SaxCatz Home Theater

[SaxCatz]

In this part of the country, basements are virtually non-existent so finding space for a proper home theater presents an even greater challenge.
In my case, our home had a bonus room off the kitchen which the builder described as an "Entertainment Room." This was a perfect start for a home theater. All that was necessary to prepare the room, other than running all the required wiring, was to enclose an archway between the kitchen and theater and turn an open, arched entryway in to a proper doorway.
Without further adieu, here is the finished product...
---
--- CURRENT STATUS (as of May 6, 2013) ---




--- PRIOR STATUS (as of August 26, 2012) ---



My Equipment List: (as of May 6, 2013)
Epson Powerlite Home Cinema 8500UB 1080p 3LCD Front Projector
EliteScreens SableFrame series 120" Fixed-Frame CineWhite 1.1 gain Projection Screen
Onkyo TX-NR809
Oppo BDP-93 Blu-ray/Universal Disc Player
DishNetwork Hopper 2000 HD DVR
Monoprice CPX-401 Component Video Switch Used as Composite Video Switch
HTPC Intel Atom/NVidia powered
Xbox 360 250GB Slim
Nintendo Wii U Deluxe 32GB
Speakers:
6.1 configuration
- Front Left & Right- Polk RTi12 (x2);
- Center Channel- Polk CSiA6;
- Surround Left & Right- Polk RTi4 (x2); &
- Surround Back- Polk CSiA4.
- Velodyne DLS-3750R 375w peak (185w continuous) 10" subwoofer

[crazyBLUE]

Welcome to the Home Theater Gallery Threads SaxCatz.

Vary nice looking setup you have there & the Epson

[frogmort]

That's a classy looking setup you have there man.

I agree with cB. Nice Epson.

Welcome to the HT Galleries.

[DangeRuss]

Originally Posted by frogmort

That's a classy looking setup you have there man.

I agree with cB. Nice Epson.

Welcome to the HT Galleries.

Like he said

[JimShaw]

Regarding the Epson in relation to where you sit.

I have been considering a motorized ceiling screen and the Epson 5010 but I have come to the conclusion that it might not that great because the cooling fan noise level is around 32 dBs and that might drive me crazy.

Please your thoughts.

By the way, very nice set up.


m

[SaxCatz]

Originally Posted by JimShaw

Regarding the Epson in relation to where you sit.

I have been considering a motorized ceiling screen and the Epson 5010 but I have come to the conclusion that it might not that great because the cooling fan noise level is around 32 dBs and that might drive me crazy.

Please your thoughts.

By the way, very nice set up.


m

This is actually my second 8500UB. The first went back at just under the year mark due to a faulty lens-shift mechanism that would drift down about 1" (on screen) per week. That first one was near silent and I would never notice except in scene of near silence if neither the A/C nor heat was running in the house.
Unfortunately, my replacement (which I've had for almost two years now) is not so quiet. While the lens-shift issue is resolved, I can now hear the fan during any quiet scenes. It is not abhorrently distracting, but it can definitely be noticeable on occassion- especially if you are listening for it.
Since we have pets, I've taken to running an air purifier in the room which has the unexpect bonus of "drowning out" the fan noise from the projector. Sure, its still background noise, but its not a bothersome to me due to to "character" of the noise it generates compared to the sound of the PJs fan and auto-iris.

[SaxCatz]

Boarding the "WAY BACK MACHINE" for a moment here...
A little additional background:
My theater room was initial closed off with curtains over the archway and doorway. For about two years, I had a flat panel/front projection combination room with a 120" Elite dropping over a Samsung PN63A760 63" 1080p plasma display. In February 2012, I finally properly enclosed the room and moved to a fixed screen at that time. The plasma has since moved to the bedroom.

A few shots from the aforementioned construction of the room circa February 2012...
(I apologize for the quality of some of these. They were taken with my old camera which was on its last legs at the time.)

Framing the room...

Drywalling and plastering...

Draped for sanding and finishing...

Painted and finished...

From inside looking outward. (The shelving seen here has long since been relocated to the back of the room with the two full-sized bookcases.)

As you can see, it wasn't a terribly complicated project to enclose the room but the difference it night and day! It went from feeling very "tacked on" to feeling like a true theater room.

[SaxCatz]

At night, most every theater room with the same screen and projector combination will look pretty similar. During the day though, rooms with poor light control really suffer. Though my light control is not absolutely flawless, practically no light enters the room during the day with the door closed (the window is covered by blinds and a double layer of black-out curtains that almost always stay closed.)
These shots were taken in broad daylight. Virtually all of the ambient light in the room, aside from the projector beam itself, is generated by the LED displays on the various components (an disadvantage to not having a projection room or component closet.)

The "halo" around the "Oppo" logo is thanks to a camera artifact.

Even here, the camera seems to magnify the ambient light a bit...

...it really does seem somewhat darker in person.

[JimShaw]

Originally Posted by SaxCatz

This is actually my second 8500UB. The first went back at just under the year mark due to a faulty lens-shift mechanism that would drift down about 1" (on screen) per week. That first one was near silent and I would never notice except in scene of near silence if neither the A/C nor heat was running in the house.
Unfortunately, my replacement (which I've had for almost two years now) is not so quiet. While the lens-shift issue is resolved, I can now hear the fan during any quiet scenes. It is not abhorrently distracting, but it can definitely be noticeable on occassion- especially if you are listening for it.
Since we have pets, I've taken to running an air purifier in the room which has the unexpect bonus of "drowning out" the fan noise from the projector. Sure, its still background noise, but its not a bothersome to me due to to "character" of the noise it generates compared to the sound of the PJs fan and auto-iris.

I thank you for your thought

[Spurrier Sucks]

Very nice!

[Aerodude73]

Excellent job --- How big is the room itself, & how far are the seats from the screen?

[SaxCatz]

Originally Posted by Aerodude73

Excellent job --- How big is the room itself, & how far are the seats from the screen?

Thanks. The room is 12' wide by 16' deep and the seats are 10' from the screen.

[Aerodude73]

Originally Posted by SaxCatz

Thanks. The room is 12' wide by 16' deep and the seats are 10' from the screen.

Ok, cool. Thx.

[Travis]

Beautiful room!

Also love the Alien screen grab!

[Almadacr]

Nice Room , welcome to the galleries .

[Waboman]

Nice HT, SC. I bet it rocks.

[SeanMF]

Originally Posted by crazyBLUE

Welcome to the Home Theater Gallery Threads SaxCatz.

Vary nice looking setup you have there & the Epson

Very nice setup and welcome to the ht galleries!

[darkpoet25]

I agree with the above sentiments. Amazing looking(and I'm sure sounding) room.

[SaxCatz]

Thank you all for your comments! I'll try to post some better component photos soon.

[SaxCatz]

New flooring with a few component changes...
Simplification mainly: removed the LaserDisc player (it will migrate to the front room) and VHS deck which also allowed me to remove the component switch. A black 32GB Deluxe Wii U replaces the Wii as of November 2012.