Loudspeaker Placement - Niles Speaker User Manual

LOUDSPEAKER PLACEMENT

NOTE: THE NILES HDFX LOUDSPEAKER IS DESIGNED FOR USE IN SIDE- OR REAR-CHANNEL
APPLICATIONS ONLY. FOR FRONT-OR CENTER-CHANNEL APPLICATIONS, WE RECOMMEND USING A
NILES HDLCR OR HDLCR
PLACEMENT FOR HOME THEATER REAR APPLICATIONS
In home theater, the goal is to reproduce the experience of a great movie theater in your home. The
biggest difference between the two venues is the use of a rear- or surround-loudspeaker array in a
commercial theater. Here, it is not uncommon to see 20 or 30 loudspeakers placed around theater
walls. This huge array of loudspeakers assures the audience will feel completely surrounded by the
ambient soundtrack of the movie.
Filmmakers carefully use the "surround" soundtrack to envelope viewers in the sound environment
on screen. They will place background music, rain sounds, traffic noise, etc. on the "surround"
soundtrack to create desired effects. However, in a home with a single pair of front loudspeakers,
this surround effect will be lost, and jungle sounds may actually sound like they are emanating "from
the middle of your head," just like headphones!
Each HDFX loudspeaker is equipped with a BIPOLE/DIPOLE switch that optimizes the surround
effects for either side or rear placement (see SETTING THE BIPOLE/DIPOLE MODE
on page 20). Here are some recommended loudspeaker placement tips:
• Place the surround loudspeakers on a rear wall directly behind the listening position. If
possible, try placing the loudspeakers nearer to the corners, as shown in Figure 2 and
3. Set each BIPOLE/DIPOLE switch to DIPOLE for reflected sound. Moreover, the adjoin-
ing walls will act as powerful reflectors to create even more reflections.
• If you place the surround loudspeakers farther away from the listener, the surround
sound will dissipate, requiring even more power from the surround-sound channels. If
your sound system uses a small 5- or 10-watt surround amplifier for the rear loud-
speakers, be sure to place the loudspeakers within 5 to 8 feet of the listening location.
• If you are using a larger 25- to 50-watt surround amplifier, you can mount the loud-
speakers 10 to 15 feet away from the listening location and still achieve reasonably
high volume levels. In large or unusually-shaped rooms, this might be the only way to
achieve a good effect.
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