I'd keep working on getting the location of the TV moved from the fireplace. 
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Need help with home theater placement and ideas for new house
my wife or her plus our kids (now that they're getting older) watching movies or gaming on next gen consoles/Switch.
This is basically what it will look like minus the couch. We're getting a sectional which will be along the righthand wall all the way across the back of the room (from the camera POV) and a chaise on the left side pointed at the TV wall. Seating is 11-12 ft from the front wall, and the wall is 130" from the side of the fireplace to the window. Obviously not all of that space is usable for AV stuff.
1 - What size TV should we get?
2 - Is the space big enough for floor standers or do we need bookshelf ones on stands?
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If you can find a passive sound bar (basically the L/C/R speakers in a single enclosure), then that's what I would put on the mantle. Alternately, you could put the L/R speakers on either side of the fireplace with the Centre speaker on the mantle.
A couple of surround speakers, spread as far apart from the fireplace as symmetrically possible, will help create a ring of sound around the listeners. 2 or 4 speakers overhead will turn the 2D ring of sound in a 3D bubble of sound.
A couple of surround speakers, spread as far apart from the fireplace as symmetrically possible, will help create a ring of sound around the listeners. 2 or 4 speakers overhead will turn the 2D ring of sound in a 3D bubble of sound.
Mike Lang....That would be great, but there's nowhere else downstairs that it could go. There's not enough space on either side of the mantel wall before hitting windows - that wouldn't completely block the walkway to get to the stairs.
I think ideally I'd have 2 floor standers, one on each side of the fireplace, and the center on the mantel, with wireless rears and a sub somewhere. Once I got to looking at all of this I wondered if a soundbar would be better. Most center channels aren't 7" or less in depth though, so that's a possible issue. A soundbar would definitely fit on it though.If you can find a passive sound bar (basically the L/C/R speakers in a single enclosure), then that's what I would put on the mantle. Alternately, you could put the L/R speakers on either side of the fireplace with the Centre speaker on the mantle.
A couple of surround speakers, spread as far apart from the fireplace as symmetrically possible, will help create a ring of sound around the listeners. 2 or 4 speakers overhead will turn the 2D ring of sound in a 3D bubble of sound.
I guess my first big dilemma is what size TV can I even mount there? We'd really like a 75 (if led) or 77 (if oled), but I'm not sure about it hanging over the edge of the wall. If not, then I guess we could get a 65", or maybe a projector, but I'm worried about lack of gaming features for a projector (honestly, I've never even looked at them).
Looks like the perfect job for a Mantlemount, with a 3 channel passive soundbar attached to the bottom, under the TV. Just stay within the weight limitation of the mantlemount when choosing the TV and soundbar.
+1 on that. I'm looking at RBH Ultra 3 to go on my mantle mount. Mantle Mount is amazing!Looks like the perfect job for a Mantlemount, with a 3 channel passive soundbar attached to the bottom, under the TV. Just stay within the weight limitation of the mantlemount when choosing the TV and soundbar.
Well, thanks to everyone for your help and suggestions. I showed my wife the Mantle Mount, and while she thought it was cool, she didn't want to do that. I stopped at a local home theater shop yesterday and he said that we'd be limited to either very tiny bookshelf speakers or a soundbar on the mantel due to the corner placement. I also asked on Reddit and they said to work on moving the placement.
Since the wifey shot down the Mantle Mount and the only other options were not great, she has agreed to mounting it on the left wall in the model home picture I posted above.
The sectional we're getting is still going to be the same, but we're going to rotate it 90 degrees to the right. The back of the sectional will come across the middle of the room, the other seats will be on the wall to the right of the fireplace, and the chaise will point towards the TV wall.
I think the wall is big enough for a 75-77" TV there. The seating won't be optimized, but we'll figure out something. Now I need help with speakers, and an entertainment center to go under the TV once it's wall mounted. The shelf/stand will need to house a receiver, Xbox Series X, PS5, Switch, and a Apple TV. How tall should the shelf be for good center speaker placement? Would it be smarter to get bookshelf speakers on stands, or floor standers for the L and R channels? The local HT shop pushes Goldenears brand HARD! What little I've heard they sound phenomenal, and blow my previous Polk setup out of the water (S15s L and R, with a S35 center) I can order from pretty much anywhere, once we close on the house. I love the look of the KEF Q950, but have nowhere to audition them before buying. The only piece of gear I still have is a Klipsch 12" sub, which I think would be enough to get me started, but the shop owner told me to basically run away from it yesterday.
Thoughts and ideas on speakers?
Since the wifey shot down the Mantle Mount and the only other options were not great, she has agreed to mounting it on the left wall in the model home picture I posted above.
The sectional we're getting is still going to be the same, but we're going to rotate it 90 degrees to the right. The back of the sectional will come across the middle of the room, the other seats will be on the wall to the right of the fireplace, and the chaise will point towards the TV wall.
I think the wall is big enough for a 75-77" TV there. The seating won't be optimized, but we'll figure out something. Now I need help with speakers, and an entertainment center to go under the TV once it's wall mounted. The shelf/stand will need to house a receiver, Xbox Series X, PS5, Switch, and a Apple TV. How tall should the shelf be for good center speaker placement? Would it be smarter to get bookshelf speakers on stands, or floor standers for the L and R channels? The local HT shop pushes Goldenears brand HARD! What little I've heard they sound phenomenal, and blow my previous Polk setup out of the water (S15s L and R, with a S35 center) I can order from pretty much anywhere, once we close on the house. I love the look of the KEF Q950, but have nowhere to audition them before buying. The only piece of gear I still have is a Klipsch 12" sub, which I think would be enough to get me started, but the shop owner told me to basically run away from it yesterday.
Thoughts and ideas on speakers?
Good job getting the screen off the fireplace!Well, thanks to everyone for your help and suggestions. I showed my wife the Mantle Mount, and while she thought it was cool, she didn't want to do that. I stopped at a local home theater shop yesterday and he said that we'd be limited to either very tiny bookshelf speakers or a soundbar on the mantel due to the corner placement. I also asked on Reddit and they said to work on moving the placement.
Since the wifey shot down the Mantle Mount and the only other options were not great, she has agreed to mounting it on the left wall in the model home picture I posted above.
The sectional we're getting is still going to be the same, but we're going to rotate it 90 degrees to the right. The back of the sectional will come across the middle of the room, the other seats will be on the wall to the right of the fireplace, and the chaise will point towards the TV wall.
I think the wall is big enough for a 75-77" TV there. The seating won't be optimized, but we'll figure out something. Now I need help with speakers, and an entertainment center to go under the TV once it's wall mounted. The shelf/stand will need to house a receiver, Xbox Series X, PS5, Switch, and a Apple TV. How tall should the shelf be for good center speaker placement? Would it be smarter to get bookshelf speakers on stands, or floor standers for the L and R channels? The local HT shop pushes Goldenears brand HARD! What little I've heard they sound phenomenal, and blow my previous Polk setup out of the water (S15s L and R, with a S35 center) I can order from pretty much anywhere, once we close on the house. I love the look of the KEF Q950, but have nowhere to audition them before buying. The only piece of gear I still have is a Klipsch 12" sub, which I think would be enough to get me started, but the shop owner told me to basically run away from it yesterday.
Thoughts and ideas on speakers?
Now you have real estate to work with and that opens up a lot of possibilities (maybe too many). I would listen to as many speakers as you can and get a feel for what kind of sound appeals to you. Do you even like the GoldenEars?
If you want speakers to the sides of the TV, then the TV has to leave enough room on that wall to accommodate the speakers. At minimum, you should leave 8" on each side for speakers. If you want to get a TV that fills the entire wall (or leaves less than 16" total, then revisit the 3 channel passive soundbar option. lots of good ones from the aforementioned Golden Ear, Totem, Triad, Phase Tech, Martin Logan, RBH, HTD, PSB, Paradigm to name a few. Some are even customizable to exactly match the finish and/or width of the TV you choose.
I'd keep working on getting the location of the TV moved from the fireplace.
Mike Lang....That would be great, but there's nowhere else downstairs that it could go.
See...I knew you'd get there!she has agreed to mounting it on the left wall in the model home picture I posted above.
So, the speakers I've heard in-person are as follows:Good job getting the screen off the fireplace!
Now you have real estate to work with and that opens up a lot of possibilities (maybe too many). I would listen to as many speakers as you can and get a feel for what kind of sound appeals to you. Do you even like the GoldenEars?
If you want speakers to the sides of the TV, then the TV has to leave enough room on that wall to accommodate the speakers. At minimum, you should leave 8" on each side for speakers. If you want to get a TV that fills the entire wall (or leaves less than 16" total, then revisit the 3 channel passive soundbar option. lots of good ones from the aforementioned Golden Ear, Totem, Triad, Phase Tech, Martin Logan, RBH, HTD to name a few.
Polk s15/s35 (my old setup), Klipsch Reference 400, Elac Debut 2, the basic Sony ones at Best Buy, and the Golden Ear Triton 3 and Aon 3. The Golden Ear were the nicest sounding, but I only heard them for music and not movies or games. Music is my last use case, so....yeah. Both of the GE speakers sounded amazing in the music, but again not stuff I listen to so.
The guy at the local shop was super pushy, didn't even tell me about anything else that he carries. He told me to run away from my Klipsch 12" sub too and I get that it isn't awesome, but it was a massive improvement over my previous 50w Polk.
There's not anywhere else local to audition speakers, that I know of. What are thoughts on the Crutchfield virtual listening thing?
Not a big fan of virtual listening. The nice thing about Crutchfield is that you can order a pair of bookshelf speakers and only pay $10 to return them. If you order two and keep one, you end up not paying anything due to their point system. If it were me, I'd look at ordering three or four different brands, listen to them all and return two/three. Costs you $20 for the privilege.So, the speakers I've heard in-person are as follows:
Polk s15/s35 (my old setup), Klipsch Reference 400, Elac Debut 2, the basic Sony ones at Best Buy, and the Golden Ear Triton 3 and Aon 3. The Golden Ear were the nicest sounding, but I only heard them for music and not movies or games. Music is my last use case, so....yeah. Both of the GE speakers sounded amazing in the music, but again not stuff I listen to so.
The guy at the local shop was super pushy, didn't even tell me about anything else that he carries. He told me to run away from my Klipsch 12" sub too and I get that it isn't awesome, but it was a massive improvement over my previous 50w Polk.
There's not anywhere else local to audition speakers, that I know of. What are thoughts on the Crutchfield virtual listening thing?
Listening in your room, with your equipment is the ultimate demo and well worth the small $ investment to get it right.
Luckly there are a lot of good chiropractors out there. Because your neck is gonna hurt with that tv over the fireplace.
Did you read the whole thread?Luckly there are a lot of good chiropractors out there. Because your neck is gonna hurt with that tv over the fireplace.
Hold tight everyone. I'm headed to the model home tomorrow (we can only get into the floor model on the weekends), to get some new measurements of wall spacing and floor spacing too. I'll post back at some point tomorrow with updated size constraints for the new mounting point.
The builders made an exception and we got to go over tonight! Check out the first post for updates and a new picture.
Congrats for convincing your wife to not put the TV above the fireplace.This is basically what it will look like minus the couch. We're getting a sectional which will be along the righthand wall all the way across the back of the room (from the camera POV) and a chaise on the left side pointed at the TV wall. Seating is 11-12 ft from the front wall, and the wall is 130" from the side of the fireplace to the window. Obviously not all of that space is usable for AV stuff.
1 - What size TV should we get?
2 - Is the space big enough for floor standers or do we need bookshelf ones on stands?
1. Sitting from 12 feet, get the biggest TV you can afford. Or if you prefer quality over size, consider buying an OLED.
2. The size difference between floorstanders and bookshelf speakers is small, and floorstanders are more stable (perhaps important if your kids are still young), but if you don't plan to listen to music, and you'll use a subwoofer, bookshelf speakers are the best choice.
1 - 18 of 18 Posts
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