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"Floor standing speakers need a large theatre sized room to get loud enough to balance their lows/mids/highs" Is this true ??
Someone told me this at work. I was going to get the Polk Audio - Polk Signature Series S55 Floor Standing Speaker but after talking to this guy I'm thinking maybe I should get Polk Audio - Signature Series S15 Bookshelf Speakers instead ? By the way I'm anywhere from sitting 8feet to 12feet away. I don't really listen to anything really loud I just want clarity.
Also I have another question how do people keep speakers from vibrating off speaker stands, also I have cats that like to jump on everything. If I were to go that route and get a bookshelf speakers and stands how do I keep the speaker from falling off ? I have a hard time to believe most people are just putting speakers on stands without some falling counter measures.
Also I have another question how do people keep speakers from vibrating off speaker stands, also I have cats that like to jump on everything. If I were to go that route and get a bookshelf speakers and stands how do I keep the speaker from falling off ? I have a hard time to believe most people are just putting speakers on stands without some falling counter measures.
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That person would be wrong. However, if you're in a small room with (a) capable subwoofer(s), going with larger bookshelf speakers is all you'd need. The S20s would be the way to go if you have the budget for them.Someone told me this at work. I was going to get the Polk Audio - Polk Signature Series S55 Floor Standing Speaker but after talking to this guy I'm thinking maybe I should get Polk Audio - Signature Series S15 Bookshelf Speakers instead or the slightly bigger S20.
Also I have another question how do people keep speakers from vibrating off speaker stands, also I have cats that like to jump on everything. If I were to go that route and get a bookshelf speakers and stands how do I keep the speaker from falling off ? I have a hard time to believe most people are just putting speakers on stands without some falling counter measures.
Last question what would be the min distance say between regular sized bookshelf speakers and say floor standing speakers would there be be a difference ? Thanks
Speakers don't just vibrate off of speaker stands. Some stands have a rubber pad on the top plate (like the Kanto SP series), or you can just use the rubber feet that typically come with bookshelf speakers. Another common material used to secure speakers is regular ol' blu-tack.
And depending on the stand, you can pour sand/kitty litter into the column to weigh it down more - I have a pair of Edifier S3000 Pro stands, and stuck a garbage bag filled with cat litter in the column (this also helps to dampen the stand, too). I also bought some self-adhesive cork, and adhered/trimmed that to the top plate instead of using the rubber feet or blu-tack. Not only will it slightly dampen things a little bit more, it also provides some grip to keep the speaker in place, and soft enough to prevent any scratching on the bottom of the speaker. My Edifiers currently house my Wharfedale EVO 4.2s, which are already about 30lbs each, so they don't necessarily need anything to secure them to the stand. I have a cat as well, who also likes to jump on things, but so far he's kept away from my speakers.
As far as distance goes, there's no "minimum" distance. You just want to form an equilateral triangle as best as you can like so:
So, for example, if you're 6 feet away from the speakers at your main listening position, place the L/R speakers themselves 6 feet apart.
I sit 8.5 ft from my towers in a 13x14 room. Get the Polk towers.
Towers are always better IMO if you can afford them over the equivalent bookshelves.
Okay good I'll just get the S55 Polk towers then so I won't have to deal with the stands. My room is about 17x17 but I'm mostly sitting around 8-10feet away. I may not get a subwoofer or a center speaker depending how it sounds. I just want something to replace those horrible TV speakers. I just wanted to make sure I'll get good sounds in the
low-med-highs with the towers.
low-med-highs with the towers.
Agreed. I’m 9.5’ from the front stage in our 13x24 room. No trouble with the Polk RTi towers we have.I sit 8.5 ft from my towers in a 13x14 room. Get the Polk towers.
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Unfortunately the way my room is setup TV/entertainment center has to stay in the corner. I can only put the Polk S55 towers at 4 feet distance from each other.. But I'll be sitting 8-9 feet away. Is that going diminish my sound any ?
My room also necessitates I will be 14 feet away from 10 feet apart towers. 1.4:1 instead of 1:1. Not as much as your 2:1 scenario, but, Im also interested in the answer to this, for the same reason. Im guessing one answer could be, we both might benefit from "front wides" more than most. In other words, a 9.x.x surround system. But that is only a guess, and I do not know how that would fare in a small room, either. I know one thing, the AVRs that will do it are expensive if you also want atmos.Unfortunately the way my room is setup TV/entertainment center has to stay in the corner. I can only put the Polk S55 towers at 4 feet distance from each other.. But I'll be sitting 8-9 feet away. Is that going diminish my sound any ?
I will give my opinion, but others might disagree.
I don’t think your distance from the speakers is as important as the distance between the 2 fronts.
Of the 2 evils (front speakers too narrow vs front speakers too wide), you don’t want front speakers to be too far apart. Speakers create a kind of sonic field (sonic wall you could say) and if they are too far apart, the sonic field becomes disconnected and you will feel like you are listening to 2 different things (1 on the left and 1 on the right). As the speakers slowly move closer together, the sonic fields start to connect and the sound becomes a single piece instead of 2. If the speakers are too close, then you might experience a bit of a situation where isolated left and right sounds are not staying on their respective sides. For some things this won’t matter, but for others it could. As I said, in my opinion, the worse of these 2 issues is when speakers are too wide. You will not have an issue for movie noises that are independent, but music (especially the bass) will sound really strange.
also...
Towers almost always offer deeper base than their related bookshelf size. This is simply a case of having more woofers. Normally tweeters are no different. That extra/deeper bass never hurts. Also, bookshelf stands aren’t cheap and bring the price closer to the towers. In addition, the towers will certainly be more stable if you are concerned with them getting knocked over, or climbed by your cat.
Based on your description of having your setup in a corner, my main concern would be whether you can get the speakers close enough together so that your seating area doesn’t make you perceive the speakers as being separate in terms of a sound field.
Anyways, that’s just my opinion from personal experience of slowly moving towers closer together and farther apart. The separation is immediately noticeable as soon as the speakers become “too far apart” based on your distance to them.
I don’t think your distance from the speakers is as important as the distance between the 2 fronts.
Of the 2 evils (front speakers too narrow vs front speakers too wide), you don’t want front speakers to be too far apart. Speakers create a kind of sonic field (sonic wall you could say) and if they are too far apart, the sonic field becomes disconnected and you will feel like you are listening to 2 different things (1 on the left and 1 on the right). As the speakers slowly move closer together, the sonic fields start to connect and the sound becomes a single piece instead of 2. If the speakers are too close, then you might experience a bit of a situation where isolated left and right sounds are not staying on their respective sides. For some things this won’t matter, but for others it could. As I said, in my opinion, the worse of these 2 issues is when speakers are too wide. You will not have an issue for movie noises that are independent, but music (especially the bass) will sound really strange.
also...
Towers almost always offer deeper base than their related bookshelf size. This is simply a case of having more woofers. Normally tweeters are no different. That extra/deeper bass never hurts. Also, bookshelf stands aren’t cheap and bring the price closer to the towers. In addition, the towers will certainly be more stable if you are concerned with them getting knocked over, or climbed by your cat.
Based on your description of having your setup in a corner, my main concern would be whether you can get the speakers close enough together so that your seating area doesn’t make you perceive the speakers as being separate in terms of a sound field.
Anyways, that’s just my opinion from personal experience of slowly moving towers closer together and farther apart. The separation is immediately noticeable as soon as the speakers become “too far apart” based on your distance to them.
That was good insight thanks for posting. It would be helpful to know also, how far wide would you say is too far wide?I will give my opinion, but others might disagree.
I don’t think your distance from the speakers is as important as the distance between the 2 fronts.
Of the 2 evils (front speakers too narrow vs front speakers too wide), you don’t want front speakers to be too far apart. Speakers create a kind of sonic field (sonic wall you could say) and if they are too far apart, the sonic field becomes disconnected and you will feel like you are listening to 2 different things (1 on the left and 1 on the right). As the speakers slowly move closer together, the sonic fields start to connect and the sound becomes a single piece instead of 2. If the speakers are too close, then you might experience a bit of a situation where isolated left and right sounds are not staying on their respective sides. For some things this won’t matter, but for others it could. As I said, in my opinion, the worse of these 2 issues is when speakers are too wide. You will not have an issue for movie noises that are independent, but music (especially the bass) will sound really strange.
also...
Towers almost always offer deeper base than their related bookshelf size. This is simply a case of having more woofers. Normally tweeters are no different. That extra/deeper bass never hurts. Also, bookshelf stands aren’t cheap and bring the price closer to the towers. In addition, the towers will certainly be more stable if you are concerned with them getting knocked over, or climbed by your cat.
Based on your description of having your setup in a corner, my main concern would be whether you can get the speakers close enough together so that your seating area doesn’t make you perceive the speakers as being separate in terms of a sound field.
Anyways, that’s just my opinion from personal experience of slowly moving towers closer together and farther apart. The separation is immediately noticeable as soon as the speakers become “too far apart” based on your distance to them.
Are you able to share a photo of the space? It might be possible to spread the speakers out a bit more.Unfortunately the way my room is setup TV/entertainment center has to stay in the corner. I can only put the Polk S55 towers at 4 feet distance from each other.. But I'll be sitting 8-9 feet away. Is that going diminish my sound any ?
FWiW, there wouldn't be any real problem having them 4 feet apart, but the soundstage will not be as wide. As mentioned above, it's worse to have them too far apart relative to your seating distance than not as wide as they would ideally be positioned.
It's always better to have a subwoofer, even with towers. Given the limitations on how wide you can place the speakers apart from each other, a centre channel probably won't be 100% necessary.Okay good I'll just get the S55 Polk towers ... I may not get a subwoofer or a center speaker depending how it sounds.
I'll see how it works out tomorrow or I should say later today, I'll get the speakers but I need to decide which receiver to get by the time I go to the store this morning. It's either Onkyo TX-SR393 for $330 or get Onkyo TX-NR696 for $650.
I was going to get a Denon AVR-S750H but the dam thing doesn't have Treble & bass anywhere except on Heos app f-that I don't to use a app. Also the Denon seems more complicated manual has way more pages then the Onkyo.
I was going to get a Denon AVR-S750H but the dam thing doesn't have Treble & bass anywhere except on Heos app f-that I don't to use a app. Also the Denon seems more complicated manual has way more pages then the Onkyo.
How big is your TV?That was good insight thanks for posting. It would be helpful to know also, how far wide would you say is too far wide?
How big are your towers? How many woofers and what size?
Do you have a sub? What size?
If you want you can share your speaker setup to give us more information.
I assume you going to put a 55-inch TV in the 4-foot gap between the speakers.Someone told me this at work. I was going to get the Polk Audio - Polk Signature Series S55 Floor Standing Speaker but after talking to this guy I'm thinking maybe I should get Polk Audio - Signature Series S15 Bookshelf Speakers instead ? By the way I'm anywhere from sitting 8feet to 12feet away. I don't really listen to anything really loud I just want clarity.
Also I have another question how do people keep speakers from vibrating off speaker stands, also I have cats that like to jump on everything. If I were to go that route and get a bookshelf speakers and stands how do I keep the speaker from falling off ? I have a hard time to believe most people are just putting speakers on stands without some falling counter measures.
initially you said you will sit 8 to 12 feet away, but later said 8 to 10 feet. In either case, I just measured and simulated your situation. Your speakers will be fine. I think a 55-inch TV at 12 feet will feel too far though. I can imagine you being up around the 8-or-9-foot Mark more likely.
Unfortunately, I disagree with the poster above who said that you might not need a center. I would definitely get one. The center is where most of the voice for a movie comes from. It serves a different purpose from the fronts. Without a center, you are basically watching in stereo mode, and I don’t think that would be preferred.
I would recommend not to forget the following.... your TV and receiver will get replaced over time. They almost require being changed eventually,. but speakers can be an actual long-term investment. If you buy good ones and don’t wreck them, you don’t have to change them forever. However, what happens when you move in some years? Chances are you will have more space for your next TV setup. I think we agree it would be hard to end up with a smaller entertainment area. Therefore, you will already have towers, and maybe your TV will one day be 65 or 75 inches, and you will need a center. Will you find a matched one? Maybe... maybe not. In any case, why not just get it now? You definitely will need a center speaker at some point.
And, unfortunately I disagree with one more thing... I don’t think the sub has to be in line with the fronts. A sub is non-directional. I’ve had different setups before and they were always different locations with the sub. You can research what a “sub crawl” is. Haha. But every room is different, and you can position the sub where you think it sounds best. Also, depending on your exact sub, it might have room correction or the ability to shift where it outputs bass. In your case, you are going to have a large triangle of space behind your tv and fronts. You will have to be careful that it doesn’t become a huge chamber for bass... it could really get boomy. You’ll have to wait and test your whole area.
I measured 14 feet of seating distance, and a gap of 10 feet in between your fronts. That’s pretty wide man.That was good insight thanks for posting. It would be helpful to know also, how far wide would you say is too far wide?
Like, why are they going to be so wide? Do you have like a 140-inch screen?
You better have huge towers, or, in my opinion, music will sound wack. You will not fill the sound space in the middle, which means the area in the middle of the TV is going to feel empty. I strongly believe that your ears are going to distinguish the left and right speaker from one another, but the idea is that you aren’t supposed to know where the sounds are originating.... they are supposed to come at you from the center of the TV and fill a sonic field.
Also, I don’t know how wide your couch is, but people sitting on the outside left and outside right are gonna have it worse.
It‘s just my guess, but I don’t think your speakers will be big enough.
I highly suggest you find a way to move them a lot closer.
Go to an electronics store and test what I’m saying. To sound good, you will have to push your seating area back a ways.
Just to check, but does the calculus change if I also have a center channel? Because I do,I measured 14 feet of seating distance, and a gap of 10 feet in between your fronts. That’s pretty wide man.
Like, why are they going to be so wide? Do you have like a 140-inch screen?
You better have huge towers, or, in my opinion, music will sound wack. You will not fill the sound space in the middle, which means the area in the middle of the TV is going to feel empty. I strongly believe that your ears are going to distinguish the left and right speaker from one another, but the idea is that you aren’t supposed to know where the sounds are originating.... they are supposed to come at you from the center of the TV and fill a sonic field.
Also, I don’t know how wide your couch is, but people sitting on the outside left and outside right are gonna have it worse.
It‘s just my guess, but I don’t think your speakers will be big enough.
I highly suggest you find a way to move them a lot closer.
Go to an electronics store and test what I’m saying. To sound good, you will have to push your seating area back a ways.
The towers have to be that wide because the screen will be wide. 2.35:1 screen... the towers are the Infinity R263s, the center channel is the RC263.
To be fair, I didn't say the centre channel isn't necessary. Given their space constraints, and assuming there's just the sole seating position, they might be able to get away without until they have the means to add a dedicated centre channel. As long as those S series towers have a solid centre image, it shouldn't be too bad. It's when there's multiple seating positions where the phantom centre becomes an issue.Unfortunately, I disagree with the poster above who said that you might not need a center. I would definitely get one. The center is where most of the voice for a movie comes from. It serves a different purpose from the fronts. Without a center, you are basically watching in stereo mode, and I don’t think that would be preferred.
I don't recall anyone saying that it did?And, unfortunately I disagree with one more thing... I don’t think the sub has to be in line with the fronts.
Thanks guys
My apologies. You didn’t. I made the mistake. The comma makes me wrong. I read through the comma. Sorry.It's always better to have a subwoofer, even with towers. Given the limitations on how wide you can place the speakers apart from each other, a centre channel probably won't be 100% necessary.
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