In this post, we’d like to show you an example of a luxury cinema room installation carried out for a customer in Wilmslow, Cheshire. Please check out the overview video below which will give you an idea of the size of the room and type of automation processes we can work into the installation for you.
We’ve used a range of equipment here: discrete in-wall & ceiling speakers from Monitor Audio; a Denon A/V receiver; an Epson 4k projector; plus smart lighting controls via a Lutron RA2 select system – see our other blogs for more details on lighting control.
cabling for a luxury home cinema installation
First fix, here we go! We were lucky in that the cinema was part of the new build: you can see we had access to all the open stud work making it easier to route our cabling as required.
The process involved running a new socket circuit to power the projector, A/V receiver; plus extra sockets for games consoles, streaming boxes etc. We installed cabling for what would be several different switched zones of lighting to provide an authentic cinema experience: wall lights (the customer had already selected an Art Deco style fitting reminiscent of theatre lighting of the time), discrete low level lights (see our West Didsbury installation blog to see details of the Astro lighting used for that) – plus some functional Collingwood down lights.
We ran the high-quality installation grade QED speaker cables to each speaker position: all speakers to be used were passive, meaning that they do not require their own separate power supply; they are supplied by the A/V unit.
Again, we used a very high quality CAT6A cable along with a directional HDMI lead between what would be the position of the A/V receiver and the projector position – this was to be built into the stud wall at the rear of the room. The HDMI lead would be the primary input to the projector, but the installation of CAT6A provides other sources of picture, sound and data if required in the future.
You can see from the photos that this resulted in a lot of cabling! 3 speakers were to be located behind the screen, 2 sub woofers either side of the screen, 4 ceiling speakers and 4 wall speakers in total (spoiler: it sounds absolutely amazing!)
Acoustic grade 15mm plasterboard was used – 2 layers on each wall – along with acoustic grade Rockwool to insulate the room as best as possible from sound leakage. These layers also made for a good acoustic environment within the room itself. Once the carpet was down and the seating placed in the room, there was only the need for 2 ceiling mounted absorption panels to get the room sounding perfect.
Installing speakers, the A/V receiver, light fittings and sockets
Onto the second fix – you can see that the room quickly begins to take shape after being plastered and papered. The speakers used in walls and ceilings are flush-mount in-wall speakers: holes are carefully cut out before being fixed and connected up.
Monitor Audio WSS130 speakers are used in the wall positions – there are super slim at only 50mm depth, but pack a punch. Monitor Audio C265-IDC speakers were used in the ceiling. SVS SB2000 sub woofer units are used to help out with the low end, and in this instance have provided a nice depth to the sound without being too “boomy”.
All lighting is second-fixed, and added to the Lutron RA2 select system we have installed in the extension. This allows the customer to set different scenes with a the touch of a wall-mounted button upon entry to the room, or via the Lutron app.
The A/V receiver used in this instance is a Denon AVC-X4700H: a ridiculously feature-packed unit which amounts other things allows for multiple HDMI ins and outs; is ready for 8K; has exceedingly high quality onboard sound processing; responds to voice assistants such as Alexa; and allows you to bluetooth audio sources directly from say, a phone or tablet. It provided enough connectivity for us to connect all speakers and subs, and provided enough inputs for game consoles and other streaming service the customer wanted to integrate.
Please don’t hesitate to drop us a line if you’d like to discuss a home cinema installation in your property. Heritage Electrical can offer a home cinema installation anywhere in the UK. Give us a call or take a look at our bespoke home entertainment solutions and see what we can do.
