How to Place Home Theater Speakers

You have your television and home theater receiver; you just bought your new speakers and subwoofer and are ready to test things out. It's time to break out the measuring tape because precision is vital to achieving the full potential of your home theater system. For this article, we are going to focus on a 5.1 surround sound system. The term "5.1" refers to the number of speakers and subwoofers in the system respectively. So for a 5.1 surround sound system, there are five speakers (the center channel, the two front speakers, and the two rear speakers) and one subwoofer.

When placing your home theater speakers, try to use the same amount of speaker wire for each type of speaker. For example, use the same length of wire for each of the front speakers. This will allow the signal to reach each speaker in about the same instant. I say "about" because there are variations in the wire which could cause the signal to reach one speaker slightly (fractions of a fraction of a second) before the other. By making the two lengths equal, you ensure that this delay remains tiny and unnoticeable.

Center Channel

The center channel should always be placed either immediately above or immediately below the viewing screen. Make sure the speaker is pointed directly at the audience.

Front Speakers

The two front speakers should be the same distance from the audience as the center channel. Doing this will ensure that the sound will travel from each speaker to the audience in the same amount of time and reduce the chances of there being a noticeable delay between what takes place on screen to when you hear it. Each of the front speakers should also be positioned an equal distance from the TV on either side. This distance is dependant on your specific tastes; just make sure that the distances are both equal.

Rear Speakers

The rear speakers should be mounted on the walls on either side of the audience. Their purpose is to provide a sense of atmosphere, not provide the main sound for your home theater system. Therefore, they should not be pointed directly at the audience's ears or you risk over powering the center channel and the two front speakers. Again, distance is important. Try to have the rear speakers the same distance from the TV in order to use the same amount of speaker wire and if possible have them placed equidistance from the audience.

Subwoofer

Bass tones by their nature are more difficult to localize than the midrange and high notes of the other five speakers. This will give you more freedom as to where to place the subwoofer. However, the location surrounding the subwoofer can greatly influence the bass tones you hear. Placing the subwoofer in a corner or under a table will create a deeper resonating tone as the sound waves reflect off of the surfaces. The placement of the subwoofer is up to you, depending on the type of bass you want. Experiment with different locations and find the one that best suits your taste.

Realizing the full potential of your home theater speakers is not a difficult task. By following these guidelines, you will be ready to enjoy your home theater the way it was meant to be heard.

Jon Martin is the Webmaster of the Home Theater Accessories Resource. The Home Theater Accessories Resource is your guide to home theater accessories.

This article came from the Connecting Home Theater Components section of the site.

---

Is DVD Storage An Attractive Alternative For Your Computer Backup?

If you have a computer for home use or for... Read More

MobiTV and Visual Stimulation Imput for Personal Cognitive Performance

Stimulus thru Caffiene or Visual Input?It appears that the Mobi... Read More

How Do MP3 Players Work? Digital Audio Technology Revolutionizes Music Enjoyment

Millions have enjoyed recorded music since 1877 when Thomas Edison... Read More

EDTV: What You Should Know Before You Make That Purchase

Enhanced Definition Television ? also known as EDTV ? is... Read More

Lightning Season: How to Avoid Data Loss

We have just entered the time of year that most... Read More

Review of Rio MP3 Players

Below you will find some useful information and comments about... Read More

Tips For Finding Great Deals On Computer Accessories & Supplies

Tip #1. Do a Google search. Don't be to general... Read More

Get Ahead When You Build Your Own Computer

If you've been kicking around the idea of building your... Read More

Deleting and Destroying Data Forever

Peoples' private information needs to stay private, even after it... Read More

Keeping Passwords Secure

As the web has evolved, so have the methods of... Read More

How to Save an Image in a SQL Server Database?

Most of the web applications have a lot of images... Read More

Windows PDA Medical Software Benefits

PDA Medical BenefitsIf you are concerned about your medical history,... Read More

The Many Benefits of Owning a DVR

Has This Ever Happened To You? OK.. it's Friday night,... Read More

How To Become A True CCNA

I've worked my way from the CCNA to the CCIE,... Read More

Taking Advantage of the iPod Experience

Music lovers have been carrying around radios and other bulky... Read More

Protect Your PC from Viruses, Worms & Trojans

Each of the items in the checklist below is part... Read More

Make Windows XP Run Faster!

A friend told me: "My computer startup seems to be... Read More

This Page Cannot Be Displayed ? What to Do When Your Internet Breaks

The DNS (Domain Name System) servers are what your computer... Read More

How I Started Working With 3D Modeling Programs

So I'll start from the very beginning.One day I was... Read More

Have You Invited A Spy Into Your Computer?

Yes, it's true. You may have inadvertently invited a spy... Read More

Desktop Security Software Risks - Part 2

This is the third in a series of articles highlighting... Read More

Font Organizers Review, Part I

Do you know how many fonts are currently installed on... Read More

Image Conversion In Computers

JPEG, GIFF/JIFF, BMP, and TIFF are the most commonly used... Read More

How To Recognize The Telltale Signs Of Spyware

Spyware is the software that collects information about your online... Read More

Learn the Lost Art of Touch Typing

Computers have replaced typewriters, but two-finger, hunt-and-peck typing can never... Read More

Mail-merging: The Principles

About mail-mergingMail-merging is the process of merging variable data and... Read More

Basic Diagnosis Guidelines for Your PC

Simone is exasperated. She has to work on her university... Read More

Three Things You Can Do to Keep Your Computer Running at Maximum Performance

Although there are many things that can affect the performance... Read More

Ergonomics and Healthy Computing - Positioning Your Body For Maximum Comfort At Your Computer

Do you remember the old saw about how computers would... Read More

If You are the Only User on Your Windows XP Computer, Do You Think One User Account Is Enough?

I am going to assume that you are running windows... Read More

Why Get a Microsoft MCSE Certification?

In the years of the dot com boom and bust,... Read More

15 Good Programming Habits

1. Before sitting down for coding, you must have formal... Read More

Is Your Web Browser Putting You At Risk?

It's free, it comes with Windows and it's used by... Read More