SINGLE104

I am contemplating on upgrading my surround speakers. currently, i am using Bose's 301's, and i want the best surround speakers for my Denon AVR-3801 receiver. i was looking at the Definitive Technology speakers, and they really have a great sound. any suggestions, or recommendations of the make, and model of the other high end surround speakers that are on the market?

Green Jello

What do your mains consist of? Generally, you will want to keep everything the same brand, or at least close to the same sound for proper timbre matching. Since you have the AVR-3801, the best case scenario or the 4 rears is if they were ALL identical.

dp20957

Others might/will disagree but I don't see the need to get the best speakers for surrounds esp. if you use them mostly for movies. I've got good main speakers (Snells) and center (Polk) but for the rears I just use cheap Radio Shack Optimus 77's which do a good enough job for what surround speakers do.

Green Jello

quote:<HR>Originally posted by dp20957:
Others might/will disagree but I don't see the need to get the best speakers for surrounds esp. if you use them mostly for movies. I've got good main speakers (Snells) and center (Polk) but for the rears I just use cheap Radio Shack Optimus 77's which do a good enough job for what surround speakers do.<HR>

I most DEFINITELY disagree! Movie soundtracks are all about creating a soundfield. A soundtrack is not about 6 to 7 different sounds coming out of 6 to 7 different speakers, it is about how they all work together and envelop you into the soundfield. Sound elements need to be panned across different channels and they all need to work together. The only way that this can be perfectly achieved is with all timbre matched speakers. Anyone who thinks you can get by with cheap (or lesser quality than your mains) center and surrounds, obviously has never been shown the difference.

DVD_O_Rama

quote:<HR>Originally posted by Green Jello:
I most DEFINITELY disagree! Movie soundtracks are all about creating a soundfield. A soundtrack is not about 6 to 7 different sounds coming out of 6 to 7 different speakers, it is about how they all work together and envelop you into the soundfield. Sound elements need to be panned across different channels and they all need to work together. The only way that this can be perfectly achieved is with all timbre matched speakers. Anyone who thinks you can get by with cheap (or lesser quality than your mains) center and surrounds, obviously has never been shown the difference.

<HR>

Well said.
People tend to forget that most of today's film soundtracks (Dolby Digital and dts) contain at least 5 (or 6 for dts ES soundtracks) full-range channels and a .1 channel. Just because those surrounds are usually smaller in most peoples' HT set-up doesn't make them any less important. Timbre-matched speakers all around can make a world of difference. If you haven't heard this type of set-up in a properly calibrated HT before, you're missing out on quite a bit.



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dp20957

Told you they'd disagree.
Everyone says you have to match all 5 (or more speakers) yet if you look at the systems in the link above you will see that most people don't actually do this.
I'm not saying you shouldn't have all the same speakers or you shouldn't upgrade, all I'm saying is I don't think it's absolutely, positively needed.
If you've got the money and find speakers you like, by all means upgrade. Upgrading is part of the fun. Just do it because you want to not because you feel you have to.

Green Jello

quote:<HR>Originally posted by dp20957:
Everyone says you have to match all 5 (or more speakers) yet if you look at the systems in the link above you will see that most people don't actually do this. <HR>

So, just because most people don't do it, that makes it wrong? He asked about upgrading his rear speakers, and the proper criteria with which to judge them. If he is going to upgrade, why wouldn't he want to do it right? I'm not quite sure what your problem is. Do you just not care about movie sound,..or are you just cheap and lazy? Or is it both?



[This message has been edited by Green Jello (edited February 05, 2001).]

SINGLE104

quote:<HR>Originally posted by Green Jello:
What do your mains consist of? Generally, you will want to keep everything the same brand, or at least close to the same sound for proper timbre matching. Since you have the AVR-3801, the best case scenario or the 4 rears is if they were ALL identical.

<HR>

My front mains are: MTX AAl-12 and center are also by MTX, but i do not have the sufficient amount of space to accommodate all large size speakers around the room, as i would like to,especially for the surrounds.

drmoze

Timbre-matching is a bit overdone IMO, and is definitely less-critical for the surrounds. Why do I say this? I had 3 identical speakers up front (NHT SuperZeros, replaced the midddle with a SuperCenter a while back). And guess what? All 3 speaakers sounded different tonally with the 'white noise' test signals. Why? I confess, my speaker placement is less than optimal, because of space considerations. The left one is on a fireplace mantle (wall shelf), the right one is about 6" from the rear wall, on a very short stand. ANd the center is on top of my rp tv.

All speakers are within a few inches of the same height, but the speaker placement has a real effect on the tonal quality. In an ideal system (and in mine, someday!) the speakers will be identically mounted (mine on floor stands on either side of the tv). And despite the "tonal matching" (how much better can you get than identical speakers?), the center will still sound different because of it's different placement. (And the effect is real, as swapping speakers gives the same relative tonal flavors in the test signals!)

Front speakers should be carefully matched so that panning sounds are seamless; a close approximation will generally be undetectable. The rears are less subject to audible tonal mismatch, as their placement and reflective qualities are very different than the fronts.