i have just set up my first true home theater.

50 inch panny plasma, denon receiver, panny blu ray player, hd dvr, epik valor sub, ascend 340 speakers all the way around.


loving what i have for the time being.

i would like to now dive deeper into audio theory, set up, how it all really works, both mechanically and the audio side of things.

are there any books out there you would reccomend reading to learn more about speakers, home theater, etc... focusing on theory and specs of speakers, building your own, etc?

anyone?

F Alton Everest "Master Handbook of Acoustics"
Floyd Toole "Sound Reproduction"
Tomlinson Holman "Surround Sound, Second Edition"
Vance Dickason "Loudspeaker Design Cookbook"

Floyd Toole "Sound Reproduction"


I second the Floyd Toole _Sound Reproduction_. It's has lots on recent multichannel home theater design and debunks a lot of the conventional wisdom (e.g., re absorbing first reflections) with real empircal data and tests.

I second the Floyd Toole _Sound Reproduction_. It's has lots on recent multichannel home theater design and debunks a lot of the conventional wisdom (e.g., re absorbing first reflections) with real empircal data and tests.

Lateral first reflections from certain angles...

Lateral first reflections from certain angles...

Toole said that treating first reflections was optional. He was referring to the first reflections from the Left, Center, Front speakers.

For stereo use, he said leaving the side walls untreated at the first reflection points may be beneficial and for multichannel use (5.1, 7.1) he said leaving them untreated was of no consequence.

What angles are you referring to?

First reflections also occur off the ceiling, floor, and rear wall, as well as possibly the front wall, depending on toe-in. He does recommend absorption at the latter three locations. As you can see on page 118 and interpret on 505, he does not use the term "first reflections" exclusively for the lateral reflections from the front channels, like you're doing. The angles I'm referring to are on page 106. Anyway, I think we're on the same wavelength, but I just wanted to clarify.

First reflections also occur off the ceiling, floor, and rear wall, as well as possibly the front wall, depending on toe-in. He does recommend absorption at the latter three locations. As you can see on page 118 and interpret on 505, he does not use the term "first reflections" exclusively for the lateral reflections from the front channels, like you're doing. The angles I'm referring to are on page 106. Anyway, I think we're on the same wavelength, but I just wanted to clarify.

Oh yeah, you're right...for some reason i thought we were just talking about side-wall first reflections.

I thought the book was great.

His composite recommendation for 7.1 speaker layout was also interesting. Until now, everything I had seen had the four surrounds basically behind the listener (the left/right surrounds being above and slightly behind) but Toole illustrates that the left/right surrounds in a 7.1 configuration can be slightly forward of the listener...again, something I hadn't seen before.

i have just set up my first true home theater.

50 inch panny plasma, denon receiver, panny blu ray player, hd dvr, epik valor sub, ascend 340 speakers all the way around.


loving what i have for the time being.

i would like to now dive deeper into audio theory, set up, how it all really works, both mechanically and the audio side of things.

are there any books out there you would reccomend reading to learn more about speakers, home theater, etc... focusing on theory and specs of speakers, building your own, etc?

This stuff is free and very well worth your time.

Interview with Kevin Voecks of Revel (http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volume_11_2/feature-interview-kevin-voecks-4-2004.html)

Harman Infinity White Papers (http://www.infinitysystems.com/home/technology/technology_whitepapers.aspx?Language=ENG&Country=US&Region=USA)

Audio Art and Science: This paper reviews scientific work performed by Dr. Floyd Toole and his colleagues that aimed to determine the extent to which listeners agreed on their preferences in sound quality and, beyond that, to identify relationships between listener preferences and measurable performance parameters of loudspeakers.
Adobe PDF format 131KB

Loudspeakers and Rooms - Working Together: In this paper we will attempt to make the best of this imperfect system by identifying the major variables in the loudspeaker/room system, and discussing methods for their measurement and control.
Adobe PDF format 167KB

The Acoustical Design of Home Theaters: A companion paper to Loudspeakers and Rooms - Working Together, this paper focuses on the design of home theater loudspeaker systems and listening rooms.
Adobe PDF format 110KB

Understanding Room Acoustics and Speaker Placement: The room is the final audio component and, as such, it can make or break a listening experience. This paper discusses some simple techniques for enhancing your listening room for maximum performance.
Adobe PDF format 149KB

Loudspeakers and Rooms for Multichannel Audio Reproduction by Floyd E. Toole, Vice President Acoustical Engineering, Harman International: Here we look at the basic theory of multichannel audio systems, leading us to understand why certain loudspeaker designs and room arrangements work better than others.

Part 1 - How many loudspeakers? What kind? Where do I put them?
Part 2 - Making a good loudspeaker - Imaging, space and great sound in rooms.
Part 3 - Getting the Bass Right.

[QUOTE=markwriter;15098231]This stuff is free and very well worth your time.

Interview with Kevin Voecks of Revel (http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volume_11_2/feature-interview-kevin-voecks-4-2004.html)

QUOTE]

Enjoyed reading this interview, thanks!!!

I also agree that Floyd's new book is a must read, lots of great insite.

Ray

[QUOTE=markwriter;15098231]This stuff is free and very well worth your time.

Interview with Kevin Voecks of Revel (http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volume_11_2/feature-interview-kevin-voecks-4-2004.html)

QUOTE]

Enjoyed reading this interview, thanks!!!

I also agree that Floyd's new book is a must read, lots of great insite.

Ray

I'm glad you liked it. I've been on a quest for hi-fi for around 25 years, and I've found the Harman guys extremely transparent and helpful. I really appreciate their approach, as well as their results. I lucked into some Revel F32's for a good price and am really enjoying them. Music has never seemed more real.

F Alton Everest's Book.

And additionally, Steve Lampen's (Belden) Cabling installer's handbook (the title is something like that))

Dr. Earl Geddes is somewhat controversial but has some interesting ideas. Here is one of his books.

http://www.gedlee.com/Home_theatre.htm

I have both Stephen H. Lampen book:
"Wire, Cable, and Fiber Optics for Video & Audio Engineers" 1998
and Dr. Earl Geddes book:
"Premium Home Theater Design & Construction" 2002

Both are very good books but both are "OBE" (Overtaken By Events).