Sam's Home Theater v2.0

[sambow87]

So I was going to add to my initial thread, but since this is pretty much a complete overhaul and a different place, I figured I would start a new thread with concepts and lots of pictures, hehe.

Because I am still in school I end up moving around quite a bit. Since I was in the dorms, I only had 8 month leases so I had to move home (a 3 and a half hour drive) for the summer for the last 2 years. This time I actually got an efficiency (apartment, just very small, hah). I move in on August the 9th. I have not seen the place other then some photos online, so I don't know exactly what i'm getting in to.

I just sold my Hitachi 51F59 RP CRT HDTV a couple days ago and was on the lookout for something that would be portable (easier to move then my big bulky heavy CRT, hehe). I looked at Best Buy and Circuit City (as well as online) and came to one conclusion:

1. Mitsubishi HD1000U 720p projector. Found a great price on this projector from Projector People. I also got a $50 off coupon. After reading reviews on this from Projector Central and AVS, I decided to go with it. I was originally contemplating the Optoma HD70 but I heard of some problems with it (they were minor problems) and it would cost more upfront but if (and this is a big if) the rebate went through, it would be $100 less then the Mitsubishi.

I decided that I wanted a better PJ and went with the Mits. No rebates! I also got a 3 years bulb warranty with it for about $99. I think with that and shipping, the total came out to $900. I was very happy with this total, hehe.

I was considering a DIY screen but decided that I wanted something that I could roll up (like a manual pull down, or electric screen) so I could transport it from place to place if I needed to. I decided on a 92" Greywolf II Manual Pulldown screen. From what I read, it is supposed to be very nice and work very well with DLP projectors.

Screen was about $185 shipped, not too bad so far.


I plan to have the projector mounted on the ground. Not mounted per say, but a good foot or two off the ground floor. I have two "theater" chairs and i'm hoping to stick this sucker in between them. I'm not sure if that is a good idea, but I am kind of stuck until I get the projector and I'm able to get into the apartment. I'm hoping to have a good 10-12' viewing distance from my 92" screen. I've measured it out on a wall in my current residence, and it's a bit bigger than I thought it was going to be, hehe.

I was initially worried about having only a 10-12' distance but the majority, or at least 95% of my watching will be HD DVDs. I do hope to play the EE's of Lord of the Rings on it though. I was very disappointed with my old TV's internal scaler, which made everything look like crap. I'd see screen shots on here from people's projectors and displays that put some of my SD DVD viewing to shame. I won't have cable in the apartment so no TV (even then it would only be SD).

I'm sorry that this seems like i'm just talking to myself, but I'm very excited about this (and moving into my own place!) and it almost feels like Christmas has come early!

Equipment:
- Mitsubishi HD1000U DLP Projector
- Greywolf II 92" Pull down screen
- Toshiba HD-A1 (I think I am lucky in the fact that I have very few skips or freezes on this thing!)
- Onkyo TX-SR-504 (5.1 analog for HD DVD)
- Belkin PureAV UPS/Power Conditioner

Speakers:
- Fronts: Polk Audio R300
- Rears: Polk Audio R150
- Center: Polk Audio CSR
- Sub: BIC H-100 (by far the biggest improvement)

I originally had the Onkyo HTIB HT-S790. I kept the receiver and parted everything (except for the sub and 2 rear speakers out). I used that to buy my new speakers, which were relatively inexpensive. I think the total cost of the new speakers and sub was ~$500. The sound improvement was huge!


So far I've made a couple of theater purchases:

- Poster frames (I have tons of posters rolled up and a ton drymounted) for the room and some picture frames.
- Bought a really cool "Platform 9 and 3/4's" sign for the entrance to the theater. Well, there really is not an entrance, but it'll be hanging somewhere in the theater.
- Three navy blackout drapes. I forgot where I got them online (it was about $46 shipped for all three) but I remember when I was researching them months ago that people generally liked them. I'm hoping they help with the sound acoustics.

Over the summer I bought some more speaker cable and banana plugs so I redid most of my old speaker wire and put the new banana plugs on them. the cables are nice and neat and so far so good.

I'm going to try and build a center speaker stand tomorrow and pick up some other material at Home Depot.

Sorry for all this text. I will have pictures tomorrow of the speakers and some of the AV equipment. Projector and Screen should be coming in next week, hopefully.

I will take any input or suggestions!

Thanks,

Sam

[sub780lime]

Sounds like you have a hell of a system going...and you are still in school. You are set for when you get out, so congrats. Pictures when you finally get it all together.

[sambow87]

Haha yeah. I just got lucky in the fact that my bills have been relatively low and I give plasma twice a week (I mostly eat cafeteria food, which isn't bad, but it saves a ton!).

I'm going to get some pics of the speakers today and some of the accessories. I'm still wondering how everything is going to be used in the room. I don't know if the heat from the projector will make it uncomfortable for the people in the chairs (which the PJ will be right next too).

Updates soon!

[Iguana Man]

Dont forget fan noise. What kinda db's does the Mitsu put out? Also, does it vent out the back or top or bottom?

[rixrex]

The Mitsu is a good choice. Mitsubishi is the only other TV I would buy beside Pioneer Elite series. Mitsu engineers invented the 3D YC signal separator.

I have found that, with projector TVs, a good used commercial-grade movie screen, like the kind used in schools, works fabulously. Especially if you can get the beaded type that reflects light best. These things can be found for $10-$20 and come with their own metal case, and sometimes a stand, but they all can be hung up regardless.

Fan noise can be a problem unless you build an enclosure that will stifle or redirect it and still allow air circulation.

[sambow87]

Some initial pictures. These are from my 1.5 home theater set up (never made a post about it, it's just all my theater stuff at my home for the summer).



This first pic is of my new sub. It's a BIC H-100. I haven't really been messing with it that much over the summer so it finally broke in a couple days ago while watching 300. That or the movie is just really bassy, hehe.





This is my Polk CSR center channel. Got it quite a while ago. Like it very much!





Picture of my component rack and my R300 Left speaker. A little bit of a mess, but it was more organized before I had to take my TV out.





Back of my R50's.





Dog and Cat. Don't know why I took it, hehe.





Picture of one of my chairs and a bunch of remotes and cords. Also my HD DVDs (not all of them, have about 5-6 scattered around the room).





Home made speaker cord (not the cord itself, but I redid all my previous cuts and added the banana plugs to them).





Theater chairs! Not really theater chairs but they are much more comfortable then the old futon I was using.





My prizes possesion! The Platform 9 and 3/4's sign! I hope to hang this some where in the apartment, close to the HT or maybe at the entrance of the apartment. It's very small (pretty much one big 12' by 16' room).






This is a custom black finish HD-A1 that I got from a user on AVS. This isn't for me (a friend recently bought an HDTV and wanted a good upcon player but this one was just too cheap to pass up on) but I wish it was!






Another pic of the sub.




That's it for now. These are just some of the pics from my room. I can't wait to move into my new apartment, but it'll be about 4-7 more days.

[sub780lime]

Awesome! love the sub. I want to see the projector darnt!

[sambow87]

Same here! Should come tomorrow but I don't know if I will open it up since i'm moving on thursday. I really want to, if it does come.

Quick question, if I have my projector on an AVC Battery Backup/Surge protector and have my other electronic equipment on another AVS battery backup/surge protector (I really only want the battery backup for the proj, but I have 2 of these) is that alright? Will I be protected "enough"? Do I need to get another surge protector or a different type?

I mean, would this help? And would I plug my projector into it or just keep my projector on the dedicated AVC backup supply and just put my HD DVD, cable modem, and receiver on that thing?

[sambow87]

Everything arrived today. I can't open since I am leaving Thursday . I'm starting to pack everything else. I have way too much crap. Going to get some pictures of the new place when I first get in on Thursday and hopefully of all the gear once I am done packing. Doesn't help that I caught a cold a couple of days ago. I was hoping that 40 minute stint in the attic would sweat it out but nooooo....only made me dehydrated

Pics in a couple of days!

[sambow87]

Ok, pictures today. I ran into some problems with my internet (did not get it installed until a week and a half ago) and then got really busy with school. But its the weekend and time for some pictures!

A lot has been done. The apartment/studio is pretty much complete.

Here is around day 1. Everything was kind of thrown in the room and I had to start somewhere.





Installed the blackout drapes/blinds. These work surprisingly well and weren't that expensive. Well worth the money for watching movies in the day time. I also keep these down all the time because....I like it dark, hehe.





Shot of the kitchen. I know it's not a big part of the HT, but considering I only have 1 room, it must be shown! Great for making popcorn and grabbing drinks.





I do not have any shots of actually putting the screen up but I can explain what we did. We mounted a piece of particle board to the studs in the wall and then mounted the screen to the particle board. What a pain in the ass making sure everything was level. Thought I was going crack after I dropped the level 7 or 8 times. Finally got it though. The screen is also Grey but the flash of the camera makes it look white.





This is a shot of the new media rack. The other side is full of CDs. I have added a couple more HD DVDs to this and some are missing (Heroes) but I think i'm going to need a bigger rack by the end of the year, hehe.





Here is a picture of one of the front speakers and the banana plugs I used for them.





I set up the rest of the front speakers and center channel (along with the sub) and my bed. This is the best set up I can think of for the room. The bed fits perfectly and I can move it in less than a minute if I need to (i.e. guests are over). It also can double as a seat or a couch for people wanting to watch movies.





Here is a picture of the component rack. Not everything is on it and it is more organized (still could do better with wire management).





Theater seats, hehe. These are very comfortable and I can almost fall asleep while watching. You can also see the completed component rack.





Here is a close up of the completed component rack. I added a Belkin PureAV UPS/Power Conditioner. Works quite while since the power sucks here. It's also very heavy so I had to put a bunch of books and a big block of foam to cushion the weight of the shelf that it is on.





Here is a shot of the room from the kitchen.





Shot of my desk. You can also see the wire runner that goes from one of the chairs to the desk. I use that to run my HDMI-DVI cord (computer to projector), ethernet cord (to the HD DVD player and router) and my optical cable to my macbook. Love watching HD trailers and HD podcasts on the projector. Gives me hours more of content to watch when i'm feeling the HD blues.





Here is an action shot of Batman Begins. It isn't a great shot but I haven't really got the hang of taking screen shots.





That is about it for now. I do have some Senheisser HD-555 headphones that I use for late night HT viewing, which I love. I've watched about 7 hours of heroes with no ear fatigue or headphone fatigue.

Other than that I love coming back from class and being able to watch something larger then life on the screen. If you guys have any questions, feel free to ask!

Sam

[Iguana Man]

I give massive creds to utilizing the AV rack for the PJ!

That was intuitive and SCHMART!

Awesome dude!

[Derb]

Very nice!

[sub780lime]

I would have loved to have something like that in college. Awesome!

I have an interesting suggestion. Look on craigslist or somewhere for a cheap rug. Not like a doormat rug, but something larger. So that it will cover most of the space from on rear to the other and Component Rack. Cut a whole in it right under where the component rack will sit. Run all your cables up through the whole to your components. This will make your whole place look much cleaner.

[Pirate]

Well done! I like the use of space and I second the "massive cred" on the component rack.