Best Center Channel ever .. ?! :) - Page 3

And that's why horizontal centers totally dominate the market. People buy what looks good. I do agree that it looks horrible. That screen is half the size it should be.
Just so long as it doesn't result in a Coyote Ugly incident in the morning.

Any horizontal speaker is going to be a compromise as, ideally, three identical towers are ideal, but I've been quite impressed with the Aerial (CC5?), the Revel Ultima Voice, and the Evidence and Confidence Dynaudio centers. The top B&W 800 center is also quite good. Even the MTM Focal Chorus 800W is quite good considering the price and driver configuration, although I generally prefer 3-way center designs.

This is a hilarious conversation.

As an initial matter, neither absolute position is tenable in most situations. Aesthetics absolutely played a role in my decision to purchase my studio 60s v5 and the cc-590. Once we cleared certain SQ hurdles, aesthetics were considered. That the towers were rounded and a relatively small fit better with the decor of my space. I planned on auditioning the Revel F12's until I saw them - they just wouldnt work.

These forums are great - I have gotten a lot of useful information out of them. But, I dont see why the positions must be so absolute. What on earth is possibly wrong with considering both SQ and aesthetics when designing my system. Otherwise, why even decorate the room/ home? Unless I had a dedicated theater room that was only used for watching movies (rare in NYC), three floorstanders would never fly, and that is not just a function of WAF.

I was just playing devi's advocate a bit... I too use a horizontal center (NHT TwoC)... but it's only because I cannot place a monitor/tower appropriately... In a future room, that could change.

It's hard to comment on room size without any info go with the pic... The couch looks relatively close in the pic, but that doesn't mean the rear wall is right behind the couch and that it's a small room... It could be, but can't tell from the pic... Either way, I get what you're saying....

But I don't think having towers in a relatively small room is an issue provided the listening distance is enough to allow the drivers to properly sum.

I think that in the real world most of those who listen critically happen to be sitting in the central "sweet spot" so they wouldn't notice that anything is amiss anyway.

That's true enough for most cases, but then there are other cases (in the real world, too) where some seats are quite far off-axis--even more than 30 degrees. This is when the effects of comb filtering for typical horizontally-oriented centers can transition from barely noticeable to readily heard and objectionable for those who demand the best from their equipment. In my home theater, for instance, I have to use a vertically-oriented center speaker to ensure that at least dialogue is reproduced with the best possible quality and intelligibility for those who are seated far off-axis (unfortunately I don't currently have a dedicated theater room, so I don't control every aspect of my HT's layout). That said, there is still an improvement, albeit more subtle, for those who are only slightly off-axis, that I for one can hear and appreciate. If you MUST compromise with a center speaker that has narrow horizontal dispersion, then so be it, nobody is going to die from it, but if there is a better way, then that's what we should all at least strive for.

By the way, if the effects of comb-filtering don't matter for some folks, then maybe they don't need center channels at all. Most home theaters are small/narrow enough that it hardly matters that the center image shifts slightly for those who are off-axis--I bet that few would ever complain. As a matter of fact, more than a few HT enthusiasts swear by "phantom" centers, even preferring this configuration to having an actual center speaker. So why use a center speaker at all? Well, it mitigates some issues that discerning listeners/viewers have in off-axis seats. And why use a center that has wide horizontal dispersion (usually vertically-oriented)? Because for even more discerning viewers it clears up the issues that arise from using typical center speakers, providing the best sound quality for both on- and off-axis viewers.

It's not surprising that most people aren't very discerning or picky about sound quality. I don't mean that in a condescending way--it's just how things are unless you have the interest to learn and the experience to tell good from bad, and better from good. Naturally, those who have developed their knowledge and hearing perception would expect relatively high-end speakers (compared to typical mass market gear) that cost a fair amount of money to, at the very least, do all the basic things right, from an engineering standpoint--heck, even dirt-cheap speakers can be designed properly in terms of driver placement, even if the materials and components used are necessarily inferior. It's sad and embarrassing when manufacturers take advantage of their customers' ignorance to eschew basic engineering principles, and oh yeah, we'll call them on it.

There's nothing wrong with taking real-world factors - budget, placement limitations, WAF, neighbours, etc. - into account when setting up a home theater system.

I think that it looks good--I like the symmetry and uniformity of three identical speakers lined up in front, as opposed to one of them looking odd and out of place. My home theater has three vertically-oriented bookshelf speakers mounted just above the TV (helps keep them safe from pets and toddlers), and I like how they look as a set, too.

I completely agree, except that I think it's more cohesive in an aesthetic sense, as well.

Speaking of soundstage cohesiveness, this discussion kind of reminds me of this other one going on:
http://www.avsforum.com/t/1459292/how-important-is-it-to-timbre-match-your-speakers-5-1-home-theater/0_100

I guess some folks don't need center speakers or timbre-matched surrounds, but others want everything to be just right.

Who said that there can't be any compromise, depending on one's personal priorities and tastes? What's absolute is that some compromise is involved, no question. What's also absolute is that some of the center speakers we're talking about are poorly designed as center speakers, of which there is no doubt, either. Now, if an individual refuses to make certain compromises, that's their prerogative--as long as they aren't forcing others to see things entirely their way (except for the absolutes mentioned above), there's nothing wrong with that.

Look, I obviously agree that there is almost always compromise involved - my post made that plain. So long as that is clear, I think it is a useful conversation.

So do I.
I don't have to, I can fit a vertical array under my screen, and used to use one. Then I purpose designed a high efficiency wide dispersion horizontal center, for those who can't use a vertical array. It doesn't work as well as a vertical array, but it works well enough that after I was done testing it I left it in place and put the vertical array I had been using in my workshop.
The point here is that it takes a high level of engineering expertise to get a horizontally aligned speaker to work well. Some are well done, most are fair to middling, and then some, like the Axiom, simply don't make the grade. If you do have a chance to try before you buy remember that how it sounds directly in front of it matters little, it's how it sounds well off to either side that counts.

The pic was but a single example of how the typical horizontal orientation marketing driven herd mentality, can be avoided. I used that image only because I had it handy, as I'd posted it previously.


"To me that LOOKS horrible. It may sound good. The furnishings are nice. Thus my earlier comment in regards to dedicated rooms. This layout would drive me nuts. Based on perception of the couch in the background those speakers almost look too large. Monitors might have been a better approach. Wonder if those are rear ported? How does that center breath with all that rack behind it? And the shelfs are all glass."

Several subjective statements, preferences, etc., and one valid concern of a potential issue; .. the imaging may be executed better with the center being entirely free from all furnishings, and if the glass rings details may be smeared in time domain.

But, there's so much else right about a simple three normal speakers across the front, .. which is the issue at hand.


It's been said many times in audio, whether you're a speaker designer, or enthusiast, ... is all about a compromises ... choosing those choices that maximize what one is wanting to achieve, while minimizing those elements one takes exception to.

Lots of great insights. For what it might be worth, we are enjoying our JBL PC600 tremendously. Wonderfully clear dialogue and musical integration. It avoids the pure MTM shortcomings (including as best I can tell as a listener) and the confounding overkill depicted in at least one of the pictured examples. It is, however, sufficiently large so as to have limited our choices of consoles and related furniture (home theater application with an LED TV). I am interested to read about other great units, consistent with the original theme of this thread.