You probably love your living room. It’s where you put up your feet at the end of the day, ready to unwind in whatever home theater experience you have created. If you’re looking up, though, you’re doing it wrong—at least according to the “experts” on Reddit.
The premise of subreddit r/tvtoohigh is simple enough: Subscribers post photos of TV setups, both their own and others they know, and allow the commenters to tear the design to pieces. While you might see your general setup roasted here, there are some particularly outrageous TV placements, such as this ceiling installation, or this “hidden” setup, where it isn’t clear if the owner of the home even wants people to know they own a TV.
As the name implies, the focus is supposed to be on the height of the TV, but that doesn’t stop Redditors from voicing their opinions on the other aspects of the room, including furniture placement, lighting, and even paint color. However, the most common “offense” on the subreddit is placing your TV above a fireplace, a fairly common practice as flat panel displays make it easy to mount flush with the space. By default, that space is high, far too high if you ask these Redditors.
The subreddit isn’t what you’d describe as “nice.” Commenters do not mince words here, ripping apart these TVs and the rooms they’re in. That said, they do praise setups they find acceptable. Consider this post, with a title that implies OP isn’t 100% sure of their design. The top comment? “It’s perfect. Just so damn beautiful!”
So what passes the r/tvtoohigh test? It’s simple: an eye-level TV. The subreddit is a big believer in the idea that your TV should meet your eyes when you are sitting on the couch. It should either sit on an average height TV stand, or be mounted on the wall lower than many of us might assume. That’s really it. Of course, I can’t speak to comments on your overall aesthetic, but post a photo of your TV at eye level to the couch, and not many people will criticize your placement.
Another side to the coin here is distance from the TV to your couch, and what size TV you buy to compensate. This metric is a bit more controversial on r/tvtoohigh than the agreed-upon eye-level standard, as evidenced by this thread on the subject. The shared image lays out some recommended TV sizes based on the distance from it to your couch, such as a 42-inch TV for a six-foot distance, or an 80-inch screen for a 12.5 to 14-inch distance.
However, detractors point out that these metrics don’t make much sense, especially now that 4K TVs are the most common televisions these days. In the past, sitting too close to a big screen could be distracting, since you’d be able to see the 720p or 1080p display’s pixels. Now that the resolution of your TV is so high, you don’t lose much as your approach a big TV. What’s more important is how the TV fits your space, to your taste. And, of course, that it’s eye level.
It’s easy to see this subreddit as a group of mean-spirited people looking to rip on other people’s homes. At times, it is that. However, it does tend to change the way you look at TV placement. I’ve thought about mounting my TV before, and always assumed I’d place it relatively high up the wall. My instinct was to replicate the “theater experience,” and having to look up at my TV seemed the way to do that.
But I can see how eye level placement is more comfortable, for both watching TV and for the overall design of the room, as it aligns with the usual advice for hanging pictures on your wall (again, eye level). The subreddit, as cruel as it can seem, is also somewhat supportive. After trashing your photo, commenters will offer suggestions for rearranging your TV, furniture, or speakers, in order to create a space that fits their aesthetic.
But, again, it’s their aesthetic. Not everyone benefits from the TV setups and room designs that r/tvtoohigh approves of. Some of us have kids and pets, and keeping the TV and other tech away from curious hands and paws is more important than making sure the screen is eye level. Some of us like the way our rooms are set up, too. If it works for you, it works for you (just ask the subreddit for input).