Home Theater Transformed Into Star Trek Bridge

gevmage writes "Gary Reign, a guy with apparently way too much time on his hands, built a home theater in his basement. This is not unusual. However, the room is designed, floor to ceiling, as the bridge of a Star Trek style starship. See his photo page for details."

"Ach! Capt'n!!!"

"It's the server! She canna handle it!!"

Re:"Ach! Capt'n!!!"

Damn it Scotty. Reroute main power through the Auxiliary nyud [nyud.net] Pathways.

Re:"Ach! Capt'n!!!"

I've been watching Voyager, and they don't reroute anything anymore. They remodulate it. They remodulate shields, they remodulate phasers, they even remodulate things that have never been modulated before and seeming make no sense to be modulated, like the universal translater. All I know is it fixes everything technical, and i really need to learn how to do it.

Re:"Ach! Capt'n!!!"

Reverse the polarity of particle flow! Reroute a phase-shifted tachyon pulse through the main deflector dish! Blow out the ramscoops! Tea, Earl Grey, Hot!

Re:"Ach! Capt'n!!!"

We are Slashdot. Lower your firewalls and prepare for decimation. Your biological and technological distinctiveness is already similar to our own. Resistance is futile.

Re:"Ach! Capt'n!!!"

Here's another story on it with a slideshow:

http://www.electronichouse.com/article/star_trek_t heater/ [electronichouse.com]

Working mirror

http://www.networkmirror.com/8gLhAa08HLchC6VZ/www. reighn.com/theaterphoto.html [networkmirror.com]

One photo missing

It looks like he did a lot of work, and it looks authentic.

However, there's one photo missing: one of these days, he'll have to sell that house. I want a picture of the real estate agent's face when they see that room!

"Captain, property values have slowed to impulse power."

Market value, schmarket value.

Why do people automatically make that assumption? Look, unlike the nutcase in England who ran himself into unbelievable debt to make a transporter room in his flat, this room at least serves a legitimate purpose: home theater. And in that perspective, why not use something like the bridge of the Enterprise? The screen does exactly what it's supposed to do both on the Enterprise and in a regular theater - show video; the dome lights do exactly what they're supposed to do on both the Enterprise and in a regular theater; the speakers are placed in strategic locations where speakers should be placed for a home theatre system. Considering the things that he could have done to his house to show his love for Star Trek, this is probably the most practical and least bizarre.

It's nowhere near as kitsch as you guys are making it out to be. If he had a regular door instead of a Starfleet door and replaced any blatantly Star Trek-related items with something more contemporary, no one would be bashing his setup. "Nice bookshelf, nice ceiling lighting, leather chairs, big screen, hidden speakers -- this is really nice. Oh wait. Look! The door (that can very easily be replaced) is a Starfleet door! Oh, how stupid this whole thing is!!" Oh, please. I honestly think that to anyone who is a Star Trek fan and has an appreciation for home theare this is not nearly as much of a turn-off as you'd think.

Yet look how Slashdotters react when the newest, highly-creative, PC case mod comes out. "Cool!" "Where do I get one!" "And it's water-cooled!" "Look how it glows!" "r0x0rz!" "Awesome case!" I certainly love cool-looking PC cases, too, but most people would scorn us for paying premium prices for a PC case, no matter how cool it looks. So, perceived value goes both ways.

And don't confuse "market value" for "marketability" or "sellability". They're completely different. The "market value" for a PS3 when it first came out was $699. The "marketability" and "sellability" values were obviously much, much higher. Houses are no different. I don't see this particular home theatre design hurting its market value, but I do see it increasing its marketability to even mild Star Trek fans who happen to love home theatre, especially when the blatant Star Trek-related items appear to be easily replaceable.

Re:Market value, schmarket value.

I think what disturbs many people is that this guy obviously does not care about resale value, or getting laid. Anyone who is not interested in either cash or sex, but instead does something just because it is fun, is looked at as deviant by many.

Re:Market value, schmarket value.

Agreed. I, for one, think it's brilliant. He didn't obsessively create a replica of a bridge. Instead he combined elements that worked for his theater. I particularly like the way he combined bits from both series while at the same time keeping to the main idea of a home theater. Good job.

Re:One photo missing

However, there's one photo missing: one of these days, he'll have to sell that house.

Says who? Oh sure, some day he'll die. But I'm betting he'll be interested in an entirely different real estate market by then.

A house is just a place to live. If you want to make money, there are a few hundred thousand other things in the world you can pour money into that will have a better return.

Spending your time designing, sweating, building and creating just so that the next guy will give you a couple extra grand to enjoy the fruits of your labor seems like a waste of time to me.

Wormhole

Ah, the server has been drawn into a wormhole.

Because you KNOW his site ain't up to the task...

Mirrordot copy of his photos [mirrordot.com]

Obligatory

[kirk]Slaaaaaaaaaaaashdooooooot![/kirk]

Re:Obligatory

Frankly, I don't see what't so funny.

May I be the first to say....

Nerd Alert!!

To Boldly go ...

Where no geek has gone before

Re:To Boldly go ...

Where no geek has gone before

More like where no woman has gone before.

Re:To Boldly go ...

Anyone show up in^H^H out of their Betazoid costumes at that wedding?

SWEET!!!

When I have money to burn, I'm just going to set it on fire...

Slashdotted?

Anyone care to put up a copy of the pic elsewhere?
Preferably with a better connection to the internet than a string phone...

The server, she canna' take any more..

http://www.reighn.com.nyud.net:8080/theaterphoto.h tml [nyud.net]

Hmmm

Seems the Bridge has been taken out by a Romulan Warbird.

Also on Digg

Here are some links posted from the digg page:

Original Digg link: http://www.electronichouse.com/article/star_trek_t heater/ [electronichouse.com]
Digg story: http://digg.com/mods/Really_Cool_Homemade_Star_Tre k_Theater_(slideshow) [digg.com]

From comments:
The Larger image: http://img176.imageshack.us/img176/5278/bridge20p2 byb1.jpg [imageshack.us]

The Rest of the Images:
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/133/359998062_55e90 27569_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/133/359998119_809ed 5da60_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/123/359998172_f021e fe498_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/153/359998234_d270e 45959_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/142/359998290_a7623 c7d59_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/147/359998333_c5803 bdc6e_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/156/359998390_a74a8 2a810_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/155/359998428_4ac3c 1684f_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/140/359998462_bf5ce 60ad6_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/140/359998485_a6d15 532c6_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/152/359998563_3f6de 24886_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/144/359998627_c99c0 53489_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/148/359998677_000d1 14cc4_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/143/359998726_eb86d d150d_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/123/359998787_ed787 6b750_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/151/359998824_8cf13 5fdd1_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/164/359998898_bf636 4c6bc_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/154/359998947_ebddb 0397c_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/137/359998997_22c85 e7ce7_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/154/359999058_6ae94 207a1_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/145/359999103_f0e56 492b1_o.jpg [flickr.com]
http://farm1.static.f [flickr.com]

I've seen this before

I remember reading about this about a year ago. The man in question was so dedicated to his fantasy that he went through bankruptcy and a divorce before he finished it.

It would have almost been worth it if the teleporter worked.

Re:I've seen this before

Why is this modded "Informative"?

You're thinking of Tony Alleyne [bbc.co.uk], who designed his apartment in grand Trek style.

Also, just to nitpick, have you ever watched Star Trek? It's "transporter", not "teleporter".

And the Shatner quote:

"Have you ever kissed a girl?"

Re:And the Shatner quote:

And your Grandmother dosen't count!

Turbolift malfunction?

Strangely enough, the girlfriend can no longer be seen entering via the turbolift.
On a completely unrelated note: what happens to the room when he puts in any Star Wars DVD?

Why did he..

blur out the LCARS screens?

Re:Why did he..

So no one could read the command codes off the screen and lower his shields. Geez, didn't you see Wrath of Kahn?

Re:Why did he..

WRONG! That was Wrath of Khan. In Generations they found out the Enterprise's shield frequency so they could fire a weapon to penetrate them.

Slashdotted?

Damn and here I was waiting for the digg effect to wear off so I could see the site and then WHAM here comes slashdot.. well I guess another 2 days waiting won't hurt ...

Damn, I wanna be that guy!

...but not his server today.

entertaining!

Even if you're not a Trekkie, immersing yourself into a different environment like this would make for a more interesting experience. After all, isn't the point of such a room to entertain?

What I really want to know, though, is whether he requires his guests to lean dramatically back and forth during chase scenes?

Re:entertaining!

What I really want to know, though, is whether he requires his guests to lean dramatically back and forth during chase scenes?

All I can say is that if he invites you over to watch a movie do not, I repeat, do not wear red.

KFG

Star Wars theater is better

http://www.dillonworks.com/portfolio/starwarstheat er/ [dillonworks.com] http://www.modernhometheater.com/virtualtours/star _wars/slideshow/index.html [modernhometheater.com]

Projector for Home Theatre

While my home theatre doesn't look anywhere as nice as this guy's, it is imporant to note that he's using a projector, and not a (hugely expensive) plasma or LCD -- far less glass to move, HUGE image size, and higher quality

Of course, I'm using MythTV [mythtv.org], and an NEC 135LC analog 3-tube projector. Captain Kirk's head is sometimes 6 feet tall.

A good place to NOT wear a red shirt.

When reaching for refreshments, be careful not to confuse the beer cooler and the Medusan.

Does it have force feedback?

I want to believe that during movies with explosions and crashes, the viewers get thrown around from side to side of the bridge, er, room!

KeS

Too much time on his hands...

Well it's better than writing viruses or sending out spam......

Brings new meaning to the phrase...

"Beam down Yeoman Rand and a 6-pack".

I was going to do it.

But I asked and my wife said:
"No way in Hell!"

Good for him

The guy probably spent 4+ hours/day on a project that now makes an interesting story. Meanwhile, the rest of us of spend 4+ hours/day screwing around on the web or watching TV. Who's the one with too much free time?

I say good for him. And I yield to his nerd superiority. I'd buy him a beer, but something tells me he only drinks whatever they serve on Deep Space 9.

OMFG

This dude is my GOD! If he's looking for a wife, my ex-gf would KILL to marry him.

Time on hands

"a guy with apparently way too much time on his hands"

Actually it looks like a good thing to do with spare time: he was creative. That took some thought, design work, and craftsmanship.

"a guy with apparently way too much time on his hands" is apparently code for "I think how you spend your free time is silly."

Not thinking this through...

No couch? Chairs/loungers only==no snuggling.

It's almost like he never expects to have a woman over...

star trek hotel

The las vegas hilton, which hosts the star trek experience museum and thrill ride, has several rooms in trek-noir. I recall a casino lobby, restaurant, walkway, holding room, elevator, and a couple restrooms.

I'm impressed

He made something that looks sweet, sounds great, and is comfortable. He made it look like a set from a popular sci-fi series, while remaining practical about it. And he only spent about 15,000 on everything in that room. That might seem like a lot, but for a complete home theater, with all the trimmings, that's not a bad deal. He had the money, he used his spare time, he's got a wife and kids (and isn't some looney isolated social reject nerd), and he decided to do something pretty incredible.
Good show.

TNG Style Bridge? What a waste of time...

TOS Style is the way to go. And he likes to think of himself as a geek.

So sad, to see the children wasting their time this way..

Somewhere out there...

Somewhere across time and space, the Captain of a star ship is now excitedly showing his officers around the new briefing room which he has painstakingly made to look like a residential apartment, complete with pretend windows that look out onto fake scenes of suburbia.

A real chick-magnet...

...with reversed polarity, that is.

seems kinda cool, but ...

... check out this guy's movie collection! nothing but a bunch of geeky crap ... ;)

If he can do this...

... I want my Computer Room to look like Thrall's Chambers from WoW. ;-)

Missing something

Turning a room into your house into the StarTrek bridge.

OK, so where does he keep the jackoff lube? I'm only asking because that's the only thing he'll be doing in that room--no way he'll get to bed down a female in there for sure.

My Deathstar beats your Enterprise...

This is for the followers of the "Maker". http://www.dillonworks.com/portfolio/starwarstheat er/ [dillonworks.com]

Stupid sexists...

There are far too many "he'll never get a woman this way!" comments. Get a clue, folks; firstly, they guy's married and has a kid (RTFA).

Second, just because the guy thought it would be novel to have a home theater that looks vaguely like the Enterprise bridge (note it's not a scale model or anything) doesn't make him an asocial nerd with a Star Trek fetish.

Third, there are lots of women who like geeks. Even those who do stuff as extreme as building scale replicas of sci-fi sets. Look, this guy didn't make his house over into a Death Star, he built a theater in his basement that looks kind of trek-ish. I bet his kid loves it, and I bet his wife either thinks it's fantastic, or thinks he's cute for doing it.

More of my friends are women than men, and I will tell you that of those women, most would find it endearing that a guy built something like that (esp. since it seems to be of decent quality for a home project); some would be actively attracted to him because they're at least that geeky.

All you geeks that made those comments, maybe you don't have a girlfriend because you're a sexist trying to be something you're not. Wise up.

Re:What a retard!

Somebody really needs a life, here. He's so tasteless, I guess he gets no chances with women.

I dunno... Plenty of real good-looking and smart women are interested in Sci-Fi, and from the looks of this guys toys, he's loaded... Probably gets more tail than the average Slashdotter...

Re:What a retard!

Yeah, well, all it takes is once...

Re:What a retard!

I was going to agree whole-heartedly with you here until you clouded the issue with your obvious falsehood of (reads /.) + (goes to trek cons) + (has wife).....

Re:What a retard!

Go to a Star Trek convention. How many people there are smart? Quite a few.

Ha! This isn't true, at the last convention I went to most people didn't even know that in Episode #4F04 of TOS, if you freeze frame 16237 you can see some of the sound wiring from the set. How can any true fan not know basic knowledge like this?

Re:What a retard!

Hmm.... I thought that was actually near frame 10237... are you sure?

Re:What a retard!

Hmmm....my calculator puts 1:4 at 25%...

Re:What a retard!

Of course, that means that the other gender needs more good looking and smart people as well. Fortunatly my wife got hers(yeah her).
 
 

It must have been rather shocking when you found out about this. Well, time heals all wounds I guess.

Re:What a retard!

Of course he is loaded, think of all the money he saves living in his Mom's basement!

RonB

Re:yay 5 comments and /.'d already

I think the evil mirror /. (that'd be digg) are already busting his server.

Re:what a waste

He'll break warp 10 around the sun with a gravity slingshot effect soon enough, which, if Checov and Spock have done their calculations right, will provide him will the time he needs.

Re:What a retard!

His new mantra is "Beam me up a scotch!"

Depends on your perspective, really

"http:/www.vistahelpforum.com/"

This really depends on the perspective. Maybe spending all those hours building these Star-Treky props
wasn't "productive" for him as you'd define productive but I can imagine it was most likely an immensely
interesting and satisfying activity for him. Going from the "Vista" link you're plugging in your signature,
I'd find the time better spent building myself an LCARS-kind-of-like display than wasting my time on that.

Re:what a waste

Yet here you are on Slashdot...

Re:What, No Tribbles???

What about Jeffries Tubes for maintaining the theater's wiring? Only composite, component, and stereo RCA connections for game console hookups? Where are the S-Video, Firewire, VGA, DVI, HDMI, TOSlink, S/PDIF, and Laser-7 ports?