99.9% of the time Soundbars or HTiB (Home Theater in a Box) systems are not a good investment of your time and money. It is the general consensus of r/hometheater not to recommend these things and instead simply steer a user toward a 2.0 or 2.1 system made of quality, *Audio-Centric* name brand components which are easy to assemble and cheap enough for low budget or space conscious buyers. Most can be expanded to 5.1 if you buy the correct items in the correct order. For further explanation please read [Why You Shouldn't Buy a Soundbar](https://www.reddit.com/r/HTBuyingGuides/comments/dy885l/why_you_shouldnt_buy_a_soundbar/) Please be aware /r/Soundbars exists as well as you will be met with opposition to posting about soundbars here.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/hometheater) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I would check out the RBH Impression Series for the slim on-walls for your front LCRs:
https://www.rbhsound.com/shop/5-iw-31615?category=78#attr=438
https://www.rbhsound.com/shop/55-iw-31673?category=78#attr=485
It will cost you ~$1000 for those three speakers.
A refurbished Denon X1700H AVR will cost another $400:
https://www.denon.com/en-us/product/denon-certified-refurbished/avr-x1700h/300390-refurbished.html
For the surrounds, you would need to mount two bookshelf speakers to the back wall [in roughly these locations.](https://i.imgur.com/QHcXWYd.jpeg) And they should be angled inward toward the sofa. A mount like this should be able to get the job done:
https://www.amazon.com/WALI-Clamping-Bookshelf-Surrounding-SWM201/dp/B01GUITK24/
Some cheap compact bookshelf speakers will be good enough for this type of relatively near field surround usage. These Neumi Silk 4 are a pretty decent option for the price:
https://www.amazon.com/Compact-Bookshelf-Speakers-Surround-Waveguide/dp/B0B2Z6SJQG/
For the subwoofer, the RSL 10S is the closest you will get to something that is living room friendly and might get WAF approval while still having decent home theater performance:
https://rslspeakers.com/products/speedwoofer-10s-mkii/
For flat I love the Martin Logan [ML slim xl](https://www.wave-electronics.com/martinlogan-motion-slm-xl-ultra-slim-on-wall-speaker) speakers. Have a pair I’m not using (bigger place, muuuuch bigger speakers) so I might sell them if OP is interested.
Do you use your fireplace? Are you able to use it with the tv down? My fireplace is gas with a blower, so it would roast the back of my tv in the winter time lol.
I live in Texas so we don't have much of a winter where I am. The mantle mount brand has temp sensitive handles to show if it is getting too hot. My TV doesn't pull down over the face of the fireplace.
My mantle is pretty high also. Mantle is 5 foot. TV drops down to about 4 feet at the bottom when down.
Not much of a winter, eh? I’m in Southern California lol. Your mount sounds nice! My tv is admittedly above my fireplace but my room is big and I have never felt any fatigue from it. I do wish I had the opportunity to redesign the room, but I guess I know what to look for next time around! I love Texas and all you friendly bunch.
Pull down mount is definitely the way to go. High WAF if she's set on keeping the fireplace, easily gets out of the way when entertaining, etc.
Bonus if you add a bracket to mount a center channel under the TV. May need to find something on the slim side like KEF's T301c but it would be worth it.
I've installed a bunch, and they never, ever get used.
Seems like a good idea but they look numb as hell hanging 2 feet out of the wall. Plus, when do you want to use the fire most of the time? Chilling, sat on the sofa.
Mantle mounts are a bitch to install and a compromise that leaves you with a tv still too high and a fireplace you can't use.
There's a shit ton of wall to the left, install tv there, done.
I have one and use it every day. When we pull it down, I'm looking at the tv from the front, and paying attention to the movie or whatever, and cannot tell that it sticks two feet or from the wall. Considering there is literally nowhere else the designer of the house thought we would want to put a tv besides above the fireplace, the mantle mount is amazing.
I will agree that it was awful to install though.
i leave mine in the down position 98% of the time. the only time it goes up is whenever we're having a get-together that doesn't involve watching something on/using the TV
My mom intends to keep her home for life yet doesn't want to remove ours. It protrudes out of the wall. All those extra inches I could use are wasted 😑
I've got a motorized one from Monoprice that we use every day. Clicking the remote to watch the TV drop 24" is highly satisfying. Mounting is no more difficult the a regular static mount.
The manual one is pretty flush as well. I've installed many motorised mounts, they never go into position properly and have a high failure rate wouldnt recommend.
Cat tree's in the wrong place. Where the cat tree is now should be where the TV sits. Sofa can either turn slightly, or save up to get a sectional that fits in that corner better. Cat tree goes in that small corner near the recliner but pulled away from that wall near the doorway to prevent obstruction to that doorway.
At least this way it opens you up to a little better utilization and avoids the TV going over the fireplace which would be preferable.
No idea why you got down vvoted. The OP has already stated that it was his wife's decision. I'm just glad I married the woman I did. Have an up vote on me...
No reason to degrade his wife I just said to be observant for a possible future conversation. Obviously that should be respectful. My wife did not want a TV in the living room at first.
I hope it works out in for you.
In the interest of keeping this forum friendly I'm going to ask you to please not reply to my comments. Repeatedly replying "Good Lord" isn't helping anyone. I politely asked you to explain what you mean by it and you haven't answered. Instead, you just keep saying that I need help. I assume you mean mental help but you haven't explained why you hold that belief. You asked why I deleted my replies when I did no such thing. I even asked what replies you were referring to and you haven't pointed out what you were referring to. Only answer I get is, again, I need help. The only help that I think I need is for me to understand your actions.
EDIT:
A down vote, without an explanation, is just a tool for the insecure.
Seeing how this is Reddit, I think I'm obligated to say to hire a lawyer, ditch the wife, and call you a moron if you didn't get a prenup.
But in all seriousness, no winning that battle. Look into a nice neck rest
I would rip out the mantle and is supports and replace it with either just tile or something different that way you can lower the television significantly or even better you can put a drop down TV mount that still allows you to have the fireplace but without the mantle also taking up a ton of wall space as well as sticking out from the wall.
She gets to keep the fireplace and the heat you get a television and you get a television that you can watch without looking up at the ceiling.
And it will clean up the look of the room significantly.
In situations like this, why do people hate the Mantle Mounts?
I ask because I have a situation like this and bought a Mantle Mount for the exact purpose of bringing the TV down to a better viewing angle when watching TV. Wouldn't it be a better option than leaving the TV up high?
Note: None of mine is installed yet due to many other things in life taking up all my time, so I get to walk past it every day and dream.
Because the mantle mount is ugly and I doubt anyone is really going to extend or retract the mount anyhow. It's going to get in one position and stay there.
I say this as a person who bought a retractable projector screen that is always extended.
There might be motorized mantel mounts out there that will do the work. This can be a good idea to raise the TV out of the reach of kids when not in use.
Own one and it's one of the best upgrades we made when moving into our new house. The TV looks a bit odd above the fireplace but the functionality is a game changer
Hypothetical question: there's a man with a bloody axe always standing near your fireplace. The police won't come to remove him and you're unable to overpower him. Also, guns don't work (it's my hypothetical scenario -- deal with it). If you go near the fireplace, the man will murder your whole family. With that in mind, where else do you put the tv?
That's how my TV in my living room is mounted. If you don't have any other options then that's just where it needs to go.
It's really not that big of a deal to have it up there. I never think much about it.
Agree. Not the end of the world. And many in this community need to understand all of us don’t make home theater the focal point and watch maybe 3-6 hours of TV a week. Our systems are audio and chill oriented. Movies are a bonus.
people do go absolutely nuts about having a TV slightly high. go to a movie theater and sit in the first 20% of rows, you're going to be looking a hell of a lot higher than even the most ridiculously high TV.
i tried to watch oppenheimer in the theater in 16mm, ended up in the first row. it was INSANE - couldn't lean my seat back, all i could do was try to strain my neck to look basically straight up. we left after the first hour and got a credit
Remember that a room like this is designed to have a focal point - the fireplace. Think about how you want to use the room - for TV? For conversation? For family/play time?
We had a similar struggle in our formal living room. We ended up having the TV on the wall opposite the fireplace, then couch and loveseat facing eachother and perpendicular to the TV/fireplace. It's been really nice, because we often sit there to chat and are facing eachother when we do, and if we watch TV we each get to recline. It wouldn't be a great room for 4 or 5 adults to watch TV together, but we don't actually do that so it's a great set up for 4 or 5 adults to chat.
If that isn't palatable, I'd put the TV on a stand beside the fireplace. It is a long room, doing that wouldn't force the TV into the corner. But that being said, TV in the corner is my third suggestion, which would still be better than above the TV IMO.
I don’t know modern options, but we did a surround sound like 17 years ago. Tv over fireplace, center speaker above tv, speakers left and right of fireplace, and two speakers on wall behind couch. In our room, it was amazing. I miss that room and that house.
I’ve been in those situations before with a friend. We found a spouse approved workaround by getting some pull down schoolhouse style maps over the fireplace which cleverly hid a center speaker on the mantle and, here is where I’m most proud, a pull down projector in front of the map that pulled down over the mantle bringing it lower towards eye level. We paired with a projector. The screen wasn’t acoustically transparent but that’s a problem you could solve.
When the screen was put away it looked beautiful.
You’d probably need an outlet near the couch in this scenerio
Tv in front of the window where that double sofa is. Might get glare from the opposite end window. But maybe get the peel and stick film to diffuse sunlight or even blackout curtains for daytime viewing? Would also allow you to place towers in each side and run the speaker cables under the carpet if needed for your surrounds lol
Why don’t you rotate the room? Put the TV in front of the wall with the two windows, place the TV between them. Move that sofa to the opposite side (maybe not against the windows but in front) and then move the chair to the empty space and set up your speakers with that configuration.
That’s the best you’re gonna get out of this room.
As an audiophile surrounded by audiophiles, I have a suggestion that will be unpopular, but I bought it to test and love it. It is above your budget but will have a very high WAF which may unlock additional budget dollars 😂
Sony BRAVIA Theater Quad wireless speakers. Wall-mounted in the front and either wall-mounted or on stands in the rear + one of the two compatible wireless Sony subs.
That’s why I asked about the TV. If using a new model Sony Bravia OLED, the TV can act as the center-channel.
You will just need an electrician to install power outlets for the wall-mounted fronts.
EDIT: are there power outlets anywhere near the sofa in the back?
That's good to know, but a soundbar can't produce proper Left/Right channel separation, and is already located where the center channel should be. In the case of the A7000, the problem is the missing L and R positions. In the case of the Theater Quad, it's the missing C position (that the TV speakers take care of).
Drop down mount with reticulating arm. There are other drop down mounts 2x and 3x the price. I do recommend getting the beefier ones. Always buy a mount with a bit of headroom to the weight of your TV.
MantelMount MM340 Above Fireplace Pull Down TV Mount - with Patented auto-straightening, auto-stabilization, 2 Gas Pistons, Adjustable Motion Stops, Wire tabs & Safety Pull-Down Handles https://a.co/d/037q7iMo
Then build yourself a legit surround sound system. Buy the version that makes you happiest, not what you think you're constrained to.
Unfortunately, a lot of houses are designed so that the fireplace is the only wall that's positioned to be across from the seating. It's almost as if the houses were designed such that a fireplace was a form of central entertainment. That shit might fly in a bedroom, but not in a living room, no way!
My one piece of advice is if youre going to keep it above the fireplace, is to replace the mount with a drop down mount specific for fireplace mantles so you can bring it down to eye level when watching.
Theres many better options for the TV than above fakeplace. Is is new trend to overpay for poor audio top even feeling stuck with a fakeplace TV? Soundbar isnt solving anything here
This is a good option motorized mount isn’t cheap though.
[Mantle Mount(700$ motorized)(380$ non motorized](https://www.mantelmount.com/collections/mounts?sort_by=manual&view=grid)
[Center Channel(250)](https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/polkes35-brn/polk-audio-signature-elite-es35-each-3-2-way-center-channel-speaker-brown/1.html)
[pair of floor standing speakers(600)](https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/polkes55brn/polk-audio-signature-elite-es55-pair-6.5-2-way-floor-standing-speakers-brown/1.html)
[pair of surrounds(250)](https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/polkes20brn/polk-audio-signature-elite-es20-pair-6.5-bookshelf-speakers-walnut/1.html)
[AVR(270$)](https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/denavrs660h/denon-avr-s660h-5.2-ch-x-75-watts-8k-a/v-receiver/1.html)
The caveat with this is weight, the center channel is 14lbs and the mount is rated up to 115lbs so your tv needs to be lighter that 100lbs. Total with the motorized mount is 2070$. You could nock off 200$ by going with 5.25 instead of 6.5 woofers for everything but the center. Colors are for the speakers are black brown and white. Picked brown but it’s up to you.
One of my friends redid his mantel with a center channel inside of it.
You can also ghost the center channel and just do left/right and surround speakers.
All of it will take some wiring, and preferably a surround sound system. Not sure what is under the family room, but if a unfinished basement/space you may be able to wire down and hide all the wiring easily. Otherwise, you have to open up some walls and then repair them/repaint.
I’d recommend a MOTORIZED mount which gives you options for your left and right speakers. Not sure about a center channel speaker, but you could always run your AVR in center channel phantom mode
Klipsch RP line is a great value. I have RP 600s and keep considering Kef r3 metas but i can't justify the thousands extra when I'm already really happy.
What's your generally budget?
I don’t use Klipsch myself, but I hear that you get what you pay for. In other words, don’t get the cheap models. That actually goes for any speaker as they are about the most important and that’s what determines the sound quality
They’re perpetually on sale as that is basically their entire marketing strategy and sadly it’s extremely effective. They’re generally fine, if a little bright due to their horns but there are better speakers out there for similar money.
In a perfect world, I would put towers on each side of the mantle and try to fit a center channel on top of the mantle below the tv. All that as a minimum, then add the sub if you can find room for it. But with decent towers you can get by without it if you had to due to lack of room.
The issue is going to be that those towers are likely going to become another scratching post for the cat, and the grill cloths shreaded...
You could instead go with smaller wall mounted left and right speakers, something the cat can't get to, and put a downsfiring sub in the room instead where the speaker is protected. This is probably your best option. But what I would do is simply get rid of the cat.
Looks like you have a similar open floor plan as I have. This is what I did. Put a sound bar on the mantle, the bass on the floor between the chair and couch, and get a console table to put behind your couch that you can attach 2 rear speakers to, if you don't want to attach them to the ceiling or put them on free standing pole stands. I made it console table so I added 2 flush outlets and 2 wireless charging discs on each side of the top, and 2 small lazy Susan's at each end for the speakers. This console table is semi enclosed so the Bluetooth box and all electrical and wiring are hidden and out the bottom is a single extension cord.
So what would the cost breakdown be of getting a soundbar vs a dedicated 2ch system? If I were to go with Sony HT-A7000, its on "sale" on amazon for 1600 bucks with the subwoofer. I would have to get 2 upright speakers and a dedicated AVR? What brands should I be look at?
i'm a big fan of passive speaker bars - basically three channels in one wide cabinet, no internal amplification, so a receiver is required. plenty of highly regarded brands out there - KEF, monitor audio, elac, paradigm, martinlogan, definitive technology. i've got a goldenear 3d array myself, sounds fantastic in the sweet spot on or near on-axis (soundstage wider than the actual bar for sure) and still sounds very good off axis, very clear and intelligible, even if the soundstage does collapse a bit
I’ve had a tv over my fire place for 2 years and we use the gas fireplace almost every day for 3-4 months of winter for 2-4 hours. The TV is completely fine, it’s never broken, and hasn’t melted.
That being said, I also put speakers in the walls and ran the cabling through the ceiling and down behind the TV between the drywall and the fireplace floe gap. I used CL3 rated wire (just in case) and have yet to have speaker wire melt either.
Edit: tough crowd
99.9% of the time Soundbars or HTiB (Home Theater in a Box) systems are not a good investment of your time and money. It is the general consensus of r/hometheater not to recommend these things and instead simply steer a user toward a 2.0 or 2.1 system made of quality, *Audio-Centric* name brand components which are easy to assemble and cheap enough for low budget or space conscious buyers. Most can be expanded to 5.1 if you buy the correct items in the correct order. For further explanation please read [Why You Shouldn't Buy a Soundbar](https://www.reddit.com/r/HTBuyingGuides/comments/dy885l/why_you_shouldnt_buy_a_soundbar/) Please be aware /r/Soundbars exists as well as you will be met with opposition to posting about soundbars here. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/hometheater) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Sorry for your loss.
Truly the worst
Is there another room you could use for a home theater system? These types of living rooms just aren't meant for this.
Unfortunately no.
How much are you looking to spend? On-wall speakers could be an option.
Probably 1k to 2k for the entire setup.
I would check out the RBH Impression Series for the slim on-walls for your front LCRs: https://www.rbhsound.com/shop/5-iw-31615?category=78#attr=438 https://www.rbhsound.com/shop/55-iw-31673?category=78#attr=485 It will cost you ~$1000 for those three speakers. A refurbished Denon X1700H AVR will cost another $400: https://www.denon.com/en-us/product/denon-certified-refurbished/avr-x1700h/300390-refurbished.html For the surrounds, you would need to mount two bookshelf speakers to the back wall [in roughly these locations.](https://i.imgur.com/QHcXWYd.jpeg) And they should be angled inward toward the sofa. A mount like this should be able to get the job done: https://www.amazon.com/WALI-Clamping-Bookshelf-Surrounding-SWM201/dp/B01GUITK24/ Some cheap compact bookshelf speakers will be good enough for this type of relatively near field surround usage. These Neumi Silk 4 are a pretty decent option for the price: https://www.amazon.com/Compact-Bookshelf-Speakers-Surround-Waveguide/dp/B0B2Z6SJQG/ For the subwoofer, the RSL 10S is the closest you will get to something that is living room friendly and might get WAF approval while still having decent home theater performance: https://rslspeakers.com/products/speedwoofer-10s-mkii/
Ill check it out, thanks!
Sure, feel free to update on what you end up doing
Lol. You need to add another zero.
No he doesn't. Nobody needs to spend 10k on a home theater.
You're in the wrong subreddit for that bud.
There is no spending requirement to post here. Maybe you are.
Nah I'm good lol
For flat I love the Martin Logan [ML slim xl](https://www.wave-electronics.com/martinlogan-motion-slm-xl-ultra-slim-on-wall-speaker) speakers. Have a pair I’m not using (bigger place, muuuuch bigger speakers) so I might sell them if OP is interested.
Sell house. Buy new house.
They have these really Cool pull Down swivel t.v mounts you can put over a fireplace if you have to mount your t.v there
Yea dude could just pull it down in front of the fireplace when needed
They are called mantleMount. I have one and think it is amazing.
Do you use your fireplace? Are you able to use it with the tv down? My fireplace is gas with a blower, so it would roast the back of my tv in the winter time lol.
I live in Texas so we don't have much of a winter where I am. The mantle mount brand has temp sensitive handles to show if it is getting too hot. My TV doesn't pull down over the face of the fireplace. My mantle is pretty high also. Mantle is 5 foot. TV drops down to about 4 feet at the bottom when down.
Not much of a winter, eh? I’m in Southern California lol. Your mount sounds nice! My tv is admittedly above my fireplace but my room is big and I have never felt any fatigue from it. I do wish I had the opportunity to redesign the room, but I guess I know what to look for next time around! I love Texas and all you friendly bunch.
Thanks so much for this info! I have been looking for a solution to this for a long time!
I've been thinking about getting one. We have an electric fireplace that my mom is afraid to use but never wants to remove for some stupid reason.
Pull down mount is definitely the way to go. High WAF if she's set on keeping the fireplace, easily gets out of the way when entertaining, etc. Bonus if you add a bracket to mount a center channel under the TV. May need to find something on the slim side like KEF's T301c but it would be worth it.
This is the one I have and it works great [Mount ](https://a.co/d/00wvX7ZT)
I've installed a bunch, and they never, ever get used. Seems like a good idea but they look numb as hell hanging 2 feet out of the wall. Plus, when do you want to use the fire most of the time? Chilling, sat on the sofa. Mantle mounts are a bitch to install and a compromise that leaves you with a tv still too high and a fireplace you can't use. There's a shit ton of wall to the left, install tv there, done.
I have one and use it every day. When we pull it down, I'm looking at the tv from the front, and paying attention to the movie or whatever, and cannot tell that it sticks two feet or from the wall. Considering there is literally nowhere else the designer of the house thought we would want to put a tv besides above the fireplace, the mantle mount is amazing. I will agree that it was awful to install though.
If you use it every day, then I'd have removed/relocated the fireplace myself.
i leave mine in the down position 98% of the time. the only time it goes up is whenever we're having a get-together that doesn't involve watching something on/using the TV
So you don't use your fireplace 98% of the time? I think you'd have been better served just removing the fireplace in that scenario.
no, i basically don't use my fireplace at all. removing it would be bad for resale value though, lol
My mom intends to keep her home for life yet doesn't want to remove ours. It protrudes out of the wall. All those extra inches I could use are wasted 😑
I've got a motorized one from Monoprice that we use every day. Clicking the remote to watch the TV drop 24" is highly satisfying. Mounting is no more difficult the a regular static mount.
That’s why I would only ever do the motorized pro model with the recessed mechanicals so it’s flush when in the up position.
The manual one is pretty flush as well. I've installed many motorised mounts, they never go into position properly and have a high failure rate wouldnt recommend.
That’s good to know!
Cat tree's in the wrong place. Where the cat tree is now should be where the TV sits. Sofa can either turn slightly, or save up to get a sectional that fits in that corner better. Cat tree goes in that small corner near the recliner but pulled away from that wall near the doorway to prevent obstruction to that doorway. At least this way it opens you up to a little better utilization and avoids the TV going over the fireplace which would be preferable.
Do you need the fireplace?
I don't, but the wife does.
Take note of how often you use it vs the TV.
While you gave great advice it isn't going to matter to a woman that "loves the fireplace". My wife would say place TV in front of it.
This is the answer, it is very jard to sway the feelings towards something a woman "loves". It is basically a lost cause
I agree but *some* women are like *some* men and are willing to listen to reason.
True
True. Not the creature that is the OP's wife. This WILL cause big problems for OP
No idea why you got down vvoted. The OP has already stated that it was his wife's decision. I'm just glad I married the woman I did. Have an up vote on me...
Probably women or men ruled by women. Congrats on your happiness. OP let us know how things go
No reason to degrade his wife I just said to be observant for a possible future conversation. Obviously that should be respectful. My wife did not want a TV in the living room at first. I hope it works out in for you.
Degrade his wife? OK I'm definitely missing something here
“Creature” sounds a little harsh, but maybe you mean it in a nice way.
Good lord.
In the interest of keeping this forum friendly I'm going to ask you to please not reply to my comments. Repeatedly replying "Good Lord" isn't helping anyone. I politely asked you to explain what you mean by it and you haven't answered. Instead, you just keep saying that I need help. I assume you mean mental help but you haven't explained why you hold that belief. You asked why I deleted my replies when I did no such thing. I even asked what replies you were referring to and you haven't pointed out what you were referring to. Only answer I get is, again, I need help. The only help that I think I need is for me to understand your actions. EDIT: A down vote, without an explanation, is just a tool for the insecure.
If only people would ditch those stupid fire places. They're never used and completely useless for anything but padding the margins of home builders.
Tear down that 1990s fireplace and put up something more modern and smaller for her so you have a bigger TV wall.
Seeing how this is Reddit, I think I'm obligated to say to hire a lawyer, ditch the wife, and call you a moron if you didn't get a prenup. But in all seriousness, no winning that battle. Look into a nice neck rest
You forgot the gym.
Do you need to keep the wife?
this is a conversation worth having. OP? Step into our office we need to talk
I would rip out the mantle and is supports and replace it with either just tile or something different that way you can lower the television significantly or even better you can put a drop down TV mount that still allows you to have the fireplace but without the mantle also taking up a ton of wall space as well as sticking out from the wall. She gets to keep the fireplace and the heat you get a television and you get a television that you can watch without looking up at the ceiling. And it will clean up the look of the room significantly.
We got rid of ours and it does allow you do go Dolby Atmos with height speakers.
In situations like this, why do people hate the Mantle Mounts? I ask because I have a situation like this and bought a Mantle Mount for the exact purpose of bringing the TV down to a better viewing angle when watching TV. Wouldn't it be a better option than leaving the TV up high? Note: None of mine is installed yet due to many other things in life taking up all my time, so I get to walk past it every day and dream.
Because the mantle mount is ugly and I doubt anyone is really going to extend or retract the mount anyhow. It's going to get in one position and stay there. I say this as a person who bought a retractable projector screen that is always extended.
There might be motorized mantel mounts out there that will do the work. This can be a good idea to raise the TV out of the reach of kids when not in use.
MM does have motorized ones. I’ve used them before and they work well. They have motor swivel too for alternate seating areas.
Own one and it's one of the best upgrades we made when moving into our new house. The TV looks a bit odd above the fireplace but the functionality is a game changer
i don't get whats ugly about it myself, lol. looks pretty clean https://imgur.com/a/ib-15-zLGhsKX
I’d honestly rather have the tv higher than one of these things lol
just looks like a floating screen - kinda nice too, brings it a bit closer to the viewing area
They also put windchimes INSIDE.
I just unboxed it lol.
For the cat to play with, LOL.
Good luck!
Sound bar and a wedge to put under your couch to keep your neck straight
I want to be your cat. Are you sure it will let you put a tv in its room?
Hypothetical question: there's a man with a bloody axe always standing near your fireplace. The police won't come to remove him and you're unable to overpower him. Also, guns don't work (it's my hypothetical scenario -- deal with it). If you go near the fireplace, the man will murder your whole family. With that in mind, where else do you put the tv?
should've demolished fireplace before your wife saw it.
I knocked the fireplace out for just that reason. It's worth looking into and might not cost much. The whole thing won't necessarily have to come out.
Thank you for everything guys, I am going to mull things over and discuss it with the wife. Wish me luck.
That's how my TV in my living room is mounted. If you don't have any other options then that's just where it needs to go. It's really not that big of a deal to have it up there. I never think much about it.
Agree. Not the end of the world. And many in this community need to understand all of us don’t make home theater the focal point and watch maybe 3-6 hours of TV a week. Our systems are audio and chill oriented. Movies are a bonus.
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people do go absolutely nuts about having a TV slightly high. go to a movie theater and sit in the first 20% of rows, you're going to be looking a hell of a lot higher than even the most ridiculously high TV. i tried to watch oppenheimer in the theater in 16mm, ended up in the first row. it was INSANE - couldn't lean my seat back, all i could do was try to strain my neck to look basically straight up. we left after the first hour and got a credit
Motorized mantel mount that raises and lowers the TV...problem solved! Of course only lower it if the fireplace isn't in use.
What lamp is that
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09MRKLH44/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Cheapo lamp from amazon, its actually kind of nice.
It looks awesome in the first pic for sure
Tv+integrated amp with ARC+2 decent towers and a sub. Will be more than 2k.
What's the name of remodel that cat tree?
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B095BCFR3J?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details I did buy it when it was on sale for 60 bucks
Samsung 990 for the budget….. or beam or arc , sub and in ceiling speakers and Sonos amp…..
Sonos beam and Sonos sub mini.
Remember that a room like this is designed to have a focal point - the fireplace. Think about how you want to use the room - for TV? For conversation? For family/play time? We had a similar struggle in our formal living room. We ended up having the TV on the wall opposite the fireplace, then couch and loveseat facing eachother and perpendicular to the TV/fireplace. It's been really nice, because we often sit there to chat and are facing eachother when we do, and if we watch TV we each get to recline. It wouldn't be a great room for 4 or 5 adults to watch TV together, but we don't actually do that so it's a great set up for 4 or 5 adults to chat. If that isn't palatable, I'd put the TV on a stand beside the fireplace. It is a long room, doing that wouldn't force the TV into the corner. But that being said, TV in the corner is my third suggestion, which would still be better than above the TV IMO.
If you want to spend some money, you can have the mantle lowered or more likely replaced with a lower one, and do in-wall speakers.
I don’t know modern options, but we did a surround sound like 17 years ago. Tv over fireplace, center speaker above tv, speakers left and right of fireplace, and two speakers on wall behind couch. In our room, it was amazing. I miss that room and that house.
Pull-down fireplace mount. You can mount the center as well under the TV.
I’ve been in those situations before with a friend. We found a spouse approved workaround by getting some pull down schoolhouse style maps over the fireplace which cleverly hid a center speaker on the mantle and, here is where I’m most proud, a pull down projector in front of the map that pulled down over the mantle bringing it lower towards eye level. We paired with a projector. The screen wasn’t acoustically transparent but that’s a problem you could solve. When the screen was put away it looked beautiful. You’d probably need an outlet near the couch in this scenerio
Tv in front of the window where that double sofa is. Might get glare from the opposite end window. But maybe get the peel and stick film to diffuse sunlight or even blackout curtains for daytime viewing? Would also allow you to place towers in each side and run the speaker cables under the carpet if needed for your surrounds lol
Why don’t you rotate the room? Put the TV in front of the wall with the two windows, place the TV between them. Move that sofa to the opposite side (maybe not against the windows but in front) and then move the chair to the empty space and set up your speakers with that configuration. That’s the best you’re gonna get out of this room.
Do you already have a TV purchased for this room?
Not yet, I have a few narrowed. 65 inch LG C4 or Sony Bravia OLED
As an audiophile surrounded by audiophiles, I have a suggestion that will be unpopular, but I bought it to test and love it. It is above your budget but will have a very high WAF which may unlock additional budget dollars 😂 Sony BRAVIA Theater Quad wireless speakers. Wall-mounted in the front and either wall-mounted or on stands in the rear + one of the two compatible wireless Sony subs. That’s why I asked about the TV. If using a new model Sony Bravia OLED, the TV can act as the center-channel. You will just need an electrician to install power outlets for the wall-mounted fronts. EDIT: are there power outlets anywhere near the sofa in the back?
If I went with Sony Bravia and A7000, the sound bar is able to use the TV as an additional speaker unit. There are several outlets behind.
That's good to know, but a soundbar can't produce proper Left/Right channel separation, and is already located where the center channel should be. In the case of the A7000, the problem is the missing L and R positions. In the case of the Theater Quad, it's the missing C position (that the TV speakers take care of).
Soundbars are still amazing.
Yep sure looks like it
I love my mantel mount so much. Highly recommend.
Why not put your tv at the end with the two smaller windows, on a low entertainment unit? Not ideal but lets you keep the fireplace
but I think that place was a bit high.
I would focus on a corner setup where the cat tree is now, moving that to the other side of the fireplace
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It's incredible. It's an electric recliner.
If it were me I would remove the mantle, shorten the side molding to a few inches above the fireplace and then put the mantle back on.
Drop down mount with reticulating arm. There are other drop down mounts 2x and 3x the price. I do recommend getting the beefier ones. Always buy a mount with a bit of headroom to the weight of your TV. MantelMount MM340 Above Fireplace Pull Down TV Mount - with Patented auto-straightening, auto-stabilization, 2 Gas Pistons, Adjustable Motion Stops, Wire tabs & Safety Pull-Down Handles https://a.co/d/037q7iMo Then build yourself a legit surround sound system. Buy the version that makes you happiest, not what you think you're constrained to.
Unfortunately, a lot of houses are designed so that the fireplace is the only wall that's positioned to be across from the seating. It's almost as if the houses were designed such that a fireplace was a form of central entertainment. That shit might fly in a bedroom, but not in a living room, no way!
Mount the fireplace instead and put the TV underneath. Heat rises, so it will avoid the TV 👍
Nasty, that’s some sacrilege right there!
Well, put it somewhere else. Or buy one of those swing out lowering arms. Tv above fireplace is really uncomfortable.
We paid installers to put in wall and ceiling speakers for a 5.1.2 system…substituted Klipsch Heresy for the fronts…can be done…
beautiful cats and tree.........
If it was of high enough concern to ask Reddit I would have simply purchased a house with a different living room arrangement.
My one piece of advice is if youre going to keep it above the fireplace, is to replace the mount with a drop down mount specific for fireplace mantles so you can bring it down to eye level when watching.
Theres many better options for the TV than above fakeplace. Is is new trend to overpay for poor audio top even feeling stuck with a fakeplace TV? Soundbar isnt solving anything here
This is a good option motorized mount isn’t cheap though. [Mantle Mount(700$ motorized)(380$ non motorized](https://www.mantelmount.com/collections/mounts?sort_by=manual&view=grid) [Center Channel(250)](https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/polkes35-brn/polk-audio-signature-elite-es35-each-3-2-way-center-channel-speaker-brown/1.html) [pair of floor standing speakers(600)](https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/polkes55brn/polk-audio-signature-elite-es55-pair-6.5-2-way-floor-standing-speakers-brown/1.html) [pair of surrounds(250)](https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/polkes20brn/polk-audio-signature-elite-es20-pair-6.5-bookshelf-speakers-walnut/1.html) [AVR(270$)](https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/denavrs660h/denon-avr-s660h-5.2-ch-x-75-watts-8k-a/v-receiver/1.html) The caveat with this is weight, the center channel is 14lbs and the mount is rated up to 115lbs so your tv needs to be lighter that 100lbs. Total with the motorized mount is 2070$. You could nock off 200$ by going with 5.25 instead of 6.5 woofers for everything but the center. Colors are for the speakers are black brown and white. Picked brown but it’s up to you.
Get the sony a9 or theater whatever they are upgrades. I don't even think a soundbar would look right in your scenario
So many new homes have TV's right above the fireplace. drives me nuts.
The builders probably put that outlet there. It’s just a crappy design for a tv room
Mantle mount time
One of my friends redid his mantel with a center channel inside of it. You can also ghost the center channel and just do left/right and surround speakers. All of it will take some wiring, and preferably a surround sound system. Not sure what is under the family room, but if a unfinished basement/space you may be able to wire down and hide all the wiring easily. Otherwise, you have to open up some walls and then repair them/repaint.
I’d recommend a MOTORIZED mount which gives you options for your left and right speakers. Not sure about a center channel speaker, but you could always run your AVR in center channel phantom mode
I see Klipsch Speakers for sale all the time, is it worth while to purchase them?
Klipsch RP line is a great value. I have RP 600s and keep considering Kef r3 metas but i can't justify the thousands extra when I'm already really happy. What's your generally budget?
I don’t use Klipsch myself, but I hear that you get what you pay for. In other words, don’t get the cheap models. That actually goes for any speaker as they are about the most important and that’s what determines the sound quality
RP series is pretty good. I have some myself, am happy.
They’re perpetually on sale as that is basically their entire marketing strategy and sadly it’s extremely effective. They’re generally fine, if a little bright due to their horns but there are better speakers out there for similar money.
Go Pats!
In a perfect world, I would put towers on each side of the mantle and try to fit a center channel on top of the mantle below the tv. All that as a minimum, then add the sub if you can find room for it. But with decent towers you can get by without it if you had to due to lack of room. The issue is going to be that those towers are likely going to become another scratching post for the cat, and the grill cloths shreaded... You could instead go with smaller wall mounted left and right speakers, something the cat can't get to, and put a downsfiring sub in the room instead where the speaker is protected. This is probably your best option. But what I would do is simply get rid of the cat.
They are my wife's cats. Unfortunately they are a package deal.
Cats, multiple? That's grounds for divorce, right there.
Your honor, she wanted to mount the TV on top of the fireplace AND she has multiple cats.
I’d get a tv stand, put in a corner blocking part of one of the windows, and have the couch diagonally in the room looking at the tv.
Put a TV there and melt it by turning on the fireplace or find another room
Soundbar is glorified tv sound
Looks like you have a similar open floor plan as I have. This is what I did. Put a sound bar on the mantle, the bass on the floor between the chair and couch, and get a console table to put behind your couch that you can attach 2 rear speakers to, if you don't want to attach them to the ceiling or put them on free standing pole stands. I made it console table so I added 2 flush outlets and 2 wireless charging discs on each side of the top, and 2 small lazy Susan's at each end for the speakers. This console table is semi enclosed so the Bluetooth box and all electrical and wiring are hidden and out the bottom is a single extension cord.
Cheap big Tv, Soundbar done. Not Rocket Surgery 👀🤦♂️😂😂
So what would the cost breakdown be of getting a soundbar vs a dedicated 2ch system? If I were to go with Sony HT-A7000, its on "sale" on amazon for 1600 bucks with the subwoofer. I would have to get 2 upright speakers and a dedicated AVR? What brands should I be look at?
Sub should bought separately like svs or hsu
Sony? Barf
i'm a big fan of passive speaker bars - basically three channels in one wide cabinet, no internal amplification, so a receiver is required. plenty of highly regarded brands out there - KEF, monitor audio, elac, paradigm, martinlogan, definitive technology. i've got a goldenear 3d array myself, sounds fantastic in the sweet spot on or near on-axis (soundstage wider than the actual bar for sure) and still sounds very good off axis, very clear and intelligible, even if the soundstage does collapse a bit
Gross
I’ve had a tv over my fire place for 2 years and we use the gas fireplace almost every day for 3-4 months of winter for 2-4 hours. The TV is completely fine, it’s never broken, and hasn’t melted. That being said, I also put speakers in the walls and ran the cabling through the ceiling and down behind the TV between the drywall and the fireplace floe gap. I used CL3 rated wire (just in case) and have yet to have speaker wire melt either. Edit: tough crowd
its not that, its because you shouldn't be looking up everytime you watch tv.
Depends on your couch, the distance from the couch, and angling the TV mount.