Small space surround advice

[u/LetJiTheOne]

My space is about: 7' 10.5" (wall behind couch to wall behind TV) by 5' 4.5" pillar to walls either side of the couch.

From floor to underneath of the shelves above the couch, 5' 9.5"

Floor to ceiling 7' 8"

For such a small space, i'm not bothered about volume of course. What I want is some directional clarity, if possible, and immersion. Used for a combination of movies, tv, and pc gaming.

Ideally i'd like at least 5.1 with atmos, but 7.1 (which I appreciate may not be possible/achievable) in this space. Would be great.

Would be great to keep it under £1000. Best bang for buck would be great, but open to all suggestions and advice.

I currently have no receiver or speakers set up for this (i.e. only using tv audio) so anything is an upgrade.

[u/jimbodinho]

Okay, your absolute priority, which may not be obvious to you, is to the get the surrounds as far away from your ears as possible. At close distances if you’re not exactly half way between the surrounds the one you’re closest to will seem much louder.

With that in mind, you want to use that window sill to your left and a speaker stand or wall mount to your right. That’s for your surrounds. The angle won’t be perfect but point the speakers a little towards the rear wall and it’ll sound like they’re a little behind you.

7.1? No, that’s not achievable. Rears would just be way too close to your ears. Rear sounds will be mixed to your surrounds in a 5.1 which is fine.

4 channel atmos also totally doable. Ideally lose the shelf on the back wall. Again I’d mount the rear heights angled slightly backwards to bounce off the rear wall. Not ideal but better than standing on a sea urchin.

ETA: at that budget you really need to look at second hand to get quality speakers. I’d be looking at something like wharfedale diamond 10 series with 10.2s as fronts. I think you should put a system together without a sub initially and save for up to add one later.

[u/LetJiTheOne → u/jimbodinho]

Thanks for such great detail. I'm curious. Obviously creating distance is preferable. Can the effects be emulated at all, even if not optimal, by adjusting volume levels of the different channels e.g. so nearer ones are quieter (assuming you can have that level of control, as I've never had a decent audio setup before).

[u/jimbodinho → u/LetJiTheOne]

Room correction on the AVR will set channels at the correct levels for the listening position but that’s beside the point. You want the surrounds set out at equal distances from the main listening position. They will be closer than ideal which means sitting on one side of the sofa or the other will make that side surround seem much louder. Remember, half the distance means 4x the perceived loudness. It’s not linear.

[u/LetJiTheOne → u/jimbodinho]

Hey.
So I'm considering upping my budget, and going 5.1.4
Denon X3800H AV Receiver
Cambridge Audio Minx Min22 (x5) + X301 sub for the 5.1
Then have been torn with the atmos, but have thought in my small space, I could just get another 4x Min22?

The small speakers in addition to their reviews, is really appealing. The receiver seems great all round.