7.1 Layout Help - Long Room

[ejacobson]

I'm making the leap from 3.1 to 7.1 and I have some questions...

1.) Do the front L & R speakers really need to be near the TV aiming back at the viewer? Right now, because of space restrictions, I have them about 8 feet in front of the TV and off to the sides.

2.) Based on my room, is there any advice that jumps out at anyone. I still have to buy my 4 surround speakers and I'm trying to figure out what style will work best in my room (e.g., bookshelf, stand, corner mount).

3.) Is it okay to just add 4 new speakers to my setup or do I need to replace everything?

I'll post photos of the room once I reach my 5 post quota.

Here are some details:
- Boston Acoustic Series II A60s for front L & R
- Paradign Pro Series sub
- Boson Acoustic Micro90c center
- I want to add 2 surround and 2 rear speakers to this setup but I don't know what to buy. I guess I need to post that question in a different thread.
- my wife and I sit about 12' back from the TV. There is about 8' behind us.
- The room is 21' by 13' with 9' high ceilings and a wood floor.
- I will probably set the surround and rear speakers on various tables or shelves or stands. Mostly because it will be easier to drill up threw the floor than to run wire through the old plaster walls (1920's house).

Any suggestions are welcome!
Thanks

 

[Jack Hammer]

I'm making the leap from 3.1 to 7.1 and I have some questions...

1.) Do the front L & R speakers really need to be near the TV aiming back at the viewer? Right now, because of space restrictions, I have them about 8 feet in front of the TV and off to the sides.

2.) Based on my room, is there any advice that jumps out at anyone. I still have to buy my 4 surround speakers and I'm trying to figure out what style will work best in my room (e.g., bookshelf, stand, corner mount).

3.) Is it okay to just add 4 new speakers to my setup or do I need to replace everything?

I'll post photos of the room once I reach my 5 post quota.

Here are some details:
- Boston Acoustic Series II A60s for front L & R
- Paradign Pro Series sub
- Boson Acoustic Micro90c center
- I want to add 2 surround and 2 rear speakers to this setup but I don't know what to buy. I guess I need to post that question in a different thread.
- my wife and I sit about 12' back from the TV. There is about 8' behind us.
- The room is 21' by 13' with 9' high ceilings and a wood floor.
- I will probably set the surround and rear speakers on various tables or shelves or stands. Mostly because it will be easier to drill up threw the floor than to run wire through the old plaster walls (1920's house).

Any suggestions are welcome!
Thanks

1. ideally the front speakers should have their front edges even with the front of the screen, the tweeters about even with your ears, and the speakers facing you. sometimes you have to work with what you have available.

2&3. Again, ideally you want speakers that are timbre matched to what you're using in front. But it is more important to have the front 3 matching than the surrounds.

Also some carpeting is nice if you don't have it to help absorb some sound reflections.

Don't just run out and buy some speakers. Take a little time and research. 7.1 is not for everyone. I like it and prefer it to 5.1, but it doesn't always make much if any difference. When it does, I think it is quite noticeable. Look at some of the pictures in members section to get an idea of what others are doing. It's hard to recommend where to put everything in your place without having seen any pics or a drawing.

There are some standard configuratins to use, but some pics will help with a more specific help.

Jack

 

[Exit]

Your surround speakers need to blend in with your subwoofer crossover setting. For example, if you use the typical 80 Hz crossover, then you would want to find surrounds with a low end response a little lower than 80 Hz, probably 70 Hz at least. This is to avoid gaps in coverage of the frequency range when the surrounds are set to "small".

 

[ejacobson]

How does stereo music work with 7.1?

I'm confused on the front L & R speakers. Are these also the primary speakers that get used when a 7.1 system just outputs stereo music (e.g., CDs, Squeezebox)? I always assumed the answer was "yes". And thus, it made no sense to me to put these 2 speakers so close together (near the TV) because I always figured I could fill the room (or house) better with them farther appart. I figured it would also help excentuate the stereo effect.

I guess I'm wrong...?

 

[Jack Hammer]

Regardless of how many speakers you have, if you listen in stereo (2 channel), only the front two speakers will output sound. If you use DSP's, Dolby digital, DTS decoding, or 5/7 channel stereo, you will get a combination of some or all speakers outputting sound. Many people find that 2ch stereo sounds better for music.

Ideally you want the front two speaker to form a triangle with where you sit.
So if you are 8' back, the L/R speakers would be about 8' apart, measured from the centers of the speakers. You also want to avoid being too close to the walls, in order to prevent reflections. If possible, try to avoid having your fronts within ~2 feet of the side walls.

Also, ideally, your speakers (all of them) would be setup an equal distance from your primary seating position. So if you were 8' back from the fronts, your surrounds would each be 8' from you. The surrounds for 5.1 would be placed to your side or slightly behind you, in the 90-135 degree positions and ~2' above you. With 7.1, the side surrounds would be ~ the 90deg position and the rear surrounds would be ~the 135deg position.

Most people don't have a room layout to place speakers in those ideal spots, so you have to figure out what works best for you and what you prefer the sound of. My fronts are 8' from where I sit & about 5.5' apart. My side surrounds are ~4.5' to my side and my rear surrounds are 5.5' back. Not even close to a circle, but that's about what my room allows.

Jack

 

[ejacobson]

If you have one of those fancy receivers that uses a microphone in the listening area, doesn't that calibrate all the speakers, no matter how screwy you place them, to send the sound to you correctly...at the right volume levels I guess.

 

[Jack Hammer]

If you have one of those fancy receivers that uses a microphone in the listening area, doesn't that calibrate all the speakers, no matter how screwy you place them, to send the sound to you correctly...at the right volume levels I guess.

Yes and no. It will measure distance and level match for you, assuming you place the mic properly. It can be hit or miss on the eq'd settings. I've had to run it a few times and ultimately so far have found I prefer to leave it turned off. You'll still likely to get better sound from using a better setup than you will from just running a program.

YMMV

Jack