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Help with surround speaker placement in 5.1.4 basement setup.


dalec

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Hi all, I'll be moving into a new home in the new couple months and have a room ready for a home theater setup. It will primarily be used for gaming, music, tv, and movies (in priority order). Despite not watching a lot of movies, it's already wired with 4 ceiling speakers so I'll hook those up for Atmos with a current-gen receiver (Yamaha RX-A3060 likely).

 

I've always wanted a Klipsch system, but never had the space before, so for front speakers I'm planning to install a pair of Klipsch RP-280F and an RP-450C center. I had originally planned on going with some RP-250S surrounds, but I'm having troubling given the room layout. It has a doorway almost exactly where you'd want the surround speakers positioned, so I'm forced to put them further back or nearly at ceiling height.

 

Mounting the RP-250S further back seems like it might be a poor use of their wide dispersion capabilities. Various threads suggest that the RP-250S are best suited for side surrounds when placed directly adjacent to the listening position. So I was wondering if I might be better off using an RP-140SA horizontally mounted and aimed at the listening position.

 

I've attached a couple photos showing the room orientation and sizes. Any help and advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance!

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Hi there!

Can you fit towers at all? You mention gaming- I run towers for my surrounds and play a lot of games. A 6.1 system with towers and a rear center in my old room was awesome for immersion- effects panned seamlessly. I have since dropped back to 5.1 for this room but still use my towers for surrounds. 

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Welcome! As far as it goes I agree with above. Can you have towers in the back? Could get the 250 or 260? Thing about atmos is for the separation they want surrounds moved down to ear level vs being high like reccomended before. So towers ends up working perfect for that.

And looking at your drawing you said advice. So here it comes. First off I see a Klipsch sub. If you aren't getting the r-115sw, then shop elsewhere for a sub. The rest in the reference line up are kind of a joke.

Second move the sub inwards if you can as well as your equipment rack and spread your mains out further. Triangle is rule of thumb. If you sit 8-9 feet from screen try to have the mains same distance apart at center of the tweeter.

Where are you located and what is your budget for speakers and sub?

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Thanks for your replies! I could fit towers behind the listening position, but would that be noticeably better than normal surrounds mounted in the same place? Can you elaborate on why the towers would be preferable given the location? The only concern with towers is they might have to be rear-surround instead of side-surround to avoid blocking the walkway behind the sofa.

 

I haven't decided on the sub yet, I need to go measure and see if the 115 can actually fit :) I've heard similar advice though, and was considering one of the SVS sealed subs to pair with the system.

 

I'm located in Seattle, WA and budget is < $5k for speakers and sub. Thanks again for your help!

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Well you said the RP-250s would be way behind you. Plus if atmos is an option then direct firing is better. You could do bookshelves on stands. However its crazy how close to tower price you get when you buy good bookshelves and then add good stands. If it was an extra 75-100$ to have towers over bookshelves I would spend the extra money.

Call around to get the best pricing on your speakers.

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Thanks for the suggestions! I've updated the model with your movement and tower placements. Is this about what you were thinking? The distance to the listening position is now 1.5 times the width of the fronts per the RP series manual.

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Have you thought about turning the setup to the left 90 degrees?  You'd still have enough room behind the couch for a walkway, you wouldn't have to mount the TV above the fireplace which is usually a bad compromise in itself, and your surrounds would work MUCH better.  I've seen multiple people do a layout like what you're talking about and they do not enjoy the surround sound, you lose all the panning, it's just kind of weird, they need to be closer to your sides and not that far back.  Plus, your surrounds will be further away which is nice.  Even if you didn't have that door right there, narrow rooms are harder to get right across multiple seats, you'd likely enjoy them being on the short wall better as to maximize the distance.  If you needed multiple rows of seats that's a different story, but for one couch, I'd be rotating the room so the door is behind you.  Put that desk in a rear corner assuming it is for office use.  Your fireplace isn't symmetrical either, even if you put the TV above it, the room will always seem a little lopsided.  

Edited by MetropolisLakeOutfitters
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Also if possible I'd recommend putting your gear in the back.  I saw that picture with the rack up front.  Usually having a bunch of lights up front is pretty distracting. Put the rack in one rear corner and the desk in the other.  The resulting layout is exactly what I'm running, your room is just barely smaller.  My only regrets is not having a baffle wall or having multiple rows of seats.  Outside of these things, for one couch, having the display on the long wall is nice.  

Edited by MetropolisLakeOutfitters
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Thanks for the rotation suggestion! I'll mock it up and see what the space looks like. At a glance I'm a bit worried the sectional may close off the room too much. Also not shown in the mocks are two windows; one on the back left wall and one on the rear wall.

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Here are the updated drafts with the rotation. Without the standing desk, it does look more spacious, but the front speakers are worryingly close (~5ft) as RP280Fs. Is this what you were going for?

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Here are the updated drafts with the rotation. Without the standing desk, it does look more spacious, but the front speakers are worryingly close (~5ft) as RP280Fs. Is this what you were going for?

that looks terrible. Cramped! Wish you could model an actual sectional instead of that huge stupid block. I still like the long way but if tv was gonna be off center and over fireplace I wouldn't do it. I'd rather be cramped and on center. I'd still also spread mains out further. More room they have to breathe the better. First set of pics the sub needs to be on the inside. Will be less boomy as well setup like this.
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Here are the updated drafts with the rotation. Without the standing desk, it does look more spacious, but the front speakers are worryingly close (~5ft) as RP280Fs. Is this what you were going for?

 

I don't see how you are quite as cramped as it looks.  My room is only 2.5 feet longer yet my head is 10'6" from the screen when sitting upright, 11' when reclined.  I have enough space in front of the screen for my daughter to do cartwheels, and there is 4' between the back of the seat and the wall.  I agree with scrappy, try to model it with a real couch or at least blocks of the same dimensions, not one huge rectangle.  Also keep in mind where your head is and don't go by the end of the chaise lounge.  

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Sectional furniture is big. I helped my son do some furniture planning, and with sectional things were tough and he had about 15' square. He ended up going with a traditional sofa and love seat in an L shape with a big ottoman. It also gave him room for a recliner and end tables. The ottoman wasn't there when these were taken:

 

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I like the TV on the long wall with the door to the back of the room for multiple reasons. The front speakers should be a bit wider than you show also. You could put your standing desk against the wall under the window to the left. You could buy a little space with bookshelf speakers on stands for the surrounds since that is travel space.

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Didn't have time to update the rotation version yet, but here are the standard views w/ an actual desk and sectional. The rack placed in the back should be out of the walk way already, but I've scooted it back a few inches to more accurately reflect its planned placement. The off center wall over the fireplace actually works out well since that lets me maximize the space near the doorway by pushing the sectional against the left wall.

 

I'll update the rotated versions and see about fitting the standing desk back in under the Window later today. Thanks again for all of your insights!

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Okay, now with updated rotation and real furniture. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem possible to use the rotated layout and keep the standing desk, which is a requirement for gaming with my fiance :) As such I'm leaning towards the layout with the TV over the fireplace since it's a more optimal use of space. My current setup has the TV much higher over the fireplace with the same center setup without bother.

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