Home Theater Geeks

Media Rooms

A media room on any budget happens to be one of our specialties. This room was planned pre-construction and co-ordinated and managed by Rob Wheeles. The owners gave a description of what they wanted and left it up to The HTGeeks and the custom builder to get the job done.

As you can see the room is stunning and the sound quality is hard to beat.

Components: Center TV is a Sony 65" HDTV Rear projection set, the two side TV's are Panasonic TAU 32" HDTV flat screens. The main TV has 7.1 Dolby Digital and DTS decoding provided by a Harmon Kardon receiver and a secondary amp for the Surround Back right and left speakers. The TV receives feeds from not only a HDTV cable box but a Direct TV HDTV receiver as well. There is a High Definition DVD player and VCR connected as well. The two Panasonic TV's have not only a gaming computer (Alienware) but each TV has an XBOX/PS2/GameCube and all systems are able to link to the internet for online gaming. Any of the game systems can be enjoyed on the main Sony HDTV and be listened to in 7.1 Surround Sound!

Speakers: The speaker of choice for this project was Speakercraft AIM 8 Fives. These speakers are 8 inch round in ceiling speakers they were used for the Front right and left as well as the right and left rear channel speakers. The Surround back right and lefts are Speakercraft MT 8 Three's and are Rectangular in wall speakers at just above ear level in the rear wall. The center speaker is a Speakercraft 6.5 LCR and is located on the bridge above the TV, this center has a pivoting tweeter to get the vocals to the listener. The subwwofer is Speakercraft BASSX subwoofer the largest sub made at the time by speakercraft and located at the back of the room and pointed at the seating position.

This is a detached room that formally was a guest house. The homeowner decided to add onto the guest house and have a play area for his son's band as well as the family hang out!

Below are more pictures during construction and links for the equipment listed:

www.speakercraft.com www.harmankardon.com www.directtv.com

This photo was taken during a fit and finish stage with the cabinet maker. No mistakes allowed! We dedicated 6 months and several days a week to the promise of an excellent system to the home owners and their family.

During construction we provided and installed what are called "Rough In Kits", if you have been very involved in the building of a home before they are used for can lights, A/C vents and most items that are placed in the ceilings and walls. They make sure that placement is not disturbed and that the drywall turns out as close to perfect as possible.

Any questions on this post please leave a comment or email me @ rob@hometheatergeeks.com

I would enjoy planning your next install or project!

Plasma Installs

Flat panel TV's have dropped over 60% in price since their release! We have installed several hundred plasma's and LCD TV's. The key to a clean plasma install is experience with the retro enviroment (Existing homes) hiding wires and getting all wires from the electronics to the plasma takes experience. A plasma doesn't just simply hang on the wall! After all the idea is a clean almost picture like illusion.

The electronics can be in a closet on the other side of the home. All equipment is controlled via IR relays or an RF remote control (Radio Frequency). These remotes are also more affordable these days and work thru the walls without any need for line of sight to the electronics. Below are several examples of how this plasma install looks and a few other installed systems. Most of our plasma installs had Leon Speakers for the audio delivery. Please visit: www.leonspeakers.com . The Leon speaker is custom made and matched in color to your plasma model. They are also made to the exact measurements as your plasma for a perfect fit on the wall. Placement can be loose or tight fitting to the plasma, that is completely up to you.

The beauty of a plasma TV is from any angle all viewers have an ideal seat. With the addition of flat speakers the sound is perfectly matched to the TV position. There are several technologies to choose from in TV's, we are very fond of plasma TV's. There are several myths out there that have been scrubbed by the manafacturers about plasma's. Leave questions and comments and we will answer.


Plasma TV's above fireplaces are in high demand. We have hundreds of installs under our belts. As mentioned before, you do not simply hang the plasma and whola, it works! Below is a retro picture of the plasma photo on the left. Not only is the power run to a place there was not power, but the power is linked to the surge protection via Panamax modules and a liscensed electrician. The HDTV and SDTV feeds are sent via Tributaries RGB+HV custom length cables and a DVI cable for future expansion. Always run extra wire, we will install several Cat5E or Cat6 cables for future use, your paying for labor you might as well get the most out of it.


This photo shows the cutouts for the left and right front and center speakers. The speakers used are Speakercraft AIM 8 One's. These speakers were the first on the market with aimability, meaning that the main parts of the speaker were direcional for exceptional sound placement (sweet spot)! As you can see the power and the video feeds are pulled thru and ready for termination. Spacers were needed to mount on this uneven surface, otherwise the plasma would mount oddly and possibly tilt. The equipment for this system is located in an unised closet in the hall and controlled via RF remote control.