Anyone going Phantom Center Channel?

I think with your speakers and if you are seated centered between the speakers then you will probably find the phantom works as well as having a center. It will be virtually impossible to get a center to match to the A-1. I did the same thing with Martin Logan Monoliths, but part of the reason was I did not want to corrupt the soundstage for 2 channel listening with a center channel right in the middle of the soundstage.

i did the Phantom center in my room and loved it. i think the effectivness of the Phantom center depends on how optimized your room is for 2-channels. if you already have excellent center fill and depth then any center channel speaker will likely detract from the 2-channel performance and not contribute much for multichannel music performance. if you primarily watch movies then i would go for a center channel as dialog benefits from it.

how are you doing the center channel electronics? does your multi-channel preamp have that capability?

Yep - me too - if your speakers image well then no problem at all - it will actually sound better than having a center on the floor or above the TV as you won't mess up the image from the mid/treble frequencies from your mains, which will be at totally different height from the center. Yep you heard correctly - phantom will be BETTER for a single viewer properly centered.

Of course if you need to entertain a crowd then a center channel is an absolute necessity for off axis listeners - to anchor the sound to the screen - of course surround speakers also become a problem with a crowd too - dipoles are often best for rears and surrounds in this case.

On the other hand...there is a school of thought that 2-channel material is improved by using a derived center channel. I belong to that school, and have belonged since before multichannel was invented.

But I refer to music. Where video is involved the difficulty of placing the center speaker is a significant consideration. Especially if the center speaker is to be the same make and model as the main speakers (which it ought to be).

My response is to only use a center channel for dialogue heavy movies, and SACD. I elevate the center channel on another stand for multi-channel music, it is matched with the front speakers and it is important to precisely match the levels and height. Otherwise, it is best to do without the center. With orchestral music and a proper set-up of the center, it is better, with a holographic wide front image. Multi-speaker set-ups are frought with problems and are develish to get right!