|
Where do i put all those speakers in a home theatre?
The center channel speaker should be put on top of the TV instead of below it because it is been said that the front speakers should be very close to ear level. A TV's speaker can be used for a center channel as long as your components are equipped to send the center channel output to your TV. Never use the TV speaker to reproduce the regular audio signal because that signal has not been "surround processed" and you won't get true surround sound. If your system is hooked up properly, you will never hear the TV's speakers.
The front speakers should be placed as close to the TV as possible so you can get proper displacement of the sound and picture. However, since many people own smaller TV's, this isn't very practical. If this is your case, then place the front speakers equally distant from the center speaker and the full distance between the speakers should be equal to the distance from the listening position to the center speaker. For example, let's say there is six feet between the couch and the center speaker. Then, each front speaker should be three feet from the center speaker for a total of six feet.
There is heated discussion on where the rear speakers go. There is a general consensus that they should be placed to the side of the listening area and slightly above (like Figure 2), but some rooms don't conform to this. So, the speakers should be placed behind and above the listening position. I have tried it both ways and I can't say there is much difference. Now if your lucky enough to have dipole surrounds, they should definitely be put on the side. In fact, Denon has a couple of receivers that have two sets of surround inputs. One for the side, and one for the rear!
It is also agreed that the subwoofer should be put on the floor in a corner. However, since again, some rooms can't do this, to put it simply, put the sub somewhere so it can be heard.
Finally, any speaker placed near the TV should be magnetically shielded (the speakers magnetic field disrupts the TV's picture). All center channel speakers are shielded, but if you're planning on putting your fronts close to the TV, make sure they are as well.
Another comment about speakers: If your front speakers have a very low response (frequency ranges below 40Hz), a subwoofer isn't a necessity, but it's always nice to have one. Make sure before buying a subwoofer that it has a frequency range lower than 34Hz. Some low-end companies try to pass off a subwoofer that really isn't one. When purchasing speakers, most people think that wattage is the key specification on how good a speaker is. In my opinion, the speaker's sensitivity is the most important. Sensitivity is the measurement of how loud a speaker can get at one watt RMS (root mean square). A speaker with a sensitivity above 90 decibels is a good speaker. My main speakers have a sensitivity of 96 db yet they're only 100 watt speakers. Keep in mind that when buying speakers, listening to them is the best specification.
|
