This one's been a long time coming! Glad you got something that works for you and your family. I almost thought that "eh, just mount the center channel slightly off center to avoid the bracket" but it probably would have messed with even the slightest bit of OCD/wanting it to be aligned/symmetrical, so your compromise is the best solution.
You can put some wires from the metal frame to some support or wood frame from the attic and cut that frame in the space you need to put your center channel
I'm still lost on the abandonment of that awesome soundbar on the basis of Christmas decorations 🤣 I just couldn't get past that. But the main thing is that it happens in your real world living scenario. I know it's definitely gonna be better than my lounge set up with just LG soundbar and sub with 55 inch Samsung Qled, but that's also because my basement home theatre purchases also needed to get past the wife bouncer, so my focus was there. Main good thing with your channel is that, despite your love of this stuff, you've not transformed into an AV or home cinema snob. Love that you shared a very straight forward but realistic real world family living situation. Many home theatre snobs talk like it's completely normal to have 4 subs minimum! Cheers!
Nice setup. I have a full GE theater, Triton One.R's up front with a reference center, supersat 3's for surrounds and rears, and 650's in the ceiling for atmos and it is outstanding. Watched the new mad max this past weekend and the air movement over your body on the low frequencies is unreal. I love the product and from hearing about your experience, their customer support.
I remember those awesome days of moving the whole house around to accommodate the new kid on the block, (hifi) through trial and error and tribulations,(girlfriend now wife) ”more speakers, don’t you have enough already” I reply “they’re essential just like all the different shades of lipstick you have” Da missus she definitely gets it, she understands and she notices the sometimes subtle or overwhelming response from the new hifi equipment so like you my dude, I landed a keeper who digs our home theatre and hifi hobby
Great video!!! 🎉 I’ve always wondered how all ceiling speakers would sound! Hopefully you can find a “workaround” for that center speaker! 🎉 (maybe get a driver that is mounted in some kind of box that would allow you to bridge the metal drywall channel such that the speaker can still be mounted to the drywall/or enclosure, then just strap the two ends of the metal channel to the enclosure or have to strapped up and over the enclosure?) I dunno, I watch videos like these to get ideas on cool stuff to do and how to deal with these everyday problems 🎉 Can’t wait for more videos of cool mods like this and the sound absorption panels you made etc. 🎉
I have 4 in ceilings and 4 other speakers with wire that are routed through the ceiling with 5 speakers that are not. Anyway I feel your pain and very much enjoyed the video! Loved the comment about the brain. Quick question, how low is the measured frequency response in your space for the in-ceiling speakers compared to what they are rated at?
I feel your pain. I recently added 4 Atmos speakers to the ceiling in my living room and it was a pain in the butt. I got a little lucky, I guess with a leaky pipe so we had to tear down some of the drywall and replace it. But that was my excuse to do it now. Snaking those wires and finding locations for the speakers blindly not knowing where pipes, cross braces, etc are because it is the first floor of a 2 story. Glad it's over with.
When I had my new house built, i had it set up for a 5.1.2 system. All the wires come out above my fridge where all my audio equipment is housed. It was because I wanted a shorter run for the HDMI going to the projector. So everything was easy plug and play, except I'm now wishing I would have put 2 more ceiling speakers 😢. Not sure if that would make things more immersive than the way it sounds now 🤔
@handroids1981 🤦♂️ At the time it seemed good to me because of the can lights location made it difficult. Hind sight 😔 But what I can say is those 2 channels do a lot of work and fill the top of the room. I know 2 more will have a better effect on directional sound.
Incredible journey to make a great setup, and I can well imagine the sound stage. In mine the surrounds are also high, which makes it sound like the Big-D cinema. For me the center is an absolute must, since my front speakers are set wide apart. I greatly enjoyed upgrading from the B&W 600 to the 700, and with my latest addition with the Denon 4800 sounds like coming from my Oled just above. It’s great how D&M improved spaciousness and base. Have you considered adding an elevation speaker above the TV as a center?
Yeah, I’ve considered maybe installing a center in-wall speaker above the TV - possibly the Goldenear Invisa JPS speaker. That way they’ll all still be timbre matched. Who knows…maybe some day. 😎
@@ealanosborne always good to match, same here with Sony as a center speaker. Sounds good but a little different. One step at the time, another project for another day 😎
Ealan, as you also tested the Sony Quad speakers which should be much easier to install, what made you to decide to install the in ceiling 4.1 instead of just placing the Sony speakers next to the walls (should be much easier)? Huge audio difference?
While I really enjoyed the Quad, systems like that still have a signature sound that is inherent with wireless systems, especially since the Quad has such small drivers. I really like the sonic qualities of the Goldenear speakers since they are like your more traditional loudspeaker, having 7” woofers and AMT tweeters, which is something wireless or soundbar systems haven’t been able to match (yet). Yes, I could have the front Quad speakers on either side of the TV, but the rear speakers I would still need to have on the ground. And with an open concept living room, they would just get in the way. Going with in-ceiling speakers eliminated all those issues and gave me speakers with large woofers. I also ultimately like being able to tweak the sound more, which I am able to do with a traditional AVR system. 👍
Mr , I was watching this video and sooooo hoping it was gonna be a piece of cake 😂. I'd like 2 in ceiling speakers myself ( to add to the front and rear bookshelf heights) but the task is daunting. My Mrs will NOT allow for any visible wires , so id have to chase the wires , fill ceiling and repaint ceiling. Will it be worth it for 2 extra height channels , HELL YEH !
Awesome video! Can the drywall bracket be moved? When I installed in wall Klipsch for my brother 2 years ago and he said, place them where they need to be no matter what. And of course there were fireblocks and studs in the way. So he said, make it work. So i cut studs and made supports as if it were a window. And i moved fireblocks up a few inches. It was a huge project but he was so happy.
The drywall bracket basically goes from the back of the raised ceiling to the front above the fireplace. In the way no matter what. I could potentially put a center channel above the TV in the wall, but I do like the clean look without it currently. 😄
@@ealanosborne it does look clean. And way better than a center channel! My bro would have made me drop the ceiling 10 inches. You dont have a little bro to take advantage of, like my older bro? Hahahaha
Is there room to add additional bracing around the currently installed drywall support bracing? If there is room for alternative bracing between the trusses then there is the possibility that you can still add a center channel.
Maybe, but I’d want to hire a pro to do anything like that. I could install the speaker, though. But even then, it still sounds great even with only two speakers up front, surprisingly. 🤷♂️😄
Would your choices have been different if you didn't have a dedicated HT? Quite a bit of compromise here, in all ceiling speakers setups, you lose Atmos, there being no height and bed layer separation. I would have just put the center on either side of that support, better than nothing for me. I spent 4 hours running wire through the wall to a wall mounted speaker, I thought the other side of the wall was in the garage but it turned out to be outside, so I had to drill sideways through about 5 sporadically placed studs, adding extension on top of extension and 2 batteries, plus there was plastic encapsulated insulation in the final bay which made it a nightmare to fish the wire through. I added 6 total speakers to existing and built a rack, took me about 30 hours in all.
If I didn’t have my dedicated theater, I’d probably try really hard to convince my wife to have 3 in-wall speakers above the TV (like 3 Goldenear Invisa JPS in-walls), maybe put 2 HTR-7000s in the ceiling a bit closer to the couch for heights, and keep the 850s behind the couch for surround as a modified 5.1.2 system. 🤷♂️
Yes, in my opinion. Until soundbars can somehow have 7” or 8” woofers and AMT style tweeters, I like the sonic qualities of this system better. And I can make more manual adjustments since it’s a traditional AVR system. 👍
Does the insulation in the attic damege your in ceiling speakers?? When I installed my speakers in the ceiling I left the insulation on top of it saying it’s good ??
Can you compare the stereo sound of the 7000 L/R to the stereo sound of the theatre quad? A lot of people are debating between soundbar/quad vs in-ceiling
I love the Quad, but those types of systems still have that signature soundbar/wireless system “sound” to me personally, especially with the small divers inside. The 7000 is superior with the 7” woofers and proper AMT tweeters, you know? 👍
There was no way to get a center channel even if it was a bit off center or pushed forward a bit? I mean your TV is so high it probably sounds normal that sound is coming from the ceiling :)
How did I miss the golden ear soundbar from previous videos?! I’m going to research it 🤓. And yes….. I still haven’t found a replacement set up for my old 5.1 😮💨 Which just means more views for you lol
@pedroortiz9744 I was thinking the same thing. I wish Elan would have pulled back more of that blow in insulation so the carpenters that watch this channel could show him a simple workaround (removing a section of the metal bracket and give yourself an 1-1/2 all the way around to play with)… myself, I would frame in the speaker area, Take your cordless cut off wheel and surgically cut out metal strip as needed, cut your hole and be done… sounds simple, right…lol
@@ealanosborne you got this Elan👊… I saw you convert your brother-in-law‘s grow room into a very fine home theater/test facility, you can tackle this center channel cut out… great job on this speaker install..
Sounds like you need to get a divorce. ;-) Thankfully, I have the easiest going wife in the world. I have external speakers mounted in the corners of my room. The only compromise is that I have to deal with knick-knacks sitting on top of the L & R tower speakers and the subwoofer. I've warned her though I am not liable for damage that may occur due to those items falling onto the ground due to large amounts of vibrations! All that said, I love your setup and am going to look at the Starke Sound Fiera 8 for my next upgrade. Congrats, and thanks for the videos!
That’s by design. It never translates well on UA-cam, and is wildly inaccurate from what you’ll actually hear in person. I may eventually get binaural earbuds or similar for more accurate stereo recordings, but they aren’t cheap.
@@ealanosborne I agree to some extent. A sound test is always appreciated it seems your audio sounds great when you’re speaking could only imagine how they sound. Obviously won’t be as good as in person. There is not one video showing a sound test of these anywhere.
@@patrickstein627 There are binaural headphones/microphones out there that could allow me to record an audio source that would closely represent what's heard in the room if you were to put headphones on. But they aren't cheap. :) Someday, though...
Great review, I’m a huge GoldenEar and client! I had the pleasure of meeting Sandy Gross years ago!
Nice!! 😃
This one's been a long time coming! Glad you got something that works for you and your family.
I almost thought that "eh, just mount the center channel slightly off center to avoid the bracket" but it probably would have messed with even the slightest bit of OCD/wanting it to be aligned/symmetrical, so your compromise is the best solution.
Exaaaactly! Too far off center for my taste. 😄
Great real world audio enthusist video, thanks.
You’re welcome! 😎🎉
I have been waiting for this video since I found your channel
You’re welcome, then! 😄🎉
@ealanosborne I also am thinking about surround in the ceiling since since I can't put them behind me.
How do you assign the speakers in your avr do you have them as bed level or in ceiling
@@RossEstate Yeah just assigned as Front L/R, and Surround L/R 👍
@ealanosborne thank you and keep up the good work and video production
Great video working on some in wall and in ceiling speakers myself
Totally worth it!
You can put some wires from the metal frame to some support or wood frame from the attic and cut that frame in the space you need to put your center channel
What an adventure. Glad you got it solved.
Thanks, Craig! Sooo glad it’s over with. 😮💨
I'm still lost on the abandonment of that awesome soundbar on the basis of Christmas decorations 🤣 I just couldn't get past that. But the main thing is that it happens in your real world living scenario.
I know it's definitely gonna be better than my lounge set up with just LG soundbar and sub with 55 inch Samsung Qled, but that's also because my basement home theatre purchases also needed to get past the wife bouncer, so my focus was there.
Main good thing with your channel is that, despite your love of this stuff, you've not transformed into an AV or home cinema snob. Love that you shared a very straight forward but realistic real world family living situation. Many home theatre snobs talk like it's completely normal to have 4 subs minimum! Cheers!
Thanks! I appreciate that! 😁🎉
I have 6 Goldenear HT7000 as atmos channels and 6 Goldenear Super Sat surrounds and 1 Goldenear reference center channels. This is a fantastic setup.
Whoooaaa! That just sound spectacular!
Awsome set up mate 👍. Nothing is as easy as some say. Theres allways a drama somwhere.
Aaaaalways! 😂
Awesome Review!!! I did this in my house.hard work but so worth it!!! Super happy with results 👍
Hell yeah! Worth all the blood, sweat and tears! 😂
Nice setup.
I have a full GE theater, Triton One.R's up front with a reference center, supersat 3's for surrounds and rears, and 650's in the ceiling for atmos and it is outstanding. Watched the new mad max this past weekend and the air movement over your body on the low frequencies is unreal.
I love the product and from hearing about your experience, their customer support.
Hell yes! 🎉
I remember those awesome days of moving the whole house around to accommodate the new kid on the block, (hifi) through trial and error and tribulations,(girlfriend now wife) ”more speakers, don’t you have enough already” I reply “they’re essential just like all the different shades of lipstick you have” Da missus she definitely gets it, she understands and she notices the sometimes subtle or overwhelming response from the new hifi equipment so like you my dude, I landed a keeper who digs our home theatre and hifi hobby
Woohoo! 🎉 🥳
I really enjoy and appreciate your channel!!
Thank you very much!
Excellent story telling and editing .. as always =)
... Happy for you & this process .. learning .. and finding solutions. =)
Yes! Hoping it inspires others and encourages people to avoid the mistakes I made along the way. 😂
Great video!!! 🎉 I’ve always wondered how all ceiling speakers would sound! Hopefully you can find a “workaround” for that center speaker! 🎉 (maybe get a driver that is mounted in some kind of box that would allow you to bridge the metal drywall channel such that the speaker can still be mounted to the drywall/or enclosure, then just strap the two ends of the metal channel to the enclosure or have to strapped up and over the enclosure?) I dunno, I watch videos like these to get ideas on cool stuff to do and how to deal with these everyday problems 🎉
Can’t wait for more videos of cool mods like this and the sound absorption panels you made etc. 🎉
Woohoo! 🎉
Ealan face when he was about to cut the ceiling 😅
Greetings from Ecuador
Nice video and also nice shirt😂 big fan
Haha! Thanks! 😊
I have 4 in ceilings and 4 other speakers with wire that are routed through the ceiling with 5 speakers that are not. Anyway I feel your pain and very much enjoyed the video! Loved the comment about the brain. Quick question, how low is the measured frequency response in your space for the in-ceiling speakers compared to what they are rated at?
I feel your pain. I recently added 4 Atmos speakers to the ceiling in my living room and it was a pain in the butt. I got a little lucky, I guess with a leaky pipe so we had to tear down some of the drywall and replace it. But that was my excuse to do it now. Snaking those wires and finding locations for the speakers blindly not knowing where pipes, cross braces, etc are because it is the first floor of a 2 story. Glad it's over with.
Oh wow! Yeah, having to tear out drywall anyway sure was convenient! 😊
Bluey shirt FTW!!!!
Haha! Yayyy! 😅
When I had my new house built, i had it set up for a 5.1.2 system. All the wires come out above my fridge where all my audio equipment is housed. It was because I wanted a shorter run for the HDMI going to the projector. So everything was easy plug and play, except I'm now wishing I would have put 2 more ceiling speakers 😢. Not sure if that would make things more immersive than the way it sounds now 🤔
OMG BRO... You _chose_ .2?
@handroids1981 🤦♂️
At the time it seemed good to me because of the can lights location made it difficult. Hind sight 😔
But what I can say is those 2 channels do a lot of work and fill the top of the room. I know 2 more will have a better effect on directional sound.
@@kman9387 All good man, my ATMOS speakers are still in the box, 6 feet from the capable amp. I'll get round to it one day...
@@handroids1981
😃
Incredible journey to make a great setup, and I can well imagine the sound stage. In mine the surrounds are also high, which makes it sound like the Big-D cinema. For me the center is an absolute must, since my front speakers are set wide apart. I greatly enjoyed upgrading from the B&W 600 to the 700, and with my latest addition with the Denon 4800 sounds like coming from my Oled just above. It’s great how D&M improved spaciousness and base. Have you considered adding an elevation speaker above the TV as a center?
Yeah, I’ve considered maybe installing a center in-wall speaker above the TV - possibly the Goldenear Invisa JPS speaker. That way they’ll all still be timbre matched. Who knows…maybe some day. 😎
@@ealanosborne always good to match, same here with Sony as a center speaker. Sounds good but a little different. One step at the time, another project for another day 😎
@@htenthusiast2897 No doubt. Always working, always tweaking, always obsessing 😂
Ok thanks 😊
An advice : instal two center speakers conected in paralel , on both sides of that metal ceiling braket that holds the drywall.
Ealan, as you also tested the Sony Quad speakers which should be much easier to install, what made you to decide to install the in ceiling 4.1 instead of just placing the Sony speakers next to the walls (should be much easier)? Huge audio difference?
While I really enjoyed the Quad, systems like that still have a signature sound that is inherent with wireless systems, especially since the Quad has such small drivers. I really like the sonic qualities of the Goldenear speakers since they are like your more traditional loudspeaker, having 7” woofers and AMT tweeters, which is something wireless or soundbar systems haven’t been able to match (yet).
Yes, I could have the front Quad speakers on either side of the TV, but the rear speakers I would still need to have on the ground. And with an open concept living room, they would just get in the way.
Going with in-ceiling speakers eliminated all those issues and gave me speakers with large woofers. I also ultimately like being able to tweak the sound more, which I am able to do with a traditional AVR system. 👍
Great review!!! Definitely filling a gap in the review market because SO MANY new homes have a layout that can only support in-ceiling LCR
I am such a fan and couldn’t recommend those speakers enough!
You should be able to add bracing around where you wanted that center channel then be able to cut that metal bracing
Mr , I was watching this video and sooooo hoping it was gonna be a piece of cake 😂. I'd like 2 in ceiling speakers myself ( to add to the front and rear bookshelf heights) but the task is daunting.
My Mrs will NOT allow for any visible wires , so id have to chase the wires , fill ceiling and repaint ceiling. Will it be worth it for 2 extra height channels , HELL YEH !
Hell yeah! 😄🎉
Awesome video! Can the drywall bracket be moved? When I installed in wall Klipsch for my brother 2 years ago and he said, place them where they need to be no matter what. And of course there were fireblocks and studs in the way. So he said, make it work. So i cut studs and made supports as if it were a window. And i moved fireblocks up a few inches. It was a huge project but he was so happy.
The drywall bracket basically goes from the back of the raised ceiling to the front above the fireplace. In the way no matter what. I could potentially put a center channel above the TV in the wall, but I do like the clean look without it currently. 😄
@@ealanosborne it does look clean. And way better than a center channel! My bro would have made me drop the ceiling 10 inches. You dont have a little bro to take advantage of, like my older bro? Hahahaha
@@brocinco haha, nope. I have 4 older sisters that live pretty far away, sooooo… 😂
Is there room to add additional bracing around the currently installed drywall support bracing? If there is room for alternative bracing between the trusses then there is the possibility that you can still add a center channel.
Maybe, but I’d want to hire a pro to do anything like that. I could install the speaker, though. But even then, it still sounds great even with only two speakers up front, surprisingly. 🤷♂️😄
Would your choices have been different if you didn't have a dedicated HT? Quite a bit of compromise here, in all ceiling speakers setups, you lose Atmos, there being no height and bed layer separation. I would have just put the center on either side of that support, better than nothing for me.
I spent 4 hours running wire through the wall to a wall mounted speaker, I thought the other side of the wall was in the garage but it turned out to be outside, so I had to drill sideways through about 5 sporadically placed studs, adding extension on top of extension and 2 batteries, plus there was plastic encapsulated insulation in the final bay which made it a nightmare to fish the wire through. I added 6 total speakers to existing and built a rack, took me about 30 hours in all.
If I didn’t have my dedicated theater, I’d probably try really hard to convince my wife to have 3 in-wall speakers above the TV (like 3 Goldenear Invisa JPS in-walls), maybe put 2 HTR-7000s in the ceiling a bit closer to the couch for heights, and keep the 850s behind the couch for surround as a modified 5.1.2 system. 🤷♂️
Does this setup sounds better than the sound bar with a sub?
Yes, in my opinion. Until soundbars can somehow have 7” or 8” woofers and AMT style tweeters, I like the sonic qualities of this system better. And I can make more manual adjustments since it’s a traditional AVR system. 👍
Good morning, thanks for sharing your knowledge here, Q which speakers is better Klipsch R-26FA or Polk Audio Signature Elite ES50? 🤔 thanks
Signature Elite. 👍 The Klipsch RP (Reference Premiere) would compete with the Polk, though.
But the Klipsch come with the Dolby Atmos build in, 🤔
@@henryquezada8482 I would only suggest upward firing Atmos speakers as a last resort if it’s truly impossible to mount speakers up high.
Does the insulation in the attic damege your in ceiling speakers?? When I installed my speakers in the ceiling I left the insulation on top of it saying it’s good ??
I don’t think it damages it, but for longevity’s sake, it’s good practice to have a barrier between the speaker and insulation. 👍
Can you compare the stereo sound of the 7000 L/R to the stereo sound of the theatre quad? A lot of people are debating between soundbar/quad vs in-ceiling
I love the Quad, but those types of systems still have that signature soundbar/wireless system “sound” to me personally, especially with the small divers inside. The 7000 is superior with the 7” woofers and proper AMT tweeters, you know? 👍
There was no way to get a center channel even if it was a bit off center or pushed forward a bit?
I mean your TV is so high it probably sounds normal that sound is coming from the ceiling :)
Not really, no. Pushed to the side it would’ve been too far off center for my taste. 😄
This video is real life challenges! I have likely same problem with position of potential in ceiling center - there is a beam centered in my ceiling!!
Ahhh…dang it!
BLUEY!!!!
Heeheee! Of course! 😅
you could just frame a cross piece on both side for that bracket and cut it
How did I miss the golden ear soundbar from previous videos?! I’m going to research it 🤓. And yes….. I still haven’t found a replacement set up for my old 5.1 😮💨 Which just means more views for you lol
Hooray! Thanks! 😄
@pedroortiz9744 I was thinking the same thing. I wish Elan would have pulled back more of that blow in insulation so the carpenters that watch this channel could show him a simple workaround (removing a section of the metal bracket and give yourself an 1-1/2 all the way around to play with)… myself, I would frame in the speaker area, Take your cordless cut off wheel and surgically cut out metal strip as needed, cut your hole and be done… sounds simple, right…lol
So simple! 😂
@@ealanosborne you got this Elan👊… I saw you convert your brother-in-law‘s grow room into a very fine home theater/test facility, you can tackle this center channel cut out… great job on this speaker install..
Sounds like you need to get a divorce. ;-)
Thankfully, I have the easiest going wife in the world. I have external speakers mounted in the corners of my room. The only compromise is that I have to deal with knick-knacks sitting on top of the L & R tower speakers and the subwoofer. I've warned her though I am not liable for damage that may occur due to those items falling onto the ground due to large amounts of vibrations! All that said, I love your setup and am going to look at the Starke Sound Fiera 8 for my next upgrade. Congrats, and thanks for the videos!
Dude…the Fiera8 is legit. 😁🤘
No sound test….
That’s by design. It never translates well on UA-cam, and is wildly inaccurate from what you’ll actually hear in person. I may eventually get binaural earbuds or similar for more accurate stereo recordings, but they aren’t cheap.
@@ealanosborne I agree to some extent. A sound test is always appreciated it seems your audio sounds great when you’re speaking could only imagine how they sound. Obviously won’t be as good as in person. There is not one video showing a sound test of these anywhere.
@@patrickstein627 There are binaural headphones/microphones out there that could allow me to record an audio source that would closely represent what's heard in the room if you were to put headphones on. But they aren't cheap. :) Someday, though...
Glad to hear Golden Ear was so responsive. Yeah most females dont get it.