5
HKTS 35BQ
Speaker Placement (cont.)
Surround Speakers
Front Right
Speaker
Center
Speaker
Front Left
Speaker
Surround Right
Speaker
Surround Left
Speaker
5 – 6 ft
(1.5m – 1.8m)
The two surround speakers should be placed slightly behind the listening position, facing
each other, and, ideally should be 5 – 6 feet (1.5m – 1.8m) from the floor. An alternate
location would be on a wall behind the listening position, facing forward. The surround
speakers should not call attention to themselves while they’re playing. Experiment with
their placement until you hear a diffuse, ambient sound accompanying the program
material heard from the front left, front right and center speakers.
Subwoofer
1.
2.
3.
The performance of a subwoofer is directly related to its placement in the listening room
and its physical position relative to the other speakers in the system. While it is true
that in general our ears do not hear directional sounds at the low frequencies where
subwoofers operate, when installing a subwoofer within the limited confines of a room,
the reflections, standing waves and absorptions generated within the room will strongly
influence the performance of any subwoofer system. As a result, the specific location of
the subwoofer in the room does become important to the amount and quality of bass
that is produced.
For example, placing the subwoofer next to a wall generally will increase the amount of
bass in the room; placing it in a corner (1) generally will maximize amount of bass in the
room. However, corner placement can also increase the destructive effect of standing
waves on bass performance. This effect can vary depending on the listening position –
some listening positions may yield very good results while others may have far too much
(or too little) bass at certain frequencies.
In many rooms, placing the subwoofer along the same plane as the left and right
speakers (2) 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 (3).
We strongly recommend that you experiment with placement before choosing a final
location for your subwoofer. One way you can 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.
