Floorstander placement

[troopa85]

Okay so my living room isn't really optimal for speaker placement as I have a door on one side limiting my choices.

My room measures 4,6 x 3,6 meters. My tv is placed at the middle of the 4,6 m wall which leaves me with 2 options for my speaker placement. Either I can place them at each corner which would make them stand about 4,2 meters apart and I would have about 3,2 meters from my position to each speaker or I can place them closer to the tv which would make the speakers stand 1,75 meters apart and I would be sitting 3 meters away.

Which would be the better option?

 

[PSM1]

Floorstanders should not really be placed in the corner of the room since they can suffer from the boundary effect which gives boomy bass. Also you do not want them too wide otherwise you will lose your front soundstage since the sound will not pan seamlessly across the screen. Hence I would put them closer to the TV. Both Dolby and THX post pictures showing the correct angles for the speakers relative to the viewing location so use these to guide your placement. You may not be able to get them in the perfect place but get them as close as possible.

 

[troopa85]

So of the 2 options placing them at each side of the TV would be ok? It's a 55" and they will have some space at each side of the tv and as previously said would be 1.75 m apart and 3 meters to the seating positions. I will also pull them out about 20 cm from the back wall.

Do you think that would work ok, or should I not even bother with floorstanders? I am kind of in doubt wether they will work well for my room, or if I should go for something else. I'd like floorstanders though as they give along of bang for the buck sound wise,... been looking at getting the Dali Ikon 5 mk2 which are relatively small floorstanders.

 

[Richy1984]

Do you have a picture to better explain your room? I dont get why they have to either be in the corner or next to the TV, why not somewhere in between?

It is very hard to say what speaker will work in what room without knowing more info, or simply trying them. If its a standard lounge with a decent amount of furniture, there is no reason why floorstanders of that size couldnt work. Each speaker is different though, some can go a few inches from the wall, some may require a few feet of space. If you cant get a home demo, perhaps read up on the model / reviews to get an idea of this, or download to manual to see what it reccomends.

 

[PSM1]

I think the option with the speakers either side of the TV will be fine. I also thnik that in that location floorstanders will also not be an issue either. Whether to use floorstanders or not is another issue and in general with an AV system with a sub there is no real need for floorstanders. You say you get more sound for your buck with floorstanders but this is only in terms of bass extension and if you have sub then this is more than taken care of anyway. In fact you can often get a better sound with standmounts for the same money since they can often have a cleaner and clearer mid range compare to a similar priced floorstander. So do not assume that floorstander always equals better sound as it it not always the case,

 

[troopa85]

Do you have a picture to better explain your room? I dont get why they have to either be in the corner or next to the TV, why not somewhere in between?

It is very hard to say what speaker will work in what room without knowing more info, or simply trying them. If its a standard lounge with a decent amount of furniture, there is no reason why floorstanders of that size couldnt work. Each speaker is different though, some can go a few inches from the wall, some may require a few feet of space. If you cant get a home demo, perhaps read up on the model / reviews to get an idea of this, or download to manual to see what it reccomends.

Imageshack.dk

So either place them at green x or red x. If placed in the corners they will be 4.2 m apart and I'll be sitting 3.2 meters from each speaker. And if next to the TV they will be 1.75m apart and ill be sitting about 3m from each speaker.

Picture doesn't include all furniture but just what I figured would be somewhat important so doesn't include tables etc.

 

[troopa85]

I think the option with the speakers either side of the TV will be fine. I also thnik that in that location floorstanders will also not be an issue either. Whether to use floorstanders or not is another issue and in general with an AV system with a sub there is no real need for floorstanders. You say you get more sound for your buck with floorstanders but this is only in terms of bass extension and if you have sub then this is more than taken care of anyway. In fact you can often get a better sound with standmounts for the same money since they can often have a cleaner and clearer mid range compare to a similar priced floorstander. So do not assume that floorstander always equals better sound as it it not always the case,

Alright I don't have a sub or anything and would like to keep it somewhat simple. Will be 50% for music and 50% movies.

 

[Richy1984]

I'd go with the red crosses, but get them as wide apart as you can around there. With the speakers a little close you could probably just havie them facing fwds and not need to angle them towards the listening position much at all.

That'd probably work better that the green crosses as it may be too wide apart (hence losing focus), and meaning that they have to be in the corner which most speakers wont takee too kindly too..

 

[troopa85]

I'd go with the red crosses, but get them as wide apart as you can around there. With the speakers a little close you could probably just havie them facing fwds and not need to angle them towards the listening position much at all.

That'd probably work better that the green crosses as it may be too wide apart (hence losing focus), and meaning that they have to be in the corner which most speakers wont takee too kindly too..

According to Dali and reviewers these speakers shouldn't be angled anyway, Yes I am thinking next to the tv as well, but furthest apart I can get them is 1.75 m.

 

[PSM1]

I would second going with the red cross location. If you do nto have a sub and do not intend on ever getting one then floorstanding speakers are probably the better option.

 

[BlueWizard]

My instinct tells me that the RED "X" are the best, or at least that is likely what I would choose.

However, there is an advantage (as well as disadvantages) to the GREEN "X" locations. I think partly it depends on the speakers. A bass heavy speakers is absolutely not going to like being placed in a corner or close to the walls. But a speakers with a bit smoother softer bass might fair better.

Next, the door on the left, is that an actual Door or just an open doorway. I'm worried about which way the door itself swings. If it swings toward the speaker, I would put some kind of stop on or in the floor to prevent the door from swinging into the speaker.

Even at the RED "X" position, the speakers are going to need to be forward about 12 inches (300mm). Again, placement varies from speaker to speaker. Speakers that are already bass heavy tend to harder to place and need lots of room. Speaker with typical balanced bass, are reasonably easy, and speakers with softer smoother bass are very easy to place and very forgiving of their position in the room.

Steve/bluewizard

 

[Mr Andy]

I have a similar size room and have tried a few positions. I really didn't like sitting closer to the speakers then they are to each other. I found for music up to 1.5 times the distance between the speakers for the seating position sounded good. I would put the speakers 1.75m apart and maybe pull your seat forward for music sessions if you can. (I considered having a Poang chair from ikea that I could put in front of a sofa as they are easy to move around)

I bought floor standing speakers but having tried the small stand mounts and wonder if the bigger standmount speakers would have been best