Home Cinema Cost

[ooo000ooo]

Salesy said:

Cheers

https://youtu.be/vYGwLSlgZRQ

Or
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5RU0ecML0e6TnZkS...

Camera on my phone is crap

[Tuna]

I\ve got an old Onkyo Av reciever, a mix of cheap speakers and a Benq projector from Richard Sounds. All together well within your budget and the effect is impressive. Whilst you can detect some difference by spending more on high end audio, you'll get more benefit from just setting the room up right. My BIL has won awards for film and TV sound and has a similar set-up so unless you're going down the route of a fully custom built from scratch AV room there's little point in blowing the budget.

The bottom line is you won't be directly comparing your set up to anyone else's so the fractions of a difference between sensible and seriously expensive gear is really not worth bothering about.

If you're dedicating a room to it, I'd recommend a screen over painting a wall - it really does make an appreciable difference and a fixed screen shouldn't cost the earth.

[ozzuk]

I've just finished mine in my new house (basement). The screen is handmade - fabric material cost £100, its specialist and acoustic transparent. Very easy and a massive improvement over pull down screens. I can't tell the difference from a TV it's that good.

If interested I can put up a kit list. The whole room probably cost around £3.5k with me doing everything apart from plastering. I've wired in for additional ceiling speakers/ATMOS but sticking with 5.1 for now.

Edit to add kit:

Bass - Q Acoustics Q3070s American Walnut £289 (Richer Sounds)
Rear speakers - Q Acoustics 7000LRi Speakers (Pair) (Superfi, £200)
Amp - Pioneer VSX 930k - Amazon £400
Filmex AT material from Epic Home Cinema £100
Projector - Benq W1070+ - Amazon £600
Front speakers/centre I already owned

Adding it up it didn't cost as much as I thought, but I haven't added wooded, plasterboard, plaster, labour, wiring (350feet of speaker cable), remote control lights, carpet, paint, posters, furniture, heating etc. Actually I don't want to add all that up! Worth it though, sounds amazing.

Edited by ozzuk on Wednesday 24th February 17:22

Edited by ozzuk on Wednesday 24th February 17:24

[Calculator]

Thanks all. I have followed this up and been to see a local independent. They have suggested the following projector:

http://www.richersounds.com/product/projectors/eps...

This would be teamed with a Bose sound bar and wireless sub and a fixed, 90" screen.

http://www.johnlewis.com/bose-soundtouch-120-wirel...

Total cost is c£2.5k.

I would prefer to use them as they will turn up in the morning and when I get back from work it'll be sorted and set up!

Any thoughts? What should I be spending on a 90" screen? Is the Bose a decent option for the price? It sounded fantastic, minimal wiring etc and looks great.

Edited by Calculator on Sunday 1st May 11:29

[Calculator]

Meant to add, it will be run off a Sky box and PS4, so don't think I need anything else?

[OldSkoolRS]

Calculator said:

Thanks all. I have followed this up and been to see a local independent. They have suggested the following projector:

http://www.richersounds.com/product/projectors/eps...

This would be teamed with a Bose sound bar and wireless sub and a fixed, 90" screen.

http://www.johnlewis.com/bose-soundtouch-120-wirel...

Total cost is c£2.5k.

I would prefer to use them as they will turn up in the morning and when I get back from work it'll be sorted and set up!

Any thoughts? What should I be spending on a 90" screen? Is the Bose a decent option for the price? It sounded fantastic, minimal wiring etc and looks great.

Edited by Calculator on Sunday 1st May 11:29

I'm not saying this just to be a Bose basher, but IMHO a big screen with a soundbar isn't 'Home Cinema'. You need the sound to fit the scale of the picture and a 'bar just isn't going to cut it IMHO. I know it's an easy option as it'll all be done when you're at work and you can tick off the box that says 'Home cinema installed' on your 'to do' list, but I reckon it'll be disappointing after a while.

For the £999 that the Bose costs you ought to be able to get an amp and a decent set of speakers, even if not surrounds included (though you'd have the option to add them later). Granted it won't be surround sound but neither is a soundbar despite the sales pitch about bouncing sound around the room.

Something like this Denon £329:

http://www.richersounds.com/product/av-receivers/d...

Combined with perhaps these speakers £249:

http://www.richersounds.com/product/standmount-spe...

And this centre speaker £159:

http://www.richersounds.com/product/centre-speaker...

Which leaves you £260 approx for a sub, which I would recommend going to BK Electronics rather than the 'matching' one from Q-Acoustics, though they do a black one for £200 which is likely better than the Bose.

White BK XLS200 is an extra £50 above budget:

http://www.bkelec.com/HiFi/Sub_Woofers/XLS200-DF_W...

Or the Gemini would be under budget based on the Bose price and the above speakers/amp:

http://www.bkelec.com/HiFi/Sub_Woofers/Gemini_Whte...

Might be worth considering unless looks and ease of installation are more important (and I can fully understand if it as because I've done enough AV installations over the years to get tired of the mess myself).

[Calculator]

Thanks, that's very helpful. I just need to work out whether I want the installation complexity vs the simple option. Reviews of the Bose are mixed, with several raising concerns about the sub dropping out.

[Tuna]

Calculator said:

Thanks, that's very helpful. I just need to work out whether I want the installation complexity vs the simple option. Reviews of the Bose are mixed, with several raising concerns about the sub dropping out.

The complexity only happens once. Then you enjoy the benefit for a few years.

[varsas]

Calculator said:

Thanks all. I have followed this up and been to see a local independent. They have suggested the following projector:

http://www.richersounds.com/product/projectors/eps...

I had an Epson 6100 (the predecessor to the 6600 listed) for 2 years, my review here:


I recently had the opportunity to build a modest home cinema setup, and after some soul-searching decided to go for a projector based set up. I'm very glad I did.

My Epson is in a light-controlled room, and I use an 84inch 'optoma' screen. It's fed by a Samsung Blu-Ray player.

Good things: The image is very bright. Even with enough light to eat dinner by the image is still very watchable. In fact the first film I watched ('In Time') had a slow black transition followed by a very bright scene which was so intense it dazzled those of us watching. Since then I've only ever used 'eco-mode', which also helps the black levels and noise (more on those later). The detail is also incredible. Loose hairs, the texture of a desert, the grain of wood on a fence post...it's all displayed incredibly sharply. I also watch Blu Ray's on a 46inch LED and it's only when the image is blown up you see it all. I find the colour reproduction good, I have not had the unit calibrated but some test patterns and a bit of fiddling (to turn it down) results in a picture that is subtle, nicely graduated and looks natural.

Bad things: Black level and motion clarity. Sadly the black level is poor, even compared to a decent LED TV, never mind a plasma/OLED. I'd say it's better than an early CCFL backlit LCD, but not by much. Playing with settings helps the black level a bit but at the end of the day it just isn't good enough. You won't notice it in any scene with bright elements as the contrast is so good but dark scenes suffer. The PJ does have a dynamic iris (which adjusts the overall brightness level based on the scene) which helps some times but it's slow to open and close. I leave it on the lowest setting but it only really works with long dark scenes. I'd quite like to use the PJ with the iris closed, but that isn't possible, 'off' means fully open. A darker screen might help (mine is +1.0 gain) but at the end of the day there is too much black-light bleed. Motion resolution is as you'd expect from an LCD device with no resolution boosting trickery to help, i.e. poor. It seems worse than on a TV though, I'm not sure if this is down to the size of the screen or the speed of the pixels. Being a projector it was much more difficult to set up than a TV. It doesn't come with a bracket and drilling holes in your ceiling is not fun, hence my 1 star. Compared with other projectors, the large size, weight and lack of lens-shift (make sure it's straight before you bolt it in place!) just make it more difficult.

I did try the 3D once, I got a headache from the crosstalk and the glasses have remained unused since, but I don't like 3D anyway. The sound from the on-board speaker(s!) is better than you'd expect, but it'd be coming from miles away from the picture if you actually used it! The PJ does make some noise, again, when you're immersed in the film you don't notice it, again this is in 'eco' mode. I'm not sure I see the point of the wireless, you have to run a power cable, just run an HDMI at the same time? It might help in some applications I guess, but the non-wireless version is about £300 cheaper.

Overall the pluses outweigh the minuses. It depends a bit on the film, for example the Hobbit films suffer from the black and motion issues quite a lot, however the Shawshank Redemption, Jaws, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Skyfall...(OK, this would be a long list, I'll stop here!) look incredible, literally breathtaking in one case and, to be honest, you forget about critically evaluating the picture and just get pulled into the film in a way you don't with a smaller screen.

Length of Ownership
1 year or longer

? Yes,
I recommend this product.

Value of Product

4 out of 5
Ease of Use

1 out of 5
Reliability

5 out of 5
Design

4 out of 5
Performance

4 out of 5
Picture Quality

4 out of 5


Read more at http://www.whathifi.com/epson/eh-tw6100w/review#L7...

Edited by varsas on Monday 2nd May 19:37

[Calculator]

Thanks. Sounds like the projector is a decent shout for the money. I just need to work out where best to spend £1k on audio which will look subtle but still deliver. Doesn't sound like the Bose is the way to go.

[varsas]

Calculator said:

Thanks. Sounds like the projector is a decent shout for the money. I just need to work out where best to spend £1k on audio which will look subtle but still deliver. Doesn't sound like the Bose is the way to go.

Well, I'd always go the more traditional route but if you can't does something like this:

http://www.samsung.com/uk/consumer/tv-audio-video/...

help? Home Cinema Choice rate it highly, it's their favourite 'all-in-one' setup.

Oh and a review of the PJ if you get it please!

[gizlaroc]

Have a look at this thread...

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

I would still say the Yamaha 1050 amp and the Quad Lite speaker package.

You can get the amp for £750 now and the speakers for £550!

It will absolutely trounce that Bose system and the Samsung above and still looks nice.

[scovette]

Or if you're not bothered about music playback, maybe the Denon AVRX2200W at £330 instead of the Yamaha? Use the money freed up to add a BK sub. Or a couple of ceiling speakers for Atmos.

[anonymous-user]

gizlaroc said:

Have a look at this thread...

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

I would still say the Yamaha 1050 amp and the Quad Lite speaker package.

You can get the amp for £750 now and the speakers for £550!

It will absolutely trounce that Bose system and the Samsung above and still looks nice.

I paid £899 for my Yammy1050 but didn't want to wait for delivery

Even at the higher price it's amazing piece of kit. For £750 I cannot see how you can do better, really deserves to be paired with good quality, full range speakers.

[dave87]

Calculator said:

Thanks all. I have followed this up and been to see a local independent. They have suggested the following projector:

http://www.richersounds.com/product/projectors/eps...

This would be teamed with a Bose sound bar and wireless sub and a fixed, 90" screen.

http://www.johnlewis.com/bose-soundtouch-120-wirel...

Total cost is c£2.5k.

I would prefer to use them as they will turn up in the morning and when I get back from work it'll be sorted and set up!

Any thoughts? What should I be spending on a 90" screen? Is the Bose a decent option for the price? It sounded fantastic, minimal wiring etc and looks great.

Edited by Calculator on Sunday 1st May 11:29

My parents have that particular soundbar, and it is very impressive with little to no manual set up.

By contrast my setup is a Panasonic 48" 3D TV connected to a Denon 2809 driving Acoustic Energy Floorstanding Fronts, Centre and Bookshelf Rears alongwith a Monitor Audio RSW12. When you get a decent bluray on you will notice the difference, and that is important in a home cinema. For a lounge, the Bose is brilliant, but I echo the thoughts regarding use in a home cinema room.

[scovette]

Calculator said:

Thanks. Sounds like the projector is a decent shout for the money.

As an alternative maybe consider a used JVC DILA projector? Even accounting for a new bulb you can get one for under £1000 as projectors depreciate heavily. Excellent black levels and motion handling, decent amount of lens shift too. Not the brightest, but that shouldn't matter in a basement.

Also, leave aside a little money for room treatments.

[OldSkoolRS]

While you could get a used JVC HD series with a new lamp for under £1,000 they can suffer from 'magenta stripe' issues which require the optical block replacing (ie not economically viable). I had one when they were new, but sold it to get the later X35 (now X500) but they tend to be a bit over £1,000 plus the lamp is around £300.

The later JVC X3 models are known to have lamp issues, so you would have to allow the cost of a new lamp (£300 for a genuine one and I wouldn't recommend anything else). The X35 lamp was a new design and last much longer than the X3 models, but you may struggle to find one for under £1,000 used.

While I bought my X500 used (40 hours/3-4 months old) JVC warranties are not transferable, so you have to be prepared to take a gamble that it won't break down. If you can't afford to write off the cost then think very carefully about buying one used.

[Calculator]

Ok, progress continues albeit slower than I'd like due to workload. I have gone for the following:

http://www.richersounds.com/product/projector-scre...
http://www.richersounds.com/product/projectors/eps...
http://www.richersounds.com/product/speaker-packag...
http://www.richersounds.com/product/av-receivers/d...

Any thoughts?

What would people do about fitting? Local guy wants to charge £500 but I am minded to have a go myself given the system is relatively straightforward. Most of the work seems to be in channelling cables which I am not sure justifies the cost.

[VEX]

They are good specs and prices for what you want to do. I cant compete.

£500.00 bite his hand off, but get him to detail exactly what he is doing for that. Watch out for how he does any power including spur switches and outlets.

You also need to factor in:
HDMI Leads, buy good but not over the top and watch out for longer runs as 1080P can suffer drop outs.
Projector Bracket, buy good, we use a pro mount from Peerless that has worm screws to do the final descrete adjustments and then lock off. Cheap ones can move or sag over time
Speaker Cable, dont go expensive, the kit combination doesnt warrant it. standard 16/2 cable is fine, dont go for the snake oil.
Rack / Cabinet, your choice.

HTH

V.

[Calculator]

Very helpful, thanks Vex. You're right about the fitter, I'll get him up and running.

Pictures to follow!