Suggestions for small square room?-Acoustics Forum-Acoustic Fields Forum

Hello! I came across the Acoustics Fields videos on Youtube and have watched many of them. Thank you for those!

Basically, I have a small square room and would like some feedback on my concerns, ideas and things I may not have thought of yet. To be up front I have purchased a number of room treatments from GIK Acoustics, but from watching your videos I now realize that may have been a waste.

I did submit a room analysis form, so pictures and information are there as well. Before completing that process it mentioned that if you are not serious or financially able to do anything right away that the better place to post is in the forum.

Anyway, here are the details:

Room dimensions: 152 inches wide, 155 inches long, 101.5 inches high
Windows: one behind listening position (about four feet tall in the middle of the wall), one along right side wall (only two feet high, set in upper half of the wall); both windows covered with blinds
Features: open arch to another room along the left wall (opening starts 30 inches from the front wall and is 62 inches long)
Floor: hardwood
Ceiling: drop ceiling
Room treatments: area rugs on the floor for first reflection points from front speakers; GIK Acoustics full range Tri Traps stacked almost to the ceiling in all four corners, range-limited (i.e. absorb low but not high frequencies) Monster bass traps along the rear wall, and full range 244 bass traps along the front wall and on the sides in the front soundstage to cover SBIR and first reflection points

Listening position: a little more than 38% of room length into the room from the back wall

Speakers:

Fronts: Polk RTiA5 towers (each have 2 6.5 inch drivers)
Center: Polk CSiA6 (has 2 6.5 inch drivers)
Surrounds: Polk FXiA6 bipole/dipole surrounds (just have two for 5.1, each one has a single 6.5 inch driver)
Subwoofers: Polk DSW440s (have two, one in each front corner, each one has a single 8 inch driver)

Right now I am leaning towards just a stereo signal with two subwoofers: the bass is definitely more even with two of them running, and the stereo sound just sounds cleaner. After watching some of the videos that might be because it is dropping the surrounds and .1 LFE and therefore putting less energy into my cramped room.

I have read that a diagonal arrangement can work in square rooms, could that make a difference? I am thinking of just going back to a simple setup of a soundbar above the TV with the TV in the corner and forgoing surround sound. If I went that route I was thinking of the GoldenEar Supercinema 3d XL with two of their Supersub Xs. That is just my current thought. I keep twiddling with crossover frequencies, center speaker on and off, surround speakers on and off, one versus two subwoofers, etc.

This is one of the main rooms in my house and I am unwilling to alter the dimensions. I have already spent quite a bit on the room treatments I already have and, to be honest, I wanted to hear what Dennis had to say before doing anything more. Given the dimensions I have to work with I think my room might fall into his ‘never going to happen’ category. This room might just be an exercise in futility and I am considering resigning myself to a lifestyle system and leaving it at that.

Thank you for reading, and I am really looking forward to your feedback!

Sincerely,

Darin