Seeking advice for speakers for my Family Room

Speaker choice verges on irrelevant until you have addressed the room acoustics. Controlling first reflections is foremost and that includes ceiling and floor as well as sidewalls. Next is reducing the RT60 (overall room reverb time). Regardless of vendor, they are fiberglass or rockwool, covered with fabric or printed with artwork. For one wall in my theatre I took 5 - 12X48 2" white panels and 3 - 12X36 1" panels and hung them vertically, about 2" apart with the black panels overlapping the the 1,2, and 4 gaps to form a partial keyboard. I get compliments all the time, so no WAF issues. The room also has 8 - 24X24 2" panels on the ceiling. I used a charcoal gray fabric that is a Vvery close match to the room walls. Finally, a couple bass traps live in the corners, behind the couch. Together they work wonders and look good also. In our living room I used 24X48 2" panels in white to match the ceiling. Most people don't even notice them, but they made a huge difference in the character of the space. Before it was acoustically very lively because between the front and sides there's over 300 ft2 of glass. It will never be a great listening room, but now it's at least usable, and people comment on how quiet it is. All told I have spent about $2K on panels,  and another $600 in labor to have them professionally installed. Best investments in listening I ever made. 

Ok, so if you really want to buy a receiver, that's fine.  Just keep in mind that the power supplies are not the best.  The higher end receivers will end up being better because the main power supply is much bigger, even if you are just using the amp for surrounds.  You'll get a smoother/fuller sound typically.  Usually the best cost per performance are the receiver models just below the highest one.

@auxinput Hmm, interesting. I will be using the receiver's amp section to power at least the surrounds. I would love to buy the older 77xx range processors, but I worry about HDMI 2.1

@soundmd I have taken a look at Anthem's ARX line but they have mixed reviews and they convert the D to A signals using their DAC and don't have analog passthrough, plus software issues. Other than that, I really liked them.

Their processors don't have this limitation, but processors are expensive...!

They also don't have HDMI 2.1 (4k/120) yet...

@maxwave Ya, I think the living room being open to the kitchen helps alleviate the echo effect. Just need to work on reducing reflections from the hard surfaces.

Not too sure how much effect losing the soundstage to the 1 side being open (to the other sitting area with the orange sofas) is having though...

Agree with acoustics with sound level...hopefully, making these room changes will help with that.

@larry5729 I listen to mostly light rock/pop/some instrumental. I am not trying to listen to that last instrument pluck sound to be clear etc., so not too interested in extreme high frequency detail, but do want to be able to hear music at louder volumes for extended periods of time (2-3 hours) from time to time.
This is also not a dedicated music listening room. So, there will be Home Theater use as well, about 60/40 HT/Music maybe 50/50.

Klipsh are not audiophile speakers.  They are very harsh.  There are many others that are better.

What kinds of music do you listen to.  Do you like high frequency detail, etc.  Be more specific.  There are many in this discussion group that can help.

Yes , I though that the kitchen , being separated from the living room could help.

An easy way to warm up the room , and being removed , when not in use.

I am far from being an expert about room acoustic.

I also think , that at different volume , loudness , the acoustic change.  What sound good at a certain level , may sound terrible at a higher volume . If your room is not well treated.

Others may correct me if I am wrong 

I forgot to add;  Check out Anthem MRX receivers or separates. I think they sound great and they have a plethora of control features.  Their room correction program is very good.  I've heard them in multiple systems and they always sound good, especially in difficult rooms.

I'm not really a fan of room correction and I have really tried working with Dirac.  Others have different opinions.

If you are not going to use the amp part of the receiver, you are actually better off getting a processor.  Look for a used Marantz AV7702 MKII, AV7703, AV7704, or AV7704.  These are very commonly on ebay for $1000-1800.

I think I have also seen the Anthem AVM-60 near the $2k mark.  That's also a good item.

kgtunse,

You might take a look at the NAD T788. Kind of pricey, but when you add the MDC2 BluOS-D module to it (for $549 more) you get Dirac Live Room Correction  and a nice music streamer together.  Check out the NAD T788 review on AV Forums from Oct. 2020 for more info.  I would say whatever you do, don't make any equipment changes until you have done the room acoustic changes. I think you'll be surprised  at the sound improvement. This will also allow you to make a more informed choice if you have a chance to audition any gear in your space. You are correct that the open Kitchen space behind you is working somewhat to your advantage. 

I don't know if you do any streaming, but I just replaced a Sonos with a Bluesound Node in my system last night.  Sounds much better, soundstage and imaging are improved.  I'm waiting for my Denafrips Pontus II to arrive so I can bypass the DAC in the Node.  

@auxinput @searchingforthesound @soundmd @sandthemall @fleschler @maxwave 

@b_limo @larry5729 

Thinking ahead a bit. Let's say i have done some room treatments (rugs, acoustic panel or 2 on the side wall, covering the windows with thick drapes, moving the front speakers in front of the now-covered windows etc.

Do you all think I should then invest in a receiver with Dirac Live (since it's considered best room correction software compared to Audussey, YPAO, ARC) vs any others? Thinking along the lines of trying to get all the help I can to address my difficult room.

I have returned my Denon 3700H, so that is no longer a consideration, so, am basically open to any receiver. I don't think i am quite at the level of going seperates, so AVR it is.... I was leaning toward Marantz 5015 (but it only has Audussey XT, not even Audussey XT 32), moving up to 6015 is $2k already...

Any suggestions on the AVR to use? I don't really care about the power of the amp section since I will be getting an external Class D power Amp (like the VTV Purifi stereo or 3 channels) to power my L, C, R anyway. So the AVR will only be powering the surrounds.

Given my speakers are the SF Lumina V (4 ohms)...Listening is HT/Music at 60/40 and would like to play at loud volumes @2.1 or 2 channel audio for parties and such for a few hours at a time....

@maxwave No way the wife allows that. But are you saying to put the screen at the back of the room so that the listening position/area is NO LONGER OPEN to the kitchen?

I think the kitchen being open is the reason I do NOT get a slap echo in the listening portion of the Family room.

Where I get the slap echo is on the non-listening area where the orange sofas are. And this is due to this area being surrounded/enclosed by the sliding door and 3 large windows...

´´ the listening position opens up to the kitchen behind ´´
Have you though about a partition screen ? Any model .

Maybe , it is possible to fix 2 twelve inches acoustic pannels on it.

@fleschler No worries. Current issue is just that the speakers sound too bright (even for Klipsch). I have tried Klipsch, KEF and Polk, all of them sounding bright/harsh at higher volumes.

There is a little slap echo on the adjacent section of the room, but not so much in the actual listening area. This is probably because the listening position opens up to the kitchen behind whereas the other section is all enclosed with windows and sliding door.
@ooctaviuss Thanks for the suggestion. but I am pretty much set on the Sonus Faber Lumina V that I auditioned last week and loved. 

Yes, massive rugs and textured, sound absorbent wall hangings can cut down the reverberation so that you can at least enjoy listening to sound (talk) while watching TV.  I'm sorry if I misinterpreted your goal.  I assume that the current sound is so reverberant that it sounds similar to an echo chamber.

I would try Monitor Audio Gold 300 5G there is really not bright sound from that tweeter. I think would fit very well into your room. 

@auxinput Thanks, looking into rugs now. 

@fleschler @maxwave As I mentioned in my OP, I am NOT an audiophile nor am I looking at this room to be my critical listening area. All I am trying to do is to have some extended listening sessions at higher volumes without going deaf/cringing. There isn't much i can do other than room treatments, which I will. The windows, I was planning on covering with shades/drapes regardless.

Hopefully, that should help a lot.

@maxwave I 100% agree, lovely room, not for serious music production or reproduction.   I spent more to build my sound room than the equipment.   

Just too many hard and reflective surfaces (marble tile floors and the wall between the speakers, the TV between and windows to the sides of the speakers and rear room-oy vey).   

Reminds me of a highly reverberant flat in an Israeli apartment, beautiful but difficult to carry on a conversation.    

One of these in front of each speakers

https://img.hollywoodpq.com/yb-n8yYXqoL5xLX9iRqNHmDeGnI=/1470x0/smart/filters:format(webp)/https://hollywoodpq.com/wp-content/gallery/ryan-reynolds-choisit-la-pause-peau-dours-pour-nous-montrer-son-costume-de-deadpool/lisbeth-scott.jpg

I would not necessarily look at replacing your receiver with warmer sounding equipment such as Marantz just yet.  Work on the room treatments first, and maybe your Sonus Faber speakers.  Then see how things sound.

That sounds good.  I have always liked Sonus Faber speakers.  They are very natural and full sounding, good resolution.  The only very minor downside is that they are not as fast/resolving in the higher frequencies when compared to other speakers (such as diamond or beryllium tweeters).

Since the Lumina V is a down-firing port, I would not put any sort of rug or carpet underneath the speaker because it could impede the airflow for the bass frequencies (there's not much space there with the spikes).  Your thick rug should start about 5-8" IN FRONT of the speaker, but should not be underneath the speaker. lol.You should be able to place them closer to the wall.  It is speakers that have rear firing ports that really need to be farther away from the wall.

Having the rug go underneath the couches is not a problem. 

If you move the speakers to in front of the windows and can do some heavy velvet curtains, that may solve a lot of problems.  You may not have to treat the tile behind the TV.

Do these acoustic treatments one step at a time and see the result.  You may end up having to do a second large area rug for that sitting area with the glass coffee table.  You could also do runner rugs behind your couch/sitting areas as well:

https://www.macys.com/shop/area-rugs/runner-rugs?id=190872&cm_sp=c2_1111US_catsplash_rugs-_-row2-_-image_runners&edge=hybrid

Thanks for all the inputs, all!

Speaker, speaker position:

I think I am leaning towards the Lumina V's which have the reflex port on the bottom i.e. down firing. So, I am thinking I will place these further apart, as you all have suggested, basically in front of the windows, but I would like to place them closer to the wall, I can probably do 1 ft away at the most. I am hoping the down firing bass reflex would help/allow me to get away with that.

Thoughts?

Room treatments:

For the room treatments, i will start with with the a 2" thick acoustic panel on the side wall, probably 48x36, larger/thick rug in front of the speakers.

The larger rug size should cover the area in front of the speakers in their new position (in front of the windows) all the way back to the couches. I am thinking of having this rug go under the front feet of both couches. That should be more than enough? Thickness of 3/4" should do it?

Back wall is going to be tricky to address with the wife. Will start with the above 2 first and see how it goes.

Stick with Klipsch. 

Vandersteen series 1or 2 would both work for tour application.

I think you have a difficult room to work with.  Your room opens up to the right with all those hard surfaces.  You lose a lot of compression and lose your sound stage.  Maybe install hardwood floors and put two 9x12 rugs.  The timber of the room would warm things up.  You might add an ARCAM AVR.  They are far better than Denon.  
 

you might also go and listen to a pair of the new Revel Performa towers with beryllium tweeters.  For $7,000 the really sound wonderful with really nice detail.

Your biggest problem is all that open space to the right with all those reflective surface.  So much sound is escaping from the listening area.

Hiring a professional is an option.

But it certainly doesn't hurt to get yourself aquatinted with how the room sounds first hand.

Start with clapping several times in the area you will be listening from. Do this as many times as it takes to get a feel for how the room echoes back. Before you clap, imagine what it might sound like and then see if your clap matches your memory.

With each new acoustical solve/addition, clap a few times to hear the difference. After a few months you will start to sense what is happening.

@kgtunes 

What is your budget ?

-Do these wall art panels need to be a certain thickness to be effective at sound absorbtion?

A sound panel does not really need to be thicker than 2". You only need really thick panels if you want to treat/absorb bass frequencies. I don’t think you will have bass node issues in your very large room and connected rooms.

It makes sense to put the speakers wider so that they are in front of the windows for the window treatments to absorb the sound. Will look into acoustic panels, larger rug and artwork on the side wall. The back wall is going to be an issue

There is a reason to put absorption right behind the speakers. When sound is generated by speakers, the sound waves will be reflected by the walls behind your listening position. Many reflections make their way back torwards the speaker and are actually reflected again by the wall "directly behind the speaker". This double-echo is what you want to avoid. That is the primary reason for recommending you move the speakers wider to be in front of the windows and use very heavy curtains as a sound absorber for mid and high frequencies.

Ultimately, that whole tile floor as well as the tile wall behind the tv is what is killing you. Drywall is pretty okay for acoustics, but you still want to catch first reflections.

Wall behind TV - I would look into maybe doing a heavy curtains here. One heavy curtain behind the tv to cover the tile - or possibly a diffusion panel to cover the tile. The diffusion panel could get expensive. Then heavy curtains for the windows. If you use curtains for both tile and windows, maybe think about floor-to-ceiling curtains so that the window/tile sections all look uniform (this is good for wife-acceptance-factor).

Left wall - you currently have this multi-colored painting. I would look into getting a couple of GIK Acoustics art deco panels. Maybe a couple of 24x24 panels. Or even a big 48x36 if you want. You don’t need a whole lot of treatment on this wall, but you do need some.  The panel should come down to the level of the couch.  Good hint - put a mirror on the left wall and move it around.  If there is a point where you can see the speakers from your listening position on the couch, you definitely need a panel there. See here:

https://www.gikacoustics.com/product-category/acoustic-art-panels/

Floors - put as many large thick area rugs as possible. You have a small rug in front of your couch and I also see a small rug under that coffee table. I think the tile floor right in front of the speaker should get thick rugs for sure.

Backyard windows - this is likely far away enough where it won’t affect acoustics too much, but you can put curtains on these windows as well if you still need a little bit more echo absorption. This will help.

@kgtunes 

SF speakers are very nice and we auditioned those and the Focals at the same time. The SF were a bit warm for us it seemed the Focals had better detail. You can’t go wrong with SF tho. Happy listening ! 
 

Ron 

Room treatments should be number 1 on your list.  GIK acoustics makes some attractive panels with scatter plates or the art decco series looks like pictures hanging on your wall. I’d get those little triangle things to put in the top corners of the room. Having good room treatments will make the entire place more relaxing even in silence.  Conversations, especially with 4,5,6 people in the room, will be much easier heard and more easy to understand (speech intelligibility).  

After room treatments, hunt down some warm, laid back speakers.  Something with silk dome tweeters would be my recommendation.
 

KG,

Glad you're addressing room acoustics before making any equipment changes.  You can spend a fortune on equipment, but if your acoustics are bad you'll never get great sound.  I don't think you have to go overboard on treatment either.  Adding a larger rug and heavy drapes will go a long way on lowering the room glare.  A  2" canvas covered art panel will do some good and won't stick out visually in a Family room setting.  If this were a dedicated listening room I would go with 4" or 6" thick panel; I'm considering the spousal acceptance factor here. 

You could use a much larger artwork here or perhaps a two piece diptych. These really are a relatively low cost way to go.  Do all these changes one at a time and you'll see how each one helps.  Let me know how it goes.  This is one of the fun parts of this hobby, these small changes can add up to big improvements.  Hey, where is your sub located?

@carlsbad yes, that is exactly what I intend to do down the road....

@vinylvin I do have the Polks all the way around in my media room, I was going to try and bring those down to the Family Room and try them out..

@auxinput  Will look into Marantz and the discrete analog output

@tony1954 @ricmci @markpop1227  @audiotroy Sounds like I need to attend to the room acoustics first (rather than later).

Will do that and report back.

@singere Meanwhile I found a dealer who actually had the Sonus Faber Lumina V's on the floor, I went by to audition them and I loved them! They didn't have too much in room treatments, so I think with some room treatments (larger rugs, shades/curtains for all windows, some more art or acoustic panels on the walls) with the Lumina V's should be a whole lot better. 

@ronboco I never auditioned Focal's, just went by what I had heard/read about them being brigher (slightly?) than the SF, but man these SF's sounded so good and looked fabulous too.

@searchingforthesound Yes, that is the plan. Another vote for Marantz.

@jonwolfpell @dbensky Thanks for the suggestions/offers, never even heard of some of these speakers. I am still a newbie in this space..:-) 

@soundmd Excellent suggestion on what exactly to do for the room issues. It makes sense to put the speakers wider so that they are in front of the windows for the window treatments to absorb the sound. Will look into acoustic panels, larger rug and artwork on the side wall. The back wall is going to be an issue. Will work on the other things first and see if that makes it acceptable. 

For speakers, i guess it jives well that I loved the SF's, they have the soft dome tweeter!

@sandthemall I pretty much expected to hear it reg the room. 4-5 times larger than the current one? Wow, so the entire surface in front of the speakers should be rug?

I think I can sell that to the wife. Actually, that will help solve the problem of the couch's feet making marks on the white tile! I started looking into vcoustics: https://www.vcoustics.com/, sounds like a whole new thing to research.

Based on all the responses here, I will try and fix my room acoustics first before getting new speakers, thanks all!

For this, do I need to hire an acoustician to tell me what type of acoustic panels go where etc? Sounds like that might be overkill and i would get 80% of the return by just doing the basic things:

-Much larger rug in front of the TV/speaker area going under the couch'

-Add curtains on the windows to the sides of the TV

-Larger wall art on the left side wall

-Re-evaluate. I don't know if I can/want to do anything about the back tile wall. This was the look we wanted...

-Ceiling treatment? What kind?

-Do these wall art panels need to be a certain thickness to be effective at sound absorbtion?

Before you do anything.

 Try placing the speakers wider or on the outside of the windows.

PLease let us know what happens.

If your tired if bright box speakers try a Pair of Vandersteen multi enclosures.

  Best,

JohnnyR

PSB towers might work, not bright at all.

I had a system layout almost exactly like yours about 2 houses ago! The house I moved into next was perfect for audio. My same audio system took a monumental leap in imaging and clarity with nothing more than a room change. Night and day. Reflective surfaces smear sound and don’t allow you to crank up the volume.

Your biggest problem is your room. And I know you probably don’t want to hear any of this...but no amount of money spent on speakers can fix it.

You have a pretty room but will not do so well with audio. Would be better if the entertainment system was against a short wall but I understand that the short walls are not ideal either as one long wall opens up to other rooms. Still there are simple things tou can do:

My advice is to start with a bigger, heavier rug. About 4 to 5 times the size of your current one. You can run the rug under your couches. Put the rug on a heavy felt rug liner. It will save the rug from dust mites and moths in a way that rubber netting slips can’t do.

Running the same floor tile up the wall is a design faux pas. Maybe take that down and replace with an acoustic wood texture (wood slats etc.).

Use curtains on the windows.

Put some art on the walls but nothing with glass. Exposed canvas paintings are great...wood carvings...textile art...you get the idea.

In a room like that, the improvements will be subtly accumulative.

An acoustic ceiling treatment/tiles might be the strongest solution. Something between your listening position and the speakers.

IMHO the biggest issue with your setup are the room acoustics.  There are a lot of hard surfaces and it is a rather large open space.

May I suggest instead of adding blinds to the two windows on either side of the TV, use floor to ceiling drapes with back out linings; close them when doing critical listening sessions.  Move your speakers out a bit wider so they're in front of the windows.  This will give you some absorption/ diffusion on the front wall and a wider soundstage for movies. The big factor is the floor.  You need a much larger rug, preferably with a thick rug pad.  Most interior designers specify a rug large enough so the front feet of sofas and chairs in the seating group to on the rug.  Bigger is better.  Perhaps move your existing rug to the other seating area group.  Next, check out GIK Acoustics or Acoustimac for acoustic panels with printed art work to replace the smallish artwork over the side sofa; this will help with first reflections.  Your wife might like the fact that she can choose new drapes, rug and artwork.

Here's a slightly more extensive issue; remove the marble slab behind the TV and possible replace with a diffusion panel from GIK Acoustics. They make some contemporary style panels that would integrate well with your decor. Luckily your main seating sofa is open to the Kitchen behind, which is to your advantage as far as room reflections.

Lastly, (sorry for the long winded response) look for speakers with soft dome tweeters, stay away from horn speakers in your environment.

I think the recent set of recommendations is failing to realize that this person has a really difficult room with a LOT of hard reflective surfaces.  I see one medium size floor rug and foot rest.  Most of the recent recommendations won't really work for him, even though they are great items.

I have a pair of mint condition Focal Area 936 K2's.  I also have a Marantz AV7702 MK II pre-amp, an Anthem P2 with 325 watts per channel into 8 Ohms, REL T7 and T5i subwoofers that should work perfectly for you.  Total price for all only $7,725 plus shipping.  I may be willing to sell individually depending upon what you want.  Let me know if you are interested.

Look into the Volti Audio Razz. $6000 for the pair. Very efficient, dynamic, not harsh or bright. The midrange is so fast & clear , would be great for music & dialogue for movies. I don’t think they make a center channel model but talk w/ Greg Roberts ( owner, designer & builder) & I’m sure he would have some good recommendations for that . They can play very loudly & sound great w/ ease. 

Room looks great for audio.  I would tell you the Klipsch speakers are very revealing due to the horns so the brightness you are hearing is from your sources.  

As some noted room correction is needed .  Denon uses Audyssey and then there is  Dirac which is probably the best solution out there today.  You would benefit from some treatments as well

Finally upgrade your receiver and add amps for the additional channels you will find the sound do a complete 360 Denon is decent i have owned three various receivers in the past even their highest end sku at one time.   When i upgraded to even Marantz  from the same company the sound quality was night and day.. 

Start there then find your speakers!

@kgtunes 

We have Focal speakers for our HT set up in our family room. Movies are fantastic and music is very good as well. With some room treatments I don’t believe Focals will be too bright for you. Have a look at our set up on my systems page for some possible ideas for your space. Good luck! 
 

Ron 

You may want to consider the Sonus Faber Sometto III, or V's with a C1 or C2 center. I currently own the Sonetto III with a C1 center and actually upgrading to the V's and the C2 center. These speakers are 4 months old and are in a dedicate theater room. Great sound for movies and music. PM me if you would like to discuss any interest on these speakers.

My house is similar to yours with a lot of hard surfaces and some soft. But I have coves and it’s a sonic nightmare. I agree with you that I like Kliscph speakers but they’re just not fit for that kind of room. I switched to Harbeth which made a huge difference and sounded better in the room over the Vandersteens. I probably like the Vandersteen’s better but not in a room like yours. I think the British sounding speakers, Harbeth or ATC, would be better and it worked better in a room like yours. 
 

I discovered something very interesting that may happen to you as well. I listen to music about conversational level not much louder. With my Vander Steen‘s I can only turn the volume on my Prima Luna to about three. With the Harbeth to get the equivalent I turn the same amp to about seven. It seems more fulfilling for some reason. The reason could be due to room acoustics

I don't know which monitor audio is you're talking about but monitor audio doesn't use a ribbon tweeter anymore they're using an MPD tweeter in their gold and platinum series which is their version of an AMT tweeter which is very natural sounding I should know cuz I have a pair of platinum 200 ll.

If you are in the USA look at Revel F36 which have or have recently had some excellent sale prices.  Also consider the Focal Chora floorstanders.  The previous recommendations for Monitor Audio are also good.

Regarding your current subwoofer, it should be replaced.  Sell it and get something good from SVS, HSu, or PSA.

We are a home theater shop we sell many brands of loudspeakers 

Dali Opticon have the perfect blend of warmth and clarity and they look eleggant

Add a highend Integrsted with tubes unison trsearch primo 1400 that will improve music and add warm this integrated will power the fronts

Use tidal waybetter then yt

Als upgrade sub which will add warmth

Thck rug with pad hang wall coverings

I would return denon . Go with nad superior sound and fully upgradable design

Dave and troy

Audio intellect trained fhome theater designers

Please feel free to call us

The floor is a problem.  I had a polished concrete floor that could not be overcome as wife would not allow any room treatments.  Had to move to another section of the house with much better results.

Since Marantz and Denon are owned by Sound United, would you say the Denon 3700h would sound similar to the Marantz?

I don't have direct experience with Denon, but I would not automatically assume that it sounds the same.  Marantz is also the only receiver to have discrete analog output stages.  The higher end receivers are better.

My suggestion.

Before you even start to consider speakers or audio components. Reduce the rooms hard flat surfaces, both walls and floors, by perhaps 75%. By adding large rugs, wall hangings, artwork (sculpture), plants, etc.. This will help break up the worst reflections of what is less than perfect room for sound. It won't be perfect, but at least it will allow you to get a better idea to what a component actually sounds like. As it currently is, your room will make anything sound more harsh and bright.

I have a Denon, not as nice as yours. I've had it for 10 years. I think it

sounds really good. I've been using Polk LSi 15s as fronts. The new

Polks seem nice & have great reviews. Maybe you could audition them.

@auxinput Thanks, that's exactly what I was thinking/heard that in terms of warmth: Sonus Faber > Wharfedale > KEF > Klipsch in the 3 speaker brands I was considering/looking at. This is also what I have experienced first hand in my room.

Since Marantz and Denon are owned by Sound United, would you say the Denon 3700h would sound similar to the Marantz?

@mesch @sbank Yes, would definitely be adding curtains on the windows, larger rug, but will look into the ATS Acoustics sound absorbing panels as well. 

@carlsbad Not sure what you mean by the last statement.

@bjesien Thanks! Yes, will add those things surely, I already have the Polk PSW505 sub. I just tried it out, there IS a slight slap echo on the right side of the room (the other side of where my HT/audio/listening positions are). Sounds like I will need the sound absorbing panels as well...