High-Quality Home Cinema for under $1000

[Disky76]

Front Projection Cinema for a Tough Economy!!

Hey Guys,

I figured I would post and let you all know how I set up a front-projection Hi-Def (720p/1080i) home theatre for under $1000! I am also a renter - so I couldn't put big holes in the walls hanging the screen, so I will also tell you how I hung the screen with minimal wall invasion.

Of course, this is no audiophiles or videophiles wet dream - but it's a great first time setup that looks good in action, and is a great starter theatre for the younger set who may not be in the financial position to afford some of the fancier style theatres out there!

I will follow with pics in my gallery as soon as I am able to upload them!

1) Mitsubishi HC 1600 Hi-Def 16:9 720p/1080i front projector $650 (on sale)
2) Draper 100" 16:9 1.1 gain white matte manual screen $70
3) Kenwood speakers and sub (already owned) $0
4) RCA DD 1000W receiver $150 (I tossed the cheapie HTIB speakers that came with the receiver down in the basement)
5) Sony DVD player (will be getting a Blu-Ray player for the room soon) already owned - $0 (great idea for that spare DVD player you have lying around).
6) Decorative items $50
7) Speaker wires - $25 (bought on clearance)
8) Shelves for components (must have a shelf perpendicular to the bottom of the screen) - $25

Total - $970.00

Now, I have a large enough (and dark enough) room to support this. The viewing area is 14 feet from the screen, and I am projecting from a set of shelves next to the couch. The shelves were $24.99, and they hold the DVD player, projector, and receiver.

The screen is hung on the opposite wall, but I didn't put the anchors in the walls. Instead, I rested the screen housing on a set of shelves, and opened the screen UPSIDE DOWN and hooked it on the ancors just above the window molding (yes, the screen is covering a window, and no, I have no light issues). Now I only have two small holes to worry about, unnoticable on the side of the window molding. I have them driven deep into plaster, and the screen weighs about 25 lbs, with most of the weight being supported by the shelves.

The DVD's really do look like film. When I temporarily moved my Blu-Ray player to the theatre, I was blown away by the quality of the Blu-Ray, so eventually, I will add a Blu-Ray player via the HDMI input on the projector.

I wired the room with cables bought at Circuit City's closing sale - and got three reels of 50 feet each for $25, and ran the front, center, and left channels on the sides of the molding across the room. The room, with hardwood floors and lots of open space, has great acoustics, and the sound is room filling but not overpowering. We recently saw Friday the 13th in the theatre this past weekend, and the quality of this home theatre is spot on.

Now remember, there were no alterations to the room whatsoever - as I mentioned, we are renters, and did not have that option. We have seating right now for 3, and room for another, as well as we have plans to add a sleeper ottoman (so the room can double as a guest room). That will come a little later. More likely sooner, we will pick up a couple of bean bags (less than $20 at Wal-Mart) or a few large floor pillows to warm up the room a bit.

Of course everyone would like a top-grade theatre like we have seen - some of the front-projection cinemas I have seen in the galleries here have been mind boggling. For the rest of us, here is a much more attainable cinema for the masses. I can say myself that I am VERY pleased with the performace of each component thus far. This has transformed what used to be a rather dark and uninteresting room that we hardly went into to one of the most loved rooms in the house.

I do apologize that I don't have the pics ready to post yet, but once I do, I will place them in my gallery.

Cheers to all and best of luck in these tight times!

And happy movie-watching!!

Disky