Matt's 7.1 home theater is built around a speaker brand that does things differently: Mirage, and its Omnipolar designs, which spread sound around the room instead of beaming it at one seat. At the center of the system is a receiver that quietly holds the whole thing together — and at the bottom end, for now, sits the most honest piece of DIY in the setup.

The Receiver

Marantz - SR5015 - AV Receiver - Receiver · Mirage - OM-9 - Front L/R - Speakers · Mirage - OM-2 - Center - Speakers The SR5015 runs the show — Audyssey room correction to keep seven very different speakers playing as one system, and Dolby Atmos decoding ready for the day height speakers arrive. Marantz's musical side matters here too, because this room does music as well as movies.

The Front Stage

The OM-9 towers are Mirage's omnidirectional design: instead of a narrow sweet spot, they create a wide wall of sound, which makes movie soundtracks feel big and puts music all around you. The OM-2 center keeps dialogue clear and anchored to the screen, even when the action around it gets busy.

The Surrounds

The OM-R2s handle the sides and a pair of Omni 50s cover the rear. Because the Omnipolar design disperses sound 360 degrees, the surrounds don't draw attention to themselves — the room just fills with ambience, and every seat hears it the same way.

The Subwoofer — DIY, For Now

The low end is a homemade sub built from a car subwoofer. It's the wildcard of the system: raw, unfiltered bass that you feel as much as hear. It does the job today — and it's openly the first thing on Matt's upgrade list.

What's Next

The bones of a great system are all here. A dedicated home-theater subwoofer is the obvious next step, and with the SR5015 already Atmos-ready, height channels are an easy add after that. What do you think Matt should upgrade first — the sub, or Atmos heights?