Advice needed, new surrounds / placement (1 Viewer)

[Ricky Hustle]

Hello all, here's my situation.

I own Klipsch reference all around, RF-5's up front, RC-35 center and RS-35's in the rear. An SVS 20-39 PCi subwoofer completes my setup. I'm extremely happy with my equipment.

I moved last year, and my new viewing space is smaller than I had in my old house. My primary seating is right up against the back wall, and it's not really an option to move it up a few feet. That would put me too close to my 65" Mits.

The surrounds are mounted on the back wall facing the screen. Putting them on the sides facing in can't work because one side of the room is open. We're not too happy with how it sounds, as the rears pretty much disappear and bounce off the front wall now. Our listening experience is not what it once was when the rears were a few feet behind the listening position.

I realize that the surrounds do not have to be as robust as the rest of the system to be effective as long as they are placed correctly, and I also think that my RS-35's are a bit of overkill (they are huge). I'm contemplating getting two new smaller speakers and hanging them from the ceiling, off to the sides of the couch and facing inwards. Klipsch doesnt offer any smaller surrounds, only the in-wall variety, which we would have to place directly above our heads facing down.

My questions are: Are down facing rears directly above the listening position a good solution that would also sound more natural that what we have now? Or should we go with hanging speakers that are off to the side and face inward? If we go with the latter, what brands would timber-match my current speakers?

Thanks in advance for any help and/or advice!

 

[TommyTwoTone]

Hi,

Experimentation is key, but you may want to try putting the Rs and Ls channels behind your sweet spot on the floor facing towards the ceiling. If your couch is against a wall you can try putting them betweeen the couch and the wall and raise them up so the front baffle is level with the top backside of your couch. With the latter configuration I would calibrate the rear channels a few dB's below the mains, otherwise it may be too distracting.

Good luck!

 

[Ricky Hustle]

Thanks for the reply, Jason.

Neither of those solutions really would work well for me, though. My couch is indeed up agains the wall. My speakers are rather large, also.

What I am leaning toward doing is purchasing new, smaller, speakers that I can hang from the ceiling on the left and right of the couch and face inward. I just have no idea as to what would be a good match for my Klipsch Reference fronts and center.

 

[John S]

I tend to really like cieling mounted stuff, not in the cieling, but you know what I mean. Harder to do the bigger and heavier the speaker for sure.