Wiring for surround sound

[Aztech]

Well, I'm finally rebuilding my house after Katrina. I think I wanna run some speaker wire for surround sound while the house is all gutted. I would be a surround newbie for sure. I've always had just 2.1.

1. What size/type speaker wire should I use?

Also, I was thinking of ust running two sets of wires back, for 5.1 surround. Anyone insist that I should wire for 7.1?

Also, I was gonna run the wires to where they point at my head from each side of the couch, rather than from behind the couch. Any opinions on that? And what about the height of them? I was thinking ear level...

Thanks.

 

[olds]

It used to be that you didn't want to aim the rears. You didn't want to be able to locate them, it's supposed to be a "surround effect"
As long as you are wiring, wire for any possible future expansion. Now is the time to do it.

 

[Aztech]

Originally posted by: oldsmoboat
It used to be that you didn't want to aim the rears. You didn't want to be able to locate them, it's supposed to be a "surround effect"
As long as you are wiring, wire for any possible future expansion. Now is the time to do it.

Thanks. So you mean wire for 7.1? I guess I should.

What else can I//should I do with my walls down? Anyone...

 

[Qwest]

Run CAT5?

 

[vi edit]

Originally posted by: Aztech

Originally posted by: oldsmoboat
It used to be that you didn't want to aim the rears. You didn't want to be able to locate them, it's supposed to be a "surround effect"
As long as you are wiring, wire for any possible future expansion. Now is the time to do it.

Thanks. So you mean wire for 7.1? I guess I should.

What else can I//should I do with my walls down? Anyone...

No, I think he means like cat5, video, ect.

 

[Hyperlite]

Originally posted by: Qwest
Run CAT5?

 

[Tiamat]

Get 20A dediated circuits (at least 2, as many as possible).

12ga wire at least if your runs are >50ft. I use 12ga for all my runs anyways.

Rear/side speakers for movies should be about 1' above ear level.

For music, Rear/side speakers should be ear level.

Plan on multiple subwoofer locations. The one you think might be aesthetically pleasing is probably the one that doesnt work well acoustically THis is trial and error.

 

[amdskip]

I would actually consider making some pvc runs and putting all the cables in them. Place some pull strings for pulling any future wires too.

 

[VTHodge]

Additional cable TV outlets. Seems like they are never on the wall that I want. If you don't like the way they look, you can have the cable behind a blank plate. Wouldn't look bad at all.

How about some network cables? Especially if the house is too big for a single router to cover well.

 

[olds]

Originally posted by: vi_edit

Originally posted by: Aztech

Originally posted by: oldsmoboat
It used to be that you didn't want to aim the rears. You didn't want to be able to locate them, it's supposed to be a "surround effect"
As long as you are wiring, wire for any possible future expansion. Now is the time to do it.

Thanks. So you mean wire for 7.1? I guess I should.

What else can I//should I do with my walls down? Anyone...

No, I think he means like cat5, video, ect.

Exactly. But if you think you may ever go to 7.1, run the wire now.

 

[Abel007]

How big is the room?

 

[Kelemvor]

Wire is cheap. Wire up for anything you think you might ever want to do.

Personally, 5.1 is fine for me. My rear speakers are behind me and to the sides aimed sort of towards the center of the room.

As far as speaker gauge, the bigger the wire (smaller gauge) the better the signal quality. But some speakers and tuners have small holes for the speaker wires to fit into and it can make it difficult to get them in there.

 

[olds]

Originally posted by: Kelemvor
Wire is cheap. Wire up for anything you think you might ever want to do.

Personally, 5.1 is fine for me. My rear speakers are behind me and to the sides aimed sort of towards the center of the room.

As far as speaker gauge, the bigger the wire (smaller gauge) the better the signal quality. But some speakers and tuners have small holes for the speaker wires to fit into and it can make it difficult to get them in there.

Text

 

[spidey07]

Plan out your locations and then run 12 gauge in-wall rated speaker wire. Here are the locations you will need. Leave extra cable coiled up in the wall. Take pictures when you're done, that way you can count studs and locate the cable after the drywall is up. Or pick up a toner set to tone them out. For specific locations refer to the dolby-digital page.

2 rears - behind you
2 surrounds - to the side of your listening position
Sub - run 4 coax cables to each corner, 8 if you want dual subs

Music - two surrounds diagonally behind you. Check the DVD-audio and SACD sites for specifics.

 

[Lemodular]

Originally posted by: Tiamat
Get 20A dediated circuits (at least 2, as many as possible).

12ga wire at least if your runs are >50ft. I use 12ga for all my runs anyways.

Rear/side speakers for movies should be about 1' above ear level.

For music, Rear/side speakers should be ear level.

Plan on multiple subwoofer locations. The one you think might be aesthetically pleasing is probably the one that doesnt work well acoustically THis is trial and error.

I agree with most the above comment. I would also like to add that you should add RG6 (quad sheilded) to the potential sub location. You can then terminated with a 75 Ohms RCA for your LFE. I have my rear cables (12 gag. all copper) dropped to a single point and use a 4 terminal wall plate to finish. Code may require that you run CL3 rated inside of walls (if this mattered).

Adding 1.5" or 2" pvc conduit is a good idea for future runs.

 

[Aztech]

Thanks for all the responses.

I have run some Cat5 recently. That will work for network or phone, right? I hope so, because I replaced all the phone wire with it...

Anyone ever setup their own home security system?

 

[Aztech]

Originally posted by: spidey07
Plan out your locations and then run 12 gauge in-wall rated speaker wire. Here are the locations you will need. Leave extra cable coiled up in the wall. Take pictures when you're done, that way you can count studs and locate the cable after the drywall is up. Or pick up a toner set to tone them out. For specific locations refer to the dolby-digital page.

2 rears - behind you
2 surrounds - to the side of your listening position
Sub - run 4 coax cables to each corner, 8 if you want dual subs

Music - two surrounds diagonally behind you. Check the DVD-audio and SACD sites for specifics.

Subs use coax cable? That's news to me. Just regular cable tv cable?

 

[Lemodular]

coax is your "regular" tv cable. Just make sure you use RG6 (thicker core).

 

[Tiamat]

It depends on what kind of subwoofer you will be using. I have a passive subwoofer with an external amplifier (rackmount). So, speaker wire goes to my subwoofer. For active subwoofers, RCA Interconnect is used instead.

 

[aldamon]

Originally posted by: AztechSubs use coax cable? That's news to me. Just regular cable tv cable?

Yeah. I made my own subwoofer cable with coax and two F-RCA adapters from Radio Shack. Saved about $100 over buying a Monster cable. LOL.

 

[Kelemvor]

I bought a sub woofer cable at Menards for $15. Sounds great.