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What Center Channel are you using in your Home Theater?

Hi all you Home Theater enthusiasts out there. I am looking for your help and experience!

I am using an all GoldenEar set up in my HT, with Triton Ones for my front L & R

their XXL center channel

with their in-wall for sides and rears, and even have 4 Atmos speakers in my ceiling, with an additional center channel above my XXL in the ceiling.

The reason I have put a 2nd CC in the ceiling is that I just do not hear the dialogue very clearly from my XXL on the floor.

Look, I have heard many times that one has to have the same matching speakers for the front BUT I really watch a lot of movies and believe that I were to get a really clear center, I would be ahead of the game as the dialogue would be clearer, and I could then hear the voices better than what I have now.

I am an "older" gentlemen, (now those 2 words really bother me, but I may as well be as honest as I can with all of you), so what I want is to hear the dialogue as well as possible. As my HT is dark, I am really not as concerned if the speakers do not match as no one will "see" them, we only "hear" them.

What would you suggest that I get? In your opinion, what are the best center channels out there now?

Steve

PS

I am upgrading my front L & R to the GoldenEar Triton Reference shortly, so now is the time to get a new CC if possible.
I am using a Classé 5300 to push my front 3 channels + my rears.
128x128eternalcamper
soix
9,606 posts
 
Are you getting the B&Ws?  I'd wait until you choose your L/R speakers first.  But if clarity is paramount and you don't care about matching...

A used Aerial CC3 would be a good option.  Too bad there was one here just recently.  A couple other options:
https://www.amazon.com/Polk-Audio-LSiM-706c-Midnight/dp/B0067XUYC8

https://www.aperionaudio.com/speakers/verus-grand-center-channel-speaker

As mentioned above, make sure you have settings properly set if you haven't already. 

tls49's avatar
tls49
1,351 posts
 
There are many reasons why your current center may not sound clear and they have nothing to do with the actual speaker. Sorry if I shouldn't take your comment literally, but no center speaker will sound clear just sitting "on the floor." Positioning for the center and adjustments in the processor can greatly affect how it sounds.

Sorry again, but it makes no common sense to use a center that's not timbre matched to the L&R. The only result will be degradation.
eternalcamper's avatar
eternalcamper OP
18 posts
 
Soix
My HT guy was over to make sure that the B&W 800s would fit in my space. I am only about 14.5' wide, so we cut out some paper the size of the base and tried to place it in the front of the screen, and there was just no room to turn the speakers towards the centre chair without the speaker being in the way of the light from the camera, and the speakers will be sitting right next to each of the side walls.

The B&W are just too big for my room, and I am really upset, but have to move on, so I guess my next step iwas to order the newer Triton References.
soix
9,606 posts
 
Sorry, didn't read your whole post before.  Do you have the center speaker angled so that the tweeter is firing toward your ears?  Assuming you do, I suspect there's something wrong with the ribbon tweeter in your XXL (or somewhere further up the chain, but that seems less likely).  The reviews I've read of that speaker are very positive and praise it specifically for its clarity, so I highly doubt another center speaker will solve the problem.  And if the L/R speakers sound clear to you without the center then it's not your hearing either.  Best of luck in figuring this out. 
bi0drain's avatar
bi0drain
72 posts
 
Make sure you manually set and match levels 75db weighting type c with an spl meter and use a stand, say a sound anchors sdacc and xover points.to 80hz and make sure you set the distance correctly
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