9.2.2 vs 7.2.4: sofa against wall


I have an NAD m17 v2, and will be doing 11 channels. I was wondering if I should configure them as 7.2.4 or 9.2.2 (with two front wides)?

I know 7.2.4 is a more normal setup. The only reason I am considering something different is because my sofa is already against the back wall. Therefore all my ATMOS speakers are in front of me. In that case, does it make sense to have 4 ATMOS height speakers?

I am using a NAD m17v2. I’ve also heard it doesn’t handle 9.x.2 very well from a room correction standpoint.

I will be using 11 channels regardless, so while I know neither setup is ideal, what I want to know is which is relatively better?


Here's my floorplans:
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xdc
I am using NAD M27 for the center and surrounds (4 regular surrounds + 2 atmos).

I am using an additional C 268 to drive the final 2 atmos

And finally, I will be using an M22v2 to drive the front two speakers.

You think 7.2.4 makes sense even though all 4 atmos speakers will be in front of me? Usually, at least two speakers are directly overhead or behind
I agree with the 7.2.4 but is it even slightly possible to float that sofa so it is not up against the wall?  

Oh, nice gear with the NADs.

Bill

My room is quite oddly shaped, so I hope I can clearly convey that here. Three sides of the ceiling are slanted (they are indicated by the green shaded region in the diagrams below). They rise to meet at a flat area at the top (the white region in the diagram). The slant begins at around 7ft around the edges. They rise to a maximum of perhaps 14ft at the top.


It’s sort of like a trapezoid if you can imagine it. 


This also means that the closer the speakers are to the edges of the room, the lower they will be. The closer they are to the center of the ceiling, the higher they will be.


I have placed my 4 regular surround speakers around the edges. This means they are only about 7ft from the ground. And since they are slanted, I think they function more like on-wall speakers than in-ceiling ones.


As for the ATMOS speakers, I can place them directly above the sofa (“Plan 2”). But then this means that they are on the same elevation as the regular surrounds. If I place them closer to the center (“Plan 1”), then there’s elevation difference between the regular surrounds and ATMOS speakers. But then, in that case, I will have 4 ATMOS speakers all in front of me.


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I’d very much like to use all 11 channels. Drilling holes will be very difficult later on. Even for a 1% improvement, I think it’ll be worth it to have 7.2.4. However, if people think it will be having those two extra speakers not only won’t help, but will damage my movie-watching experience,  then I’ll go with 7.2.2.



here are some pictures of my room

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