Speaker placement for odd room (yamaha presence speakers) (1 Viewer)

[david makalaster]

Hello everyone. I am way behind in all things audio/video. I am 48 and just now doing my first set-up.

The last 2 weeks I have acquired a used Yamaha AVENTAGE RX-A740, a Sony 4k blu-ray player, and a 5.2 Elac Debut 2.0 speaker package (50% off from Best Buy). A 55" 4k tv will be next. I know that all my things are entry level but I'm happy with them and have already enjoyed them very much. I currently have my tv in front of a large picture window and honestly hate the feel of the layout. It was always meant to be temporary. Now that I'm ready to design and build my space I want it to be as perfect as I can get it. Like I said earlier, I have 0 experience to draw from. I would prefer to forego the standard trial and error process. I have also spent countless hours researching things on the internet. I think I have some knowledge of how things should be but the size and layout of my space is awkward.

With that being said, what I am trying to do is create a livable space that can go from watching the evening news, playing with the kids and pets, to an awesome home theater. I would like to post a couple of pictures of what I want and then get feed back. I plan on beginning the project in about 2 weeks. I am a carpenter so nothing is beyond my skill set. I will be making the cabinets myself and can customize them to fit my purpose. The dog and cat wrestle too much and speaker stands are out of the question. One of the things I'm struggling with the most is my desire to use front presence speakers. It's my understanding that my front speakers should be at least 7' apart. In order for my subs to fit I need to be either 4' or 9' apart. The problem is 4' seems too close but at 9' I have no room left to mount the presence speakers 18"-36" wider than the fronts. Should I just forget about them or could there be some gain by having them directly above the fronts? (6'?) Also, if there's any other problem with my layout please inform me. I'll appreciate any and all advice. Thanks! The blank canvas is 9' 4" x 14' 4". The bump-outs and small wall don't exist yet. The couch is 8' away from tv.

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

According to most Yamaha receiver manuals, the front presence speakers should ideally be placed to the sides and above the front left/right speakers. However, I expect that mounting them above the left/right is better than nothing.

I would also get the rear speakers at least 6 ft. high. Down at ear level they are easily localized, which makes them a distraction.

The room doesn’t look large enough to justify two subs. Subs typically perform best in or near a corner, so one capable sub will be sufficient. The second one on the left will ultimately drag down overall low frequency performance.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[david makalaster]

Thanks Wayne. I knew I didn't need 2 subs and got the extra one for symmetry. Didn't think it would make it sound worse tho. I read that 2 subs were better so just went with it. After you replied I looked it back up and apparently wherever the subs go they should be opposite of one another. I still have 7 days to return it. If I put the one sub towards the right corner it will put my centers a little less than 5' apart. Does that seem okay? I could move the sub perpendicular to the right wall and spread the fronts out further to 7' apart and the presence would be 9' apart. I don't like that simply for aesthetics but could live with it. Not really only aesthetics but with 2 young kids and a dog and cat a lot of chasing goes on around here and it seems the sub on the right wall could be an obstacle.

I did think about the bookshelf speakers sounding localized and that's why I moved the couch out 2 feet. I will move them up to 6' and align them straight. When I moved in the previous owner left 4 Bose 161 speakers and 2 Paradigm Reference ADP-170 dipoles. I am going to use 2 of the Bose for the front presence speakers. They sound good and look great mounted on the wall. Should I consider using the other 2 Bose or the Paradigms for the surrounds? It's my understanding that the Paradigms really need to be close to the sides of the seating area for them to work as designed. That won't work for my room. I could maybe mount them at a 45 degree angle in the rear corners but might need to reverse the lefts and rights. Then leave them at ear level? Or use the Bose? Or keep the Elacs in the aforementioned layout?

Thanks, David

 

[david makalaster]

Also, I have no idea why it posted so many versions of the same pictures. I only uploaded them one time each. Sorry if it's annoying.