Speaker Placement Tips; Tips Before Beginning - Emotiva RPA-1 User Manual

Speaker Placement Tips

Tips Before Beginning

Read this section thoroughly. There are a number of ways in which it may seem aesthetically pleasing
to place speakers in a room that will ultimately result in a sound quality compromise. The placement of
speakers is equally as important as the room itself. While there may be very little you can do about the room
where your home theater is installed, you can choose placement of speakers within that room to maximize
the sound quality of the system. Ultimately, this will give a much better result when you are enjoying your
home theater and your new Emotiva RSP-1.
Overall, the best placement for front speakers is where the sound is directed at ear level. This means that the
speakers themselves can be in positions lower (like small floor standing speakers) or higher (like in-wall or
in-ceiling speakers) as long as the sound is "pointed" toward the listeners and preferably around ear level.
Ideally you will place the speakers so they create an imaginary triangle with the listening position. This is
known as the "Stereo Triangle" among audiophiles. A little toe-in of the front speakers sometimes helps the
perceived distance between the speakers as more intimate and reinforces a phantom center image. If you
are doing a "2.1" system, a subwoofer can also be a little challenging to install depending on the room. In
multiple subwoofer installations, the positioning of the woofers to the listener as well as to each other is
critical because there can be problems with cancellation if optimum placement is not observed.
Page 19