Prewiring for ceiling speakers....

[beelzerob]

Ooooo, ok. I get it. Ya, that IS clever.

If "sealing on both sides" means just stapling it in place like you normally would, then I think I'm up to that. Anything else comes close to more work than I want to invest in it.

I think what I'm going to do is run the wire up or over to a wall section also, and if I'm pressed for time to finish wiring, that'll be my alternate location. The only places where I'm considering this are upstairs bedrooms, where I am only planning on running 1 speaker anyway, due to the room size. (These are only for background sound). However, that also includes our master bedroom, which is definitely wide enough for 2 speakers and would have this insulation problem.

 

[acdcelectric]

I pre-run the wire, wait until the drywall lid is installed, cut the speaker holes and then duct tape paper paint buckets from the paint store over the holes, puch a hole through the top with a screwdriver and feed the wire in. At install time, just hookup the wire and shove the speaker in the hole.

 

[upstatemike]

If you only use a single speaker, still run 18/4 to it for a stereo feed. At some point you might want to use one of the dual cone stereo speakers for better sound.

 

[beelzerob]

If you only use a single speaker, still run 18/4 to it for a stereo feed. At some point you might want to use one of the dual cone stereo speakers for better sound.

Ya, I'm just going to use 16/4 for everything, and in the small rooms I'll use dual cone speakers instead of a mono.

 

[Steve]

Yes, use /4 and leave enough of a service loop at the speaker to reach the opposite side of the room. That way you have enough to pull out a pair and use separates. But if shopping @Keystone especially, I would consider the 14/4 high strand count. It's not that much more. Especially if you have runs > 50'.

 

[beelzerob]

Yes, use /4 and leave enough of a service loop at the speaker to reach the opposite side of the room. That way you have enough to pull out a pair and use separates. But if shopping @Keystone especially, I would consider the 14/4 high strand count. It's not that much more. Especially if you have runs > 50'.

:wacko:
Noooooo!! No more "it's just a little bit more".... I don't think I can take it anymore, or at least our budget can't....

*wimper*

However, in this case perhaps it might be worth it. Most of my runs are over 50', and as has been said, this is perhaps the 1 time to splurge, since I won't be doing this again on this scale or ease. I'll ask Jim about the 14/4 high strand count then. Thanks Steve. (*cry*)

 

[Steve]

I hear ya, but yes, the prewire is not the place to skimp, you get 1 good shot at it. Stuff IN the house that you can add later can always take the hit on waiting till the budget recoups (like it ever will!). I'm by no means an audiophile, but after alot of reading went with the 14/4 high strand count even for a Nuvo background system. Copper changes and its probably gone up but back in March it was .42 foot or $210 per 500 foot roll.

 

[MikeB]

I went with 14/4 for my speaker runs. The LAST thing you want to be doing is second guessing yourself later, wishing you had went with a higher gauge wire.

 

[beelzerob]

But if shopping @Keystone especially, I would consider the 14/4 high strand count. It's not that much more.

:wacko:

Ack! Appearantly those days are over! Ouchie...it's almost twice as much. Maybe i'll just turn my receiver up really loud to push through the 16/4....

I'll probably still do 14/4, because even though expensive, I don't need a lot of it compared to, say 22/4.

 

[upstatemike]

While I agree with Steve that 14/4 would be the best option, I have run speakers for long distances in my own house with what I had on hand... in this case it was 16/2 shielded wire. I used the drain wire as negative for both channels (making sure the amp was wired that way) and I did not feel the audio was compromised. I also checked the run with an impedance bridge and did not see enough added resistance to be an issue.

 

[CollinR]

Put in cheap speakers, little Cindy won't know for years!!!

 

[MikeB]

I bought some el-cheapo speakers from Parts Express (less than $40 per pair I believe) and I think they're great for simple background music. It's not like I do any critical listening while in the shower or getting dressed in the AM. I bought some higher-end speakers for my larger kitchen, and you know - the sound quality is pretty similar.

Definitely try out a pair of inexpensive speakers before you go crazy.

Russound also has a line of inexpensive in-ceiling speakers I saw at EHX that I thought sounded decent.

 

[beelzerob]

Put in cheap speakers, little Cindy won't know for years!!!

Heheh...ya, years of growing up in our house, and then one day she ventures over to someone else's house and goes "what's that SOUND?....you mean that's MUSIC??". Ooof, we'll pay for it then.

MikeB, you bring up something that I've been thinking of....probably the one speaker I DO want to get now is a shower speaker, so the guys can properly sheetrock and seal around it. Anyone have one they recommend? I had planned in the shower ceiling, but is that a bad idea (more likely to get moisture in it?)?

 

[CollinR]

Seriously you don't need nice overhead speakers in every room.

Might look at New Wave Audio...

That guy was a design engineer for JBL now doing his own thing, very good bang:buck ratio.

 

[Steve]

Put in cheap speakers, little Cindy won't know for years!!!

Heheh...ya, years of growing up in our house, and then one day she ventures over to someone else's house and goes "what's that SOUND?....you mean that's MUSIC??". Ooof, we'll pay for it then.

MikeB, you bring up something that I've been thinking of....probably the one speaker I DO want to get now is a shower speaker, so the guys can properly sheetrock and seal around it. Anyone have one they recommend? I had planned in the shower ceiling, but is that a bad idea (more likely to get moisture in it?)?

I'm certainly not an expert, but I would think any speaker would have a limited life directly in the shower. I am putting mine more toward the center of the bathroom and it should still be heard fine in the shower itself. I know there are speakers sold as 'shower speakers' but I wonder how special they really are vs a regular speaker that does not use any paper. On the extreme end, there are real specialty shower speakers like the Kohler Speaker Tiles. These are made to complement their water tiles and DTV systems but work just fine as an independent speaker. They re not cheap but are designed 100% specifically for the shower. I can just see a regular painted grill starting to rust and look crappy in not too long a time.

But thats just my guess. don't have speakers directly in the shower....