Looking for some input on a home theater set up

[H0ND0]

Hello, I am building a home theater in my basement. The room Dimensions are 20' wide x 38' Deep. The room also has 10' Ceilings. I was looking for some suggestions on the Projector and sound system. There is no windows in the room but there is a patio door not to far away as far as the projector goes. I was hoping to keep my budget around 10 to 12 thousand. Any ideas or do I need to up it some? Any input is much appreciated. If you need any more details let me know. Thanks....

 

[Wolfshadw]

That's a pretty good sized room and most consumer level projectors are not going to be able to utilize all that space. Given your budget, I'm guessing you know that and are planning on a commercial level projector.

How large of a screen image are you looking for? With about a 22' throw distance, my Optoma HD20 gives me around 135" diagonal. Given your room dimensions, and assuming you want the largest image possible, I think your biggest obstacle is actually going to be the ceiling height. The other thing to remember is that you *are* limited by your resolution when it comes to large screen images. Sitting too close will give you a definite screen door effect.

I am, by no means, an expert on projectors at this level, but if you start browsing through these projectors, you may find one that works best for you. Be sure to check each projector's calculator for throw distance, recommended seating, image sizing, etc...

I'm no audiophile so I won't even try to recommend an audio/speaker system.

-Wolf sends

 

[thee_prisoner]

I assume you aren't going to use the whole room for HT? It's tough because room size and sound treatments is a major thing to get right. Is this your budget for just the audio/video or the total budget when you add in some construction, paint, room treatments( sound traps), furniture and a bunch of etcs?

Anyways, this can be(well it is) I did the same thing but I can rattle off quite a few recommendations for the audio side but I don't have the time right now and I need to think about this and a ton more info from you on how the room is going to be used.

Happy HT, the Prisoner...

 

[H0ND0]

This is my budget for just the audio/Video equipment. It can be adjusted if needed ( obviously no one wants to spend more that they need too.) Just looking for some suggestions. The actual size of the room is 20' x 20' with 12' ceilings, but there is no wall in the back of the room. The room is tiered and at the 20' depth of the room it steps up to where there is 9' ceilings and continues back for another 18' where there is a bar . I guess the idea was to keep the room opened up enough to be able to watch sports etc. from the bar or use it for a dedicated theater if I wanted. Could also use some more info on room treatments before I get to far into this and miss something important. The room should be completely framed in by the end of the week (8-2-2013). I was debating if I should bring in a local company to go through this or if I can get enough information from just doing research to accomplish what I want. Any info is greatly appreciated.
Thanks Peter

 

[thee_prisoner]

Hi Peter, before you frame the room in, you need to consider all the aspects before doing so;running the wires, built-in cabinetry, whether you want to use in wall speakers, ceiling speakers, just regular speakers and etc. It is cheaper in the long run to make those choices before hand. I did most of the work by myself and help with friends. SO that saved a lot of money in terms of the construction, cabinets to hold the audio equipment, laying the slab, carpet, sound treatments and yada yada.

I had a similar situation( basement, large room about the same size, bar area and etc) was to build a dedicated self-contained HT room and then set up a TV for the bar area with a secondary small kitchen. Of course that cost more money because of the fact you are doubling some of the various audio/video components. The reason I did this is because I wanted the best audio/video for my HT and the bar area was secondary. And if you think about it, hanging around the bar and just watching TV casually, you don't need to go over the top with components, at least audio wise.

Doing a combo bar and HT room isn't a big problem, you just will just sacrifice some audio purity just because when you dealing with a large room and all the various objects in it, it affects the audio. But really, sound wise you should be fine. Considering it is a large room and you probably don't want speakers just standing around on the sides and rears, consider ceiling speakers or brackets using regular speakers pointing towards the seating area for the sides and rear speakers.

Room treatments can be simple as carpet and heavy curtains on the walls to sound traps. Figuring out sound traps, you will need somebody that knows what they are doing, which would mean contracting somebody to do that for you. Generally professional audio/video installers have building contractors that work with them who have experience building these kind of rooms/setups.

Audio wise, you will want to spend at least 1/3 of the audio budget on speakers. They have to reproduce the sound. With most of that budget going towards the front mains, center speaker and sub(sub, you can spend less or more depending on the mains and how much bass you want). For surround, you want to get a surround processor(like this for examplehttp://www.outlawaudio.com/products/975.html. This will be the heart of the system. I prefer separate components because receivers lock you into a certain setup and the amps in receivers are average at best. With separates you have more flexibility in terms of swapping out and upgrading as you go along. You can do separate amps(stereo amp for mains, mono amp for center, powered sub) or go with a good quality 5.1/7.1 amp. In terms of surround, you can start off just doing 5.1 to save some money and always add the side speakers later for 7.1 and considering the size of the room, 7.2(two subs) might be an option.

Buying used is a great option and will save you a ton of money, most new/used stereo places offer a trade in value when you want to upgrade. For example, you "x" amount of money on a used amp and a year later, if you want to upgrade, you get full value of what you paid for it on a trade in. Most important, listen before you buy. Of course, it will sound different from the show room but at least you will have a general idea.

Happy HT, the Prisoner...

 

[H0ND0]

Thanks for the input.