I agree with Randy. About 1.3 to 1.5 screen widths back.
When I read mdrews original statement of "maximum" seating distance of 1.54 screen width, I thought maybe he meant "minimum"?
If you are going 1.78, then I would suggest 100" or no larger than 110" diag. You don't want the screen so close to the walls that you don't have room for speakers- and the closer the image is to the walls you'll get light reflected off the walls/ceiling. Painting your walls/ceiling a darker color and eggshell finish should help with controlling the light and you'll get better picture.
Nick gave some good advice on the seating. Depending on what you find for seats and what you want to do, you could go either way. I actually have the setup you described for my front row of 4, with a love seat in the middle. But ours measures at 125" width, not 144". My room is 13' wide. We have chairs made by Lane furniture. So keep researching different chair makes, to find a chair you like with a width that would work.
Last edited by dllewel; 08/16/06 07:19 PM.
