[dan76n]

hi all, im about to build a new house and wanted to know what dimensions i should aim for for home cinema. I have a maximum of around 5.5 metres in length, and about 4.5mtrs in width. ceiling height is up to 3.8 mtr3. also what is best for flooring.
thanks,
Danny

[gaz.thomas]

I think the ratio between the walls is more important than the actual dimensions - there are a few threads here about that already so I won't waste bandwidth going over old ground. As to flooring materials I think it depends on the timbre of the room (as dictated by the wall/ceiling materials and dimensions) and your desired outcome. Hardwood is 'lively', heavy rugs are 'deadening'. Seating position and screen size are also a factor here as are the type of speakers you intend to use.

You can buy software from http://www.cara.de that allows you to predict the effect of the room on your sound based on a CAD diagram and absorbtion coefficients of the materials used.

As a 'hard and fast rule' square rooms sound awful and certain ratios will serve to amplify harmonics present in the sound emitting from the speakers. The more angles/corners there are, the more difficult it is to calculate the acoustics of the room.

Gaz
-x-

[ChrisNic]

I think that if you have the width and height you are talking about you want a ceiling height of about 2.5m, those dimensions sound pretty good though but make sure the door placement mean that you have flexibility in speaker positioning you certainly dont want them pushed in corners. The longer the walls the higher you can have the ceiling but 3.8m is mighty high. Im not sure about floor surfaces but if you have wood floors then you will need plenty of rugs, highly reflective surfaces arent good for sound, look at the roof of a cinema its covered in sound proofing (well thats what I think it is)!