ShadeRF's Dark Dungeon 3rd Floor Theater

[ShadeRF]

I'm posting this in the work in progress thread because well 1) is any theater ever truly done and 2) there's still quite a few major changes I want to make to my theater. Unlike a lot of folks who have their theater in a basement I've converted a room on the 3rd floor of our house into my theater.

Here's my current equipment run down (matches my sig currently)

Video: JVC RS45, Lumagen Radiance Mini-3D, 138" Elite EZ Frame 2:35:1 Screen, Oppo BDP-103, DirecTV Genie Mini
Audio: Denon X4000, Mains: Paradigm Monitor 7 V6, Center: Paradigm Monitor CC290 V6, Sides: Paradigm Atom V6, Rears: Polk TSI100. Subwoofer: HSU VTF3 MK4
Other: Monster Power HTS-5100, 4 GIK Corner Bass Traps, 6 GIK 242 Acoustic Panels, 2 GIK Monster Bass Traps with Scatter Plates.
Remote/Lighting: URC MX980 with Light Dimmer switch programmed.

It's just my wife and I in the theater 95% of the time so we only have 3 chairs for now. In fact you'll notice one is basically where we lay all our snack foods, haha. I've painted the entire room black which has helped tremendously with the quality of the picture and cutting down light reflections in the room. It's not completely black as I still get some reflection off the ceiling and the carpet still reflects a bit of light. I did put down a large black rug that helps with this but there's still a lot of lighter carpet visible. It may not be much compared to a lot of the home theaters out there but I'm pretty happy with what I've got for the amount of money I've put into it so far.

Here are the changes I'd like to make.

Add one additional GIK Bass Trap on the back wall closest to the door. Rip out current carpet, put down some sound insulation on the floor and replace with a darker more theater(y) carpet. Add a riser with a 2nd row of seating. Replace doors with something better for sound insulation. They are cheap builder level doors. Upgrade Paradigm Monitors to Studio or Prestige level. 4k projector (or pseudo 4k for now JVC equivalent). Add ceiling speakers for Atmos and upgrade receiver accordingly. Add canned lighting to replace single center light.

Now on to the good stuff, the photos:

Looking towards the screen from the entrance. This room has two windows along one side. I've blacked them out with cardboard behind the blinds and put blackout curtains in front just to be sure. It helps with the sound reflections a bit as well.

ShadeRF's Dark Dungeon 3rd Floor Theater

From the same corner showing off the GIK panels Paradigm Atom V6 i use for my side speakers. My beagle's bed makes an appearance at the bottom of the frame. (sorry for the flare!)

ShadeRF's Dark Dungeon 3rd Floor Theater

Looking towards the seating and back wall. I'll pull these closer when I put in the 2nd row. You'll also see the empty space on the wall for the additional panel I'd like to add.

ShadeRF's Dark Dungeon 3rd Floor Theater

Finally an obligatory Fifth Element shot. This photo sorta shows off the reflection issue on the ceiling I currently have and you can also see how much light is reflected off the carpet where there is no rug.

ShadeRF's Dark Dungeon 3rd Floor Theater

I'll continue to update this thread as I make changes!

Photos taken with Nikon D810 and Nikon 14-24 2.8 lens.

[NBPk402]

Looking great!

On your lightweight doors, keep a look out on Craigslist for some used office doors. We picked up some old solid core doors, and then put a layer of 3/4" MDF on each side (nice and solid now).

We also went with 2 rows, but I now regret it as it is just too close to the rear wall. I have heard that it is a good idea to have the seating at least 3' from the rear wall and IMO I think it is a better solution than being a couple of feet from the rear wall. Our setup is mainly for my wife, and I, and maybe a couple of friends at a time so 4 seats works fine for us... I might add one more just to make sure we have enough seats, but I won't go back to 2 rows without having a deeper room.

[ShadeRF]

Looking great!

On your lightweight doors, keep a look out on Craigslist for some used office doors. We picked up some old solid core doors, and then put a layer of 3/4" MDF on each side (nice and solid now).

We also went with 2 rows, but I now regret it as it is just too close to the rear wall. I have heard that it is a good idea to have the seating at least 3' from the rear wall and IMO I think it is a better solution than being a couple of feet from the rear wall. Our setup is mainly for my wife, and I, and maybe a couple of friends at a time so 4 seats works fine for us... I might add one more just to make sure we have enough seats, but I won't go back to 2 rows without having a deeper room.

Thanks, I'll keep a look out for some doors on Craigslist. I hear what you are saying about the 2nd row but I think adding a 4th on the 1 row would be a bit too much. When we do have friends over I always have to bring in additional chairs and if you aren't tall enough you can't see the whole screen. That's why I think a riser and 2nd row is a must even if it is a compromise in other areas.

[NBPk402]

What are the dimensions of your room?

[ShadeRF]

What are the dimensions of your room?

16'10"x18x8

[NBPk402]

Your dimensions are fairly close to ours (in front of the screen). Our room is 19' wide, and about 18' long (the area behind our screen adds another 6' to this though). We have a curved row of 4 seats (which takes up more space), and we can do one more seat without getting too cramped, but in our room the screen is offset by a couple of feet for the equipment rack and entrance to the HT.

How close will you have your front row? I know i have seen some people put their front row back further, and then throw bean bag cushions (or other floor laying seating) on the floor in front of the front row. This lets the kids lay down to enjoy the movies.

[ShadeRF]

I'd have to remeasure. It's always adults though, no kids, so I think the beanbag option is out.

[bmoney]

great looking room!!

[Bombertodd]

Nice room. Have you made any changes that you wanted to make?

[ShadeRF]

Nice room. Have you made any changes that you wanted to make?

I've got a JVC RS500 on the way to replace the RS45!

[AVSCraig]

I've got a JVC RS500 on the way to replace the RS45!

Prepare to re-watch all your favorite movies and be amazed ! Send me an email if you want some basic settings to get you started.

[ShadeRF]

Prepare to re-watch all your favorite movies and be amazed ! Send me an email if you want some basic settings to get you started.

Will do that! The projector yall shipped me will arrive Tuesday and the Oppo UPD-203 i ordered arrives Wednesday so I'll likely start hooking up and tinkering Wednesday. I was reading some suggesting an Integral HD Fury as you can use it to get HDR and dynamic iris to work together?

[AVSMike]

Will do that! The projector yall shipped me will arrive Tuesday and the Oppo UPD-203 i ordered arrives Wednesday so I'll likely start hooking up and tinkering Wednesday. I was reading some suggesting an Integral HD Fury as you can use it to get HDR and dynamic iris to work together?

You want the linker, not the integral.

[ShadeRF]

You want the linker, not the integral.

Thanks Mike. Do you have any experience with it? Would you say it's worth the $200 investment?

[ShadeRF]

A quick update. As mentioned I've replaced the JVC RS45 with the JVC RS500. I ordered the HDFury Linker and now have that in my signal chain. I've also upgraded my front stage speakers. I now have the Paradigm Prestige 85F for my mains and the Paradigm Prestige 55C for my center. My Paradigm Monitor 7 v6s are now taking on surround duties. I added some velvet in key places around the screen as well as 3 feet across the entire front ceiling. This made a huge difference in contrast and I think I'm gonna add another 3 feet in the next week or two.

ShadeRF's Dark Dungeon 3rd Floor Theater

Next up... ATMOS.