Installation Guide

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14
3. Standard Speaker Configurations
Dolby Conventions for Speaker Configurations
With the debut of Dolby Atmos, there is a new method of referring to surround sound
speaker configurations (see the “Dolby Atmos for the Home Theater” white paper for
more details). It is based on the standard nomenclature (stereo, 5.1, and 7.1) but
adds a number at the end to specify the number of height speakers you employ in
the playback system (for example, 7.1.4).
While manufacturers may decide to support more than one subwoofer output, Dolby
Atmos technology generates a single low frequency effects (LFE) signal. Figures 5, 6,
and 7 show the most common speaker layouts in a Dolby Atmos system for home
theater.
Figure 5: A traditional 7.1 speaker layout with four Dolby Atmos enabled speakers (7.1.4).
Figure 6: A traditional 5.1 speaker layout with four overhead speakers (5.1.4).