What Model for Ceiling Atmos?

[Rivernuggets]

Asking this question for my brother. Could any Atmos dudes weigh in please? I haven't gone into Atmos but would like to give him some advice. His words:

 

 

I want to explore the idea of moving my Dolby Atmos setup to get some in-ceiling Klipsch speakers to replace the Atmos speakers that currently sit on top of my two fronts.  I have my doubts about how effective it is to bounce the "Atmos" part of the sound off of the ceiling which is what those two speakers are supposed to do.

 

I've had these since Nov 2017:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ZIQZBTG/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

I was looking at these:

https://www.amazon.com/Klipsch-CDT-5800-C-II-Ceiling-Speaker/dp/B0074WSYXC/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&linkCode=sl1&tag=cglr-20&linkId=f8e460e4c52e0be167db1f3efc216ad9&language=en_US

 

I'm only starting to look on forums and stuff and can probably figure it out in the long run, but wasn't sure if you had heard anything about the best speakers to use for "in ceiling" Atmos sound?

[wuzzzer]

The CDT 5800 that you mentioned seems to be the best selling model for that purpose. 

[MIKEPP]

I have 8 foot ceiling , flat 

small room 

ideal conditions for the bounce method 

I purchased 2x RPA-140SA

I can tell you first hand it doesn’t even come close .

I went with a pair of CDT-3800-cii

instead of the 5800 

I couldn’t be happier 

I don’t know if you can get the 3800 anymore 

 

if you do the up fire add ons let me know how it went for you .

[Rivernuggets]

Thanks for your feedback guys. Mike, your experience is what my brother was thinking: the bounce method isn't as good as drivers in the ceiling.

 

My brother is dealing with a finished room, no attic or second floor above. Holes in the ceiling and patching up after is making him pause.

 

Any other experiences or opinions out there? If you had success doing a ceiling install, please share your process.

[ClaudeJ1]

I tried bounce for a while, but ended up with some used KPT-200's from a Nashville Theater that got flooded in 2010 and the speakers were saved before the flood. I replaced the K-42-KP woofers with Eminence Kappalite 3012 HO's to reduce the suspended weight on the added lumber I used to do so, since I didn't want to cut holes in the ceiling.

 

I had full XY mobilty for optimum placement, with the cabinet angles towards my sweet spot. So between Dolby literature, a tape measure, and experiments, I found the best symmetrical placement, and screwed it all down when done. When I use the Dolby Test Blue Ray, I get a very 3D/realistic rendering of sounds that come "from the sky above" as well as many movies that feature overhead sounds that are as important as surround sounds.

 

I find the "bounced sounds" to be almost BS, since the results are too diffused to give the full effect of Dolby Atmos Sound Tracks. Nice thing is, for older movies, with only 5.1, 6.1, or 7.1 mixes, the Yamaha's AI feature improves all those non-Atmos tracks also, so there is no penalty for "going all the way" with the full ceiling mount!

[ClaudeJ1]

in fact, the best thing you can do for the "bounce speakers" is put a giant conical horn around them to concentrate their upward firing even more than the splashy wide beam ones that exist now..............yuk. Tried them and they were a waste of time and money.

[Paducah Home Theater]

The CDT-5800-C-II is the most popular model, largely because they can be tilted / aimed, both the woofer and tweeter.  The PRO-180-RPC is actually a better speaker but it can't be tilted so people are more skeptical, they love the tilt functionality.  

 

The bounce method actually works but with a few caveats.  First of all, 2 speakers doesn't do much to be honest, you really need 4.  That doesn't stop people from wanting to do it with 2.  Also the add on modules like RP-500SA lets you have a direct line of sight to the drivers so of course sometimes they are localizeable.  I prefer the RP-8060FA's if you must use upfiring speakers, at least those are inset and encapsulated with foam like Triad modules.