Introduction to Home Theater

AVR 1650/AVR 165

Introduction to Home Theater and Place Your Speakers

Place Your Speakers

This introductory section will help you to familiarize yourself with some basic concepts unique to multichannel surround-sound AVRs, which will make it easier for you to set up and operate your AVR.

Typical Home Theater System

A home theater typically includes an audio/video receiver (AVR), which controls the system and supplies ampliﬁcation for the loudspeakers; a disc player; a source component for television broadcasts (cable box, satellite dish AVR, HDTV tuner or antenna connected to the TV); a TV or video display; and multiple loudspeakers.

Multichannel Audio

The main beneﬁt of a home theater system is its ability to produce “surround sound.” Surround sound uses multiple speakers and ampliﬁer channels to immerse you in the audio/video presentation for a dramatically increased sense of realism.

Your AVR can have up to ﬁve main speakers connected directly to it, plus a subwoofer. Each main speaker is powered by its own ampliﬁer channel inside the AVR. A system with more than two speakers is called a multichannel system. The different main speaker types in a home theater system are:

•Front Left and Right: The front left and right speakers are used as in a 2-channel system. In many surround-sound modes, these speakers are secondary, while the main action, especially dialogue, is reproduced by the center speaker.

•Center: When you are watching movies and television programs, the center speaker reproduces most of the dialogue and other soundtrack information that occurs on the screen, anchoring it with the picture. When you are listening to a musical program, the center speaker helps to create a seamless front soundstage, creating a more realistic “you-are-there” listening experience.

•Surround Left and Right: The surround left and right speakers produce ambient sounds that help create a realistic and immersive surround-sound environment. They also help recreate directional sound effects such as aircraft ﬂyovers.

Many people expect the surround speakers to play as loudly as the front speakers. Although you will calibrate all of the speakers in your system to sound equally loud at the listening position, most artists use the surround speakers for ambient effects only, and they create their programs to steer relatively little sound to these speakers.

•Subwoofer: A subwoofer is designed to play only the lowest frequencies (the deep bass). It augments smaller, limited-range main speakers that are usually used for the other channels. Many digital-format programs, such as movies recorded in Dolby Digital, contain a low-frequency effects (LFE) channel that is directed to the subwoofer. The LFE channel packs the punch of a rumbling train or airplane, or the power of an explosion, adding realism and excitement to your home theater. Some people use two subwoofers for additional power and for even distribution of the sound.

Surround Modes

There are different theories as to the best way to present surround sound and to distribute the individual channel information to the surround-sound system’s speakers. A variety of algorithms have been developed in an effort to recreate the way we hear sounds in the real world, resulting in a rich variety of options. Several companies have developed different surround-sound technologies, all of which can be accurately reproduced by your AVR:

•Dolby Laboratories: Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital EX, Dolby Pro Logic II.

•DTS: DTS-HD™ High Resolution Audio, DTS-HD Master Audio™, DTS, DTS 96/24™.

•HARMAN International: Logic 7, HARMAN virtual speaker, HARMAN headphone.

•Stereo Modes: 2-channel stereo and 5-channel stereo.

Appendix Table A9, on page 31, contains detailed explanations of the different surround- sound options available on your AVR. Digital surround-sound modes, such as Dolby Digital and DTS systems, are available only with specially encoded programs, such as those available via HDTV, DVD and Blu-ray Disc media and digital cable or satellite television. Other surround modes may be used with digital and analog signals to create a different surround presentation or to use a different number of speakers. Surround- mode selection depends upon the number of speakers in your system, the programs you are watching or listening to, and your personal tastes.

Determine the locations for your system’s speakers according to their manufacturer’s directions and the layout of your listening room. Use the illustration below as a guide for 5.1-channel systems.

To create the most realistic surround-sound environment possible, you should place your speakers in a circle with the listening position at its center. You should angle each speaker so it directly faces the listening position. Use the diagram below as a guide.

TV	SUB
C	SUB
FL	FR

Placing the Left, Center and Right Speakers

Place the center speaker either on top of, below or mounted on the wall above or below the TV or video-display screen. Place the front left and right speakers along the circle, about 30 degrees from the center speaker and angled toward the listener.

Place the front left, front right and center speakers at the same height, preferably at about the same height as the listener’s ears. The center speaker should be no more than 2 feet (0.6m) above or below the left/right speakers. If you’re using only two speakers with your AVR, place them in the front left and front right positions.

Placing the Surround Speakers

You should place the left and right surround speakers approximately 110 degrees from the center speaker, slightly behind and angled toward the listener. Alternatively, you can place them behind the listener, with each surround speaker facing the opposite-side front speaker. You should place the surround speakers 2 feet – 6 feet (0.6m – 1.8m) higher than the listener’s ears.

NOTE: Your AVR will sound its best when the same model or brand of loudspeaker is used for all positions.

Placing the Subwoofer

Because a room’s shape and volume can have a dramatic effect on a subwoofer’s performance, it is best to experiment with placement so that you will ﬁnd the location that produces the best results in your particular listening room. With that in mind, these rules will help you get started:

•Placing the subwoofer next to a wall generally will increase the amount of bass in the room.

•Placing the subwoofer in a corner generally will maximize the amount of bass in the room.

•In many rooms, placing the subwoofer along the same plane as the left and right speakers can produce the best integration between the sound of the subwoofer and that of the left and right speakers.

•In some rooms, the best performance could even result from placing the subwoofer behind the listening position.

A good way to determine the best location for the subwoofer is by temporarily placing it in the listening position and playing music with strong bass content. Move around to various locations in the room while the system is playing (putting your ears where the subwoofer would be placed), and listen until you ﬁnd the location where the bass performance is best. Place the subwoofer in that location.