[sideslope]

I decided to build out a home theater in my home and took some pictures along the way. Here a stroll through the process. I had to put links to some pictures as this forum won't allow over six:

Here's a link to the XBMC PC I built for this room:

http://forum.xbmc.org/showthread.php?tid=104318

Here's the room where I'm going to make a dream reality. At least I had a vision of it.



The Viewsonic Pro 8200HD arrives (799.00 on Newegg). I'm not overwhelmed yet:


Viewsonic Pro 8200HD

I thought I could put a shelf up and set the projector up there to save some bucks. I WAS WRONG:

Cheap Shelf Solution for Projector

After realizing the shelf method doesn't work, I ponied up for a ceiling mount (Staples for 79.00). That's my family checking it out:



Sound system shows up from newegg. Onkyo 7.1 setup (799.00):

Onkyo Sound System

Wires everywhere:

Wire Mess

Speakers have to sit on the floor for now:



No theater would be complete withough red theater black out drapes. 89.00 on sale at Fred Meyer:

Theater Drapes

Mounting the speakers. Had to redo them a couple of times:



Popcorn maker arrives:

Popcorn maker

Popcorn maker assembled:

Popcorn Maker

Installing cable management. This was the hardest part of the entire project. It took me about 10 hours to get the cable runs, new wire (the Onkyo wire was too short) and run it all. Cost was roughly 150 at Lowes for the cable runs. Here I am putting one on the wall:

Me installing cabling run

Cabling done for the front. Can't really see it anymore:



Cabling done in the rear:

Rear view of cabling runs

And the finished project running XBMC. This actually looks great. My camera made the screen seem dull but it's very bright:



All in all it took me less than two weeks. I also pull live TV off of HD homeruns. Still to go: Movie seats at some point in the future. Also going to put up some movie posters, track lighting and an exit sign. But for now, I'm up and running!

[sideslope]

Anyone know how I can submit this for the XBMC front page? The submission link is down.

[natethomas]

Yo, I am the guy, sideslope. Looks pretty awesome. I'll put you in the queue.

[sideslope]

Thanks Nate!

[BrooksyX]

nice setup. only suggestion I would have is paint the walls a darker color maybe. When I think theatres I think dark.

[sjobbels]

Nice setup!!

[IsleOfMan]

Paint is the second biggest (see below) bang-for-the-buck upgrade you could make. For likely under $40 in paint & supplies (less if you already have a roller, pan, brush, tape, etc) you could darken the room AND create a DIY painted screen. If your current walls are a true white, you could simply paint a black border (2-3") to define the screen area. If the walls are an off-white, I would recommend painting the screen area a true white or light grey... the grey will help boost black levels but sacrifice some overall brightness.

Also, this may sound counter-intuitive, but you might actually get better sound quality with a 5.1 speaker arrangement instead of 7.1, especially since your side surrounds (the primary surround speakers in a 7.1 setup) are actually in-front of your listening position. Also, when 7.1 is artificially derived from 5.1 content, the rear sound-field can de-correlate and smear, greatly hampering the directionality of effects intended to be discrete and directional. In small spaces like yours, 5.1 is usually the way to go, even though your HTIB included 7 speakers.

Lastly... CALIBRATE! Calibration is the biggest bang-for-your-buck improvement to audio and video quality. If your HTIB's AVR included Audyssey, run it for as many listening positions as possible... if it allows for 3 positions, run it for middle, left, and right of your couch. If it allows for 5, do middle, middle-right, middle-left, right, and left... etc. If your AVR doesn't have Audyssey, get an SPL meter from Radioshack and use the AVR's internal test-tones to at-least balance the levels of your speakers. For video, get a hold of a good calibration disc like Spears & Munsil or Avia. I think you can even rent them from Netflix these days. Watch the tutorials and calibrate your projector, especially brightness, contrast, sharpness and color temperature.

[Chris!]

I miss feature fridays.

[sideslope]

Thanks for the detailed write up IsleofMan. I did callibrate the sound system when I put it in. As for the wall, it is pure white and looks great while viewing. I don't think I'll put up a black border or a screen just because I don't think I need it. It doesn't really serve any function except for looks.

If I do decide to do a screen I'll order one and hang it on the wall.

I'll post a pic shortly of a 1080p movie playing so everyone can get an idea of what it looks like while watching it.

[T/\/\\/]

Sideslope - nice work so far; the popcorn maker is a great touch. Keep the photos coming; I'm sure the end result will be awesome.

[IsleOfMan]

Having at least a border for your screen will have more impact than you think. It subtly confines the natural horizontal movement of your eyes during viewing and helps limit eye strain that becomes more noticeable when watching larger screens at closer viewing distances. It also gives you level horizontal and vertical reference lines to help ensure your projector is properly aimed, leveled, and keystone is properly adjusted. Lastly, it makes it look that much more like a real display part of a theater, not something you brought home from the office to play with for the weekend. Even if it's just $10 in paint and a couple of hours of your time I'd say it's well worth it for the above reasons.

One other suggestion, though I'm not sure what you're using for control, is a Harmony remote. I've been using Harmony remotes for years now as an HT enthusiast and long before getting into XBMC. From a day-to-day ease-of-use standpoint they are a staggering improvement over most any other universal remote other than very pricey options requiring programing from a custom installer (URC). They are also extremely easy to program and will go far in making a complex arrangement of CE gear easy to use for anyone in the house.

[avus m3]

Having at least a border for your screen will have more impact than you think. It subtly confines the natural horizontal movement of your eyes during viewing and helps limit eye strain that becomes more noticeable when watching larger screens at closer viewing distances. It also gives you level horizontal and vertical reference lines to help ensure your projector is properly aimed, leveled, and keystone is properly adjusted. Lastly, it makes it look that much more like a real display part of a theater, not something you brought home from the office to play with for the weekend. Even if it's just $10 in paint and a couple of hours of your time I'd say it's well worth it for the above reasons.

Take this advice. You will be surprised what a proper border can do. I've been meaning to post my "Feature Friday" setup for awhile. I just never get around to it .

[sideslope]

So lets talk screen border. The problem is that switching between 720p (TV) and 1080p (theater), the border has be be made for both. So the screen will be too big for the TV 720p.

I will be watching both football and movies so I need something to accomodate both.

What's the suggestion? Just put up a 720p border and then the 1080p picture will fit within that?

Thanks!

[IsleOfMan]

Unless you have the world's weirdest projector, 1080p and 720p will be displayed within the same border area. Either (most likely) XBMC is scaling everything to a single output resolution or the projector is scaling everything to its native resolution.

If you are mistakenly referring to aspect ratio, your border should fit the native 16:9 area of the projector and 4:3 content will be displayed with vertical bars and 2.35:1 content with horizontal bars.

[sideslope]

I'll check out the settings and post an update with the info.