# Sticky  Official DIY Dolby Atmos thread



## NBPk402

I know there are a lot of bright people on this forum that are into making their own speakers... So since Dolby Atmos is the latest, and requires special speakers for the height channels... I decided to put this thread up to see what designs people are thinking of building to make their own Dolby Atmos height channels. I my self am interested in making a set down the road, but I need to try and make something that will also be light as it will be the in ceiling design.

From what I have read there are 2 variations of the height channels...
1: In Ceiling or on Ceiling facing downward
2: Above your existing speakers facing upward at an angle to reflect off of a predetermined spot on the ceiling.

The downside to #1 as far as I can see is the speakers will not be able to have much size in the average HT (unless you have high ceilings. 

The down side to #2 is that you cannot have ceiling treatments where the speaker needs to be reflecting for height channels.

Feel free to post up your ideas and concerns about DIY Dolby Atmos Height channel speakers. :T


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## Mike Edwards

I'm going g to be making some volt 8 or 10 coaxials for the job. They'll work perfectly


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## NBPk402

I will put up my idea... I have no idea whether or not this would work at all.

What if you horn loaded a full range driver and mounted it on your side walls facing upward, and had it flare out like a horn, bend 90 degrees at the ceiling, and bend 90 degrees more (ending up facing downward)at the predetermined height channel location?


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## NBPk402

Mike Edwards said:


> I'm going g to be making some volt 8 or 10 coaxials for the job. They'll work perfectly


Mike, are you going to be making the in ceiling type or the ones that fire upward and reflect downward?


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## NBPk402

Mike Edwards said:


> I'm going g to be making some volt 8 or 10 coaxials for the job. They'll work perfectly


I just looked at them, and I noticed the 8" actually goes down 5hz lower than the 10"... Is that correct?


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## Mike Edwards

That's correct. The 8 is ported and the 10 sealed. The 10 can go lower in a ported box but you have to double the size of the box.

They both are supposed to sound so similar that you can't tell the difference especially if using as surrounds


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## NBPk402

Mike Edwards said:


> That's correct. The 8 is ported and the 10 sealed. The 10 can go lower in a ported box but you have to double the size of the box.
> 
> They both are supposed to sound so similar that you can't tell the difference especially if using as surrounds


Would horn loading the 8" increase the efficiency?


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## Mike Edwards

ellisr63 said:


> Would horn loading the 8" increase the efficiency?


don't think so, especially since they are pretty wide range and VERY high efficiency coaxial drivers...95 DB sensitivity drivers can be driven to insane spl levels with even a basic receiver


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## NBPk402

Mike Edwards said:


> don't think so, especially since they are pretty wide range and VERY high efficiency coaxial drivers...95 DB sensitivity drivers can be driven to insane spl levels with even a basic receiver


So are you planning on making a box and attaching it to the ceiling? I am worried about weight as we have a double layer drywall ceiling with hat channels.


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## Mike Edwards

ellisr63 said:


> So are you planning on making a box and attaching it to the ceiling? I am worried about weight as we have a double layer drywall ceiling with hat channels.


yup, just do a standard cube box and hang them from the ceiling studs


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## NBPk402

Mike Edwards said:


> yup, just do a standard cube box and hang them from the ceiling studs


My problem is I don't know where the studs are... Only where the Hat channel is... Plus I am not supposed to go to the studs or I will negate the soundproofing of doing hat channel.

How much do you anticipate the boxes weighing?


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## Mike Edwards

ellisr63 said:


> My problem is I don't know where the studs are... Only where the Hat channel is... Plus I am not supposed to go to the studs or I will negate the soundproofing of doing hat channel.
> 
> How much do you anticipate the boxes weighing?


Can only guess. No more than 15 lbs I'd assume


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## NBPk402

Mike Edwards said:


> Can only guess. No more than 15 lbs I'd assume


15lbs should be reasonable for me to hang from the sheetrock... I believe. I think I will have to try a horn loaded version if possible to make it hug the ceiling as my screen is only 7" from the ceiling... Unless I can spread the box out and make it very shallow.


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## Tonto

I'm thinking these speakers will have to be half that size to not look horrible. More like 5H X 8W X 6D. Or there about. Small bracket to hold them. I'm thing more along the lines of the small box speakers that I used to put under my truck seat (metal box). I know this is a DIY thread, but I'm thinking Jon's 4" split gap woofer would fit the bill perfectly. Don't know if you can buy them or not.


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## NBPk402

Tonto said:


> I'm thinking these speakers will have to be half that size to not look horrible. More like 5H X 8W X 6D. Or there about. Small bracket to hold them. I'm thing more along the lines of the small box speakers that I used to put under my truck seat (metal box). I know this is a DIY thread, but I'm thinking Jon's 4" split gap woofer would fit the bill perfectly. Don't know if you can buy them or not.


I agree... They should be very shallow boxes to make it look good. If you could make it 4-5" deep you could even hide them behind sound panels by cutting a hole for the speaker box, and mount the panel over the box (as long as you are using AT material of some sort). :T


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## xtinkshun

ellisr63 said:


> I know there are a lot of bright people on this forum that are into making their own speakers... So since Dolby Atmos is the latest, and requires special speakers for the height channels... I decided to put this thread up to see what designs people are thinking of building to make their own Dolby Atmos height channels. I my self am interested in making a set down the road, but I need to try and make something that will also be light as it will be the in ceiling design.
> 
> From what I have read there are 2 variations of the height channels...
> 1: In Ceiling or on Ceiling facing downward
> 2: Above your existing speakers facing upward at an angle to reflect off of a predetermined spot on the ceiling.
> 
> The downside to #1 as far as I can see is the speakers will not be able to have much size in the average HT (unless you have high ceilings.
> 
> The down side to #2 is that you cannot have ceiling treatments where the speaker needs to be reflecting for height channels.
> 
> Feel free to post up your ideas and concerns about DIY Dolby Atmos Height channel speakers. :T


You should have proof read this before posting. Height channels are used for Dolby as "wides" or "height" channels. They have nothing to do with Atmos. 

_From what I have read there are 2 variations of the height channels...
1: In Ceiling or on Ceiling facing downward_

NO height channels with Atmos. Height channels are for Dolby.
They are the same regardless if they are built in the ceiling or mounted on the ceiling. Only difference being the cabinet will be seen. Both will play sound directly underneath. 

_The downside to #1 as far as I can see is the speakers will not be able to have much size in the average HT (unless you have high ceilings. _

They are ceiling speakers (small surround style speakers) I don't think anyone is mounting 50lb speakers to their ceilings. No downside. 

_2: Above your existing speakers facing upward at an angle to reflect off of a predetermined spot on the ceiling._

They will offer Atmos module speakers that can be placed on your speaker or mounted to the wall. They are already available. 

_The down side to #2 is that you cannot have ceiling treatments where the speaker needs to be reflecting for height channels._

2/3 of the people probably do not have dedicated theaters with ceiling treatments. Those that do will have to remove the the reflecting source. There's already a white paper concerning Atmos setup that answer this question and many others. 

Questions 1&2 are basically irrelevant as they have already been answered on the Atmos website. Atmos speakers and add on modules are already for sale. As far as DIY the best option IMO is the Volt from diysoundgroup.com. They are also working on some new additions.


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## NBPk402

xtinkshun said:


> You should have proof read this before posting. Height channels are used for Dolby as "wides" or "height" channels. They have nothing to do with Atmos.
> 
> _From what I have read there are 2 variations of the height channels...
> 1: In Ceiling or on Ceiling facing downward_
> 
> NO height channels with Atmos. Height channels are for Dolby.
> They are the same regardless if they are built in the ceiling or mounted on the ceiling. Only difference being the cabinet will be seen. Both will play sound directly underneath.
> 
> _The downside to #1 as far as I can see is the speakers will not be able to have much size in the average HT (unless you have high ceilings. _
> 
> They are ceiling speakers (small surround style speakers) I don't think anyone is mounting 50lb speakers to their ceilings. No downside.
> 
> _2: Above your existing speakers facing upward at an angle to reflect off of a predetermined spot on the ceiling._
> 
> They will offer Atmos module speakers that can be placed on your speaker or mounted to the wall. They are already available.
> 
> _The down side to #2 is that you cannot have ceiling treatments where the speaker needs to be reflecting for height channels._
> 
> 2/3 of the people probably do not have dedicated theaters with ceiling treatments. Those that do will have to remove the the reflecting source. There's already a white paper concerning Atmos setup that answer this question and many others.
> 
> Questions 1&2 are basically irrelevant as they have already been answered on the Atmos website. Atmos speakers and add on modules are already for sale. As far as DIY the best option IMO is the Volt from diysoundgroup.com. They are also working on some new additions.


I have researched...
This is word for word directly from Dolby... 

"Dolby Atmos Home Theater Installation Guidelines 

*Most AVRs that support Dolby Atmos have speaker connections labeled HEIGHT,* as shown in figure 2. Some AVRs do not use the HEIGHT label for all capable channels, but instead allow you to assign specific terminals for the height speaker outputs through the graphical user interface in the setup menu."

"Front Height Speakers"
"*Most AVRs will support the front height (Dolby Pro Logic IIz) mounted speakers with Dolby Atmos playback*; however Dolby recommends the use of either Dolby Atmos enabled speakers to create the most lifelike and enveloping experience. Front height speakers may be used in larger room installations that can support a greater number of overhead/height outputs."

BTW: The Height channels are called a term that is not allowed to be posted in the forum... Hence the Height channel term is used.


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## BamaDave

I'm in the process of building some cabinets for my DIY Atmos set up. Looking forward to getting the new format up and running. Can't wait for the immersive sound experience!

Components shot:










Mock up cabinets:


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## Owen Bartley

Dave, did those speakers get finished? Or even better, is there a build thread to go with them? I'd love to follow along and see what you did.


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## NBPk402

Mike Edwards said:


> I'm going g to be making some volt 8 or 10 coaxials for the job. They'll work perfectly


Did you ever get a pair made?:T:T


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## Mike Edwards

ellisr63 said:


> Did you ever get a pair made?:T:T


I actually did 4 volt 10's for my surrounds and rears. absolutely LOVE them


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## NBPk402

BamaDave said:


> I'm in the process of building some cabinets for my DIY Atmos set up. Looking forward to getting the new format up and running. Can't wait for the immersive sound experience!
> 
> Components shot:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Mock up cabinets:



Did you ever get them completed? If so...what do you think of them?:T:T


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