IN CEILING SPEAKERS

[tbarnes42]

does anyone out there know anything about in-ceiling speakers? i want to install them in my place. but i want to make sure that they dont bother the people living upstairs.

does anyone have any experience with this? is the sound muffled well from the back end?

also how is the sound affected? is it different beciase the sound is downward instead of directed toward you horizontally?

thanks, Terry

 

[Agent007]

It does take a bit of getting used to, but on the whole its solid In some situations it makes Pro-logic (5.1) sound better, but it can also cause some problems (i.e. when an explosion that is supposed to occur behind you occurs above you).

just cause of the way I am, I probably wouldn't do it in an apartment/condo/etc., but i don't know how the people above you will react...

 

[tbarnes42]

cool, thanks.

i'm probably goign to use it more for music than anything.

you dont happen to know anyone who like, lives above someone with them (long shot).

 

[ldogg53]

are you talking about doing that in an apartment?? if so, then no way in hell should you do it... if it is a condo that you own, then go check with your upstairs neighbors about how much noise you currently create...

if it is your house and you want something cool, there is a company that makes speakes that go IN the wall... you cut out a section of drywall and the speaker is mounted to a special board that you fit into place where the drywall was... then you can tape/float the seams and paint it... very cool stuff.. just not sure how much it costs..

 

[tbarnes42]

its in a condo that i own....not an apt.

i'd never be able to do that in an apartment...you're right.

yeah...i suppose i could do "in wall" speakers instead of "in celing". it would require alot more wiring though...to get from the main speaker to teh surround ones.

anyway, thanks for your help.

 

[ldogg53]

allow me to clarify about those "in wall" speakers I mentioned.... they literally have a front to them that is designed to be the same as drywall... only it allows the sound through.... there are no speaker grilles or anything...

I'll see if I can find them...

 

[ldogg53]

The Link

I believe those are the ones... but they don't show a photo of the product... it essentially looks like a speaker mounted to a piece of drywall.. it would work for the cieling too..

edit... they have a website..The Link

 

[hullabelew]

I have a buddy that placed all of his speakers in the ceiling of his basement. He primarily did it because he didn't have much room and was trying to conserve as much floor space as possible. He did if mostly for movie watching, placing his center channel in the wall right behind the TV, the right and lefts were above the TV (in the ceiling) and about 18" either side. The surrounds were place above the couch, about 10 feet from the TV. He truly didn't listen to much music, but I fired it up with some tunes to see how it sounded.

I was skeptical at first about how the quality would be affected by the placement, but the speakers did a cool job and really weren't any different than if they had been placed in the wall. The enclosures muffled the sound a little, but you could still hear quite a bit from the floor above.

I wouldn't want to be living above someone who had this setup.

added later:
HTD Speakers

This is what I got. They've been great and I haven't wished for more or noted any deficiency. I've gotta tell you though, they mostly blare out the soundtrack for the latest Disney flick more than anything else, but Shrek is awesome in my basement! I think they are as good as any retail speaker twice its cost. I remember calling the guys and talking to them quite a bit about how they build the speakers. They were great at explaining why theirs are just like so-and-so's for half the cost, etc.

As far as location, I *DO* like them in the ceiling, although home theater designers say that they should really be in the walls in front and behind you rather than above you - makes sense. In my case, I didn't have the space in the walls to do that, so the ceiling was second best option. The other thing about permanently mounting them is that you lose the ability to rearrange the furniture, but who does that anyway in their tv room? I really like having no wires and really not being able to even notice that the speakers are there, as opposed to having those little boxes hanging up in the corners (and the wires dangling to the floor).

 

[Bevoldemort]

Cambridge Soundworks makes some in-wall speakers I used in my ceilings. They are self enclosed and don't rely on the wall/ceiling cavity. They cannot be heard by those above them. I did insulate around them. I have 5 pairs throughout the house with a volume control for each pair on the wall. I like them.