Need advise on DIY wall-mounting (hardware, jacks/grommets, wiring, etc)

clukowski1981

I just moved into a townhouse and really want to mount my RM6700 surround sats to the wall with the wiring run behind the wall and through the basement. There are a few questions I have for anybody who's done this:

1) Wall plates or no wall plates? As I understand it I have three options when it comes to the speaker wire coming out of the wall. A wall plate with binding post connectors, a feed-through grommet or bushing, or just through a hole in the wall. I want a clean connection that the wire isn't going to fall through, but I feel a wall plate might be too large and unnecessary. Still, I'm having a hard time finding what "best practice" is when it comes to speaker mounting. I'm leaning towards a bushing like the kind cable installers use on RG-6, but haven't found any made for speaker wire per se. This question goes for both the speaker end and the receiver end of the run.

2) When it comes to in-wall speaker wiring, is there a strong preference to what brand and gauge to use? Right now I have RM6700's, but I would like to upgrade to RTiA1s someday. I'm really tempted by Monoprice's offering, but if I should avoid that let me know.

3) How concerned should I be about avoiding AC electrical lines in proximity to the speaker wire? I know officially you're supposed to stay at least 12" away from these cables and only cross over them at a 90* angle, but I may not have that luxury since there are AC outlets in both the receiver-side and mounting-side stud cavities. I've heard competing claims that I shouldn't worry about it so long as the wire isn't running parallel to the AC line for a long distance (maybe a few inches tops in my case). What do you think?

For reference 90% of the time the speakers will be used to watch movies in my living room, so ultra-high end audiophile grade components aren't necessary, though I am willing to spend more for a difference that is noticeable. Thanks!

ken brydson

I'll let the others chime in on most of this but I'll give you a 4th option for #1. Coax plates. Cost like .50 each and a lot cleaner than a hole in the wall IMO.

MetropolisLake

I'd get wall plates because you can terminate them. If you just have a hole in the wall that means you get to permanently leave wire there forever. Standard wall plates with terminals are much cleaner.

As for speaker wire size, it all depends on your length and power. You're good with 14 gauge up to like 30 feet I think. 40 feet pushing 2,000 watts and you need 10 gauge though. There are calculators and charts for this online if you're worried about it, there's no single answer without knowing the length but if you want to future proof it and it isn't a huge room, 10 gauge is good, you just probably could get away with smaller and never be able to tell the difference.

As for AC lines, just do the best you can. Personally I think it is a bigger deal with signal cables than speaker cables but I'm sure both can be affected. Just try not to go parallel and in contact with several live wires for long periods of time.

clukowski1981

I would think a full wall plate would look silly next to an RM6700 satellite. They're practically the same size! I'm planning on having the wire exit the wall either right behind the speaker for an invisible look or right below it.

clukowski1981

Does anybody have an example of a kind of grommet or bushing that works well for speaker wire?

MetropolisLake

clukowski1981 wrote: »

Does anybody have an example of a kind of grommet or bushing that works well for speaker wire?

http://www.homedepot.com/p/CE-TECH-Coaxial-Cable-Feed-Through-Bushing-White-COAXIAL-FEEDTHRU-BUSHING-WHITE/203717842

Read the comments. I saw another product at home depot the other day and was looking for it but these have been around forever and would work.

MrBuhl

Another thought, most building codes frown on bare wire coming through a hole in the wall even if you don't mind it. Wall plate terminations are the best solutions I've found for that and are IMO an expectation in a nice professional looking setup vs. a Joe-Homeowner job.

I got inexpensive plates for my setup here that serve the purpose but don't break the bank - lots of options with images so you see what you get too:

http://www.outdoorspeakerdepot.com/wallplate.html

They also carry all sorts of speaker mounting options (before I installed my in ceiling Polk RC80i's for rear channels I had some HK satellites than hung down from the ceiling on post type brackets for instance).

The plates really blend in more than you think if you're thoughtful about placment.

seabeerob213

You could diy something, a half inch PVC flange would work, the female connection could slip into the wall and the flang would catch and sit outside the wall a c-hair. Work like a grommet, can be painted, cheap as snot, or a PVC reducer/adapter, such as this onehttp://www.dripirrigation.com/system/partphotos/989/tdsthumb/P215 P225 slip.JPG?1325790814
Hard to see, but exactly what I'm thinking about, amazing, we have dozens at work, but can't find a good pic online for the life of me.

seabeerob213

http://images.builderdepot.com/raindrip/prodimg/R376CB-1.jpg

http://www.pvcfittingsonline.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/small_image/135x/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/b/u/bushing-spig-slip-837_2.jpg

A couple more examples.