Our technical staff is trained in advanced room acoustics and design, treatments and isolation, and audio/video hardware selection and placement.
In part 1 of the CES Insider, we talked about the overall budget for an entertainment system. Now, we are going to discuss the size of the major components.
Size should be a primary consideration for the two sensory components - the display and the speakers.
The size of the display is proportionate to the distance from the display placement to the primary seating position.
Speaker size is dependent on the overall volume of air in the room.
When sizing a display for a theater room the key focus should be on creating for the audience a viewing experience that is “immersive”. To achieve this in a 16:9 “HDTV” format; the viewer needs to be seated at a position that is 1.5 to 2 times the display width away from the display. However, if the room has multiple uses (e.g. family room) the distance from the display to the primary seating position now becomes 2 to 2.5 times the display width away (so the display does not dominate the room). Please refer to the chart below:
Speaker sizing is somewhat more subjective; there are a number of design characteristics that are not related to size that have an impact on the output of a speaker. However, for the purpose of this discussion, we will assume that we have well built speakers from a reputable manufacturer.
Each speaker has one or more drivers. The following is in reference to the largest driver diameter; and room size is expressed in cubic feet, length x width x height.
Small Room, less than 1800 cubic feet Driver diameter 4” to 4.5”
Medium Room, 1800 to 2500 cubic feet Driver diameter 5.25” to 6.5”
Large Room, 2500 to 5000 cubic feet Multiple drivers 6.5” to 8”
As always, this information presented is intended as a guide, not a rule, there are nearly as many opinions as there are designers
