Here at Newegg we are getting into the Halloween spirit by building a haunted house and beefing it up with some of our favorite tech. We are helping Richard and Christina construct a command center to be the brain of the operation, where they can control all the best parts of the house and really let their creativity fly. Sometimes the best part of a DIY project is the process of putting it all together.
We have taken some familiar tech products and tweaked them to make our haunted house a little bit more true to the #BuiltByNewegg style. We have an awesome parts list to share with you thanks to some of our great friends.
The Brains
MSI GE70 Apache Pro-681 Gaming Laptop
Could we have used any old laptop to run our build? Perhaps, but it wouldn’t be as powerful, cool or how we like to do things. We selected this monster of a machine to be the focal point of our build for a few reasons:
- Intel i7 2.60 GHz core
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX960M 2GB GDDR5
- 12GB memory, 1TB HDD
- 17.3” HD 1920×1080 screen
How will we put this machine to work you ask? We will be running at least one continuous audio track all night and processing several HD feeds at once. So we need the processing power and memory to avoid freezing up or dying on us in the middle of the show. Since we’re recording various video feeds from the surveillance equipment, we need to write the video to storage without slowing us down. The GTX960M video card will ensure our video outputs will be as clear and lifelike as possible.
MSI GT72S Dominator Pro G-219 Gaming Laptop
If you’re working on your own project and need even more power for your rig, MSI released a bulked-up version with some killer specs:
- Intel i7 2.70 GHz core
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX980M 8GB GDDR5
- 16 GB memory, 1 TB HDD, 128 GB SSD
- 17.3” HD 1920×1080 screen
These MSI gaming rigs are built to stand up to the stresses of gaming so it will fun to see how this laptop handles what we have in store for it. We know gaming laptops are great for businesses, so it makes sense their use can extend beyond the desk.
The Eyes
Annke 16CH 960H HDMI 16-Camera Surveillance System
A surveillance system is one of the best ways to feel confident about your property’s protection, whether at home or away. With the 16-camera unit we used from Annke, you can literally cover the entire perimeter of your home and even the inside. Motion detection, continuous and scheduled recording are all key ways to make sure you have customized visual coverage of your property. These cameras can also be used for a little bit of fun.
We are setting up these 16 cameras in all the different angles of our haunted maze so we can capture all the greatest scares in HD. With 42 IR LEDs per camera and 110ft vision range, we will have enough definition to be able to see in the dark and make out the smallest detail. More than just entertainment, these cameras will be streaming the feed directly to our monitors in the command center, giving a clear vision of every inch of the maze. Mapping out the maze with video cameras will give the command center operator full control over when and where the actors pop out at people, thus allowing them to tailor the frightening experience based on the attendee for a family fun event.
The Scares
Toynk Costumes & Prop
Every haunted house needs to have costumes and props. We had some help to bring in the best from the heavy hitter in the industry, Toynk. You can have all the best tech upgrades but without the human element it isn’t as real. The actors in this haunted house are rocking everything from zombies to ghouls and demons as their second skin. We also have props from floor to ceiling. Some props are even activated by pressure plate triggers, adding to the element of surprise.
Sound Effects
Corsair SP2500 2.1 Gaming Series Speakers
What is a haunted house without some eerie sounds? We have the Corsair’s 2.1 channel stereo system, boasting 232W RMS output power from a total of 6 Class D amplifiers to keep the blood pumping through your ears and make the hair on your neck stand tall. The 8” enclosed subwoofer has bridged dual 60W Class D amp with integrated DSP, so we can be sure the bass will be tight and clean even when we crank it to the max. Some added bonuses for us are the digital desktop remote and multiple inputs available to pump audio tracks to a variety of devices.
Intense Viewing
LG 23MP47HQ 23” Widescreen LED Monitor
We can’t take advantage of an HD surveillance system without HD monitors to view the feeds on, so we are using two LG 23” widescreen IPS LED monitors. These have a 178° viewing angle and In-Plane Switching to shorten the response time and enhance the color reproduction. We will be running all 16 camera feeds to the monitors of the command center. Luckily the widescreen lets us maximize the visibility of each camera. With the haunted house, we need to have a crisp and clear image in order to see what is going on in the dark maze and sink our claws into the visitors. One great thing about seeing where everyone is in the maze is being able to radio the actor with the exact position of the attendee, so the scare is perfectly timed.
Assembling all the tech together to use in a new way was so much fun. We can’t wait to show you the final results. You may not normally use these devices the same way we used them, but thinking outside the box can give you great ideas to multipurpose your favorite tech. Check back for more details on our DIY haunted house hub for more info.
Newegg DIY
What tech from Newegg would you use in your Haunted House or DIY command center?
