A home theater surround sound system can dramatically enhance your in-home movie experience. With recent technology, a home theater surround sound system can enhance more than just movies, since technology has expanded to include digital TV broadcasts and hi-fi music. In this guide, you’ll find some great tips on improving your surround sound system so the system can perform at its best.
Once you’ve purchased the right home theater surround sound system for your home, it’s time to set it up. Start by making some adjustments on the setup menu. If it’s a 5.1/6.1 A/V receiver and you’ve never made adjustments on the setup menu, chances are it’s probably not at its best. The first change will be adjusting the speaker size, so select the speaker size for each location (front speakers, side and center). Anything larger than six inches (including bigger woofers), is a large speaker. You’ll need a tape measure for the next step. The menu will ask you to input the distance from the speakers to the listeners. This is to guarantee that the receivers send the sound from the speakers to your ears at the same time. If they ask you to input the sound in milliseconds, the formula is simple. 1ms is equal to one foot. Finally, check the levels of the speakers and make sure they’re all on the same level. Try a test tone from your receiver and send a test to each speaker. If you’re having a hard time confirming the levels by ear, you can always purchase a sound level meter.
The next steps in maximizing your home theater surround sound system are a bit easier. We all know that it’s very easy to mix up wires, especially when they’re tangled up behind the A/V receiver. Confirm that the sounds are coming out of the correct speakers. Then adjust the subwoofer levels and the crossover controls. It’s pretty common to have the woofers louder than they need to be. If it’s coming through as an uneven sound or too thick of a sound, it’s probably too high. The crossover control settings depend on the size of your satellites. You should set your crossover control at a midlevel or a bit higher if your satellite is on the smaller side. If the sub is hidden in a corner, I recommend moving it closer to the front speakers as this can create a smoother and flatter bass.
This brings me to the point of optimizing your speaker placement. You may want to consider purchasing speaker stands or brackets. If you want to get really creative, you can even do in-wall speakers or a ceiling speaker, but this will require some custom work for your home theater surround sound system. Keeping the speakers in a cabinet or bookcase will decrease the quality of the sound. If you don’t do the custom work or purchase the stands, always make sure your front speakers are sitting at ear level to where you’ll be enjoying your movies. The front speakers should also sit with the tweeters. Then make sure the left and right speakers are set at an equal distance to your position.
Your next step is an option if you’re room doesn’t provide great acoustics. Rooms with a lot of windows, mirrors, tiled or wood floors usually have an overly zippy sound. This can easily be fixed with some drapes or a thick rug to absorb some of the sound.
With these simple steps, your home theater surround sound system can sound even better than it already does! Once you make these changes, you’ll notice the difference and it will be time to sit back and enjoy your home theater surround sound system!