Home Theater Speaker Placement
Get The Most Out Of Your Room!

Home Theater Speaker Placement is crucial in attaining the ultimate surround sound listening experience in your home. It doesn't matter what room you're setting up your surround sound system in either as long as you follow a few simple rules.

Now let's jump into the basics of Home Theater Speaker Placement / Surround Sound Setup and what you'll need to make it all work.

And don't forget that what sounds great in your friend's home theater room may not sound so great in yours.

Surround Sound Layout
The Basics For Surround Sound 5.1, 6.1 And 7.1 setup!

Before getting into the basic setup techniques I wanted to mention that we're talking about DTS (Digital Theater Systems) and Dolby Surround Sound formats as these two are the most widely used systems for home theater use..

DTS / Dolby Surround Sound 5.1 Setup

Simply DTS / Dolby Surround Sound 5.1 means that there are 5 speakers and 1 subwoofer (sometimes referred to as the LFE or Low Frequency Effects Channel).

The 5 speakers consist of 3 front speakers (left, right, center) and two rear speakers (left/right surround sound speakers). The .1 in 5.1 refers to the subwoofer.

For your home theater Surround Sound 5.1 system to work correctly you need to place the speakers in their optimum positions.

Center Speaker – The center speaker is obviously placed in the center of your TV. This is where your main dialogue will be coming out. It's important that you have your center speaker placed above/on your TV having it's front lined up with the front of the TV for ultimate listening. If it's slid back on the TV then you may get some distortion.

Front Left Speaker / Front Right Speaker - These two speakers should be placed to the left and right of your center speaker. Depending on the size of your room the distance apart will vary. Generally speaking 6 feet from each other in a regular living room is good. Make sure the center speaker is in the center of these two or your surround sound won't sound right. Also you want the sound headed in your direction to get the full effects of DTS / Dolby Surround Sound 5.1 therefore slightly turn in your speakers pointing towards your sitting area whether it be your recliner or couch. And for optimal listening experience it's best to have the speakers at ear level height or slightly above when you're sitting down.

Left And Right Rear Speakers - If possible place these speakers a few feet behind your sitting area and again 6 feet apart pointing slightly inwards at ear level sitting down.

Now that you have all 5 speakers set up all you need to do is add the subwoofer. Since the subwoofer is basically there to give you the low sounds of dinosaurs or tanks rumbling by. The subwoofer really gets you into those types of movies. The sound from subwoofers isn't directional therefore you can place your subwoofer just about anywhere. Generally it's placed up front near the TV but experiment with it. If it's closer to your sitting area (couch / recliner) you may feel the vibrations of the tanks and dinosaurs as they rumble on by and isn't that what surround sound is all about. So home theater speaker placement is important.

DTS / Dolby Surround Sound 6.1 Setup

Just like the 5.1 setup above except you'll be adding a central rear speaker and pushing the left and right rear speakers to the rear/side of your listening area.

The 6 speakers consist of 3 front speakers (left, right, center) and two rear speakers (left/right surround sound speakers). And 1 rear center speaker. The .1 in 6.1 refers to the subwoofer.

Opposed to the surround sound 5.1 setup the 6.1 setup has your left / right rear speakers to your sides. Make sure they're not directly next to you, push them back a good 3 to 6 feet depending on your room size from the side of your couch or central listening area.

The 6th speaker (center rear (surround) speaker) is just that. Make sure this speaker is centered and is placed behind your sitting area with at least a few feet of space in between. If it's too close it may overpower your other surround sound speakers and you'll lose the whole surround sound effect. Again home theater speaker placement is important.

Again Subwoofer placement is all up to you. Play around with it watching your favorite movie and you'll be good to go.

DTS / Dolby Surround Sound 7.1 Setup

Basically this surround sound 7.1 setup is identical to the 6.1 setup except your taking your (rear center) speaker and splitting it into two.

The 7 speakers consist of 3 front speakers (left, right, center) and two surround speakers (left/right surround sound speakers) level with sitting area. And 2 rear speakers to the left and right directed inward toward your sitting area. The .1 in 7.1 refers to the subwoofer.

The setup is just like the 6.1 setup. The only thing different about this home theater speaker placement is that you have 2 rear surround sound speakers and 2 side surround sound speakers.

Basically you're now in the center of an all out listening/viewing experience. You have your 3 front speakers, two side speakers even with your sitting area and your 6th and 7th speakers are to the rear sides pointing inwards towards your sitting area.

Home Theater Speaker Placement
Important To Remember Tips!

Always make sure your speakers are at or above ear level when you're sitting in your favorite chair.

Keep your speakers equal distances apart making sure your sitting area is always in the center of the sound equally. Test your distances as every room has varying acoustic qualities which can depend on windows, carpeting and such.

Test your subwoofer placement, the closer it is to you’re the more vibrations you may feel. Some like that, some don’t.

Those are the basic setups for home theater speaker placement. Some sites go into detail as to why which surround sound system is better, DTS, Dolby or some others. They go into the ins and outs with details. But if you're going for the whole system in a box or even if you're setting up your own, now you know where each speaker should be placed.