# Talley Family Almost Dedicated Theater



## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Well.. After much posting I figured I'd share my progress. I've owned my home for 8 years and we have a 14.25x20.75 room with a 12' cathedral ceiling. The room was originally divided in half and I knocked down the wall that split the room in two. Repaired the Sheetrock, did new carpet and the room lived as a kids play room for years and then later moved into a couch/family/tv room where we kept a modest 46" TV and this is where we would have the "fun" Christmas tree and enjoy our Christmas mornings at.

I've begged for years to turn this into either a Hi-Fi room or a 100% dedicated theater. The Wife finally caved but her only requirement was in no way to jeopardize the ability to have our kids Christmas in this room. 

So... Our "Talley Theater" is a 90% dedicated space with needing to leave one corner open for a christmas tree and such.

I'll start with the original photos of the room (see attached).

The room also had some wood paneling and all the trim was stained. I removed everything, matched the texture and installed all new baseboards and also did the crown molding myself too. The room also had two 4' wide openings that I ended up routing in the hinge locations and added french doors.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Flash forward to now...

This is how the room currently sits.

My system is in my signature. My screen has not come in yet and we have a deep red burgundy color picked out for the walls but I won't paint until the screen shows up.

I need to work on my acoustic panels which I just have 4 panels stuck one in each corner (I have 16 panels total I can make). I also will build some 2D diffusers for the ceiling and various spots. The wife is OK with any acoustical treatments as long as it does not impare the ability to put a Christmas tree up . I also want to build some coffee tables where some 2D diffusers are mounted upside down on the bottom so I can flip the tables over and have floor diffusion as well.

I also plan on building a wooden box w/ nice trim over the entire projector but leave large space behind it for proper ventilation so this helps hide the projector and also directs any noise up instead of above our head.

You can see the french doors crown and other improvements I made.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

OH... Yes the NHT speaker makes for a good spacer for the time being until I can modify the rack to accomodate the large SVS Ultra Center speaker.

The rack is dual 3/4" MDF but I have plans on changing this out with maple countertop material with clear lacquer. I will also have 1 1/2" maple blocks under the sub too instead of screws and 2x4s but it serves as a fine enough decoupler for now.

I'll keep this thread updated with my progress and I'll get some photos of all the dedicated power installations I did.

I have a dedicated 200amp panel (60a 240v feed) for the AV gear and have 10 - 20 amp circuits. I have dedicated outlets so EVERY equipment gets a dedicated feed/outlet/breaker.

I also have an Isolated ground system installed (3 ground rods actually). My panel is 62' feet from the outlet box but I ran #4awg cable for one circuit the Krell is hooked up to and three #6awg feeders and three #10awg feeders and a #14awg feeder for my network 8 port switch and another #14awg feeder for the projector.

Needless to say I have plenty of power 

Also every single connection up to the Leviton snap in outlets were coated with a copper anti oxide compound for greater electrical transfer.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Wife wanted to leave all the trim white and the doors also but has agreed to allow me to put curtain rods up above the french doors and have dark curtains that I can close up to block the shiny white. 

You can see the red color we picked out in the above projector photo and I suspect this will help a ton on the screen colors/blacks/whites. Just painting the ceiling to the darker grey helped ALOT.

I also built some panels that fit over the two windows and have filled the Triangles with 4" thick minwool material. I will wrap these panels with fabric so they look decent. The panels I built are just 1/8" wood panels that attached to a 1x3 wooden frame and each panel will have a handle on it and simply hang at the window with a screw on each side up top. I'll install 2" blinds in each window so on the outside will look like normal blinds but on the inside the painted panel will blend in nicely which you cannot even see behind the curtains. This way I can remove the panels during christmas and open the blinds up and have my light back.

Currently the room is 96% dark during the day time and when I get the curtains over the french doors I suspect I can get around 98-99% dark. The panels also have weather stripping on the edges to seal against the wall. They do OK for costing next to nothing to make.


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## NBPk402 (Feb 21, 2012)

Looks like it is coming along nicely. I'll bet you can't wait to fire up a movie on the new screen. :T


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Well I'm very impressed with a standard "Kilz2" painted wall that is textured. For a few people who have came over to watch a movie they could not tell.

To me it just gives a grainy look but YES... Cannot wait to have a real screen and the walls dark. I should see a good improvement with my colors then.


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## Serenity Now (Mar 28, 2014)

I may have missed it, but what is your screen size and are you going to do an AT screen? For a bit ai know you were thinking of GoldenEar Tritons. What changed your mind? Room looks good. Your pics dont do justice to the ammount of work you have already done. Removing a wall and all that goes with re-routing electrical can be a chore. Goid work.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Serenity Now said:


> I may have missed it, but what is your screen size and are you going to do an AT screen? For a bit ai know you were thinking of GoldenEar Tritons. What changed your mind? Room looks good. Your pics dont do justice to the ammount of work you have already done. Removing a wall and all that goes with re-routing electrical can be a chore. Goid work.


Thanks. I landed a great deal on the SVS Ultra System from Sonnie here. So I figured I'd try them out and to be honest.... So far... I do not desire more. Just want to add a second sub to even the room out a bit.

I ordered a Jamestown standard white screen in a 135" 16:9. I'll have to mount it 4" off the wall so I'll make a frame to move it out some so I can push it higher than the crown.

Still much to do with the room. I'll end up having 50% of the walls/ceiling covered in acoustic treatment and floor too.

I also need to take more pics DURING the process haha. Oh well.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Would love to get a 5 seat theater style seating but my couch is so comfy... and it has a pull out bed so IF the wife gets mad I know where I'm sleeping!!!


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## NBPk402 (Feb 21, 2012)

Talley said:


> Thanks. I landed a great deal on the SVS Ultra System from Sonnie here. So I figured I'd try them out and to be honest.... So far... I do not desire more. Just want to add a second sub to even the room out a bit.
> 
> I ordered a Jamestown standard white screen in a 135" 16:9. I'll have to mount it 4" off the wall so I'll make a frame to move it out some so I can push it higher than the crown.
> 
> ...


Will it be mounted out from the wall and sealed all around the edges... The reason I ask is it might act like a drim if it is sealed all the way around with a cavity behind it. Just a thought. :T You could ask Bryan to be sure.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

ellisr63 said:


> Will it be mounted out from the wall and sealed all around the edges... The reason I ask is it might act like a drim if it is sealed all the way around with a cavity behind it. Just a thought. :T You could ask Bryan to be sure.


Ah great point. No I was just gonna have a top and bottom piece of 2x4 stacked or something like that. My issue is my wall is kinda wavy so I want to shim some 2x4 top and bottom so I can align the screen perfectly. 

I use nothing but laser measuring and leveling in the setting of speakers and screen to wall and such.

I do need to pick up a digital level 2' so I can use the spikes that came with the SVS ultras and get them plumbed perfectly both sides.


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## NBPk402 (Feb 21, 2012)

Talley said:


> Ah great point. No I was just gonna have a top and bottom piece of 2x4 stacked or something like that. My issue is my wall is kinda wavy so I want to shim some 2x4 top and bottom so I can align the screen perfectly.
> 
> I use nothing but laser measuring and leveling in the setting of speakers and screen to wall and such.
> 
> I do need to pick up a digital level 2' so I can use the spikes that came with the SVS ultras and get them plumbed perfectly both sides.


You should be ok then. When I had my Jamestown screen... I had them make a 6" velvet border and then I used some scrap 4x4 pieces to space it out from the wall. It was not sealed at all to the wall.


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## luisv (Feb 27, 2014)

Looks great thus far! Keep the pictures coming!


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

luisv said:


> Looks great thus far! Keep the pictures coming!


Sure will. I'll get proactive with the theater work after I finish painting the inside of my home. It'll take a few weeks for my screen to arrive and then I'll paint the room and put the screen up all the same time.

I'm really excited to do this as I think the picture will turn out much much better than the textured primered wall I'm using now.


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## luisv (Feb 27, 2014)

Looking forward to the pictures and seeing the progress of your build.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

It's been awhile since I done anything due to other house projects but my Jamestown screen finally showed up so I managed to squeeze in a half day to paint the theater walls. Deep Burgundy! I love it. Looks black when lights are off.

Quick before/after shot. Don't mind the mess... it's been chaotic trying to get the house projects finished.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

And again... don't mind the mess but I got my screen installed. Sorry for the phone photo.

I had to use 2x2 material to space the screen off the wall so the screen overlaps the crown molding which is fine by me. I needed the screen to be taller. 12.5' viewing distance and 135" Jamestown screen.

The screen kit is OK. It'll work as a cheap screen for now. My projector/screen combo will be fine until 4K stuff comes down in price then I'll upgrade to that. I'm waiting for $5k projector/screen combo price range.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Still need to get the maple for my audio rack (mdf now) and work on a better center speaker stand andor paint what I got but I need to redo my stand since my screen is bigger now. The sub sits 1" below the projected image but I'll be buying another sub here soon and will place the subs outside each main so that won't be an issue anymore.

My room is painted and screen up... time to get everything back in place and enjoy for a little bit then...

acoustics!


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## willis7469 (Jan 31, 2014)

Looking really good! You've been quieter than usual. Now I see why.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

willis7469 said:


> Looking really good! You've been quieter than usual. Now I see why.


repainted entire inside house.... installed crown/coffer in master bedroom and installed crown in patio. Tons of other honey dew list etc stuff...

I also been revamping my entire studio lighting stuff so I've been lurking on the camera forums more often the past two months. Cameras/Theater these are my current hobbies that consume my life 


I took a normal square bedroom, added 4 recessed cans, switches added by bed for light/fan control, built the drop down box, installed the crown and painted everything.

It's amazing what this $600 project and everything done by myself can do to the look of a room. The entire ceiling is new sheetrock also done by me. (just need to install the trim kits on the lights and attach the fan/ceiling dome to cover the wiring.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Looks good Talley, I love the color of the room and your home made rack. Once youre done you do need to come up to Indiana to do a second room 

I have the same problem with a couch/sleeper sofa in the theater room, my lovely wife wants to keep it an there is no where else in the house for the thing, not sure to this date what to do. I need to pull as much out of the room and start over like you did...oh and a bit of electrical work would be very cool.

Thanks for your posts, I will follow along.


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## NBPk402 (Feb 21, 2012)

Savjac said:


> Looks good Talley, I love the color of the room and your home made rack. Once youre done you do need to come up to Indiana to do a second room
> 
> I have the same problem with a couch/sleeper sofa in the theater room, my lovely wife wants to keep it an there is no where else in the house for the thing, not sure to this date what to do. I need to pull as much out of the room and start over like you did...oh and a bit of electrical work would be very cool.
> 
> Thanks for your posts, I will follow along.


Same problem here... My wife has a sofa/sleeper in the HT that we have no where else to put.


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## willis7469 (Jan 31, 2014)

How bout the sidewalk, with a free sign?!?! Lol


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## 480dad (Jan 22, 2015)

Nice work. Looking great!


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

willis7469 said:


> How bout the sidewalk, with a free sign?!?! Lol


Dont think I have not thought about bringing some tools and a reciprocating saw upstairs to do the deed. 
SOO many times, now I just need to grow some steel nerves.


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## willis7469 (Jan 31, 2014)

Jack, I totally understand. Lol! I've "lost" jeans that belonged to my wife, or even shirts that didn't do her justice, but I think a sleeper sofa would take a "'bit a 'splainin"! I hope someday you can do it. Btw, is the mrs hanging in there? I remember she had some health hurdles.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

willis7469 said:


> Jack, I totally understand. Lol! I've "lost" jeans that belonged to my wife, or even shirts that didn't do her justice, but I think a sleeper sofa would take a "'bit a 'splainin"! I hope someday you can do it. Btw, is the mrs hanging in there? I remember she had some health hurdles.


Thank you very much for remembering the Mrs, I do appreciate that. Yes, after 3 years of ills and surgeries so is doing very well. I dont think I could be cut on so much and still smile, but she is a trooper and still lets me have my own Cave to do what I want with.....kinda LOLOL


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

yeah... my couch in my HT has a sleeper...

I'm just waiting for the day wifey kicks me outta bed....


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Talley said:


> yeah... my couch in my HT has a sleeper...
> 
> I'm just waiting for the day wifey kicks me outta bed....



well there is that LOL

I am lucky the kiddies are gone and I have an extra bedroom with an extra bed.
As such I dont really need the sleeper but no amount of discussion has put me in a good place for getting rid of the thing.


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## Lumen (May 17, 2014)

Talley said:


> repainted entire inside house.... installed crown/coffer in master bedroom and installed crown in patio. Tons of other honey dew list etc stuff... I also been revamping my entire studio lighting stuff so I've been lurking on the camera forums more often the past two months. Cameras/Theater these are my current hobbies that consume my life  I took a normal square bedroom, added 4 recessed cans, switches added by bed for light/fan control, built the drop down box, installed the crown and painted everything. It's amazing what this $600 project and everything done by myself can do to the look of a room. The entire ceiling is new sheetrock also done by me. (just need to install the trim kits on the lights and attach the fan/ceiling dome to cover the wiring.


 Hey there, and congrats on the good work! Have you seen that Army commercial: "We do more before 7am than most people do all day!" Remind you of anyone?

Sent from my iPad using HTShack


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

BlueRockinLou said:


> Hey there, and congrats on the good work! Have you seen that Army commercial: "We do more before 7am than most people do all day!" Remind you of anyone?
> 
> Sent from my iPad using HTShack


well it's only taken me about 4 months to do all this so it's not like I'm fast  lol


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Here are the latest photos of the room. 

Things left/need to do:

Acoustics
Change curtains to something else
Install something else curtains over french doors to hide white and further block sunlight entering room during day
wrap traingle minwool panels (blocking window light) with fabric
Add second HSU sub
Rework my audio rack
Rework center channel stand

...more acoustic stuff.

"Work in progress"... BUT the theater screen is installed and room is painted so overall I can enjoy as I tweak!!!


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## RTS100x5 (Sep 12, 2009)

very nice system ... +1 on the +1 HSU Sub and any thoughs on a proj. upgrade ... I sell alot of EPSON 5030's and they are a REAL bang for the dollar right out of the box...how do you control your system ?


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

RTS100x5 said:


> very nice system ... +1 on the +1 HSU Sub and any thoughs on a proj. upgrade ... I sell alot of EPSON 5030's and they are a REAL bang for the dollar right out of the box...how do you control your system ?



Ya I'll add the second sub soon. I just got the projector and screen just a couple months ago. So far I'm very pleased with it, My eyes will never know there is better as long as I don't put in better  This was a cheap, get me going... mainly dump in the audio equipment and work on acoustics thing first. I have a couple years and when I can get a 4K projector, screen and playback device for $6k or less then thats when I'll upgrade. Till then 1080P and my BenQ are doing fine. Kids love it.

I use my fingers and my remote controls that came with the equipment.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

I know you did not ask but in the thought of saving some dough, I can say that in my room, which is similar in size to yours, One sub is way more than enough. I have been working with the PSA XV15 and it rattles everything in the room if I would let it. Ok I did let it and it was quite the distraction to have the walls and my fillings rattle in sync. Truly any added sub of similar size to what you have would be way overkill I think. However, it is your room and I applaud whatever you do to make a smile erupt on your head.


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## NBPk402 (Feb 21, 2012)

I'll bet you are loving it now. Time to rewatch all your movies, and listen to all your music again to re experience it. :T


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## NBPk402 (Feb 21, 2012)

Talley said:


> yeah... my couch in my HT has a sleeper...
> 
> I'm just waiting for the day wifey kicks me outta bed....


You know when you have a dedicated listening/HT room...being kicked out isn't so bad at all. LOL


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## XEagleDriver (Apr 15, 2010)

> I have a *dedicated 200amp panel *(60a 240v feed) for the AV gear and have *10 - 20 amp circuits*. I have dedicated outlets so EVERY equipment gets a dedicated feed/outlet/breaker.
> 
> I also have an Isolated ground system installed (3 ground rods actually). My panel is 62' feet from the outlet box but I ran #4awg cable for one circuit the Krell is hooked up to and three #6awg feeders and three #10awg feeders and a #14awg feeder for my network 8 port switch and another #14awg feeder for the projector.
> 
> *Needless to say I have plenty of power*


Talley,
I expect the neighbors will be over to watch a movie nearly every time you power up your system, since the lights in their own houses will dim as all this power surges into your HT! :gulp: Impressive.

Cheers,
XEagleDriver


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

XEagleDriver said:


> Talley,
> I expect the neighbors will be over to watch a movie nearly every time you power up your system, since the lights in their own houses will dim as all this power surges into your HT! :gulp: Impressive.
> 
> Cheers,
> XEagleDriver


Actually lights dimming is a sign of lack of adequate power supply. My system will maintain very good voltage equal to the utility due to proper sizing (and/or oversizing) of my supply wiring.

We did some testing on the Krell amps at my uncles a few years ago and the Krell monoblocks FPB 250mc series which contain a 1700va power supply which is well under the 20a circuit requirement capability would have peaks of 2500watts during music playback at levels of around 87db on an 89db effecient full range loudspeaker. Normal levels at idle were less than 100 watts and normal levels during most playback would be around the 300-500watt range.

again peaks hitting 2500watts which would cause instantaneous voltage drops and this is the source of many peoples wiring in homes with #12 or even worse #14 wire. Even though it's instantaneous it's still voltage drop. By me having my amp on #4awg on a supply distance of 62' and with my Krell having a 1700va supply I'm assuming I could see peaks in the same 2500w and if I DO then I'm only going to see max around a .7% voltage drop during that instant which is only a .75v drop. Essentially I've ensured to maintain less than 1v constant which helps keeps thinks smooth. Is it needed? I have no idea but I had the wire, panel, etc already so why not. I did my entire panel wiring/supply etc for less than 200 bucks and did all the work myself.

Also you slam that same peak on a #12 circuit commonly found on homes and your looking at 4.6% voltage drop at that instant which puts you around losing around 5.5v. You tell me... is it good to have swings of 5 volts on an audio system completely designed around voltage all the way to the speaker? Probably not...

...which is why companies sell voltage regulators which is a bandaid to undersized wiring.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Here are some panels that I've built. The first of many various types. placement locations are unknown at this point so it'll be up to the trial/error. I don't really want to attack the first reflection points yet until I build some diffusion panels to determine which sounds better.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Here is my "thoughts and plans" for my rear wall and rear ceiling treatments which I feel are my most crucial treatment areas (next to the side reflections and floor reflections)


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

And we are already planning on swapping the couch out to an actual theater seating couch setup next year sometime around september 2016. This is a couch we've had for years that was an L shape but I took the 90 out and made it long and comfy


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Built a couple 12" x 86" QRD N7 inverse diffusion panels. To be used below the crown just left and right of the projector.

Total cost to build both of these was $85 and about 1.5hrs to build including cleanup. Not bad. Will try to get my absorption panels and these diffusion panels mounted this weekend.

Will build me two poly diffusors tomorrow or this weekend sometime.


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## RTS100x5 (Sep 12, 2009)

anything on the front wall ?


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

RTS100x5 said:


> anything on the front wall ?


Well the screen takes up 40% of the front wall and my audio rack when I'm done with it will take up another 10%. This leaves me right at 5'x8' on each side of the screen so not much to work with.

Only thing I'll do for sure is hit the crown area just as I'm doing on the back wall. Some triangle absorption for the wall/ceiling/sidewall corners and then cover from a level of the midrange woofers up 4' tall will be a 4'x4' area of diffusion.

My thoughts are 90% diffusion covering the front wall and front ceiling. Understand that no more than 50% of the wall will be treated. So of the 50% that will 90% will be diffusion and 10% absorption.


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## Blacklightning (Nov 22, 2011)

Talley said:


> Built a couple 12" x 86" QRD N7 inverse diffusion panels. To be used below the crown just left and right of the projector.
> 
> Total cost to build both of these was $85 and about 1.5hrs to build including cleanup. Not bad. Will try to get my absorption panels and these diffusion panels mounted this weekend.
> 
> Will build me two poly diffusors tomorrow or this weekend sometime.


How did you work out the frequencies to tune the diffusers?


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Blacklightning said:


> How did you work out the frequencies to tune the diffusers?


I played around with it. I have several designs made up with the primary purpose is quick build and cost effective. 

Here is a snapshot of the above build.


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## Blacklightning (Nov 22, 2011)

Nice,

diffusers scary me as I "think" they can mess things up as much as they can help.
Diffusers will be my last step for my room.

I may call apon you for some advise.

thanks


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Blacklightning said:


> Nice,
> 
> diffusers scary me as I "think" they can mess things up as much as they can help.
> Diffusers will be my last step for my room.
> ...


Sure but I'm really a newb. I'm very tecnical with alot of stuff so I like to tinker and play around. My uncles room has some 2x6's along all the wall/ceiling points and they really improved his but no matter how I do the math those things are only effective at like 4000+khz. I don't see how they can make a huge difference so this is why I decided to make these. 

Another thing you can do is take build 6 of these and put them into a 7 cluster alternating to the spec in the image below so you effectively have true diffusion down to 645hz with scattering down to ~350hz. The problem is the general rule is typically 3 times the wavelength for sitting distance and I'm limited on this but I may do something like this for the ceiling or front wall. By doing these in a cluster of 1'x4' pieces and alternating them by the block height dimension in the image (1.5", 3", 6") and by having the 7 spaces you end up with a 4' high x 7' long setup for about $150. Then you get a usable frequency range of 400hz-4500hz. Anything lower you would want some absorption if your having issues anyway. Then the sitting distance I would say would be about 5 feet away. 

Again, theory. I'm doing it so I'll let you know how it works out.


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## Blacklightning (Nov 22, 2011)

Glad to see your doing things the new school way and not the old school way.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Just ordered an XMC-1 w/ dirac live to replace my X4000.

Next step will be a second HSU VTF-15H MK2 and then OPPO 105 then back to more acoustic stuff.


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## willis7469 (Jan 31, 2014)

Nice!
It's coming along great.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

willis7469 said:


> Nice!
> It's coming along great.


Thank you


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Spent about 30 min and built these two poly diffusers to test out. Had some left over paneling from another project and the 1x material is just furring strips. Total cost in materials is about $15 each. I'll get some 1 1/2" L wood pieces and cap off all the ends so to make it square in shape and to hide the staples. More than likely will paint them. I may or may not cap the ends but will definately be glueing some kind of insulation to the back to give them some absorption properties and deaden the paneling to make sure they won't ring.

Size is 24x35x8.5


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Well I built a few more items.... I've been propping them up around the room and listening.

Without a doubt... THE FLOOR! wow laying those diffusion panels down make a huge difference.

I know what I need to do to move forward. It'll take me a few months to get everything built and installed but without a doubt a fully treated room for less than 800 bucks is whats fixing to happen.

Here is what I have propped up doing my listening to.


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## Lumen (May 17, 2014)

Admire, admire! 
Curious... Do the diffuser panels on top of the couch have focal points that concentrate the sound in clusters to the right and left of the LP?

Edit: Hard to tell from the pic if they're convex or concave w.r.t. the LP.


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## NBPk402 (Feb 21, 2012)

Good job on making the panels. I hope that is not going to be the final position for the panels as it is blocking the screen. :T


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Lumen said:


> Admire, admire!
> Curious... Do the diffuser panels on top of the couch have focal points that concentrate the sound in clusters to the right and left of the LP?
> 
> Edit: Hard to tell from the pic if they're convex or concave w.r.t. the LP.


I just had them laying there. The poly's are for the ceiling where I have plenty of distance and to be honest none of the ceiling is a first reflection point for me anyway so they'll just help break up the rest of the room.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

ellisr63 said:


> Good job on making the panels. I hope that is not going to be the final position for the panels as it is blocking the screen. :T


Nope although I will have multiple panels that will be able to be stored away for normal movie watching and then put back into place when listening to music. The floor panels did amazing but I don't need long panels like that on the floor. I'll make a bunch of 24" panels for this.

The two panels by the screen made a good difference listening to them before and after.

I'm gonna center my rack to the screen and add a second HSU. I"ll have an HSU in between the rack and the mains on both sides and with some a blanket over the sub will place temporary polys just as shown to help when listening to music.

The ones between the speakers really helped with the vocals. Vocals improved the most out of all of this.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

With the addition of Dirac I'm very pleased with my temporary panel setup. These poly's do a great job at creating space and added depth. So super pleased. I'm going to stick to poly's on the ceiling spaces. 

Can't wait to build more panels and gotta get everything hung. I'm really starting to enjoy the sound of my system. 

Second HSU soon and Oppo will complete my equipment list. Then onto maple blocks / brass cones and the acoustical treatments.


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## Blacklightning (Nov 22, 2011)

Talley said:


> Second HSU soon and Oppo will complete my equipment list.


:T :clap:



Talley said:


> Then onto maple blocks / brass cones


:nono: :rofl: I think you should save your money on this one.

Edit: I guess this could be useful for turntables.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Blacklightning said:


> :T :clap:
> 
> 
> :nono: :rofl: I think you should save your money on this one.
> ...



The biggest reason for me wanting to block/cone the speakers will be for precise alignment which is difficult to master on carpet.

I may cut a rectangle out all the way from speaker to speaker and install hardwood in lieu of the carpet to help create ambience and to also aid in perfect alignment (plumb/level/toe) of the speakers. My digital level is accurate to .01° and this is how accurate I want my speakers.


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## Blacklightning (Nov 22, 2011)

Talley said:


> The biggest reason for me wanting to block/cone the speakers will be for precise alignment which is difficult to master on carpet.
> 
> I may cut a rectangle out all the way from speaker to speaker and install hardwood in lieu of the carpet to help create ambience and to also aid in perfect alignment (plumb/level/toe) of the speakers. My digital level is accurate to .01° and this is how accurate I want my speakers.


I see… I did not know they were for the speakers. I just use regular spikes on my carpet but yes they are really hard to place and or move ½ an inch at a time.

Your laser pointer accuracy reminds me of another guy that took his positioning a little too far.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Blacklightning said:


> I see… I did not know they were for the speakers. I just use regular spikes on my carpet but yes they are really hard to place and or move ½ an inch at a time.
> 
> Your laser pointer accuracy reminds me of another guy that took his positioning a little too far.


So you think I'm taking my room too far???

...Just trying to do it all... right. My uncle uses blocks under his speakers.


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## Blacklightning (Nov 22, 2011)

You can never go too far as long as you are happy. Just do not think spending money will get you what you want.
The human brain is a very subjective organ and it can be tricked very easily. This can be a good and bad thing. You can take two bowls of water (one red and one blue) the same temperature and ask 100 people to mark down what they think the Temperature difference is and all 100 will think one is hotter than the other.

Marketing works because we hear, see, and feel differences than are not there or are too small to tell. When most Audiophiles do something to their system it always seems to get “better”. “Better” is a word that I use but it also means absolutely nothing. Brand A will say the speaker is better because it’s lighter and brand B will say its better because it’s heavier. After 100+ years of Audio we have done and still do some crazy things.
Just the other day I saw a MK speaker with lines above and below the tweeter. So I found some similar stuff and added it to my speakers.









Think about the science with a fresh mind and try to forget the marketing. Save your money for things that matter. Marble is expensive so it’s easy to Market it as highend. Brass Cones are heavy is they feel highend.





https://youtu.be/BYTlN6wjcvQ?t=3m

Your Uncles room would still sound great with more or less stuff in that room it would just sound different.
I play trombone and a few years ago I de-lacquered an old student model trombone to use for a small orchestra gig. I read that de-lacquering can open up and lighting a trombone. I hated my cheap student model trombone and never used it but after I de-lacquered it I loved it and played it as much as I could. A year later I found out that my model had really good Lacquer that DID NOT affect the sound. My brain figured it made a difference so I loved it and played it. I would not be playing it today if I did not make that change that ended up not changing a thing


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

After spending most the month off on the room and concentrating on vacationing/work/photography/kids I finally jumped back into actually doing something. Today I built 4 more poly diffusers and mounted the two big 8' long each diffusion panels I built along the ceiling/wall joint on the back wall. Flutter is greatly improved in this region but now I can hear flutter in other parts of the room. Just a sign that everything must be treated not just one thing.

Although I did enjoy quite a few movies throughout the summer as a mini celebration of getting the system up and running. Now will spend the next few months mounting all my panels and building more items to work on the acoustics.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

I was just messing around last night and just temporary placed my poly panels all over the couch/back wall like this.... they actually did a very good job and sounded great!


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

I went and picked up some more lumber today and I'm fixing to go build some more of the QRD diffusion panels. Spent $130 and will build 8 panels total:

6 panels that will be 1' x 32" and 2 panels that will be 1' x 48"

I'm going to place the 6 panels on the back wall vertically between the couch and the horizontal diffusion panels and have them spaced apart about 8-10" to help gain some area and still keep some flatness on the wall. The two 4' panels will be horizontal in the same spot you see my longer panels on each side of the projector but these will be for the front wall one on each side of the screen.


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## willis7469 (Jan 31, 2014)

Talley said:


> I was just messing around last night and just temporary placed my poly panels all over the couch/back wall like this.... they actually did a very good job and sounded great!



Very geometricalish. Lol
Nice!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

willis7469 said:


> Very geometricalish. Lol
> Nice!
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Thanks.

Well 3hrs I managed to get all the tools out... build 6 complete panels 1' x 32" and I got the two 1 x 48" boxes done but I miscalculated my material so ran out of the insides (hey i'm human). This 3hrs included cleanup putting all tools away and taking them all up stairs and taking the photo 

These will go vertical on the back wall above the couch.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

The best part is the material is inexpensive and I made them 32" to keep my waste down. This is the total waste from these 6 panels... probably less than 3 bucks.

I still need to put a finish on these but I'll end up spraying primer and paint them black is what I'm thinking will work out good. 

For now they'll get hung and I'll listen to them and enjoy them for awhile then take them down one by one and finish them nice. My poly's I still need to glue some deadening material to the back... like 3/4" foam board or something to get if some density.


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## Lumen (May 17, 2014)

Blacklightning said:


> You can never go too far as long as you are happy. Just do not think spending money will get you what you want.


But if you try sometimes, you just might find... you get what you need! :bigsmile:
--Rolling Stones 



Blacklightning said:


> The human brain is a very subjective organ and it can be tricked very easily. This can be a good and bad thing. You can take two bowls of water (one red and one blue) the same temperature and ask 100 people to mark down what they think the Temperature difference is and all 100 will think one is hotter than the other.


Unless you're James Tiberius Kirk, in which case you'd pull a Kobayashi Maru to even the odds by doing something like mixing the two together!


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## Owen Bartley (Oct 18, 2006)

Nice work Talley. I really like the long diffusors you put up on the back wall flanking the projector. Seems like a nice relatively easy project that could be integrated into many rooms. Keep us up to date with pics and results as you refine your treatment.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Owen Bartley said:


> Nice work Talley. I really like the long diffusors you put up on the back wall flanking the projector. Seems like a nice relatively easy project that could be integrated into many rooms. Keep us up to date with pics and results as you refine your treatment.


Thanks. I know they look a bit rough but I wanted 1. cheap 2. easy to build 3. cheap.

I need to see if they work. Which is why I'm not finishing them. If I get everything done and the room sounds fantastic then I'll proceed to finish treatments.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Got 5 more panels in the ceiling to hang and I'll be done with the back wall and the back ceiling part. 

Made alot of progress today.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Finished this weekend only getting a couple more panels hung due to today being one of my kids birthday. I'll work more this week and get some more done.

I got two absorption panels up near the peak also.


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## Owen Bartley (Oct 18, 2006)

Good progress. All of those treatments must make a huge difference in the sound of the room. Is it something you've noticed even just being in the room while working, talking, etc.?


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Owen Bartley said:


> Good progress. All of those treatments must make a huge difference in the sound of the room. Is it something you've noticed even just being in the room while working, talking, etc.?


Huge difference. 

a simple walk around the room clapping before and after... Before was clap then hearing the clap ringing/echoing for seconds. Very bad. After is 95% echo/ringing gone. Huge improvement in the sound on the speakers. Added a sense of space to the music as if you hear more of the room to which the recording was in but the biggest difference was DEPTH. I'm telling you some instruments literally moved 10 feet forward. Very crazy the difference it made. I'm astonished and cannot wait to do the rest.

My feeling is the backwall is the most important wall. The high energy waves hit that wall and then bounce back into the room. I've effectively broken those waves up reducing the energy.

Believe me... it works! I'm just super happy that I've spent less than $400 on this stuff.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Owen Bartley said:


> Good progress. All of those treatments must make a huge difference in the sound of the room. Is it something you've noticed even just being in the room while working, talking, etc.?


Talking as well. Less ambience.... although it's not really quieter than the rest of the house the perception is that its quieter because you don't hear any echoing. 

I haven't put up hardly any absorption either. Just two 2x2 panels and one 8''x4' panel on the back wall and at the ceiling peak I put up two 1'x4' panels.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

I never posted this but this is where I'm at right now. on the back ceiling part I have three more panels to hang... two on the ride side to mimic the left and one in the middle above the two vertical but placed horizontal like the left panels this would be center up high by the ceiling fan. This would complete my ceiling and I will mimic the same setup on the front part of the ceiling except turn the panels 90 degrees.

I'll eventually paint the back 1x4 material grey to match the ceiling and the poly part and the end caps will be painted black.


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## luisv (Feb 27, 2014)

Talley said:


> Thanks.
> 
> Well 3hrs I managed to get all the tools out... build 6 complete panels 1' x 32" and I got the two 1 x 48" boxes done but I miscalculated my material so ran out of the insides (hey i'm human). This 3hrs included cleanup putting all tools away and taking them all up stairs and taking the photo
> 
> These will go vertical on the back wall above the couch.


They look great, and thanks for the finished pictures. Maybe I missed it, but is there a design or template that you followed to build them?


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

luisv said:


> They look great, and thanks for the finished pictures. Maybe I missed it, but is there a design or template that you followed to build them?


I just built them from what I wanted in my head. I worked the numbers using the QRdude software to get the design to work with dimensional lumber. I wanted to use furring strips since the cost is cheap. In the end it took an inverse panel to work out the numbers but overall I'm pretty happy with them. 

Just needs some paint but that'll come much later. 

I could probably post some plans for anyone who wishes to build them. They are cheap to do and only require some construction adhesive, nail gun and a miter box. The back panels you can have cut to sections at lowes/home depot so you don't even need a table saw.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

Hung two more poly panels on the ceiling and built two more diffusion panels for the front wall by ceiling left/right of the screen. Also took the minwool triangles I had stuck in the windows left/right of the fireplace and wrapped them in fabric for a cleaner look.

Also hung my new painting my buddy got me haha between the french door. 

...can't wait to ditch the tree and get going with more panels.


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## luisv (Feb 27, 2014)

Talley said:


> I just built them from what I wanted in my head. I worked the numbers using the QRdude software to get the design to work with dimensional lumber. I wanted to use furring strips since the cost is cheap. In the end it took an inverse panel to work out the numbers but overall I'm pretty happy with them.
> 
> Just needs some paint but that'll come much later.
> 
> I could probably post some plans for anyone who wishes to build them. They are cheap to do and only require some construction adhesive, nail gun and a miter box. The back panels you can have cut to sections at lowes/home depot so you don't even need a table saw.



If you can post some plans and such that would be great. I took a look at the software, but it only runs on Windows. :rolleyesno:


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## PoTee (Oct 8, 2010)

I just read your entire thread and can only say that I'm in AWE of what you've done. Not only a master electrician but all so a pretty good carpenter.

Your room looks great if things sound as good as they look then you've done a wonderful job. Your knowledge of Audio is way above any thing I could ever achieve.


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## Talley (Dec 8, 2010)

luisv said:


> If you can post some plans and such that would be great. I took a look at the software, but it only runs on Windows. :rolleyesno:


Give me a week or so... I'll sketch up some plans.


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## luisv (Feb 27, 2014)

Thanks and I appreciate it, but no rush as the holidays are meant to be spent with family, so no worries.


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## DqMcClain (Sep 16, 2015)

Talley said:


> Also hung my new painting my buddy got me haha between the french door.


Freddie Mercury gazing impassively into the room as you watch movies? I like it.


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