spencersmb Posted March 24, 2019 Share Posted March 24, 2019 I just setup my new Denon 4500H receiver and have not invested yet in height speakers. I've read a lot of online reviews about how some think the atmos speakers when positioned to fire up facing the ceiling and then bounce the sound waves off back down to the listener is a total gimmick, but then I also have read how some say it works. I'm not totally convinced that those are just paid reviews to be honest. I'm wondering if anyone here has tried or is using this type of height speaker setup vs. putting speakers in the ceiling. The one catch for me is that my ceiling is vaulted where the peak is about 17 ft high and I think the angle is about 20 deg. I think if the up-firing does actually work, if placed right I can shoot the bounce to the main listening position. Wondering what other opinions on this are! Thanks, Spencer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willland Posted March 24, 2019 Share Posted March 24, 2019 If it was a gimmick, I don't Klipsch would invest any R&D to design a speaker like the RP-280FA. Maybe they would but I highly doubt it. 38 minutes ago, spencersmb said: The one catch for me is that my ceiling is vaulted where the peak is about 17 ft high and I think the angle is about 20 deg. Now that could get a bit tricky. 38 minutes ago, spencersmb said: I think if the up-firing does actually work, if placed right I can shoot the bounce to the main listening position. Careful placement and aiming would be important here. Bill 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paducah Home Theater Posted March 24, 2019 Share Posted March 24, 2019 It works with a few caveats. First of all in my opinion you really need four. Secondly, the 8060FA's work better. The problem isn't that they don't work at all, it's that the modules can be localized sometimes. I mean, you have a direct line of sight to the drivers, should be pretty obvious that this is a possibility. The 8060's do like Triad and Deftech and inset the drivers and encapsulate them with foam, it looks and works better in this regard. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkPayton Posted April 6, 2019 Share Posted April 6, 2019 I was wondering, would 5.1.2 be a noticeable upgrade from 5.1? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HenrikTJ Posted April 16, 2019 Share Posted April 16, 2019 The up-firing speakers aren't a gimmick. They do in some cases work, but not at all times. It depends on your room and reflection points. For TRUE atmos experience, get in-ceiling speakers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HenrikTJ Posted April 16, 2019 Share Posted April 16, 2019 On 4/6/2019 at 4:46 AM, MarkPayton said: I was wondering, would 5.1.2 be a noticeable upgrade from 5.1? Well... that really depends on the movie you're watching. But when you have a movie that utilizes the height channels, you will notice the difference. If you're asking if its worth getting, I would say it is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avguytx Posted April 16, 2019 Share Posted April 16, 2019 To me, after being in the business from about 1984 till 2010, most all of the surround technology became more of a gimmick to better give people somewhat of a reason to spend money on "new technology" versus keeping what they had for years. Look at things like the HD-DVD/BluRay battle, the failure of 3D stuff, curved TV's, etc., etc., etc. I'm so glad to be out of that business as I'd have a hard time persuading my dealers to stock up on new emerging technology that may or may not make it over the course of a few years. They are running our of ideas and are grasping at straws to figure out how to keep it all going. That was told to us by MANY manufacturers and some of the people in R&D. (I got to sit in on some of their "pow-wows" over the years) It was quite humorous, really. I'll probably do a small surround system in my upstairs bonus room but it will be like I did before where it's completely separate from the 2-channel rig. In my last house in Texas, I used 3 in-wall speakers for the front and 4 in-ceiling speakers for the surround along with 2 Sunfire subs. Not high dollar stuff...but happy average. Thankfully, I bought it all at Rep sample pricing as there was no way I'd spend the retail money on it. Same goes for now. I'm happy I still know all the Nat'l Sales Managers for the companies I used to rep plus many I didn't so I don't have to pay retail. That or I'll just buy used as it's really not a big deal to me. I wonder what the next gimmick will be after this runs its course.... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spencersmb Posted April 16, 2019 Author Share Posted April 16, 2019 Well I just installed my new Denon 4500H receiver, an Emotiva XPA-5 Gen3 amp, with 4 atmos speakers "mounted" in the front and rear of the room. I have an 11 speaker setup right now total with no sub yet. I just watched BladeRunner 2049 4kUHD and DAMN! Atmos does work pretty well, I didn't even try up firing as I have vaulted ceilings. I also setup the calibrated speaker EQ with Denon. I will admit this is my first major system and first atmos system, but during some of the scenes the sound really does go all around you. An echo for example in a hallway doesn't just echo to the side, it's above you as well - crazy. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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