Home Theater Installer recommendations? (Houston, Center: appointed, sale, new home)

[carryyourbooks]

we are in the process of building a new home to be completed in late September. we will have a dedicated media room and would like to know if anyone has a recommendation as to who is the best. service after the sale is probably the most important factor in our decision making. we have been to bet buy (magnolia), gallery furniture, and fry's. fry's didn't even have a working projector, so we were disappointed with them.

we are looking to have a projector and screen installed in katy. thanks for the help in advance.

[Htown2013]

None of those. You will probably find better quality equipment, prices, and service with a custom local dealer. Unfortunately I don't know any, but you can search and read reviews.

[kreeyax]

Here are a couple of local ones:

TV wall mounting,home speaker installation,cable & phone lines
http://www.avjobstoday.com

I had Texas Cable Doctors run my surround sound speaker wire in my game room. The cost was reasonable and they did a good job.

[carryyourbooks]

Originally Posted by kreeyax

Here are a couple of local ones:

TV wall mounting,home speaker installation,cable & phone lines
http://www.avjobstoday.com

I had Texas Cable Doctors run my surround sound speaker wire in my game room. The cost was reasonable and they did a good job.

do they sell and install projectors and screens? it looks like from their website, they only run cables. i am having everything prewired during the build process.

[deckhanddavy]

In regards to your projector/screen purchase, I would personally not purchase from local resellers. Prices are usually close to retail and can be had for much less from online retailers such as Amazon. (Actually, now that I think about it, Best Buy and Magnolia have stepped up their game by price matching Amazon, and there's no restocking fee.)

Do you know what screen/projector you would like for your room? Do you plan to install the projector to the ceiling? Also, if you are having the home pre-wired (we did the same), it is fairly easy to run the cabling through the conduit tubing they will leave in the wall. Check this out: How to Fish Wires Through a Conduit or Pipe: 5 Steps
Your new home should have a plastic plate covering the conduit at the rear of your ceiling where the projector will be installed, as well as an electrical outlet to plug the projector into. That conduit leads to the back of the room where your screen will be along with your media cabinet. They both run along studs where the projector will be mounted, and it's pretty simple to do. I did mine with nobody assisting me (and I don't claim to be a handy man by any means).

We had a new home built and I did all of the work myself. It took me a single evening after work. I can answer any questions that you may have if you decide to do it yourself.


How big is your theater room? Here are a couple photos of my room after I painted it and had everything setup



Prior to painting and mounting the projector


Also, I can help you pick out your home theater speakers, receivers and other components if you aren't too sure about those items either. I have a bit of experience with them.

[OKC2Houston]

I found a local installer to put some hardware I already had in that was a good price (don't have the name on me at work). Wanted to chime in, though, the Magnolia Design Center inside of the Best Buy on I-10 has been awesome to deal with. The manager came out to my house and did a survey and worked up a plan from my budget. They've priced matched everything against online prices. All that said, dealing with the main Best Buy floor salesmen was a bust and I wouldn't even bother.

[deckhanddavy]

Originally Posted by OKC2Houston

I found a local installer to put some hardware I already had in that was a good price (don't have the name on me at work). Wanted to chime in, though, the Magnolia Design Center inside of the Best Buy on I-10 has been awesome to deal with. The manager came out to my house and did a survey and worked up a plan from my budget. They've priced matched everything against online prices. All that said, dealing with the main Best Buy floor salesmen was a bust and I wouldn't even bother.

I agree. I purchased my center channel speaker from the Best Buy Magnolia store off I-10 near Fry Rd.. They were pretty darn amazing and went over the top in service. They were priced $50 over what online retailers were, but they matched the price for me.

[kreeyax]

Originally Posted by carryyourbooks

do they sell and install projectors and screens? it looks like from their website, they only run cables. i am having everything prewired during the build process.

If you are looking to buy a projector and screen, check out the package deals on this site:

Projector Package Deals For Home Theater - Visual Apex Projector Deals 1.800.883.7495

I imagine either company I linked earlier can install them for you if you aren't comfortable doing it yourself. But I'd probably call them to make sure.

[Bradden]

HomePro is a local company you may consider with a showroom on Beltway 8 North. They offer equipment and installation customized to your needs. I used them for some in-wall speakers and was very satisfied with their work.

[url=http://www.homeprotech.com/]Welcome to HomePro Inc - Home Technologies[/url]

[carryyourbooks]

Originally Posted by deckhanddavy

In regards to your projector/screen purchase, I would personally not purchase from local resellers. Prices are usually close to retail and can be had for much less from online retailers such as Amazon. (Actually, now that I think about it, Best Buy and Magnolia have stepped up their game by price matching Amazon, and there's no restocking fee.)

Do you know what screen/projector you would like for your room? Do you plan to install the projector to the ceiling? Also, if you are having the home pre-wired (we did the same), it is fairly easy to run the cabling through the conduit tubing they will leave in the wall. Check this out: How to Fish Wires Through a Conduit or Pipe: 5 Steps
Your new home should have a plastic plate covering the conduit at the rear of your ceiling where the projector will be installed, as well as an electrical outlet to plug the projector into. That conduit leads to the back of the room where your screen will be along with your media cabinet. They both run along studs where the projector will be mounted, and it's pretty simple to do. I did mine with nobody assisting me (and I don't claim to be a handy man by any means).

We had a new home built and I did all of the work myself. It took me a single evening after work. I can answer any questions that you may have if you decide to do it yourself.


How big is your theater room? Here are a couple photos of my room after I painted it and had everything setup



Prior to painting and mounting the projector


Also, I can help you pick out your home theater speakers, receivers and other components if you aren't too sure about those items either. I have a bit of experience with them.

that looks great. i, so far, was more impressed with the knowlege of the components at magnolia. they were the first for us to visit, so we weren't sure how they compared, but based on everyone's recommendations, i'm leaning towards magnolia a bit.

the room is 15 x 17. it has 9' ceilings, but a slant at the front and back to 80" at the wall.