wiring a house with ethernet, HDMI, speakers, etc. ???

Unless your building a HT room with dedicated power supply, high-end gear with room treatments, you can do so much of this work yourself and same a ton of cash.  As someone previously mentioned, AVS forum is a good place to start if you are on a budget. Plenty of diagrams and members can help you troubleshoot any issues. Most of this wiring is by far not rocket science. It’s not like what an electrician needs to know. If you want to diy, buy your wiring online. Monoprice is great if you want wiring and cabling as good as anything you will find in any box store for about 80% less.

bklynnupe

in Home Entertainment Systems 13 years and 2 months ago

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elm_bk | 13 years and 3 months ago

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Hi, While my walls are open for all the necessary wiring/plumbing renovations on my very old very neglected house, i thought it would be smart to put whatever other wires under the sun I might ever need.  So far I’m looking at:  Cat5e for ethernet/phone, Coax for cable, HDMI for dig video/audio, and speaker wire, for good old fashioned music. can anyone recommend a source for basic info on how these things should be set up? eg where do i want everything – my contractor has a handle on the coax but doesn’t know much more than i do about where to start/end the other kinds of wires – eg what is the HDMI going to or from?? thanks for some guidance in getting started.  i have no budget for this, so bringing someone in to mastermind a fabulous home theatre is not an option, but i don’t want to be pound wise/penny foolish and not put stuff in properly while i have the chance . . . Thanks!

TheBrooklynCarriage | 13 years and 3 months ago

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Try a few DIY forums: cocoontech.com and AVSForum under their home automation and/or wiring sections.

shahnandersen

in Home Entertainment Systems 13 years and 3 months ago

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For starters you need to know what systems you will be installing now and in the future. Security, Fire, CCTV, Home Audio, Home Automation, Surround Sound, Thermostats, Smart Lighting, Phone System, POTS, Network, Intercom, Access Control, etc.  With the HDMI, do you want your componenents (cable box, receiver, Blu-Ray, etc.) in an entertainment center at your TV or stashed in a closet for that sleek look? If hiding you need to pull some 3 or 4 conductor cable for an IR repeater. Don’t forget to pull another line for the Wii sensor bar or the Kinect receiver. While you’re at it, pull a network cable. Do you have a receiver that accepts HDMI inputs – if so, you only need one out to the TV, but if you’re pulling 1 why not pull 2\. Pull a coax to the TV while you’re at it in case the future home owner doesn’t want to pay for cable or satelite. For all your HDMI cables and wall mounts check out monoprice.com, hands down the best value. Hopefully that’s a start. Shoot me an email if you have any questions or I can help.

JoeBushwick | 13 years and 3 months ago

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Since it is impossible to anticipate the technology you may need in the future, you might just want to put conduit in the walls with strategically located access boxes.  This way, you can pull whatever type of cables you need and when those become antiquated (in 15 minutes) you can remove and pull new cables.

jparnass | 13 years and 3 months ago

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We typically run phone wiring and cat 6 ethernet to each room (although most people really only use one wired phone jack), and add RG6 coaxial where there will be a TV.     An in-wall HDMI is really only necessary with a ceiling mounted video projector, or to drop down directly below a wall-mount TV.  The cleanest option by far with TV’s is to use a receiver to route all your inputs to the TV with a single HDMI cable.     With any low-voltage wiring, finding someone to do the cable terminations is always the hardest part.  The easiest route may be to buy pre-terminated cables (with connectors) of the appropriate lengths and use wall plates with integrated female connectors on the box (rear) side.

elm_bk | 13 years and 3 months ago

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Thanks everyone, what a knowledgeable crew this is!

slick | 13 years and 3 months ago

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I support putting a conduit behind the walls as well.

brucef | 13 years and 2 months ago

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I cannot speak intelligently regarding sound or CCTV, but from a data perspective, you want to pull multiple Cat5e or Cat6 data runs from each location to a central location, one which will be acessible and hopefully near a Demarc, or point of entry for cable/fiber/coax from a supplier. All crossconnect can be done at that locaation assuming everything is a home run. Don’t try to pre-plan the future layout, all re-arrangements will be performed at head end. You can go crazy trying to predict the future technology. Over ten years ago we pulled over a hundred fiber runs in a library that are still laying dormant in the walls. Fiber cable, and combo data/fiber cable isn’t actually that expensive, it is the terminations on the fiber that are technical. And you won’t need any terminations for the foreseeable future. This info is for the compulsives out there, I don’t necessarily recommend it.

bobjohn | 13 years and 2 months ago

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most of the stuff today and tomorrow would run on CAT5e / CAT6\. so put a lot of these and have proper hub. latter you can figure out how to connect cameras, home automation, speakers or phones to it.