# Suggested ceiling height for small narrow 7 1/2 by 15 ft home theater



## jgomez1000 (Feb 3, 2014)

Hello - I am going to build a home theater in a detached room that is limited in space. It was not built for a home theater but I'm determined it to make it one. 

The question I have is how high the ceiling should be to have optimal sound, of course I know the equipment will have a factor, but I just want to set up the room as good as possible. I plan on purchasing an AT screen and having the center, left and right speakers behind the screen. And using surround sound - 7.1.

The room is narrow - 7 1/2 feet by 15 feet and since it was a room used for something else, I can pretty much set the ceiling as high or as low as needed. This is actually the only place I have flexibility in - the ceiling. 

I would say I have the ability to go from 7 feet to 15 feet. 

Thank you.


----------



## Mike Edwards (Mar 10, 2011)

8 or 9 feet ceilings are just fine for audio. gives you enough room to breathe, and keeps the cubic volume down for needing less subs to pressurize the space


----------



## jgomez1000 (Feb 3, 2014)

Thank you Mike. I appreciate it.

Is 10 feet too high? Or would it not make a significant difference?


----------



## Mike Edwards (Mar 10, 2011)

not much appreciable difference really. not in a room that small


----------



## jgomez1000 (Feb 3, 2014)

Thanks Mike - good to know I have that flexibility - so I will do between 8-10 feet. Thanks for the quick responses. 

I'm assuming since it's such a small room I would not need much POWER for sound? 

Are there any systems that would have all I the sound equipment I would need that you recommend? I know that's a very broad question - anything below $500? If not, anything below $1,000? Or is this question for another forum/thread?


----------



## phillihp23 (Mar 14, 2012)

jgomez1000 said:


> Thanks Mike - good to know I have that flexibility - so I will do between 8-10 feet. Thanks for the quick responses.
> 
> I'm assuming since it's such a small room I would not need much POWER for sound?
> 
> Are there any systems that would have all I the sound equipment I would need that you recommend? I know that's a very broad question - anything below $500? If not, anything below $1,000? Or is this question for another forum/thread?


As for receivers check out accessories4less...a lot of HTS forum users have purchased equipment from them. I personally have. You can get a substantially lower price on a refurbished product and they have a very good reputation.

As for equipment post up a thread in the Home theater receivers or home audio speakers forum....you'll get over run with opinions and options 
List out what type of setup your looking to do...5.1 / 7.2 / 9.1 / etc. and that your looking to do, an AT screen. Also you will want to list what your budget is for the receiver or speaker setup to narrow down the suggestions.


----------



## phillihp23 (Mar 14, 2012)

Don't forget to plan out electrical lighting and A/V cable runs prior to putting the ceiling up. Will save you a lot of headache. 
Recommend:
Dedicated circuit for projector / outlet on ceiling were projector will mount
Dedicated circuit for Audio equipment / outlets in area were equipment will be racked
3rd Circuit for all other electrical uses in room / outlets in areas subs will plug in and anywhere else you may plug things in such as tablets etc.

4 can lights throughout the room on a dimmer
3 small lights to accent the screen on a dimmer

Suggested you run a smurf tube from the projector back to the AV rack area so in the future you can change out cabling if needed.


----------



## Tedd (Feb 2, 2007)

What are your seating wants/needs? 

I have but two seats in 9'5" of width. 54x96" DIY AT screen. 5.1 with dual subs. 

Dipole side surround speakers work well in narrow rooms. 

Personally, I would tier the ceiling and be thinking taller, to add room volume. You could get away with a smaller system but dual subs would help with nodes. I wouldn't be reaching for a theater in a box, I'd aim for something that moves more air.


----------



## jgomez1000 (Feb 3, 2014)

Thank you!

Tedd - regarding the seating. I have a family of 4 so I need at least 4 seats. I've decided to use the movie theater seats - the ones with the 44" backs. The back row will have the fixed back type - and it will be 3 seats. The first row will have the same backs but will be the rocking movie theater type - I will have 2 here.

Here's a diagram as to how I plan to have the setup. 

Thanks to all the great people on this website.

The screen behind the wall will be a dead wall. The corners, where you see bolded will be floor to ceiling treated walls - with the 703 corning - for bass traps. 

This looks to be about as much as I can do with my space.


----------



## OKLAGMCRUISER (Jan 20, 2014)

consider doing a sub crawl for sub placement as you may find a sub in each front corner may or may not be best for your application.


----------



## Andre (Feb 15, 2010)

I would say 9' using a Golden Ratio calculator and the longest wall (15')


----------



## jgomez1000 (Feb 3, 2014)

Thank you - considering the space I have, the corners may be my only option. The space is very limited - I'm hoping the bass traps will help out as much as possible.


----------



## Tedd (Feb 2, 2007)

You can do way more then you see, with your space. 

I'd for one, would start thinking vertical and get the subs out of the room's depth entirely. A high end solution would be a baffle wall up front, to keep the AT depth shallower. Those corner traps could be using the upper vertical height, and the riser could be designed to be a full range bass absorber. 

You can have a false (fabric) ceiling that is acoustically transparent, and put the hidden height to work.

Your surround speakers are poorly laid out. I'd use dipole side surrounds mounted dead center of the two seating rows, and mounted up high. Or use direct radiators up high, in the back wall, angled to fire down and over the seating. Or both for 7.1

I'd keep the finishes dark and simple since the space is small, and use a couple of zones of lights as suggested.

I'd try to keep the back row of 3 seats off the back wall a little, so the outside seats don't get buried in the corners. I do like the King/Queen and second row and theater styled seats plan. 

I think you'll find eight feet to an AT screen too close, you might see the weave. Although I am hearing spandex might be a good choice here. (No experience on my part with Spandex though...)

The av rack and gear can go outside the room if you employ an infrared repeater system. 

Where is the doorway, BTW?


----------



## Tedd (Feb 2, 2007)

something like this....


I'd go with simple side walls due to the narrow width, and make the ceiling special, to draw the eye upwards.


----------



## Tedd (Feb 2, 2007)

a few other possibilities in this diagram.


----------



## Owen Bartley (Oct 18, 2006)

JG, ceiling height can be a big asset in the design of your room, if you want it to be. A design feature like Tedd has shown above could look great. 

Alternatively, you could build a nice big soffit around the perimeter and include some LED strip/rope lighting like this:




























Or, you could build nice and high, leaving room for a ceiling "cloud" acoustic panel, like this:



















Or, you could incorporate a more architectural feature like a nice curved or vaulted ceiling (I really wanted to do this but I don't think I have the height).



















Or a coffered ceiling














































And as you can see, you can incorporate any number of the above into a nice combination. Definitely look at putting in a star ceiling (if you're at all interested) because that's another feature that does well with extra height. Sorry for the image overload, this is my low-ceiling frustration bursting out and attacking you with ideas.


----------

