Ginky Weeds Home Theater

[Ginky Weeds]

It's been awhile since the last update. I've been busy with other projects and even though some progress was made on the HT, it was kind of minor. Solid core doors have been purchased and installed. A bulkhead has been built around the ductwork behind where the screen will be installed. I'm in the process of completing wiring and then will complete the rest of the soffits, insulate and be ready to begin drywall hanging. Hopefully in the next month.

A question as I'm working on wiring. For the speaker wire that will run from the rack at the rear of the HT to the front, how should that be done? Does it need to be in conduit or can I just run it against the bottom of the ceiling joists above the clip and channel ceiling? I won't need conduit for HDMI since the rack will be at the back of the room, so just need to address the speaker wires for L, C, R, and two subwoofers. Also for the six in ceiling speakers. Wires for the surrounds will be run in soffits at the sides of the room. And I guess I should ask about them as well...conduit or no conduit?

Thanks for your comments and advice. I'm hoping to post more often in the coming weeks!

Cheers!

Chuck

[AVSMike]

Does not have to be in conduit. Just run plenum rated wire.

[Ginky Weeds]

That's what I've got.  Thanks Mike!

[bmoney]

Conduit just helps if you ever need to fish wires for some reason. Wit that I did not install conduit. Except for hdmi runs

[Ginky Weeds]

And duh, after reviewing my plans again, I forgot that all the speaker wires can be installed in soffits.  So no need to run them over the clips and channel on the ceiling.  Bonus!!

[Ginky Weeds]

Working on electrical circuits. Should the projector be on it's own 15A circuit? Or can it go on a circuit with some lights?

[bmoney]

Working on electrical circuits. Should the projector be on it's own 15A circuit? Or can it go on a circuit with some lights?

I have mine on a separate circuit. But might be overkill 

[AVSJeff]

If the projector is going to be ceiling mounted, I would run the romex from the receptacle back to the equipment rack and plug it into the surge protector(s) with the other equipment. This creates a romex 'extension cord' and will pass electrical inspection. The projector you are considering (JVC DLA-RS1000) only draws 3.4 amps. This way all of your components are on the same phase in the electrical panel (make sure to put all circuit breakers that feed the theater equipment on the same phase). I would not put the projector on the same circuit as any lights because the lights may cause electrical 'noise' on the power line. I hope this helps.

[AVSMike]

Agree with Jeff.

[Ginky Weeds]

Is there new 'best practice' on what type of recessed lighting to use in a home theater and how to soundproof them? Old practice was using incandescent repair fixtures with backer boxes, but with the advent of very thin LED fixtures, are backer boxes still the best approach? Would installing the thin fixtures with acoustic caulk around them be effective? Or are surface mounted fixtures now used with simple junction boxes and putty pads instead of the backer boxes? Heat is obviously not a problem, so this is a question of how to most efficiently do soundproofing with the lights.

[bmoney]

You can seal them with acoustic putty. I didn’t and have no rattles. Ymmv

[Ginky Weeds]

Any recommendations on system automation?  I plan to use a Harmony remote to control the AV electronics and would like to be able to control lighting as well.  This won't be a really large, fancy theater, but I'd like to turn the lights on from a wall switch when I enter the room and then control dimming when a movie starts.  Or, go super whizzy and use motion detection to automatically turn the lights on when entering the room.  I'm looking at a few recommendations online such as GE C-Start Smart Switch Motion Sensing Dimmer, Leviton Decora Smart Wi-Fi Dimmer (2nd gen), and Lutron Caseta.  I don't currently have or use a smart hub like Alexa or Google Assistant, but would consider this as well, if desired.  

Any experience to share?  I'm computer savvy, but a total rookie with system automation.

[DLCPhoto]

Any recommendations on system automation?  I plan to use a Harmony remote to control the AV electronics and would like to be able to control lighting as well.  This won't be a really large, fancy theater, but I'd like to turn the lights on from a wall switch when I enter the room and then control dimming when a movie starts.  Or, go super whizzy and use motion detection to automatically turn the lights on when entering the room.  I'm looking at a few recommendations online such as GE C-Start Smart Switch Motion Sensing Dimmer, Leviton Decora Smart Wi-Fi Dimmer (2nd gen), and Lutron Caseta.  I don't currently have or use a smart hub like Alexa or Google Assistant, but would consider this as well, if desired. 

Any experience to share?  I'm computer savvy, but a total rookie with system automation.

This may be overkill for your purposes, but after using (and liking) Harmony for several years, I made the switch to Control4 for my Theater and my Home as well.  (And I imagine you're aware, but Harmony is now out of the remote control business, so it's unclear how viable that will be as a long-term solution.)

What I like about Contol4 is that it is incredibly robust, reliable, and customizable.  I liked Harmony, but absolutely love Control4.  You can add any systems that you want, and fully integrate their operation: AV, Lights, HVAC, Locks, Cameras, etc.

It can also be integrated with Alexa or Google.  So currently, I walk into my Theater and tell Alexa "Turn on the Blu-ray" and all the electronics get turned on, with correct input selections, the Blu-ray Player tray is ejected, the Envy selects the appropriate 'Profile' for that device, the lights are dimmed, and the thermostat is adjusted.  When I'm ready and hit Play, the movie starts, the lights are completely dimmed down, and the volume is slowly ramped up.  Hitting Pause for a bathroom or snack break brings up the lights enough to see on the way out, with Play turning them back off again.

Control4 is Dealer-centric, so it is not a full DIY option.  But they do have software available to any interested end-user, that will allow you to customize the programming for perhaps 95% of the things you would want to do.

The power, versatility, and expandability does come with a price, but then what doesn't.

Anyway, thought I'd just make you aware of this as an option, even if it might be more than you want.  But if you wanted to add Home Automation for other areas or systems in the Home, this would be an ideal way to do it.

[Ginky Weeds]

Quick update on planned equipment.  I've decided to take a big step forward with the video side and have pre-ordered one of the new JVC RS2100/NZ7 laser projectors.  And changing the screen to 120" wide 2.37:1 scope aspect, still in Dreamweave V7.  Unless reviews of actual production models disappoint, this should provide a very versatile approach with much better video quality than my original plan.

Also, finished the electrical runs, just need to add the final run for the projector, now that I've determined it's location.  I'm going to put the outlet and accessory cable feed in the vertical surface of the rear false soffit that will run nearby behind the projector.  One less hole in the ceiling and a direct route to the equipment rack.  Based on a great tip received here, the projector run will be a 14 ga Romex wire from the outlet that will terminate with a plug on the rack end to be plugged into a surge protector.  The outlet in the soffit will have a built-in surge suppressor. So I'll have three levels of protection for the projector, whole house, Panamax 5300-PM and at the outlet. 

Started insulating in the ceiling.  I won't finish until I build and install a duct muffler for the HVAC run and also install new water tubing from the Reverse Osmosis unit to the refrigerator and kitchen sink. Both currently are installed with tees and couplers that would end up in the ceiling and bulkhead and would be worrisome as potential leak paths.  I'll replace the tubing with direct runs from the RO unit to each with one tee placed near the RO unit where it can be addressed easily and without damage to the HT if it ever leaks.

Next supply planning will be to determine drywall needs and get it on order.  A local supplier will deliver and place it where I want it.  I've moved all the audio equipment out of the area by the walkout door to create a space for the drywall.  The difficulty will be getting it into the HT through the entry door working by myself.  Once the ceiling is up, the drywall could be in the HT, but it would be nearly impossible to work around it to install the ceiling..

Also will determine accessory cable needs and locations and create a shopping list for those items.  I see HDMI from rack to projector, Ethernet from upstairs modem to switch at rack.  Plus a run of HDMI, Ethernet and USB from the rack to outlets at the front of the riser.

Still need to build the bulkhead around the water and sewer pipes on the north wall, run speaker cables throughout the HT, build the dead vent and build backer boxes for speakers and recessed lights.

Long way to go for this one-man construction crew, but feels like it's coming together and I’m enjoying the journey.

[Ginky Weeds]

After more research on automation, I think I'm going upgrade from the Harmony 900 remote to a Harmony Elite with hub. The Elite will control all the AV equipment and interface with the Lutron Caseta bridge to control the lights (and thermostat and fans, if desired). I know that Logitech has stopped manufacture of the Harmony remotes, but hope that this approach will serve me for several years until something better comes along.