Atmos - Upfiring speakers vs. Ceiling speakers

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madscot

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This is the first Dolby Atmos MUSIC disc that I can really appreciate the Atmos height speakers. Discrete instruments used through out in the Atmos height speakers. I admit I only have a few Atmos mixes for music but this is the first Atmos mix that really stood out to me. I switched between DTS-HD Master Audio and Dolby Atmos and didn’t find much difference in bass levels between surround mixes. Some of you guys are much better at describing differences in mixes / Bass levels than I am so JMHO. Great surround mixes from Steven Wilson. I vote a 10.
I so wish I could have ceiling heights but I live in an apartment and it would cost money I don’t have to install a false ceiling, I made the mistake of buying up-firing atmos speakers, they’re as much use as an ashtray on a motorbike, I wish I hadn’t bothered
 
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I completely agree with Atmos upfiring speakers work really poorly. The best in-ceiling Atmos speakers are angled 15 degree to 45 degrees - or on ceiling speakers that can be directed towards the main seating area.
I think Dolby shouldn’t endorse upfiring speakers - I believe you would have to increase the volume of the upfiring atmos speakers quite a lot to bounce sound off of the ceiling to even hear the Atmos effects. JMHO
 
I completely agree with Atmos upfiring speakers work really poorly. The best in-ceiling Atmos speakers are angled 15 degree to 45 degrees - or on ceiling speakers that can be directed towards the main seating area.
I think Dolby shouldn’t endorse upfiring speakers - I believe you would have to increase the volume of the upfiring atmos speakers quite a lot to bounce sound off of the ceiling to even hear the Atmos effects. JMHO
I disagree. I have a Sonos Arc 5.1.2 system that uses two upward firing drivers, and I think it does a great job playing height channel effects especially when listening to music in Dolby Atmos. I can clearly hear the height channels on every song on The Tipping Point Blu-ray. Of course this requires an ideal room setup with standard height flat ceilings and sitting in the “sweet spot” of the room… but if you have the right room setup, it works well and is very convincing. With the better Atmos mixes, the upward firing drivers work so well that it sounds almost as good as a pair of actual in-ceiling speakers.
 
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I so wish I could have ceiling heights but I live in an apartment and it would cost money I don’t have to install a false ceiling, I made the mistake of buying up-firing atmos speakers, they’re as much use as an ashtray on a motorbike, I wish I hadn’t bothered
We're getting a bit off topic here, but if you have a mostly square/rectangular room you can put them on the side walls angled towards the listening position. This is what I did and it works great, just set them as top middle for calibration. You can use little cable clips and just run a speaker cable the colour of your wall along the floor, up the corner and along the ceiling. In my room it's barely noticeable.
 
We're getting a bit off topic here, but if you have a mostly square/rectangular room you can put them on the side walls angled towards the listening position. This is what I did and it works great, just set them as top middle for calibration. You can use little cable clips and just run a speaker cable the colour of your wall along the floor, up the corner and along the ceiling. In my room it's barely noticeable.
Unfortunately doors and windows are in the way, I have thought of everything but nothing works, the speakers sit on my fronts since there’s nowhere else for them to go!
 
I currently have a less than desirable setup, but it is what it is. I have 5 Polk in-wall/ceiling speakers (there are 2 behind that are not seen in the picture. I have been eyeing these Polk Reserve R900 upfiring speakers (in white due to the WAF) and I see that they are on sale. I would probably place them on each side on top of the fireplace. Being that the ceiling is 12 feet high, would it be worth it? The room is full of audiophile sound inconsistencies anyway, some of which are corrected by Audessey, but I am not sure if the effect would be wasted. Any opinions are welcome. Thanks!




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I disagree. I have a Sonos Arc 5.1.2 system that uses two upward firing drivers, and I think it does a great job playing height channel effects especially when listening to music in Dolby Atmos. I can clearly hear the height channels on every song on The Tipping Point Blu-ray. Of course this requires an ideal room setup with standard height flat ceilings and sitting in the “sweet spot” of the room… but if you have the right room setup, it works well and is very convincing. With the better Atmos mixes, the upward firing drivers work so well that it sounds almost as good as a pair of actual in-ceiling speakers.
i'm right there with you. in our old apartment, i was able to use my dali c1 as high speaker. in the new apartment, i'm forced to operate them in upfire mode. i have to say i didn't expect much, but the sounds are clearly assignable from above.

I was also told at the time it would make no sense to get me 2 more dali c1 for the back, because the distance would be too small, the couch was directly against the wall, and thus it can not work. but I'm super happy with it and for me it works very well.
 
I currently have a less than desirable setup, but it is what it is. I have 5 Polk in-wall/ceiling speakers (there are 2 behind that are not seen in the picture. I have been eyeing these Polk Reserve R900 upfiring speakers (in white due to the WAF) and I see that they are on sale. I would probably place them on each side on top of the fireplace. Being that the ceiling is 12 feet high, would it be worth it? The room is full of audiophile sound inconsistencies anyway, some of which are corrected by Audessey, but I am not sure if the effect would be wasted. Any opinions are welcome. Thanks!
Every room has acoustical tradeoffs, so I wouldn’t expect perfection, nor would I expect disaster. The high ceiling might be OK, but that sloping front part (roofline?) would be my concern. Placement of the speakers could be critical because of that surface, so the WAF could come into play as well.

If I had the budget, I’d try it, but then I almost always say that.
 
Every room has acoustical tradeoffs, so I wouldn’t expect perfection, nor would I expect disaster. The high ceiling might be OK, but that sloping front part (roofline?) would be my concern. Placement of the speakers could be critical because of that surface, so the WAF could come into play as well.

If I had the budget, I’d try it, but then I almost always say that.
Thanks for the reply. If I find the pair that I want for a good price, I may just have to experiment.
 
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