Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater 5.1 vs 7.1 QS8s

When I got my pair of QS8s, I changed my room from having the surround speakers at about 45 degrees behind me to being directly to the left and right of the couch. I moved my old speakers to the be at the edges of the listening area (about the arms of the couch) on the rear wall. Each of the four speakers are 8 feet from the center of the couch.

When listening to 5.1 material without the rear channel I get the impression that the sounds are moving in an arc over head rather than panning around behind me. So I always use PLIIx to dematrix the surround channel which seems to place sounds more accurately.

This is just my experience, not everyone has reported the same. But many people don't have their 4th and 5th channel directly to their sides; most in a 5.1-only setup have them slightly behind. Which is what I had before, and it sounded fine.