Cinemaphile's HT Build Thread (rookie DIYer and first HT)

[cinemaphile]

(Newest posts/pics at end of thread)

Current Status: Framing, electrical, wiring, insulation, drywall hanging/finishing, painting, flooring, carpet, doors, trim, pole coverings done.
Still to go: (replace and) mount side speakers, mount center speaker in-wall, closet door, minor touch-ups, finish decor, get my new tv, replace ugly temp furniture!


__________________________________________________ __________

So this is where I'll be tracking the construction of my new home theater, which should begin in a week or two. I'm not very experienced at such things, but limited budget demands that I do the work myself.
Well, "home theater" may be a bit of wishful thinking - The wife is basically planning for it to be another living room, but I think I've convinced her to let me make it primarily a theater room.

This is mostly just a tracking thread for my own reference, but feel free to comment/advise if you have anything to say! Newest pics/posts will be at the bottom, of course.

The area to be finished totals around 950 sq ft, with about 450 of that being the actual theater room. Any wall framing/insulation/etc in these first pictures was all done by previous owners.


As you reach the bottom of the stairs and turn around the corner, this is the view of the basement. Most of it has been cleared out, with just a few stacks of boxes and toys in the front, and a few pieces of furniture and the tv in the back. I'm standing in the front section which will be a playroom for the kids, and the back half (or so) will be the home theater.

Lighting will be recessed in ceiling.


The home theater space: The current 65" projection non-HD TV is being replaced with a same-size or larger flatscreen HDTV, or possibly a projector and screen (still havent decided - size vs resolution). We'll try to sell of that 65" - it wasn't used much anymore anyway. We have a 40" HD upstairs.
I'm building a wall just a couple feet out from the back wall on which the TV will be mounted, basically making a walkway/closet behind the TV where I can work with wires, etc. Front speakers (left/right/center) will be built into that wall as well.
Components will reside in a rack/cabinet to the left of the TV, below where the electrical box currently sits. An outlet and wiring will be built into the ceiling for possible projector in future.
Wall decor will consist of framed movie posters and possibly a couple sconce lights.
The hideous old hand-me-down furniture will be replaced. We're thinking an L- or U-shaped couch where the current one sits, then behind that, slightly elevated, an extra row of seats - recliners or theater seating - with a small table for eating/working/etc. An outlet will be built into the riser for laptops and such.




As you approach the theater room and turn right, there is an extra room there. This will house a small fridge/microwave/cabinet for snacks, some seating, and eventually a pool table (though not in the very near future). For now it will just be more "living room" space.


View from in front of the TV. That wall will be finished but the area behind (which contains HVAC, sink, storage, etc) will remain unfinished.


View from TV looking up length of basement. The wall/doors dividing the TV room from the playroom will be even with the back of the stairwell there.


Front/Playroom area with the last of the stuff to clear out before work begins.

[KayaM]

Bare concrete walls, floor. It must be cold down there...brrr. Nice work. Keep us posted.

[cinemaphile]

Originally Posted by KayaM

Bare concrete walls, floor. It must be cold down there...brrr. Nice work. Keep us posted.

That's for sure! Step one is most definitely insulation!

[Nick4Blu_81]

Take off the panel cover and frame around it. One 2x4 on each side. What is hanging on the wall next to the panel?

[jvoorhees]

NICE! Looking forward to seeing what you do!

We just moved into a brand new place... our builder wanted $30K to finish the basement!!!!! Its about 950 sq ft.!!!!!!! I said screw it and Ill do it myself... we just really started today...

Cheers!

[cinemaphile]

Originally Posted by jvoorhees

We just moved into a brand new place... our builder wanted $30K to finish the basement!!!!! Its about 950 sq ft.!!!!!!! I said screw it and Ill do it myself... we just really started today...

Oh yeah, I meant to mention that - I'd better edit my post. We looked into having it done professionally, but the numbers were crazy! Our meager budget therefore demanded I'd be doing the vast majority of the work myself. So I've spent the last month researching and learning. The only thing I'm planning to hire someone for is electrical. I'm not going near that. I'd rather not have my house burn down from something I did

[cinemaphile]

Originally Posted by Nick4Blu_81

Take off the panel cover and frame around it. One 2x4 on each side. What is hanging on the wall next to the panel?

I'll be building around that electrical box, and ultimately it will be hidden/housed inside a cabinet-like enclosure (local code allows that, as long as it's not used as a storage closet with clothes, etc).

The little black box next to it is some kind of box related to wiring for lights outside (like sidewalk lighting). The wires are still buried up there, but there are no lights attached and I doubt we'll use them. The box is bolted to that wood panel which is bolted to the concrete wall. Not sure what that's all about. It's most likely coming down.

[xneox]

Originally Posted by cinemaphile

Oh yeah, I meant to mention that - I'd better edit my post. We looked into having it done professionally, but the numbers were crazy! Our meager budget therefore demanded I'd be doing the vast majority of the work myself. So I've spent the last month researching and learning. The only thing I'm planning to hire someone for is electrical. I'm not going near that. I'd rather not have my house burn down from something I did

Jeez...too bad we're not neighbors. I'm somewhat of a hardcore electrical diy-er, but construction intimidates me. We could do some damage.

[cinemaphile]

6/23 Update:

Foamboard insulation/moisture barrier on walls completed
Framing of all walls, doors, closets, etc completed

Next up: Awaiting electrical (power/lighting), then I can start on batt insulation and drywalling

Front of basement (will be playroom) looking back:



Through doorway into back room (theater):


Another angle on theater room and side room:


From back wall looking into theater room:


From side room looking into theater room/access closet:

[Deadset]

Keep up the good work. DIY gives a good sense of accomplishment that's for sure.

[cinemaphile]

Things are going well. Wired for sound last night, and electrical is being done right now. Then I can finish insulation and wall it up.

I'm looking for suggestions on a couple things:
1. What can I do with the metal poles? I suppose I could drywall square pillars around them, but I'm not sure how that will look. Any ideas?

2. I know this is largely personal preference, but I'm looking for ideas on colors/paint. I can't decide what to go with. Nothing too light, since I'll be using a projector and don't want any more light/reflection than necessary. And I'm hoping to achieve somewhat of a "movie theater" feel to the room. Furniture hasn't been picked out yet, so no need to consider that in room color selection.

[tilallr1]

Originally Posted by cinemaphile

Things are going well. Wired for sound last night, and electrical is being done right now. Then I can finish insulation and wall it up.

I'm looking for suggestions on a couple things:
1. What can I do with the metal poles? I suppose I could drywall square pillars around them, but I'm not sure how that will look. Any ideas?

2. I know this is largely personal preference, but I'm looking for ideas on colors/paint. I can't decide what to go with. Nothing too light, since I'll be using a projector and don't want any more light/reflection than necessary. And I'm hoping to achieve somewhat of a "movie theater" feel to the room. Furniture hasn't been picked out yet, so no need to consider that in room color selection.

Looking good so far.

(1) I have seen nice wraps for polls that make them look like elegant pillars. Like so: http://www.polecoverings.com/

(2) I personally think red and black say theater. The darker the better for projection. I personally used dark blood red and galaxy black. You can see my gallery, but the pics didn't come out great as it looks. Dark colors are SOOOOO hard to photograph. I recommend flat paint that has little or no reflective qualities. But the side effect is it stains easily. So if you have kids this might not work, with their grubby little hands.

[mikkeli]

Originally Posted by tilallr1

Looking good so far.

(1) I have seen nice wraps for polls that make them look like elegant pillars. Like so: http://www.polecoverings.com/

(2) I personally think red and black say theater. The darker the better for projection. I personally used dark blood red and galaxy black. You can see my gallery, but the pics didn't come out great as it looks. Dark colors are SOOOOO hard to photograph. I recommend flat paint that has little or no reflective qualities. But the side effect is it stains easily. So if you have kids this might not work, with their grubby little hands.

(2) I was going to suggest red/black combo also. I have similar theater with you tilallr1: SVS speakers & sub, red/black color combo. See link in my signature...

[cinemaphile]

I can procrastinate no longer. Tomorrow I must start the dreaded drywalling. Electrical is done, wall insulation is done, additional ceiling insulation (for sound barrier purposes) is done.
I'm going with normal 1/2" drywall for all walls and ceiling, and then the theater room ceiling and interior walls will get an additional 1/2" with Green Glue between.
Any tips/tricks before I commence the drywalling stage?
The tough part is I'll be doing it largely alone, as the wife needs to watch the kids, and no friends are really available to help. So I'll need to rent a lift or devise something myself to hold it up while I secure it. I'm also most concerned about the mudding/sanding/finishing phase since this determines the walls we'll be staring at for years - and I know it's a long, slow, arduous process I am NOT looking forward to. We considered hiring someone for that part, but it looks like it would cost more than we can afford. We've been good at keeping costs down. At this point I estimate the project will end up around the $7k mark (not including the projector and screen, which will total about $2200), when pros were quoting me $15k, $20k, $30k+

Originally Posted by tilallr1

I have seen nice wraps for polls that make them look like elegant pillars. Like so: http://www.polecoverings.com/

With a site name like that, I was a little worried you were sending me to some kind of porn site

[spidy]

I may be a little late but if your drywall isn't finished I would run conduit from where you may have your projector to where your A/V equipment will be.

For ideas check AVS as there are a ton of builds there and many who can give you great advice:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=19

Around the beams people typically frame sofits around the room with lighting. You can also do a stage on your screen well to give it that theater type feel.

As far as color goes, black would be the choice for the ceiling and for the side walls darker colors work well (purple, navy blue, burgundy, or red).

Wish I would have checked your thread earlier to give you some good advice but better late than never I suppose. If your budget allows I highly recommend checking out projectors. The ideal setup would be a TV for everything else and a projector for movies but you have to work with the budget you have.

Good luck!

[cinemaphile]

Originally Posted by spidy

I may be a little late but if your drywall isn't finished I would run conduit from where you may have your projector to where your A/V equipment will be.

I'm having an outlet installed in the ceiling for the projector, and I'm also running an HDMI cable from that spot to where the component rack will be. (anything else I need? I don't see myself playing anything else on it that will need other connections)

Originally Posted by spidy

Around the beams people typically frame sofits around the room with lighting. You can also do a stage on your screen well to give it that theater type feel.

Your wording has me a bit confused. soffits around the beams with lighting?
As for the stage, I considered it but opted not to, as the room (though primarily for movies) will be used as a living room on occasion as well.

Originally Posted by spidy

As far as color goes, black would be the choice for the ceiling and for the side walls darker colors work well (purple, navy blue, burgundy, or red).

The ceiling and screen wall will definitely be black. The rest is still under consideration.

Originally Posted by spidy

If your budget allows I highly recommend checking out projectors. The ideal setup would be a TV for everything else and a projector for movies but you have to work with the budget you have.

That's the plan. I'll have a TV mounted on that wall, then a screen that comes down in front of it for watching movies on the projector. But since the wife is currently pretty much against me buying TWO tv's (she says "that's just going too far"... like a 120" screen wasn't already! ), the wall tv will have to wait a bit, and we'll just watch plain ol' tv upstairs for now (or on the projector, if it's anything worthwhile).

I appreciate all the advice!

[spidy]

Originally Posted by cinemaphile

...
Your wording has me a bit confused. soffits around the beams with lighting?...

What I mean was rather than just framing around the beam you could frame it out further and leave room for small canned lights. Typically in many home theaters I've seen on AVS people will usually frame a sofit (bulkhead) around the entire room if possible and it will look like a tray ceiling (and lighting all the way around the sofit as well).

[Morrissey]

Looks great so far Cinemaphile! You have a great space down there.
Have you decided on your flooring yet?

[Original-6ix]

Yes its really coming along and the drywall puddy and sanding is the ***** of the bunch and for color make sure you use a flat paint no gloss and maybe earth tones i used a dark chocolate brown for the hdtv/projection wall and ceilings and a caramel sandy brown on the sides and it gives the room a relaxing feel to it, hard to tell in pics but it does. maybe stray from the typical black red scheme that alot of people use.

[cinemaphile]

I hate drywalling.

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