Speaking of music, I have a conundrum. My living room is an odd shape, forcing me to put the television in the corner, slightly across the kitchen. I'd like to put in a receiver and a decent pair of speakers, but I can't figure out where the hell to put them. So I'm throwing it open to y'all: what sort of sound system could I put in here that would provide sound from my television, etc.? 
I'm not desperate for surround sound; I just want a fairly high quality player to hook up my DVD, Tivo, etc. to. Also, there's not really anywhere to hide wires, and it's a rental, so I'm not replastering. I can't figure out how to do anything without pushing the speakers too far into the kitchen door. The single speaker systems need to bounce off flat walls, which I don't have, and won't work with the glass in the bay window anyway. Can my audiophile readers apply their collective intelligence to this vexing problem?
The obvious answer is that you should go without. Simply buying more East Asian merchandise with an untold carbon trail is irresponsible, as the British government reminds the nation with dwindling success.
Stop the senseless warming spiral and pursue a more ascetic lifestyle! Turn off the TV and AC and minimise your carbon footprint! Go out and listen to the songbirds sing us their manmade swansong, fachrissake!
/snarcasm
Couldn't you just ask Otto Man? He knows a lot about speakers, I'm sure.
Dammit, Luke G, you beat me to it.
Without knowing your apartment, I think you could do with some wall-mounted speakers and a subwoofer. By using this setup it would be easier to place the speakers to get an optimal solution given your seating, and also they wouldn't give you the need to remodel your entire arrangement.
I use these "Podspeakers" http://www.slashgear.com/sexy-podspeakers-help-setting-the-mood-0610121.php and rather like them.
There are a few solid 2.1 (meaning 2 speakers, 1 sub-woofer) home theater in a box (HTIB) setups that work well in small spaces. I've had luck with the Denon S-301, and the S-201 is even more affordable. I thought I read that one of the big box chains was having a fire sale on that S-201 within the last week or so, but now I can't find what I read.
Why do you even have a TV?
I have a very odd setup as well. (Basically there's a fireplace/chimney in the middle and my "TV room" is one side of the fireplace and my real living room the other side so one pair of speakers has to play into both sides. What I ended up doing was getting a pair of floor speakers that reviews said had a wide soundfield (Klipsch RF3) and it seems to work pretty well even though the speakers aren't really aimed right for any particular location in the room(s). As others have said, one of those 2.1 or 5.1 setups might work pretty well for you too. The main reason I didn't go in that direction was the "sub-woofers" in those setups aren't really sub-woofers--just the low-end of the frequency range--so placement does matter somewhat and therefore wouldn't have worked well in my arrangement.
Ceiling mount the speakers. Subwoofers are mostly non-directional, so put it somewhere on the floor out of the way. Consider dumping the TV and get a ceiling-mounted projector. You can either get one with keystone compensating optics or get a lift. I don't know if this is practical without knowing the actual dimensions of the room, since without them I can't calculate the throw. Otherwise, wall mount the TV. Ceiling mounted motorized screens are readily available. Prices for projectors have come down about a factor of ten since I bought my first one, which is nice. In picking a projector, be sure to inquire about replacement lamp prices. If you think wires going everywhere are tacky, you can get someone to pull the stuff through the wall or across the ceiling inside the wallboard. Low voltage doesn't require conduit. Check your county rules to see if you would have to pull a permit.
The projection system is popular with the kids and their friends. Eight or ten of them can lie on the floor and get a reasonable view. For the setup in their 'playroom', I put karate mats on the floor and threw in some beanbags. No furniture other than bookcases. Now that two of them are in college, the setup is still popular when they're around summers.
I assume you don't live at altitude. There are altitude limitations on some projectors due to forced air cooling requirements.
Most of the gear necessary to do this is now available off-the-shelf.
I've done this in two rooms if you want any more detailed advice.
A serious audiophile would probably want to do a complete makeover of your room. With rough info like this, this is just a guess, but it looks like there is no way to get a good stereo image centered on the TV at any of the prime listening positions. (Though maybe putting speaker stands in high traffic areas would work.) You will have to get speaker stands and lots of speaker wire and experiment. You may end up resorting to playing DVDs in mono. (Make sure you get a system with that option.) That's really not such a bad thing. Almost all movie dialog is in dead center mono. if you have a lot of friends over, mono is usually better since only a few people get a good stereo image. If you go with mono for movies then you might want to put a pair of speakers on the wall across from the sofa for a good stereo image for music. Good luck.
Is that Orkin the Otto Man? No bugs in your apartment.
This is what you want: http://www.yamaha.com/yec/soundprojectors/
Using the magic of digital processing and psychoacoustics, a single speaker simulates the surrounds.
[Only Megan could get away with this.]
Megan, call yourself an audiophile! Pah. Wrong priorities. First buy hi-fi then find apartment to work with hi-fi. :-)
I am more concerned that your sofa is blocking your gorgeous bay window. This is a crime! Shift the sofa to the bottom wall, move the loveseat either (a) to the left wall, (b) floating directly opposite the couch, or (c) out of the room altogether. The TV can either go in the upper right corner or against the left wall depending on what you've done with the loveseat.
There are starving people around the world and you want to exacerbate your crime of having furniture by getting an audio system? For shame.
The morals of your veganism compel you to forgo all consumption until you can ensure that no one whom you enter into commercial transactions with eats meat.
Michael, I considered that, but I think it needs solid walls to work with, not a corner bordered by glass on one side. If you know different, I'd love to get one.
Bose 901s w/ subwoofer set anywhere. The system even sounds good in the other room.
My friend Ingaze who lives in rural Peru had the very same issue, and hired an audio specialist to give his hut a once over to establish the best accoustic treatment. He's still really hungry, but hearing his Andy Palacio music to perfection makes it all worthwile.
Hi Megan:
Personally, I don't think I'll ever buy a 5.1 system again. Wiring up the rear speakers has been a continual pain, and aside from the occasional cool bit in a movie when something flies overhead, or a bird cries out in the distance, I've found that it's just not worth it. Moreover, most 5.1 systems have small speakers optimized for speech, plus one big subwoofer for explosions, so their ability to play music is not great.
The single bar that Michael suggests is not bad. The wiring is very simple, which is a *huge* plus, and I have friends who have used them in odd spaces and been pretty happy. It's not 5.1 sound, but it's much better than stock TV speakers, and it's *really easy* to set up. Again, it may not be super musical because the speakers are small and designed primarily for speech.
You may want to consider a 2.1 speaker system, with bookshelf speakers (which are small) that you can mount on the walls if you like or put on stands. Yamaha has perfectly good 2.1 systems, but there are lots of good options.
Craigslist is your friend. It will be easy for you to find a decent receiver, a pair of two-way bookshelf speakers, and a sub.
-winterspeak
Whatever you decide to do, do NOT call Otto stupid...
First off, what is preventing you from putting the tv between the two tables.
On second thought, what is the purpose of the table next to the tv. Can it be moved?
I don't know Megan. You either need to work on your illustration skills or rearrange your furniture.
Hey, Otto Mann actually holds down a job. That's more than I ever managed to do.
I'm not a fan of satellite/subwoofer systems for general purpose use, but the way that room is set up, they may be your best option. One possibility is the Klipsch Promedia 2.1 system:
http://www.klipsch.com/products/details/promedia-2-1.aspx
While it is marketed as a computer speaker system, it would do pretty well as a general purpose audio system in a room that size, provided you don't have a 9'+ or vaulted ceiling.
The Bose Acoustimass 3 or Acoustimass 5 ystems are two similar entrants in this category, the satellites are small and easily placed while the subwoofer module can be hidden. The Acoustimass 5 with the swiveling sattelites would be ideal but it depends if you want to pay $400 (the 3 and the Klipsch set are about $200).
All three of these options are a complete, amplified, compact stereo speaker system at a reasonable cost, and will only need a cable adapter or two to interface directly to the TV's audio outputs. Also note that none of these three will please a genuine audiophile, but then, few things affordable on a journalist's salary ever will.
I expected more from you today Megan.
While surround sound problems may be important, I'm having a hard time alleviating my daily boredom at work.
Is there anything left to be said about Bob Barr?
Megan,
Buy a good Bose system with a sub woofer and their really small speakers. They sound great and you can put the speakers anywhere and hide the subwoofer in the corner. You are not a guy, you don't need big speakers to make up for your penis size.
Don't bother with surround sound. You only have two ears, stereo is better.
Think about moving the sofa to where the love seat is, love seat to the empty wall where the two tables are, and tables near the bay. Maybe find a way to put your the speaker somewhat in the middle of the room. Probably pointing at the love seat.
I bought a set of Vandersteen Model 1 speakers. The Cost ~$799 new.
I have a JoLida 202A 60watts amp, same price new. The 302 and 502 are supposed to be good, I think the 302 is supposed to have better low sound.
I got them used on eBay for around $295 + $75 for shipping for the speakers. The Amp came in just under $400 as well.
Re the Yamaha sound projectors and glass wall: Might work. The reason is that the high frequencies will bounce off the glass just fine. The bass freqs won't, but they're not usually directed to the outside of the sound field. Might not be a home run, but the chances are better than 50/50 that it will be fine. And since it's a rental, you may want to buy for the future as well as the present....
I'd check out the return policies and give one a try. If it doesn't work, send it back.
Yeah, the drawing isn't to scale. The reason the couch is where it is is that if I put it in what looks like the obvious place where the bookshelves are, it would be about four feet from the television. If I put it in the odd corner, there's nowhere in the room to put a television where you could view it from the couch.
So what if the TV is four feet from the couch. Unless a) you have a really huge TV, or b) you like to exercize or play Guitar Hero in front of the TV, that distance should be fine. If I were you I'd spend an afternoon moving furniture around. Sometimes, especially in smaller spaces, you have to see it to 'see it.' But maybe that just me and my total lack of spacial sense.
Unless a) you have a really huge TV, or b) you like to exercize or play Guitar Hero in front of the TV, that distance should be fine.
Both a) and b) are true. 4 feet won't work.
Get rid of the television or put it in a different room? Replace the sofa with chairs (maybe you can make a trade)?
The dimensions of the vandersteen speakers are 10"x 12" x 3'.
Model 1
If you happen to be near brooklyn this week.
A pitch for the Yamaha YSP units. Work great in my odd-shaped room for music and TV.