In-wall rear surround recommendations

[snakeeyes]

You probably can get away with Def Tech SR9040 (or used previous gen bipole onwall) if you are sticking with Def Tech gear upfront since they all have the similiar Def Tech tweeters.

If you really want the Revel Concerta2 upfront that you mentioned then the Revel bipoles are probably 10 times better . (Performa3 series is expensive though and Concerta2 is not available with a bipole surround as far as I know)

 

[mossman77]

What about those RSL's I posted earlier?

Also, I think you're overthinking this. I have one of my surrounds right over my door. Nobody has ever said a thing. It's a lot less complicated than fabricating something like a cubby hole for the speaker and it gives me great adjustability.

If I had to do an on-wall, I'd want them tucked up out of the way like that, except the consensus here seems to be surrounds up high are not for everyone. I'd have to experiment with how they sound versus something slightly above ear level.

I think the pockets would be pretty sweet. I'm all about doing custom stuff like that when there isn't a commercially available solution.

 

[mossman77]

You probably can get away with Def Tech SR9040 (or used previous gen bipole onwall) if you are sticking with Def Tech gear upfront since they all have the similiar Def Tech tweeters.

If you really want the Revel Concerta2 upfront that you mentioned then the Revel bipoles are probably 10 times better . (Performa3 series is expensive though and Concerta2 is not available with a bipole surround as far as I know)

I think I'll be keeping the Mythos. Everything sounds pretty good now. I'll be sure to take the product advice given here when shopping for my next home theater setup. I've just spent too much and put forth too much effort to this point to start over with this particular setup.

 

[mossman77]

Yes, those are along the lines of what I was thinking. They might be a good solution for you.

This is the first thing you see when you walk in my front door, lol.

View attachment 34464

The door is immediately to the right. In fact you can see the knob reflected in the speaker. I'm guessing this type of setup would be a no-go for you.

Nice! Wish I had the room for that kind of setup

 

[Pogre]

If I had to do an on-wall, I'd want them tucked up out of the way like that, except the consensus here seems to be surrounds up high are not for everyone. I'd have to experiment with how they sound versus something slightly above ear level.

I think the pockets would be pretty sweet. I'm all about doing custom stuff like that when there isn't a commercially available solution.

He's compensating by having the speaker angled toward the listening position and not just pointing straight down. For all intents and purposes it's mounted to the side. It's high up but coming from the right direction for effects.

 

[snakeeyes]

I think I'll be keeping the Mythos. Everything sounds pretty good now. I'll be sure to take the product advice given here when shopping for my next home theater setup. I've just spent too much and put forth too much effort to this point to start over with this particular setup.

SR9040 is what you probably want. The older gen will be cheap and easy to find on Craigslist. It isn’t as rounded though.

 

[mossman77]

The SR9040's have 3.5" drivers. Sounds so puny. Should I go with the SR9080 (4.5" drivers)? My local big box has the SR9040 in stock, so I'm tempted to go grab them, but I can wait for the SR9080 to ship. Maybe just pick up a pair of cheap surrounds for the weekend for testing and use them in the garage later.

 

[CajunLB]

I've heard bad things about accessories4less. Have you ever ordered something from them?

I have ordered from them before and was treated good and received my orders in perfect condition and in a very timely manner every time. Several Audioholics have used them and have the same opinions.

 

[Pogre]

The SR9040's have 3.5" drivers. Sounds so puny. Should I go with the SR9080 (4.5" drivers)? My local big box has the SR9040 in stock, so I'm tempted to go grab them, but I can wait for the SR9080 to ship. Maybe just pick up a pair of cheap surrounds for the weekend for testing and use them in the garage later.

I don't think you need the bigger drivers for surround duty. I really doubt you'd notice the difference. If you wanna save a couple of bucks I think the 9040s would be fine. If it makes you feel a li'l better there's nothing wrong with holding outfor the 9080s either.

 

[William Lemmerhirt]

If I had to do an on-wall, I'd want them tucked up out of the way like that, except the consensus here seems to be surrounds up high are not for everyone. I'd have to experiment with how they sound versus something slightly above ear level.

I think the pockets would be pretty sweet. I'm all about doing custom stuff like that when there isn't a commercially available solution.

I would say the consensus is that you should put them high-er, unless your doing Atmos. Then you want them at or around ear level. Also, while the pocket thing might be interesting, I think it will cause more problems than it solves. For one I think it would add a “honkiness”, like cupping one Hand next to your mouth when talking, among other things.

 

[snakeeyes]

The SR9040's have 3.5" drivers. Sounds so puny. Should I go with the SR9080 (4.5" drivers)? My local big box has the SR9040 in stock, so I'm tempted to go grab them, but I can wait for the SR9080 to ship. Maybe just pick up a pair of cheap surrounds for the weekend for testing and use them in the garage later.

In my opinion I would expect you to send a lot of the sound to the sub so you are likely to end up with dual subs to eliminate localization if you crossover any higher than 100hz. Even 110hz is noticeable to many. Going to SR9080 would help to possibly stay at 100hz or 90hz. (Make sure you can return if you don’t like them)

 

[NINaudio]

If I had to do an on-wall, I'd want them tucked up out of the way like that, except the consensus here seems to be surrounds up high are not for everyone. I'd have to experiment with how they sound versus something slightly above ear level.

I think the pockets would be pretty sweet. I'm all about doing custom stuff like that when there isn't a commercially available solution.

I'm still not sure if you've looked at the RSL's I linked? They are angled in walls that I think would be great for what you want. And RSL is pretty well regarded.

 

[mossman77]

I would say the consensus is that you should put them high-er, unless your doing Atmos. Then you want them at or around ear level. Also, while the pocket thing might be interesting, I think it will cause more problems than it solves. For one I think it would add a “honkiness”, like cupping one Hand next to your mouth when talking, among other things.

By higher, you mean 2ft to 3ft above ear level, correct?

 

[Pogre]

I would say the consensus is that you should put them high-er, unless your doing Atmos. Then you want them at or around ear level. Also, while the pocket thing might be interesting, I think it will cause more problems than it solves. For one I think it would add a “honkiness”, like cupping one Hand next to your mouth when talking, among other things.

Yeah, I meant to address that too. I don't think the pocket idea will have the desired effect and might even be worse than flush ceiling mounted.

 

[mossman77]

I'm still not sure if you've looked at the RSL's I linked? They are angled in walls that I think would be great for what you want. And RSL is pretty well regarded.

I did see those, but I guess I'm confused as to why I would go with in-ceiling if there seems to be a few options that could work for me on-wall. I would mount those far to the left/right with the speakers facing toward the LP? And if they are far enough away they would sound just as good as if they were down lower on the wall? Or you're suggesting I mount them in the rear wall (even though they are designed for in-ceiling use)? I think they'd be too deep. My walls are 2x4.

 

[mossman77]

Yeah, I meant to address that too. I don't think the pocket idea will have the desired effect and might even be worse than flush ceiling mounted.

Okay. The SR9040 and even the SR9080 are shallow enough and have a nice shape that on-wall would probably be fine. I got all excited because I thought I was going to get to do something custom. Haha.

 

[Pogre]

I did see those, but I guess I'm confused as to why I would go with in-ceiling if there seems to be a few options that could work for me on-wall. I would mount those far to the left/right with the speakers facing toward the LP? And if they are far enough away they would sound just as good as if they were down lower on the wall? Or you're suggesting I mount them in the rear wall (even though they are designed for in-ceiling use)? I think they'd be too deep. My walls are 2x4.

I believe NIN is suggesting using them in wall instead of the ceiling. They're nice and easier to hide but I think the 9040 will do about the same job if you can live with wall mounted. Honestly I'd lean toward the 9040 only because DefTech, but RSL make legit good equipment.

 

[CajunLB]

Here we go ...https://youtu.be/_xD_eszip0E

The Boston Acoustic sound. ware speakers would work good for you they have a trap shape to look good in a corner and They come with either a wall mount or a corner mount that you’re able to swivel and point towards your main listening position. I have a pair and they are great for surround are Atmos use.

 

[Pogre]

Here we go ...https://youtu.be/_xD_eszip0E

The Boston Acoustic sound. ware speakers would work good for you they have a trap shape to look good in a corner and They come with either a wall mount or a corner mount that you’re able to swivel and point towards your main listening position. I have a pair and they are great for surround are Atmos use.

Those drop down speakers are awesome! We had a guy post a system like that here, that he had built. Very, very cool. Speakers are always exactly where you want them when you want them. Definitely not for the faint of wallet tho...

 

[NINaudio]

I believe NIN is suggesting using them in wall instead of the ceiling. They're nice and easier to hide but I think the 9040 will do about the same job if you can live with wall mounted. Honestly I'd lean toward the 9040 only because DefTech, but RSL make legit good equipment.

Yes, I was suggesting them for in wall use because it seemed that the aesthetics of having them in wall was quite important to mossman.