Structured Wiring Thread

Serendipity

Today I decided to try out some new Keystone jacks, they are of the type used in offices for Phone/Data/Telecom which consist of a wall plate and inserts (you pick the type of insert) which go into the wall. I used a set of RCA's and ran the cable through the wall by using fish tape and snaking the wire through the back. Then, cut a hole in the wall with a saw and mounted the wall plate in a low-voltage junction box. I figured that with all the discussion of subs, and where to place them, might as well start a thread on structured wiring for Voice/Data, Audio/Video, LAN, Whole-house Audio, Speaker, and Cable wiring.

So, which brand of jacks do you like the best and why?

Picture attached is of my sub connected to the new keystone jack. I like it!

ryanjoachim

I have no idea how to do any of this, or where to go about learning...but I am certainly interested in learning!

Consider this thread subscribed!

Serendipity

Well, for starters, you need some basic tools:

1. Drill with spade bits
2. Fish tape (65' preferred)
3. Measuring Tape
4. Level
5. Saw

Then, obtain the cable you need (RG6 can be used for composite video, CAT5/6 can also be used for telecom, Stereo L/R audio, HDMI/DVI, component video, digital audio, etc.) and use the fish tape to snake it through the wall. I mentioned the drill with spade bits because sometimes, you will be forced to cross a 2x4 and the only choice is to make a hole in the wall and drill through it if there is no access from above or below (such as on a concrete slab).

Below is a system I did for someone who didn't have the tools to do it themselves:

Gadabout

My house is only a little over 3 years old and I had the HT prewired. I got to choose the speaker wire, from a selection of what he could obtain. (Beldin 5000UE). For the plates I used, the stuff from Parts Express. The wall for the HT is pretty large and I choose to put the sub on the front wall with the mains and rack.

For any add on wiring I have been doing, I have been using DataCom's stuff. They have a pretty good selection of plates. What lead me to them in the first place was adding a power receptacle behind a wall mounted TV, that would still be to code and that floating TV look. They might be a bit more expensive, but I like the selection and the way they mount things.

Scott

tonyb

Usually too, if you remove the baseboard there will be a gap between the wall board and flooring to get wire around studds. If not you could always just use a utility knife and trim alittle wall board off the bottom, the trim will cover it anyway.

Jstas

tonyb wrote: »

Usually too, if you remove the baseboard there will be a gap between the wall board and flooring to get wire around studds. If not you could always just use a utility knife and trim alittle wall board off the bottom, the trim will cover it anyway.

That gap isn't necessarily there for wiring. It allows expansion of the wall board so it can flex with humidity and temp changes as well as not buckle when the wall wants to expand. If you're going to run small amounts of speaker wire in there, that's usually fine but if you cram several wires in there and fill the gap, you defeat the purpose of the gap.

What you can do is carefully pry off your existing baseboard, flip it over and run a groove it in it with a router along the back. Use a rip fence to get the same groove in all the baseboard. Also, don't cut too deep so you don't mess up the baseboard. Then you won't compromise the materials of your wall. I did that at a friend's house. He has plaster walls so we had to come up with a way to run wires around rooms without risking breaking the plaster. Since we were replacing the baseboards anyway, we ran the grooves on the back of the new stuff near a fatter part of it. It was only speaker wire and it came out great! Can't tell it's even there.

tonyb

Thats also a good way John, but keep in mind too, an inch is alot of room for cables, I know of no wallboard that fluctuates that much due to conditions. If so, you have other issues at hand.

scottyboy76

you guys were very helpful to a fellow polkie, much nicer seeing this than something along the lines of"hey, you ever heard of a google search"

this is what i like about polkies.

Jstas

tonyb wrote: »

Thats also a good way John, but keep in mind too, an inch is alot of room for cables, I know of no wallboard that fluctuates that much due to conditions. If so, you have other issues at hand.

I rarely leave more than a half inch of space unless the wall is over 8 feet high. Then I have to cut up a sheet to fill in the extra that two sheets don't cover. If I have, say, a 3/4 inch gap because of what was left over, I'm not cutting, taping and mudding a 1/2 inch piece of wall board just to fill the gap.

Serendipity

I am thinking of buying the following wall plate:

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=261-170

Is this a good choice? I want something sturdy with quality binding posts.

Serendipity

Only 15 bucks? Looks like the one from Parts Express would be better.

Serendipity

The one you linked to has the binding posts all packed together

When there are many heavy-gauge speaker wires, clearance becomes an issue...

Serendipity

Do you have any experience with the PE one? I asked if that one was a good choice. I'm looking at both plates right now, the Monoprice one is equally spaced vertically whereas the PE one has different spacing (both horizontal and vertical) of the binding posts. From my experience, that middle row (usually labeled Surround Left/Surround Right) is the hardest to get to because of the spacing.

Serendipity

Thanks. Whichever plate I end up using I will need a bulk cable plate because of the Wii sensor bar. It uses a proprietary connector so I'll probably just snake the sensor bar cable through the fourth gang if I use the PE one or just buy a separate bulk cable wall plate if I go with Monoprice. This will allow the Wii to be used with my front projection setup while keeping the console (and games) on the rack.

WilliamM2

I find the wall plates to be a pain, too many connections, and as you said above, very tight with all the cables. It's also a pain if you ever need to add more wires. I just use one of these behind the rack and another behind the TV now, easily fits everything:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00390IT7O/ref=oh_o03_s00_i01_details

Easy to add another HDMI cable, speaker wire, etc. at a later date. Also eliminates the need for several holes in the wall, less to be patched later if I move the equipment rack. No electrical boxes equired either.

Rivrrat

I use Monoprice speaker connection plates and have had good luck with them. I prefer to use naners in them, but my wife kept killing the surround nanners shoving the couch too tight against them, so I just use the screw connections now (12ga, no problems). I use keystone plates and connectors for all the misc connections (rca, ethernet, etc), and I usually get them from Monoprice, but I'll get them from wherever if I'm in a hurry.

All of this reminds me, I need to pick up a 20' ethernet cable and some more keystone stuff to physically connect the ps3 to our modem. It's running wireless now for streaming, and I'm curious to see if it'll make a difference

unc2701

Jstas wrote: »

That gap isn't necessarily there for wiring. It allows expansion of the wall board so it can flex with humidity and temp changes as well as not buckle when the wall wants to expand. If you're going to run small amounts of speaker wire in there, that's usually fine but if you cram several wires in there and fill the gap, you defeat the purpose of the gap.

I can't speak for plaster & lath, but that's not true for gypsum drywall. Only reason to leave gaps when installing drywall is so the edge doesn't snag on every bulge then crack when you try to cram it past- it's easier to cut a little short since it's going to be covered in mud and /or trim. However, if you're at the point of cramming things in there that tight, you probably want to notch the baseboard just to make your life easier.

unc2701

WilliamM2 wrote: »

I find the wall plates to be a pain, too many connections, and as you said above, very tight with all the cables. It's also a pain if you ever need to add more wires. I just use one of these behind the rack and another behind the TV now, easily fits everything:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00390IT7O/ref=oh_o03_s00_i01_details.

Monoprice has something close for a bit less:
http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=105&cp_id=10425&cs_id=1042509&p_id=3997&seq=1&format=2

but you do need a low-voltage old-work box for those.
There's 2-gang versions, too.

Another bonus for these over wallplates with connectors is that there's one less thing in the signal path and you can pull slack back into the wall, so it can wind up looking a lot less messy.

mrbiron

Monoprice has something close for a bit less:
http://www.monoprice.com/products/pr...seq=1&format=2

I ran two of same except the larger version. Then, while my drywall was down, i installed two flexible hoses (one for power and the other for video connections) from one to the other so that i could easily swap out wires and keep the power away from the connections. Overkill...100%

Jstas

unc2701 wrote: »

I can't speak for plaster & lath, but that's not true for gypsum drywall. Only reason to leave gaps when installing drywall is so the edge doesn't snag on every bulge then crack when you try to cram it past- it's easier to cut a little short since it's going to be covered in mud and /or trim. However, if you're at the point of cramming things in there that tight, you probably want to notch the baseboard just to make your life easier.

So the wood it's nailed to doesn't matter.

OK, I see.

unc2701

Jstas wrote: »

So the wood it's nailed to doesn't matter.

OK, I see.

Yep, only the header and footer are oriented in the direction of the wood movement. You might get 1/64" of expansion out of those combined... assuming that the drywall is even nailed to the footer.

disneyjoe7

Serendipity wrote: »

Well, for starters, you need some basic tools:

1. Drill with spade bits
2. Fish tape (65' preferred)
3. Measuring Tape
4. Level
5. Saw

Then, obtain the cable you need (RG6 can be used for composite video, CAT5/6 can also be used for telecom, Stereo L/R audio, HDMI/DVI, component video, digital audio, etc.) and use the fish tape to snake it through the wall. I mentioned the drill with spade bits because sometimes, you will be forced to cross a 2x4 and the only choice is to make a hole in the wall and drill through it if there is no access from above or below (such as on a concrete slab).

Below is a system I did for someone who didn't have the tools to do it themselves:

Looks like my house.

Serendipity

disneyjoe7 wrote: »

Looks like my house.

Haha, I remember you had wall plates everywhere!!

Even the Polk Atriums were nicely installed!

Jstas

unc2701 wrote: »

Yep, only the header and footer are oriented in the direction of the wood movement. You might get 1/64" of expansion out of those combined... assuming that the drywall is even nailed to the footer.

OK, so studs don't expand at all.

Got it.

ViperZ

How does in-wall wiring attach to the keystone connectors from the inside? Screw-in terminals or you have solder? I will be replacing outer wall insulation in our HT room in the next year or two, so I'll install the connectors like this at least for the surround speakers. It looks so clean!!

unc2701

Jstas wrote: »

OK, so studs don't expand at all.

Got it.

Wood expansion is perpendicular to the grain. Unless someone was feeding the trees through the sawmill sideways, expansion is negligible in the vertical direction on a stud.

And more to the point- the expansion doesn't just happen at one end. If this was truly an issue, there'd also be gaps at the middle of the wall where sheets butt together and at the top where it hits the ceiling.

That gap is there purely as a consequence of the height of the wall vs the precise 8' measure of the drywall.

disneyjoe7

Serendipity wrote: »

Haha, I remember you had wall plates everywhere!!

Even the Polk Atriums were nicely installed!

Thanks

disneyjoe7

ViperZ wrote: »

How does in-wall wiring attach to the keystone connectors from the inside? Screw-in terminals or you have solder? I will be replacing outer wall insulation in our HT room in the next year or two, so I'll install the connectors like this at least for the surround speakers. It looks so clean!!

What I did with mine was to solder the end of the wire so it couldn't loose up, and screwed the end.

Serendipity

ViperZ wrote: »

How does in-wall wiring attach to the keystone connectors from the inside? Screw-in terminals or you have solder? I will be replacing outer wall insulation in our HT room in the next year or two, so I'll install the connectors like this at least for the surround speakers. It looks so clean!!

Most wall plates have screw terminals or binding posts that you just tighten down. No solder is necessary, although if you want to tin the wire you can solder the ends before putting it into the binding post. When there are multiple speaker wires involved, I also label the individual wires to make it easier when connecting. Something like "Front Left" and "Front Right" for the mains and "Surround Back / Left" for the rears. Very easy to do. It's simple, and works great!

Syndil

Reviving this thread, because my next project is... structured wiring.

I'm putting an enclosure in the laundry/utility/storage room, which will house my cable modem, router, a 24-port switch, my Obihai, my ReadyNAS, an 8-camera surveillance system and the outdoor sprinkler controls. I could also centralize the cable TV and telephone, but I don't see any reason to (feel free to offer opinions here).

Just got started on it today, so here's what I've done so far:

An overall view of the room


The hole where the box goes (that's a shower on the other side)


The box that will occupy this hole


And the door that will eventually go on it



Box is a Suttle 44" enclosure with a vented door. There are a few different brands out there to choose from, like Leviton, Open House, Honeywell and Elk, but I went with Suttle because it was the only one I could find that I could order with an included flush-mount vented door. Other brands would come with a non-vented and/or non-hinged panel cover, and the door had to be ordered separately.

But the nice thing about these enclosures it that there are modules designed specifically to fit inside them, like CATV splitters, ethernet/phone punchdown blocks, audio distribution, etc. I haven't ordered any of the modules yet, but that's next, after I get the enclosure permanently mounted. There was a little more gap that I had anticipated between the sides of the enclosure and the studs so the first thing I need to do is cut some 1/4" chipboard to make shims. Also need to drill the holes into the attic and crawlspace, of course. Probably will run a bit of conduit through the wall space into the attic/crawlspace so that I can seal it and make it airtight after the cables are run.

If you're interested in this type of enclosure or the modules that can go in them, there's a site called Hometech that sells most of the brands. I actually bought the enclosure from Neobits.com since Hometech did not have the Suttle with the vented door.

http://www.hometech.com/hts/products/wiring/struct_wire/

Syndil

Oh I'm also using keystone plates/low-voltage boxes from Monoprice. Already have most of that stuff. I'll be replacing each of the CATV/phone plates that the house came with with 4- or 6-port keystone plates, reattaching the existing CATV and phone wiring to keystone plugs, and adding 2 or 4 ethernet ports to each one.