Oh boy... Do I jump in here? Maybe not at work. LOL

Fire away. SO many topics to cover here. Don't even worry about the projector until you get building.

Pick out your seating location and screen size, then your speaker locations will fall into place. Iron those out if possible before construction (3 months from now if you are lucky without having a new house "to do" list).

If possible, get the exact dimensions (maybe you have them) and try to mock up the space somewhere that you have access to now to get a feel for screen distances and sizes.

If you opt to go fixed screen (great option in my opinion for a dedicated room since motorized screens get pricey for decent ones that don't look wavey when down), keep in mind that if you go with a panel type install using the WilsonArt stuff, that you will be a little more limited on size since you obviously have a maximum sheet size. Now, that "limit" may still be bigger than what you need in the end and not be an issue at all, but it is something to consider. If you can't find a panel type material big enough for what you want, then you have to go fabric.

For the space, I would not do a false wall like I did. It will easily eat up 2-2.5 more feet of depth in the room. I had about 24 feet, so losing 2 was not a problem. This also makes the install easier.

Soundproofing. Oh boy, LOTS of info here. This really depends on what the floor, ceiling, any existing walls, etc are made out of. The key points to "soundproofing" are isolation, dampening, and absorption. Physcially isolate the inside of the room from the outside, dampen the sound waves with mass, and absorb everything else. OK, so that is very simplistic, but it give the rationalization behind double or staggered walls, floating floors, and second isolated ceiling joists or hat channel for isolation (physically reduce the common in-room and outside-room from each other). Double drywall with dampening material like Greenglue for the mass and dampening of large soundwaves (low freq. stuff). And insolation (pink fluffy stuff) AND air cavities in the walls for absorption.

Note, one of the most overlooked thing in soundproofing is the door. People like glass doors, french doors, etc, but if oyu want sound to stay in (or out) of the theater, then the door is a big, giant week point for most people. You don't have to drop $6,000 on a comercial grade soundproof door, or even have to use some automatic door seal or anything. Yes, these are great products, but we all have budgets, right?

I could not believe how much a nice solid core steel exterior door can block the sound. I went for a 6 panel door with an extra thick door jamb since my walls were thick. People say to go with a flush door since the "panel" areas have less core since they are thinner there, or to add two .5" sheets of MDF to the door with green glue in the middle, etc, but then you are not only adding a lot more work, but you need really strong specialty hinges that run about $75 a piece (you will need 3-4). Again, my $220 door (was $120 until I added the extra deep jamb). I also used a nice exterior bottom door sill to create a solid seal under the door (where the biggest gaps normally are) for about $20 is all. Again, I could get a better result with other options, but for $220 for a perfect fit with nothing to do but paint and hang the door, this was great and WAY better than anything I've ever had before. The difference with the door shut vs. open is unbelievable.

I would run some nice 2" conduit from the equipment area to the projector, and not worry about the rest. Sure, speaker wires can get damaged, but if you test them before drywall, and then again right after, you can fix any problems. If you want more piece of mind, then use 1.5" blue "smurf-tube" for the speaker wires.

I LOVE the counter-top/bar stool idea. We would have done that for a 3rd row in our theater if I hadn't done a false wall. It offers a place for more viewers with minimal space lost due to seating, and is a place to bring in food, etc for regular viewing.

Don't forget about room treatments too. Soundproofing is NOT going to help with the in-room acoustics. Bass traps in the corners, and some panels on the walls will do wonders. The nice thing is that these get added when the room is closer to being done, so you can plan for that however you want.

As for equipment, I bought pretty much everything when the price was right for me, but that meant having brand new equipment sit for about 6 months from date of purchase until they were installed and used. I would have gotten the same projector, but paid more 6 months later, so that worked out, but there was no need to start burning through warranties with new, unused equipment. With the new 2013 model projectors coming out, it will be good to see what the new "best" models are for different things. My JVC RS45 was rated by many places as the best 2D projector for less than $5000 (I paid $2600). If you really want 3D, then I would look elsewhere. With a fully light controlled room, you don't night a "light canon" either, and don't be fooled by the bogus contrast ratios. Almost everyone will say 500,000:1 or something crazy. Keep in mind that the high reading is with the projector on high power mode with the smallest screen image (brighter) displaying the brightest white it can display with the iris wide open for one end of that reading, and then the other end is with the projector turned off. Nobody views things at max white, on a 20" diag image 2 feet from the wall with high lamp mode. And how can you compare contrast when your "black" is when the projector is off? At a minimum, it should be with the projector on, displaying the darkest black it can muster. Nice thing about my JVC for example, is it has the industry best real black level, and has a real contrast of 50,000:1. Most of those other popular projectors that have 500,000:1 ratios come in at about 10,000:1 in comparison tests to the JVC. Again, who knows what 2013 will yield when all of the hot models are out in mass, but I would wait until closer to the completion date before worrying about it. You could research the heck out of it now, and then in 6-9 months when you are in the house and actually done, see that you could have gotten something better, or the 2014 models are trickling out and have to start research over.

Well, that is a long enough read for now for people. Let me know what other questions you have. I have access to a number of resources on the subject depending on what the questions are, so you don't have to believe me if you don't want to.

Oh, but don't worry, just because I like this or that, I won't try to exclude other options in any advice. I love my JVC, but you may have different needs, or price points. This isn't AVS, so I know that we all have real world budgets here. And what is important to one person, isn't to the next.

Farewell - June 4, 2020