HTIB Setup Options. (1 Viewer)

[MichaelSholl]

Hey guys,

I just purchased the HT-760 and am looking into options for installing the speakers. What options are out there? Should i put them on the wall or use speaker stands? Advantages/disatvantages. Should the speakers be ceiling mounted or at eye level for best sound?

Any input would be great.

 

[TylerZ]

Michael,

I would suggest putting the speakers on stands instead of wall mounting. While this method might cost more, with the added cost of the stands, you will have more flexibility as to aiming the speakers exactly where you want them so they sound their best. I believe one rule of thumb as to heighth is to keep the front tweeters at ear level and the rears above your head when seated if at all possible. Alot depends on the size and acoustical properties of you room though. Depending on your budget you can find decent stands from Wood Technology for a pretty good price or Sanus stands for alot more $. Just make sure they're sturdy enough. You don't mention if the floor is carpet or hardwood but spiking them with carpet floors will improve their stability.

 

[MichaelSholl]

Tyler. Thanks for the response. I think I will go with stands as I agree with your thoughts and they do look at bit nicer especially given this will be in a family room. Question about the Heights of the stands. I see 16,24, and 31 in the set I am looking at. Sanus Basic Foundations. I am going with the Onkyo HT-760 HTIB which is 6.1. The front speakers are 16.5" tall and the back are 10.4".

What height stands would you recommend? Also, what do you recommend for the center channels both back and front?

Thanks a bunch

Mike

 

[TylerZ]

Mike,

It's not rocket science, just some simple math. Sit down in your favorite viewing/listening position and have someone measure how far above the floor your ear is. Take your front speakers, remove the grill, put them on a flat surface, and measure up to the center of the tweeter. The difference would be about how tall you want the front stands. I don't know how tall you are so let's use this for an axample.

Let's say your ears are 36" above the floor. The distance from the flat surface to the center of your front tweets is 12". So you would need about a 24" stand for the fronts. Notice I say 'about', if you're off a couple inches it shouldn't be all that bad. Although a friend of mine actually cut his stands to obtain the exact height, but he is obsessed with this HT stuff.

You can do the same thing to figure out about how high you want the rears, but I'm probably guessing the 31" stands will work. Remember, above your head is better for those.

Now for the centers. I would try to get the rear center about the same heigth as your back speakers if you can. It would be nice to get the front center in line with your front speakers but this is not always possible because you want the front center either directly above the TV or under it. Most people put it above. You can angle it up or down to sound better from your listening spot. My front center sits on top of our TV. I used a couple of those black rubber door stopper things to get my front center angled down slightly so it points more directly at the sweet spot in our family room. This took some time, patience, and a very understanding wife in order to find just how much of a downward angle to point the front center. "You can actually hear a difference with a 1/4" more of a downward angle?" she asked. She thinks I'm kind of crazy sometimes.

DO NOT be afraid to experiment to get what sounds best in your listening environment. And have fun doing it, that's what it's all about. Sooner or later, some rainy Saturday afternoon, you'll be moving speakers from the left to right a couple inches just to see if it sounds better to you. Don't worry, you're normal, we all tweak things from time to time.