After buying home theater speakers many don’t take the time to or know how to do proper home theater speaker placement, although this is the key to enjoying the full quality of your home theater system. You shouldn’t feel so bad since there is no specific and accurate place where you should place your home theater speakers. Personal preference, room layout, furniture, aesthetics, children, pets and other factors will influence home theater speaker placement. The following tips can help you to find a home theater speaker placement that allows you to get the most benefit from your home theater system.

The Center Speaker

Your home theater speaker placement should start with the center channel speaker. The position of your television will influence where you place this speaker since it acts as an anchor for your dialogue and other on-screen sounds during a movie. You should center this speaker directly above or below your television. If you are mounting it above you television then the front edge of the speaker should be aligned with the front edge of the television. This limit’s the amount of distortion you may get from sound reflecting and diffracting off the TV cabinet.

Right And Left Speakers

Home theater speaker placement should also focus on these front speakers since they are responsible for handling your movie soundtracks and giving you all the sound related to stereo music. They should form a slight arc when positioned in line with the center speaker. They should all be placed the same distance from you seating area and aimed at your ears. It is best to precisely measure the distance since a noticeable difference can result if you are so much as an inch or two off your measurements.

Surround Speakers

Next your home theater speaker placement should focus on your surround speakers. These speakers are used to provide you with atmospheric sound and for special effects during the movies. While there are some tips to home theater speaker placement for surround sound, you should always experiment since these are the speakers that will vary in their placement depending on the individual.

You want these speakers to be in line with or slightly behind your listening position. You should have them slightly high so that they don’t play directly to your ears when you are watching a movie. It is generally best to place them at ear level while you are standing so they will be at the best level when you are seated. Just experiment with placing your speakers until you get the ideal sound you are looking for.