[knut_the_viking]

Greetings!

I just bought a new flatscreen HD that is to be wall-mounted in the living room.

Our current setup consists of TV on a shelf, off to one side in a 'entertainment center'-style built-in cabinet thing.
The current speakers (inadequate) are small satellites on top shelf in said cabinet, a center above the TV, and in-ceiling surrounds above sofa. It's all a bit asymmetric at this point.

I am trying to plan for small floor-standing front speakers, placed in front of drawers/cabinet doors(on carpet), and a set of stand-mount surrounds behind sofa. This in an effort to make the most of sound. New ht kit from Aperion is being considered (4T mains). Minor cable management would be put in place, but a careful observer would still be able to see cables.

This idea has wife disgusted. Apparently speakers are not to be seen, and especially not to be placed near drawers or doors that are opened once per year(around thanksgiving, normally). Speaker cables are also eyesores, apparently.

She would prefer to tuck speakers away on shelves, which would place them high, and asymmetric in reference to the TV, and keep the in-ceiling speakers directly above (10ft) the sofa.

Has anybody argued and won in similar situations?

[JoshK]

My $.02, fwiw and all that.  First, don't make it an argument.  You have to come to a mutually agreeable solution.  Its your house as much as it is hers.  She should realize that HT/music is your love, your passion and is willing to work with you within reason to accomodate you.

I say, meet her half way.  Go for the mains as they are the most important.  IMO, surrounds aren't that important and you could stick with the ceiling surrounds which doesn't bring up the cable problem nearly as much.  You'd be meeting her part of the way. 

The front three are the important three in movies and the L/R and the important ones in music.  That is what matters most, so you can compromise on the surrounds.

Also, if you can demonstrate how she too will appreciate the sonics in movies, she is a bit more willing to compromise.

If all else fails, think jewelry.

[low.pfile]

Any chance you could post a pic of your current set up?

Are you using just Left and Right at the Front, without a center?

It should be easy to reach a compromise if you just have her involved in the options. Any chance of setting up speakers spare speakers(or a friends') to demo the difference?

ed

[knut_the_viking]

Any chance you could post a pic of your current set up?

Possibly. Will take a little bit of time, tho. That, and I don't already have a photo upload account to any of the popular sites.

Are you using just Left and Right at the Front, without a center?

Got left, center, right speakers right now.
The right side of the entertainment console has the right speaker at the top, then 3 ft directly underneath is the center, then 2ft directly below that is the TV. Quite asymmetrical.
In the new setup, it would be better, the TV and center will move towards middle, but the l/r mains would still be 5 ft above top of screen

It should be easy to reach a compromise if you just have her involved in the options. Any chance of setting up speakers spare speakers(or a friends') to demo the difference?

ed

I have some spare speakers (my old Insignia) and 29 inch stands that I could position in the intended spot. I could run some cables just to get a feel for sound vs placement.
Aperion do offer 30 day in-home trials... but I would probably cry if I tried them and had to send them back again.

[low.pfile]

your description of current placement is pretty clear. If you had a pic I thought it would help elicit more input for the gang. I just remembered that the AC photo gallery is not allowing uploads at this point due the site rebuild.

".... to get a feel for sound vs placement." exactly what I was thinking and potential aid in getting wife's approval before purchases, etc.

good luck.

BTW I was at a friend's place who had 4 satellite speakers tightly stacked in a 2 x 2 array on top of his cable box to the right of the TV, so your asymmetry is not that bizarre. I bit my tongue and didn't say a word about his unique approach.

[thunderbrick]

Not if they are married...........

[knut_the_viking]

BTW I was at a friend's place who had 4 satellite speakers tightly stacked in a 2 x 2 array on top of his cable box to the right of the TV, so your asymmetry is not that bizarre. I bit my tongue and didn't say a word about his unique approach.

Hehe, pick your battles carefully... Not a good one. Lead by example, is my suggestion

[Bob in St. Louis]

Photobucket.com has a painless and free gallery waiting for you.  aa

Whatever you do, don't make it a battle. 

Just a silly thought: You could buy wires that match the color of the carpet. I did.
Not so much for WAF, but I HATE seeing wires myself.
I does help to "hide" them, or at least, camouflage them.

Bob

[JP78]

if it's the surround speakers that have you at odds, i would let her have the argument as long as you're strictly using the surrounds for ht use (as opposed to multichannel music).

the surrounds for rears are more or less glorified noisemakers...it's the center, the mains, and the sub i would reallly fight for.

also, there are a ton of good shelf-mount mains for home theater with great dispersion...you can set the levels with audessy room eq once you place the speakers in the shelves. if you can go with lesser mains on shelves and convince the wife for stereo subs...well i think that might be a win-win for you.  good luck!

[mosconiac]

I'm facing a similar issue (married with HT aspirations and an component-sensitive wife).  My solution is to do in-wall speakers for L/C/R/surround.

In my case, I'm going a giant step further & building them all myself...including the in-wall sub.  All drivers will be "hidden" in the walls behind normal grills lined with picture framing.  The wife is OK with that...but cautions that I am going overboard for a few movies. 

BTW, the L/C/R will be Murphyblaster CAOW1's, surrounds will be Madisound "Recession Busters", and the sub will likely be a Exodus Audio Shiva-X (12") in a ported box tuned to 21Hz.

[drcruz]

I agree w/ the suggestion for keeping the in-ceiling surrounds. I have SpeakerCraft for all 5 channels and they sound pretty good.

One day I plan on buying a decent L/C/R floorstanding setup. My goal is to keep the in-ceiling L/C/R for everyday use (that is cable TV and normal DVD viewing). The speakers I want can be carried to another room, then when I REALLY want to geek out, I'll take the time to set up the floorstanders. I think that's a fair compromise (I haven't discussed this option w/ the Wifey yet - so I don't know how successful I'll be).

[srb]

knut_the_viking,
 
You can insert a picture directly within a post (without a gallery) by clicking the "Insert Image" button and browsing to the photo on your computer.
 
Steve