55” or 65” TV Screen Size and Your Speakers: Please Join Survey

[oltos]

With my two-way speaker build on hold as the clock ticks towards December 31st when my $1200.00 in Sony card points expire, I am struggling to decide between the 55” or 65” Sony A95L OLED TV. Sitting on chairs at Best Buy, I tape measured 11 ft from the 55”, which looked small, while the 65” looked too big at the same distance.


My largely empty living room is 20 ft x 11, with the west side open, crossing a 4 ft wide x 27 ft hallway and into a ~ 10 ft x 9 kitchen and then 3 ft wide staircase. A triangular ceiling that peaks at 11 ft is above it all.


I plan to listen 10 ft from my speakers, with the TV between them and a foot or so behind the horns.


I built the 65” (56.9” w x 33” h) cardboard mock and to my eyes at 12 ft the 65” “screen” looks immersive.


I will build the 55” (48.25” x 27.5”) mock as soon as I can get more cardboard from the local supermarket.


Meanwhile, it might be very helpful to learn of the experiences of other 55” and 65” TV users.


How far are you from one of those screen sizes?


Do you sit on a chair or recliner?


Please describe the speakers that you use in place of the TV’s internal speakers, and how far you sit from them.

 

[-Jim-]

With my two-way speaker build on hold as the clock ticks towards December 31st when my $1200.00 in Sony card points expire, I am struggling to decide between the 55” or 65” Sony A95L OLED TV. Sitting on chairs at Best Buy, I tape measured 11 ft from the 55”, which looked small, while the 65” looked too big at the same distance.


My largely empty living room is 20 ft x 11, with the west side open, crossing a 4 ft wide x 27 ft hallway and into a ~ 10 ft x 9 kitchen and then 3 ft wide staircase. A triangular ceiling that peaks at 11 ft is above it all.


I plan to listen 10 ft from my speakers, with the TV between them and a foot or so behind the horns.


I built the 65” (56.9” w x 33” h) cardboard mock and to my eyes at 12 ft the 65” “screen” looks immersive.


I will build the 55” (48.25” x 27.5”) mock as soon as I can get more cardboard from the local supermarket.


Meanwhile, it might be very helpful to learn of the experiences of other 55” and 65” TV users.


How far are you from one of those screen sizes?


Do you sit on a chair or recliner?


Please describe the speakers that you use in place of the TV’s internal speakers, and how far you sit from them.

I went down your road a couple years ago when we were going to make the move to a 4K TV for our Games Room. We remodeled in 2018 and were using a 55 inch Samsung in there for years and years. We currently (mostly) sit in a sectional when watch TV / Movies etc. I sit directly in front of the TV 10 feet from the screen (which hangs from the wall on an easily pivoting bracket that is tiltable (but that part takes tools). My HSU CCB-8s are on stands a foot or so (18"?) off the back wall while the center is below on the stereo stand under the TV angled up. All of them are about 10 feet from my sitting position.

Initially we were going to buy a 65 inch TV like a friend of ours has, but when we went TV shopping both my wife and I were drawn to a Samsung QN75QN85AAFXZC which we ended up buying. I actually wanted to go even larger in the store. (There are some Big Boys out there!) We were assured we could return the TV if we found it too large or small. Going from a 55 to a 75 inch was / is dramatic but it made watching Movies, TV (especially Sports), much more engaging. And my Concert Blu-rays are just about like being there. We haven't had Buyer's Regrets for even a moment.

I suggest you go large as you dare, and mount it at the proper height (it makes a difference). Perhaps it can be like our other 55 inch Samsung in the Family Room (the Games Room one went down to the Man Cave /Junk Room where my Lazyboys got banished to after the Reno of 2018). The Family Room one is mounted on a Tiltable, Pivotable, and height adjustable (about a Foot) wall bracket, so we can lift it up a foot and swing it towards the Kitchen, so it's watchable when in there.

I hope this is helpful.

 

[trochetier]

I'd recommend the 65" A95L. I have the A95K 65" that replaced a 45". You will get used to the larger screen very quickly.

 

[ryanosaur]

At roughly 7-8’ from my mains with the screen another 1-1.5’ back, my 55” looks good. The 49” it replaced was too small.
Mind, I’m also a gamer and am sensitive to too large as it becomes easy to miss things popping up on the screen.
My mains are 6’ apart on-center, and while a larger screen would fit between, it would also be tight.

All things considered, at my distance, I’m right at the threshold between 55” and 65” being recommended. At your 10’ seated distance, you should definitely go larger.

65” FTW.

 

[TLS Guy]

With my two-way speaker build on hold as the clock ticks towards December 31st when my $1200.00 in Sony card points expire, I am struggling to decide between the 55” or 65” Sony A95L OLED TV. Sitting on chairs at Best Buy, I tape measured 11 ft from the 55”, which looked small, while the 65” looked too big at the same distance.


My largely empty living room is 20 ft x 11, with the west side open, crossing a 4 ft wide x 27 ft hallway and into a ~ 10 ft x 9 kitchen and then 3 ft wide staircase. A triangular ceiling that peaks at 11 ft is above it all.


I plan to listen 10 ft from my speakers, with the TV between them and a foot or so behind the horns.


I built the 65” (56.9” w x 33” h) cardboard mock and to my eyes at 12 ft the 65” “screen” looks immersive.


I will build the 55” (48.25” x 27.5”) mock as soon as I can get more cardboard from the local supermarket.


Meanwhile, it might be very helpful to learn of the experiences of other 55” and 65” TV users.


How far are you from one of those screen sizes?


Do you sit on a chair or recliner?


Please describe the speakers that you use in place of the TV’s internal speakers, and how far you sit from them.

That is a good question. In our family room we sit 8' from a 55" plasma TV and it seems fine. In our great room we are about 10' from a 65" plasma TV and that seems really good. We use that system a lot. In the AV room the MLP is 15' from a 77" OLED. In all honesty that is a little small, but the definition is fantastic. I really don't want to be bothered with a projector and screen. Part of the problem with that room is the mismatch of video and audio stage. The audio stage in huge in breadth and depth with good discs and streams. This is a room were I listen to discs and streams of concerts and operas. Many of these are very high quality 4K and either really good two channel streams up mixed, and in one case Atmos streams that seem to be improving at a really encouraging rate.

 

[Paul DS]

This size calculator may help:

TV Size to Distance Calculator and Science

Our TV Sizes to Distance Calculator helps you choose the right size TV for your space. The optimal viewing distance is about 1.6 times the diagonal length of the television. For example, for a 55” TV, the best distance is 7 feet.

www.rtings.com

 

[oltos]

Thanks guys, but let’s not kid ourselves: For a bigger TV to always be better, you need to have adequate space for it, versus space for better audio. Footprints of my speakers and subs will be nearly as big as these.

https://ucarecdn.audiogon.com/7ea4a59c-552e-46d5-8a36-4c7835b8d85e/-/preview/-/quality/smart/-/format/auto/

That plus my electronics forces me to count every inch. For me, and I’d think like most forum members, high performance audio must trump video every time.

So, like a few others on this thread and elsewhere, I’ve had to face the miserable fact that I don’t have adequate space to do both-at least the way I want to. But at least they don’t seem to find the 55” screen oppressively small, as some even view it from 10 ft or more. The 55” will have to be 10.5 to 11 ft behind the horns, and with the speakers 10 ft from me. Such are the cruel economics of living space on Schiit Island.

I got lucky last night and picked up this big slab of cardboard; resembles the size of 77” Sony I saw last week at Best Buy. I’ll cut it down to a 55” mock of the A95L and compare it to the 65” mock at various distances.

 

[Wardog555]

I watch 4.6 feet from a 65 inch.
10 feet is too far from a 65 inch and I'd take a 75 at the smallest. While 130 inches would be for maximum viewing immersion.

It boggles my mind that someone thinks a 65 at 12 feet is immersive when it's the direct opposite.
You need to try out 5 feet and under to the get the real immersion.

Now then onto my audio equipment.
Polk reserve r200 bookshelf for fronts and surrounds. R300 center.
Definitive technology DI5.5R in ceiling for atmos. Svs pb 1000 pro for sub.

None of my speakers are more than 1.4 meters away from my while 0.8m is the shortest distance.

To help on tv size see these.
65 inch. https://phfx.com/tools/optimalViewing/ov.cgi?d=65&u=i&ar=16:9&fm=c&cfov=&cd=&cdu=i

77 inch. https://phfx.com/tools/optimalViewing/ov.cgi?d=77&u=i&ar=16:9&fm=c&cfov=&cd=&cdu=i

 

[oltos]

It boggles my mind that someone thinks a 65 at 12 feet is immersive when it's the direct opposite.
You need to try out 5 feet and under to the get the real immersion.

I have TWO big problems with 65” TVs. First, if I was 8 ft away-and even if the TV’s height were dead center on axis with my eyes, which I insist on in any case-my eyes would almost constantly be hunting towards the edges of the screen. You may like that kind of visual immersion, but I’d find it intolerably stifling and exhausting.

While the above problem could be eliminated simply by moving the TV further from my chair, the second problem is insurmountable: Given the size of my floor standing speakers and subs, there’s simply not enough room in this “living” room for a 65” TV. I just finished the 65” mock last night. When I measure and cut the 55” mock I will place and compare their lengths when each are between my main speakers. But the way it looks so far, I’d lucky to get away with the 55” TV. Every inch counts in a Schiit Island co-op apartment.

 

[highfigh]

With my two-way speaker build on hold as the clock ticks towards December 31st when my $1200.00 in Sony card points expire, I am struggling to decide between the 55” or 65” Sony A95L OLED TV. Sitting on chairs at Best Buy, I tape measured 11 ft from the 55”, which looked small, while the 65” looked too big at the same distance.

My largely empty living room is 20 ft x 11, with the west side open, crossing a 4 ft wide x 27 ft hallway and into a ~ 10 ft x 9 kitchen and then 3 ft wide staircase. A triangular ceiling that peaks at 11 ft is above it all.

I plan to listen 10 ft from my speakers, with the TV between them and a foot or so behind the horns.

I built the 65” (56.9” w x 33” h) cardboard mock and to my eyes at 12 ft the 65” “screen” looks immersive.

Looking at these sizes in a store serves no good purpose- the much larger size of the space is still perceived, even if you're concentrating on each TV. I would recommend paying attention to picture quality but if you're looking at these in a Best Buy store, tell the sales droid to turn off 'torch mode'. If you compare their TVs, you should notice that some are brighter than others- these are the ones they want to sell, the dimmer ones are the ones they sell off of, meaning they might say something like "Look at how much brighter this one is" and will spout other qualities, but won't talk about the dimmer ones as much or as positively. Make sure all of the TVs you compare are set to the same mode, e.g., Standard, Custom, Sports, etc.

You don't need more cardboard, just cut for the 55" from the same piece and use painter's tape to hold the two pieces together when you want to see the 65" size.

 

[oltos]

........but if you're looking at these in a Best Buy store, tell the sales droid to turn off 'torch mode'. If you compare their TVs, you should notice that some are brighter than others- these are the ones they want to sell........

You don't need more cardboard, just cut for the 55" from the same piece and use painter's tape to hold the two pieces together when you want to see the 65" size.

In-store marketing tactics like screen brightness have no impact as I had much earlier decided on Sony's top model A95L OLED TV. Besides, I keep my living room quite dimly lit, so if anything I will be dialing down the brightness.

 

[kini]

In-store marketing tactics like screen brightness have no impact as I had much earlier decided on Sony's top model A95L OLED TV. Besides, I keep my living room quite dimly lit, so if anything I will be dialing down the brightness.

I sit 8' from an 82" TV and it could be bigger. 10' from a 65 would IMO be an awful experience. Kind of like watching on a plane with the back of seat screens. Sure it will suffice but it's not anywhere near ideal. Go bigger than you think you'll need.

 

[Trell]

I’m sitting 8.2 feet from my 55 inch TV and at times I wish it was a little bigger.

Here’s a picture of my HT front:

 

[Eppie]

I'm 9 or 10 ft from a 65" screen and would have gone bigger if I could but a low ceiling and duct work prevented that. I upgraded from a 52" plasma, which I moved in to the living room. I can't imagine a 65" TV being too big at a 10 ft distance. Only issue might be the large horns as you definitely do not want the speakers blocking any part of the screen, but those are the compromises we make sometimes. Few people ever complain about a screen being too big so I generally see people recommend getting the largest screen you can afford and accommodate. I would recommend the 65 in your instance.

 

[isolar8001]

Modern Angst.
I used to have a 13 inch Quasar. (one of the best CRTs made at the time) Used to sit right in front of that little sucker !

Now, Im 8 ft from my 65...really don't want any bigger.

 

[oltos]

Modern Angst.
I used to have a 13 inch Quasar. (one of the best CRTs made at the time) Used to sit right in front of that little sucker !

Now, Im 8 ft from my 65...really don't want any bigger.

For me it has always been my 32" Toshiba CRT TV ten feet away in my bedroom. Of course, there will be a worlds of difference going not only from a 32" to a 55" TV, but from 4:3 to a 16:9 native aspect ratio screen.

Sadly, no matter what, the living room's size and my speakers and subs footprint make a 65" only possible if I place them all on one big diagonal line across my living room. Who here would want that?

 

[Trell]

Sadly, no matter what, the living room's size and my speakers and subs footprint make a 65" only possible if I place them all on one big diagonal line across my living room. Who here would want that?

Good grief! So why did you ask about a 65” in the first place?

 

[Teetertotter?]

4k TV viewing distance chart: TV sizes and viewing distance
I have a 55 inch and viewing is 6.5 feet, which is perfect. I can see everything that is going on and feel I am right there, sort a speak.

 

[highfigh]

Modern Angst.
I used to have a 13 inch Quasar. (one of the best CRTs made at the time) Used to sit right in front of that little sucker !

Now, Im 8 ft from my 65...really don't want any bigger.

My dad & I watched 'Young Frankenstein' on a 9" B&W TV, drinking beer, with the only light coming from the florescent light over the stove's burners across the room.

Most immersive movie experience, EVAR!

 

[oltos]

Good grief! So why did you ask about a 65” in the first place?

In part because I wanted to see what kind of speakers many are using with their TVs vs. room size, and how they are placed. While my living room is ~ 2660 cu ft, with a triangular ceiling that peaks at 11 ft, the short wall is only 11 ft and beyond one side of it empties into a long hallway and kitchen beyond that. So, diagonal placement of all A/V hardware is the only way. I don't expect much of a happy ending with any size TV.