Help me re-do my room setup!

[GotToyota?]

Hello guys, I am wanting to re-do my room setup, and was wondering if you guys could give me some tips. Here is how my current room is setup, excuse the crude Paint drawing:



It's a 16x12 bedroom. What I'm trying to do is have more room in front of the TV, so I can play bowling on the PS3, as well as fit a steering wheel stand there whenever I want to play racing games. Now, it needs to be a bit revolved around where the speakers would be, because I'm a bit limited on my speaker wire. I was thinking something like this, but I would appreciate any feedback and suggestions.



P.S. - For those wondering, the center is on top of the TV.

-Matt

[Scooby Blu]

Or you leave it the way you have and simply remove your headboard and turn your bed around so it is flat against the wall. Like sort of a couch. I had my bedroom set up like that a number of years ago. That way you only have to move the bed and you have the room you need. Just a thought .

[X-Ninja]

Why exactly would you put your TV in the corner with your bed facing a straight wall? Wouldnt you rather have the TV beside you? or on the wall on the end of your bed?
I dont know... I just think it would be painful and annoying to have your head constantly held to the right for multiple hours at a time.
Not to mention, if you wanna sit anywhere you'd need to sit in left hand corner of your bed... which would also hurt.
Not to mention, the speaker calibration would be all screwed.

I personally dont like your idea for the re-design.

haha. That came out wrong. Its not that its a bad set-up... its just that...

K, its a bad set-up.


I say for your second photo, you should take the computer and put it where you have the TV - then take the TV and put it where you have the computer.
Just an idea...

[GotToyota?]

Originally Posted by X-Ninja

I say for your second photo, you should take the computer and put it where you have the TV - then take the TV and put it where you have the computer.
Just an idea...

The problem is that I want more space in front of the TV, if I did what you said, then I'd still have a space issue. I just want more room in front of the TV.

BTW, my sub is side firing (port is on the right side).

-Matt

[rogman]

Originally Posted by GotToyota?

Hello guys, I am wanting to re-do my room setup, and was wondering if you guys could give me some tips... What I'm trying to do is have more room in front of the TV, so I can play bowling on the PS3, as well as fit a steering wheel stand there whenever I want to play racing games. Now, it needs to be a bit revolved around where the speakers would be, because I'm a bit limited on my speaker wire. I was thinking something like this, but I would appreciate any feedback and suggestions.
-Matt

Hi, Matt.

Here's a short article that might help: http://www.finishabasement.com/home_...ater_setup.htm.

Don't put your TV in the corner or move your speakers the way you have in your 2nd plan. You won't have the perfect seat in front of the TV you have now, and your surround sound will be all screwed up. Corner placement is generally not a good idea. Isn't there room for bowling if you stand next to the bed and leave the TV where it is? I'd move the surrounds up onto the walls or on stands next to the walls (further from your bed). You'll get a better surround effect if your head isn't right next to the speaker. You'd want to re-calibrate your system for the new speaker distances.

Can you turn your bed sideways? That would give you more space in between. Of course if you wanted to lay directly facing the TV you'd either have to hang your feet over the side, or lay sideways. That would solve your space issue though.

How big is your TV? How far does it stick out from the wall? You could always replace it with a flat panel!

Another thing you may want to consider, depending on whether you're happy with your bass response, is moving the subwoofer 2-3 feet from the corner on one of the two walls. Sometimes when a sub is directly in the corner, the bass becomes too boomy and leads to a 'muddy' sound.

Just something to consider...

[GotToyota?]

Rogman, thanks for the link. I'll take a look at it.

I can turn my bed sideways, I'd want it in a corner though. I used to have it in the top right corner, wasn't too bad. Putting the speakers on the wall would be a problem, as I'm using bookshelf speakers for the rears. The tv is a Samsung 30" tube, so space is kind of taken away from that, but not significantly. Here is a pic of the TV on the stand and front speakers:

[yellowblanket]

this look just like my room

take some real picture if u dont mind, and list your equipments, i could help u with some tip

[maseo503]

where's the center channel?!!

if you want more room... set it up to the length of the room...and not your current width.

edit: oh crap..i see your closet is on one end... tough decision. might have to get creative to pull off more room in front of the TV...but i agree...your re-do pic is not going to be conducive to a well-arranged surround set-up.

[X-Ninja]

An off topic note-

Your stand rocks!

[GotToyota?]

Originally Posted by X-Ninja

An off topic note-

Your stand rocks!

Much thanks, I like it also, but I wish it weren't so long.

I'm thinking of going back to my old wood stand for space sakes:

Originally Posted by yellowblanket

this look just like my room

take some real picture if u dont mind, and list your equipments, i could help u with some tip

I have real pics but it looks like crap. I'm embarrassed about my setup because it's as budget as it gets. But here goes:

Front speakers: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage....=1138085354138

Rear speakers: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage....=1172277277943

Subwoofer: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage....=1138083504371

Receiver: http://www.insignia-products.com/pc-...-receiver.aspx

I have all of that along with a 40GB PS3 hooked up to my TV via HDMI and optical for sound. It's not bad for a broke college student. The center channel I'm currently using is a crap Sony from a HTIB, I plan on replacing it soon.

Originally Posted by maseo503

where's the center channel?!!

if you want more room... set it up to the length of the room...and not your current width.

edit: oh crap..i see your closet is on one end... tough decision. might have to get creative to pull off more room in front of the TV...but i agree...your re-do pic is not going to be conducive to a well-arranged surround set-up.

Center channel is on top of my TV. I'm going to figure out a way to set everything up.

[maseo503]

ok... now that explains the center speaker... boy are u in for an amazing experience once you upgrade that sucker.

nothing to be embarrassed about your system..we all have to start somewhere...and those insignia bookshelf are about the best budget speakers around performance wise... me being a betting man...i'd place odds on those over some polk r50s.

given your college budget...i'd suggest the RC1 from tSc for your center... one blog writer who has the insignia's said the RC1 matched favorably but not a excellent match. then once funds were available i'd get the tSc P6 and move the sigs to the surrounds. just have someone have a camera ready to take your pic once u first hear that set-up. and post it here. kodak moment.

tSc RC1
http://www.thespeakercompany.com/sto...oryID.11218500

tSc P6
http://www.thespeakercompany.com/DRH...uctID=94859600

have you thought about some kind of stands or anything to raise your LR fronts up higher? in the pic they look like they aimed at the bottom of the bed. imaging and soundstage should improve drastically with just that simple project. decorate some old milk crates.

[GotToyota?]

Originally Posted by maseo503

ok... now that explains the center speaker... boy are u in for an amazing experience once you upgrade that sucker.

nothing to be embarrassed about your system..we all have to start somewhere...and those insignia bookshelf are about the best budget speakers around performance wise... me being a betting man...i'd place odds on those over some polk r50s.

given your college budget...i'd suggest the RC1 from tSc for your center... one blog writer who has the insignia's said the RC1 matched favorably but not a excellent match. then once funds were available i'd get the tSc P6 and move the sigs to the surrounds. just have someone have a camera ready to take your pic once u first hear that set-up. and post it here. kodak moment.

tSc RC1
http://www.thespeakercompany.com/sto...oryID.11218500

tSc P6
http://www.thespeakercompany.com/DRH...uctID=94859600

have you thought about some kind of stands or anything to raise your LR fronts up higher? in the pic they look like they aimed at the bottom of the bed. imaging and soundstage should improve drastically with just that simple project. decorate some old milk crates.

Thanks for the tip on the center speaker. I'm sick of the crappy center, so I just set it into phantom mode until I get the one you showed me. I actually plan on building some custom stands for them tomorrow, putting them at about ear height, using some standard ply wood and 2x4's.

-Matt

[maseo503]

Originally Posted by GotToyota?

Thanks for the tip on the center speaker. I'm sick of the crappy center, so I just set it into phantom mode until I get the one you showed me. I actually plan on building some custom stands for them tomorrow, putting them at about ear height, using some standard ply wood and 2x4's.

-Matt

Anytime Matt...thats what its all about. helping others make decisions on sound (pun intended) choices. Read through the return policy... cant beat 30day free trial free shipping both ways...just keep the box and packing. but i highly doubt you will be returning anything from tSc due to their high performance-to-price basis. great idea on the stands...tweeters at or slightly above ear level should make a world of difference. please do us a favor and update with pics as your system comes along. its rewarding to see fruits of labor.

[GotToyota?]

This is the diagram I came up for my speaker stands. How much do you guys think this would cost in supplies? I was planning on using wood, but any other suggestions would be helpful.

EDIT: After looking online, I'm bouncing around some ideas for the design of the stands. I found two that interest me:

1)


and 2)


The second color scheme is exactly what I'm looking for, as I'm going back to the wood TV stand, and everything else in my room has a wood theme, so this would contrast very well.

-Matt

[yellowblanket]

i came up with this, use the lenght of the room to your advantage, for a 5.1 set up this is the most ideal, you can't always count on adjusting the throw distance of your speakers all the time. Keep the sub in the back corner, far away from the door so at least when u play movie, it's won't be as loud outside yet utilize the great corner for bass trap in the future. I figure you would place the center channel above or below the tv?

When you are ready to move to 7.1, the rear wall on left and right of the closet should be an ideal position.

My room is almost like your, i too place my bed in the middle, it's quite comfy siting closer to the tv. You don't want to sit too far from the tv, it'll ruin the experience.

[GotToyota?]

Originally Posted by yellowblanket

i came up with this, use the lenght of the room to your advantage, for a 5.1 set up this is the most ideal, you can't always count on adjusting the throw distance of your speakers all the time. Keep the sub in the back corner, far away from the door so at least when u play movie, it's won't be as loud outside yet utilize the great corner for bass trap in the future. I figure you would place the center channel above or below the tv?

When you are ready to move to 7.1, the rear wall on left and right of the closet should be an ideal position.

My room is almost like your, i too place my bed in the middle, it's quite comfy siting closer to the tv. You don't want to sit too far from the tv, it'll ruin the experience.

Great advice. I just finished up re-doing my setup, and here is what I have compared to your layout:



I think you're confused when you thought that I keep my bed in the middle of the room. In the other picture I had to add more on the right side to add the dimensions, sorry. Looks interested, but I'd feel unusual having the bed in the middle of the room. I'll take pics tomorrow after I go to home depot and take a shot at making new speaker stands.

[rogman]

Originally Posted by GotToyota?

Rogman, thanks for the link. I'll take a look at it.

I can turn my bed sideways, I'd want it in a corner though. I used to have it in the top right corner, wasn't too bad. Putting the speakers on the wall would be a problem, as I'm using bookshelf speakers for the rears. The tv is a Samsung 30" tube, so space is kind of taken away from that, but not significantly. Here is a pic of the TV on the stand and front speakers:

You'll get better sound if you put your fronts on stands. You want to have them about the height of your ears in your main listening position. Are your surrounds the same? Those can be 2-3 feet above your ears for a good surround field. I have a bookshelf surround systems from Aperion in my 'mini-theater' which is a bedroom-sized room ($799 for 422s & 8" sub). I bought stands for both the front L/R and the surrounds. Aperion has some good stands for small speakers- I think they're about $30/each. You can adjust the surrounds to be 18" higher than the fronts which will improve your surround effects.

In looking at your center channel, that may be the weakest link in your system. That is the speaker that works the hardest, and is key for dialogue. If/when you upgrade, you should match the manufacturer and model line with your front L/R speakers.

Your sub looks pretty small so you're probably better off leaving it in the corner. If you want a bit more bass, you could even place it flush against both of the corner walls. Your ears can't localize frequencies that low, so if it's not pointing straight at you, you still won't be able to tell the difference. Just turn it toward your listening area (rather than aiming at the TV).

Hope this helps...

[Beta Man]

Originally Posted by GotToyota?

Now, it needs to be a bit revolved around where the speakers would be, because I'm a bit limited on my speaker wire.

Poor college student aside..... this should be the least of your concerns!!!!!

[maseo503]

Originally Posted by rogman

You'll get better sound if you put your fronts on stands. You want to have them about the height of your ears in your main listening position. Are your surrounds the same? Those can be 2-3 feet above your ears for a good surround field. I have a bookshelf surround systems from Aperion in my 'mini-theater' which is a bedroom-sized room ($799 for 422s & 8" sub). I bought stands for both the front L/R and the surrounds. Aperion has some good stands for small speakers- I think they're about $30/each. You can adjust the surrounds to be 18" higher than the fronts which will improve your surround effects.

In looking at your center channel, that may be the weakest link in your system. That is the speaker that works the hardest, and is key for dialogue. If/when you upgrade, you should match the manufacturer and model line with your front L/R speakers.

Your sub looks pretty small so you're probably better off leaving it in the corner. If you want a bit more bass, you could even place it flush against both of the corner walls. Your ears can't localize frequencies that low, so if it's not pointing straight at you, you still won't be able to tell the difference. Just turn it toward your listening area (rather than aiming at the TV).

Hope this helps...

is there an echo in here?!!

[Quad]

Don't know if it is in your budget but since you
want your bedroom to be a combo Home
Theater/Office/Bedroom you would be better
off swapping out your bed for a sleeper couch.
You will have more space to move around and if you
want to have some of your buddies over you will have
a place for them to sit, it will also give you much
more flexibility in finding the ideal setup.

If you live in the US this company makes some
great sofa beds and they sell ones that don't have
that damn bar in the middle.

http://www.jenniferfurniture.com/