We are also building a new home and plan to have the tv over our gas fireplace mantel. Our builder ran the tubing from above the fireplace to the basement and then from the basement up to the study, which is where the components will be kept. I believe we were only charged $50, so yes, $300 sounds excessive. This Tuesday we have Best Buys Geek Squad coming over to look at our setup and recommend a tv size for our space. We plan to have them do the install. One thing that we were told at BB was to have the outlets (power and tube) located toward the top of where the tv will be installed. Of course, ours are located right in the middle of where the bracket would be installed. We'll see how that is dealt with.

Thank you for replying :) Even if we could, taking out blocks wouldn't really help. The wall is block, the fireplace butts right up to the wall. I understand the installers have limited options but I would rather return the TV then live with an ugly wire cover going across the front of the fireplace. We may be able to drill through the wall to outside. But that would take a lot of wire and I'm not sure it's feasible.

Looking at these pictures, I also used the Dynamic mount for my Samsung 65". But the WAF plummeted because it hid the fireplace, so back to Costco and exchange for a 60". See attached pic. I'm very happy with the installation and ease of use. In the "up" position, it looks like a normal above-the-fireplace mount.

@ salonva, the height is based on 18" to the top of the sofa/chair cushion plus 24" for the eye-height of a person sitting there, which is 42"; others say 40" is optimum eye-height. People are not all the same height so this is a general guideline. My own TV has only a 32" picture and sits on a TV cabinet. The center of the screen is 43" above the floor. The bottom of the frame sits about 34" above the floor. Ultimately, this is a personal decision. If you are happy with the height of your TV that is what counts. You just don't want the screen to be too low or too high which stresses your neck. Some installers are recommending even more height for really large TVs so they feel more theater like. Be careful, very few people like viewing a movie from the front row of the theater.