How to Place External Speakers
Placement of external speakers, whether for home audio, theater or computer systems, is critical for good sound. While there is no optimal placement for external speakers due to personal preference and variances in equipment type, room size, listening area, furniture and other obstacles, there are a few guidelines which will help to place your speakers in the best possible spot. This will work for two speakers plus a subwoofer, if applicable, but may be expanded for up to two additional home theater or audio speakers.
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Instructions
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1
Choose a listening area where you are most likely to be situated. If you are placing external computer speakers, your listening area will be in front of your machine. For home audio or theater setups, a likely listening area will be a couch or chair.
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2
Sit in the listening area and visually locate likely spots to your left and right where the speakers will fit, and the sound will be unencumbered by furniture or other obstacles.
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3
Place your subwoofer (if applicable) in the center of the room on the ground. Bass frequencies are "felt" rather than heard, so placement is less critical than other speakers. The subwoofer may be placed in front or behind the listening area.
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4
Place the left and right speaker on opposite sides of the room facing toward the listening area. Try to create an imaginary equilateral triangle (one with all sides even) from the listening area to the speakers with the same distance separating them. You may use a tape measure to get an accurate measurement.
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Raise the speakers so that the center of the speaker is even with ear level when in your normal listening position. You may use speaker stands, wall mounts or other means to raise or adjust the speaker height.
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6
Play music through your speakers and adjust as necessary until you are happy with the sound. Personal preference and differences in individual auditory ability to hear certain frequencies may come into play when placing speakers.
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Tips & Warnings
If your room or setup does not allow you to create an equilateral triangle of speaker measurements, don't worry about it. Just try to place each speaker at the same distance, angle and height from the listening area.
Have a helper tweak the placement while you listen.
If you have two additional external speakers, such as in many home theater systems, place them behind you using the same methods as described in steps 4 through 6.
When using stands or wall mounts, follow all manufacturer's installation recommendations and always use stands and mounts made expressly for your speaker size and weight.
Keep speaker cables in mind when placing speakers to prevent tripping hazards, and always use unshielded speaker cable of sufficient gauge thickness for best sound. Never use shielded audio cable or speaker cable that is too thin for your system to prevent damage to audio components.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit hi-fi music 4 image by Pavel Losevsky from Fotolia.com
