Center Channel Dialogue

OP,

First of all, I am really sorry to hear the problem you are having. Second, there is something very wrong. We have had a great home theater system and a bedroom system (currently a 65” with a Sennheiser Ambeo sound bar) for at least 30 years and never experienced anything like you are. Dialog (typically 85+% on center channel) has always been really easy to understand, never difficult to understand in the least. Your speakers are good and unless completely defective cannot be the problem.

The problem has to be something very big… nothing little like your center channel angle.

When you go through the surround equalization procedure tne center is at the same volume to you as all the other speakers?

The only thing that comes to my mind is your surround processor has a faulty center channel.

@hillbilly559  I agree with @ghdprentice  here. There is something very wrong here. You don't have to do any of these extra stuff to balance left, center, and right speakers. Marantz should have three options for the center channel: phantom, normal, and full range. I would first use phantom option. This will allow the left and right speakers reproduce the center channel. Use the built-in test tone generator and see if you get same sound from left-center(phantom)-right channels. I suspect your receiver may not be decoding the center channel at correct level. If that step works, then take the center per-out and connect it to a separate amp and connect your center speaker to that. If that works, then your Marantz amp driving the center channel is the culprit.

I have use Yamaha receivers in 7 speakers + 2 subwoofer arrangement and never had this problem. There is something fundamentally wrong here.

Have you tried eliminating the center channel all together and allowing the processor to ghost it back in?  I know my home theater setup is anything but idea, but I run a 4.1 setup and certainly have never had any issues with understanding dialogue (at least nothing that subtitles wouldn't resolve...LOL).

I know that a center channel should be superior to not having one, but it might be worth at least seeing how the sound changes.  It might help diagnose the issue.

Reason is you have set it to dialogue. Fix is very simple, just set it to monologue.

btw, your AVR probably has a 2 channel mode. I often find changing to 2 channel sounds better.

That will reassign the dedicated center sounds to both sides equally so that center content’s imaging is still center (but phantom center created by L/R), and still coming from the front.

And no ’other sounds’ from the surround/rear speakers which may be affecting what you hear (your cupped hands are blocking side/rear/reflected sounds).

Sometimes, in a noisy space i.e. restaurant, theater lobby, ... I hear sounds from a distance better than those right in front of me, seems like the other sounds are a precedent, fill my ears so to say..