6.1 or 7.1 ...what shall i use with my new receiver

[zeltak]

Hi guys!

I just bought the new Yamaha RX-V750. I also bought the wharfdale diamond 8.4 floor speakers and the same series center (8.4). I already had a pair of bose 201 series 2 speakers and 3 small white speakers from a set a friend had by Mb Quart (I think they are satellites…though they aren't that small). Now my dilemma is whether to go for the 6.1 configuration, thus buying another rear center and using only the wharfdale and bose sets, or going for the 7.1 config and thus using all my speakers so that the wharfdale act as fronts and center, the bose rear (or middle… the ones that were rear in 5.1) speakers and the 2 mb Quarts as the behind the head (or whatever they call it speakers ;-). So basically I have 2 questions.. 1) what is the better config for me and more important 2) if I do choose the 7.1 config which speakers are more important and need better quality, the ones on the sides or the ones all the way back? I appreciate any help I can get since I became quite lost once we passed the 5.1 mark :-)

Thx a lot in advance

Zeltak

[kpzbee]

I feel it depends on your room size & configuration. In my case, I went with a 6.1 set up. I don't have the space for an extra speaker but I had a (sound) hole directly behind me that needed filled, so the 6.1 was the way to go for me. If you have a big, square or rectangular shaped room, the 7.1 might be the way to go. Unless you have a large room, I don't think you'll notice the difference.

[cam]

Hi guys!

I just bought the new Yamaha RX-V750. I also bought the wharfdale diamond 8.4 floor speakers and the same series center (8.4). I already had a pair of bose 201 series 2 speakers and 3 small white speakers from a set a friend had by Mb Quart (I think they are satellites…though they aren't that small). Now my dilemma is whether to go for the 6.1 configuration, thus buying another rear center and using only the wharfdale and bose sets, or going for the 7.1 config and thus using all my speakers so that the wharfdale act as fronts and center, the bose rear (or middle… the ones that were rear in 5.1) speakers and the 2 mb Quarts as the behind the head (or whatever they call it speakers ;-). So basically I have 2 questions.. 1) what is the better config for me and more important 2) if I do choose the 7.1 config which speakers are more important and need better quality, the ones on the sides or the ones all the way back? I appreciate any help I can get since I became quite lost once we passed the 5.1 mark :-)

Thx a lot in advance

Zeltak

Before you choose take a look at a thread on favorite films - best show piece for 7.1 system.

[Krazykaj]

Hi,

ultimately it's up to you, what sounds the best to you in your room.
If you can, and have the freedom (maybe borrow some speakers), set up the 7.1, do a bit of listening and testing, then go and set up a 6.1 and do the same testing and listening.
And yes, your room does help judge. for me i found the 7.1 slightly better and fuller and it's no problem for me to have the extra two speakers. but you may find otherwise.
You may even think that the 5.1 is good enough.

cheers

[steveb]

Zeltak,

How do you like the RX-750? I am trying to decide between the RX-v750 and the RX-V1400.

Thanks,

Steve

[Woochifer]

First off, if your sofa is up against the backwall, you're better off sticking with a 5.1 alignment. Having the back surrounds right up next to your head or having to mount them overhead and pointing straight down will create more tonal mismatches and other audible problems than anything. Ideally, you want the four surround speakers to create a seamless soundfield, and the back surrounds will only detract from that unless they 1) are sufficiently voice matched with the L/R surrounds, and 2) have enough distance from the listening position so that the sound does not reach your ears before the main signal does (you can compensate for the distance difference by increasing the delay timing, but it won't help you if the speaker is less one foot from your ear).

In the surround speaker arrangement, you should actually use four identical speakers all the way across if you're going with direct firing speakers. (You do not need to use a horizontal front center speaker for the back surround) Ideally, they would be equidistant from the listening position and at the same height. Obviously, in order to get that ideal arrangement, you need space behind the listening position.

Most DVD soundtracks are either 2.0 or 5.1. Less than 0.1% of the titles on the market have any kind of back surround encoding present (5.1 DD EX or 6.1 DTS ES), so sticking with 5.1 doesn't really put you at a severe disadvantage.

[kexodusc]

Your room size should answer your question for you, as some posters have already suggested. My room is quite large, and I made the mistake of "only" going with 6.1. I found it a significant improvement over 5.1 for most movies thanks to PL II and the processing features in my RX-V1400.
Then a deal came along on another pair of Studio 20's and I jumped on it. Since my room is considerably wide and deep, 7 speakers works much better than 6 or 5. .
The problem I had with 5.1 was the rears. It sounded too fake and didn't really "surround" me when I placed them beside my viewing spot, so I had to move them behind me, almost opposite the front mains for optimum performance. Adding speakers to the sides, and then adjusting the rears by moving them a bit closer creates a very nice surround effect now. I prefer the 7 channel processing to straight 5.1 modes when no EX or ES encoding is available on the DVD, so I'm probably getting my money's worth. If I had to buy the speakers brand new, I never would have done it. And, if my couch was against my backwall, I definitely would have stuck with 5.1...maybe using dipolars or something, but a 6th or 7th speaker just would have muddied things up. Hope this helps.