Home Theater
Home Theater Sound Proofing: How Far Should You Take It?
Monday October 30, 2006 | Permalink
How do you decide how much theater you really need? This is a hard question to answer.
If you're building a dedicated home theater, you should really invest time and money building a room that handles sound properly. Using staggered stud or double-walls with acoustic dampening glue will do wonders to isolate that room from the rest of your house. Even if you're not sure about investing the money to do it, your one day likely going to be happy you did.
Some people think you can compensate for sound quality and acoustics with better AV gear and speakers. That works to a certain extent, but if you really want to cut the legs off acoustic problems, you'll have to experiment with bass traps and acoustic wall treatments. No, thick drapes won't so squat to help control sound issues.
The bottom line is if you have the money, go the extra mile and properly apply sound proofing construction techniques to your new home theater. You'll be glad you did.
If you're building a dedicated home theater, you should really invest time and money building a room that handles sound properly. Using staggered stud or double-walls with acoustic dampening glue will do wonders to isolate that room from the rest of your house. Even if you're not sure about investing the money to do it, your one day likely going to be happy you did.
Some people think you can compensate for sound quality and acoustics with better AV gear and speakers. That works to a certain extent, but if you really want to cut the legs off acoustic problems, you'll have to experiment with bass traps and acoustic wall treatments. No, thick drapes won't so squat to help control sound issues.
The bottom line is if you have the money, go the extra mile and properly apply sound proofing construction techniques to your new home theater. You'll be glad you did.
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Updates And Additions To The Site
Wednesday October 25, 2006 | Permalink
I've added a number of new product reviews to the site. I'm simply unable to review products myself, so instead of trying to do a half-assed review, I've compiled a list of other reviews from around the web on plasma televisions and projectors. Instead of trying to pretend that I can do a complete review on various gear, I'm defering to the expertise of my home theater colleagues who have actual hands on experience with various products. You'll find each product listed with a list of recent reviews from many sources like Audioholics, CNet, and Home Theater Mag. I'm adding to it all the time so keep checking back often.
Asleep At The Wheel!
Tuesday October 17, 2006 | Permalink
Ok. I've been pretty bad lately at not updating the blog. You know when you start something with gusto, but then don't do it once, then twice, and the next thing you know its been over a month? Ok, good. I've been working hard adding quality reviews to the site and improving the writing of existing articles. I also plan on adding more design information like painting tips and construction tips of various home theater features.
My Top 10 Movies For Subwoofer Lovers
Thursday August 24, 2006 | Permalink
I'm a really big subwoofer fan. I don't think there's a more important speaker in an audio system when it comes to conveying the raw feeling of a movie. With that said, I'd like to present my top 10 movies that have kick-ass bass.
Tell me what you think and don't be shy to add your own.
10. Man on Fire. If you love seeing bad people get what's coming to them, then this movie is for you. Kick-ass acting by Denzel.
9. Battlestar Galactica Mini-Series (2003). Not really a movie, but when it comes to a TV show with awesome sound and effects, BSG definitely has it.
8. The Matrix Trilogy. The fight scene between Morpheus and Neo (The Matrix) and the highway chase scene (Matrix: Reloaded) when Trinity escapes with the Keymaker on the motorcycle. Very nice.
7. Terminator 3. Any of the chase scenes, and the bassy music when the sexy TX is driving around in the stolen Lexus.
6. The Incredibles.
5. Underworld. C'mon, Kate Beckinsale... in leather... with guns! Oh yeah -- subwoofers. The gunfight in the subway has excellent gunfire low-frequencies.
4. The Hills Have Eyes (2006) This movie has a lot of what I'd call low-frequency "mutant-freak grunge" -- music that drives home the creepy result of those 1950's nuclear tests. The unrated version is really gory. That makes it good.
3. Master and Commander. The opening battle scene is awesome.
2. War of the Worlds (Tom Cruise edition) - A lot of people didn't like this movie. I was disappointed to see a little too much realism in the mob scene where Tom and Co. loose their van, but otherwise it had really good bass.
1. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy. I LOVE the sound of the Ents (tree people) walking around.
Tell me what you think and don't be shy to add your own.
10. Man on Fire. If you love seeing bad people get what's coming to them, then this movie is for you. Kick-ass acting by Denzel.
9. Battlestar Galactica Mini-Series (2003). Not really a movie, but when it comes to a TV show with awesome sound and effects, BSG definitely has it.
8. The Matrix Trilogy. The fight scene between Morpheus and Neo (The Matrix) and the highway chase scene (Matrix: Reloaded) when Trinity escapes with the Keymaker on the motorcycle. Very nice.
7. Terminator 3. Any of the chase scenes, and the bassy music when the sexy TX is driving around in the stolen Lexus.
6. The Incredibles.
5. Underworld. C'mon, Kate Beckinsale... in leather... with guns! Oh yeah -- subwoofers. The gunfight in the subway has excellent gunfire low-frequencies.
4. The Hills Have Eyes (2006) This movie has a lot of what I'd call low-frequency "mutant-freak grunge" -- music that drives home the creepy result of those 1950's nuclear tests. The unrated version is really gory. That makes it good.
3. Master and Commander. The opening battle scene is awesome.
2. War of the Worlds (Tom Cruise edition) - A lot of people didn't like this movie. I was disappointed to see a little too much realism in the mob scene where Tom and Co. loose their van, but otherwise it had really good bass.
1. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy. I LOVE the sound of the Ents (tree people) walking around.
Cover Up Basement Support Posts (Lally Columns)
Thursday August 10, 2006 | Permalink
A friend of mine is planning to finish his basement. He's not into the home theater scene and thats Ok, but he did mention he didn't know what to do with his support posts.
The problem with support posts (or lally columns) is that they're always located in the most inconvenient places. They're supposed to help hold up your house so the architects space them out every 8 to 10 feet along a support beam to help distribute all that weight.
The downside for home theater builders is that they always seem to end up smack dab where you'd love to put that couch.
The bad news is that there's just no easy or cheap way to move a support post so lets not even go there. For the do-it-yourselfer, the best you can hope for is to rearrange your home theater layout to something you would still like.
If you really want to move the post, you should consult a structural engineering company. One solution to removing a support post is to reinforce the existing support beam with a stronger beam made of steel or laminated veneer lumber. Another is to supplement the support beam with a second beam. Both are messy and expensive propositions.
Lets just stick to just hiding the post. Here you can do several different things.
• Build the column into a new wall.
• Wrap the column with carpetting.
• Build a box around it.
• Hide the column within a pre-manufactured product.
If you were going to build a wall near the post, consider changing your plan a bit to hide the post within the wall itself. Wrapping the column with carpetting is probably the easiest solution for most people. You can also just build a plain box around the post. Take a look at covering a support beam for how-to's to tackle these problems.
You can also use pre-finished product. One such product is called Pole Wrap. Its a semi-rigid plastic covering that looks like a real wooden column. You can buy these products at retail outlets like The Home Depot. A standard 8' tall cover can run between $100 and $200.
The problem with support posts (or lally columns) is that they're always located in the most inconvenient places. They're supposed to help hold up your house so the architects space them out every 8 to 10 feet along a support beam to help distribute all that weight.
The downside for home theater builders is that they always seem to end up smack dab where you'd love to put that couch.
The bad news is that there's just no easy or cheap way to move a support post so lets not even go there. For the do-it-yourselfer, the best you can hope for is to rearrange your home theater layout to something you would still like.
If you really want to move the post, you should consult a structural engineering company. One solution to removing a support post is to reinforce the existing support beam with a stronger beam made of steel or laminated veneer lumber. Another is to supplement the support beam with a second beam. Both are messy and expensive propositions.
Lets just stick to just hiding the post. Here you can do several different things.
• Build the column into a new wall.
• Wrap the column with carpetting.
• Build a box around it.
• Hide the column within a pre-manufactured product.
If you were going to build a wall near the post, consider changing your plan a bit to hide the post within the wall itself. Wrapping the column with carpetting is probably the easiest solution for most people. You can also just build a plain box around the post. Take a look at covering a support beam for how-to's to tackle these problems.
You can also use pre-finished product. One such product is called Pole Wrap. Its a semi-rigid plastic covering that looks like a real wooden column. You can buy these products at retail outlets like The Home Depot. A standard 8' tall cover can run between $100 and $200.
1 1/2 Years to Build My Home Theater
Thursday July 27, 2006 | Permalink
It took me about 1 1/2 years to finish my basement, and its still not 100% done. Back when I started, I didn't expect it to take as long as it did, but looking back on it now it went by pretty fast. All I have left to do is adjust some of the door frames, mount the door trim, and finish up the baseboard trim.
The ceiling has to be done too, but thats just really cosmetic. Besides, its nice to have access to any wiring up there. I'm going to be putting soundproofing up there as well but thats as I have some extra money. I'm surprised how little you can hear upstairs so the soundproofing is even less of a priority.
The ceiling has to be done too, but thats just really cosmetic. Besides, its nice to have access to any wiring up there. I'm going to be putting soundproofing up there as well but thats as I have some extra money. I'm surprised how little you can hear upstairs so the soundproofing is even less of a priority.