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Dedicated room · 16 × 22 × 9 ft

The 16 × 22 home theater

A purpose-built room: three rows or two generous ones, a 130 inch scope screen, and a full 7.1.4 or larger layout.

Recommended layout: 7.1.4 Atmos

Alternative: 7.1.2

The full experience: 7.1 plus four overhead speakers.

SCREEN16 ft wide22 ft longSEATLRCSLSRRLRRTFLTFRTRLTRRSUBSUB2

Main seat

13.6 ft

from the screen wall (62%)

Viewing distance

12 ft 8 in

eyes to screen

TV size

110"

113–127" is cinematic

Max projector screen

125"

lens 11 ft 10 in–18 ft 2 in back

First room mode

26 Hz

length axis

Volume

3168 cu ft

closest to Sepmeyer C

Display

A 2.35:1 scope screen about 110 to 120 inches wide (120 to 130 inch diagonal) with a bright 4K laser projector. An acoustically transparent screen lets the front three speakers sit behind it at the right height.

Seating

Two rows of four, or three rows of three, with 12 to 14 inch risers. First row at 12 to 13 feet.

Speaker measurements

From the left wall, from the front wall, and floor to tweeter. Angles are from the main seat.

SpeakerLeft wallFront wallHeightAngle
Front Left2.1 ft1 ft3.3 ft25°
Front Right13.9 ft1 ft3.3 ft25°
Center8 ft1 ft2.8 ft
Surround Left1 ft14.3 ft4.8 ft95°
Surround Right15 ft14.3 ft4.8 ft95°
Rear Surround Left3.8 ft21 ft4.8 ft150°
Rear Surround Right12.2 ft21 ft4.8 ft150°
Top Front Left4.7 ft7.9 ft9 ft30° / 41° up
Top Front Right11.3 ft7.9 ft9 ft30° / 41° up
Top Rear Left4.7 ft19.4 ft9 ft150° / 41° up
Top Rear Right11.3 ft19.4 ft9 ft150° / 41° up
Subwoofer4 ft1 ft0.8 ftn/a
Subwoofer 212 ft1 ft0.8 ftn/a

What to expect in this room

  • Ceiling height of 9 ft or more makes risers and in-ceiling speakers comfortable.
  • Plan the acoustic treatment with the room modes calculator before the drywall goes up.
  • Run conduit for future cable pulls; you will use it.
  • Two subwoofers at the front-wall quarter points (or opposing mid-walls) even out bass between seats. Run the subwoofer crawl to confirm.
  • 4 pair(s) of axial modes below 200 Hz coincide within 5%. Expect a strong peak at those frequencies.
  • Uneven mode spacing: 2 gap(s) wider than 20 Hz below 200 Hz. Bass will sound lumpy at those frequencies.

Gear that fits this room

All categories

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Polk Audio Signature Elite ES20

Surrounds or a small-room stereo pair on a budget

Polk Audio Signature Elite ES20

Price tier 1 of 4
  • 2-way bookshelf, 6.5" woofer
  • 1" Terylene dome tweeter
  • 88 dB measured sensitivity
  • Bass to ~35 Hz in-room (ASR)

Audio Science Review measured genuinely deep bass and smooth, wide horizontal dispersion, and recommended it outright at its price. That wide dispersion and easy load make it a good surround or small-room front pair.

Polk Audio Reserve R700

Front left/right in medium to large rooms

Polk Audio Reserve R700

Price tier 3 of 4
  • 3-way tower, dual 8" woofers + 6.5" mid
  • 1" Pinnacle ring radiator tweeter
  • 88 dB sensitivity, 8 ohm nominal
  • 38 Hz (-3 dB), ported

A three-way tower that measured within roughly plus or minus 2 dB on-axis at Erin's Audio Corner with real bass extension to about 40 Hz, so it can play full range in a medium room. It shares drivers with Polk's flagship Legend series at a fraction of the price.

SVS SB-1000 Pro

Small rooms and music-focused systems

SVS SB-1000 Pro

Price tier 2 of 4
  • 12" driver, sealed
  • 325 W RMS / 820 W peak
  • 20 Hz to 270 Hz (+/-3 dB)
  • SVS app with 3-band PEQ

A compact 13-inch sealed cube that Audioholics found goes well beyond entry-level performance, with app control, parametric EQ, and clean 20 Hz extension. The natural pick for small rooms, music-first systems, or a pair on a budget.

Denon AVR-S670H

Basic 5.1 rooms and apartments

Denon AVR-S670H

Price tier 2 of 4
  • 5.2 channels, 75 W/ch
  • 3 of 6 HDMI inputs 8K/4K120
  • Audyssey MultEQ
  • Dual sub outs, no pre-outs

The least expensive Denon with current HDMI 2.1 gaming support and HEOS streaming. It is a sensible starting point for a straight 5.1 room, but it has no height channels and no pre-outs, so it cannot grow into Atmos.