How far apart for front speakers 5.1 setup (1 Viewer)

[Brian_Tho]

I have recently aquired some new front speakers. They match my existing setup. My question is regarding the distance apart they should be mounted. If I sit 8ft from the TV how far apart should they be? 4ft from the center channel on either side? Any comments welcome

 

[Brian_Tho]

Anyone?

 

[Mat_M]

I'm guessing that the general answer is that you can have them as far apart as you want, as long as you don't create a sound "hole" between the mains and the center. I read this in an earlier post a few weeks back. Some more experienced users can chime in and be more specific.

 

[Phil Iturralde]

FYI: The following is from The Dolby Guide to Home Theater Sound website ...

3.1 Front speaker placement

The left and right speakers should include an angle of from 45 to 60 degrees with the center-most viewer, as shown in Figure 6. An angle nearer to 45 degrees is preferred if you use your system mostly to watch movies, as it approximates the circumstances under which film soundtracks are mixed and monitored. A wider angle, with the left and right speakers further apart, is recommended if you use your system for music listening more often than watching movies.

Figure 6: Use the narrower angle if you mostly watch movies, and the wider angle if you mostly listen to music.

Phil

 

[Rick J]

brian here's an article on the subject i found interesting...rick


http://www.soundandvisionmag.com/art...current_page=1

 

[Ryan Tsang]

In my experience, I feel placing the mains in an equilateral triangle configuration puts them too far apart. Even with toe-in, I have a hard time putting vocals in the center. I don't like the sound of one singer coming from all over the soundstage.

That said....I'd start with 2/3 of the distance to you apart. Experiment. There's no right/wrong answer. Some prefer a really wide soundstage to envelope them at the expense of accurate imaging. Others like me, prefer a narrower setup. On some recordings, you'll swear the singer was right in front of you.