Bipoles or monopoles for rear surrounds in a 5.1 setup?

[OhioGuy25]

I'm building a home theater to be used exclusively for movies. I'm going to be sitting on a couch up against the wall with end tables on each side. The speakers will be about 3-4 feet away from me. I was told by Klipsch that the surrounds (bipole) would be wasted as they fire 180 degrees in all directions, whereas the bookshelfs(monopol) I could point at my listening area. Wouldn't sound from the bipoles be lost to that hallway that leads to the bedroom since there is no wall there to bounce off of?

 

[WaynePflughaupt]

I assume you mean that the Klipsch are dipole and the “bookshelf” speakers are monopole? Your post was not specific.

There’s no way we can know about “lost sound to the hallway” as you didn’t provide us with a floor plan showing speaker locations.

That said, the Klipsch would not be a good choice for the back speakers if your couch is against the wall. Regular bookshelf speakers would be a better choice, but at only 3-4 ft. away they will be easy to localize and as such will be highly distracting. This can be minimized by reducing the highs in the back speakers. This would mimic the natural roll-out of the highs you’d get if they were further away.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[OhioGuy25]

I assume you mean that the Klipsch are dipole and the “bookshelf” speakers are monopole? Your post was not specific.

There’s no way we can know about “lost sound to the hallway” as you didn’t provide us with a floor plan showing speaker locations.

That said, the Klipsch would not be a good choice for the back speakers if your couch is against the wall. Regular bookshelf speakers would be a better choice, but at only 3-4 ft. away they will be easy to localize and as such will be highly distracting. This can be minimized by reducing the highs in the back speakers. This would mimic the natural roll-out of the highs you’d get if they were further away.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Sorry, yes that's what I meant. I edited it. It wouldn't let me post a link/image to my floor plan and room layout but it's a 400 sq ft room with openings on my left and right where there is no wall so it's not fully enclosed.

 

[OhioGuy25]

I assume you mean that the Klipsch are dipole and the “bookshelf” speakers are monopole? Your post was not specific.

There’s no way we can know about “lost sound to the hallway” as you didn’t provide us with a floor plan showing speaker locations.

That said, the Klipsch would not be a good choice for the back speakers if your couch is against the wall. Regular bookshelf speakers would be a better choice, but at only 3-4 ft. away they will be easy to localize and as such will be highly distracting. This can be minimized by reducing the highs in the back speakers. This would mimic the natural roll-out of the highs you’d get if they were further away.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Sorry, yes that's what I meant. I edited it. It wouldn't let me post a link/image to my floor plan and room layout but it's a 400 sq ft room with openings on my left and right where there is no wall so it's not fully enclosed.

I assume you mean that the Klipsch are dipole and the “bookshelf” speakers are monopole? Your post was not specific.

There’s no way we can know about “lost sound to the hallway” as you didn’t provide us with a floor plan showing speaker locations.

That said, the Klipsch would not be a good choice for the back speakers if your couch is against the wall. Regular bookshelf speakers would be a better choice, but at only 3-4 ft. away they will be easy to localize and as such will be highly distracting. This can be minimized by reducing the highs in the back speakers. This would mimic the natural roll-out of the highs you’d get if they were further away.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Why would bipoles be bad if my couch is against the wall?

 

[WaynePflughaupt]

Bipoles achieve their ambient qualities by bouncing sound off of boundaries, and as such are designed for mid-wall placement.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[rojo]

I think you're confusing bipoles with dipoles.

FWIW, OP PM'd me earlier with the contents of the first post. This was my response:

Hard to say, man. I'd still recommend bipoles because they fire both in and out; and viewers should hear sound from both regardless of whether they're sitting between them or outside them. Monopoles pretty much have to be pointing toward the listening area from the outside, which limits your placement options. This is really just a guess, though. You won't know for certain until you make a decision and give your choice an audition. Good luck!

 

[OhioGuy25]

I think you're confusing bipoles with dipoles.

FWIW, OP PM'd me earlier with the contents of the first post. This was my response:

Hard to say, man. I'd still recommend bipoles because they fire both in and out; and viewers should hear sound from both regardless of whether they're sitting between them or outside them. Monopoles pretty much have to be pointing toward the listening area from the outside, which limits your placement options. This is really just a guess, though. You won't know for certain until you make a decision and give your choice an audition. Good luck!

What about the open hallway and opening to the kitchen to my left and right, wouldn't the bipoles lose a lot of their effect and I would lose some sound?

 

[rojo]

You'd lose reflections, of course. But the primary signals will still hit their mark. Of course, you know your room better than we. Maybe you should just audition the cheaper option. You can return the surrounds if not satisfied, then try the others. You can ask opinions and look for predictions for a month and still have no better understanding than you will by auditioning and trusting your ears.