TKNice's Home Theater

[blu_world]

super nice,man i tell you,if more and more us people get a nice set up like this you never will step in a movie theater getting ripped off 12 dollars a ticket & overly priced pop corn & drink's...


good investment!..looks good.

[langn08]

Looks fantastic! I Love how you did not clutter it! Keep up the great work

[TKNice]

Hey guys, just posted some pics of my Dad's 1950's style theater in my gallery. He did all of the work himself over the past many years and finally finished the wall panels last weekend. I heard him say "It's Done" and reminded him of the joke that home theaters are never really "Done".

I think I may do some similar wall panels in my theater once I get some extra cash, I really like how they turned out.

Anyway, have a look!

Gallery Pics

[rded]

TK: what's your Dad's equipment list??

[TKNice]

This is most of it which was current when he started the build. I don't think he's bought anything new except a very nice laser disc player.

Sanyo PLV-Z2 Front Screen LCD Projector
Da-Lite Projection Screen
B & W Speaker System
Velodyne Sub-Woofer
Yamaha RX-V2090 Stereo Receiver
Yamaha DDP-1 Digital Processor
DVDO iScan HD Processor
Pioneer Elite DVL-90 DVD LD CD Player
Samsung DVD-HD931 DVD Player
Mitsubishi HS-U778 VCR
Monster Power HTS2600 Power Center
Motorola DCT2600 HD Cable Receiver

[vega2K]

Originally Posted by TKNice

Hey guys, just posted some pics of my Dad's 1950's style theater in my gallery. He did all of the work himself over the past many years and finally finished the wall panels last weekend. I heard him say "It's Done" and reminded him of the joke that home theaters are never really "Done".

I think I may do some similar wall panels in my theater once I get some extra cash, I really like how they turned out.

Anyway, have a look!

Gallery Pics

As I said in your gallery - It must be in the Genes. Just unreal. Congratulations to you and your father.

[TKNice]

Thanks vega2K, I look at his and it's amazing when I think about his original drawings and how close to them it turned out. It gives us all hope really, because he's no carpenter or anything like that, he just took it real slow and researched each part and what it would take to build and look the way he wanted. The other cool part is that much of it came out of actual '50s theaters. I think it took him 3 years of ebay hawking before the build even started! LOL.

-TK

[Drew664]

Wow!

Not my style, but you can't deny the level of detail and thought that went into putting that together. Nice work on both HTs! (Yours is better )

[TKNice]

Originally Posted by Drew664

Wow!

Not my style, but you can't deny the level of detail and thought that went into putting that together. Nice work on both HTs! (Yours is better )

haha, thanks Drew! Love my Dad's, but mine is more my style too! Now if I can just get some curtains like his...

Also, he took a panoramic of his theater yesterday which I've posted in my gallery.

-TK

[TKNice]

Did a small upgrade last weekend some of you projection guys may be interested in.

After doing quite a bit of research on the AVS forums about it, I learned that white laminate countertop material can make an excellent screen. AVS members did many test comparisons of the different types and found that the Wilsonart stuff is every bit as good as many more expensive screens.

Since I bought a screen that didn't work out very well, I already had a frame to drop the laminate in. It comes in 5' x 10' or 5' x 12' sheets and must be cut to size. I measured it, used a razor blade to score and cut it, and then velcroed it inside my frame.

Overall the image is noticeably more uniform than it was before. The brightness is about the same--maybe even a little better. Color and black level is perfect.

Here's what I bought:

Wilsonart laminate 5' x 12' in color Designer White (D354-60)

Ordered it from a company in Elkridge, MD for $59

-TK

[SeanMF]

Originally Posted by TKNice

Did a small upgrade last weekend some of you projection guys may be interested in.

After doing quite a bit of research on the AVS forums about it, I learned that white laminate countertop material can make an excellent screen. AVS members did many test comparisons of the different types and found that the Wilsonart stuff is every bit as good as many more expensive screens.

Since I bought a screen that didn't work out very well, I already had a frame to drop the laminate in. It comes in 5' x 10' or 5' x 12' sheets and must be cut to size. I measured it, used a razor blade to score and cut it, and then velcroed it inside my frame.

Overall the image is noticeably more uniform than it was before. The brightness is about the same--maybe even a little better. Color and black level is perfect.

Here's what I bought:

Wilsonart laminate 5' x 12' in color Designer White (D354-60)

Ordered it from a company in Elkridge, MD for $59

-TK

Thanks for the tip....might be something to consider down the road.

[JamesN]

An absolutely stunning job all the way around. I love the soffits. You state that the ceiling is 8'. Is that from the floor to the bottom of the soffits, or to the actual ceiling? Also, how high is your rear riser? It looks to be 12" or so -- any problems with clearance and the 8' ceiling?

Again -- major kudos on a truly superb job.

[TKNice]

Originally Posted by JamesN

An absolutely stunning job all the way around. I love the soffits. You state that the ceiling is 8'. Is that from the floor to the bottom of the soffits, or to the actual ceiling? Also, how high is your rear riser? It looks to be 12" or so -- any problems with clearance and the 8' ceiling?

Again -- major kudos on a truly superb job.

Thanks James, I really appreciate the compliments!!

Yep, it's 8' from the floor to the ceiling, not to the soffit. The riser is actually a little shorter at 8". I did this for a smaller stair and also to give myself a little more room to the ceiling. At 6'2, I can touch the ceiling when standing on the riser, and because the projector and mount together are 11.5", I decided to recess the mount location 4" into the ceiling. This gives me close to 5" clearance between the projector and my head.

All in all, 8' ceilings in the basement definitely leaves you a lot to work with--you just have to play around with it.

-TK

[JamesN]

Originally Posted by TKNice

Thanks James, I really appreciate the compliments!!

Yep, it's 8' from the floor to the ceiling, not to the soffit. The riser is actually a little shorter at 8". I did this for a smaller stair and also to give myself a little more room to the ceiling. At 6'2, I can touch the ceiling when standing on the riser, and because the projector and mount together are 11.5", I decided to recess the mount location 4" into the ceiling. This gives me close to 5" clearance between the projector and my head.

All in all, 8' ceilings in the basement definitely leaves you a lot to work with--you just have to play around with it.

-TK

Hey TK,
Hope you don't mind a few more questions...
How far is the top of the screen from the bottom of the soffit, and do you have any visibility issues from the back row (seeing over heads in the front row)?

Also, you state elsewhere in your thread that the HTB anamorphic lens yields an image that's not as sharp as when you used to simply zoom. If you had it to do over, would you still go with the HTB, or would you consider an alternate solution such as the Panasonic PT-AE3000?

James

[TKNice]

Originally Posted by JamesN

Hey TK,
Hope you don't mind a few more questions...
How far is the top of the screen from the bottom of the soffit, and do you have any visibility issues from the back row (seeing over heads in the front row)?

Also, you state elsewhere in your thread that the HTB anamorphic lens yields an image that's not as sharp as when you used to simply zoom. If you had it to do over, would you still go with the HTB, or would you consider an alternate solution such as the Panasonic PT-AE3000?

James

I just moved the screen up about 4" last weekend which completely eliminated any problems I had with seeing over heads in the front row. It wasn't that bad before and depended on people sitting up or more comfortably. I'd say the screen is approx 2" from the soffit now (it looks farther because the black velvet frame itself is 2.5").

The interesting thing about the anamorphic lens is that it solved my problem with being able to move the screen higher in the first place. This is because moving it any higher while zooming and I'd have light shining on the soffit. So for me, it had more than just the usual benefits. I'm also building stage/enclosure for my front speakers which couldn't be done until the screen was moved up. Another side note is that I think focus across the whole picture is a little better now.

I was interested in the AE3000 when I first heard of it's capabilities, but admit I never really got all the details--just the buzz around the forums about it. I have lots of sources (HTPC/DTV/PS3 etc.) and a manual lens will obviously work with all of them. I guess compensation in the projector will too?

BTW, I looked at your theater and it's very sweet! Love your chairs and how clean everything is. Great job man!

-TK

[TKNice]

Quick update -

Looks like I may be putting panels up on the entry isle wall in a few weeks. We'll also be putting up maroon/wine colored curtains on the back wall and small ones on each side of the screen up front. I'll post pics once we get it finished.

so excited!

-TK

[Tee]

Cool!

[TKNice]

Here are some pictures I photoshopped of the room with curtains. I wanted to see how the colors match since I'll be using material left over from my Dad's theater (I took them from his pics and obviously the lighting is wrong).

What do you guys think?

I'm also excited to hear how the audio will change without my back wall reflecting sound. I think I've read a few times that you want an even mix of reflective and absorbing surfaces, and we should all try to have the rear wall covered if possible--even if you put your DVD collection or something back there.

-TK

[Hammie]

Originally Posted by TKNice

Here are some pictures I photoshopped of the room with curtains. I wanted to see how the colors match since I'll be using material left over from my Dad's theater (I took them from his pics and obviously the lighting is wrong).

What do you guys think?

I'm also excited to hear how the audio will change without my back wall reflecting sound. I think I've read a few times that you want an even mix of reflective and absorbing surfaces, and we should all try to have the rear wall covered if possible--even if you put your DVD collection or something back there.

-TK

Looks really good! Definitely adds a theater feel to the room. Go for it!

[Fors*]

No doubt the curtains will not only help with reflections, but they definitely add a more cinematic look to your HT as well (not that it was lacking before ).....I like the colors and it looks great TKNice!