Should I pre-wre for 5.1

sid369

Hi all,

I have an option to get a 5.1 pre-wired by my builders vendor. However, I am not sure of the location and feel that it will force us to lay our furniture around it.

This is for the family room on the first floor, there is unfinished basement. Should I do it now or can this be done later.

I am sure it will be cheaper to do it now vs. later. What do you guys suggest. The yellow highlight is where i have marked as the location initially.

here is the layout

monepolk

If it were me I would do it now. Even if you decide to change things around, look at it like an outlet that you're not currently using.

sid369

monepolk wrote: »

If it were me I would do it now. Even if you decide to change things around, look at it like an outlet that you're not currently using.

Do you think my marking are a good location

amgala

I think I would put the rear channels in the corners like the front channels. That way, even if you change the furniture layout, you would get similar sound.

Also, having the subwoofer in the corner may cause unwanted vibrations (particularly with a window right there) and boominess from the sub. I would thing it would be better to put the subwoofer closer to the sofa.

amgala

Sorry, I thought you were thinking about getting ceiling speakers, but I just saw your other thread so now I know you are going to get towers.

I would definitely have them wire it for 5.1 from the get go, and my comments about the subwoofer still hold true.

monepolk

I'll let someone else answer that. I think corner placement of your connections give you the most flexability as far as changing things around.

David R

I just post wired my place for 5.1 sound. It is very expensive to do it afterwards. I had to go through an existing finished ceiling. You can put in extra wire to allow you to change your configuration later. Much better to do it now.

tonyb

Also, if your going to pre-wire, use good quality wire from the get-go along with quality connectors. The contractor will use the cheapest available. Pick your own and have him do it.

classic carl

I would place your mains closer together and move the surrounds further apart. I would also put the sub on the front wall and not in a corner.

I wired my rear surrounds myself before the drywall was installed, while my houise was being built, as opposed to paying someone to do it. I would not hide the wire for the fronts or sub in the wall.

sid369

classic carl wrote: »

I would place your mains closer together and move the surrounds further apart. I would also put the sub on the front wall and not in a corner.

I wired my rear surrounds myself before the drywall was installed, while my houise was being built, as opposed to paying someone to do it. I would not hide the wire for the fronts or sub in the wall.

Let' say I have the pre-wiring done and its in the corners like in the layout. Wouldn't I still be able to move the speakers closer to the tv or further away from the corner walls. The wires from the wall outlet connected to the speaker will show but I will still be able to move the speakers, am I correct?

Because there will be wire from the speaker connecting to the wall outlets.

The reason for the sub in the corner wall placement in the back was because if I want the sub in the front, I can directly connect it to the receiver, and that way I have two locations, one pre-wired and the other direct to the receiver.

Am I thinking this correctly? I don't think the builder will let me put my own wires, and even if they did I won't know what I will be doing as I have no idea.

I think the guy told me that they would use 16 gauge wires, so my question is from the outlet to the speaker, does it have to be the same wires? or can it be different gauge?

AsSiMiLaTeD

I would insist that they let you choose the wire they use. I would talk to a custom installer in your area and bring them in as a consultant, the builder is going to use the absolute cheapest stuff possible...

txcoastal1

Where will the head end be located?
If it is where your TV is located then using good quality cables to your receiver won't be a problem if you don't mind them exposed.

samreddevilz

You may do this. But be careful about your setup currently.....//

sid369

samreddevilz wrote: »

You may do this. But be careful about your setup currently.....//

What do you mean?


All the gear - Receiver, STB etc. will be where the TV is

txcoastal1

If the builder leaves you with no other option the 16awg to the rears will be fine. Since equipment will be at your TV stand then you can always use better quality cables for the Fronts and center, they just won't be in the walls.

I would prefer 12awg for the fronts and 14awg for the rears...just my .02c

Spiffyfast

Good suggestions on picking the wire yourself if they'll allow it, good luck

philr168

I pre-wired my home when building it. It saved a lot of time and expense by not having to hide wires later. Run as heavy of gauge as possible now and save regrets later.

leftwinger57

As a former alarm and telco,cable,music installer it is way better to pre-wire before the walls go up.Just make sure whom ever does it follows after the electricians and knows somewhat about code in your state ie. nail plates,boxes,mud rings.Yes you can do it later but there is alot more time and mess involved .Just lay it out and mark where you want to terminate and any one should follow your directions. One other thing make sure you where your cable box will be that can determine a few more wire runs like HDMI,Optical.