Stereo Imaging

I agree with Cdwallace3...."If your center channel isn't improving the quality of your soundstage, you're system isn't set up correctly."

I'll just add that I have been fooled many times into thinking I was watching a movie in Dolby Movie IIx mode (center fully engaged), and enjoying it, only to notice that audio was set to 'Stereo'. But, every time this happens, it sounds better when I switch to the Movie mode, and engage the center. There is no way two horizontally arrayed speakers can compete in terms of precise localization of the image, no matter how good they are, if the center is of equivalent quality and properly set up.

+1 Cdwallace3. Actually your missing a geat deal but if your OK with it then that's all that matters.
The center is somewhat like the audio fulcrum for multi channel dialogue location. Inserting a display on plane between my two channel speakers interferes with two channel staging way too much. Putting the display well behind the two channel speakers sounds horrible to me.

"...if the center is of equivalent quality..." - Pmcneil

I can't disagree with you on this, but is the home theater advantage big enough to warrant spending a little less on the mains assuming the same overall budget? It's all about choices for people working on limited budgets.

I probably would have the matching center in my system, but I simply couldn't find any furniture that it would fit in.

Hearing a significant difference with the addition of a center channel is a little different than not missing the center when you don't have one.

My position is if you have good mains set up right and they are imaging well the center hurts the system in most cases since the center is usually a lesser speaker.

Now this is only true if you are sitting in the sweet spot. Anywhere else in the room the center is critical. The center is for everyone else.

In the digital domain, I can cleanly adjust multiple points of stereo imaging of my active L/R mains through a Behringer DEQ 2496. It's processing the unadjusted digital signal from my Pro from all sources. The DEQs' 1.0 stereo image setting is normal stereo, 0.0 is full mono, and 3.0 wide. This set-up keeps timbre matching correct in 2-channel while keeping the bass more centered for certain recordings.

My SVS Ultra13 sub is connected to the 2496's fixed balanced analog outs. For multiple channel sources, I turn on my Proceed AMP5. It takes a moment to independently adjust volume controls in multi-channel. Then, I use the Pro's INPUT SIGNAL adjustment of -8 to +8 dB's to control the entire systems volume.

The Pro's front panel has multi-channel volume attenuators for very fine adjustments of the front and surrounds, too. It's perfect to finey adjust the different timbres of my main's and surrounds.

This set-up allows a range of stereo imaging by blending my main's into the center stage, or, go full multi-channel.

As a side note, Subs can be challenging to set-up. The Ultra took a very focused listening session to set the high/low passes, and especially the phase and slope roll offs. It helped me to turn main's volume up to a "moderate low" and turn up the sub more to better hear the adjustments most accurately.