what is the best positioning of 5.1 channel speakers to get the real complete sound effect?

Answer 1

Center Speaker: Directly ontop/under the television.

Front Left: Approximately four feet away from the center.

Front Right: Approximately four feet away from the center.

Rear Left: 10 to 12 feet back from front left.

Rear Right: 10 to 12 feet back from front right.

Subwoofer: Can be anywhere, but most effective in the front of the room near the tv set.

Answer 2

Ok, the real answer to this question is it depends. All moderate to high end receivers have distance adjustments that will allow you to set the distance of each speaker to you and then adjust the level of each speaker. Ideally You want your center channel near the top or bottom of the tv because this is the channel that will produce most of the main dialog in your system. Your front left and right speakers should be equidistant from the center channel at about head height, now you dont want to go too close or far because then you will loose any sound imaging (the two speakers sound combining to make it sound like one in front of you) The surround speakers should be to the left and right of you either slightly behind or even with the back of your head also at head height. The sub should go in a front corner to get the best sound out of it, it dosent really matter what side because those frequencies are omni directional. Once you place the speakers you should set the distances with a tape measure and you can adjust the speaker levels by ear or buy a cheep spl meter at radio shack and get a good setting.

Answer 3

Scott W gives the best answer. To add on to what Scott W has already said, the professional rule of thumb states that the height of the front three speakers should be at ear level while sitting in your main listening location. The rear two speakers should be at ear level while standing. Over the years, I've noticed that I prefer the rear two speakers placed at ear level while sitting as well. Most affordable speakers are not omni directional, so you will want them pointed to your main listening location.

Answer 4

some systems have measurements built in. I know my old Kennwood 5.1 did. It allowed you to type in the distance from were you were sitting to wear the speakers were positioned in the room. very cool feature.

Answer 5

to set them up check out THX.com they have some diagrams on how to set up according to the sound formats you can use. Also check your reciever to see if you can set speaker distance since not all rooms are square or rectangel. Some receivers even have a calibration microphone

Answer 6

Hey there Danny.The size, shape, and construction of your room will have an effect on the sound you hear from your speakers.The best position for the two front main stereo speakers is to have them two to three feet away from all walls and corners,level with and on either side of a Widescreen TV.(if you have one)angled to your listening position with the tweeters at ear level.The center dialog speaker should (preferably) be the same as the two front speakers. It should be positioned exactly midway between the left and right speakers.(sometimes you get a clearer soundstage with the removal of the center speaker). Your seating arrangement should be in front of the back wall of your room,depending on how close you view your video.The two left and right rear speakers can either be mounted behind you where you sit or adjacent to you on the side walls.They should be level with your ears when seated.If they are mounted high up they should angle down to your ears.You can't go by the measurements suggested to you from another answerer because every room and placement of equipment is different. The Subwoofer is the hardest speaker to position for equal sound distribution. However try to avoid placing it in a corner (the corner forces the sound to become directional ,and the bass could become boomy) or up against a wall, or behind you as the sound will be disjointed and separated from the front. .A good Subwoofer should only play the lowest frequencies( the lowest two octaves below 80 HZ). A lot of wrong information is given out about Subwoofers such as : bass isn't directional ,you only need one subwoofer ,or you can put it anyware. Let's put the record strait : bass is directional in a room - the room causes it to be directional.So placement is important so that the bass blends with the rest of the music.The lowest frequencies can't develop in a small room because the length of the lowest cycles are longer than the room dimensions.What you hear are only half and quarter notes which bounce and resonate between parallel walls creating an unpleasant sound.But people don't care if its good or not ,they must have one.They are trying to change the laws of physics and acoustics.This will upset some people and will probably result in me getting some "thumbs down" to register their disapproval]

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

If you really want the best sound from your Sub. you need to get two of them. After all the Subwoofer is an extension of the bass of your two front stereo speakers.Having two Subs near your left and right front speakers distributes the low bass notes evenly down the room.

There is something else you could do depending on the size of your stereo speakers and the size of your Subs. (if you decide to get two of them) What you do is to place your stereo speakers on top of your Subs.[NOW I KNOW YOU MUST BE THINKING '"HE'S GOT TO BE CRAZY-YOU CAN'T PUT A SPEAKER ON TOP OF A SUB'"!] trust me it does work, if you do a couple of things first [ Some Electrostatic speakers are attached to Subwoofers to extend their bass frequencies ] If your Subs. have no bottom spikes you attach 3 spikes to the bottom of the Subs so that they sit on the floor on three small points.This will help in dissapating structual vibration from the sub. Your speakers sit on top of the Subs with 3 ISOLATION CONES under them.They can be glued or stuck to the base of the speakers.When they are mounted on top of the Sub they only make contact with 3 sharp points which means any vibration from the subs' top panel can't reach the bottom of the speaker sitting on top.because the cones dissapate any structional vibration from reaching the speakerThe cones come with round brass bases with a small hole in the center so they don't damage the top of the speaker. I am not lying or making this up i have done it myself and the improvement is unbelievable.It is just like having a new pair of speakers with an extended low frequency driver.Well that's what it is ,really (Many years ago you could buy speakers with a subwoofer built in to the base of the speaker enclosure.They were very large and would be too big and heavy for most people to have in their home theater room.) A lot of Answeres' in Home Theater say you must have a powered sub to relieve the power amplifier from too much heavy work to drive them. Well any good amplifier can handel a passive sub with no problem.That is what they are designed for. Therefore the price of two passive subs will be a lot less expensive than amplified ones.The better amplifiers are unconditionally stable with any load and any signal.

Unfortunately no one else understands what i mean or they automatically believe it is impossible to do,.becaue they give me the "thumbs down" which tells you that what i am saying is incorrect.Do you think i would go to all this trouble explaining it to you if it was crap?My way takes care of the Subs position and no extra room is needed for the subs and the balanced sound is a plus. If you are serious about having great sound, my way will give it to you. If you can't be bothered setting them up how i discribed it for you,at least consider buying two subs which will give you better bass. So i will leave it up to you .

EDIT...Isolation cones are also available to put under all your equipment . There is a definite improvement in sound quality because they dissapate vibration from reaching the equipment.

EDIT.....
Also i would not rely too much on setting up your speakers with callibration or other electronic means, your ears are the best measurement devices for that.

EDIT.......If you want to know more or have any questions about the subject just email me .I am happy to give you any advice i can on HI FI equipment.

Answer 7

I agree with SigEp84. But to achieve the maximum 'thump' from the sub woofer, place it on the floor...

Answer 8

2 IN THE FRONT AND 2 IN THE BACK AND LET IT RIP!HAVE BASE IN FRONT OF YOU.