Dolby Atmos Speakers?

[sludgeogre]

THX recommends four overhead speakers, to get the most lifting of the audio out of the plane and into a more 3-dimensional setting:

https://www.avforums.com/podcast/avf...-special.11590

Thanks for the link there, that is great information.

The downside to the wide horizontal dispersion of the Sierras with the Raal ribbon tweeter is that the vertical dispersion is more narrow. This is where two pairs of height speakers can fill in what is missing. That is what I am planning for in the future. I will likely get Raal ribbons for the 5 or maybe even 7 traditional surround speakers and then add two pair of ceiling speakers. I think that I want actual in-ceiling speakers though. So for me I have been thinking about NHT speakers, since their traditional speakers share quite similar design goals as Ascend: wide dispersion, flat frequency response, etc. If my ceiling height wasn't 7 to 8 feet (depending on the spot in my basement) and more like 8 to 9 feet I might just mount some of the HTM 200s up there.

As for vertical dispersion, Dave wrote this in a reply to me on the Diamond Tweeter thread:

Keep in mind that limited vertical directivity, especially in a tower speaker, has very significant sonic benefits by reducing both floor and ceiling reflections... The design of our towers, even the dome versions, have limited vertical directivity. It is one of the main reasons for the somewhat unusual design of placing the midrange driver above the tweeter. That and providing a more defined acoustic center for a 3-way.

When it comes down to comparing the vertical directivity of a 29mm dome versus the ribbon in the tower, we are really only talking about an increase of ~ +/- 5 degs, which isn't much... At 10 feet back, the vertical listening window expands by only ~ +/- 10 inches.

I have indeed enjoyed a taller soundstage from the Aperion Verus Grand Center, but it was in a treated room without a vaulted ceiling like my room, so that is probably a big part of why the soundstage sounded so much taller there. I can't wait to get a better room to see how the soundstage height changes.

Anyway, I also wonder if a pair of height speakers would make a notable improvement or difference, although I lack the funds or care to actually try it out.