I have a pretty tough room layout, that I'm trying to set up for both HT and good music listening. In the attached drawing, listening position is on couch, TV is in corner - with front/center speakers shown in blue.
Possible location for wall mounted side speakers (maybe dipoles?) shown in green.
Possible location for rear surround shown in red (or maybe just use sides here and ditch the green ones, ie bag 7.1 and go to 5.1). Thought these would need to point up or point backwards at wall.
Both short walls are almost entirely windows. Rearranging furniture not an option at all.
Would appreciate suggestions on side and rear surround, as well as honest advice as to whether this is too non-ideal to make it worth trying for 4 surrounds.
Michael, Based on your stipulations above, your surround locations are about as good as any. As for the rear(since the layout is off kilter), I'd put the back speakers closer together. Maybe within the width of the couch and wall mount them pointing downwards. And yes, it's still worth having surround, even if you cant do it by the book.
Would you suggest just using one rear speaker centered above the couch? Would you recommend diffuse (eg dipole) speakers for either rear or side, or go with direct radiating? Would you move the left surround towards the other long wall - or would having that forward of the couch make it worse? Finally - given that my listening is 50/50 music/HT, does that change any of this?
Michael, Sure, one back speaker centered would work just fine. Whatever you prefer. My preference would be to use two even if they were close together, but that's just me.
As for dipole.......that's mostly preference too. If your surrounds are pretty close to the back wall, I probably wouldnt. I dont think dipoles are their best if they're backed too near a corner. Im sure somebody will pipe-in and say otherwise though........LOL
50/50, 100/0, or 0/100 doesnt really change anything as it relates to speaker position because you're trying to achieve the same thing with each, and that is filling the room with sound. Your audio sources will effect speaker selection though.
I am building a new home with a 13x24 bonus room. There's two windows, centered on one side. On the other is the entrance on the short side of the room. I would like to make it into a theatre room with some room for a dart board or Golden Tee game in back behnind the couch. I would like to do a system with a projector and speakers that would be good for both HT and music. What's your suggestions for a room such as this? What type of equipment do you suggest? Size of screen, how far back should couch be?
Nice idea bb, but we would need "WAaay" more info on budget etc...etc..etc...
As for screen size, I'd go 8-10' screen on the 13' wall, and the primary seating positions would be roughly be 1.5 -2 screen withs back from the screen. That will give you room for your video golf and a popcorn machine behind the couch Maybe even a wetbar???
How about this alternate arrangement - worse or better than first?
In this arrangement, I lose the two rear speakers on the floor pointing up, and replace with one more distant, wall mounted "sort of rear" speaker, while spreading out the side surrounds.
If you ignore the orientation of the couch, it sort of makes sense.
Hate to break the news, as a former cinema projectionist, dead worse Hate to hear Star Wars episode 3 in that awful position, Home cinema is the front viewing place not the fire place it's had its day a TV in the corner is from the 1950's sorry it's not in the cinema or home cinema manual for best sound.
Place it along the wall totally and around, 8 good bookshelf loudspeakers four on the back wall two placed and spaced out, if that sounds too much consider that most small cinemas around the size of most homes in America have no less than 8 at the very least. And when the time is right I'll be adding some JBL 8330 for my home cinema and I have calculated 6 is the need for best performance two for the back and two for each side wall.
Hear in the UK I have seen a professional cinema site that is sealing them for £99.00 WOW yes I'll have 6 mate at that price stuff those B&W dipolar DM's at £450 each they can keep them...
And if you have seen Star Wars episode 3 revenge of the sith, just imagine hearing it towards the end of the year with JBL Jedi blasters and lightsabbers, chances are you heard it via JBL, and with 85% of cinemas using them in the film industry they are the choice of professionals.
Uhhh....gee - that was entirely unhelpful. Not trying to have a movie theatre in my livingroom, just a decent approximation of surround sound, for music as well as HT.
As an expert, could you suggest which of the two setups I posted would work better? Those really represent the range of my options. Other advice, especially involving demolition or scads of speakers, is really not useful - but thanks anyway.
Michael, I hate to say this and I've been biting my tongue, but sometimes a man has to put his foot down and have his 'say' in room arrangement. Your "these are my only options" comment is a sad and pathetic response, and you need to be a man and and take charge. Does your wife pick out your clothes and dress you in the morning too??
I allow my wife to do 90% of the decorating around my home. Note how I say "ALLOW"!! However, in the rare 10% when I care enough about something, is it too much to ask to have my way?? After all, Im the main breadwinner. Do you think I'm going to let my wife dictate which electronics items I can buy or their placement?
My wife is free to hang whatever she wants on the walls, buy any colors or patterns for the carpet for furnishings, and place whatever nicknacks of her choice around the room. Is it too much to ask to buy the TV and speaker arrangement of my choice?? It's understood that my HT is "MY" choice, and she needs to perform her magic around my parameters. It's not even up for discussion. Your room is an "EASY" setup, all you need to do is remove the skirt, and replace it with a pair of pants.
IMO, the men who cant buy a certain TV or pair of speakers because the "BOSS" wont approve are sad individuals. In most cases, the 'spouse' freely decorates nearly 100% of a typical home interior, and those men who cant stand up for themselves for their 'small' say, probably arent deserving of a HT. Afterall, a marriage is a partnership. Who says the spouse should have 100% rule over home decore??
The only time I'll put my home cinema in that configuration, is when I have lost the plot!
As an expert, please, no I'm flattered; none of the arrangements are good.
And if I where Darth Vader, I will say "you will blitz the fireplace"
Sorry man it will be a major challenge to EQ! that arrangement and, and sorry I'm saying no more its your home theatre mate, do as you will and have fun in calibrating the sound balance, because if I had to balance it for you it will take my weeks to do it.
I like to have a room like yours, and that's a compliment coming from me.
I tell you what we can sit up a town hall meeting, we can get the peoples vote on which configuration what do, you say!
Sorry mate don't take it personal if I was not taking it all that seriously, I am sorry, but after you come back from a NAFF, cinema presentation that's been ruined by some donkey projectionists, in you home town you get a little MAD, it's ok I'm cool.
As to the layout there is a cinema in my home town that is ABC screen #2 that reminds my of your lay out plan, and it will be a major pain to get right, you must trust me on this, the other way with it all going along one side wall and designed out nicely will present fantastic results.
Not only films, but music as well and since film as the lot DME dialogue music and affects the longer the length the better the sound in places, but hay every room as room modes.
As for the surround placement that's like giving you a major challenge, I'm sure you would like setting it up in that configuration and setting the sound balance is going to give you a headache, and your going to say I should have gone the other way instead.
I have looked over the diagram over and over and over, and can see it's not going to be a good performer, not only the delay setting for the surrounds will help the frequency range is all going to be cockeyed, that's the side surrounds as well as the centre back surround too.
If I can really give a whole lot more data on this I would, do you and your wife enjoy music and movies, if the answer is yes, then say honey I'm going to re-design this and make it sound fantastic that's my mission one purpose alone too knock are socks off!
Maybe he should do without the HT to gain extra WAF points???
He could get a 5" lcd and headphones not to offend the 'other half'. Geesh.....the WAF people make me sick.
Geez, let the wife decorate the entire house, but it's your damn job to design the Home THEATER!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You let her be in control, and you'll have a junk system..........guaranteed. Unless it's Jan.
HEh
Willie Cash
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Posted on
Mike,
I have almost the identical layout in my new place and the same questions. I also cannot change the layout (nothing to do with the wifey but a damn "TV hole" placed above a fireplace in the corner). I don't know much about speaker placement, but I was going to go with your second option as I will actually have another couch where your fireplace is located.
Did you put the speakers in yet? Let me know if you did and what you think.
If I were you, I'd hang a large painting over the 'hole', and setup your theater from scratch Once you have a quality HT layout and setup, theater criteria will become one of the major factors in which home you select in the future. No home would ever get my 'stamp of approval' if it did not have a room that accomodates my HT needs.
Willie Cash
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Posted on
Yea, I have actually been thinking about that now. That'll be such a hassle though to cover that hole as it's pretty damn big (43" by 43") and it was built for "convenience" as a spot for a TV (cable and everything ran there).
Maybe down the road. I'm pushing it as it is financially to but the Sharp LCD HD Flat Screen and Phase Tech speakers.
Seriously though, Paul, although it might not be the "perfect" set up, don't you think it's still worth getting the home theater?
I'd probably finish off the sides and back of the hole cleanly with drywall, put a recessed flood light inside the top, and put a couple plants or something inside as decorations.......or a scupture or something. The thing I dont like about 'holes' is that it limits your future TV size.
Me personally.....I dont want to buy a TV based on limitations based solely on 'hole measurements'. Currently, I have a 65", and I'll never create a hole for it because I want to keep the door open for the possiblility of something larger at a later date. In fact, I probably wont buy another TV at all, and will go with a projector and screen.
Willie Cash
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Posted on
Trust me I'm down with hating the hole and having the hold limit future TV size. However, the hole is staying as I'm going to have about a zillion other things to do other than drywall a hole over - plus, I'm not that handy. And, I know this sounds way too feminine, but the hole actually plays nicely into the layout of the place. Putting the TV on the wall would work nice for the home theater, but bad for the rest of the place.
So back to the home theater system with the whack setup.......You'd still go for it, right? You're not that finicky that you'd say steer clear of a saweet phase technology v-8 velocity series system just because you can't have the "perfect" layout would you? I mean siiiiiiiiit, I'll still have all but one surround sound speaker in the right place.
Willie, I have been around HT setups for a long time. Like you, I didn't always have the best layouts but dmt I made do. And I'm here to tell you that MOST people today (check out 90% of the posts) wouldnt know a good setup if it walked up and introduced itself.
My advice, Its your home, your money, and your experience. Go for it and let us know how it turns out. OR, you can follow the advice of others and not do anything, at which point none of us will ever know any better.
I never said I would drywall over the hole. I only said that I would finish it out nicely, install a floodlight, and use it to hold plants, or a sculpture. and no........I wouldnt put a TV in there, but that's just me because 43" hole is way too small for anything I'd want.
Willie Cash
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Posted on
PhilMan.
Well put. Have no fear. I will definitely not be doing nothing. Not a chance.
I'm probably going to end up going with Mike's second drawing there (without the red rear back speaker). Anyone want to chime in with serious comments on where you'd put the surround sound speakers there?
I'll be sure to let you know how it turns out. I just got the new Yamaha RXV-650 receiver with that YMAO "auto tuner" so maybe that will help balance out my system. We'll see.....
My best advice is to not ignore home theater needs before buying or building that new home The first thing I looked at before buying both of my homes was the room designated as the theater room. If it didnt measure up to my needs, there was no need to even look at the rest of the house because it was already immediately eliminated from consideration.
Willie Cash
Unregistered guest
Posted on
Paul.
That will no doubt be factoring into the home purchasing decision from here on out.
I'm going to end up going with the "ghetto" surround setup for now and put my current 32" flat screen tube in the "tv hole". Then, within the year, I'm going to cover the hole, buy a saweet HDTV and put the TV in the proper surround sound positioning.
Maybe even a wetbar???