[django11]

Noise travels both ways in the ceiling.  I left out insulation in one room (guest bedroom) which happens to be under the kitchen.  No way to sleep in late down there  .  If you do drywall, resilient channel is a cheap and easy upgrade instead of furring strips to help control noise.

[Bob in St. Louis]

I agree the 2'x2' or the 2'x4' white, smooth ceiling tiles look like crap, and appear "office like".

However, there are some great looking ceiling tiles that are very attractive and some also provide some acoustical benefits.
If you want, I'll grab some photos of my ceiling.

Bob

[mcgsxr]

I am up for some options around drop ceiling, I have experienced the convenience.

SWMBO however, wants pot lights.  We are aware of the sound transmission as a result.

Let's face it, I play pool down there now with music on (12 inch sub, 500w amp) and although it can be heard upstairs from the unfinished space, it is not too bad as long as I am reasonable with the volume.

I figure any finishing of any kind would only help reduce that by some.

[Phil A]

They do make a noise reducing board that comes in 4x8 sheets.  I saw it at Home Depot right after I had the basement sheetrocked.  I did throw some insulation in the basement ceiling at certain spots.  I'm sure it helped but where the basement ceiling is filled with stuff like duct work, the sound is going to travel.  I've heard of people also doing the double sheetrock thing.

[Phil A]

There's all sorts of products - acousticsfirst.com may have some as well as places like - http://www.acousticalsurfaces.com/echo_eliminator/sound_board.htm?d=0

[Bob in St. Louis]

Hey Mark,
My tiles are made my USG. I can get the specs if you're interested.
They weigh about twice as much as the typical white ones, are taupe in color, and have a VERY aggressive texture.
Here's a couple shots:

[Phil A]

Bob - the set-up looks beautiful.

[Bob in St. Louis]

Thank you Phil! 

By the way, I couldn't find taupe colored grid work for the tiles, or HVAC vents, I had to paint those myself.
Keep that in mind if you do fancy colors on ceiling tiles.

Bob

[mcgsxr]

It does look good, I recalled seeing some of it in other threads around here over the years.

You appear to have recessed lighting in those box shaped coves? 

[Bob in St. Louis]

I do have lights in the coves, but they're mounted in drywall.
(I have pics of that too).

Out in my hallway, I have the same fixtures mounted in those old school cheapo white 2'x2' tiles with no extra support.
After ten years, they're still doing fine and there's no tile sag.

[jimdgoulding]

Oh my, Bobby, that is quite the man cave you have there.  Is your equipment behind the full length glass door on the left?  What ARE those speakers?   

[Bob in St. Louis]

Thanks Jim. 
Yes, all my equipment is behind the glass door on the left (good eye for noticing that).
The speakers are DIY, sand filled, and open baffle.
They're 15" Hawthorne Audio Sterling Duets with a 15" center channel (notice the SB3 in the center channel).
The black cloth under the screen houses (4) 15" Hawthorne Audio "Augies" for Infinite Baffle bass duty.

Bob

[jarcher]

I am on the fence for PJ vs Plasma.  I doubt the room will frequently do double duty for viewing and pool playing at the same time.  I also am unclear (since the room is unfinished, there is no display down there now, and it is pretty uninviting for anything but pool playing for the truly dedicated!) how folks will use that display.  Will people walk past the 55 Plasma on the main floor to view downstairs?  Likely depends what is down there.

At present when I play pool, all other lights are off.  I am a pretty avid player, and unwanted reflections bug me.

Given this, it does seem like a projector makes sense.  Despite how cheap LCD's have become, to go really big nothing beats a projector for value, especially used.  Guess for under $1K you could do a 50" flat panel + a (used) projector / screen to give you both options.  If people are walking about the room, obviously mounting a projector high (ceiling or high shelf) makes the most sense.

[mcgsxr]

I have bought a lot of used gear over the years, so the value proposition is well known to me. 

Having never owned a PJ, not sure how I feel about a used one, but likely can come to grips with it as long as bulbs are available etc.

Kitchen reno threatening the budget for the basement, but I will fight the good fight!

I will continue to troll this circle for threads around folks looking at entry level PJ's etc.

[jarcher]

Even the entry level 720P Epson PJ's I think are pretty decent & not expensive :

http://www.amazon.com/Epson-EX5210-Projector-Portable-brightness/dp/B005J31BCY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1347126043&sr=8-1&keywords=epson+projector

Less than $480 delivered.  I tested out an earlier version & was impressed. Fan was a bit noisier than in high end projectors, and the dynamic iris clicking I found a bit distracting, but you can put it in lower light mode & disable the the dynamic iris if it bothers you. The first purchase was for an overseas in-law, and the other a recommendation to a friend, and both have been very happy.

I think once you get pass the $700 mark it's better to go for a high end used model.  I'm partial to JVC because of the LCOS implementation, though the Sony Pearls are good to.  JVC RS1 / HD1's are starting to hit below $900 now.  These are full 1080P. I own an RS1 and the replacement bulb, good for I think 3,000hrs, was only $135. 

I think you'll get a lot more enjoyment out of a home theater / PJ than a re-done kitchen - but I wouldn't be on AC if I thought differently......

[mcgsxr]

Oh the kitchen is going forward, I busted down the backsplash myself this AM.  Cabinets and countertops ordered, light electrical scheduled for this week.  I am the GC, so I am subbing out the other fun.

The basement will also happen, but is next in line.

Tks for the recommendations on the PJ's.  I'll be looking around Xmas when I assume some good deals new and used should be floating around.