AG water volume question....

So i did my first AG batch this past weekend which seems to be turning out ok. It was an AHS Holiday Chocolate Stout. The instruction sheet from AHS calls for an SG of 1.052 and i got an SG of 1.050 with a final volume of about 5.5-6 gallons. I was wondering about the ratio of quarts to grain to mash with. John Palmer's How To Brew says to use 2 quarts/lb. where i have seen other sources say 1.2 quarts/lb.. Which is right? I used the 2 quarts/lb. last weekend while making the stout and it seemed to work well but i'm not so sure that ratio will work this weekend. I'm making a big belgian and i'm not sure the grain plus water needed will fit my 7 gallon mash tun at that ratio. The grain bill for the belgian is:

15# Belgian Pilsner
9 oz. Caramunich
4 oz. Aromatic Malt
4 oz. Golden Naked Oats
recipe also contains 1.5# dark candi syrup but i know this won't matter in mash water volume.

So how much water will i need to mash with and how much will i need to sparge with? Thanks in advance for the help!

I've been using 1.25 to 1.5 and it works well.

You can use as little as 1qt/lb. Some people start low and then add more to adjust temp.

1.25 qts/lbs would probably be the most common answer. Some advice from a relatively new AG brewer, get yourself a software program. I use beersmith myself and now I don't know if I could brew without it. I will calculate how much strike and sparge water you need as well as any temperature adjustments you will need to make.

I usually use one quart per pound of grain, that seems to be plenty for me to get the consistency i am looking for. As far as sparge water goes, i always start with 10 gallons and shut off at 1.006. Hope this helps.