[zdub]

Hello and thank you all for having such a great community to talk about the joys of AV setup.

I am helping a family friend set up her new custom built house with a nice custom home system. I am currently a network tech (mcse cisco net+ a+...) and I already wired up the rj-45 (cat5e) patch's to each room, but I need to get some advice as to what to buy for audio equipment.

SEE PDF diagram drawing of house layout for audio wires. (sorry for my chicken scratches)
http://www.hankerds.com/images/b/av.pdf

I need to:

-Install paired speakers in 4 bedrooms (only r/l) which connect to the main living room receiver.

-Living room with receiver will be 7.1 while all rooms are 2.0 (r/l only no video)

-Install a volume control switch in each of the 4 rooms for their corresponding 2 speakers

-Research and purchase the best choice for a receiver (amp/preamp) rack mount or not, that handles this 5 zone speaker input. (a,b,c,d,e)

-Research and purchase the best choice for speakers (r/l) and (7.1 setup) for living room

-Research and purchase the best choice for volume control switches and speaker jacks.

Done or have:

-using 14/2SHDB Direct burial shielded speaker wire for each room

-using cat5e rj-45 and proper patch/jacks

-have good ol' electrician to help run all the wire the way I tell him to, so I need your input


questions:

-Is this new sony receiver any good? Sony STR-DA5500ES
New Sony AV Receivers Drive Multi-Room High-Definition Throughout the Home

-Is there anything anyone can see that will halt my entire system idea?
please yell at me and tell me what to do!
I just want to do this right the 1st time, please please let me know, I don't want to make this owner un-happy

check my pdf: i hand-drew every drop and room separate.

[neilball]

I don't know what the budget is but I would separate the music and cinema systems and avoid a speaker switch for the bedrooms as it is unlikely everyone would want to listen to the same thing at the same time.

With you IT background then you ought to look at Sonos as a network-based music system - has a great user interface and is very well supported. Can be used with internet streaming services and internet radio as well as local music accessed over the network or external sources via line in.

If you are keeping all of the kit out of site then have you considered all the requirements for aerials/TV distribution, satellite/Sky and remote control feedback from all rooms?

You mention speaker cable and Cat5e, what about video cable - HDMI, coax etc, and what about cabling for subwoofer in cinema room etc. although bedrooms are music-only then I would still wire for basic TV even it is for future use only. Cable for this is cheap, retrofitting later if someone changes their mind is a nightmare!

[zdub]

Good thoughts,
Each room will only have audio centralized. The video signals for each room are already there (rg-6) and will ultimately be connected to their own directv hd box, with their own sets of speakers (bose crap)
The speaker system is just for the owners requests to have all rooms wired to one in the living room, and ability to play music in select rooms/all rooms

The builder already put in drywall, paint etc, BEFORE we planned this (their mistake) I suggested 2x rg-6 and 2x cat5e in a jacket to each room, (that's how I always see it) but the speaker wire must be run.

Opus looks good, but overly complicated, simplify.
can anyone tell me any info about the NuVo racks and watts/setups?

[Kotch]

I'd agree that maybe a wireless system is the way to go.
Otherwise I'd also advise looking into using an audio distribution amplifier for this sort of thing rather than looking for something with all these zone outputs, run audio cable into one of the inputs of a little amplifier in each room to control the volume levels.

[vex]

Hi zdub,

I am guess from your posts, descriptions and terminology you are USA based?

If you are, some of our solutions from here (mainly UK and Europe based) may not be suitable or even available to you.

Have a look at Nuvo in the US and ABUS as a good range of solutions. Also try AVSforums.com as a mainly US based forum for help.

If you are based here in the UK, please accept my apologies and here are some other pointers.

Avoid RG6 if you can, Sky / Satellite TV don't really use it and most of our connectors are designed for this rather than the umpteen different types of RG6.

ABus really is the simplest system available other than going for simple Hifi's in each room, although you could look at networking something like Squeeze Box or Sonos boxes feeding local Hifi's

Hope that helps.

V.

[zdub]

HTD Multi Room Whole-House Audio
how does this look?