Pre-wiring a man cave

[luvtheheat]

Hi all,

I am converting a 20'X20' carport into a heated / AC'd living space, mostly for use as a "mancave". Floorspace currently open to the elements will be bricked up and finished as a normal interior. It is connected to the rest of the living space.

I'd really appreciate feedback on how to wire this room for the home electronics for the 2020's, while I have the opportunity to work behind the eventual drywall walls to do the needed low-voltage wiring.

I'm looking for suggestions for how to wire for CATV, Internet (Cat 5/6/?), stereo other stuff I have not even thought of.

I have hard-wire CATV service to another room nearby, but running it to this area would be a bit of a PITA. Any alternatives? Does wireless CATV exist?

Any/all replies are thanked in advance.

Live in Tucson if that makes any diff.....

 

[Max]

I just did something similar for a forced redo of our small media room. We had a leaky wall that had to be fixed so I decided to take advantage of the open walls while I could. I should really take some pics and write it up for GJ. Anyway, here are the highpoints:
- Figure out where your equipment cabinet, speakers, and TV are going to go. Obviously you’ve also got to figure out 2,3,5.7,9 whatever on number of speakers. I used 16ga as my runs were short. You do not need fancy cable for this.
- Run speaker wires from the cabinet to all of the speakers. Don’t forget the subwoofer if you have one.
- Run cat5/6 from the equipment cabinet to both your network and TV. You could make this wifi but wired is more reliable and consistent.
- I use a receiver to drive both the speakers and TV, so I ran two (1 expensive and one cheaper) HDMI cables from the cab to the TV.
- Captain obvious says to make sure to put AC outlets behind the cabinet and TV as well.
- If you have an external antenna for the TV or FM on the receiver route coax to the cabinet or TV as needed. Similarly if you have any misc wiring like an IR receiver that has to drive the cabinet.

 

[SpiffR]

Just a couple of small things but easy to overlook or forget. Make sure your speaker wires are rated for in-wall (they are not really much more expensive, and easy to run) and keep any media or data wiring away from any A/C 120 volt wiring as much as possible. If you have to cross, cross at 90 degrees if possible.

If you can, have at least two A/C 120 volt circuits for your main electronics area. If you want some switched electrical sockets, you can plan those out as well.

Cat 6 should serve you well in the future and 48gbps HDMI cables are not THAT much more expensive and will support 8K/60Htz at 50ft with just copper internals. Pretty much anything can and will run via Cat 5/6 so a couple of dedicated runs from here to there in the walls have served me very well in the past. You don't even need to terminate them, just leave them ready to go in a wall/ceiling box for the future. A 500ft box is reasonably priced.

Hope that helps. Good luck, and dream BIG!

 

[ItsNemo]

Just run conduit for low voltage stuff with a pull rope in it...only sure fire way to future proof yourself.

 

[Daenan]

Great comments already. Add blocking anywhere you think you might ever need it (TV or any wall mounted stuff). And depending on how you're broadcasting network, consider provisions for a ceiling POE access point.

 

[firebirdparts]

Just lay out your tv and surround sound and Ethernet ahead of time if you want it. That’s critical. You prefer power up behind the TV so you better make up your mind now.

 

[CraigStu]

Could you build it but not drywall for a while? Do your best to plan it out and wire it. Then using it for a few months will answer your questions.

 

[dcg9381]

Hi all,

I am converting a 20'X20' carport into a heated / AC'd living space, mostly for use as a "mancave". Floorspace currently open to the elements will be bricked up and finished as a normal interior. It is connected to the rest of the living space.

I'd really appreciate feedback on how to wire this room for the home electronics for the 2020's, while I have the opportunity to work behind the eventual drywall walls to do the needed low-voltage wiring.

I'm looking for suggestions for how to wire for CATV, Internet (Cat 5/6/?), stereo other stuff I have not even thought of.

I have hard-wire CATV service to another room nearby, but running it to this area would be a bit of a PITA. Any alternatives? Does wireless CATV exist?

Any/all replies are thanked in advance.

Live in Tucson if that makes any diff.....

Have sub-panels on both sides of the garage. If it's really living space, maybe that doesn't play.

Cat6. Period. More drops than you need. I'd do at least two drops per AV location (TV/receiver).
If you're doing security cameras,most of those are POE (Power over ethernet) now.

I wired a ton of co-ax into our home. I have used a single wire (for the cable modem). For "over the air" - I use an Amazon DVR, every TV in the house is essentially amazon firestick and I can catch local channels over CAT6 to the DVR.

Wireless TV exists yes.. In all sorts of forms, inferior to wired though.

AV planning is the big deal. Right now it's HDMI - we wired for a 4k standard, you have to watch cable lengths and eventually go to "active" cables. I buy mine from monoprice.

But AV will change... I have a few drops that are 1" PVC with pull strings so we can adapt to whatever comes later.

In wall speakers. Did a few drops (analog) for subwoofers.

Putting in a ductless system?

We did a ventless ethanol fireplace - pretty easy to setup, looks great.. but it's more of ambiance rather than function.

 

[MerlinsBeard]

You may want to look at structured media enclosures as a cable hub and for housing some of the gear. If you have multiple A/V or network drops, I think you'll see some organizational benefits. Leviton and Legrand are good brands to use as starting points to investigate.

 

[dcg9381]

Structured media boxes are a good idea. Depends on what you have going in there. I went from structured media to full wall mount racks for AV and network gear, but I have a closet setup for that purpose. Getting everything central is a huge help.

 

[MerlinsBeard]

Do you mind sharing a picture of your setup?

I'm trying to plan some kind of space for centralizing AV and network gear when I finish the basement. I have a room earmarked to be unfinished that's a utility room that contains the furnace, water heater, and circuit panel, but a sump pump is also in the corner (which affects some wall placement) options. Since I have a walk-out basement and good drainage, I don't think it has run even once.

I'm not sure if I should carve out a closet adjacent to the utility room space or wall mount something in the utility room area.

 

[u2slow]

IME, I can't reliably pre-wire a space until after I have used the space long enough to settle on an arrangement. The ever popular 'future-proofing' is a bottomless pit.

Maybe throw in some basic wiring and and empty conduit or 2 to bridge key areas. Beyond that, get on with sealing and closing up the walls. Adding surface conduit later never bothered me any.

 

[dcg9381]

IME, I can't reliably pre-wire a space until after I have used the space long enough to settle on an arrangement. The ever popular 'future-proofing' is a bottomless pit.

You're gonna struggle if you ever build a custom home. I get it though.
In the shop, I went with 4x8 OSB panels. If I need to rewire something, I just pull the panels and work with what is behind them.

 

[u2slow]

You're gonna struggle if you ever build a custom home. I get it though.
In the shop, I went with 4x8 OSB panels. If I need to rewire something, I just pull the panels and work with what is behind them.

Lol! I already know the struggle with my custom shop.

While I like the idea of removable interior sheathing (I did this too) it's not my default for changing wiring. I'd rather run surface conduit than repeated fussing with insulation and air sealing.

Another idea for OP is to make good use of the roof joist spaces for getting across the room. Or drop the ceiling enough to allow perpendicular runs. ENT (aka core-line, Smurf tube) is often installed and left empty, for later use.

 

[Innovate1]

All good comments IMHO. Put in some conduit for pulling things you haven't thought of or that come to be in the future. 3/4" is good for most unterminated cables but for preterminated it may be too small. 1" should handle most connectors although there may be some even bigger.

 

[K'ledgeBldr]

I'd really appreciate feedback on how to wire this room for the home electronics for the 2020's, while I have the opportunity to work behind the eventual drywall walls to do the needed low-voltage wiring.

I'm looking for suggestions for how to wire for CATV, Internet (Cat 5/6/?), stereo other stuff I have not even thought of.

If the question is more about low voltage/sound system/entertainment-

Just build a closet to hold all the electronics/components. Almost all connections “could be” wireless- but that can certainly tax a wi-fi system. Hard wire to the place where TV will be, and speaker locations.

All the components can be controlled with a remote(s) through extended RF/IR eye/receiver(s).

 

[dcg9381]

All the components can be controlled with a remote(s) through extended RF/IR eye/receiver(s).

I've done it that way and hate it. It can get difficult in sunny environments too.
I've started using HDMI CEC. Basically using the TV to control the stereo. Component switching is done in the closet, but controlled by the TV. This means that AV can be controlled by a very basic Amazon Fire Stick controller. It's easy enough that my spouse and parents can use it.. You get away with having to do programming of remotes (still some minor programming of the fire stick) or know which things to turn on in series to run AV. Simple is better.

HDMI can be a flaky thing.. CEC more so -- whatever you do, before you stuff those wires behind drywall, hook it up and make sure it functions.

 

[K'ledgeBldr]

Yeah- I definitely like CEC. Of course, every component has to be HDMI enabled. Not always the case. But most components over the last 25yrs do have RF/IR remotes.

 

[dcg9381]

Yeah- I definitely like CEC. Of course, every component has to be HDMI enabled. Not always the case. But most components over the last 25yrs do have RF/IR remotes.

What I've found is that not all manufacturers version(s) of HDMI play nicely together, especially with some advanced features like CEC and ARC. It gets more risky when you add "active" cables to span distances.

And any cable length of HDMI going into the wall needs to be verified for target resolution.

 

[Alchase]

I have givin up on wired systems. The money spent on equipment closets and running wire, is staggering. I have bins of cat5, cat6, and HDMI I no longer use.
I went Mesh wireless with the exception of Blue Ray or Cable modem to TV.
My sound system is part Sonos, Apple HomePod, even Home Pod Minis. Though I will replace the stereos minis with the new Apple HomePods. The thousands I spent on equipment racks and wiring, is no longer needed. Yet I have very good sound and video though out my house and shop.
Could I be better with an equipment rack and wire setup? Most likely.
Is it worth the cost and pain in the ***, so far, no, not at this time in my life.

 

[Innovate1]

I have givin up on wired systems. The money spent on equipment closets and running wire, is staggering. I have bins of cat5, cat6, and HDMI I no longer use.
I went Mesh wireless with the exception of Blue Ray or Cable modem to TV.
My sound system is part Sonos, Apple HomePod, even Home Pod Minis. Though I will replace the stereos minis with the new Apple HomePods. The thousands I spent on equipment racks and wiring, is no longer needed. Yet I have very good sound and video though out my house and shop.
Could I be better with an equipment rack and wire setup? Most likely.
Is it worth the cost and pain in the ***, so far, no, not at this time in my life.

What mesh system did you go with? I have a couple Asus routers with mesh and it has been pretty good but very occasionally the node somehow looses it's mind and has to be power cycled.

 

[Alchase]

What mesh system did you go with? I have a couple Asus routers with mesh and it has been pretty good but very occasionally the node somehow looses it's mind and has to be power cycled.

I am using a Eero Pro 6E, currently have 5 setup. They have been pretty stable with gigabit speeds. And they have decent monitoring by app. Setup was not bad either.