Pretty Small Room

[supramanx]

Hello guys im fairly new to the home audio thing but not cars . Anyway I have a room thats 12x9 with ceilings about 8ft. tall . Do you guys think its overkill if I do 5.1 or should I go 3.1 ?

 

[Seth=L]

I would go for a nice 2.1 system in that room, that is only if it was me because I require full size speakers. You could easily do satelites for your surrounds if you wanted to. I just think in a room that small it would be better to get the best stereo rig for your money instead of spending more on a lesser 5.1 system.

 

[supramanx]

I forgot to tell you that 55% games , 25% music , & 20% movies/TV . Also Seth with the info. I just gave you I wouldnt benfit having a center ?

 

[Seth=L]

Not really a huge benefit.

 

[Ax-man]

>>>I just gave you I wouldnt benfit having a center ?

I'd give Seth's suggestion a try.

I can only assume your main speakers will be on the 9' wall? If so, you're only looking at about 7 or so feet separation between the two mains and placing your seating distance about the same distance or maybe a foot or two further back....with these distances using just your two mains as a 'phantom' center should work out ideal. Worth a try anyways.

 

[supramanx]

Thanks for all the help and I'll use the input

 

[mtrycrafts]

Hello guys im fairly new to the home audio thing but not cars . Anyway I have a room thats 12x9 with ceilings about 8ft. tall . Do you guys think its overkill if I do 5.1 or should I go 3.1 ?

May also want to consider one of those HTIB setup?
Depending on what is in that room, where the TV is and seating, a 5.1 could work and certainly gives you the spacial effect it is supposed to give you. A small room would not need powerful amps or speakers that could fill a much larger space but would still benefit from the soundfield of a 5.1 setup. And, a center is crucial in my opinion, no matter what.

 

[Rob Babcock]

Hello guys im fairly new to the home audio thing but not cars . Anyway I have a room thats 12x9 with ceilings about 8ft. tall . Do you guys think its overkill if I do 5.1 or should I go 3.1 ?

It all depends on what you want to do. If as you say it's about 1/2 gaming, and further assuming you game on a PS3, Xbox 360 or Xbox, then I strongly advise 5.1 and as much acoustic treatment as you can afford and/or fit into the room on a practical basis. The immersion factor of gaming in MC is just too good to give up: playing HALO and hearing the Covenant troops creeping up behind you, playing a flight sim and hearing the missiles fire behind you and roar over your head, or hearing the Battle for Normandy raging all around you!

Since 12'x9' is a bit smallish, I'd suggest you look into bookshelf models and a voice matched center and a good sub. You didn't mention a budget, but given your relatively small space you won't need large speakers or a huge sub. If you live in an apartment the sub might no be feasible. Something like a HSU STF-1 or VTF-2 would be all you'd ever need in that room. Small bookshelfs from any number of companies are available with voice matched centers.

How much are you looking to spend?

 

[Adam]

I also agree that 5.1 is a good way to go for modern games. My living room in my old apartment was probably about the same size, and I had a 5.1 set-up that I thought worked just great. I used it mostly for TV and movies, and I really enjoyed the surround speakers. You could also consider a good stereo set-up (2.0 or 2.1) and a good set of surround sound headphones. I got a pair of headphones called (I think) "Medusa" that does surround sound and has a vibe feature to enhance the bass...they also have a very good sounding microphone attached because they are for gaming. I think they cost about $100. I use them for playing Warcraft III, and the sound placement is really quite good.

 

[Davemcc]

My room is not much bigger than yours (11 x 14), but check my sig for what's packed in there. You can run a good sub/sat 5.1 system no problem. Choose a good set of bookshelf mains and matching center, add a decent sub and a cheap set of surrounds and away you go. I've found that you don't need to go crazy on surrounds in a smaller room and the MA Bronze BFX are working out fine for me.

 

[supramanx]

mtrycrafts : I keep hearing HTIB should be your last option .

Rob Babcock : 360 is the way to go. My budget for everything is about $1100 . I was thinking about going with av123 but im still reading on other brands .

Adam : I'll look out for those headphones .

Dave : Any pics .

 

[Rob Babcock]

The AV123 stuff is nice. I owned one pair of their Onix REF-1 speakers and found them to be extraordinarily well made for the price. It's hard to imagine how you could go wrong with the XLS stuff.

As a Monitor Audio fanboy I also have to point out that the Bronze B line is a screaming bargain right now. SaturdayAudio.com has a great price on the Bronze B line, and a rig consisting of B2's, B Center & Bronze surrounds would come in under $700 before shipping (you'd still need a sub) or about $800 with the Bronze B4 towers (probably wouldn't need a sub with those). I have Bronze B2's in my computer rig, driven by an NAD C320BEE and am very happy with the sound. Plus, I've got an older pair of Bronze 3's- in a small room I found no need for a sub and the Bronze B4's have better bass than my 3's.

Although I haven't heard them yet you may want to check out Hsu Researches speakers. The reviews have been favorable and they come with a 30 day, no questions asked return policy. They're on sale right now direct from Hsu at around $100 per speaker. They have a package with 5 speakers and a sub for a pretty attractive price.

Polk & Infinity also make some nice bookshelves for the price.

 

[Davemcc]

Dave : Any pics .

Not yet, but I just bought my first digital camera so I'll have some soon.

 

[supramanx]

Rob : That place isnt to far away from me . Im also look at this Infinity setup which is to good to pass up . Free Shipping and No Taxes
http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/features/542200926

Dave : I'll be waiting

 

[mtrycrafts]

mtrycrafts : I keep hearing HTIB should be your last option .
.

Yes, it may be but in some cases it should not be dismissed from considerations. Budget, room size, needs, future expansion, etc, are considerations if an HTIB is right for now or not, or some other reason.

 

[angstadt530]

mtrycrafts : I keep hearing HTIB should be your last option

Usually, I would agree, but there are some pretty decent HTIBs out there now, and with the room size you have, you don't need anything huge. I definitely agree that you should go 5.1 over stereo--it makes a huge difference with gaming. The Denon DHT-487DV and its earlier models have received some pretty respectable reviews, and if you don't need the DVD player, I think you could buy the DHT-487XP for <$500 online. That's a pretty good deal.