Media Closet
- Thread starter Cyvilian
- Start date
A/C vent, if the upstairs is finished there may not be a lot u can do there, but 4 cat5 to every room, hdmi ( wireless isn't perfect), coax, phone...easier and cheaper now. I would ask for space behind the rack so u can easily get at the rear of the components, plenty of power and maybe on a separate breaker, speaker wires terminating there....
What are you thinking of doing?
Projector?
Speakers throughout the house?
Internet concerns?
Home theater
Speaker wire to all locations in the theater room. Don't forget the sub. I wired for 7.1 even though I doubt I'll ever go over 5.1
Cat5 to the front of the room so that you can run an IR system in the closet
At least 2 electrical outlets in the closet that are on their own breaker
HDMI cables to both where the TV would be and where a projector would be(even if you don't plan on having both)
Cat5 to multiple places in the theater room
Cat5 from the location of your router to the closet(you can then buy cheap network switch to power all the other cat5 that you have running out of the room)
Other
Speaker wire from closet to anywhere that you'd want a speaker in the house. Maybe include cat5 with this feed as well. I don't know how those whole system audio systems are controlled but i assume it's through cat5. Like I said, I don't have this so I'm not real familiar.
Rack system?
That's all I can think of right now. If I was you I would diagram the whole house and then from there you can figure out what wires you need. A conduit system would actually work best. When i set mine up I thought I over did it but since I've actually used a lot of the wires i didn't think I would. I just wish I would have been there before they put in the drywall so that I could have wired for speakers in other rooms.
Agreed. That's what I did.
I also went to the DM homeshow and got some ideas there. Someday I'll have one of those fake walls where you pull out a book and the wall opens up to a secret room.
Will you actually be purchasing an AV Rack or just placing shelving in there? Make sure that there is enough space for ventillation, that the shelving/rack fits all the equipment you currently have and also for future upgrades, and it is accessible for troubleshooting/cable terminations.
Thanks all.
To a large extent, I don't know what i want. Was hoping for some "expert" advice.
I envision a flat panel TV with receiver, blu-ray, 5.1 surround sound, etc. Will probably initially have cable, although DirecTV is an option.
It'll be a family room, with home theater capability. Probably shelving in the closet. I do intend to have access from behind the rack for cabling/ventilation, etc.
Living room is right above the family room/media closet. Probably not intending to serve the whole house, just the basement family room. Will have a gaming system of some sort--currently have a Wii, but may graduate to something else.
I'm somewhat of a techno novice. I know a little, but don't know much more...
I may be thinking too small?
To a large extent, I don't know what i want. Was hoping for some "expert" advice.
I envision a flat panel TV with receiver, blu-ray, 5.1 surround sound, etc. Will probably initially have cable, although DirecTV is an option.
It'll be a family room, with home theater capability. Probably shelving in the closet. I do intend to have access from behind the rack for cabling/ventilation, etc.
Living room is right above the family room/media closet. Probably not intending to serve the whole house, just the basement family room. Will have a gaming system of some sort--currently have a Wii, but may graduate to something else.
I'm somewhat of a techno novice. I know a little, but don't know much more...
I may be thinking too small?
Small is good - this will determine your budget and what components you can have now. Also include a list of things you would like to add in the future.
I don't even own a home, but I've already started my plan for my future home theater and determined my budget. At the bare-bones of the project I would start with these items:
Visual: TV (or projector :yes
, videogame consoles, cable/satellite, video cablesAudio: A/V receiver, speakers, subwoofer, audio cables, speaker cables
Furniture: Sofa or loveseat or lazy-boy recliner, do you want your TV mounted or on a TV stand?
Aesthetics: will you paint the walls? will you put up any movie posters or fat-heads? will the speakers be wall-mounted or will you use speaker stands? what components will be in the media closet?
Best piece of advice I can give: start with the TV. That is the main focus of your entertainment system. Everything else comes later. If the basement isn't finished yet, have the contractors reinforce the studs before they put in the drywall, just in case you want to wall-mount your TV.
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