Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater MC's Basement HT

Ha, those guys have to see everything I am doing all the time. Thanks for the compliment!

When I saw that nice white wall with the projector image my first thought was "keep the wall, zoom the image a bit larger for 2.35 and zoom back to where you have it for 16:9". Spend the $$ mounting some nice felt-covered shutters to give you a correctly sized screen for both aspect ratios.

I'm still doing that with my system, using a 4x8 sheet of Formica as a screen. In between the "super expensive screen" craze and the "mix your own paint" craze there was a brief "this particular Formica colour and texture is ideal for an HT screen" craze and that's when I got in.

A 4x8 sheet is too narrow for 2.35 and too wide for 16:9, so "I'm too lazy to cut it" becomes "I believe in constant-area projection"... although I really should remove the barcode sticker. It's down in one corner though, and neither image size illuminates it.

EDIT - on second thought never mind, when I think about how it would look in the room that's a pretty decent size already.

I actually started rethinking the black wall. I just painted the inside of the alcove that will hold my equipment rack and the black shows every smudge/fingerprint. It might not be great for a wall, especially if my nieces/nephews are running around. They have a habit of putting their hands on the wall...lol. Looking back at my pictures, the light gray walls did not seem to reflect that much light. It might be better to paint the screen wall a dark gray, at least it will be easier to keep clean. I haven't decided yet, still mulling it over. Then there is the whole screen issue. Do I go gray, white, ARL...hmmm

I at least decided on the projector I am getting, Epson Home Cinema 5040UB. Unless, they come out with something better between now and the time I am ready to purchase it...lol.

I would be more worried about little hands on the screen than on the painted black wall.

My previous theater space had a black screen wall. I can't remember what type of black paint, but I am pretty sure that I probably went with a flat black. It is pretty dull and hides things well. Might be an option... or an electrified kid-sized fence.

My front wall (behind the screen) is called Leather Jacket black I believe. I think I also used flat, which is easy to touch up, but does show any smudges and scuff marks easily. The rest of the walls I believe I used a satin which is easy to clean up with a damp cloth. Luckily nobody normally goes near the front wall as you have to climb around my front stage; m80s, 2 ep350s, and vp180.

Its your home. Do what you want and tell your bro/sis to keep their kids off your stuff.... Else yell at their kids or keep em out. If they are on your walls what about the speakers?

Own your realm man! . I like kids, but damn.

Rant over

Haha, totally agree. Which is why the wall is now black...



I finished the second coat of paint this weekend. I might do one more coat on the screen wall, but otherwise, the painting is complete. The drop ceiling is scheduled to be installed this Saturday too. In the meantime, I have video, audio, and internet wires to run....my favorite part .

Looks great. I was hoping you wouldnt take it heavy. Just teasin'.

Ha, not at all. However, it was a PITA to paint, took three coats to get it nice and even. I'm hoping they don't mark it up when hanging the drop ceiling...lol.

I picked up my pots for the lights yesterday too. Going with four 6" pots on each side of the beam. Bought cheap LED fixtures for now, but I will probably end up switching over to Lifx or Hue bulbs so I can create scenes with different colors.

I also need to stop by the floor place and pick something out. Going with a dark-colored luxury vinyl plank.

The colored light scenes are pretty effective. I added the Hue bulbs on a whim with some gift money a while back and now find them as much practical as whimsical.
I have them set to certain scenes with the Harmony activities, and also have them on Siri voice control for quick adjustments as needed. Green for golf mode on PS4, dim candlelight for movie mode etc... And when powering off activities with the Harmony, they come back to bright white so you can see your way out of the HT - & find the spilled popcorn that the dog missed

You mentioned voice control earlier in this thread - what do you control by voice?

Cheers,