Best home purchase you ever made

Have a 65” Samsung set acquired from Best Buy and hooked up a nice pair of Monoprice tower speakers to it. Next big item will be a Denon AV receiver and a better sub woofer.

Not too shabby but yes it fits the bill for a small living room.
 
@ickyrica im so pissed. This Christmas I bought a sound bar and sub just because I wanted something better than the stock tv when I listen to music. I should have reached out. It’s a 38” visio and 8” sub I think. It was relatively cheap and it does crank pretty good for the price but I hear the difference when I turn it all the way up on something hard and fast.
I'm a dealer for almost any brand you can name, but that doesn't mean I have a direct line at all products. I can always find shit through distribution if I don't have a direct line to it, just one tier above dealer cost. Hit me up anytime dude, even just to know what's up for pricing or whatever. Never hurts to aak
 
Been a home owner for 9 years now. Only things I have done so far is a new roof (original leaking and old), AC System (25 years old and got a killer deal), and a water heater due to it rusting out. Those are almost the three most expensive but adds value (but hurts the pocketbook)!!!

Looking forward to some of the upgrades y'all are discussing. If I had to choose which was the best, it would be the roof. I had a number of leaks and rotting plywood and worried about it getting to my ceiling.
 
It can become obsessive, no doubt.

I'm not too bad though. As long as edid is good, and the sound has been balanced well I'm a happy camper.

I love outdoor shit the best. It's almost worry free because you can't tune audio outside (no confined spaces, it's the easiest thing ever) and video is as simple as turn it on and make it hit the screen.

one of the perks to being a pro AV guy is dealer status and exposure to the inner workings of the sales structures. I didn't pay out the ass for it. The killer about this stuff is the resale price. I maybe have 500 hours on that thing and it would sell for like 3k max. Crazy shit lol.

my setup is out of sorts as we speak because of my living situation but I have some cool gear.

I have three screens for the projector: one being a modest pull down that we've used indoors but it's just a white fabric so nothing special really (being replaced in the buildout with a true HD screen that'll be recessed into the ceiling), a giant 13' wide screen for outdoor use but it's a high definition fabric so you actually get high def resolution being thrown back at your eyes (made to mount to a wall or ceiling), and a giant portable screen that has metal frame, can be setup anywhere (not true HD fabric). This is commonly used for ufc fights or other cool shit during the summer and fall.

For audio I have a bunch of new stuff for the buildout. I have 10 pairs of ceiling speakers (crestron aspire ic6) for whole house audio, I'll have 4 or 5 Sonos zones to accommodate. I run everything through a couple biamp tesira DSPs for tuning, control and distribution. I use a crown amp and a crestron amp to drive the speakers (crown cts 8200 + crestron 1200-70).

For control of everything I use a crestron cp3n processor. I have a few tsw-760 panels for control but with the new house I'm most likely just going to develop a cellphone app for each room. (Although the Sonos gear will be using its own phone software, too). I figure I'll have a tsw-760 in the living and master areas (along with app control), every other space will just have app control.

Video is undecided as of yet. I do have a crestron dmps3-4k-150-c and a variety of video distribution shit, but I'm not certain of what I'm putting where. I'm trying to get a commercial grade monitor for the living room but those can get costly. They are a better product though, not even for one second do I think otherwise.

I'm just starting to put my brain on the home theater side of this shit, tbh. I have a couple receivers (Yamaha, Denon and a marantz) but they are all children's toys. I've been thinking about a used Mcintosh system. They're amazing for quality and sound reproduction. Play a real vinal record through a Mcintosh system and try to not loose your mind by how wicked it sounds. It's unreal how much we are missing from music with streaming. It's really convenient but half as good. Looking at like 4/5 grand for something respectable in the "high end" category for a receiver. The only problem with getting a head unit like that is now you need speakers that can reproduce what the receiver is capable of. I generally lean to B&W for this buuuuuuuut my budget can only handle so much before a beautiful 5'2" blond woman with double d boobs decides to cleave off my balls for spending all of this money without telling her....
When we have the new place built I'll likely run what we're thinking of doing by you as we get closer as it's evident you are very familiar and experienced in this field.

It's really easy to get sucked into the world of AV. Looking back, when I was checking out the different speakers and receivers, projectors, screens, even down to the wires I found myself getting more and more picky the further I dove into it. The problem was that I found myself wanting to wait and spend an additional 5-10k ontop of what I had originally set out my budget at and that figure was climbing weekly lol

I forced myself to stop looking anything up for a month or two then re-approached it with my original budget

Have you heard of this guy? He's pretty well known in the AV world online for his screens and quality. This is where I purchased mine. I purchased the FlexiWhite 16:9 176" screen material.
 
Also a waterless hot water tank. I get hot showers now
I remember when I was growing up my parents never had two separate water lines for years. I'm the youngest of four and there were always a lot of people around our house.

It was always a gamble whether you were going to be scolded or frozen when going to take a shower so you had to get to know exactly where to stand in the shower to minimize the hot/freezing cold water from hitting too much of you at once. The tub was shaped awkwardly and wasn't your standard tub so I'd find myself holding myself up holding onto the shower curtain often or attempting to duck in a corner of the shower only to have one or both legs burnt. If the the temperature fluctuation lasted longer than usual because someone was running the tap or had the washer or dishwasher on, you'd have to switch your leg that was holding you up otherwise you're fucked

I had every inch of that shower area figured out and knew that not everyone else did. So I had fun with it. Lots of fun. There were times when one of my brothers would be in there and I'd get them back only to hear them go to jump out of the shower, but they'd slip and fall into the tub and end up being rained on at a glorious temperature.

Good times LOL
 
Monoprice, lol. That's like using Fisher Price tools for demo work :D


When we have the new place built I'll likely run what we're thinking of doing by you as we get closer as it's evident you are very familiar and experienced in this field.

It's really easy to get sucked into the world of AV. Looking back, when I was checking out the different speakers and receivers, projectors, screens, even down to the wires I found myself getting more and more picky the further I dove into it. The problem was that I found myself wanting to wait and spend an additional 5-10k ontop of what I had originally set out my budget at and that figure was climbing weekly lol

I forced myself to stop looking anything up for a month or two then re-approached it with my original budget

Have you heard of this guy? He's pretty well known in the AV world online for his screens and quality. This is where I purchased mine. I purchased the FlexiWhite 16:9 176" screen material.
never heard of him but his fabric looks legit. Golf simulation fabric and all that, too. Your fabric has a gain spec of 1.1 which is good, hd quality for sure. Prices are good, too. I'd imagine most of what they sell ends up in a fixed frame, meaning no roll up action (which is plenty good enough!).

If you look online you should be able to find a motorized screen cheap, look for one with a broken motor. The motors on more modern screens are all window shade motors, company called Somfy. You can source a motor from online for next to nothing in cost, and simply swap it on your dirt cheap broken screen. Recess that thing and have it trigger off your receivers 12v trigger.
 
Absolutely fucking hate home ownership and when my son gets a bit older I'm selling the place and buying a motherfucking townhome or condo!!

I hate everything abt a home. I'm all abt care free living, community dues, let someone clean the fucking pool, and not sweating my ass off in the 100 degree heat on my day off working around the house when I could be on the lake getting my dick sucked! Home ownership is overrated to me.

But I get it, some ppl like that stuff, I'm not most
 
Absolutely fucking hate home ownership and when my son gets a bit older I'm selling the place and buying a motherfucking townhome or condo!!

I hate everything abt a home. I'm all abt care free living, community dues, let someone clean the fucking pool, and not sweating my ass off in the 100 degree heat on my day off working around the house when I could be on the lake getting my dick sucked! Home ownership is overrated to me.

But I get it, some ppl like that stuff, I'm not most
Haha I feel you man. If I didn’t have the fam and dogs I’d be kicking it in an apt without a worry in the world. Just me, my Xbox, and my tren
 
I now rent an apartment after selling a condo. Got tired of the taxes and condo fees going up. As I moved to NH I decided that owning is no longer worth it at my age so I snagged a nice apartment in a good area for about the same I had paid for owning.

Also the tax advantage of owning is all but gone too.
 
The only way owning a home is an investment is to be flipping houses and buying them right.

See, nobody tells you this shit, they all say ,"buy a home, quit throwing your money away on rent!"

Factor in interest rates, repairs, maintenance, new roofs, and people are paying an extra couple hundred grand for the average home cost. This is an investment for the bank, not the homeowner! That same home had been bought over 30 fucking times! So I stay in my home, pay interest, and even if I sell it for 50 grand more than I bought it for I'm still losing in the end! See ppl just want to look at purchase price and sale price and forget all the shit inbetween.

Anywaus, not trying to hijack a thread and I'll agree that a tankless water heater is a good buy!
 
Monoprice, lol. That's like using Fisher Price tools for demo work :D


never heard of him but his fabric looks legit. Golf simulation fabric and all that, too. Your fabric has a gain spec of 1.1 which is good, hd quality for sure. Prices are good, too. I'd imagine most of what they sell ends up in a fixed frame, meaning no roll up action (which is plenty good enough!).

If you look online you should be able to find a motorized screen cheap, look for one with a broken motor. The motors on more modern screens are all window shade motors, company called Somfy. You can source a motor from online for next to nothing in cost, and simply swap it on your dirt cheap broken screen. Recess that thing and have it trigger off your receivers 12v trigger.

That's a great idea actually. If you're good with it, I'll definitely run my av stuff by you when the time comes to start planning the much larger theater. Right now I just have a few ideas but I know once I start actually getting down to the details I'll be confused once more lol
 
No room for a projector, plus my room is too bright. Running a 65VT50 plasma with 6920ci Dennon, and a JBL Studio 5 series 5.1 with a L8400P sub. Once the plasma goes it will be replaced with a 75-82” OLED (C9 equivalent whenever the time comes).

Wish I could have a dedicated theater room, but I can’t make friends/family sleep in a theater room. Jealous of those who can run large screens in a completely dark room. That’s definitely where the whole experience is at.

JBL/Dennon are considered good brands AFAIK.

We didn't have the space or the darkness anywhere in the house except the basement. I cleared an area out that's roughly 16 x 20 and have been working with that. Setting it up in the basement as far as darkness goes was an easy choice.

There is actually a window behind that screen in the photo above and I put blinds up against the window, then taped tin foil in behind it so from the outside it doesn't look like shit but inside, behind the screen, you just see tinfoil taped inside the window frame. I leave the screen up where it is and don't move it so it's not fugly to look at.

Will be building a new house within the next few years and I'll be building a real theater room with a respectable budget so I'm really looking forward to that.
 
@ickyrica im so pissed. This Christmas I bought a sound bar and sub just because I wanted something better than the stock tv when I listen to music. I should have reached out. It’s a 38” visio and 8” sub I think. It was relatively cheap and it does crank pretty good for the price but I hear the difference when I turn it all the way up on something hard and fast.
I've heard a lot of mid range sound bars and I haven't been impressed at all. How do you find it?
Have a 65” Samsung set acquired from Best Buy and hooked up a nice pair of Monoprice tower speakers to it. Next big item will be a Denon AV receiver and a better sub woofer.

Not too shabby but yes it fits the bill for a small living room.
What dimensions are your living room? When you get the Denon receiver will you be getting more speakers or just the sub? Satellite speakers? Do you have a center channel speaker?

Been a home owner for 9 years now. Only things I have done so far is a new roof (original leaking and old), AC System (25 years old and got a killer deal), and a water heater due to it rusting out. Those are almost the three most expensive but adds value (but hurts the pocketbook)!!!

Looking forward to some of the upgrades y'all are discussing. If I had to choose which was the best, it would be the roof. I had a number of leaks and rotting plywood and worried about it getting to my ceiling.
Good thing you had plywood and not OSB. I still see people use OSB for roofs and it makes no sense to me. Most roofs will end up with some sort of water exposure at some point especially when it's more aged. Once OSB soaks up water you're in for some serious fun lol
 
JBL/Dennon are considered good brands AFAIK.

We didn't have the space or the darkness anywhere in the house except the basement. I cleared an area out that's roughly 16 x 20 and have been working with that. Setting it up in the basement as far as darkness goes was an easy choice.

There is actually a window behind that screen in the photo above and I put blinds up against the window, then taped tin foil in behind it so from the outside it doesn't look like shit but inside, behind the screen, you just see tinfoil taped inside the window frame. I leave the screen up where it is and don't move it so it's not fugly to look at.

Will be building a new house within the next few years and I'll be building a real theater room with a respectable budget so I'm really looking forward to that.
The Studio 5 series is the bottom Synthesis speakers. Good for the room I have (living room). My brother has the mid range Synthesis system with a 120” screen and a Sony 4k projector in a dedicated theater room with engineered sound deadening. His room is hands down the best home system I have ever heard. Puts the regular theater to shame.

If you are building from scratch I would go all out. Full Dolby Atmos (11.4.2). If I had the money it would be high a end Synthesis room designed by JBL. The only problem is a theater room can almost always be improved upon after a while. It’s hard to not want to buy the newest stuff.
 
That's a great idea actually. If you're good with it, I'll definitely run my av stuff by you when the time comes to start planning the much larger theater. Right now I just have a few ideas but I know once I start actually getting down to the details I'll be confused once more lol
Absolutely. There is a construction thread with some show and tell pics, I have a few posted. Lots of cool professions get posted up over there.
 
I've heard a lot of mid range sound bars and I haven't been impressed at all. How do you find it?

What dimensions are your living room? When you get the Denon receiver will you be getting more speakers or just the sub? Satellite speakers? Do you have a center channel speaker?


Good thing you had plywood and not OSB. I still see people use OSB for roofs and it makes no sense to me. Most roofs will end up with some sort of water exposure at some point especially when it's more aged. Once OSB soaks up water you're in for some serious fun lol
Honestly for the 150-180 bucks I paid it’s pretty fucking awesome. It does break up a little when it’s cranked all the way up but at 75 percent I can hear it anywhere in the house well and still get the bass from it. If I had the money I would definitely have done something better because I love music but this was perfect for what I wanted. My house isn’t huge so that obviously helps.
 
All I want to tell you guys is to take a look at Sonos if you have a retail store local to you. So worth the cash....
 
The Studio 5 series is the bottom Synthesis speakers. Good for the room I have (living room). My brother has the mid range Synthesis system with a 120” screen and a Sony 4k projector in a dedicated theater room with engineered sound deadening. His room is hands down the best home system I have ever heard. Puts the regular theater to shame.

If you are building from scratch I would go all out. Full Dolby Atmos (11.4.2). If I had the money it would be high a end Synthesis room designed by JBL. The only problem is a theater room can almost always be improved upon after a while. It’s hard to not want to buy the newest stuff.
That's awesome and sounds good. Any clue which 4k Sony projector he has?

I'll definitely be going that route with full Dolby Atmos. Man I was surprised the first time I heard the overhead speakers at a demo for Atmos. IIRC it was a plane flying over then also the middle of a battlefield with bullets flying overhead. Was sold instantly.

The Marantz receiver I purchased can support 9.2 so at the time it was a bit future proof. I'll likely upgrade my receiver though to fully support it and will get @ickyrica guidance when the time comes for that.

When you say it's hard not to want to buy the newest stuff you're dead on. Originally my budget was 10k but the more I learned it was leaning more towards 20k then had to force myself to back off. It likely would've kept climbing too lol

Next build will be much bigger but thankfully the speakers that I have now are pretty decent for what I was wanting so will add more speakers on top + the receiver and likely a new projector and will have a much higher budget to work with
 
Absolutely. There is a construction thread with some show and tell pics, I have a few posted. Lots of cool professions get posted up over there.
I'll definitely check it out. Thanks!

Honestly for the 150-180 bucks I paid it’s pretty fucking awesome. It does break up a little when it’s cranked all the way up but at 75 percent I can hear it anywhere in the house well and still get the bass from it. If I had the money I would definitely have done something better because I love music but this was perfect for what I wanted. My house isn’t huge so that obviously helps.
That's awesome. My parents bought a soundbar that was on clearance for around 250$ and it's not good at all. They hate it and there's almost no sound separation. Everything is kind of 'mudded' together and once you hit around 50% volume it doesn't get any louder above that LOL even at 100 it's the same as 50. No idea, it's just terrible.

Does yours have a 'surround' setting on it? If so, how is it?
 

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