Just finished my HT setup, thanks for the help!

jaritta

Hey guys,

I just wanted to let you know that i finished my home theater setup. (along with finishing my basement) So here is a list of the gear that i selected and I will get some pics up soon. Thanks again to all of the members for you paitance in answering my quesitons and helping me get a good grasp on what i needed to do.

Thanks again,
Jaritta

Projector- epson 8700ub
Screen - screen innovations performance series 1.1gain 110in 16x9
Front CRL -Polk csi3, rtia5(possible changing to kef q series LRC)
Sub- Rel t7
Rear surrounds- Kef q800
Chief mount,bracket and drop tube
Reciever- Denon 3312-Pre out to
Seperate amp- Harman kardon signature 2.1 5ch amp
Cable box,
xbox360
samsung bluray


On another note- I work for a ht installer, we went to a denon custom installer class. He(the denon instructor) had a big segment of the class on HDMI and problems that installers have regarding hdmi. Which prompted me to run a couple of cat5 cables along with my 25ft hdmi from monoprice. THANK GOD I DID! the monoprice cable didnot work, Not dammaged by the install, just failed to work. By basically useing insurance by putting up the 2 runs of cat5 cable I was able to use a balun that converts hdmi to cat 5 and back at the projector. I would have had to tear out brandnew drywall that I had painted with about 3 coats of paint(i hate painting) and re run another hdmi cord. The balun from snap av was Awesome! So if you are building a new home theater TAKE MY ADVICE and insure yourself with a couple of cheap cat5 cables, even if you dont use them it will be worth it if your hdmi ever fails!

Sherardp

25 feet is a pretty solid run. Before you count that HDMI cable out, add an equalizer/repeater to it in order to boost signal.

http://www.monoprice.com/products/subdepartment.asp?c_id=104&cp_id=10419&cs_id=1041914

As for HDMI cables I would recommend Bluejeans Cables for long runs. I have 20 foot runs using the Belden cables with zero problems. Like you I did run Cat 5e, a second HDMI, and component as back ups.

jaritta

Sherardp wrote: »

25 feet is a pretty solid run. Before you count that HDMI cable out, add an equalizer/repeater to it in order to boost signal.

http://www.monoprice.com/products/subdepartment.asp?c_id=104&cp_id=10419&cs_id=1041914

As for HDMI cables I would recommend Bluejeans Cables for long runs. I have 20 foot runs using the Belden cables with zero problems. Like you I did run Cat 5e, a second HDMI, and component as back ups.

No need, i got the balun for free- a promotion from snap, My boss is cool like that, he didnt pay anything for it so i didnt have to pay him anything. I am just sayin, cat5 is cheap insurance in the event of hdmi problems, especially in longer runs, 25ft is about as long as you would want to push it without doing a balun anyway. And yes i would go with a bluejeans cable if i ever had to do it over again.

Another thing you might look at is outdoorspeakerdepot.com it is a great place to get cheap, highquality cables, like what custom home installers use, you can get baluns and other items for just about as cheap as custom installers can

Sherardp

Cool man, post pics.

jaritta

Sherardp wrote: »

Cool man, post pics.

jaritta

Sorry i am having trouble getting the photos to attach......and I need to do some cable management but for the most part it is done!!!

The flash makes the cables behind the componants show, under normal lighting you dont see them at all.

cfrizz

Congrats, nice system enjoy it!

jaritta

jaritta

Ugh.....my other camera wouldnt upload the pics so i went with a old one, so sorry about the picks

Sherardp

Some small things Jaritta to perfect that setup if you will. Zip ties are your friend, if you could zip tie your source cables it would look even better in that rack. Not sure if your adding additional seating, but I would pull that seating into the room a tad more. From the pics, it looks like they are close to the wall. You would also hear more of the surrounds as well. Finally, have you thought about painting that screen wall black instead of purple. It would make the screen appear to be "floating" when the lights are dim, and add contrast to the room. Would look very nice in there. Also is there a way to hide that balun box of just lay it flat on the projector and use shorter cables? Like I said, small things to tidy it up. Nothing personal, hard work paid off for sure. Room looks fantastico bro.

If you need a dimmer that works with the Harmony Remote, check out Lutron Maestro from Home Depot sold for 34.00. If you need one that allows for different lighting scenes then the Lutron Spacer is the way to go.

Toolfan66

Looks great!!

Congrats!!

jaritta

Sherardp wrote: »

Some small things Jaritta to perfect that setup if you will. Zip ties are your friend, if you could zip tie your source cables it would look even better in that rack. Not sure if your adding additional seating, but I would pull that seating into the room a tad more. From the pics, it looks like they are close to the wall. You would also hear more of the surrounds as well. Finally, have you thought about painting that screen wall black instead of purple. It would make the screen appear to be "floating" when the lights are dim, and add contrast to the room. Would look very nice in there. Also is there a way to hide that balun box of just lay it flat on the projector and use shorter cables? Like I said, small things to tidy it up. Nothing personal, hard work paid off for sure. Room looks fantastico bro.

If you need a dimmer that works with the Harmony Remote, check out Lutron Maestro from Home Depot sold for 34.00. If you need one that allows for different lighting scenes then the Lutron Spacer is the way to go.

Thanks for the pointers shep, I most likely wont repaint for now(hence my statement about my hatred for painting)however that is a great idea! I need to take everything out of the rack and re zip everything; however you dont see the cables even with the lights on, the flash of the camera makes them stand out bad, so this is not a high priority. Iwill get to it but not right now.

The thing i strugle with is the balun box, The balun has to be plugged in to the 110 plug above the projector. it has a transformer, much like a laptop computer, it has a bunch of cable that i have no where to place it. I am not for sure about cuting and splicing the powersupply for this in fear of messing it up.

The projector power supply- i am guessing that i can just cut it and put a new end on the cord. have you ever done this. I am guessing that it is black white and ground......if so then no big deal.

I will move the couch out a bit and see if it helps. but I need to have quite a bit of room for the kids to play.

As far as the remote, I am trying to see if i can get my boss to sell me his urc mx5000 for cheap....he hates it. We currently have bitwise for the ipad at our showroom and are about to do away with the mx5000. I can get urc switches for about $150. each

Sherardp

Cool, I'm not sure how you can hide that balun box. If you can have it lay on the projector would be good. Sux your HDMI cable isn't working. Did you see those repeaters I sent ya?

jaritta

Yeah i saw the repeater that you sent me, I beleive the problem with the hdmi cable is that one of the pins on the inside of the terminated end is bent broken. I am not sure if it was me or monoprice, either way it doesnt matter now. I am fairly sure that this is the problem. So i beleive that the balun is the only option for me