anyone in the McKinney/Frisco area have recommendations on a home theater installer? I have looked at StarPower but figured I could probably get a better price from a smaller company.

DIY. Everything up here is high dollar. I just pieced it together myself. Bought projector and receiver at NFM. Built my own equipment rack with things off Amazon/Monocable. Speakers from Polk. Spent some time on AVS forums. Granted it has taken me awhile in my off time, but completely custom.

It's really not that had to DIY, especially if you have walls opened up anyway to do other work and can put the conduit in at that time. I kept nearly all of the cables contained within the media closet, the rack is adjustable shelving from Amazon and the only things running to the TV are one HDMI, COAX, and Ethernet cable.

Games and discs are also in the media closet. Can post pics if it helps, but it's not as "pretty" as some of what you see on AVS Forums.

If you don't mind me asking, what was your all in cost?

Can I outfit my room with chairs and equipment for $10K?

I also do not have a closet in my media room, so I was thinking of adding an "in-wall" component area. My room is approx 15'6" x 18'. We have attic access so I was thinking that could be done fairly easily,

It is new construction and the room is pre-wired, it is also still being constructed so if I need anything changed for ease of use, let me know and I can ask the builder to perhaps do it before the house is completed.

Aggie_Eric98 said:

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If you don't mind me asking, what was your all in cost?

Can I outfit my room with chairs and equipment for $10K?

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Yes, You can get it for under $10k. Patience/Sales is key, hence the long completion time.

This came out to about $8k
Projector Epson 3500 (i believe)
Motorized projector screen (amazon/AVS brand favorite)
Polk LSIM series speakers (4+1 right now, need center channel)
Yamaha Aventage RX-850 receiver
Custom velvet ZGalerie sectional

Also have Chauvet intelligent lighting, motorized custom drapes and oak stage, instruments (home music studio and media room). My problem - too many remotes, harmony doesn't control RF devices. I'm testing a unit right now though. Finishing up roof painting and stenciling this week.

I used these guys - highly recommend.

http://myhomedia.com

The Fife said:

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It's really not that had to DIY, especially if you have walls opened up anyway to do other work and can put the conduit in at that time. I kept nearly all of the cables contained within the media closet, the rack is adjustable shelving from Amazon and the only things running to the TV are one HDMI, COAX, and Ethernet cable.

Games and discs are also in the media closet. Can post pics if it helps, but it's not as "pretty" as some of what you see on AVS Forums.

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Please do so Fife...thanks in advance!

It's definitely DIY-able. If that's not your bag, give Domotics AV a call.

www.domoticsav.com

I went to high school with one of the owners, and he was doing home automation before it was really even a thing. We installed several home theaters for people by the time we graduated. He also happens to be a great guy.

I just used crown audio visual for a 4 screen video wall in a commercial setup but they do residential as well. Quick and competitive pricing on the bids I received.

http://crownaudiovideoinc.com/

do you all recommend a riser for the back third of the room?

I don't have one but mine doesn't have theater seating either.

Another recommendation for DIY and research on avsforum.com. There's so many different theaters on there with budgets from 5k to well into the six figures. Most of the threads show how they did everything. Finished mine last year after lots of research on there.

If the pre-wire is already done it is pretty simple to do your own setup. At the time Epson basically had 2 lines of projectors - one that could only be sold in stores, and one that was typically sold online. The specs were identical, but the in-store line would force you to buy a mount, additional bulbs, etc. buying online saved about $1200, and I bought my own mount for maybe $100.

Most of my equipment was purchased through Crutchfield (no taxes), a low cost screen via Amazon (all research I could find said it was a good screen and I'm happy w/it), cabling, connectors/wallplates from mono price, and furniture we bought at Weirs.

The biggest lesson I learned was to paint before mounting. After 1 week my wife said "You're right, the room should have been painted". I'm usually right but I know when to STFU. I had to break it all down minus removing the projector from the ceiling and paint again.

When I did this I was glad that I'd taken the time during the original installation to put banana clips on all of the speaker wires.

Epson 5030 UB
Hsu research sub, center, and front surround
Cambridge Audio Minx Min11 rear surround
Marantz NR1403 5.1 receiver (it's very slim when was needed for access w/in the media closet)
Visual Apex screen

Gary79Ag said:

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The Fife said:

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It's really not that had to DIY, especially if you have walls opened up anyway to do other work and can put the conduit in at that time. I kept nearly all of the cables contained within the media closet, the rack is adjustable shelving from Amazon and the only things running to the TV are one HDMI, COAX, and Ethernet cable.

Games and discs are also in the media closet. Can post pics if it helps, but it's not as "pretty" as some of what you see on AVS Forums.

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Please do so Fife...thanks in advance!

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I'll try this afternoon, I've been sick most of this week and stopped mid-install with the electronics so it's a bit messy in there

Costs:
Samsung UN65KS8000 - $1,325
Onkyo TX-NR757 - $600
Wall mount and HDMI cable - $50
Shelving supplies for discs and games - $200
Wire rack for electronics - $50
Let's say another $100 for speaker wire, conduit and whatnot. Remember to buy the correct size of speaker wire given your wire run length!

Ran the circuit for electronics and speaker wiring on my own, will add an A/C register in the next month or so.

Thanks Fife...No problem and no rush at all...just take care of yourself and get well first!

I just did this as a DIY over Christmas break. Not a hard project but requires a lot of planning. I found the below site to be very helpful on mount placement and height.

www.webprojectorcalculator.com
user: coder
pass: avs99



I got the screen below from Amazon. Looks great when mounted on wall.
STR-169120 Silver Ticket 120" Diagonal 16:9
https://www.amazon.com/STR-169120-Silver-Ticket-120-Diagonal/dp/B00CYLOTPK



Purchased projector from projector people. I called them direct and they gave me a mount as a new customer with my purchase.
http://www.projectorpeople.com/default.asp

Monoprice is your friend for cheap cables, waterfalls, banana clips, etc. And don't be a dumb ass like I was. Dark brown walls, black trim, black wall sconces, black fan, black speakers... and white speaker wire. It's a short section that pops out of a wall plate to the speaker but Holy Spit does it look bad.

UnderoosAg said:

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Monoprice is your friend for cheap cables, waterfalls, banana clips, etc. And don't be a dumb ass like I was. Dark brown walls, black trim, black wall sconces, black fan, black speakers... and white speaker wire. It's a short section that pops out of a wall plate to the speaker but Holy Spit does it look bad.

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Just wrap it with some black electrical tape!

A big fat sharpie test spot worked also. I just need to go do it.

When we built our house they asked where I wanted the FL, center, and FR speaker cables. I thought that the top of wall where it angled up to the ceiling was good.

When I actually started my research after I got around to outfitting the room, I learned the speakers should be at ear level. I also learned that the speakers I bought were way too big to mount up top and angle down.

I couldn't drill down through the firewall due to the angle and the wall b/w the brick and the studs was foam board, therefore I didn't have a pressure point to drive a bit down through the firewall/stud (to drop the speaker wires down the inside of the wall).

So I ran the speaker wire down the front of the dry wall, put tape over it, then sprayed drywall texture over the tape. Once painted it looks fine when watching. You can see where I "hid" the wire when he lights are on, but who GaF, the room still looks good

Are these packages worth it? I don't see a center channel, but includes almost everything else I would need.

http://www.dfwaffordablehometheater.com/in---wall.html

Quote:

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All for only:$4,399

Packages may very pending consultation, screen size is based on 106" bigger screens are a few more bucks.
Package includes:

• Epson Projector 3500
• DragonFly Screen DF-SL
• Denon AVR-S510BT Receiver
• (3) Klipsch R2502 In Wall LCR speakers
• (2) Klipsch R-1650 in Wall speakers
• Episode Element 8 Ported Subwoofer

• Sony Blu Ray Player BDPSS5500
• Universal Remote MX450
• HDMI & AV cables
• Mounting Brackets
• Hardware

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Checking on Amazon and Google, that seems a little high. I had to make some assumptions particularly on the sub, as I don't know that brand. How big is your room? 8" subs can get lost relatively easily (again, this could be a kickass sub, so maybe someone else can help).

The Center Channel is in the group of 3 speakers. LCR stands for Left Center Right. You just mount it horizontally. For a comparable/slightly more price just on speakers, you can get a HSU Research Ultra 15 5.1 set. I don't have them, but they've been very well-respected on this board. I'm also not a fan of in-wall speakers when I can help it, and I don't like the Klipsch sound in most applications (purely a matter of taste on the latter).

The Denon receiver doesn't look like anything special, but it'll do the trick. I'm a big fan of Marantz these days. I was an Onkyo guy for years, though.

My BIL has a similar Epson projector and it's fine. I think the installer (not me) jacked something up with the power.

You'd save a lot by sourcing cables & hardware yourself on Monoprice too.

Honestly, these package deals aren't generally a good value. I'd say take some time, think about what you really want and your requirements, and you can put together something really nice on a similar budget.

ok, my room is 15'6" x 18'.

That's about the size of my room. I have a Polk 8" that I actually really like, but a 10" would be stronger. The Polks from back when I set up my theater had a reputation for outperformance, but I don't know for certain if that holds true now.

My sub is a polk PSW505 and is more than enough for my 20x 18 room.

You can save a lot buying all that separately. I wouldn't go with in wall speakers unless you are doing prep work on your walls. I also would definitely go bigger on the sub.

Projectorcentral.com is my favorite site for projector reviews. I bought a cheap 1080p about a year ago and plan to upgrade to 4k when prices come down a little more.

I would definitely recommend reading through a few dozen of the build threads on Avsforum before you buy anything. They also have a long thread about what would you do different/what do you wish you knew when you built your theater.

Here's the electronics rack as it currently is, as best as I can get a picture anyway. The closet is 3' deep and about 8' wide. Still a work in progress. From bottom to top components are:

PCs (2 EA)
Xbox one/360/original
Receiver and TV antenna amplifier
CD changer, PS3, Wii
GameCube, PS2, PlayStation, PS4 when I get one, cable modem and router
Board games (to be kicked out, VCR and tape deck go here)
Extra shelf

Thanks Fife...now I know what I'll do with one of the temporary racks we have as shelving in our pantry...hadn't thought about using them for that purpose, but that would be perfect since it provides adjustable shelving!

This kind of shelving is perfect IMO. Adjustable, airflow is as good as it gets, run cables behind or through as needed, and very cost effective compared to rack mounting

FWIW the other shelving came from Home Depot.

Wow! A pic of your place that doesn't have a shop vac and no floor!

That would be what's behind the wall the rack is against. Betcha can't guess what this area looked like 1 year ago though...

I went and saw the pre wiring down and the have 2 speakers on each side wall. Will this be ok?

I was thinking I would have 3 on the wall by the screen and 2 surround in the ceiling or the wall.

I guess i could also make it a 7.1 and add two speakers to the front wall. Thoughts?

I did 9.2 in mine. Did the 2 front highs with the 3 front speakers, 2 sides, 2 rear.