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Will Kef 202/2c center match Wilson Sophia mains?

Here is my question. I am looking to upgrade my center channel which is currently a Thiel SCS3. My ideal situation would be to replace it with the Wilson WATCH center in order to sonically match the best with my Wilson Sophia mains. The problem is that the center is 14" high and I am very constrained on the height of the new center speaker choice.

Currenly I have 8" height clearance and I could potentially move my plasma about 1 1/2" heigher to give me a maxumum of 9 1/2" height for the new center speaker. With these constraints in mind I have been looking at my options. It seems that the Kef reference 202/2c would meet my requirements nicely. I would love hear your thoughts on this speaker or any other suggestions. I am looking to improve the clarity of center channel and remove some the "thickness" in sound I get from the Thiel.

Here's a little more about my system:
Wilson Sohpia's powered by VTL ST-150, with VTL TL-5.5 preamp and HT bypass.
Center is Thiel SCS3, with Thiel CS 1.6 surrounds powered by Rotel RSX-1055 receiver.
musictime
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islandmandan
1,260 posts
 
I was never able to hear a Dynaudio center channel speaker, but I suspect it would work as well or maybe better than the KEF. Just an educated guess.

Best,
Dan
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dbphd
1,628 posts
 
MusicTime,

What is the basis for your thought that the 202.2 would be closer in sonic signature to the 104.2s than the 200C? The 104.2s use a dome tweeter, whereas both the 202.2 and 200 use a Uni-Q surrounded by a pair of small speakers. I should disclose that, given my vintage Proceed PAV/PDSD does not have an HDMI input, I have limited experience with the center channel for music. I am interested if the 202.2 might be a better match.

db
musictime OP
12 posts
 
db,

Yes you are correct. That was my mistake.

I would say that the duty of my center channel will mostly be for the home theater setup. The vast majority of my music collection is still 2 channel. However, I would stilllike the center to fit in better with the Sophias.

MusicTime
statman's avatar
statman
285 posts
 
Save your money and buy a used Watch version 1 off of here.That's what I would try and do.The Watch center will match the timbre of the Sophias.Voices are very distinct on some recordings.The center is the most important speaker in a multi channel system especially with movies. The Kef will work if that's the most you can spend for a center but most likely give you timbre problems in the upper mids highs due to different drivers being used by the two different manufacturers. It will be noticed when there is a pan in the front soundstage, or better yet a well mixed M/C soundtrack.
musictime OP
12 posts
 
Statman,

I would love to buy the Wilson center, but does the version 1 have a shorter height than the current version? The height restrictions is my biggest problem. I see someone here on audiogon has one up for sale but no height specs were given...

Musictime
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