Finally done..... for now....almost

ls7z06

I finally have my HT room where I am happy with it. Check out my system showcase pics....ls7z06. I think I have everything calibrated to where I am very, very pleased. The Polk RTiA7's, CSiA6, and FXiA6's with the DSW Pro 500 all powered with the Onkyo 806 have all turned out great. I am however plotting to add those 2 rear surround channels at some future point. I have extra sets of RTiA1 bookshelfs, OWM3's, and Monitor 50's to choose from for use as rear surrounds. I just dread the wiring. Given my set up, which of these 3 speaker sets would be best for Rsurrounds?

thsmith

RTiA1s but not sure where you would put them based upon your pics. Very nice BTW. Some acoustic panals would be nice. I used owens Corning 705s and my wife made the covers to match decor.

ls7z06

Well, if I used the RTiA1's, I would have to put them on stands and put them on each side of the Corvette pic, as close to the wall as I could get them. If I used the Monitor 50's, I would just set them on the floor in the same spot. If I used the OWM3's, I would mount them on the wall on each side of the Corvette pic and fish the wires down through the wall. I agree the RTiA1's would be the best quality speaker, but they would be the most difficult to blend into the room since they are the deepest in physical size.

apphd

Congrats, nice looking HT:)
I think I would stick to 5.1 with your layout, but since you already have the speakers just run the speaker wire on top of the floor temporarily and try all 3 to see what you like the best. It just looks like 7.1 would be hard to accomplish with satisfactory results in that room. I'm kind of going through the same thing, as I want to try 7.1 but don't really have the room for it.

My best guess would be the OWM3s and angle them down. If running wire in your wall would be difficult you may be interested in something like this:

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=100-015

Knucklehead

Nice set-up......+1 on RTi's

maximillian

If you install rear surrounds then you need to move the seating out further. Also, you may want to elevate the side surrounds to the same level as the rear surrounds (two feet above ear height).

The other option is to go with in-wall surround speakers. Keep in mind that going to 7 channel isn't always the best option, especially if you don't have the room.

Finally you may want to consider some inexpensive room treatments as thsmith suggested. It helps with reflections and cancellations at certain frequencies. Some people have noticed a drastic increase in sound stage afterwards. Room treatments using 1" fiberglass boards with custom covers is my next "upgrade".

ls7z06

If the rear surrounds only put out very low level signals, as I think I understand they do, why would it make a big difference if they were mounted on the wall slightly behind, above and to each side of the main listening position? My dipole FXiA6's are awesome but there is not I also use a sound meter to calibrate and balance all channels so nothing over powers anything else. As far as not having them spead out enough, how would that be different than a 6.1 where the RS is directly behind the main position? I am sure not an expert on this stuff and am trying learn a little bit here. Thanks.

ls7z06

ls7z06 wrote: »

If the rear surrounds only put out very low level signals, as I think I understand they do, why would it make a big difference if they were mounted on the wall slightly behind, above and to each side of the main listening position? My dipole FXiA6's are awesome but there is not I also use a sound meter to calibrate and balance all channels so nothing over powers anything else. As far as not having them spead out enough, how would that be different than a 6.1 where the RS is directly behind the main position? I am sure not an expert on this stuff and am trying learn a little bit here. Thanks.

Sorry for the jumbled up post. Repair man came to door and I did not have it corrected before I hit post. What I meant to say...

If the rear surrounds only put out very low level signals, as I think I understand they do, why would it make a big difference if they were mounted on the wall slightly behind, above and to each side of the main listening position? My dipole FXiA6's are awesome but there is not much directional sense from them and sometimes you need to hear the airplane coming in from directly behind you. I also use a sound meter to calibrate and balance all channels so nothing over powers anything else. As far as not having them spead out enough, how would that be different than a 6.1 where the RS is directly behind the main position? I am sure not an expert on this stuff and am trying learn a little bit here. I appreciate the suggestions to elevate the surrounds more and plan to work on that this weekend. Also looking into what I can do to make the room acoustics better. Thanks much for your help.

xj4094dg

Whichever ones you choose, definitely hide them inside the Buck

apphd

ls7z06 wrote: »

Sorry for the jumbled up post. Repair man came to door and I did not have it corrected before I hit post. What I meant to say...

If the rear surrounds only put out very low level signals, as I think I understand they do, why would it make a big difference if they were mounted on the wall slightly behind, above and to each side of the main listening position? My dipole FXiA6's are awesome but there is not much directional sense from them and sometimes you need to hear the airplane coming in from directly behind you. I also use a sound meter to calibrate and balance all channels so nothing over powers anything else. As far as not having them spead out enough, how would that be different than a 6.1 where the RS is directly behind the main position? I am sure not an expert on this stuff and am trying learn a little bit here. I appreciate the suggestions to elevate the surrounds more and plan to work on that this weekend. Also looking into what I can do to make the room acoustics better. Thanks much for your help.

When you say a 6.1 set up the RS is located directly behind the main position you are correct as far as centered. But typically there is some space between it and the seating. Keep in mind that there is nothing cast in stone as to what is right for you. There are too many variables for someone to tell you the correct location for your speakers in your room. There are only guides to suggested starting points.

Also keep in mind that different encoding types have slightly different suggested starting points.

Dolby Labs link

THX link

Also what works good for movies may not work as good for multi ch music if you are into that.

I think even when you have the levels adjusted correctly it comes down to timing/distance between speakers and seating. Distance and delay settings in the AVR can only do so much, if your side surrounds and rear surrounds are to close the sound, such as a fly over, will transition too quickly for the best effect.

It comes down to experimenting with location and aiming to see if you are happy with the results. Maybe aiming the rears down or up and bouncing them off the ceiling could prove effective. Hence my earlier suggestion to just lay your speaker wire on top of the floor temporarily to experiment with your different speakers and locations until you find what makes you happy. Hope this helped a little more.

danz1906

Congrats-Sweet System!

Grimster74

Love the looks of the room. Me personally, I'd stick with a 5.1 setup in that room. My secondary setup upstairs is a 5.1 setup and my wife and I are completely happy with the way it performs.