Little OT - speakers for coffer ceiling

[Dave Bonde]

Hello all, I have been working on this ceiling waaaaaay to long but I think the end is in sight. I want to put 4 speakers in the ceiling. They will be located in the 4 openings you can see in the picture, anybody have a suggestion on a good speaker for this application? Should all 4 be the same? Any suggestions appreciated. When I get the ceiling done I will post some pictures of the process I went through to build it. Thanks Dave

[Brandon Shew]

The question is too basic - like asking: "What table saw should I get?"

What type of music will they be used for? What is the source? How big are the openings? What's your budget (most important)?

I would assume that you are using these for mostly ambient background music and not critical listening. I would probably match the speakers (all the same) since they are in the ceiling. If you could find a 2 way speaker to fit, you'd get better sound. Make sure thay you wire 2 for left and 2 for right channels to get "stereo" sound. Something w/ a backbox would probably get better sound.

[Louis Rucci]

Maybe you should look online for some speaker experts.
Will you have to insulate the speakers from the wood to reduce harmonic vibration?
How much power are you contemplating the speakers will have to push for good sound?

There are many details and those are the experts you should be looking for.

[Dave Bonde]

Openings are 12"X12" will be hooked up to a stereo (amp is a Yamaha R-8 300watt) or Ipod dock - I might also run the TV sound through it. I really don't want more speakers in the room other than maybe one of the front (3 speaker) home theater systems. Budget - whats a budget :D I don't know enough about them to even know what a realistic budget would be.I am not really looking to use the max output of the amp anymore. I know some people here have but some nice speakers and might have a thought or direction for me for a decent ceiling mount speaker. Dave

[Brian Kent]

Dave, what are the speaker outputs on your receiver? Does it have an output for center channel, right and left front, right and left rear, and subwoofer?

If so, then your best sound for the money would be in buying a full set of home theater speakers. Tiger Direct is a good place to look. Best Buy or stores like that are a good place to see what sounds right to you.

The right and left front, right and left rear could go in the ceiling, subwoofer on the floor, and center channel speaker above or below the TV / Monitor. Many receivers in CD Stereo mode will just use the side speakers and subwoofer.

These can run from a couple hundred to anything you want to pay.

[Jim Becker]

Too bad they are not 24" openings...I have just the thing for you in storage...some wonderful flat panel speakers designed exactly for that kind of situation.

Regardless, my feeling is that all four should be matched and appropriate for your intended listening situation.

[David DeCristoforo]

"...some wonderful flat panel speakers designed exactly for that kind of situation..."

Jim, if you want to send those on over to me, I would be happy to cut some holes in my ceiling.....

;)
YM

[Tim Morton]

a couple questions...

1. are they going to play full range? Or will you have a Subwoofer attached to this system?

2. Budget....you really need to throw out some kind of number.

$250 per speaker? More??;) $25 dollars per speaker? To fill that space and by the looks of it, I hope you are thinking closer to $250 or more even.


It would be a very good idea to visit a high end stereo store and get some advice and listen to what you get for your money.

[Dave Bonde]

Too bad they are not 24" openings...I have just the thing for you in storage...some wonderful flat panel speakers designed exactly for that kind of situation.

Sure now you tell me:D I can guarentee I'm NOT redoing that sucker:D

Thanks for the advice guys. I guess I have some research to do.

[Pat Germain]

When building any kind of audio system, don't skimp on the speakers! If it was my ceiling, I would install four of the highest quality 6" or 8" woofers I could find online; perhaps poly-propelene with mondo-gigantic coils and magnets. I would also buy four high-quality tweaters and four crossover networks, or components to make my own crossovers.

Basically, a crossover network consists of an inductor which filters out high sounds for the woofer and a capacitor which filters out low sounds for the tweater. This will result in better sound as well as protect your hardware. Don't skimp there, either. Crossovers aren't expensive but they are necessary.

Some folks may be asking, "What about a midrange?". Well, you could also install a midrange, but most people don't like the true, live sound you get from a "3-way" speaker with a midrange. If their amp has a midrange adjustment, they typically turn it way down anyway. Now, if you're someone who does indeed enjoy an authentic, live music sound, go ahead and install a midrange. That component gets both an inductor and a capacitor.

There are formulas to use for the correct inductors and capacitors. It would be easier to just find four, pre-assembles crossover networks designed to handle a lot of power; 100 watts +.

Of course, you could also just buy pre-built speakers already in a cabinet. This would also work well. Just be sure to buy something of good quality. I've personally heard small speakers made by Boston Acoustics which are amazing. Bose are OK, but way overpriced, in my humble opinion.

Oh, and don't bother buying high-end, expensive speaker wire. Just go to your nearby home improvement center and buy lamp cord. It's typically cheaper to buy a whole roll rather than by the foot. Get plenty, it comes in handy for other audio wiring; car, home theater, etc.

[Shane Sura]

Dave,
I built my own home Theater two years ago complete for 5.1 surround sound and a HD Hitachi Projector aimed at a 106 in ch screen. I wont go into all the details of sound selection but let me just say I spent well over three months researching every electronic detail of that room and that is considerably more than most of us research table saws :D. Based on the small picture your provided I question two things. One why you want to put them in the ceiling. Two, if you put them in the ceiling why do you want so many so close together. I would greatly worry about how directional you could make the sound especially if you hook it to your TV. Also even playing your Ipod I think it may be too much too close together.

Finally, as part of my research I read a lot of bad things about the sound qualities of in the wall speakers. Most peopling have better luck with outside the wall speakers which is what I Went with. If you can I would suggest going with out the wall.


Shane

[Carl Fox]

Don't scrimp on speakers! I have an Onkyo THX certified Home Theater In A Box. It is amazing. 7.1 and 1 KW of system power with just about zero distortion. To give you an idea, I was playing it a little loud to show off to my Mom, and she asked me to turn it up because she was enjoying it so much.

Of course my living room has no echoes because I covered all the walls with 1" of sound deading and 1/4" drywall.

I don't know how a 7.1 system would work with that ceiling. though.

http://www.amazon.com/Onkyo-HT-S990THX-Theater-Entertainment-System/dp/B000FNFU16

[Vic Damone]

Speaker systems should typically garner the largest portion of a systems cost but in your application I wouldn't go off. With four speakers being powered by two taps I would suggest 8 ohm speakers which will bring the load to the amplifier down to 4 ohms.

It's obvious that this room wasn't intended for any serious listening. The stereo imaging with all that reflective surface along with the unusual placement will likely sound disjointed. Ceiling mounted systems regardless of their quality are typically relegated to background music and so this application should be configured in monaural.

While this room has nothing to do with your question it's an excellent example of a well designed dedicated listening room that some of the respondents might be interested in. The redirection of mid and high frequencies as opposed to dampening those frequencies make this room sound absolutly cavernous. With your eyes closed it's difficult to locate the speakers and the stereo image far exceeds the boundaries of the room. The speakers are manufactured by Avalon Acoustics. The wood working craftsmanship that goes into the vainer work is stunning each pair is book matched from the same stock which gives each pair a one of a kind visual personality.

http://www.goodwinshighend.com/images/osiris.jpg

Vic

[scott spencer]

A 12" opening is just about large enough to fit a 6.5" woofer with small tweeter. If there's anyone in your area who builds custom speakers, I'd seek them out to see if they can suggest a simple 8 ohm two-way that you can mount to a custom fit baffle. As others have suggested, it's not ideal for serious listening, but you may find it to be just fine.

[Todd Bin]

How about Energy Veritas V2.0CM. They are 8 7/8 inch diameter. Nice speaker. Here is the web site.

http://www.energy-speakers.com/v2/products/product-page.php?id=20#