Smurfin's Big Project

Is the jammie doughnut on the rug part of the master plan :p
 
Is the jammie doughnut on the rug part of the master plan :p

:rotfl: PMSL I hadn't spotted that :rotfl:

Nice set up Smurfin. Enjoy reading ur threads :smashin:

Might have screen shotted and saved a few pics from the lounge project "my first ever proper house refurb project" looks really good :smashin:
 
Seems like 5 minutes ago, but I can't believe I first started this thread full of excitement...almost 6 months ago to the day. I'm a bit gutted tbh, because as of today I'm 99% sure I'm not going to be able to do the "big" project this year, however that said...I'm still going to do something :devil:

In reality this will likely be confined to sorting out the living room and at least getting the space ready for the dedicated room. Still not sure when any of this will happen, but hopefully in the next 3 months. In the meantime, here's a couple of updates to kit changes and some speaker porn.

The big Genelecs have been sitting the spare room since I took the photos in post #36. They're so big and heavy that I've just not bothered setting them up even for a day. Shortly after these, I also bought a set of Artcoustics for the living room part of the project, but having spent a ton of cash on all of these "long term" speakers, I was in a position of having way too many speakers in the house, and too much money tied up in kit I wasn't going to be keeping long term.

I ended up selling the Genelec HT208s (thinking the project would only be months off), and installing a set of Anthony Gallo Micros which I bought off the forums for a snip a couple of years ago. Always knew they'd come in handy, but they look pretty...well crap:



Initially I was thinking that all the effort for the custom grilles was a wasted effort, but then I had a cunning plan. Put the grilles on, hide the gallos and I won't even notice I have 3 tiny speakers for mains! Alas while my eyes could be deceived, my ears couldn't. God I hated these!

Actually, to put it into context, the Gallos are absolutely fantastic for their size and intended application, but the shortcomings are obvious and this began to really grate on me. Luckily, Russell came to my rescue and has loaned me a set of XTZ 99.26/.25 which I have to say are superb speakers. If I wanted a set of conventional standmounts and my budget was around the £1500 level for fronts, I would buy these in an instant. And in fact, even if my budget was alot more money, I'd still probably buy these!

No doubt my impressions were helped by selling the Yamaha 3067 AVR, to be replaced with my good friend - the Ada Suite 7.1 HD. Simply awesome processor and proof that real beauty lies within :D



After getting a power amp back into the mix, I couldn't resist lugging the Artcoustics into the living room last night and firing them up for a bit of a listening session.

That centre speaker is enormous :eek:





Really happy with these as - believe it or not - they really will blend in with the final room design and they sound alot better than I was expecting. The wife was understandably horrified mind :devil:

If I'm going to be restricted to the living room setup this year, I think perhaps an AB Systems power amp could be on the cards, hopefully I'll get to try one in this setup in the next few weeks :thumbsup: And hopefully my next proper update will be one that starts with "Hooray...work actually begins!"
 
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Very nice!

And yes that centre is huge.....
 
Loving those artcoustic speakers the design of then always amazes me they always sound fantastic!

Some stunning kit you've got mate!
 
I should add, the living room doesn't usually look like that, and the artcoustics are back in storage in what has become known as "the speaker dumping room" :(
 
Those Artcoustics look amazing Smurfin! Also your speaker dumping room sounds like my idea of heaven :).

Going to keep an eye on this thread :).
 
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Smurfin is porn not banned on the forum m8!

This is really awesome and a great thread!:thumbsup:
 
LOL :devil: Thanks for the comments chaps, not exactly exciting stuff, but hopefully at some point it will be!
 
First, the DIY AV-IKEA is really great!
The big Genelec are very interesting. I was very close to buy active studio monitors to our home cinema a week ago, but ended with Klipsch THX Ultra2. I will definitively consider Genelec or at least active studio monitors to my living room setup.
I'm looking forward to se your room with the Artcoustics mounted. They are so much bigger than what I expected.:smashin:
 
looking forward to for what you have in store....some excellent set-ups you've had there mate.

Kind of been in a similar position to you, been dreaming of a dedicated theatre room since i was wee little. Mines just coming to fruition........(tells ones self) must start my own thread!.

Sid
 
First, the DIY AV-IKEA is really great!
The big Genelec are very interesting. I was very close to buy active studio monitors to our home cinema a week ago, but ended with Klipsch THX Ultra2. I will definitively consider Genelec or at least active studio monitors to my living room setup.
I'm looking forward to se your room with the Artcoustics mounted. They are so much bigger than what I expected.:smashin:

Out of interest, what made you go for the Klipsch? And what actives were you close to buying? Looking forward to seeing how your room changes with the baffle wall :)

Must admit I can't wait to get the artcoustics up, in order to make it less av and more "family", I've agreed with the wife that we're going to have photos of our two little girls screen printed on the grilles instead of the typical art you see on most artcoustics :)

What's shocked me is that they sound bloody good, very very surprised, although I'm dubious about the height I need to put them at. That's a question for another thread though.... :)
 
Kind of been in a similar position to you, been dreaming of a dedicated theatre room since i was wee little. Mines just coming to fruition........(tells ones self) must start my own thread!.

Sid

The post above is useless without pics! :laugh::clap::devil:

I'm interested to see your room and the seating you've chosen :)
 
Out of interest, what made you go for the Klipsch? And what actives were you close to buying? Looking forward to seeing how your room changes with the baffle wall :)
Well, Klipsch THX Ultra2 and M&K THX etc have been a "dream" for a long time, wanting to have dedicated cinema speakers in my dedicated room. I rarely play music in the room, so it's 98% film for us. I just got a bump in my budged and at the same time a THX-set came the marked for a unbeatable price. I originally wanted Jamo THX 500 and had almost ordered them, when someone suggested active studio speakers. I had very a limited budget and was recommended a certain type of Behringer(can't remember the model now) that was supposed to have very good specs.

Your Genelec are huge and are far more desirable.

Must admit I can't wait to get the artcoustics up, in order to make it less av and more "family", I've agreed with the wife that we're going to have photos of our two little girls screen printed on the grilles instead of the typical art you see on most artcoustics :)

What's shocked me is that they sound bloody good, very very surprised, although I'm dubious about the height I need to put them at. That's a question for another thread though.... :)

Artcoustics are WAF to the core, but still doesn't compromise that much sound wise(hence the size, I guess).
Perfect for a living room setup. Good luck with them, I'm eager to see how it turns out.:)
 
.... hopefully my next proper update will be one that starts with "Hooray...work actually begins!"

Hooray....work actually begins!:thumbsup::clap::thumbsup:

Day 1, and the emptying begins....




How many cables!!??



I must admit, I'm really not looking forward to sorting out that tangle, and re-plumbing it once the room is finished and the kit is re-installed. But at least things really, finally, have begun :smashin:
 
Looking forward to it very much.

When your done you can come over to me and sort my cabling nightmare :D

Coffee supplied :hiya:
 
:laugh:

Speaking of cabling, I feel like I'm just adding to it. A load of cables from Mark Grant arrived today, plus a few cat6 modules, 20 patch cables of various lengths and 1000ft of Cat6 solid :rolleyes: And now let the fun commence...
 
Looking forward to selling this one with those fantastic speakers, good luck
 
Is that an M-form bracket? If so, did you have to specify different vertical pieces to fit the back of the Samsung?
 
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Thanks. I think I have the same one and wondered if I need to change anything when I move from a 37 to 50" plasma.

Looking forward to the rest of your thread. Your previous rooms have been fantastic.

(I like how you've got your Makita drill in nearly every shot!)
 
This is pretty much guaranteed to be epic! Can't wait for some more pics :=)
 
(I like how you've got your Makita drill in nearly every shot!)

:laugh: Most used tool I have!!! Buying decent tools has been the single most important thing I've learnt since getting hands on with projects.

This is pretty much guaranteed to be epic! Can't wait for some more pics :=)

To be honest, you may be disappointed! Budgetary restrictions has meant the dedicated room has gone back to next year, and I'm struggling with budget/priorities in a number of areas.

My main priorities are non-AV unfortunately (or fortunately if you're my wife :D ). Plumbers are in right now - I'm having a new shower put in the bathroom, new sink, lighting etc. I'm having the cold water tank in the loft moved, a whole house pump put in the airing cupboard, new kitchen tap and a couple of radiator replacements (for admittedly nice, funky designer rads).

For the living room, I'm building a false chimney with custom made floating shelves either side, plantation shutters on the patio doors, removing 2 rads and putting a new one in. Hopefully also having lighting and flooring done, so the living room will look a wee bit different :)

A few changes in the kitchen with a new window, new tiles and re-decoration...but that's about it aside from decorating all over the house.

Rome wasn't built in a day though, as they say :)
 

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