How to Properly Setup Home Theater Seating

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By mrchuck999
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Properly Setup Home Theater Seating

Does it really matter where the seats are in a home theater? Yes, if you want the movie to look and sound great, seating position is absolutely critical.
Read on to learn how.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Step 1

Measure your room:
Carefully measure the width and Length. Write it down is both inches and feet. This will help with calculations. Take care in measuring the length. This will be the primary number needed to calculate how close to put your seating.

Note: Length is the dimension of the room that will span from the screen to the seating. but measure the maximum room-length available in the room.
Step 2

Measure your screen width.
Width is the most important measurement, but write down the diagonal as well. Most online HT calculators offer both options for convenience.

Most home theaters use a 16x9 Screen. The width is constant and the height varies depending on the aspect ratio of the film.

Disclaimer: The writer acknowledges Constant Image Height theaters but these users are more advanced and are not the majority of readers.
Step 3

Calculate:
Visit the sites listed below to use the online calculators.
Write down your results. Note that THX optimum viewing distance results in a 36 degree viewing cone. You do not have to achieve a perfect 36 degrees, but the closer you are to it, the better the result. It also helps you know which direction to move if at all.(Closer or further-back).
Step 4

Position seats.
Take the width of your screen and multiply by 2X.
For a more immerse experience 1.5X is acceptable. If you prefer the back row in your local theater, 3X is acceptable. Keep the seats as close the [left/right-center] as possible. This creates the best surround sound experience.
Centering front-to-back: You "can" go back nearly to the wall. But leave a gap of at least 1-2 feet if possible. This allows space to generate a sound field behind you.
Step 5

Position surround speakers relative the seating.
Dolby labs approves several configurations. One of the most popular and successful arrangements is setting the left and Right surround speakers to the sides and slightly behind the main seating area. This step needs to be done after you determine your seating for the best result.
Step 6

The last step is for multi-row seating. If you wish to have 2 rows, the best approach is to add a 2nd row behind the primary row. If there will be 3 rows, add one row in front of the primary row and one behind.