Control room geometry: Stereo vs. Surround?

When designing the control room, for stereo production you want the speakers to cross at about 35-40% of the way into the length of the room, which is where the ideal listen position for the engineer would be. But for surround production, you want to be equidistant from all five speakers, which would place the engineer's listening position in the center of the room at 50% of the length of the room. Are these two opposing goals? Can you design a room to be used equally well for both stereo and surround production?

Yes! :) There are a few possible solutions. One is to not place the rear surround speakers up against the rear wall: Have them on the side walls, spaced away from the rear wall by whatever distance is necessary to get them on the "circle". Another is to still have them on the rear wall, but then to put a slight delay on the other speakers, to keep them all at the same time "distance" from the mix position. But wither way, you still need to treat the room more carefully, to keep first reflections from ALL speakers away from the mix position. That usually means adjusting wall angles differently, and also having more absorption at the front of the room, etc. If the room is big enough, then diffusion might be an option too. - Stuart -