New Sports and Music Destination

pstepp

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It's been a labor of love, setting up a blank canvas of a wall with just a bare gas fireplace to begin with. A 3 month journey begins, so go grab some popcorn and read on!!

Introduction:
The room is 25 wide by about 15 deep with openings to the right left and center to the entry way, kitchen and hallway that continues to open up to a double door entry den/office. The ceiling slopes from 10 feet on the corner of the wall where the TV will be above the fireplace to 9 feet by the sitting area. Guestimated at about 2800-3000 cu.ft hence why I went with Ultra 2 and Select 2 speakers, at least that's my personal justification!

Components to bring the room alive:
2020 75" Samsung Frame TV
In wall Klipsch PRO-7800 for right and left
In wall Klipsch THX-504L for center
MiniDSP UMIK-1 Measurement Microphone
Topping E30 DAC / L30 HeadAMP
Custom reclaimed mantle from Etsy
Pre-existing B&K AVR507 - THX Ultra2 Receiver*
*Will be replacing Onkyo TX-SR503 used presently for audio only paired with Klipsch RB75s for R/L and an Infinity BETA C250 as center, trio configured to play All Ch Stereo Mode

Other parts:
Legrand - OnQ EN1400 enclosure mounted behind TV between studs to house the OneConnect Box and power
Element-Hz Power Series 1800 Joules single gang surge protector outlet
8K Fiber Optic HDMI cables (supports 8K@60Hz, 4K@120Hz, 48Gbps, Dynamic HDR, 3D, eARC, Dolby Vision, HDCP2.2)
Fiber Optic Toslink (my receiver doesn't have eARC)
10ga twisted speaker cable, nice but hard to work with, hindsight 12 or 14awg would of worked fine...
Cat 8 network cables (from office/den to oneconnect box and also to homerun location)
Wallplates for speaker wire, network, toslink for homerun location where AV setup is
Jigsaw with 6" blade to cut through a non load bearing stud for the left speaker install

I'll add some pics soon, I'll share some of the rewind and provide a bit of a play by play! Hope some are interested to see the progress!

Update 1: [Room Dimensions and Thermal View]

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Update 2: Conceptual TV Placement, Power Planning/Surge Suppression, and My Inspiration
This shows the installation wall for the future TV - this pic was pre-purchase of the 2020 Frame TV. The TV itself based on the measurements would cover all the blue post-it notes, doing this rough in helped me gain some perspective on how it would look. Which was important because I was factoring in the center channel and R/L in-wall speakers, and possibly even a real frame for the Frame TV and wanted everything to be symmetrical and spaced properly. Since this is the first wall you pretty much see when you come into the home I wanted to make sure that the TV selection was one whereby I could flush mount and blend the massive electronic device into the decor a bit more than other selections. There are many other better and brighter TVs out there but I'm happy with this choice for the application. We have a 32" frame in the kitchen and it turned out literally like a work of art.

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Perhaps premature, I wanted to make sure my TV was surge protected for warranty purposes and while there is no power in this location to the right of the fireplace on the wall you can't see there is. I simply ran some new wire off that outlet and fed it behind where the TV will go, more on that in a future post! This fits in an OnQ 14x14 box which is a 'perfect' fit for the OneConnect box. When I say perfect, I needed to manually mess with the top of the OnQ box (aka bending it up a bit and then bending it back) in order to get the OneConnect in there but for $30 open box Amazon purchase I wasn't too worried about doing that, besides the OnQ will sit behind the TV in the wall, ultimately mounted recessed between the two studs.

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Also, unrelated to the install but I'd like to share out an old pic of a stereo setup as an early teen many years ago. We all have our inspiration, and I've always been building speakers, taking things apart and breaking plenty of things too in the process. This project was inspired by the early days of enjoying my music, I actually still have the graphic EQ and Yamaha tape deck integrated in my present day setup. I've since added a record player to get some vinyl into the mix of everything else digital! Sorry, the strobe light has long been retired, but I do have a newer version of the Sharper Image Eye of the Storm lighting in my sons room which he loves!

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Update 3: Ring Doorbell Side Project, Pathway Lighting, Wall Switch Upgrades
While I was waiting for the TV and other parts to arrive (does it ever end?) I decided the work on the room ambiance and some of the other finishing touches, namely around accent lighting and light switches. I decided to use my Snap receptacle down lighting I've had for a number of years from home to home as I've rented. After my 1st home purchase since the 2006 real estate bubble burst, I was on a mission to replace as many of my late 1980s original plugs the house was built with because every one of these old plugs were so loose anything you tried to plug in simply fell out! The first step was replacing the old plugs to the Leviton 5325-WMP Decora Duplex Receptacles, then the SnapPower LED guidelights/downlighting fit right over.

So many parallel projects at once, this is and example of the behind the scene receptacle replacement. In this instance I expanded a single gang box to a double gang to run an external transformer to full time trickle charge/power my Ring doorbell that came with the house but never worked as it constantly had to be disconnected and charged manually. I decided since this was also at an end table (off the side of my couch) location I would put some USB-A/USB-C quick charge capability, remember this room is supposed to be for sports get together events/parties and music listening and this one nobody needs a power brick, just a charging cable!

This is my helper! She's a ragdoll kitten, about 6 mo old at time of this project. She's always under me, but don't worry when I'm using a drywall saw I make sure she's occupied elsewhere or taking a nap! Here I'm confirming I can fish low voltage wire up to the other side where the Ring doorbell is. This box eventually was ripped out as mentioned above in favor of a double gang box and external transformer to power the Ring.

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In general here's how terrible the existing receptacles were and what they look like now!

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Here's the final outcome of the downlighting in one of the hallways with the SnapPower guidelights. It really lights up the path going to and from the bedroom at night to get water or perhaps a midnight snack! I made sure not to put the downlighting in the room itself where I am installing the new TV and speakers so we can opt to also watch some movies or late night TV in this location in the dark without distractions of ambient light. The guidelight located in the bottom left of this picture below is the receptacle I extended power off of to feed the TV wall.
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Okay, so now onto the upgraded wall switches. Again, outside the room itself where the TV sits and speakers near the fireplace, but to give the surrounding space some presence I installed 3 iotty wall switches, and paired the kitchen and hallway up with Philips LIFX BR30 high hat lighting. I got the LIFX bulbs all on sale deeply discounted on the manufacturers website as certified renewed/refurbished with full warranty! One of the iotty wall plates lost two of it's tabs that the glass top snaps onto but iotty sent me not just the two gang replacement free of charge, also sent me a one gang replacement as backup if ever needed. I'm in no way affiliated with iotty just sharing a great customer service experience!

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Update 4: Current Layout, the TV arrives (finally), and Bracket Placement
I thought by now you'd like to see a bit more of what the actual room looks like without the TV. The great room was recently split into two sections, with two chairs and a coffee table on one end, and then a couch and love seat with another coffee table on the other end. The wall for the TV as you can see is angled a bit, which comes into play later in my discussion about the selection of the speakers which undoubtedly probably spark some opinions, but more on that later.

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So this is what a typical evening looks like, with the fireplace on, some music playing in the background -- either streaming with Amazon Music HD or the record player. I don't like having to get up to flip the record quite honestly, but both get pretty heavy use, gotta get my steps in some how! The EQ is an old BSR 10 band graphic equalizer from the infamous DAK catalog from back in the day, I love the light show. What I'd like to do is set my 3 speakers over there on the left as my "left" soundstage and the 3 speakers on the TV wall as my "right" soundstage when playing music and as an option when watching sports/TV. And when watching a movie be able to use the speakers on the TV wall exclusively as the traditional R/L and center...I think -- with option to put them all on I'll set up a poll later to judge if I'm nuts or if it's a good idea given the room configuration, and would love comments on how to wire that with a switchbox or something.

Here we are back to the future home theater wall, the TV finally arrived and there it sits in all it's glory in the box. Probably the most satisfying yet frustrating part of getting a new TV is the anticipation of getting it setup, but I have been patiently waiting trying to make sure power, cables, measurements, speakers are exactly were they need to be, measure twice, cut once! The project has not been without it's share of many other roadblocks and side projects, but it's been a fun challenge seeing it materialize!

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First thing I did is take the flush mount out and center it, and figure out where the studs were so I was certain to have 4 lag bolts in solid wood studs. The picture with the two extra drill holes to the right is after I got a new Bosch CO14B 14 Pc. Cobalt M42 Drill Bit Set that contains 8% Cobalt. It went right through this steel like butter it was amazing!

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Update 5: More Planning
So I'm getting better each time I iterate with my sketches of what goes where and how it all somewhat proportionally looks together! I originally had the speakers lower where the yellow post-it notes are but that chair, and perhaps one day some element of a base of a Christmas tree might be in that space so I finally arrived with having the R/L centered with the center channel and spaced wide enough for clear borders with the TV, enough even if I decide to put a larger frame around the TV. So my choice for the R/L for budget reasons but also after some research and looking at the room schematic and what I'm mainly using this space for at the KS vs KL editions. If Bose Virtually Invisible 891 series can get away with being a front sound stage, given the room dynamics I feel good about these sounding great and delivering a great blend of music all throughout the living space without any dead zones but enough separation. Having the THX-504-L helps anchor the dialogue for TV/Movies very well.

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This is one of several iterations of finding out the best placement for the right and left speakers and their relation to possibly a future frame around the new TV.

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It was such an exciting set of days getting the 7800 speakers in. The center was delayed due to weather in shipping and of course that meant I wouldn't get the speaker on Friday like originally planned and had to wait a whole weekend to await delivery on a Monday! It was okay though I had tons of other work to do but I was anxiously awaiting that beast of a center! In my other room where I have it set up for movies I am running a pair of Klipsch RF7s (cherry) and matching RC7, and had some special installation plans for this THX-504-L, explained in a future update below!

Apparently I'm at a max 25 images already, so I will continue this home theater build project journey and ultimate reveal in the next post!

Continued in New Sports and Music Destination, Part 2
 
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pstepp

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New Sports and Music Destination, Part 2

Hi everyone, this is continued from the first post, I met the limit of 25 images, so here's the continuation creatively labeled as "Part 2" - there will I believe inevitably be a Part 3 but we'll cross that bridge when we get there, I'm a big believer is showing pictures along with the narrative! I'm hoping doing it this way people can track the journey. I originally created a new thread for part 2, and for a short while there might be some duplication, but that will be cleaned up by one of the moderators (thank you Wayne!) and we'll continue this all within.

Update 6: R/L Speakers, OnQ box, Speaker Templates and New Faceplates
In the last post I was explaining I had first received my R/L speakers. I was looking into the new 8000 series by Klipsch but found legit, warrantied PRO-7800 series, specifically the KS versions on liquidation at a considerable reduction in cost, so I jumped in and got them. It was amazing opening these speakers! I didn't realize they are basically as big as my Klipsch RB75's both only about 3" deep, ready to mount in a wall completely sealed! The location I'm mounting these speakers in houses a fireplace and the volume in this wall is immense so anything free air would really not stand a chance, so as I was searching I concluded had to go big and had to go enclosed.

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Now, to say that I was nervous about cutting into my wall is an understatement. I have cut drywall before, installed many TVs, new plugs, all those sorts of things, and for that recently installed 32" Samsung Frame TV in my kitchen I used a smaller box and installed a (much smaller) box for that models One Connect. However cutting into this major focal point wall in my home was something once I jumped in I could not go back. It would be a huge ordeal if it didn't work out or I messed up the measurements and things were not aligned or not exactly level.

I positioned the box right below the TV mount itself, dropped down a bit to keep integrity/strength of the surrounding wall, but making sure it was above the bottom of where the TV bezel would be. Also I had to take into consideration where the OneConnect cable was coming off the back of the TV so it would protrude nicely and directly into this box. There is a lot more to do with this opening as it's my major access point for everything, so these pictures were taken after I sized up what my next steps were with power and the amount of speaker wire and other connections that need to come to this location. I have since been dealing with a rough, open square hole in my wall with power (capped) and network cable coming out for a few weeks as everything else comes together. It's was good to get a rough idea how it will be situated though and this gave me confidence to move forward.

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So rewinding just a bit, here's the many trials and tribulations of speaker placement. I spent a lot of time texting back and forth with my brother seeking out a different opinion and a diverse view of where they should be. Needless to say we arrived at something pretty good and optimal for this space. The template I made even ahead of receiving the speakers based on the measurements I had helped me plan. Thanks to my brother for all his advice and for being a sounding board, as many of these pics shared in these posts are those I had shared with him as I made progress or questioned next steps!

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So for the homerun location, I already have a stereo setup on the other side of the room, and there is a wonderful (sarcasm) yellowing plastic cable jack with square head screws that of course I had to overcome, but this thing was definitely being replaced! This is just complete nonsense these days to have to deal with! The thought here is to replace this jack with a new faceplate for the toslink, ethernet and I'd probably plug the HDMI with a blank port cover since my triple gang add on will cover all the HDMI feeds I care to run. I'll have a 4k firestick hooked up in the panel itself behind the TV and the other 3 open HDMI ports I'll run to the homerun location.

In order to unscrew the cable face plate I had to get this... Thank goodness Amazon gets things to me sometimes same day or overnight, say what you want but that is really amazing! I've ventured to Home Depot to get a tool chest and you'll see in a later update for some MDF and R13 insulation but it's been helpful for sure to just click a button, almost too 'enabling' if you know what I mean. I think this is how I have too many parallel projects, because while I wait for something when I'm stuck I find other things I can do in between that often require some material of some sort to get that job done. It's endless!

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Pre-existing: Replacing with (sans the HDMI which will be covered with blank port):
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Positioned to the right of this jack (which will be behind my record collection) I'll have a new 3 gang low voltage drop and this faceplate which will handle my speakers coming from the TV wall. So pretty much for now I'll just be using the middle for HDMI and right side of this plate for my soundstage to cleanly have hookups from the wall to my AV Receiver. I don't think I'll be using the sub connectors but one day if I decide to put some sub in the room this might be useful. So the story continues here with much more of a roadblock requiring some deeper access attic entry over 36" of blow insulation, trial and error, an 18v Makita 5-3/8" circular saw, a return of a 72" magbit 3/4" fish bit, and more. Keep on reading!

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Update 7: The Center Channel
Okay by now you've drudged recently through some of the less thrilling elements of a home theater build project, so it's about to get a bit more interested with this center channel, of course with plenty of pics!

I have to always be mindful that the cat will explore any box, and preferably a box that has contents in it. Wire, screwdriver, speaker, the more lumpy and more valuable it is the better!
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As you can see this THX-504-L has no enclosure like the 7800 R/L speakers have, as it's an infinite baffle design. Normally okay in a standard wall with insulation around some studs, but the specific location this center is being positioned will have way more air volume behind it then it's designed to handle so that becomes my next project, more on that in a few.
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So I spoke about briefly in the intro about the speaker wire... It's 10 gauge twisted pair, heavy and bulky, way overkill. Here's a fun reference point of my Blockbuster card I seem to still have lying around for scale (it's of course the size of a credit card), and here's the cat for reference and finally the plastic jacket on this wire is immense, which should prove very fun to run down some walls. Spoiler alert, I got 150 ft of this and I think my first cut was too short. At this point in time I haven't been able to gain attic access to the location I need to fish it down, but I have a feeling I didn't measure twice and cut once with this one!
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More templates, more lasers, more planning... This one shows the position of the R/L and how the center (cutout templates) will be positioned. Before I do any cutting for the right and left speakers though I'll be handling the cutout for the center and then installing the mantle which is 70" long to make sure that I have everything lined up and spaced properly. The center channel is going into an open cavity Good! No studs to cut (yet), which you can make out if you go back to the first update whereby I show the FLIR camera imagery. The fireplace effectively has a header build around it which makes putting a center channel that is 28.88”(733.55mm) x 8.13" (206.5mm) much easier than if I had to do this header work myself. The goal here was to not have to do any drywall work and painting, leaving me the only option of exact cut-outs needed for speaker placement and mounting of the TV bracket! The homerun location was actually selected secondary to my original preference of using the opposite side of this firewall wall which is a hallway to recess a AV cabinet, using RF of course to control it all, but that was punted in favor of using the existing setup so I don't have to leave the room to tweak anything, plus I like showcasing some of the equipment as a conversation piece in the room I'm entertaining in.
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View from the inside of the wall through the cutout I made early on for the OnQ box, showing what I cut out with the drywall saw for the center channel. I was inspecting the stud layout to make sure my placement had enough clearance (mostly top/bottom) for the center channel anchors.
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I wanted to simply cut the hole and stick the speaker in there, but I headed to Home Depot to get some MDF cut and insulation to place in there.
.
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Continued in New Sports and Music Destination, Part 3
 
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pstepp

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New Sports and Music Destination, Part 3

Continuing on with the center channel install, once I got the wood cut, I place the backing and secured it into place. There effectively is a bottom port that runs the length of the center channel that has some insulation but prevents this from being a 'sealed' system. My goal here was to have the speaker operate in an environment it was designed for and not the open cavity you can see from the picture that would of been if I hadn't taken steps to optimize my placement space for the installation of the speaker.

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Before and after insulation...
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Here's a rough cut fit test, not fully inserted. Later I hook up the 10ga after doing a basic attic drop into this TV location and position it into the wall and place the magnetic grill atop. We'll see if this cable winds up being long enough to get to the homerun location and down the wall, I suspect not so we'll see how that gets handled in a future update!
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Update 8: The mantel arrives!
Packed so perfectly - custom from Etsy. It's reclaimed railroad tie wood and fits the home location and space perfectly. The mount itself attached to studs with two 3" wood screws on each end on the left and right side of the fireplace with another anchor screw in the middle inserted into the steel frame of the upper portion of the fireplace. I also went behind the wall ultimately and drive another screw for more stability. Maybe another tweak or two but it's secure and tight up against the wall. After positioning the mantel up on the wall I moved the R/L speakers away from the mantel edge about another 1/2" to provide better spacing than originally planned for now that the mantel was occupying the physical space.

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Update 9: Cutting the Right Speaker hole - not all cut-outs are created equal
I knew coming into this that the left side would present more challenges than the right. After some careful calculations, stud finding, laser leveling and inspection from within the cutouts I already made I knew I'd have to take care of one non load bearing stud to successfully cutout and install the left speaker. All things considered between the center placement (apart from the back panel mod), the right speaker, and the TV mount (slight modification to make sure I hit both sets of studs), this was going to be really the only careful consideration work. I had been planning for it and had prepared myself mentally and with the right tools and time needed to handle it carefully, hoping the end product looks as professional as possible.

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Stay tuned, Update 10 (Left speaker, stud dismantling with a jigsaw and 6" blade) coming soon!

Thanks for your interest!
 
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pstepp

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New Sports and Music Destination, Part 4

Update 10: The Jigsaw, The Stud That Warranted it, and the Left Speaker Location That was the Inspiration


Okay, so after some delay which in itself seems to be the reality behind any project this update depicts one of the first major challenges in the installation. There are a few other hiccups along the way which mainly have to do with attic access, blow insulation and 2x4s needing to be drilled with 1-inch bits to feed wire down and through to new locations so those will all be explained in a later post!

From a planning standpoint, it's always been known that this would be the area that would need some additional grit to overcome. After carefully stenciling out the cut lines, using a drywall saw (Goldblatt Folding Drywall 11-3/4 inch Hand Saw), I measured and determined I needed a long blade and a jigsaw to accomplish the task at hand. I purchased a LENOX Tools 1991551 T-Shank Fast Cutting Wood Jig Saw Blade, 6-Inch X 5/16-Inch 6 TPI which came in a 5-pack. The 5-pack turned out later to be important because I actually didn't install the blade all the way into the jigsaw (I swear I followed the blade installation instructions) and lost one while attempting my first pass at a cut. By lost one, the almost gory details included one 6 inch blade flying off and down into the back of the wall, likely hitting the gas line and bouncing around a bit more as it dropped to the ground in an inaccessible location to retrieve. After inspecting the gas line (and still to this day measuring for leaks with a natural gas detector) all is well. The rubber outside seemed to take a hit but the braided gas line metal mesh casing wasn't damaged. I tell 'ya, all it takes is one mistake to turn any 5 minute job into a delay of days or weeks and hundreds of dollars if not done right. Luckily I was able to pop on properly a new 6 inch blade and try again moments later. In case you didn't know by now, I am a novice but pride myself in gaining experience and confidence with each step of the project behind me. I's been a long while since I handled a jigsaw and as with most tools and materials for this project, I had to purchase both the jigsaw and extended blades just for this!

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So here you can see that the blade wasn't pushed 'all the way in'... It's always great to be able to look back and have proof of how you messed up!
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The blade provided just enough clearance to provide the appropriate cut. Not to worry the next stud is literally only several inches away on both sides as the framing for the fireplace and this walls dimensions in particular made this stud non load bearing and mainly there to affix drywall too.
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There was a thought behind just using a hand saw, I later realized I had two, one small and one large. These are hand me downs, rust and all apparently. I was only able to locate the large one in the moment which was too dull and didn't suffice. This pause was taken once I lost that first jigsaw bit into the abyss and was a bit shaken from that amateur mistake. Getting this saw out was also a bit of a joke, trying to make light of the very dangerous situation that could of made things a lot worse. I was happy to have averted disaster!
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Next I met Murphy's law. Of course the line I was cutting with the jigsaw would encounter a drywall screw completely perpendicular to my path. This required me stopping and locating a Philips bit and my drill to exhume the sucker which was totally satisfying. After removal of the stud I was able to finish cutting out the necessary rest of the wall to position the wall speaker in successfully.
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Final view of the left speaker in place. Now I need to run some wires..
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More project to unfold... Stay tuned! I hope you are enjoying joining me on the journey!
 
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Todd Anderson

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Preamp, Processor or Receiver
StormAudio ISP.24 MK2
Main Amp
Emotiva XPA-5
Additional Amp
Emotiva XPA Gen3 2.8 multichannel amp
Other Amp
Denon X8500H
Computer Audio
AudioEngine A2+
DAC
THX ONYX
Universal / Blu-ray / CD Player
Kaleidescape TERRA, OPPO UDP-203, Panasonic UB9000
Front Speakers
GoldenEar Technology Triton One.R
Center Channel Speaker
GoldenEar Technology SuperCenter Reference
Surround Speakers
SVS Ultra Surround
Surround Back Speakers
SVS Ultra Bookshelf
Front Height Speakers
SVS Prime Elevation x4 (Top Front, Top Mid-Front)
Rear Height Speakers
SVS Prime Elevation x4 (Top Middle, Top Rear)
Subwoofers
dual SVS SB16s + dual PSA XS30s
Other Speakers or Equipment
Behringer 1124p; Aura Bass Shaker Pros; SuperSub X
Video Display Device
JVC NX7
Screen
Seymour Screen Excellence, Enlightor NEO AT Screen
Streaming Equipment
iFi Audio Zen Blue
Streaming Subscriptions
Qobuz, TIDAL, Spotify, ROON
Other Equipment
LG Electronics 65-inch B6 OLED, Sony 65-inch X900F, ZeroSurge 8R15W x 2, ZeroSurge 2R15W x 2
Great thread, look forward to seeing it finalized and reading your impressions!
 

pstepp

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Jun 10, 2020
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7
New Sports and Music Destination, Part 5

Update 11: Installed the OnQ box, the OneConnect and Speakers Now Secured


First I have to cut down the electrical box so it will more or less sit flush inside the box.
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When I ran wire off an existing outlet I made sure to properly run the cable through new holes I drilled to the OnQ box location.
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I ran three 50' 8k @ 60Hz / 4k@120Hz, 48Gbps fiber optic HDMI cable between home run location and the OneConnect box as illustrated below. It supports dynamic HDR, eARC, Dolby Vision, HDCP2.2 4:4:4 so while my TV is 4K, I at least have future proofed the attic and wall wiring work as far as I see reasonable. I also ran a 50' TOSLINK fiber optic cable that supports uncompressed PCM audio and compressed 5.1 and 7.1 Dolby Digital Plus, DTS-HD High Resolution and LPCM. Finally I went ahead and while I haven't run the wire to the network homerun location (different interior wall) I have a Cat 8 ethernet cable run from the box up into the attic to tie in at a later date. The RJ45 cable supports 40Gbps speed and at present I only have gig switches and gig internet service so this should be usable for the foreseeable future too! Input 1 HDMI I went ahead and just put a 4K FireTV stick behind the TV, and the other three I have run to the new wall jack I put in to extend with game systems or any other input.
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In order to run the wires in the attic I had to first remove a section of this stray piece of plywood coming off a 2x4 that was clearly just some excess material. That took a while as I had to get the right tool for the job. I wound up getting a Makita 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Cordless 5-3/8" circular saw which made the job easy. Once i cut a good enough section away I was able to go back and forth into the other part of the attic to get at the location I needed to drill in order to fish some wires down the homerun wall.
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To be continued... Thanks for following the story! Big hang up here, I'm on my soon to be "3rd" delivery attempt of the 75" TV, first one was visibly cracked, the 2nd wasn't cracked visibly but once plugged in the QLED panel was cracked behind the class. Wish me luck! After a 3rd failed delivery, a 4th one was received and mounted perfectly! Now I can resume the final stages of this project complete with a bit more narrative and some more pics!

Update 11b - Well remember that speaker wire I ran way long ago? It WAS too short by about 6 feet, so I performed some in attic splicing and joining and then made sure the other two runs were long enough. The hardest part about all this speaker wire running of the 10awg was the size hole I needed to drill and in triplicate basically to run the wires down the homerun location.

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Of course I was able to finally install the flush mount TV bracket, after some fine tuning, some pilot hole drilling and making sure down the mm this bracket was spot on level. There is NO forgiveness in regard to rotating the TV on this flush bracket and you don't want the TV pitching up or down as it would throw the whole aesthetic off and ruin the balance of the setup. I love professionals and perhaps they get it right EVERY time, but I'm so happy I was the one tuning this at the millimeter tolerance versus leaving it up to someone else. The satisfaction of DIY is amazing, especially when it lands on target perfectly! I was able to get into both studs with the lag bolts and for the center I ran a toggle bolt for good measure.

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After a wrestling match of about 5 mins with the drill and the bracket I locked in on the perfect laser level for pinpoint accuracy and level TV mounting across all 66.1" on the horizontal of this 75" TV.

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With speakers installed to the 10awg wires and successfully run cables (HDMI, Optical and network) I'm ready to mount this TV!

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Todd Anderson

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StormAudio ISP.24 MK2
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Emotiva XPA-5
Additional Amp
Emotiva XPA Gen3 2.8 multichannel amp
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Denon X8500H
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AudioEngine A2+
DAC
THX ONYX
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Kaleidescape TERRA, OPPO UDP-203, Panasonic UB9000
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GoldenEar Technology Triton One.R
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GoldenEar Technology SuperCenter Reference
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SVS Ultra Surround
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SVS Ultra Bookshelf
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SVS Prime Elevation x4 (Top Front, Top Mid-Front)
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SVS Prime Elevation x4 (Top Middle, Top Rear)
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dual SVS SB16s + dual PSA XS30s
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Behringer 1124p; Aura Bass Shaker Pros; SuperSub X
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JVC NX7
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Seymour Screen Excellence, Enlightor NEO AT Screen
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iFi Audio Zen Blue
Streaming Subscriptions
Qobuz, TIDAL, Spotify, ROON
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LG Electronics 65-inch B6 OLED, Sony 65-inch X900F, ZeroSurge 8R15W x 2, ZeroSurge 2R15W x 2
Great details. I love the fact that you still have a blockbuster card. :-)
 

pstepp

Member
Thread Starter
Joined
Jun 10, 2020
Messages
7
New Sports and Music Destination, Part 6 - FINAL

Update 12: TV mounted


You can tell what time of year it is with what's on Netflix and Live TV on a Saturday! This concludes the project which started with a bare wall and now has come to life with a mantel, speaker arrangement and frame TV!

Not only can you enjoy the sights and sound from the great room but also from the kitchen, where from one side of the table the TV is in perfect view! Tons of seating options from two rooms!

We're already making happy memories, it's really turned into what we had hoped, simply a great meeting place to hang out, relax and have fun!


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Sonnie

Senior Admin
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Apr 2, 2017
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5,055
Location
Alabama
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StormAudio ISP Elite 24 MK3 Processor
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McIntosh MC1.25KW Monoblock Amps
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StormAudio PA 16 MK3
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Intel NUC w/ Roon ROCK
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Panasonic UB9000 4K UHD Player (for media discs)
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RTJ 410
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MartinLogan Focus C-18
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JTR Neosis 110HT
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JTR Neosis 210RT
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JTR Neosis 210RT
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JTR Neosis 110HT-SL
Rear Height Speakers
JTR Neosis 110HT-SL
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JTR Captivator 2400 x6
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VTI Amp Stands for the Monoblocks
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Sony 98X90L
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Universal MX-890
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FireCube for movies and Lenova Carbon X1 for Roon
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Lifetime Roon Subscription
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qobuz
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Amazon Prime
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Dish Joey 4K
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Zero Surge 8R15W-1 | Salamander Synergy Equipment Stand
Nice work... looks super clean.

I bet with those wood floors it's pretty lively in there.
 

pstepp

Member
Thread Starter
Joined
Jun 10, 2020
Messages
7
Nice work... looks super clean.

I bet with those wood floors it's pretty lively in there.
Still loving it. We have a large 12 foot x 10 foot rug in there and a couple couches and chairs that minimize any overwhelming harshness, I would say the overall tonal balance has been very much in the sweet spot. Appreciate you reading all about my installation journey!
 
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