Hi there, DH & I had the same debate... I really didn't want the tv over the FP as I didn't want the tv to be the focal point, but guess who did, LOL. We had concerns with the viewing angle. It's not as comfortable as looking at watching TV at eye level, but it's worked out fine. We still might get it mounted on one of the brackets that can tilt down. (Our room not quite as large as yours) Depending on the style of your fireplace, maybe you could have TV concealed by pocket doors above FP.9Do you have pics of your fireplace?) Another neat idea is having a piece of art that comes down over TV when not in use-operated by remote control. Not sure where you buy...or what this costs, but Candace Olsen uses quite often. A pic of set-up in our room...

Look into the Samsung Frame TV. It looks like art when it’s off. I have one in my bedroom, it’s pretty awesome. (Good tv too, so not just for the art)

@badabing2 Some feedback on the mount, now that it has been installed about a week: I like it. It's very well made and heavy. I do find it quite difficult to move up and down, though. (You need to "put your back into it" to get it to move. I think a child or old person might be unable to.) Also -- and this isn't really a criticism, but an observation -- mounting the soundbar was challenging. Since the mounting mechanism is meant to support basically any type of soundbar, it's less than ideal, and I feel the soundbar isn't firmly mounted. It's basically hanging there, and I need to be careful to not knock it off it's support. But, reality is, I don't know that they could have done it much differently while still supporting so many soundbar designs. It's a good mount overall.

My TV is above my fireplace, and it's a bad spot. You have to crane your neck or support it to look up. TVs are better placed lower down to the floor.