CurtPalme.com Home Theater Forum

Ile · Posted: Mon Sep 13, 2010 12:05 pm Post subject: My new HT-room project

Finally got new HT project started. I'm making new small theater room 2.7m x 5.2m to current cold storage behind garage. There is also 1/2 potato cellar under that storage room. I also have to cut some more room from garage. Room have door from backyard terrace, so it will be pretty good separated from other house.

Biggest challenge is to get old 100 mm (4") thick concrete floor removed from storage room, so I can cast new one to same level with garage floor. Thumbs Down

I wonder why the hell they build potato cellar 1/2 way, so only bottom half is under ground. Laughing

Maybe there was bedrock so high and they didn't had explosives.

There is only one good thing with this bloody cellar, I can use it for IB subs when I'm casted new floor. Laughing

I have already ripped some storage and cellar structures out, like refrigerating machine and some wood paneling.

Need to make ceiling and insulation pretty fast, before it go under zero Celsius. Then I can start battle with concrete floor and brick wall.

Ile · Posted: Mon Sep 13, 2010 12:19 pm Post subject:

Here's few pictures of current very early state of project.

emdawgz1 · Joined: 14 Mar 2006 Posts: 7949

WOW. With a backyard like that, who wants to go inside to watch a movie!!!

Nashou66 · Joined: 12 Jan 2007 Posts: 16171 Location: West Seneca NY

Those pics make me miss Europe.

Love the dual purpose Stairs/Ramp, My Papou had that at his house.

Looks like it will be a nice little room.

Will this be a second theater?

Athanasios

Sparky015 · Posted: Mon Sep 13, 2010 8:46 pm Post subject:

wow, incredible back yard. I think I could make a living sitting out on that patio!

Ile · Posted: Mon Sep 13, 2010 10:45 pm Post subject:

Back yard looks good right now in the end of summer, lot of berrys, apples and plum. Few weeks ago we planted few raspberry and cherry plants for next summer, hope those last coming winter.

Ile · Posted: Thu Sep 16, 2010 9:52 pm Post subject:

Got new subwoofer elements for IB today, found two new in box FI IB318 elements almost locally for fair price. Very Happy

Moved electricity-meter cabinet to outside wall, it was built inside wall. Now I can make room bit wider.
Cabinet is old, but company chanced meter few months ago to new one that can be read by gsm. Grey antennas can be seen over box.

http://www.genelec.com/
Invited 30 enthusiast from Finnish forum to speaker factory tour, so it's road trip tomorrow. Very Happy

Edit. I guess that brickie must been pretty drund when he made that wall. Laughing

I'm heard that was not so uncommon here in 60-70'.

tri_joel · Joined: 03 Jul 2007 Posts: 646 Location: Northern Virginia

Ile · Posted: Sun Sep 19, 2010 8:47 pm Post subject:

Day at Genelec factory was just amazing. Interesting lectures of their history, speaker designing and dsp. Factory tour, lot of demos and dinner...

Here's some photos. (not my)
http://www.dropbox.com/gallery/735199/1//DVDPlaza%20Genelec?h=3c925e&p=0#/

My personal favorite was three 1036a main monitors at front. Shocked

http://photos-2.dropbox.com/i/l/sL6YnCl9graXJQ2enLbJSjbWIcuQ4ghr4WDpvBJPUaM/735199/1285016400/143d755#2
http://www.genelec.com/products/main-monitors/1036a/

akajester · Joined: 09 Jul 2008 Posts: 934 Location: Wisconsin

That backyard looks beautiful! can't wait to see what you do with the room. The great news is you're planning it around a Barco. Smile

perisoft · Joined: 29 Aug 2007 Posts: 2920 Location: Ithaca, NY

Ile · Posted: Tue Sep 21, 2010 11:32 am Post subject:

Tedd · Joined: 18 May 2006 Posts: 156 Location: Ontario

If you are going to drop the storage room floor, why not drop it further to create a riser out of the garage floor?

Ile · Posted: Mon Sep 27, 2010 8:40 am Post subject:

Tedd · Joined: 18 May 2006 Posts: 156 Location: Ontario

No reason you can't still build a wood riser, just don't drop storage area floor so much. It would give you excellent sight lines. Smile

And you mentioned cast a new floor but wouldn't a wood floor for the whole room be cheaper/easier and give you some tactile feedback too? The dropped floor would also add some room volume, not a bad thing in a small space...

I just did the math. 8' 9" wide by 16' 9.5" long by 8' 1.5" high. I am working with 9' 5" wide by 28.5' long by 7'1" high (with four soffits at 79").

This is another rough idea but why not just drop part of the cellar floor? The width of the seating to the screen wall. One step down to the lower seating level, with the side aisle at entry door level. You could do a small front stage and have the IB subs vent forward where they won't flap the screen.

And can the Helmholz resonators be built on the lower back wall, wall to wall but lower then the seat backs?

Just throwing rough ideas at you. I know from personal experience with my build, that where you place every inch in a small room can make a huge difference.

Ile · Posted: Tue Sep 28, 2010 11:31 am Post subject:

I prefer insulated concrete ceiling over cold and damp root cellar, it's also better if I or somebody else want to turn theater back to one long garage. Same thing with constant floor level in whole space, it's boring but it's more versatile.

I know what you mean by every inch counts in small rooms, I got 5" more width by moving electric meter box to outside wall. Now I have about 9.5' width and room length can be chanced depending about needed space. I'm still going to keep theater length about 17-20' so I still have decent workshop behind back wall. Closet for amps and sources is going to bite small cut from workshop.

Yesterday evening I installed two missing ceiling joists, so I can start insulating and drywall installation soon. Still need to make some chances to air ducts first.

Tedd · Joined: 18 May 2006 Posts: 156 Location: Ontario

Very nice you have some flexibility with the length. My "people" space will be almost 21' long, with the front AT space 59" deep, and a rear AT space about 24" deep. The "wasted" 70 square feet of AT space hides 2800 watts of amps, 5 JTR T8s and 2 CB subs. So we have a very similar space, except yours is taller. Smile

I redid the HVAC sheet metal to be able to get symetrical soffits and to shrink their size.

Ile · Posted: Wed Sep 29, 2010 9:12 am Post subject:

Tedd · Joined: 18 May 2006 Posts: 156 Location: Ontario

Sound like we both are going full out, in a smaller space. Smile

I have difusers, a "reuse it" store had them cheap. My cold air return is a doubled walled/Green Glued 7' long, 150 pound baffled box that is hidden in the ceiling joist cavity. You have to look hard to even see the 60" x 2.5" difuser in front of the rear soffit. I still have to build the baffle box for the intake side, which will use a side wall kick panel to hide the difuser. It just dawned on me that while I rebuilt the HVAC, none of it is attached to the theater. The only theater related thing about the rebuilt HVAC was to get a more compact soffit with a little more headroom, and to be able to mirror it on the other side wall.

Now I am really curious! Smile

What finishes are you planning?

As for the asbestos cement ducts, the asbestos was imbedded in the concrete or a lining?

Ile · Posted: Thu Sep 30, 2010 7:56 am Post subject:

Always liked simple studio/auditorio looks, now after visiting to Genelec factory I have been thinking to make something similar gap resonator ceiling and walls they had in their listening rooms.

Don't have room for that kind triangle walls though. Crying or Very sad

Construction was: concrete wall- air gap - mineral wool - molton canvas - open boarding.
Using black molton canvas and dark wood should look nice. Not so boring looking that plain acoustic tiles and should work even better. Have been thinking some thick and dark carpet to floor or dark wood floor like merbau or walnut parquet.

Only ducts ends was imbedded in the concrete, where those was going through cellar ceiling. Other part was inside wall lining, actually both ducts had sort of closet built over those. Exhaust duct can be seen at the corner without closet, also those two missing ceiling joist can be seen.
http://www.curtpalme.com/forum/files/brick_wall_in_best_watching_position_458.jpg