Guidance on Centre channel.

[NadirT]

Hello all.
I will be upgrading my centre channel in few months. Currently I own Yamaha YHT1840. Since I will be buying an active sub in few weeks, I reckon my avr will be left with some juice to power a decent centre speaker. Also, I will be using this centre channel for my future HT setup.

My room size is 20x11. Primary usage(90%) movies over ott and podcasts. Budget <20k. Nothing particular in mind, but a speaker that provides a clear vocal even for those whispers is appreciated.

I went through various centre speakers. What intrigued me the design and driver sizes. For eg. JBL A125C has a MTM design with 2x5.25” woofers, whereas JBL A135c has MMMTMMM design with smaller 6x3” woofers. Then we have front ported(single/double) speakers with varied driver sizes. How does this all affect the final outcome. Will JBL A135c have more pronounced vocals compared to A135c? The speaker design is really confusing. I hope someone can help me out with this.

After centre channel, my next goal will be Front speakers. If timbre matching really makes a noticeable difference(if someone can tell me from experience), I will be matching them. Suggestions on this line will be be very much appreciated.

Thank you in advance.

ps- zero HT experience, and not looking for ultimate build. Just a decent speaker system.

 

[NadirT]

Bump.

 

[Raj22]

I was using 1840 previously and I have purchased Dali Piko Vocal center channel speaker and I was happy with it. I have paired them it’s Klipsh R14 Timber matching for front speakers with center channel will be essential as per my experience.

 

[DB1989]

Hello all.
I will be upgrading my centre channel in few months. Currently I own Yamaha YHT1840. Since I will be buying an active sub in few weeks, I reckon my avr will be left with some juice to power a decent centre speaker. Also, I will be using this centre channel for my future HT setup.

My room size is 20x11. Primary usage(90%) movies over ott and podcasts. Budget <20k. Nothing particular in mind, but a speaker that provides a clear vocal even for those whispers is appreciated.

I went through various centre speakers. What intrigued me the design and driver sizes. For eg. JBL A125C has a MTM design with 2x5.25” woofers, whereas JBL A135c has MMMTMMM design with smaller 6x3” woofers. Then we have front ported(single/double) speakers with varied driver sizes. How does this all affect the final outcome. Will JBL A135c have more pronounced vocals compared to A135c? The speaker design is really confusing. I hope someone can help me out with this.

After centre channel, my next goal will be Front speakers. If timbre matching really makes a noticeable difference(if someone can tell me from experience), I will be matching them. Suggestions on this line will be be very much appreciated.

Thank you in advance.

ps- zero HT experience, and not looking for ultimate build. Just a decent speaker system.

Get the Q acoustics 3090ci (15k). By far the best best centre channel i’ve heard below 20k and comes dangerously close to the performance of the Q acoustics concept centre.

 

[NadirT]

Get the Q acoustics 3090ci (15k). By far the best best centre channel i’ve heard below 20k and comes dangerously close to the performance of the Q acoustics concept centre.

Going through various posts, I also narrowed down my search to QAcoustics. 3090ci for centre, 3020i for fronts and 3010i for surround. Everyone agrees to their high performance. What held me back was the fact that these are rear ported speakers and due to space constraint wall hanging is my only option. I have seen few reviews and almost everyone suggested to use stands to unleash their true potential.
The only decent budget wall hanging speakers as per my research is Polk Signature series. S35 for centre, S20 for front, and S10 for surround. At least this is what i have in mind for now.
Ps- do correct me if i am missing something.
Thank you

 

[NadirT]

I was using 1840 previously and I have purchased Dali Piko Vocal center channel speaker and I was happy with it. I have paired them it’s Klipsh R14 Timber matching for front speakers with center channel will be essential as per my experience.

Did you use Dali with 1840? If yes, how is the performance?

 

[DB1989]

Going through various posts, I also narrowed down my search to QAcoustics. 3090ci for centre, 3020i for fronts and 3010i for surround. Everyone agrees to their high performance. What held me back was the fact that these are rear ported speakers and due to space constraint wall hanging is my only option. I have seen few reviews and almost everyone suggested to use stands to unleash their true potential.
The only decent budget wall hanging speakers as per my research is Polk Signature series. S35 for centre, S20 for front, and S10 for surround. At least this is what i have in mind for now.
Ps- do correct me if i am missing something.
Thank you

i wouldn’t know about the performance upon wall hanging the 3090cis. i think for your application, the polk s35 could work considering it has the power port for bass so it won’t be blocked like that of the 3090cis upon wall mounting.Coincidentally, i happened to do a side by side comparison of the 3090cis and the polk s35 when i was hunting for my centre channel and i found that the 3090cis outperformed the s35 when both had been placed on a shelf while being substantially cheaper as well.

 

[NadirT]

i wouldn’t know about the performance upon wall hanging the 3090cis. i think for your application, the polk s35 could work considering it has the power port for bass so it won’t be blocked like that of the 3090cis upon wall mounting.Coincidentally, i happened to do a side by side comparison of the 3090cis and the polk s35 when i was hunting for my centre channel and i found that the 3090cis outperformed the s35 when both had been placed on a shelf while being substantially cheaper as well.

This is a valuable information. For half the price, that’s remarkable. Thank you.

 

[Michelangalo]

i wouldn’t know about the performance upon wall hanging the 3090cis. i think for your application, the polk s35 could work considering it has the power port for bass so it won’t be blocked like that of the 3090cis upon wall mounting.Coincidentally, i happened to do a side by side comparison of the 3090cis and the polk s35 when i was hunting for my centre channel and i found that the 3090cis outperformed the s35 when both had been placed on a shelf while being substantially cheaper as well.

Polk S35 is made for people who have space constraints and lacks power. You should have compared it with S30 it's has more power and punch.

 

[Michelangalo]

I recently acquired Polk csi a6 and it goes well with the RTi a7s. If you can timber match with your current speakers then you might consider that too. It's a lil on the expensive side around 27-30 K dealer cost. If your looking for budget friendly option then Polk csi a4 is also there to consider.

 

[DB1989]

Hello all.
I will be upgrading my centre channel in few months. Currently I own Yamaha YHT1840. Since I will be buying an active sub in few weeks, I reckon my avr will be left with some juice to power a decent centre speaker. Also, I will be using this centre channel for my future HT setup.

My room size is 20x11. Primary usage(90%) movies over ott and podcasts. Budget <20k. Nothing particular in mind, but a speaker that provides a clear vocal even for those whispers is appreciated.

I went through various centre speakers. What intrigued me the design and driver sizes. For eg. JBL A125C has a MTM design with 2x5.25” woofers, whereas JBL A135c has MMMTMMM design with smaller 6x3” woofers. Then we have front ported(single/double) speakers with varied driver sizes. How does this all affect the final outcome. Will JBL A135c have more pronounced vocals compared to A135c? The speaker design is really confusing. I hope someone can help me out with this.

After centre channel, my next goal will be Front speakers. If timbre matching really makes a noticeable difference(if someone can tell me from experience), I will be matching them. Suggestions on this line will be be very much appreciated.

Thank you in advance.

ps- zero HT experience, and not looking for ultimate build. Just a decent speaker system.

Another thing that you may consider is that the centre channel is not only responsible for producing vocals clearly (most decent centre channels do a pretty good job and won’t be found wanting on that front), an equally important but often overlooked aspect is that the centre channel should also be capable of producing big dynamics. The centre channel is the speaker from which most information in the movie track is being reproduced, especially in action scenes and a wimpy centre channel will struggle in this apsect (to experience this in practice, try unplugging your current centre channel while watching a movie and check how much sound actually comes from other speakers). Though a large centre channel may look ungainly, it pays dividends when it comes to watching movies. Check out any high end surround package, their centre channels are usually huge.

 

[Raj22]

Did you use Dali with 1840? If yes, how is the performance?

Yes I have used it wit mh 1840 and also in my current setup till recently with RX V485. It performed pretty well.

 

[DB1989]

Polk S35 is made for people who have space constraints and lacks power. You should have compared it with S30 it's has more power and punch.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t in stock. I totally agree that i should have tried out the bigger centre as it would have provided more punch. I’m myself looking for an upgrade to a bigger and better centre as my current one cant produce big scale dynamics during intense scenes.

 

[DB1989]

I recently acquired Polk csi a6 and it goes well with the RTi a7s. If you can timber match with your current speakers then you might consider that too. It's a lil on the expensive side around 27-30 K dealer cost. If your looking for budget friendly option then Polk csi a4 is also there to consider.

The csi a6 must be a behemoth of a centre?

 

[NadirT]

The csi a6 must be a behemoth of a centre?

It’s almost the size of an AVR! 24” wide with 6.5” drivers.

 

[NadirT]

Elac Debut 2.0 also falls in the same price category as Polk Rti series.

 

[AmK]

I would also consider using a bookshelf/monitor as the center channel. From the same brand/line of your front speakers (or even one line lower)

I have the Dynaudio Confidence center channel. But my Dynaudio Confidence bookshelf monitor, always sounds better than the horizontal center channel.

Space can be a constraint. But try a bookshelf speaker if possible.

 

[NadirT]

I would also consider using a bookshelf/monitor as the center channel. From the same brand/line of your front speakers (or even one line lower)

I have the Dynaudio Confidence center channel. But my Dynaudio Confidence bookshelf monitor, always sounds better than the horizontal center channel.

Space can be a constraint. But try a bookshelf speaker if possible.

I have read a few posts where people suggest buying identical BS speakers for front, rear, and centre. Obviously, one speaker will be left out, but the experience is said to be seamless.
Not an expert. Just conveying what i have read in various posts and forums.

 

[Raj22]

I'm currently using Kef Q150 LCR, used Dali center channel with Kef and it didn't really sync for me. Rear speakers can be of different make, it wouldn't really have any issues.

 

[DB1989]

I'm currently using Kef Q150 LCR, used Dali center channel with Kef and it didn't really sync for me. Rear speakers can be of different make, it wouldn't really have any issues.

For perfect synergy, its always better to use one make. It won't sound bad if the rears are different. But they will sound better if they are the same. Ordinarily, I shouldn't be one to speak since I am using different makes for centre, F LR, Mid LR and rear LR as well as Atmos but upon hearing 5.0 systems from the same make, the latter sounded more cohesive to me upon playing the same scenes in certain movies.