When it comes to home theater wiring, the guiding principle is to... do it safe, do it once, do it right!
Safety: This is a most important aspect in any home installation.
Abiding with these standards does not yield a much higher expense and you will surely sleep better at night once you know your home theater wiring project meets all required safely regulations.
Planning: You also need to plan your wiring carefully; planning is the key to future proofing your installation while avoiding costly alterations later.
Think about your all AV equipment and speaker placement, your room lighting requirements, networking, possible future additions, etc. These will determine the quantity and placement of the various audio/video points in the room as well as the electrical needs for your home theater installation.
Part of your planning process is to determine the best route your cable runs should take. This will help you estimate the required cable lengths as well as any cable management products and wall termination plates necessary for the whole home theater wiring project.
Finally, when it comes to estimating the required cable lengths, do not just calculate the linear lengths to complete your cable runs; allow for at least 20% extra to cover for possible errors and slack for terminations.
Budgeting: Your wiring requirements arrived at during your planning stage will determine the budget necessary for your home theater wiring project. Will you be able to complete such a home theater wiring project yourself - especially if you opt for in-wall wiring? If not, you will have to add a good portion to cover the cost of a qualified contractor or home theater installer.
As we say in our article Selecting Speaker Wires and in our Cable Quality Implications discussion, in most instances it would be impossible to tell the difference in audio and video performance between cheap and expensive cables especially with short runs. So try to opt for good quality thicker cables rather than for the cheapest or the most expensive.
At this point just take note that when it comes to a new wiring installation project, buying cables in bulk if appropriate for your installation, will save you money.
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