Location for your home theater is most important. Choose a room in the house that you feel would be most appropriate. Now if you are going to have a budget priced theater system, or if you are going all the way for a high end system, the position your speakers are in makes a difference.
Your first decision should be the television set and where it will be positioned. Where to place the speakers becomes somewhat of a problem since there are many things you have to think about. The acoustics in every room are different, every speaker has a different sound characteristic and everyone hears things differently. When you buy your speakers they will come with a manual of instructions. Read it carefully and follow and direction for speaker placement.
Attention should be given first to the channel speaker which should be positioned above or below the television, centered preferably. The purpose of the channel speaker is to set the dialogue and other on screen sounds to the screen. Be sure that the front edge of your television is exactly in line with the front edge of the television screen in order to reduce and distortion that may occur from the sound that may reflect off the television cabinet. The height of the center channel speaker's tweeter should be within 24 inches or less. Determine your listening position; your channel speaker should be exactly the same distance as your front left and right speakers from your listening position.
The front left and right speakers should be equal distance to the left and right of your listening position. Your channel speaker and the left and right front speakers should form an arc and should be the same distance from where you would sit. The tweeters of all three front speakers should be aimed at your ears. Be sure that you measure the distances. The slightest difference in calculation will affect your sound.
Your surround speakers should be placed left and right of you listening position. They should form a ninety to one hundred and ten degree angle from your listening position to the television.
