Setting Rear DelayTime

[mpompey]

If your rear speakers are closer to you than your mains, shouldn't you set the delay to longer than shorter? Is there a mathematical formula that will let me calculate the precise ms of delay I should set my rear speakers to?

I found the following advice given under the Setting Speaker Levels & Distance in a Surround Sound System, Thursday, August 26 2004 . How ever it seems counter-intuitive.

1. If your surround speakers are located close to your listening position, adjust the rear delay short (5-15ms).
2. If your surround speakers are located far away from your listening position (20-30ft), adjust the rear delay long (15-35ms).

Am I correct in my reasonings? Or am I missing something?

 

[jcPanny]

Speaker delay

Most receivers calculate the delay for each channel by using the distance from the listening to each speaker. Since you have an older receiver or PC you can calculate the delay manually.
I'll assume that the mains cannot be delayed and that 1 foot = 1 millisecond of delay.

distance to Mains - distance to Rears = X ms delay for rears.

You are correct that as the distance to Rears increases, the delay decreases.
Also note, if your answer is negative (mains are closer than rears) than you need to delay the mains.