How Many Ceiling Speakers Per Room For Atmos Are Right?

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The in-ceiling speaker is the best option to have the Dolby Atmos in the comfort of your home. It immerses you in the world of movies, music, or gaming. But achieving that immersive nature is a bit tricky. So, how many ceiling speakers do you need per room for Atmos?

At A Glance: As a general rule of thumb, you need two ceiling speakers in a distance that can accommodate 4-6 people in a row horizontally and another pair to cover 2-3 rows of people vertically. Now, calculate it for your room following this rule.

Keep reading as we will be discussing many more aspects of this matter. We will also discuss why I identify the needed speakers’ numbers by the number of people and rows, instead of inches and squares.

Explaining The General Rule Of Thumb

We need the sound to be felt equally by all the individuals in the audience. That’s why we keep the audience between a pair of speakers. 

I measure the number of ceiling speakers needed by people in the theater room because I want to make it as easy as possible. I don’t want to puzzle your mind by squares and inches, and instead provide you with easy steps to take action and start achieving your goals.

Let’s discuss the two parts of the general rule of thumb.

Why Speakers Per Audience, not inches?

distance between ceiling speakers

By keeping the audience in mind, in this way you are ensuring the best possible immersive experience for all of them

The pair of speakers will give the best stereo separation experience to the audience. 

When you are tight with the budget then keep 6 people between a pair of ceiling speakers this will give a better experience but if you are open with your budget. Then keep 4 people between a pair of ceiling speakers horizontally. 

This arrangement of 4 people seated between a pair of ceiling speakers will give you the best of the best experience.

But you should calibrate the speakers with the auto sound optimization mic that comes with almost all newer receivers.

Know how to make the ceiling speakers sound better? I have included 9 easy steps that will give you a wow level of sound quality.

Why Add Additional Pair Of Speakers Per Three Rows?

number of ceiling speakers

You need to feel the sound of the ceiling speakers as it is showering from above at you, not some rear surround speakers.

That’s why I recommend a pair of ceiling speakers per three rows when you are tight with your budget. 

But if you are open with your budget and want the best sound experience, then install a pair of speakers for each row.

Keep the seating in a straight line of the ceiling speaker when you want the best possible experience.

But if you are tight with the budget, then you can accommodate another row in between these two. 

But two rows of audience seating for an average American family is enough. 

Many home theater bloggers will say you should have these many speakers per this many square inches. But I will recommend simply ignoring that approach because as a newbie it will confuse you.

The per audience and rows is the best possible approach to have.

Now, let’s calculate the actual number of ceiling speakers you will need for your home theater. You are open with your budget and have 4 people per row and two rows in the room. Then you need four ceiling speakers.

When you are tight with your budget, then you can have 6 people per row and three rows. Now, for this arrangement, you can have four ceiling speakers.

Read this guide before buying ceiling speakers. Everything you need to know about ceiling speakers? I have included harsh truth.

Two More Questions To Be Answered For Best Experience.

These two questions along with the number of ceiling speakers are very important. This will further ensure the best sound.

Let’s start answering each question.

What About The Tweeter Position?

The tweeter should be pointed right at the audience seating. This will ensure the best Dolby effects possible.

The audience will feel like the birds and helicopters on the screen are actually flying over their heads. This boosts up the realism score for the Dolby effects.

The tweeter will also direct the dialogue to the audience in such a way that the characters will feel like talking to the audience. In very rare instances,  the ceiling speakers will throw out the dialogues. 

In instances where the characters are on a building or in the helicopter and talking to the characters below on the ground.

Read this guide about the best ceiling speaker for home theater. I have reviewed the top 7.

How Much Big The Speaker Should Be?

The ceiling speaker should have 6-6.5 inches of a driver to be used for home theater purposes. This size of driver can better produce mids and highs and shallow lower end of sound frequencies. 

For the deeper lower end, we should always use a separate subwoofer for home theater purposes. By doing so, we will ensure a better flow of frequencies in the room.

Don’t go with a smaller or bigger ceiling speaker driver than the 6-6.5 inches standard.

Read this guide to know, can you use ceiling speakers with TV? I have included two options to use it.

Did you get something out of this ceiling speaker guide? Hold On We Have Something Exciting To Share.

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FAQs

Can I use ceiling speakers for the rear surround?

This is not a good approach to using the ceiling speakers for the rear surround. You can use them on the wall above your head, but not on the ceiling. 

You need the sound to come from behind and not from the ceiling. The rear channel is created for this purpose to feel the sound from the back.

Are in-ceiling speakers good for movies?

They, with the combination of all the speakers on the ground, are the best option for movies. They will surround you from all sides and above. This will give the most immersive sound possible in the theater room.

You need to feel the ongoing action on the screen right in your room. That’s why installing in-ceiling speakers is the best option.

Do ceiling speakers need a subwoofer?

They do need a subwoofer, but the subwoofer should be installed on the floor with surround sound speakers.

The ceiling speakers can’t produce bass frequencies and for those bass frequencies, we always need a separate subwoofer.

How far apart should ceiling speakers be?

The ceiling speakers should be so far apart that can accommodate at least four people between their gaps. 

I don’t want to talk about complex mathematics here. The speakers’ gape should be able to accommodate at least 4 people horizontally in their gape and three rows of people vertically. 

Helpful Resources For The FAQs To Read More

  1. This was my opinion, read more about it from this Reddit discussion. (Resource for the first answer)
  2. This was my opinion, read more about it from Audiomav Blog. (Resource for the second answer)
  3. This was my opinion, you can read the mathematics number here from Crutchfield Blog. (Resource for the fourth answer)

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This article was first posted on Homelytainment.com.
Ayaan Khan
Ayaan Khan

I'm Ayaan khan, a freelancer and a Computer Science degree holder from P.E.S. College. After my degree, I started an internship with my father in his home theater showroom. After working for a month I realized that this is the best job in the world for me and it could be turned into a passion. Fast forward to when my internship ended, I joined my father as a full-time home theater equipment tester. I test new equipment and approve it before it can be installed in the customer's house. I love to test equipment and sometimes love to install it by myself in the customer's theater room. I have the right experience and knowledge to learn from my articles. In my Free time I write & answer questions here on AVSFORUM. Every Article on Homelytainment is curated according to Homelytainment's Editorial Policy and Sponsorship Policy. If you have any questions for me. Reach out to my email (Support(AT)homelytainment.com)

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