55” or 65” TV Screen Size and Your Speakers: Please Join Survey


 

With my two-way speaker build on hold as the clock ticks towards December 31st when my $1200.00 in Sony card points expire, I am struggling to decide between the 55” or 65” Sony A95L OLED TV. Sitting on chairs at Best Buy, I tape measured 11 ft from the 55”, which looked small, while the 65” looked too big at the same distance.

 

My largely empty living room is 20 ft x 11, with the west side open, crossing a 4 ft wide x 27 ft hallway and into a ~ 10 ft x 9 kitchen and then 3 ft wide staircase. A triangular ceiling that peaks at 11 ft is above it all.   

 

I plan to listen 10 ft from my speakers, with the TV between them and a foot or so behind the horns.

 

I built the 65” (56.9” w x 33” h) cardboard mock and to my eyes at 12 ft the 65” “screen” looks immersive.  

 

I will build the 55” (48.25” x 27.5”) mock as soon as I can get more cardboard from the local supermarket.

 

Meanwhile, it might be very helpful to learn of the experiences of other 55” and 65” TV users.

 

How far are you from one of those screen sizes?  

 

Do you sit on a chair or recliner?

 

Please describe the speakers that you use in place of the TV’s internal speakers, and how far you sit from them.

 

 

ajant

I sit about 12 ft. from our TV in a stressless chair. We had a 55 inch but went to a 65 inch. No looking back, the 65 inch is a great size and doesn’t overwhelm the room. The 65 inch would work very well. If you look at the "recommended" viewing guide charts for TV viewing they would probably say a 75 inch would be recommended depending on the content resolution.  I ditched our receiver and 5.1  setup and went with an upper end samsung sound bar side/rear speakers and subwoofer.  It was better integration and actual sound.  After all it's only TV since we have a dedicated 2 channel room

I’m barely 8’ from my 65” screen. My best tv is a 55” Oled in the bedroom. I don’t do surround sound anymore because the living room size has gotten much smaller. I miss the days of having a 20x25’ room. Those days are long gone. 
 

I wouldn’t buy anything less than a 65” screen nowadays. And is it me or the screens have gotten smaller. My 65” screen is nearly as big as today’s 75” screen. What’s up with that?

You may not have room for this, but I offer this recommendation because it was a wonderful solution for 2 channel main systems. AWOL makes short throw laser projections and screens specially made for this purpose. The projector sits perhaps 15 inches on the floor in front of a screen that opens and retracts into a long narrow box (perhaps 5x5x115 inches) that also sits on the floor, just behind the plane of speakers. So, between my Apogee Divas I have a screen that is 120 inch diagonal (they come in 100 and 150 in screens, too); it fits perfectly between the speakers. It automatically opens, rises to a height you program, and which the bottom of the picture is about 18 inches above the ground. Two JL subs sit in front of the retractable screen, just below the projected pictures/videos, so nothing obstructs the picture or sound. I can choose pure audiophile listening, or watch yotubes or blu-ray movies. The picture is great, with great brightness, contrast, clarity and focus - day or night ! I highly recommend visiting the AWOL site. One of the best purchases I've ever made! Not mounted, retractable, of high quality and reliability. I hope this helps someone!

How did I miss this thread?

Background: I have a quite large room w/vaulted (16 ft) peak ceiling, ~25 ft by 28 ft. The large TV viewing sofa is a little more than 1/3 of the way from the front wall, where a long/low cabinet holds my LG OLED. The seated viewing position is maybe 10 ft from the screen. It’s 77".

Re this: "Sitting on chairs at Best Buy, I tape measured 11 ft from the 55”, which looked small, while the 65” looked too big at the same distance."

Nothing about what you saw at Best Buy matters nearly as much as what you see in your own space. And my experience has been--go large, as large as you can, and you’ll never regret it.

In my big room, the TV doesn’t exactly look small, but it also doesn’t dominate the room. In a smaller room, a 65" can look somewhat dominant. But all that vanishes when you sit down to watch. 65" is IMHO the minimum screen size to trick your eyes into being impressed. But even bigger can work well so long as the room and furnishings permit.

I would gladly have an even bigger screen if the cabinetry permitted. But 77" is max, and I love watching that big OLED. BTW, I’ve research that very same Sony OLED and read some rave reviews of it. LG & Sony are the only OLED brands to seriously consider IMHO.