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Can back surrounds smear the front image?

I'm yet to be convinced of that the addition of rear surrounds represent a general improvement. Theoretically, I realize, it should. And certainly it does, for specifically encoded rear effects (few and far between though).

But in my set-up, I get a smearing of the front image (reduced clarity and definition), a constant problem. My rears are directional (Revels), not dipoles or bipoles.
pmcneil
rwwear
2,871 posts
 
Why not just set the processor to stereo when listening to music?
pmcneil OP
12 posts
 
Just to clarify things a bit...when I wrote 'rear' surrounds, I was not referring to side surrounds, which I also have, and are not a problem. Rather I was referring to two additional speakers located on the rear wall of the listening room (= 7.1). I have no problems with the side surrounds, and, as I've noted there seems to be almost nothing out there that is truly discrete 7.1. For most other sources, these rears have the problem I have mentioned if I allow the processor to feed them with signal.
kr4's avatar
kr4
3,688 posts
 
Of course. You are letting your processor "mess with" the signals to synthesize rear speaker output. As Rwwear has suggested, just play stereo as stereo (and 5.1 as 5.1).

Kal
pmcneil OP
12 posts
 
'Of course'.

OK, then 7.1 processors ought to come with a warning!

'WARNING: THE TWO ADDITIONAL BACK SURROUND CHANNELS SHOULD ONLY BE USED WITH DISCRETE 7.1 SOURCES'.
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knownothing
1,592 posts
 
Pmcneil,

Agreed.
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