# Home 5.1 surround and 2wayDirect balance in hard room



## Phil Indeblanc (May 27, 2015)

Hi folks,

Not sure who lurks around here, but I have a home audio issue that perhaps can get the same great feedbacks I read in the car threads.

I have a 5.1 home stereo. My wife doesn't allow any speakers in the living room to be on the floor. So they have to go up very close on the walls and ceiling corners about 10.5' feet ceilings. I have 5 different pairs of front drivers, from small bookshelf to larger ones. For now I have the medium set mounted(they fire to the back wall. A couple larger satelite rears on that back wall. In the small section of front wall, below the Tv thats mounted on the wall, I have a center channel, and diagonally in a corner there sits a down firing sub.

The space is an open floor plan with 1 main wall and other 2 are just huge sliding doors of glass. The TV is on the long side of the rectangle opposite the wall. My floors are concrete and the walls are also bare. 

While I like most of my speakers one more than the other, this environment has made the sound in the space less than real enjoyment.

I plan to get printed artwork over sound absorbing foam on the one wall, yet I can't do much else on the other. The floor does have one larger rug, but not much coverage. The floor space is 20'x 40', and we like the minimalist look, so I can't do much more rug. There is a large coach, but its leather. Ceilings are almost 11' up and flat smooth. 

What does one do besides move?

I have yet to tune the system and I think this will help, but want to post hear for some basic approaches, and other solutions for such a space.


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## lurch (Jan 20, 2014)

uuuummm...... MOVE.


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## etroze (Dec 24, 2013)

What are you going to use for tuning? With that much hard surface you will have to break it up somehow, you could do wall colored sound absorbing materials and keep the minimalist look. The floor is going to be tough but you can play with the position of the sub in the room to help, but really I think the biggest help will be killing reflections off the walls.


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## Phil Indeblanc (May 27, 2015)

Thanks for the reply.
I know I sarcastically said move, but....
Moving is not much an option right now, and even if we did, we would likely renovate in a similar manner.

I can use the amplifiers built in speaker setup. I also have a calibrated mic and rta software, but no DSP or EQ on the system. Amp has presets and your basic treble and bass.


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## etroze (Dec 24, 2013)

Which amplifier is it? I can point you in some direction if its a common program like Audyssey MultEQ XT that is in many receiver/amplifiers today.


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## Phil Indeblanc (May 27, 2015)

Its a marantz sr-14


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## etroze (Dec 24, 2013)

Hm that one is interesting as its a bit older and im not exactly sure about the program they used in it. Have you tried AVSforum yet?


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## Phil Indeblanc (May 27, 2015)

no. Not yet. But the app puts out a white noise of some sort and then I think I can connect a mic to it so it cycled across the different speakers hooked up. Then you put in the distance they are from the listening position. I think that its pretty much it. You can control each speakers output level independently.


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## etroze (Dec 24, 2013)

ok so its like setting time alignment in a vehicle, that you can with a tape measure as I believe the equation is already factored into the receiver and I would still play with placement of your sub.


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## Phil Indeblanc (May 27, 2015)

My sub is very sub-par at the moment. But looking to upgrade soon.


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## etroze (Dec 24, 2013)

Few budget minded subs come to mind when looking for an upgrade that usually blows peoples socks off when they get to hear higher powered subs and that's the SI HT18 and Dayton Titanic. I have the SI in my house and a friend has the Dayton and man they get low in relatively small enclosures.


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## Phil Indeblanc (May 27, 2015)

I think I have room for a 10" not 15" The Titanic I see in a number of configs.

Wow, just the look of the SI is a shock


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## etroze (Dec 24, 2013)

The SI is great and I should've been clear the titanic that a friend is running is a 10" woofer. Parts express actually had a great knock down kit for them.


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## Phil Indeblanc (May 27, 2015)

What I have now is a Cambridge soundworks BassCube8 (after they started sucking). Its a ported downfireing box.

Si smallest is 11 @ about $400 just the driver.


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## etroze (Dec 24, 2013)

SVS also makes some outstanding subs and they have a great trial period as well if you aren't into the DIY.


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## Phil Indeblanc (May 27, 2015)

I am way to detail oriented to do it myself and expect it to be done anytime soon. I'd get stuck a few days looking for speaker wires that use a nice font on the wire. or terminals. wood, birch, aged, grain pattern, MDF densities, coats of paint, what kind of paint...Dude...It would be a year. If someone elses name is on it, I don't care if the quality is not of the best, as long as it is very acceptably decent.


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## etroze (Dec 24, 2013)

Totally understandable check out SVS they look spendy but worth it.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk


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## Phil Indeblanc (May 27, 2015)

im familiar with SVS. I have heard good things. With some of these prices, I won't mind going with a used sub


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## etroze (Dec 24, 2013)

Phil did you find something that fits your needs?


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