EarthQuake CP-8 User Manual

Page 4

SPEAKER ARRANGEMENT

FRONT LEFT & RIGHT SPEAKERS PLACEMENT

Home theater performance depends very much so on

In a home theater system, front speakers are responsible for

product performance, room size and speaker placement.

movies’ sound tracks and dynamic actions. The front speakers

Reading this booklet, following your priorities and these

need to sync the video event with the audio. For instance, when

procedures will pay off with a big improvement to sound quality

there is a moving vehicle from the left to the right of the screen,

and sonic performance. Basics of speaker placement can help

the sound should travel from the left front speaker to the right

you make the smartest choice for your specific room.

front speaker.

There is no magic bullet in home theater, which is why this is

In a two channel stereo system, the front speakers are

called

custom home theater. Every speaker has different sonic

responsible for producing all of the sound: staging, imaging, and

characteristics, every room has different acoustic properties,

depth of field. Placing the speakers too close to each other will

everyone's ears hear sound a little differently and your left ear

compromise the stage, while placing them too far from each

has a different sensitivity than your right ear. So in the end, you

other will break the images.

may use this booklet as a starting guideline. However, when it
comes to actually setting up your speaker system, let your own

Front speakers should be placed at an equal distance from

ears be the judge.

the TV and the primary listening spot (sweet spot). Together with
the center channel speaker, they should form a slight arc with all
three speakers at exactly the same distance from where you sit,
as illustrated in Figure 2.

CENTER CHANNEL SPEAKER PLACEMENT

To make life even easier, the distance between the front

This should be the first speaker you place in your home

center channel speaker to the primary seat should be equal to the

theater room. The job of a center channel is to anchor dialogue

distance between the two front left and right speakers.

and other on-screen sounds to the screen. Thus, its position
depends upon where you put your TV.

Place your center channel directly above or below your TV —

SPEAKER ELEVATION

centered, make sure the speaker's front edge is precisely aligned
with the front edge of your TV screen. This helps in reducing

The tweeters from all

distortion caused by sound reflecting and diffracting off the TV's
cabinet.

If possible, the height of the center channel speakers should be
as high as your ears in a sitting position, as illustrated above in
Figure 2.

three front speakers should have the

same elevation as your ears while seated. Any deviation will work
but it may reduce the performance.

Make sure that there are no solid objects (like furniture)

blocking the pathway of the sound traveling to your listening
location.

The ABC of Home Theater

www.earthquakesound.com 4

CP-8 Installation Manual

Figure 2. Front Speaker Placement

LEFT

RIGHT

CENTER

A = B = C