Speaker Positioning Help Needed

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  • mj1856
    Junior Member
    • Jul 2004
    • 11

    Speaker Positioning Help Needed

    Hi. I'm new to this forum, so please point me in the direction if this type of question has been previously answered.

    I'm building a new home and I want to make sure my family room is properly wired for 5.1 & 7.1 surround sound. I currently have a 5.1 surround system with Polk Audio speakers, including triangular dipole/bipole surrounds and bookshelf fronts.

    The problem with the new home is that there is no wall on the left side of the sitting area. It is open to the kitchen / nook. So I have to use ceiling mounted speakers for anything that needs to be on the sides. How much is the sound screwed up by having speakers in the ceiling instead of on the side walls?

    I've attached a small diagram of the room. The line at the bottom is where the room splits from carpet to tile for the kitchen /nook. I've indicated where I think the speakers will need to go for a good 7.1 system. I'd love to have it work with 5.1 also (for resale value of the home), but I'll probably be buying two new ceiling-mounted speakers and moving my current surrounds to the back wall.

    Please review the diagram I attached and let me know if I should make any changes. The room is to scale, but the speakers, tv and furniture are not.

    Also - what kind of ceiling speakers should I look into? I'd love to stay with Polk Audio if possible so everything is matched. My current speakers are:

    Center: Polk CS175i
    Sub: Polk PSW202
    Fronts: Polk RT15i
    Rears: Polk F/X300i

    Thanks in advance for any help.

    -Matt
    Attached Files
    Last edited by mj1856; 27 July 2004, 00:31 Tuesday.
  • Sonnie Parker
    • Jan 2002
    • 2858

    #2
    Hi Matt and welcome to the forum.

    Doesn't look like you are gonna have much choice but to use ceiling mounted speakers. I would prefer (my opinion) not to use in-ceiling speakers but rather use mounts to drop the speakers down and angle them towards the listening area. There's several different mounts available to use with your application.

    I think you'd get a little better dispersment of sound than in-ceiling speakers firing straight down.

    I'd make sure to use mounts on both the sides (IOW's: don't mount one on the ceiling and one on the wall).

    Comment

    • mj1856
      Junior Member
      • Jul 2004
      • 11

      #3
      Originally posted by Sonnie Parker
      ...use mounts to drop the speakers down and angle them towards the listening area...
      Interesting... I hadn't considered that.

      So here's a thought then. What if I kept my f/x300i Dipole speakers on the sides, mounting them by hanging them from the ceiling. I could also move my front RT15i bookshelf speakers to the rear wall, and look into some new front speakers.

      Is it possible to mount those triangular dipoles on ceiling mounts? Or would they be too high to work properly? Would you still want to angle them towards the listening area? If so, I'd really like to keep them on the sides. They will switch to bipole mode for rears, but I know dipoles on the sides are supposed to give a better surround effect.

      So what about the rears then? The bookshelf speakers are just standard direct speakers. Do I still angle them downward?

      Any recommendations for front speakers with this system? Should I stick with bookshelf speakers and perhaps get some good stands? Or should I be thinking more about floor-standing loudspeakers?

      I know - it's all subjective. I'm just looking for opinions that may be more informed than mine.

      Thanks,
      Matt

      Comment

      • Sonnie Parker
        • Jan 2002
        • 2858

        #4
        Well I don't know about necessarily being more informed but I'll give you my opinion.

        As you say... it's subjective. They make several different styles of speaker mounts and they're definitely ones made to hang your sides like you suggest. Get adjustable mounts and you can angle the sides in various directions to find what sounds best. You can do the same for the rears... it's no problem that they are direct radiating speakers. With adjustable mounts you can angle them down/up or toe them in or out a little until you get what you like. Mounts can make your speakers very flexible.

        I personally like floorstanding mains but it's really up to you. If you have a good powered sub then it probably wouldn't be a huge deal to keep bookshelfs. If you've got the money and/or like listening to 2 channel then you might consider floorstandings. I'd stick with the same line of speakers though to keep the tonal balance between speakers.

        Comment

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