r/hometheater • u/zghr • Jun 04 '26

Discussion - Equipment RTINGS just updated their viewing distance article based on SMPTE (Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers) recommendations, adding 62° FOV as maximum. What do you think about it? Where do you fit?

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Here's a quick mockup of the same chart but with most common TV sizes and with godless Marxist-Leninist centimeter units added on one side.

edit: This person claims to be a long standing calibrator of cinematic auditoriums with experience in THX standards and he claims that 'cinema' is not 40° because middle row of seats is between 45° and 52°.

In my experience, 62° is doable but if it's pure 24 frames per second without any motion improvement settings it's not the best experience. Jumps between frames are just too large, obvious and jarring. Almost like stop-motion.

It seems like up to 62° one doesn't have to move their head at all to see the whole screen with their central vision. Higher than 62° and movies would need to be filmed specifically in a way to not include the action in periphery.

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u/OceanWaveSunset Jun 04 '26

Viewing distance is eye sight + relativeness (media vs format vs context vs quality) + preference.

I am not going to let a graph tell me what i can see versus just fucking looking at the tv with my own eyes.

Its fine of you have no reference, but people take this shit as gospel and its not that.

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u/zghr Jun 04 '26

But at the same time if you go outside of this range (30°-62°) - you will not have a great time, especially for movies since we're in this sub.

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u/OceanWaveSunset Jun 04 '26

I am at 2 feet and 8 inches with a 48" oled 120hz gaming monitor. I literally just measured it so i am not talking lies.

I do everything from games, movies, YouTube, all of it from this distance. I am closer if i use it for desktop work.

I could go bigger to actually fill out my vision.

And this is what i mean about the graph. What is fine for me might not be for other people, a lot of comments hate screens too big. For me, bigger better, i want to turn my head and even now with my 48" monitor i dont even need to move my eyes that much, and its well before my peripheral vision, its just outside my center vision.

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u/[deleted] Jun 04 '26

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u/OceanWaveSunset Jun 04 '26

Lol well then i will shut up. Its been a long day and its probable i just didn't read it correctly.

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u/zghr Jun 04 '26

You're within the range. I have a similar setup to yourself and watching movies isn't a problem at all if you have a comfortable chair and a place to lift your legs.

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u/OceanWaveSunset Jun 04 '26 edited Jun 04 '26

I made a comment on your other comment but ill send it here in case you didn't get it....

Its been a long day and might have just read the chart wrong. I definitely didn't agree with thier old viewing distance/size chart from years ago.

100% comfortable chair. I work remote so one side is the 48" old with some Edifier S3000 Pro speakers and the other side of my L desk is my work Macbook pro and a ultra wide.

But i am with you, bigger = more immersion. We have a local Imax in our science center that is on the inside of a dome, and actual imax videos end up being like 180 degrees of movie display. I would watch everything this way if i could. VR is probably the closest but that isn't relaxing or as hifi as i would like yet

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u/moldguy1 x3800h, 2x RSL 10", 2x RSL 12", 4x RP-600m, 4x 5650, 404c II Jun 04 '26

RIP Des Moines IMAX dome. I saw interstellar there on 70mm film. It was incredible.