Home Theater Plan

MOVIEWATCHER

My wife visited one of her friends out of state, and all she has talked about since coming home is their home theater. I need suggestions on what DVD player, receiver, speakers, subwoofer, and TV to buy. We have an 18 by 22 foot room, and I will budget around $10,000 for this. Years ago I owned a pair of Polk Audio bookshelf speakers, and I enjoyed their sound, so I figured this is the place to come.

Sherardp

10K is a pretty good budget. Are we talking front projector or what? With that budget you should go front PJ, especially in a room that size, rather its dedicated media room or not you can still make it work.

For speakers suggestions, go with the RTiA or LSi speakers. I will leave the suggestions up to the guys here, however I dig the RTi(A)series. For powering those speakers I recommend Pioneer Elite SC-05 as it is probably one of the best bang for buck receivers out there right now and will give you the latest and greatest in HD Audio.

For Blu-Ray I would recommend Panasonic BD35,BD60 or Sony S350,550 players. These should do you well with PQ and decoding hi res audio.

For the big screen you could actually go all out on a projector or get a nice projector/screen for night viewing( once you mention the type of room you have I can give more ideas), and use a wall mounted LCD for regular viewing. (news, etc) and still be under 10k.

Consider this gear list

Pioneer Elite SC-05 $699-$799

Polk Audio RTiA7s or 9s, CSi6, FXiA4 and RtiA1s for 7.1, if you decide the LSi series then

LSi15s, LSiC, LSiFX and LSi7s budget would be around 2500-3000 maybe even less.

SVS Sub PB13U @ $1599 should pressurize that room with awesome and accurate bass

Blu Ray player( models mentioned above) $350 or less

Projector Full 1080p(Epson 6500UB or Panasonic 3000U) $2500

Cables (Bluejeans Cables) $250.00 or less depending on what you need

Projector Screen ( Focupix Electric 100" diagonal) $300-$350)

Panasonic/Samsung LCD if needed, remaining budget

With a room that size I would definitely go front projector. You definitely have the budget for it. Also see this thread

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=81793

And definitely check out the showcase for ideas

Todd Lee

The first thing I'd do is visit the avsforums. There is a wealth of knowledge there, on all thing Home Theater related. Specifically take a look at the Home Theater Construction area. You can find information specifically aimed at constructing a home theater, choosing the right equipment to fit your space, tastes, etc..

http://www.avsforum.com/

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=3/

Good luck!

Chances are that your wifes friend is a member at AVS, or the husband is.... You should ask them, they may have their build listed at the site, or pictures at the very least.

mantis

With the above suggestions, I also suggest getting a in home consultation. Look for custom Installers in your area and let them come out to your home. They will point out things you didn't even consider.

When planning on a system. You have to take in many considerations. It's a investment. So making sure you get what you are paying for is key.

Also one of the biggest values in using a custom install company is the calibration. A system that is not properly calibrated will never perform to it's full potential. Simple placement of the system will greatly effect it's ability to perform.

There are a lot of knowledgeable people in here. You came to the right place.

Welcome to the forum.

Dan

apphd

MW welcome to CP. You've done two things right allready, gave yourself a budget that can get the job done and came here. Some very good information for you all ready from some knowledgeable folks. Sherardp has given you some good suggestions, all I could add is do not be in a rush, there is a ton of gear out there and with the economy the way it is you should be able to find some good deals.
Get your read on and learn as much about home HT as you can. Learn what separates a bad setup from an ok, an ok from a good, good from great and great from excellent. With your budget you should end up with a great setup.

After you feel like you are ready to make some decisions determine what direction you want to go; 5.1 or 7.1 system? Large TV or projector? Speaker boxes or in wall speakers? Large speakers all the way around, small less obtrusive speakers or a combination of both? HT only or HT and music?

With this you can develop a potential shopping list. Then take a look at your room and how you would like to lay it out. Then go back to your list and see if your gear choice will fit the way you want. If not determine your priority lay out or gear selection and adjust as required.

Lastly, you will get lots of suggestions, most will be good, but not all of them will be right for you. AV is very subjective and what your ears and eyes tell you should be the final judge on what to purchase. Enjoy this design and shopping stage as much as the end results:) Good luck

Some reading for you:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=91

http://www.axiomaudio.com/home_theater_layout.html

http://www.practical-home-theater-guide.com/Home-Theater-design.html

http://www.hometheatermag.com/bootcamp/137/

http://www.innovativetheatres.com/

http://www.hometheaterdesignmag.com/

apphd

One last thing I forgot you may wish to leave some in the budget for room treatments. Hard to plan since you won't know what you need until you know how the gear sounds in your room, but it likely could use some.