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Part II – Installation
Once you have determined the general locations of all the speakers,
volume controls and the stereo equipment center, you are ready to begin
the installation process.
We will start by defining the materials needed. Then we will describe
both the new construction and the existing construction installation
processes.
Materials
"J-boxes" & "Jack Plates"
A multi-gang J-box (figures 1a & 1b) with IWM-8BPG - eight (8)
conductor jack plates (figure 4a) will be used to transition the wires from
the stereo equipment center into the wall in a neat and organized manner.
We call this the head-out because it is from here that the wire paths head-
out on their way to the various rooms.
Basic aspects describing J-boxes include J-box size (1, 2, 3, or 4 gang etc.
and depth) and material (plastic or metal). "Gang" refers to the number
of switches, jack plates, etc. the J-box will accommodate. For example,
if used for a light switch, a single gang would hold one, a 2 gang would
hold two, and so on. Each gang will accommodate two pairs of speakers
when IWM-8BPG jack plates are used (figure 4a). So, for example, a 3
gang J-box will provide termination for six rooms or six pairs of speakers
using three IWM-8BPG's (figure 4b).
For the most part it is difficult to find readily available J-boxes larger
than 4 gang. Pro-Wire makes a special 8 gang J-box called the HI-LO 8
(figure 5) that fits between 16" on-center studs. An 8 gang cover plate
for it is available in white, ivory and almond colors.
In addition to the multi-gang J-box, you will need to accommodate the
volume controls.
For new construction, a single gang J-box will be needed for each room
with a volume control. Make sure these J-boxes are large enough to hold
the volume controls (figure 2a).
For existing construction, a single gang "old work" mounting ring will be
needed for each room with a volume control (figure 2b).
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