5.1.2: FRONT, MID or REAR HEIGHTS? | Dolby Atmos | DTS X | Speaker Placement
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 29 ก.ย. 2024
- 5.1.2: FRONT, MID or REAR HEIGHTS? | Dolby Atmos | DTS X | Speaker Placement
So you got yourself a 5.1.2 Dolby Atmos configuration going. But there are so many places to put those 2 dang height speakers! Where could the best place be? Well, I tested out 3 different positions, and in this video, I reveal my findings after these experiments! Woohoo! Check it out!
SVS Prime Elevation Speakers
(on SVS) - www.svsound.co...
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Aperion Audio A5 Height Module
(on Aperion) - www.aperionaud...
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MY HOME THEATER SETUP
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65” LG C1 OLED TV
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Marantz SR7015
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Outlaw Audio Model 7000x Amplifier
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Peachtree Nova300 Stereo Integrated Amp
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Emotiva BasX A3 Amplifier
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FRONT LCR
Aperion Audio Verus III V8T Towers
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Aperion Audio Verus III Grand V6C Center Channel
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FRONT WIDES & VOICE OF GOD
Aperion Audio Novus Slim N6SC LCR
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SURROUNDS
Aperion Audio Verus III Grand V5B Bookshelf
www.aperionaud...
SURROUND BACKS
Aperion Audio Novus N6T Tower Speakers
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ATMOS HEIGHT SPEAKERS
Aperion Audio A5 Height Module
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LG UBK90 4K Blu-ray Player
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AppleTV 4K (4th Gen)
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Nintendo Switch
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14 AWG Copper Speaker Wire
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Monoprice Low Profile 22 Lb Capacity Speaker Mounts
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MY VIDEO GEAR
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Audio Interface - Focusrite Saffire Pro 40
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Sennheiser MKE600
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Sony A7 II Full Frame Mirrorless Camera
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Canon EOS Rebel T5i
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DJI OM 4 SE
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Shure KSM32 Cardioid Condenser Microphone
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XLR Male to Female Microphone Cable
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JOILCAN 81" Tripod
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LINKS
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Everything you need can be found at the link below! Woohoo!
linktr.ee/eala...
#dolbyatmos #hometheater #loudspeaker
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DISCLAIMERS
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Thanks for not being snobby in your discussion and for providing quick and concise info with your experience. I thumbs up and smashed that subscribe!
Thanks, Ed!!! 🔥
Great video. I’m right into the wall of sound.
I have a 12 X 18 room. My ceiling is 9 ft in height. I have a 5.1.2 atmos setup. Here is my question. So I have 2 topper speakers or upfiring speakers that sit on my surround speakers. I couldn’t put the toppers on my fronts because it’s just not doable and I can’t put them on the front walls. Anyway, in my Onkyo 696 speaker setting I assigned the heights to Dolby enabled speakers and it shows the picture that my toppers are sitting on my surrounds. But since I have my toppers angling towards the middle of the room ceiling, what would happen if I assigned the amp to heights top ceiling middle instead of Dolby enabled sitting on my surrounds? Would this screw up the sound? I know toppers are not the best for Atmos but that’s all I can do at this point. So basically my question is does my toppers have to be assigned in the Onkyo speaker settings to exact placement of where my speakers are? Can I assign top middle ceiling even though I don’t have speakers there but I am deflecting the sound to the top middle ceiling. Also I sit on the back wall and my surround are maybe 6 inches behind me and my toppers are sitting on the surrounds. So what do you guys think?
Might as well try it, since it’s software-based and you don’t need to physically move anything. But in the end, you’ll probably want to stick with assigning them as Atmos enabled so that the software time aligns the speakers correctly, knowing that there will be a time delay difference between bouncing sound off the ceiling vs coming straight down at you from installed speakers up top. 🤘
@@ealanosborne ah gotcha. Thanks for the info. Also the AccuEq set my Dolby enabled speakers to a crossover of 180hz. Does that sound about right? I have read that the height channel crossovers should be high from 150-200hz range.
@@elvisp2684 Oof…there is so much info out there about that. It can be overwhelming. I usually set mine to about 120 Hz since LFE specs for film are mastered to send anything 120 Hz and below to the subwoofer. I know you can set a sub’s crossover to whatever you want, really, but i still set heights to 120 Hz to hopefully not interfere too much with the ear-level speakers output as well.
@@ealanosborneCool. Again thanks for the info. Oh I forgot. My sub broke and I am waiting for my new sub. I will be getting a new one in a few weeks. Anyway, I calibrated my Onkyo with AccuEQ. The Onkyo receivers as you probably well know don’t have large or small speaker settings, just cross overs. Anyway, my fronts were set to Large or Full band, Center was set to 80hz even though my center can go down to 60hz. My surrounds were set to 90hz even though they go down to 60hz and then my Heights or Dolby Enabled were set to 180hz. My front speakers are satellites from an old Energy take 5.1 speaker package. I will be upgrading them soon. So since the AVR set my fronts as full band and since I don’t have a sub at the moment, are the other speakers crossover set ok by AccuEQ do you think? Because I don’t want a huge amount of bass going to my fronts since when you don’t have a sub connected the bass gets directed to the fronts. What do you think? Thanks again for the help.
@@elvisp2684 Yeah, even if your fronts aren’t full band, it shouldn’t damage them. But I’d still maybe go back and manually set them back to small with a crossover that’s 10-20 Hz above the lowest they can handle. Everything else seems okay, although I’d still set heights to 120 Hz and your surrounds down to 80 Hz since they can handle down to 60 Hz. I always have to go back in and manually tweak things after AccuEQ or Audyssey or Dirac does its thing. They’re never perfect with their assessments. 😄
Good stuff. Something to consider from the content side: Every Atmos track at home uses two static objects at the top mid coordinates in the virtual room for height info. Many of them use ONLY this for height info (Ready Player One, Top Gun: Maverick, etc.), while the more precise ones (Midway) use this plus dynamic objects that move through the space. But since we know that the base of an Atmos track at home is a 7.1.2 printout, for x.x.2, top mid should ALWAYS be the goal.
Because of how the Atmos renderer works, a x.x.2 layout puts those static objects in whatever speakers it has available. So those "top mid" objects would get put in front heights if that's where you put your speakers. You'll notice that Dolby's home guidelines don't even show anything other than top mid placement for x.x.2, and that's for good reason.
Now, in a x.x.4 layout, those static objects at "top mid" get played back in the middle between your available speakers. So if you have top front/rear, it images those objects between them. Same for front/rear height. But the advantage of x.x.4 is then that if the mix has dynamic objects panning through, it can properly pan them through longitudinally, whereas a x.x.2 layout will give you no front/rear panning of those objects at all.
I still have trouble understanding this Atmos mix for home thing.. wasn't the point of object based surround that we didn't need to be concerned about the number of channels? Because the track would have the position in space information and the receiver would translate that to whatever number of speakers where available? Why don't the home versions have all the same object information that theaters have?
@@Donly1pt It's because of the size of the audio stream and the more limited processing of home gear. The theatrical version has 128 total objects available, 10-12 of which are reserved to represent the base channels. The home version only supports about 15 objects, 9 of which are reserved for the base channels (with LFE carried over from the underlying channel-based stream). Since you don't need as much spatial resolution in the home, they ideally convert the theatrical mix down using perceptual object grouping so that objects dynamically pass off sounds to other nearby objects within the more limited number of objects available. If done right, this maintains all of the object-based sound of the theatrical mix.
However, for some weird reason no one can figure out, many studios are doing more simplistic mixes for the home where the objects in the theatrical mix get essentially pre-panned through the base 9 object locations. Doing this, you still get all the movement and placement of the objects in the theatrical mix... but because of it being pre-panned, systems with more than 4 heights lose out. So if you had top front/rear and top mid, those static height objects would only come from top mid. Why? Because that's where they're placed in the room. And then nothing comes out of your top front/rear speakers for that movie. Again, we're not sure why they do this, because it seems like it would take more work to pare it down that way. Plus, the file size isn't incredibly larger for tracks that use the full 15 objects compared to tracks that use the 7.1.2 locked printout. And yet, here we are.
@@TheReverendSlim Thank you! Finally a good explanation :) So it's basically a data size limitation. With the ongoing increase in internet bandwidth and processing power across every gadget, maybe we can expect an upgrade on the Home Atmos spec somewhere in the future. Or not.. seems that current content is being limited by bad mixes from studios anyways.. (yeah, looking at you Disney)
Very interesting point. Is there a list somewhere of the more precise Atmos movie tracks (like Midway)?
@@jeffjefferson7384 No one really keeps up with them. You mostly have to find them from TH-cam videos where people are using the Trinnov object viewer. Shane Lee does this in his reviews.
at first my wife didn't like the fact that speakers were hung high on the side wall. Until she saw her favorite series stranger things season 4 with atmos . Then suddenly she didn't mind so much anymore. I agree 5.1.2 mid-high is a good start.
Same thing I told my wife about wanting a movie room. My vision is being written down and planned and now she's on board.
That’ll do it! Stranger Things S4 was incredible!
Hey, congrats on getting wife’s approval! Trust me, I know it means a lot! 😁 Good luck on the plans going forward!
@@ealanosborne there's a lot of shows we need to catch up on, Stranger Things being one of them, I haven't seen all of GoT, we never finished Attack on Titan which I told her we could upmix to Auro-3D. So now I'm doing the engineering and planning for everything. I'll message you on Insta when done. Maybe I'll get Youthman to tour if he comes to N Texas.
Thanks Ealan for your explanation...these are the kind of videos we need as hometheater enthusiasts..GRACIAS MI AMIGO
De nada! 😁
Thanks this is the exactly video I needed to my new upgrade
Hooray!!! 🙌🎉
Same!
Same same!
Same& and m gona invest tht money fr dual 12s
I have 5.1.2 setup and I prefer the middle height speakers in ceiling pointing just an inch or 2 above my head. I have tried the front height and didn't really notice much my self but your setup my be different... Anyway great video 😉 👍🏼
I have huge 180" 16x9 screen in my theater. That necessitates having the center channel on the floor facing up toward the seating area. In the past that could sometimes make dialog localize too low. As soon as I added my side mounted Atmos speakers it raised the appearance of the center channel to mid screen. I have a nice dome of sound and great side wall coverage.
Nice! I like the steps you took to get there, all in the name of science! 😄🤘
I have the same screen size, dimensions, and center speaker placement that you do, but had put my lights in the rear. So I will move them to the side, once I figure out a way to temporarily mount them on the ceiling of my house that I am renting. Any tips for temporary mounting if there is such a thing?
@@mattmardigan Industrial strength Velcro from Home Depot. I’ve done it before and it worked great! 🤘
@@mattmardigan risky bud
I don't understand the logic in that.
Center chanel is not a base object sound Speaker. Dialogs are coming usually just from that speaker.
If the center channel is still in the same spot, when character in the film are talking, the voices are still coming from one spot that it still is too low.
No voice is coming from the Atmos speakers, so I don't get that logic.
Woah...what are we tickling? LOL! Great video man!
Hahahaha!
I use a receiver with my pc only, I have no tv. I am seriously looking into front height for the many fps I play, though support is still lacking.
Great video - thanks! :)
If you use middle high speakes (5.1.2) - is there any difference in the sound when playing DTS:X or Atmos movies? Does both DTS:X and Atmos sound great with this setup?
Yes! It’ll matrix or conform basically the same way with Atmos and DTS:X.
I now have 2 SVS Prime Elevations, mounted on the ceiling between the seating and the TV. I'm still experimenting with position, before running speaker wire up, through the ceiling and down through the wall behind the TV. But, before I do that, I'm giving a last consideration to getting 2 more Prime Elevations to mount on the ceiling, to the rear of the seated position. That would also require an additional amplifier to run the additional atmos speakers or the LCR. The remaining question is just how much difference an additional 2 atmos speakers would make. Have you considered that in your experimentation? I haven't found a video, or other detailed information, that covers the 2 vs. 4 atmos speaker comparison.
Ideally you’ll want 4 height speakers eventually. That way you have a cube of sound surrounding your listening position, allowing for audio objects to move freely around in the 3D space.
That is a good idea to do a video on it, though. It’s going on the list! 😁🤘
Yeah and the Onkyo that replaced the 1 I have does 5.1.2 Atmos. I've always wandered what comes over those 2. Cause that would deturmin where they go. Hence why I've always asked what is the channal count on Atmos disks. But most people just gave me the they'll adjust garbage. Like bruh I get that's the cool Atmos slogan. But seriously what's the count? Then I also explaned I'm not a fan of gimics and fake soundbar stereo surround. I wana hear every single file.
Techno Dad just did a video on Atmos matrix-ing that's really interesting! He goes over 5.1.2 configurations. Look it up! :)
@@ealanosborne Ah will do. Yeah cause that's always been my question with Atmos. Even the Atmos BD boxes aparently don't give a channal count. Cause again I want no fake stereo stuff. So if a disk is actually 9.1.6 for instance then so be it. Start pintching them pennies. Cause I wana hear every single channal on that disk. I know they say the top speakers aren't assined like the bed 1s. But still how many object channals are there? But the Altitude 32 guys told me it's like 35 channals for your normal disk fully expanded. Or was it perhaps Techno Dad himself? I can't remember. So I guess time to start saving penies. Lol. Oh and for now by the way maybe this year I'll get the Klipsch hometheater pack. For my TX SR 373.
Great explanation of possible configurations. I like the idea of the wall of sound. I'm sort of limited in possible configurations because it's the living room. I have a very high ceiling, 4.25 mtr. Would you place them really at the top or maybe a little bit lower?
can you do a video on the best upfiring dolby atmos speakers?
I now have a 5.1.2 setup, for the height speakers i have two on ceiling mounted speakers, they are just a bit in front of my couch/sitting position and the good thing is that i can angle them how i like, i think its better than in ceiling speakers that are firing directly down. They are set to top middle but like i said in some of your other vids, i would like to upgrade my receiver and to ad two more height channels and maybe the voice of god too for a preset made for Auro 3D.
I have 5.1.2 in my living room. I've heard a system with all 6 height speakers and it's definitely worth it. I'm going to expand too but I need a new receiver.
@@MichaelForbes-d4p nice to hear, at some point i will upgrade too.
Nice review. Mine are in the rear, because when I built the house it was purposed for the surround rear. Would be great to see your setup while you’re talking about, little visual enhancement 😎🖖🏻
@Ealanosborneofficialpage channel growth also means scammers coming to take advantage. Who still falls for these guys...
I have a Yamaha 7.1 surround and changed the rear surrounds hanging off a wall to the presence Atmos channels, rendering me a 5.1.2. How is having them in the back working for you? I’ve only had this set up for a day but played several movie scenes to test them out. I def feel more immerse as I felt the rears in the 7.1 weren’t doing much.
If the speakers are placed right and elevations type in a slight angle towards the listening position, it definitely makes a difference. The front heights make even more difference, 4 high speakers create the perfect cocoon. If your room is long need 6 highs. Hope this helps, cheers.
Thanks for this. Where I live the jump in price from 7.1/7.2 AVRs to more channels is very large.
No…that’s the truth no matter where you live. 😭 😄
Thanks for the video. I have a 5.1.2 configuration with Top Middle Heights. Haven’t considered adding more speakers as it will require more wires etc. I like the sound effects that the speakers produced but it seems that it is tricky to get the right, balanced db level in a way they don’t distract from the movie experience.
True. It takes awhile to truly dial in your system to its fullest potential. 🤘 Keep it up! 😁
@@ealanosborne Hey. I have 9.1.4 but should I shift to 7.1.6? Which is worth? Extra front wides or extra middle Atmos height row?
@@josealfredfernandes I’ll hopefully be performing this test in the upcoming weeks. 🤞
Yes to mid placement.
I have another question. Do you run room correction on the front heights, rear heights…..heights in general, as Top speakers or actual height speakers? I’ve read before that some recommend telling the AVR that they’re top speakers / ceiling instead of heights and the DSP processes them better for object based atmos sound.
Im looking for 4k receiver
Hi, thanks you look cool :) forgive me I don't understand English very well, even with the subtitles and the translation of the comments, I get lost... If you could give me a summary, to be brief, what would be your best choice if you were in my situation, I ordered a low end amp VSX-834 + two atmos Polk Xt90 speakers, if you had that, would you put the polk speakers on the wall and high on the front, or on the wall and high on the sides? Forgive me for not understanding everything and many thanks in advance!
Translated with DeepL
After experimenting, I found out that the best position for 2 height speakers is up and to the sides. 🙌
Cool, I run 71 with surrounds and surround backs about 3 feet above the listening position angled down, so 2 front height channels probably make more sense for me.
Hi Ealan, I like your content with Atmos configs.
Good job man!
I have a question though.
I own a Denon x4700h with Auro3d to keep in mind.
Now running 5.1.2 with front heights only. (Wall of sound) but I have a new pair Atmos speakers to go 5.1.4.
The placement will physically front height and surr height.
What setting on the Denon ( amp assign ) should I use and will this make any difference?
How about front height & top middle?
Or front height & top rear
Or front height & surr height
With all these options the Auro3d still available.
Will either of those options make any difference with the outputted sound?
Thanks Ealan and keep up the good work.
Greeting from the Netherlands.
Going with a 9.1 amp assign is fine, since I take it you’re utilizing the internal amps. And yeah, I would stick with front height and rear height if you’re interested to keep the option of Auro 3D. That way, you’re essentially creating a cube surrounding your listening position, allowing for audio objects to move freely within that 3D space.
I don’t think selecting “top” height versus “front” height makes much of a difference with the overall audio quality. That’s more of a means to tell the software where exactly the sound is coming from, to help better with time alignment, just to dial in that math more accurately. 🤘
I found out Don’t use Surround Height because Atmos not using that config.
Use Front height & Top rear did the trick.
Now all my speakers are active for Atmos, Dts and Auro3d.
@@kevinmastah Nice! Way to experiment! 😄🤘
Although the Denon x4700h receiver indicates if using Surround height, Atmos, Dts & Auro3d wil work.
But Atmos not working with Surround heights!!!
Faulty info from the Denon x4700h receiver.
@@kevinmastah So rear highs and ear level surrounds layout should work fine in 5.1.4 auro3d/atmos?
Two in the rear. Sorry, it’s my dirty mind. 😂😂😂
Thanks for vid. Just subbed. I just ordered kef q50a to go with kef 5.1 set up. I think I'm going to place them in the middle. Would you suggest pointing them right at the ears or a little in front? My couch is pretty far back is why I'm asking
Hmmm...yeah, I'd still probably have then pointing directly at you. 👍
Hi, great video!
I have a question, if I go for the middle height option, so atmos speakers on the side walls, on the amplifier I have to select “top middle”? I have a denon, and I can’t select “middle height” if I have only 2 heights speakers (I have the Denon X3800h).
Yeah, top height also works, even tough technically that means in-ceiling speakers, but it’s closer to reality than other options.
Are there any hone theater speakers setup videos that addresses a seating position up against a wall? I have 12'x18' LR. I have the TV on one of the short walls. I'm probably about 12-13 away from my TV.
I’d still try having heights straight above your couch sitting 12-13 feet away from the TV.
Great video, I use middle high (Yamaha) for me so the hight effects come across best 👍🏻
@Ealanosborneofficialpage sorry I have no TELEGRAM 🤷🏻♂️
Is DTSX AND DTS support 5.1.2 configuration or must be in Dolby Atmos to experience the all channels??
Yep, DTS:X automatically conforms to your speaker layout, so it’ll do 5.1.2 also! 🤘
Now I am super interested in a video where you talk about 4 vs 6 height speakers.
Can't get my head around wether to go wide surrounds 9.1.4 or all in Atmos 7.1.6 since you already convinced me to get the AVX 17..
Might such a video be possible?
Yep! I’ll be doing that soon, actually! I’m on a height channel kick! 😄
@@ealanosborne You got me totally hooked! [: Already couldn't wait for AVR in Prepro Mode vs True Processor
Any video in experimentation is desired and appreciated.
Hey Ealan.
Hope you are doing fine!
My question is simple :
What is better ?
:Dedicated speakers like 5.2.2 ( Klipsch theatre pack with sony 4k dolby atoms 7 channel av reciever)
Or sony Ht-A9 with sw5 sub ???
Any thoughts on this.
If you plan on expanding your home theater down the road, go with AVR+wired speakers. If you just want something easy to connect that sounds great with no desire to upgrade further, go with the HT-A9. 🤘
Good evaluation Ealan... One never knows what preference one has until one tries it out for oneself. Just do it people.
Sounds like choice is front wall dome OR ceiling wall dome with .2 only option.
Would you go further to recommend .2 up front + .2 more along the sides, versus .2 front and back?
The answer you seek is Auro3D… front and rear sides…
I have 5.1.2 Klipsch system however i was not happy with height channels so i changed amp assign from height to top front and the difference is huge..
Excellent experimentation! 🤘
@Ealan how you be ? I thought it's supposed to be a bubble of sound ? Not a wall ? If their's a helicopter over head that's what I'm looking for. Not to sides. Yes how it sounds to you matters the whole world. What "Dolby" did to a lot of us was not explain that it works on angles. "With height channels" they do have a "PDF" that backs up even how Cinema , to studios mix the movies. I must say placing my heights the way the studios place there heights and Atmos channels my goodness is night and day. I'm doing a 7.2.4 .
Yeah, I still subscribe to the science behind Auro 3D, having any front, surround or rear heights positioned 30 degrees up from the listening position, since that works better with the perception of sounds coming from up high. But Auro 3D also has the VOG channel straight up above the MLP. That’s a bubble. And even now, newer Denon and Marantz Auro 3D configurations support a Phantom VOG by using 2 middle heights. Pretty cool. 🤘
Which one did you really hear and feel naturally like the sound is above you ?
Like it's really raining when it's raining in the movie
The front heights or the sides ?
And is the wall of sound worth it ?
If you have good tower speakers with wide dispersion compared to the binaural effect ?
Does the binaural effect expand the sound more ?
I am running a 5.1.2 front height setup
So i want to know if a change would be worth it
Please let me know asap
I just felt like front heights expanded/amplified the TV, where side/top heights expanded the soundstage as a whole a little better. If it’s not too much of a hassle, test it out. But if it’s too hard in your situation, don’t worry about it. Just save up to be able to have 4 height channels, since that’s what most Atmos mastering is based on. 🤘
I went with the top middle configuration. Question: Are 2 top middle heights better in the 1 o'clock position slightly in front of your head or in the 12 o'clock noon position directly over your head?
Hmmm…I don’t think there would be too much of a discernible difference, but my gut says straight up - 12 o’clock
So if you had a 7.1.2 then you'd already have the sides filled in and rear surrounds so would the front placement be better?
You could def try that out to see what works best with your listening space. But Techno Dad and I habe both found that 2 heights placed above the listening position gives you the best effect, like if you mount speakers on the ceiling, or have in-ceiling speakers.
So let me make sure I'm hearing you correctly. Your atmos speakers you liked the best. Were directly to your side up on the wall where the ceiling meets the wall?
Correct. Although since then, I’ve slightly changed their position. Now they’re mounted on the ceiling in line with the listening position. I wanted them that way originally, but mounting to the wall was easier initially. A little trickier on the ceiling, but I did it, nonetheless! 😁
Have a 5.2.2. my Atmos speaker are middle also above. I actually ended putting 4 speaker's above middle. Work great for me. In my system can tell if want them front/ middle or back Atmos.
Yes like Max Fury Road intro.
Love A quiet place ll, Tron Legacy
Great video, very much appreciated.
How about placement when using 7.1.2?…. Cant ‘test’ because how to do that without construct / destruct issues? 🤔
It would be the same - whenever you have just 2 height channels, it’s best to mount them right above or in line with the main listening position, if possible.
I can get a true 3 dimensional sound stage where the walls seem to disappear just by using 2 stereo speakers with cross talk cancellation.
Okay Aussie Rob, I give in. Since you keep commenting about the same thing, tell me how it’s done, mate. How do you pull off crosstalk cancellation? Do you use a DSP of sorts?
In my new home being built (which will be done probably in about a month 🤞) I won’t be able to have a surround system in my open concept living room. So I’d love to put in a kickass stereo system with crosstalk cancellation. So please let me know how I can achieve that. 🤘
Here's a question....
I have 2 rows of seating but only two height channels ( left and right ).
Is it possible to wire two height speakers in series ( 2 for the left and 2 for the right ) put them in the ceiling in front of each row of seating and turn that .2 into a .4??
That'll put those speakers at 16 ohms, of course.... How much power would I loose if I did this?? I also know that technically, it's still 2 channels but I'm trying to find away for both rows ro experience height, without buying another receiver. This is my 1st set up as well
Eh, I probably wouldn’t recommend that. Since the AVR only recognizes 2 height channels, there would be no movement of height objects, like with a true .4 setup. It might sound a bit off. And yes, it would significantly reduce the output power of the heights, unless they were being powered by an external amp. 🤷♂️
@@ealanosborne really appreciate the response. I have a 7.2 AVR. Was thinking if I put the surrounds over me instead of beside me it would sound better. I'm a S.Q car audio guy. I see now that it's a big difference between a small car and a room.
Ealan could you try to do a tutorial on tonewinner two channel amps and processors. I'd like to know how they sound.
I’ve tried to get in contact with them, so I’ll keep trying until they can’t ignore me! 😁
Thank you so much for making this video. Love your style and delivery! Just subbed. If you haven't tried the dolby top (ceiling mounted) setup I think that is, by far the way to go. Just much more difficult as yo have to go IN ceiling or it looks a little rediculous. I'm in agreement with everything you said. Front heights make a wall of sound and make things larger, side above sounds much more imersive and can even give a stronger center image at times and top middle just sounded the most imersive without drawing attention to themselves. Some day I'll move to .4 but my x3500H only has 7.1 channels. Thanks again for sharing your experience. Keep em coming!
Thank you so much for your insight and kind words! :)
I just got the samsung Q990C soundbar 11.1.4 I am confuSe about rear speakers. Should I place it closer to ceiling as they have 3 speakers in rears?
No, you can leave them at ear level. They’re supposed to bounce audio off the ceiling, so hopefully your ceiling isn’t too high. And I would increase the volume of the upward firing speakers, if possible
@@ealanosborne Thanks for replying. Indeed I can control every channel individually. The ceiling itself isn’t very high it’s about 10ft so placing them at my back wall at 6-7ft would be okay I guess. My couch is hugging the wall.
Thank you Ealan. Will you reveal how all 6 Atmos speaker sound in your system?
Correct. I’ll be doing a 7.2.6 vs 9.2.4 video fairly soon, as well as a video testing if 5.1.4 really is that much better than 5.1.2. 🤘
This video is perfect in helping my new setup.
You’re welcome! 😁🤘
I am converting a spare bedroom to a 7.1.4 Atmos/ 9.1 Auro setup. I'm designing some speaker brackets to mount front heights from a ceiling joist. For the rear heights, I'm going to do the same, but I'm going to put those on a swing arm that I can manually move and lock in place. Proper Auro and Proper Atmos.
Daaaaamn, that’s cool! 🤘
Mind blown. 🤯 Awesome out-of-the-box creativity there!
@@oyobass So I've had the idea for a while. But now from what I heard, that Auro-3D and Atmos sounds better with side surround height speakers, I might just mount them in the surround height positions and configure the X4700H with Rear Heights.
I wonder if the ideal would be - Have Mid-heights (ideally bipole speakers with downward drivers aimed at MLP) PLUS have Top Heights in front corners and/or Front Wides positioned higher and angled down...?
That's what I'm thinking of doing. I'll have top mids, and then I think I'll put heights in front.
@reclaimer1178 Actually, I've since employed some more commonsense and just googled " professional atmos mixing setups " Now THIS is what we should be trying to emulate (including the powered monitors with active crossovers and multiple amps built in, if possible:).... www.google.com/search?sca_esv=0da03635f65f96aa&rlz=1C5CHFA_enAU940AU940&sxsrf=ACQVn0929TsTNBVRIox_6RHTP1aD86ZIyw:1708318867784&q=professional+atmos+mixing+setups&tbm=isch&source=lnms&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiWmpvaz7aEAxWCr1YBHXDxDVYQ0pQJegQICxAB&cshid=1708318892050445&biw=4133&bih=1450&dpr=1.8
This is an interesting an well stated consumer opinion. There is, however, a correct placement for the 5.1.2 height speakers. This is due to the way Dolby Atmos is mixed and what the software does to accomodate multiple speaker configurations. When an engineer mixes in Atmos, they assume all 6 height positions. When you set your reciever to play back in 5.1.2 the decoder automatically folds the sound from the front and rear speakers into the middle speakers at a reduced volume. Therefore the height speakers of a 5.1.2 array are correctly placed in the middle position. Conversely, in a 7.1.4 array the middle channels are split between the front and rear channels. The height channels in a 7.1.4 array are front and rear. You really need all 6 height channels to get the full Dolby Atmos experience.
For wall of sound effect at least in my room it works to have the center channel mounted in the ceiling (angled down of course) and for L/R use tower speakers. I have 120" screen and it delivers nicely. I'm not so sure about atmos as my rear speakers (only 5.3.0 setup) are quite high and basically 90° to my LP (couch right to back wall). So I always get the fly over head effect (combined with my center that's on the ceiling) or when raining it's on top of me. Is this really worth it?
Eh, probably not, I guess. Surround sound alone can still sound amazing in the right environment, proper room treatment and room correction. 👍
@@ealanosborne well yeah sometimes the effects are moving in space quite nicely (lotr for example). And I don't have newish receiver with Audyssey or miniDSP (so not calibrated room, but it's multi-room with lot's of stuff so somewhat treated acoustically). Speakers are quite good and can image well in stereo so maybe that helps. I also understood from many sources that atmos is usually underwhelmingly mastered for it's capabilities. Recently I heard TG: Maverick in theater and was superbly unimpressed with height effects. Even bass was lacking imho. And I went to theater with best sound nearby.
Great video. My receiver can do two heights so was curious what was best
Good one brother, too short!!! Not enough time for me to watch over a good cup of coffee! What do you think is the best “budget” short throw projector? Done having a fan buzzing over my head!
Oof…I haven’t had any experience with UST projectors (yet!). Check out Shane Lee (used to be called Spare Change) or Chris Majestic who have done quite a few UST projector reviews in the past. 🤘
@@ealanosborne man I can’t afford more channels!!! I get too many ideas! You need to do one, lol!
If we keep two bookshelves in a 7 chnl avr with out subwoofer what should be the speaker size should to selected!? Small or large!?
Large so that it sends a full bandwidth signal to those speakers since you don’t have a sub 👍
@@ealanosborne Thnks man 🙂
So...
Upgrate from 5.2.2 above me to aditional hights Infront of me.
5.2.4. got it.
😅😎
im a bit new to this and about to add my atmos speakers. what would happen if i hooked up four speakers to the 2 hight channels on my reciever. would it damage it?
It might have an adverse effect on your speakers, since you'd essentially be splitting the power in half that's sent to each speaker. That and Atmos works by placing objects according to their 3D position, so if you have just a copy of speakers rather than a true 4 speaker configuration, it'll probably mess with the object placement and might sound weird. But I've never done it, so who knows...maybe it sounds great! Although underpowering a speaker can sometimes be worse than overpowering it...
@@ealanosborne thanks for the in depth reply! I just remember doing that when I was a kid with my little stereo system. But that was before the internet where I could find info lol. I dont want to risk damaging my speakers so I probably won't try it.
Why don't you just say? Experiment different places.
I have a 5.1.2 system with top middle configuration. Most content available is still Dolby Surround. What is sent to those top middle speakers when listening to non atmos content? Anybody out there know? Considering making system 7.1with rear surrounds.
Your AVR will just try its hardest to figure out what should be up there when it’s a 5.1 or 7.1 mix. Most likely it’ll just copy what’s in the bed layer and send it up to the heights to add dimension. You could test out 7.1 for sure. You might enjoy it more. 🤷♂️
@@ealanosborne thanks for the reply.
@Ealanosborneofficialpage Prize?
Is it possible to connect a sound bar as a center channel speaker?
No, sorry. They’re really just meant to be an easy plug-and-play home theater solution via HDMI. BUT…if you like the sleek look of a soundbar, there are passive ones that exist which still require power from a receiver, but contain all three front speakers (Left, Center, Right) within a soundbar-shaped footprint. Like this KEF one 👇
howl.me/ciDnlCZY3dz
Currently in a 5.1 setup and planning to go 5.1.2 soon. The couch is against the wall and surrounds are at 90°. I can't move the couch forward and I can't install in-ceiling speakers more so move the surrounds further back. Can anyone recommend where I should place the overhead speakers? How far from MLP? I am more inclined to set it at top middle after watching your video.
Yes, I would recommend top middle, pretty much straight above you.
@@ealanosborne wouldn't the sound from my surrounds "mix" with the heights since it is just basically in the same position but just higher?
@@donatdodat1 Not if it’s a proper Atmos or DTS:X mix. That’s the whole idea behind it, where sounds coming out of the height speakers are only supposed to be coming from high up - planes flying over, helicopters, rain, wind effects, etc, which are independent of what’s coming out of the surrounds near your ears. 👍
I feel like any .2 array is a budgetary compromise. .4 is really the move.
I have been asking this question lately and getting no response so I’ll try once again. I’m curious if your receiver has outputs for four Heights how do you hook up six. Are they bridged?
I wouldn’t recommend having 6 height channels unless your AVR supports it. My IOTA AVX17 preamp supports a max configuration of either 7.4.6 or 9.4.4, since I can assign the outputs via the software. I know the X3800H and X4800H from Denon are one of the few AVR’s that support a 5.4.6 configuration. Typically, if it can handle 13 channels or more, the software will most likely support 6 heights channels. Otherwise, I wouldn’t recommend bridging since it will throw off the calibration.
Thank you for replying. I have the DENON 4400, it’s in a small room so I’m only going 5.1.4, I was just curious cause I keep hearing about six Channels, maybe someday, thank you again.
Crazy idea but what about bi-pole speakers as height speakers? Where would you put them?
Not sure...🤔 Although that might mess with the object-based properties of Atmos or DTS:X since they need boundaries, and bi-poling the speakers would essentially widen those boundaries. Haven't tested it out personally, but who knows...maybe it sounds awesome?! 😄
@@ealanosborne if you only had a .2 as centre heights might be a good compromise
Hi, how to find out which 4k uhd bluray movies with dolby atmos (or dts:x) have which configuration/mix 5.1.2, 5.1.4, 7.1.2, 7.1.4 ..?
Can you use high ceiling speakers as read surronds?
Not optimal but should still sound good right
Yep! But that much more important to make sure the distance is dialed in right, since it’s further away than normal, whether that be with manually or with auto room correction. 👍
@@ealanosborne how do you "dial it in? Unsure what's that means
When they are in I'll do the true Play tuning
@@PatrickGuerrisi Hmmm, now I’m confused. When you said heigh ceiling speakers, I assumed you meant you already had some ceiling speakers installed behind your listening position. But TruPlay tuning is a Sonos thing…so what kind of system do you have? 🤔
@@ealanosborne I'm about to install ceiling speakers for rear surrounds.
I have a Sonos system. Sonos arc, sub amp and ceiling speakers
So I have a top middle, but since I got a new receiver I am now able to go to a 7.2.4 but with top middle in ceiling, what is the best choice for the additional 2 speakers???
Dolby says top rear and top front are too close for a top middle setup, others have suggested height front or rear height to go with top middle, should I just keep those 2 dead in ceilings and drill in 4 holes for a top front and rear? Or keep the top middle and go with a top rear and rename the middle as the front, idk what to do
Hmmm…I would start by keeping the mid-heights and add front heights. But the idea behind 4 heights is to create a cube around your listening position so that audio objects can move around freely within that 3D space, make sense? So my gut tells me to drill 4 new holes, but then again, you might like what front and mid heights bring to the table, saving you the hassle of drilling 4 new holes. 😄 One step at a time…
@@ealanosborne thank you! Drilling new holes isn't always easy, but in the name of reaching my personal endgame status, you gotta do what you gotta do
@@Lighthouse3D I’ve been there!
Do you mean if I put 7.1.2 and use in ceiling speakers as side surround and bookshelf speakers as back surround at ear level will be a best bet?
I currently have a 5.2.4 setup in a 16X14 rectangular room with a 7 ft ceiling.
My Onkyo drives 8 Bose AM-5 speakers, 1 Bose center channel speaker and 2 Klipsch 10" subs.
The height speakers are mounted in mid and front positions on the wall.
My question is should I switch my my front height speakers with my front L/R (1-2).
My front L/R speakers are my only ear level speakers.
👀 Looking for a little guidance, advice, and your professional opinion.
Ok now Im confuse between mid heights satellites firing towards you or front heights firing towards you
When dealing with only 2 heights, mount them straight above you, in line with your listening position, if possible. But mounting above the TV pointing down at you is a good alternative, if you can’t mount above you for any reason. 👍
@@ealanosborne thank you 🙌🏼🙌🏼🙌🏼🙌🏼
for 5.1.2 mount your surrounds behind and a bit higher than recommended then go with middle placement height channels. I have my middle heights mounted on the side walls and it works great. I have them set as surround heights in my receiver I pretty much use auro to play all my atmos tracks now. I've A/B'd atmos top middle height vs top surround height setting and more is playing through the heights with auro and it just sounds better to me.
Hell yeah, dude! Experimentation is key! 🤘
Great vid. I have a Sony 5.2.2 amp with a Yamaha subwoofer and satellite speakers (small I know but I live in a ground floor flat but loud enough!) and I do have another sub and 2 matching Yamaha satellite speakers but only using 5.1 at the moment but hoping to upgrade to the 5.2.2 setup. I do have a question though.... Dolby Atmos on Blu Rays is TrueHD 7.1 and with a setup of 5.2.2 with mid height speakers what happens on a 7.1 non Atmos TrueHD soundtrack? Where does the sound out of he 2 mid channels go as I believe the 7.1 is 2 front 2 middle and 2 rear all at the same height. Will the 2 middle channel come out of the middle height channels? If it does wouldn't it sound a bit odd? I know that Dolby Digital Plus Atmos is only 5.1 so it won't be a issue though.
All receivers nowadays have a “direct” or “pure” audio option that just plays its native mix. So if you choose “direct” on a 5.1 mix, it will ignore the heights. Same with a 7.1 mix - it will combine the side surround and rear surround info into your surrounds, and ignore the heights. Otherwise, you could choose “Dolby Upmix” and it will try its best to put height info in the heights, even though it technically wasn’t mixed that way. It’s up to you if direct or Dolby Upmix sounds better. 😊🎉
@@ealanosborne Thank you for your reply. So if I understand correctly with a 5.2.2 setup playing a non Atmos 7.1 TrueHD soundtrack and the amp is setup as 5.2.2 then the amp will combine the mids and surrounds together to give a 5.1 soundstage in a pure mode but I am able to upmix the 7.1 to a 5.2.2?
@@julesccf6380 That’s correct!
I currently have a 5.1.2 setup with the heights above, 30 degrees to the front from MLP. My surrounds are placed just behind the seating position. I just got 2 more speakers to add and am thinking of adding them as front heights instead of side surrounds, any experiences from anyone who tried this ?
mid high. how i connect the wires front or back on the reciever ?
Which receiver do you have?
@@ealanosborne hi . i have the RX- A3040 (yamaha) also from my seat how many degrees from me i have to mount the speakers on the ceiling. ? i bought the magix fx4 not realy high end but the sound okay. thank you for helping me .
I'm thinking on a ceiling mount of my Polk owm3's
Do it! 🤘
@Ealanosborneofficialpage what prize do I win?
Hi, Thank you very much for the information you shared and the stunning channel. I have a request please, I would have liked to upgrade to the Nachamchi Dragons 11.4.6 but I don’t think they will be available soon in South Africa. My current setup is a Marantz SR 8001 pre-amplifier with 2 x Rotel RMB 1075 power amps, got 2 x Infinity Reference speakers in front and 2x Bookshelf high at the back, 1 x Mission Center and 2x Mission back, Rel storm Sub with another sub with low frequency. Question: Could I update my pre-amplifier to play Dolby Atmos and DTS-X and add another two Atmos speakers to get to 5.2.4 will this work? Apologies for the long read.
That could most definitely work, as long as your updated preamp supports Atmos/DTS:X! 🙌
How about placing them atmos speakers on top of your front left and right?
Only if you must, like if you’re in an apartment and don’t want to create holes in the wall or ceiling. But if at all possible, I don’t recommend upward firing. But I understand sometimes that all you can do in certain situations.
@Ealan Osborne I have a 2 story house and it's difficult to wired the speakers on the ceiling. They tell me that it's lots of work to wired them since my system is in the first floor.
@@gerrylopez9060 I would put them on top of your front speakers as a last resort. I would mount them high up on the wall (where the wall and ceiling meet) before putting them on top of the front speakers.
@Ealan Osborne Thanks alot.
Question: my 2 in ceiling height speakers had to be placed just in front of and pointed towards me due to ceiling space: do I set these at front or middle height to sound best? Thanks!
Just in front of you? Or just in front of the TV?
@@ealanosborne actually it’s about halfway between both of us, me and the tv
@@jlebeau5150 Got it. Yeah, I’d probably go with top middle. But once you run room correction, it should calculate the distance anyway, so I don’t think it’ll affect the sound if you select front or top middle.
@@ealanosborne excellent thank you for the help! Liked and subscribed!
@@jlebeau5150 Thank you!!! 🤘
I'd love to have mid-heights but my living room is a wide open space/open concept, so I felt that the front heights worked better.
No harm in that! 👍
Sorry for the late comment and question but I have my Denon avr-x3300w setup in a 5.1.2 configuration with a pair of SVS Prime Elevations mounted close to the ceiling on each side slightly forward the R/L main speakers and I have the Amp Asign set to Front Height. In this setup the Denon sends the Dolby Atmos effects to the Front Heights I assume?
Correct! 👍
I’m late to this conversation. My former AVR died and the new allowed 13 channels (I was going to get in trouble anyway, so I decided to go all out).
For years, pre Dolby, I had four speaker in my ceiling because I didn’t have a sidewall for placement (open floor plan). By the time the AVR died, new directional sidewall speakers were available.
I wanted six side speakers to create a circle of sound. My room construction stopped that plan, so the speakers went into the ceiling above the LR. I was disappointed during the installation.
When the system was turned on, I was thrilled. I’m still running my 30 year old Klipsch for the LCR, so the only change up front were the two top front speakers. I suddenly had a wall of sound! Someday I’ll finally update my LCR, but it’s not a pressing issue since I now have the full spectrum of sound.
The top front speakers made the biggest difference in my updated sound.
Woohoo! Thanks for sharing your history! 😃🎉
I currently have a 5.1 system and want to upgrade to a 5.1.2. I have Bose AM-5 series 1 cube system, which have a direct/reflect switch, I have purchased 2 additional cube speaker and plan to splurge on a Pioneer Elite VSX-LX304 9.2-ch Receiver in case I want to expand to a 5.1.4.or 7.1.2 (what's the difference?) So my first upgrade will be to place my height speakers in the mid position between the fronts and rears. Because the Bose are a 2 cube speaker swivel system I can experiment with angles and the reflect/direct features. My 2nd upgrade if necessary will be a 5.1.4 or 7.1.2. adding 2 more height speakers, I will post results...wish me luck.
I just made a video about 7.1.2 vs 5.1.4 that you might be interested in. 😁
th-cam.com/video/bTTgKQ1Jexo/w-d-xo.html
This video is timely as lately I've been thinking about Dolby's specs that say that your ceiling speakers should placed apart between 0.5x and 0.7x the width of the room. In this case, it looks like the mids would 1.0x that width of the room.
I'd be curious to hear your thoughts about Dolby's specs and how 0.5x, 0.6x, 0.7x and 1.0x compares. That would be a huge undertaking on your part to test all of those configurations, but if you ever have the time, that would be interesting to see in either a x.x.2 or x.x.4 setup.
Well, I’m not sure about those specs, but typically Dolby wants you have them at about a 45 degree angle. Whereas Auro 3D says mounting them at a 30 degree angle is better for binaural hearing (since we have 2 ears on the side of our heads) 😄 I have mine at 30 degrees and I’m enjoying the results so far!
Dolby's home guideline gives that "0.5-0.7x the layout width" (not the ROOM width, but the distance between the widest speakers on the lateral, usually your side surrounds) as a generalization so as not to be a barrier to entry. But there's more to it than that if you dig deeper into how the renderer works. The renderer itself has an ingrained expectation of where within the layout those height rows will be... which is literally at the 0.25 and 0.75 coordinates laterally. This means that the IDEAL spacing is 0.5x the layout width in a perfect world. This is true whether you're doing x.x.2, x.x.4, x.x.6, etc.
But let's face it... It isn't a perfect world, and everything comes with caveats. If you look into Dolby's theatrical and mix room specs, their height placement is less about layout width than about the elevation angle from both ear level and the side surrounds. Dolby's math on this is: 45 degrees plus half the elevation of the side surrounds. So if your side surrounds are at ear level, the height rows should be at 45 degrees elevation side-to-side to maintain good angular separation. If, however, your side surrounds are elevated to clear obstructions like seatbacks or people's heads (which is a good idea to consider), you make a slight adjustment to them. So if the side surrounds are at 10 degrees elevation, the heights would be at 50 (45 + half of 10). This shifts them in a bit narrower than most would ever consider... but the point is to keep angular separation consistent with how the renderer works. And if you look at an actual Atmos theater, you'll usually notice that the height rows only tend to cover the middle third or so of the space, which is because they are accounting for the elevated side surrounds as measured at the theater's reference listening point.
The good news is: In most home spaces, 0.5x the layout width usually lines up fairly close to ideal even if your sides are up a bit for clearance. Now, that isn't to say that placing them wider than that isn't doable if your room necessitates it, because some Atmos > no Atmos. But if you're looking to do things consistent with what the renderer's actual expectation is, stick to 0.5x the layout width. The rest (seat-to-seat coverage) comes down to aiming them so that all the seats get fairly equal energy laterally. Usually, you can achieve this by aiming the left heights at the MLP's left shoulder and the right heights at the MLP's right shoulder, give or take. Ignore seats too close to side walls, since spacing heights out to include them compromises the overhead spacing for those more toward the middle. A wider dispersion speaker properly aimed will include them adequately anyway.
Ealan could certainly test each of those spacings, but the differences would be fairly subtle and mostly exhibited in the consistency of pan speeds when an object arcs across (such as in Dolby's Encounter demo clip). At the room sizes we're talking about, the lower spatial resolution would make it hard to hear a concrete difference that couldn't just get chalked up to preference.
@@TheReverendSlim Thank you for the extremely thorough reply and clarification about the room width vs layout width. I'll take some time to read this through a few times to ensure I thoroughly understand it.
@@fotophotographer Think about it this way: If you go with a 30 degree elevation on the side walls, you're giving yourself good steering for elevation but also a 120 degree spacing between the left and right heights. Regardless of where your ears are on your head, cross-channel imaging at that angle of separation suffers (which is why Auro pushes VOG as a stopgap solution), though perceived resolution between the sides and heights may improve (which you'd hear in objects moving between ear level and height or sounds pre-panned between them inside static objects acting as constructive "channels"). Now consider that if you use 45 degrees of elevation, the spacing between the heights is then at 90 degrees. It's a little better for general overhead imaging, where spatial resolution isn't as important as movements of pans... and you're still within a good range for side-to-height imaging. It just depends on which aspect you want to compromise.
If you're shooting for an Auro-compatible layout, you obviously have to compromise the "ideal" Atmos layout slightly to make that work. Whether that's something you want to prioritize is up to you. The bigger point here is that both ways will work. It's just that the formats have a slightly different methodology for pans and placement, and no "all-in-one" layout will get each of them perfect. You gotta' pick your poison.
@@HTadd1ct If you ignore them, how will know how far apart to set your speakers?
I understand the importance of the angle from the horizontal plane, but then don't we need something to guide in terms of how far apart they should be?
I find it odd that you didn't mention that DTS:X simply doesn't work with top middle speaker placements in a 5.1.2 layout. You have to set them as top fronts or rears in your AVR or you will get no sound playing from those height channels. DTS:X Pro can support top middle but regular DTS:X cannot.
True, although this was a video meant for discussing the physical placement of the speakers, not the software setup. But you have given me an idea to make a quick video about that, in case there is any confusion. But there are plenty of forum posts that I’ve found explaining this very issue, where you would still need to set the heights as “front” or “back” in the software, despite its physical location.
I prefer upfiring Atmos speakers on top of the front speakers. I’m using an Onkyo RZ-50 and Dirac Live places the sound of helicopters and planes flying overhead above the roof. If you’ve ever been in the military and listened to Jets, helicopters, and planes flying over your living quarters, that’s the effect I get.
Nice! Whatever works! 🤘🎉
So, if i have 4 in ceiling speakers (5.1.4) two near the front above the L&R, and two in the Top Middle position (2-3ft in front of MLP). In the avr during calibration, should i set them to front heights & top middle OR front height & rear height?) is either better than the other? Denon x3800
No, there’s no difference in how the audio is processed, but it does make a difference with timing, so I would go for Top Middle, since that’s basically where your 2nd set of height speakers lies. 👍
So have you tried 5.1.4 or 7.1.4 for height on wall speaker placement. I’m trying to figure out what will sound best. Front height and then either middle height or rear height ?
Haven’t tried that test yet, but it’s a good idea! Thanks! 😁🎉
I was a big fan of yours…until I saw that Giants hat. Jkjk. But on a serious note, it would be cool for you to do a video about audio while watching sporting events. Maybe breakdown the different sources for baseball games and do a comparison and then let us know how to set up the best audio for watching sports. I have a 5.1.2 setup and the audio always seems lacking while watching Dodger games.
That’s a cool idea! 🤔 🤘
Who doesn't love a good brain tickle?
Hi Ealan, can you do an updated version of this video where you answer where the best 4 height speakers should be, essentially front and mid vs front and rear. Thanks!!
Just checked out another video of yours and looks like top front and top middle isn’t an offered configuration, so I guess top front and top rear it is 😅
Please can you help me, due to restrictions i can only add my front height speakers i want to add on each side wall at the front facing each other and not facing me i also have 2 middle cieling atmos speakers facing me, will i still hear the new front heights even though they are not facing me but facing each other, thank you.
I’m not 100% clear on what you’re asking, but regardless, the effect won’t be all that great if the speakers aren’t pointed at you. Then you’ll just be getting reflections of sounds, not direct sound. Might as well have upward-firing speakers bouncing height info off the ceiling in that case. 🤷♂️
Great video man! I have got a 5.1.2 system in my TV room. Currently I am doing what you referred to as the wall of sound. I am using Aperion Audio Novus N5B speakers as heights. Going to try them at the mid position mounted where wall meets ceiling. Have a great one!
Awesome! Those are some beefy heights! I like it! 🤘
Can you share your results with the different positions? Thanks.
I used a 4 channel speaker selector on a 5.2.2 to duplicate 2 atmos channels into 4 heights. I used R-41 front mounted as main and used 2 Covo S speakers facing up on my rear channels. This created a dome effect like it was binaural. The back two were substantial enough to effect the height positioning.
Yeah I second that,,thanks for the info…I’m putting up speakers at the moment and I only have one pair of speaks so I’m going mid height
You'll like the results!
Eland, like your logic! The front sound stage is the most important. I am still a novice and I am still experimenting. I live in a small 800 square foot apartment so I can not crank it up to Marty McFly levels or I will knock the pictures off the neighbors walls. You provide sound advice and supported by other sources as well. I have an STR ANZ3000 ES 9.2.4 channel receiver, with CS8 center, CS5's left and right, and RS5 back speakers for a 5. ear level. I added two SW3's for my sub woofers. For my height channels I have four CSE's two on the front wall near the ceiling building the frond sound stage, and two mid near the ceiling aiming at the ears, bringing near Nirvana of 5.2.4 yet I had to turn off the up-firing aspect of the RS5's which would help fill the back corners due to limitations of the receiver. If I added wides then I could have the 7.2.4 setup, yet it seems the receiver counts the heights as part of the 9.2.4 setup. In this small apartment I do not feel any dead space, but I also need to find better testing methods to explore this setup. Any advice moving to the next level would be appreciated.
I would like to take this setup to the beach, and is Dolby Atmos even possible outside? Upfiring speakers would not have anything to reflect sound off, and there is no way to mount height speakers, unless you used bamboo poles or something.
Hi there!
The Sony STR-AZ3000ES is a 9 channel AVR, so it can process a maximum of 9 channels and 2 subwoofers. So the largest configuration it can support is 5.2.4, make sense?
Beyond what you currently have, an upgrade would require an AVR that has pre outs, like the AZ5000ES, because then you can straft to slowly acquire external amps to power better speakers in the future.
And yeah, Atmos outdoors would require either some way to mount the heights up high on a pole, or perhaps if you had a large covered patio, then you could mount the height speakers on the patio ceiling, of course. 🤷♂️
I think your video explains way better than do many others
Thanks! 🎉
For Auro3D if you only have 2 heights then they recommend the MID position. Just ordered 2 more SVS Prime Elevations so I will have 4 heights soon... Front and Mid as I dont have a way to do rear heights. Keep it up Elon
How exciting for you! 🤘