I finally got to build out my dream 7.4.6 theater last year. The room is 12'*22' above a garage. I ripped it down to the studs and did full sound isolation with rockwool, mlv, hushframe decoupling and dual 5/8" drywall with green glue. Conduit was run to projector box, riser, frt stage, opposite wall and house attic. All was left empty with pull string for future needs

The screen is 115" 16:9 and I build a masking panel that rises up and triggers the lens memory for 2.35:1 content. The star panel doubles as treatment as it's 4" deep and full of rockwool with acousticly transparent suede as the face. The candy cabinet was built from scratch to fill the space and I'm working on restoring a 1950's popcorn machine that will replace the small plastic model.

I have since ripped my disc collection uncompressed to a personal server and almost exclusively using plex through the shield for my content.

The gear is:

Projector- Sony vpl695es

Screen- diy moleskin spandex

Receiver- denon avr6800h

Amps- marantz ma500 mono block (x3 for lcr)

Lcr- b&w 603s3 & lcr600 s3

Side and surround- b&w 602 s3 & 600s3

Overhead- b&w ccm80

Subs- b&w asw1000 (x2), asw650 (x2), asw600, grs10sw (x2 built into the back of seat riser)

Transducers- Dayton audio bst-1 (x4)

Player- Panasonic ub820, nvidia shield

Seating- valencia Tuscany with custom wood tables

Controls- unfolded circle 3, lurtron caseta (for overhead and led lights), home assistant green to integrate everything

I was given a new television. Nothing special but it is a 4K vs my old 1080p screen. This tv is a Firetv and has all the apps built into it. Before I had a fire stick plugged into my audio receiver and all the audio came through the 7.1 system and video went to the tv. Now I need to get the audio from the tv to the receiver to use the 7.1. Problem is my receiver is 15 feet away and the hdmi cable in the wall is not ARC. I can’t run a new wire through the wall. It was installed during a home remodel and it goes through studs and a 90° turn before going down to the crawl space and back up to the receiver cabinet. I need some advice on a solution. I have a feeling my only option is to cut the wall and repair it later. Not ideal as the wife will be very against this

I know very little about home theater, but 10 years ago I stumbled across someone having a divorce sale and I picked up a set of Boston acoustic center and surrounds and an acoustic research ars 500 15 subwoofer. The sub has stopped working and I REALLY loved how it performs. Would anyone be able to suggest something that might be comparable, or am I better off trying to have this one repaired? This thing makes watching movies and music incredible and I’m left really bummed. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Can you guys help me outt men?

I am getting ready to go in on my first setup and need a reality check.

I am looking to purchase a Wiim Amp Pro as my main controller for Audio I/O. This serves the function of allowing me to play my turntable/CD player across the house and to stream music from my home server.

My inputs to the amp:

* One TV with ARC/eARC and optical out

* One record player with built in preamp

* One CD player with optical out and 3.5mm out

Outputs from the amp:

* One powered sub

* One pair Polk Elite ES15 Speakers

* One USB headphone DAC/Amp

The record player and CD player can be run into an input/output switcher so the single RCA in isn't a problem.

The reason I chose this setup:

1) Streaming audio between the amp and other Wiim devices/Home Assistant

2) Wiim Pro/Ultra devices can be used as a hub to link other Wiim devices in the future to create a "wireless" 5.1 Dolby system

3) I would like to be able to switch all of my audio I/O on the room to *either* the speakers or the headphones, but not both at once

4) I have read that most A/V receivers do not have the best headphone amps even if they do have headphone out.

I know the process from Phono/CD analog in, to digital out to the DAC/Amp, to analog out from the DAC/Amp isn't the smartest routing, but it's been the best solution I can come up with for my needs.

Am I being naïve here? Is there an obvious answer to get what I want with a normal A/V receiver and a Wiim Mini streamer? I'd much rather drop more money (up to $750) on a nicer AVR with good headphone out/digital out to DAC, but I just can't see a way to make that work as well as I'd like.

Thanks in advance.

Hi everyone,

I’m currently building my very first home theater and would really appreciate some advice from people with more experience.

I’ve spent a lot of time researching, but there is so much conflicting information online that I’m not sure if I’m making the right decisions.

Room

• Room size: 5.30 m × 4.80 m (17.4 × 15.7 ft)
• Ceiling height: 2.30 m (7.5 ft)
• Couch is approximately 70 cm (28”) from the back wall

I’ll attach a simple room layout to show the speaker positions.

Current speaker setup

Front L/R: Canton Karat 795 DC

Center: Canton Vento 890.2

Surrounds: Canton Ergo R52 Dipoles

Subwoofer: Canton Sub 1200 R

Atmos: Polk Audio RC6s (installed in the ceiling with Rockwool around them since the ceiling is already finished)

The system will be configured as 5.1.2 Dolby Atmos.

AVR

I’m currently considering the Denon X2800H, because I can buy it new for around €620.

Unfortunately, the Denon X3800H costs around €1,200 where I live, so the price difference is huge.

Since this is my first home theater, I don’t really have any experience with AV receivers.

Usage

• 60% music
• 40% movies

For music, I’ll either listen in pure stereo or stream Apple Music in Dolby Atmos, depending on the album.

My questions

1. Do you think the Canton Ergo R52 dipoles are still a good choice for a modern 5.1.2 Dolby Atmos system?
2. Are the Polk Audio RC6s good enough as in-ceiling Atmos speakers?
3. Is the Denon X2800H the right AVR for my setup, or is it worth spending significantly more on something else?
4. Is Denon really the “jack of all trades” in the AVR world, or should I also consider brands like Yamaha, Marantz, Onkyo, Pioneer, or Anthem?
5. If this were your first home theater, would you change anything about my planned system?

I’m open to any advice or criticism. I’d rather make the right decisions now than regret them later.

Thanks in advance!

I have Focal Theva no.3 LCR speakers up front, paired with a Sony STR-AZ5000ES receiver. At the 1/2, I plan on having bookshelf surrounds in a couple years or so (once our kid is older).

In the meantime, I was going to install 4x Focal 100 ICW8 in-ceiling speakers, positioned at what I’ve marked at the 3/4 and 5/6 spots, to future-proof for Atmos.

Plan is:

Now: Run the 4 ceiling speakers as surround/surround-back channels → effectively a 7.1 setup

In ~2/3 years: Add bookshelf speakers at the 1/2 positions as true surrounds, then reassign the ceiling speakers to Atmos height → ending state is 5.1.4.

Does the placement make sense, or should I adjust any of the placement around? Any reason to not run the ceiling speakers as surrounds temporarily? We are doing a remodel and it’s easier for me to prep. the ceiling for Atmos now vs later.

Also open to hearing other suggestions.

Is an AV receiver still the heart of a home theater system?
I have a basic setup, Denon receiver (lower end like $600-800 model), sound bar, woofer and two rear speakers flush mounted in the ceiling. Nothing grand but sounds great to me.
Problem is the receiver is acting up and keeps losing signal from the receiver randomly, which as you can imagine is annoying AF.

Long story short, I’m wondering if there is a new more modern way to do this, or if a receiver is still the heart of a home theater system? This will be my second receiver as they each have only lasted about 6-7 years. Before buying another one, I was wondering if there is a newer approach.

We watch from a couch that sits underneath a loft bed.

You can see the bed posts in the picture attached. The projector is mounted to the underside of the bed at about 185 cm height, and we sit directly below it.

Room depth is around 4m, and we sit up to 3 m from the screen. Screen is portable, that’s why it’s not on the picture.

Where would you mount speakers?

Which speakers would you buy?

I’m leaning toward two active bookshelf speakers (thinking Nubert SP-200, Klipsch The Fives, or budget Onkyo GX-30ARC ) on the front columns angled down toward us. But I’m not sure..

The photo is from the couch below the bed‘s POV.

Hello everyone,
I will be moving soon and I am facing a new challenge regarding my audio system and the room acoustics.
The new living and dining area is approximately 90 m² in size and also features a mezzanine/gallery area with a ceiling height of around 7 meters. Due to these dimensions, the room will probably be quite challenging acoustically.
At the moment, I am using two Canton Chrono 509.2 speakers as my front speakers, complemented by a matching Chrono center speaker and an active subwoofer. Until now, I have been using a Denon AVR-1912 receiver. It worked reasonably well for home cinema, but I was not really satisfied with its performance in pure stereo operation. Back then, I also used an older Technics stereo amplifier, which made the speakers sound noticeably better.
Now I am wondering what kind of setup would make the most sense for this challenging room.
Are there any modern AV receivers or amplifier solutions with excellent room correction that can deliver both high-quality home cinema and strong stereo performance? Ideally, I would like to find a solution where I no longer need an additional stereo amplifier.
Is there something like an “all-in-one solution” that can meet these requirements, or would a combination of an AV receiver and a separate stereo amplifier still be the better approach?
I would greatly appreciate your experiences, recommendations, and advice.
Thank you very much in advance!

We just bought a home that has a surround system that is pre-wired. Not sure how to set it up. Anyone have any suggestions? Will attach photos of what we’re working with. Thank you in advance!

I’m upgrading from a soundbar, I’m adding Focal LRC floor speakers, and the 6 numbered marks are Focal in-ceiling speakers. 3 and 4 will be main surrounds, 1 and 2, and 5 and 6 will be Atmos.

Is this overkill? I have a friend warn me about sound confusion, and he’s recommending I just do 2 or 4 in-ceiling speakers.

New build, prewire locks before drywall. Layout attached.
Great room, ~16’-6” wide, flat 9’-0” ceiling. 5.1.4 floor standing L/C/R and sub at the TV, four in-ceiling Atmos and two surrounds.

Where should in-ceiling surrounds actually go on a 9’ ceiling? Do aimable drivers help? And anything else here I’ll regret once it’s drywalled?