Home Theater configuration
What you are trying to do is to copy the setting you find at a real movie theater to maximize your viewing and listening pleasure. You have a surround sound system that can have various loudspeaker settings. This is what distinguishes your home theater from a regular television viewing situation. In order to get the maximum benefit from these features, you should first make a decision where you want to locate the wide screen TV and where you want to sit. As you do this, keep in mind that the speakers will have to be located in different places around the room. This will give you the feeling of actually being in the midst of the action .Your home theater design should also include the acoustic characteristics of the materials in the room. Bare walls do not work well with sound quality, as the reverberations tend to muddy the sound. Some kind of sound absorbing materials should be put in to help the acoustic balance. Ceiling panels, draperies, and rugs are all assisting in obtaining this balance. The actual environment should be planned so that the lights in the room÷ are controllable and are adding to the atmosphere. A dimmer switch on a few of the lights is probably the easiest method of controlling the lights , or you could put in buried lights to imitate the lighting in a movie theater.
The physical comfort of the spectators is of equal importance in home theater design. Temperature regulation keeps the room at a reasonable level and suitable ventilation will offer air movement for a pleasurable atmosphere.
The next step is to arrange the speakers in the optimum configuration so as to increase the listening pleasure. Surround sound speaker systems come in different arrangements with the basic one being the 5.1 channel set-up, made up of three front speakers, two side speakers, and a sub-woofer. The 6.1 channel arrangement adds a channel (a rear speaker) to the 5.1 configuration, while the 7.1 adds yet another sub-woofer for increased bass. Your ideal home theater configuration will take into account the necessity÷ for best location of these components in terms of the physical separation required and optimum sound separation÷ . Placing÷ the speakers on the floor is not the ideal way to place them , as the floor grasps the vibrations and twists the sound. Arrangements must be made to elevate the loudspeakers so that nothing comes between your ears and the speakers. This will enlarge your enjoyment from the best home theater design possible.
So sit back, dim the lights, pass the popcorn, and get pleasure from the show.