fully calibrate mine and am even running them on full power, until the novelty wears off that is. During the pod emergence scene in War Of The Worlds instead of my sub shaking the foundations and annoying all in my house, I was able to turn the sub down and power on the shakers under my chair. This gives the impression that you have a massive and powerful sub in your room when in reality it's just the shaker under your seat. I love them.


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## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

Always been curious about them things, what are you using to power them? Extra amp channels, outboards or what? reason i ask is cause of the curiousity of them but i have no channels to spare or share. Nice to hear a good review of them, got me even more interested in them.:T


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

You need a separate sub to power them. You can buy a relatively cheap sub for $100 or less, one that can pump out say 75w per channel, or you can do what I did and use my old, retired 5.1 sub. The beauty of having a separate sub to power your shakers is the extra control such as volume and cross over frequencies. For me using my own sub was definitely the cheaper approach. Setting them up is fairly straight forward. You simply Y-split your main receiver sub/LFE output. Send the one cable to your sub, and the other you split again into the L&R CD/DVD input on your 2nd sub. You then connect the speaker outs on that 2nd sub to your shakers. Pretty straightforward and if you search AVSForum for "Aura Pro" you'll find a sticky with connection diagrams and plenty of info.

The Aura Pros are on sale right now at partsexpress.com. They also have some cheap plate amps on there so be sure to check them out. Let me know if you bite the bullet and I'll assist anyway I can.

Cheers.


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## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

Thanks, I saw them at PE and been dreaming ever since. I think i'll throw them in on my next order and get with you if i have any questions. Thanks again, Bambino.:T:hsd:


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## mrloofer (Mar 27, 2010)

For $40 a piece you really can't go wrong  You'll really like em.


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## Radarlock (Jul 9, 2010)

mrloofer are your Netops powerful enough to process your ripped DVD's and BR's without any problems? I have heard they have difficulties with streaming video.


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## StormyToddler (Aug 26, 2010)

Your set up looks amazing! I love that carpet as well, great job all around.


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