# Home Theater layout, Long vs Wide



## odonnks (Feb 13, 2010)

Hello All,

I'm in the process of laying out a HT room that is 18 x 13 ft.

Originally I planned to use one of the 13 ft walls for my screen but got thinking..... Would the long wall be a better chioce?

There are no windows of limitations on either wall.

Any thoughts on this would be great.

Thanks!


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

the 13' wall is the best choice for acoustics. you want the room for the seating to be back at least 12' from the screen and with 3' of space behind them for the best sound.


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

I would stay with your original idea and place the screen on the 13' wall..
That way you'll have enough space behind your seats, which is most important acoustically speaking..


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

You beat my post Tony! :bigsmile:


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

We are in agreement thats what matters:T 
A wide room is just a pain to get to function properly.

EDIT: I should also add that you need to design a screen size that will accommodate your front main speakers. you dont want to push them out into the corners of the front of the room. They should be about 2' away from the side walls to avoid first reflection cancellation.


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## odonnks (Feb 13, 2010)

Thanks!! Original plan it is....


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

At 18' in length, your optimal seating position will be somewhere between 10'11" and 12' from front wall to seated ear position.

With the 13' width, be very careful to not overdo the screen size to the point it's pushing your speakers too close to the side wall. At that viewing distances from above, assuming no false wall to space things out, it's going to be close for a proper screen size and you'll likely need something on the side walls directly beside the speakers to deal with the boundary interactions.

Bryan


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

Wide is better for sound, but will limit the screen size and distance from the screen.


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