hi all, I'm new to HT building so I need some advice.

I am mounting my TV above the fireplace. The mantle is about 4'5" tall and the TV will be right above it. The TV is a 52" and is about 2'7" tall. I consulted with the wiring company about the center speaker placement and they told me it would be better to place the center speaker below the TV since center speaker should be at ear level ideally. But the problem is the TV is already a bit high for my taste. Leaving space for the center speaker below it will make the TV even higher.

Initially I wanted to place the center speaker above the TV, but the wiring people told me that it will lose the center speaker effect since it's too high up. But then I did some research and read about angle the speaker would help.

I'm sitting at about 9' away from the TV and my eye level is about 4'.

What do you guys think. I would really prefer the TV right above the mantle but I don't want to mess up with the center speaker placement either. Help!

Anyone?

I would not recommend doing what you are suggesting. It sounds like you are planning to put everything too high up. But if you are set on putting your TV and center speaker over the fireplace, you could put the center speaker above the TV and angle it down toward the listeners' ears. But you need to understand that you are deviating quite a bit from the optimum and may regret this set-up in the long run.