Basement home theater setup

[Johk]

Hi everyone,

My roommate is moving out of the basement in one month and a half and I will be setting up a second HT in the house.

I have been working on my new theater set up for the basement for some time (my girlfriend is working on the paint colors, furniture, etc). Right now, the setup is pretty much figured out but I want to get opinions from the fine members of this forum.

So here it is...

Equipment list:

Display: Panasonic TH50PZ80U
Player (and Console): 60 GB PS3
Cable box: SA Explorer 8300HD DVR
Receiver: Denon AVR-988
Front speakers: Axiom M60 v2 towers
Center speaker: Axiom VP150 v2
Side surrounds speakers: Axiom QS8 v2
Back surrounds speakers: Axiom QS8 v2
Subwoofer: SVS 20-39PC+ Cylinder Subwoofer
Power conditioning / surge protection: APC H10 - 1000 VA

Speaker cables will be installed in-wall with CL2 (or CL3 if I can find some in the Mtl region and if they are affordable) 12 AWG speaker cables. I already bought speakers poles and banana plugs for the whole setup.


I plan to use ceiling brackets for the surrounds (the ceiling is bit lower than normal ceiling height, something like 7 ft). I originally planned to mount the display on the wall (like shown in the diagram) but I think I'll perhaps put it on the AV furniture. I know that I could (and perhaps I should) sit closer to the display (the display will now be a bit closer if it's not wall mounted) but I'm not sure that my girlfriend and visitors will agree...

Well that's it for now! Hope you guys can help me improve this setup!

[crackinhedz]

would it be possible to move more to the center of the room? that side wall looks like it will reflect the sound...not in a good way.

[savage1984]

That is really cool how you made that... did you use pcad?

[Brain Sturgeon]

Originally Posted by crackinhedz

would it be possible to move more to the center of the room? that side wall looks like it will reflect the sound...not in a good way.

Or you could just hang an absorption panel on that wall-- it would probably make sense to do that anyway...

[moviefan]

Way to great a distance seat to screen!
The recommended viewing distance for a 50" 1080 display is about 8 feet.
Also, I would aim the rear speakers directly ahead.
Good luck with the project!

[Johk]

Originally Posted by crackinhedz

would it be possible to move more to the center of the room? that side wall looks like it will reflect the sound...not in a good way.

It would be great... The only thing is that I have to leave some circulation space for the other rooms also there is a support column (you can see it on the illustration) that I'm afraid could block the sound from the back surrounds.

Originally Posted by Brain Sturgeon

Or you could just hang an absorption panel on that wall-- it would probably make sense to do that anyway...

I like the suggestion!

Would a painting on a canvas make an adequate absorption material?

I have a 3ftx3ft canvas that I wanted to paint and put up there!

[Johk]

Originally Posted by moviefan

Way to great a distance seat to screen!
The recommended viewing distance for a 50" 1080 display is about 8 feet.
Also, I would aim the rear speakers directly ahead.
Good luck with the project!

With the TV on stand instead than on the wall I will gain about 1 feet, which would take me back from 9.15 ft to 8.15 ft... That should be good!

For the rear speaker are you sure that it would yield in a better sound reproduction? From what I've seen in professional setups the speakers are often aligned to the "sweet spot". Anyway this would be minor adjustments that I guess I will have to make to determine what sounds best!

Thanks for the input!!!

[Johk]

Originally Posted by savage1984

That is really cool how you made that... did you use pcad?

Thanks!

The diagram was made using Visio, which is great for setting up quick layouts... I'm a process engineer so I'm used to this...

In a couple of months I will be able to take real pictures of this project!!!

[Johk]

A bit of a change of plan, after a bit of research I decided to go with the SVS 20-39PCi Cylinder Subwoofer instead of the Axiom EP350 v3.

The price and performance seems to be better from what I read in the reviews so I'm sold! Unless you guys have a better alternative!

Thanks!!!

Edit: I got the SVS 20-39PC+ instead of the PCi... And I love it!

[CptGreedle]

That is looking nice!
I think i will have to make a diagram of my next set up when I move to make sure I have everything set up right.
But one word of advice....

Sump-pump.
My basement has flooded twice this year! I am lucky my TV was in the opposite side of the room, but it could have been worse!
Make sure you have a working sump pump anywhere where it is prone to flood (stair-wells, drainage pipes, dehumidifiers, whatever) AND get a water level alarm. You can buy an alarm that will go off when there is water on the floor of the basement. It is really the best way to prevent a huge flood that could have been avoided.
(I am still cleaning up the flood in my basement from last weekend).

[Beta Man]

Originally Posted by CptGreedle

That is looking nice!
I think i will have to make a diagram of my next set up when I move to make sure I have everything set up right.
But one word of advice....

Sump-pump.
My basement has flooded twice this year! I am lucky my TV was in the opposite side of the room, but it could have been worse!
Make sure you have a working sump pump anywhere where it is prone to flood (stair-wells, drainage pipes, dehumidifiers, whatever) AND get a water level alarm. You can buy an alarm that will go off when there is water on the floor of the basement. It is really the best way to prevent a huge flood that could have been avoided.
(I am still cleaning up the flood in my basement from last weekend).

In addition.... if you have a nice, finished basement, in a place where the water-table is a problem..... then you should invest in a whole-house generator..... may cost $10K or so... but when the power goes out, the sump-pump stops working, and you find 2 feet of stagnant water in your basement when you come home from a vacation etc..... it'll be worth every penny (plus it helps with re-sale)

EDIT.... I noticed you said roommates, so I'm guessing you don't own the house? or do you? if you Do, then make the upgrades that are needed, if you don't, be sure to get the alarm mentioned above.

[CptGreedle]

good point.
if power goes off... all hell breaks loose!
I hope the next place I find is not prone to floods... and has a good place for a home theater :P

Someday I will have a theme to my home theater... but right now it is just movies and games.

[Beta Man]

Originally Posted by CptGreedle

good point.
if power goes off... all hell breaks loose!
I hope the next place I find is not prone to floods... and has a good place for a home theater :P

Someday I will have a theme to my home theater... but right now it is just movies and games.

I'm still working on closing our new house...... it has more than one suitable room for a theater...... the decisions will be tough... I'll probably post pics, and let everyone vote on "what room should I sell my soul for"

[Johk]

Thanks for the advice!

Thankfully I have no flooding problems where I live (even with all the snow that we had this year). I wouldn't put all that money in there if I had a doubt about it

I finished the basement 7 years ago when I moved into the house when I was still a student (which explains a bit why I had a roommate). My girlfriend just finished her degree and we are buying the house in a month from my mother (she was the only owner of the house, the house was built in the 70s and the basement never flooded).

So this year is gonna be a big year!

[kingofgrills]

It's a nice looking setup so far. Mapping things out ahead of time is always well worth it. My only suggestion would be on the receiver. I would recommend auditioning Yamaha's RX-V863 receiver along with the Onkyo TX-SR805. They're both good receivers, with fairly similar feature sets, but the Yamaha adds 1080p upscaling from all video inputs as well. It retails for $999, but it can be found online for around $659.

[Woody]

I like it.

Is your gear going under your TV?

Where are you placing the sub?

Recommendation another poster said. Accoustic panels.

A canvas painting won't be nearly absorbtive enough to help. But if that is what you want to put there, I would just do it. Lots of times it is not easy to make accoustic treatments "pretty" without spending a ton of money.

You can cloth wrap accoustic panels to match room decor for not much money, but obviously that is a far cry from an actual piece of art. The most important accoustic treatments you can add are at the first point of reflection.

Your speaker layout is solid (within the recommended "cone" for your main 3 channels).

To answer your question about rear speaker placement (channels #6 and #7), it gets to the point (especially with dipoles) that human hearing can barely discern the location of sounds behind you. Everything about our hearing faces forward.

A funny test is having someone move around with 1 speaker behind you and trying to guess where they are standing. It is amazing how hard it is for us to pick up directionality of sound when it comes from behind us.

Long story short, your chosen location is just as good as the above recommended location for your surround back channels.

I also recommend if you have a local custom install shop nearby, have them do an accoustical analysys of your room to help with sub placement.

[Beta Man]

Originally Posted by Woody

A canvas painting won't be nearly absorbtive enough to help. .

Sorry... I can't resist......





EDIT:...

Absorptive is right (hadn't heard that one actually.... usually stick with absorbent )

[Woody]

Originally Posted by Beta Man

Sorry... I can't resist......





EDIT:...

Absorptive is right (hadn't heard that one actually.... usually stick with absorbent )

What is really funny is that I knew it was the correct application, but wasnt 100% on absorPtive or absorBtive. And of course I didn't bother looking for the correct spelling.

It is in fact absorptive.

Correct application, incorrect spelling.

So THERE!!!!!

[Beta Man]

Originally Posted by Woody

What is really funny is that I knew it was the correct application, but wasnt 100% on absorPtive or absorBtive. And of course I didn't bother looking for the correct spelling.

It is in fact absorptive.

Correct application, incorrect spelling.

So THERE!!!!!

I have to give you Kudos though, because when I saw "Absorptive" listed, I thought.... "Damn, that is a word" Learn something new every day

It went from a "Don King word of the week" to a simple typo!!!!

[Johk]

Originally Posted by Woody

Is your gear going under your TV?

Yes, it will. I spent a couple of hours checking the recommended clearance for all the components and I will probably build the AV stand myself.

Originally Posted by Woody

Where are you placing the sub?

I don't know yet, I'll have to wait until everything is set up to determine that. I plan on trying the test to put the sub at my listening position and crawl around the room to find the best spot. But I admit that an acoustical analysis would be much simpler. I'll have to experiment a bit with this!

Originally Posted by kingofgrills

I would recommend auditioning Yamaha's RX-V863 receiver along with the Onkyo TX-SR805. They're both good receivers, with fairly similar feature sets, but the Yamaha adds 1080p upscaling from all video inputs as well.

The Yamaha looks nice and I like the one I currently own. The added sub possibility is also interesting. The Onkyo TX-SR805 has THX and Audissey... It seems to be a tough choice and I'm not sure that I will be able to audition them properly in my area...