False Chimney Breast Questions

[bazza2000]

In terms of speaker hole's, where they made sealed (except for the cable hole) boxes for a reason? i.e. to make sure sound went out the front and not back into the fireplace.

Also, the lights you have behind the TV, how do you find their use? i.e. do you use them when watching or just when the TV is off? and does the wife like them? :)

Thanks again for the advice,

[elootos]

Hello and welcome to the site!

Not sure why I sealed them, I can't remember exactly but it might have been to stop them a) falling out the back if I pushed them too hard, and b) to help with the acoustics a little. Maybe I was on auto-pilot when doing it and was in the mindset of 'making a box, must make a box...'

The LEDs behind the TV help in some regard, I've read in several places that light behind the TV helps soften the hard contrast with your eyes (i.e. better for your eyesight), and I also use it to know when I can get a decent picture with the projector; when the light becomes obvious I know it's dark enough to get the PJ screen down

With everything I do, the wife gives me the usual look of :dodgy:, but when it's all done and I've tidied it all up she's a bit more understanding :)

The main highlight of her disapproval was having to have a bath with a ruddy great hole in the wall through into the bedroom while I was fitting the in-wall TV.

(11-04-2009 08:04 PM)bazza2000 Wrote:  In terms of speaker hole's, where they made sealed (except for the cable hole) boxes for a reason? i.e. to make sure sound went out the front and not back into the fireplace.

Also, the lights you have behind the TV, how do you find their use? i.e. do you use them when watching or just when the TV is off? and does the wife like them? :)

Thanks again for the advice,

[bazza2000]

Thought I'd include my original email to you for other peoples perusal:

Firstly, may I congratulate you on an outstanding AV setup in your house.

So much so that my wife is smitten with it and wants to setup a similar false chimney breast setup too.

With this in mind, I have a few questions:

1. What height is you tv at? and if you have the choice would you have chosen higher/lower?
2. Are the speakers in the right place for you? or would you prefer them to be somewhere else or out of sight?
3. I have a PS2, how have you gone about connecting games consoles that require wired controllers?
4. Your USB/SCART connector sockets, did you must use a blanking place and carefully drill and cut to make the holes etc?
5. If you could change anything, what would it be and why?

Sorry for the millions of questions, but you've been there, done that and lived with the setup. I just wanted to get your experiences and gain vital knowledge of any improvements you would make to the setup,

Thanks fo rnay advice you can give,

[ali_g]

(11-05-2009 02:07 PM)bazza2000 Wrote:  3. I have a PS2, how have you gone about connecting games consoles that require wired controllers?

Hi Bazza, I hope i'm not speaking out of turn, but i also have a PS2 with my setup, and i found These to be a good purchase, just a few AAA's needed, i went for re-chargable ones from here. Obviously i can't comment on any other of your questions, but i thought i'd help.
And welcome

[elootos]

Then I'll post my email response then!

The TV is 1.2m off the floor and from where I sit 2.8m back it's a perfect height. The speakers are also in a good location and I wouldn't move them. Lifting the rears slightly higher helps improve their effect. I could make the front 3 more invisible making grilles with cloth the same colour as the chimney breast, I thought of doing that once but never got around to it.

As for games consoles, I've never hooked one up, I rely on the pc for any gaming.

The scart socket was bought as is, and I created the extra holes for the usb and LEDs.

(11-05-2009 02:07 PM)bazza2000 Wrote:  Thought I'd include my original email to you for other peoples perusal:

Firstly, may I congratulate you on an outstanding AV setup in your house.

So much so that my wife is smitten with it and wants to setup a similar false chimney breast setup too.

With this in mind, I have a few questions:

1. What height is you tv at? and if you have the choice would you have chosen higher/lower?
2. Are the speakers in the right place for you? or would you prefer them to be somewhere else or out of sight?
3. I have a PS2, how have you gone about connecting games consoles that require wired controllers?
4. Your USB/SCART connector sockets, did you must use a blanking place and carefully drill and cut to make the holes etc?
5. If you could change anything, what would it be and why?

Sorry for the millions of questions, but you've been there, done that and lived with the setup. I just wanted to get your experiences and gain vital knowledge of any improvements you would make to the setup,

Thanks fo rnay advice you can give,

[bazza2000]

Great, thanks for the responses.

Finalised my design last night and DIY man is there today building it for me!! Hopefully I'll get home and it'll all be sorted. More realistically, I think I may spend all weekend re-doing the work, but I can but hope!!

I'll post a few pictures when I have them.

[ali_g]

(11-06-2009 02:27 PM)bazza2000 Wrote:  I'll post a few pictures when I have them.

I look forward to it, i hope you're happy with your 'handyman's' work.

i'll too take some photos of my downstairs projector setup in the near future.

(Let's start building this forum!)

[bazza2000]

(11-06-2009 02:32 PM)ali_g Wrote:  

(11-06-2009 02:27 PM)bazza2000 Wrote:  I'll post a few pictures when I have them.

I look forward to it, i hope you're happy with your 'handyman's' work.

i'll too take some photos of my downstairs projector setup in the near future.

(Let's start building this forum!)

The frames all done and just needs final tuning for the speakers and the tv placement. I'm well please with the result and based on the original measurements I couldn't have done it better myself!! Certainly not as it only took him 6 hours to build it
The spark has also finished (4 sockets here and 6 on the wall behind) which is great and leaves me having enough sockets to cover any amount of playstation and xbox future releases that I need to plugin

---

Now that the hardware build is nearly complete, I've started to focus on the cabling and other AV design requirements. Come up with an initial draft of what I'd like. Any comments are welcome as to alternatives, primarily any alternatives to the "magic" eye/TV link solution. Has anyone used any good IR repeaters? My main concern is performance, i.e. when I press a button the sky remote, I don't want any delay, I need an instant response, can't be doing with only being able to flick through 1 channel every few seconds. Might need to tear down the false wall and pull the Sky+HD box through :)

[elootos]

You look like you've a good plan there for what you want. The frame's looking good as well; the flexibility that these false chimney breasts give is great and can be made to fit in the home to accommodate anyone's gear, but I hope visitors to this site don't think you have to have one to join in!!

Would you mind letting us know the rough labour costs so far to get what you've got. Mine took a whole week off work to sort, so cost me a weeks holiday (but saved me spending that week on going somewhere I guess).

I take it the 4 sockets inside the build are going to be accessible?

I think Keene Electronics have the best IR kit.

[bazza2000]

(11-07-2009 10:42 AM)elootos Wrote:  You look like you've a good plan there for what you want. The frame's looking good as well; the flexibility that these false chimney breasts give is great and can be made to fit in the home to accommodate anyone's gear, but I hope visitors to this site don't think you have to have one to join in!!

Would you mind letting us know the rough labour costs so far to get what you've got. Mine took a whole week off work to sort, so cost me a weeks holiday (but saved me spending that week on going somewhere I guess).

I take it the 4 sockets inside the build are going to be accessible?

I think Keene Electronics have the best IR kit.

Agreed about the joining in comment!!

In terms of labour and parts (time):

Chimney Breast - £190 (1 day)
Sockets - £100 (3 hours)
AV Kit - Cables, F-Plugs, Sockets etc - £150 (so far...)

I'm an IT contractor by trade, so I base any decision about getting people in on my daily rate which fortunately enough covers the Chimey Breast a sockets work and if I'm being honest, they've done a better job than I could anway. Also, the sockets are certified by an electrician, which apparently you need now if you get any work done.

Fire arrived today and speakers boxes, will get some photos of them on soon. I've also spent most of the day running cables from the loft (loft box area) down the wall, through a bedroom and out into the room behind.

Thanks for the info on the IR repeater, I'll take a look...