How to Determine Rear Speaker Placement in a Home Theater System

By eHow Electronics Editor

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When setting up a home theater system, positioning your rear speakers (also known as the surround speakers) is very important in achieving the best surround sound quality. To the untrained ear, surround speakers could be placed anywhere and it wouldn’t matter. But to those who are very particular about audio quality in a home theater, proper speaker placement is critical. Here are some helpful steps to set up your home theater rear speakers.

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Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

Home theater system
Rear speakers

Step1

Evaluate the room and decide where your seating will be positioned.

Step2

Rear speakers should be mounted either behind the viewer approximately 1 foot above head level or in the back corners of the room near the ceiling.

Step3

The distance between the rear speakers and your viewing area should be no more than 8 to 10 feet. You can compensate for the distance by turning up the volume on these speakers. They only transmit the surround sound track, so the sound will not be constant or overbearing.

Step4

Rear speakers can be placed as close as 1 foot behind the viewing area. The volume can be decreased so as not to overwhelm the viewer during a movie.

Step5

Point the speakers downward, toward the viewing area, when you mount them. Try to aim the speakers at head-level. This will allow for optimum listening enjoyment.

Step6

Mounting the surround speakers in the rear allows viewers the freedom to move closer or farther away from the screen without losing the surround sound effect. If they are mounted on the side walls, the viewers cannot move forward or backward without losing quality.

Step7

Start a movie and fiddle with your placement until you find what best suits your needs and taste.

Tips & Warnings

Movie theaters have both side and rear surround speakers, but if installers needed to choose between the two, most would choose rear. This is because a viewer can move closer or farther from the screen and still hear the surround sound.
Some people decide to place the surround speakers to the side of their viewing area. In this case, they should be mounted in line with the viewer, about 1 foot above head level, and then pointed at the viewer. If the viewer moves closer or farther from the television, however, they will lose the surround sound effect.