Centre Speaker, should I replace it with a stereo pair?

[A²]

Howdo,

For a while now I've been concerned about the centre speaker in my setup. http://www.evapor8.com/uploads/panorama.jpg
(That's it, on top of the Tosh43Pj.)

The Concerns:
Its a Wharfedale Valdus, flanked by a pair of Mission 700s that frankly seem to outclass it completely. When standing next to the centre speaker the hiss and distortion is notably worse than on either front or rear Missions, and from the sofa I occasionally note centre channel distortion (particularly on a raised female voice).

Due to the height of the Tosh which tops my AV totem, I also worry that I'm not getting correct staging across the fronts.

The (little) Questions
Might the distortion on the voice be a limitation of the source material? (Bridget Jones was the last noted issue)
Might the hiss and poor sonics be generated by the amp? (Yamaha e492)

The (big) Question
Confronted with spending £100 on a centre speaker, would I do better to buy another pair of Mission700s + stands and run the inner front two as a stereo centre? This would put all speakers on a tonal and vertical match.

FL CL TV CR FR






SOFA
RL RR

My present amp supports this, although I'm a little worred that others might not. I quite like the idea of 4 speakers up front, but I'm pretty sure the Missions aren't shielded. Run as a stereo pair, am I right in thinking the image would be centrally located (ie. the middle of the screen)?

Anyone got any thoughts on the above. I'll gladly take any advice from 'eh? what?', 'yup that works, but...' to recommendations for a nice center speaker and abandon all this stereo malarky.

Cheers all, and sorry for the waffle.

A²

[ProgressiveScan]

Hmmm - I gotta a Gale Centre paired to some Mission 701's in my setup and I've noticed the same thing..

It might be a good idea to give those speakers a bit more height that might help with the imaging..

[A²]

Originally posted by ProgressiveScan
It might be a good idea to give those speakers a bit more height that might help with the imaging..

Cheers Prog,

TBH, given that it'll cost around the same price, I think I'd rather replace the centre speaker (which I am a little suspicious of) than the stands (which work fine).;)

Sorry to hear you've got a similar issue. Do you happen to know if the mission centre is any good? It may be a better match for both of us.

Thanks mate, keep 'em coming,

A²

[soberion]

Do not use a pair of mission 700's as a replacement for a dedicated centre. They WILL ruin your TV by being so close and it's always a bad idea to have two speakers doing the job of one.

I currently have a Mission 77C1 coupled with a pair of 701's as mains, and as far as I'm concerned, it's the mutts. (acually watched a film once with the mains switched off by mistake and didn't realise till the end). It gives a very good sound and matches well with the other mission speakers. Richer sounds have them for 99 quid in black, a bargain at that price.

The height of the centre speaker is a bit more concerning, but I can't really see an alternative from your picture.

[A²]

Aha!

Cheers soberion. Me off for a minute to browse reviews/prices.

Don't suppose you've got the spec?

Thanking you,

A²

[soberion]

From Mission website -

The Mission 77c1 is a high quality centre channel speaker that will take pride of place in any top-flight home cinema system. Carefully designed to make dialogue in movies easier to understand, it is the perfect partner for any of the main stereo loudspeakers in the 77 range. Each 77c1 is also fully shielded allowing the speaker to be positioned close to, or on the television set, without risking magnetic damage to the tube.

Ultra rigid particle board cabinet for significantly reduced cabinet colouration.
Full magnetic shielding allows the speaker to be positioned in close proximity to the TV set.
Triple tweeter vertical phased array gives enhanced dialogue intelligibility.
Twin Aerogel mid/bass drivers provide increased efficiency and power handling.

Acoustic Loading 2 Way sealed enclosure
Frequency Response 75Hz-20kHz
Sensitivity 88 dB
Cross-Over Frequency 3 kHz
Volume 7.2 Litres
Impedance 8 Ohms
Recommended Amplifier 25 - 130 W/Ch


Dimensions (mm) : Height 172
Width 422
Depth 195

[sideshowbob]

Nice set-up. I wonder whether you might be able to place the centre speaker to the side (left or right) of the TV. I don't know Wharfedale stuff at all well, so it might not be the right shape. it might help with front staging. Also, I have my centre speaker angled downward (toward the listening area) as my TV is also quite high - basically, the more sound you get direct from the speaker (rather than bounced off other stuff) the better.

What setting do you have the centre speaker on? Might be worth experimenting with the small setting (if it isn't set as small already) and seeing if that makes a difference to the distortion problem and helps with clarity - it might well do.

The last thing to check is that the distortion isn't down to strange resonances being sat on the TV. You might isolate the speaker using blu-tak if you haven't already done so. Also stops the speaker doing a bungee jump off the front or back of the TV if you knock into it.

From what I can see, the Wharfedale is the weakest link in your set-up and moving to a mission or something which better matches your other speakers, might be a good move.

[A²]

Cheers my mate,

Lost sight of the forums there for a minute.

Good call on the blu-tak, but given that the Wharfie is set to small already, the obligatory Anne Robinson must be invoked.

Ah well. Mission here I come.

Probably...

[ProgressiveScan]

Echo all suggestions, switch to a matched Mission centre, DON'T use standard speakers as they're not magnetically shielded and will damage your CRT tube in your TV long term (try testing it by putting one of the speakers near to see what I mean).

I still think you need to look at the height of the speakers, though that centre looks way too high for it to match the image of the fronts.

Hope that helps...

[A²]

Cheers Prog,

I'd hoped I may avoid some of the issues of non shielded speakers through having an RPTV. That said, I think I've read that the internal surface of the screen can come away when adjacent to a large magnetic interference, so I ain't gonna risk it.

That Mission centre looks kinda brick shaped. I think I'll elevate the back of the speaker slightly, and lower the tv by 9 inches or so. Wish me luck, I'm gonna try to build a stand this weekend, and I am not Mr DIY.

At all...

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[whitty]

Hi A²

I noticed exactly the same thing on BRIDGET. But it was not her voice that did it. It was the blokes (MARK is it) His voice went straight through me on my speaker setup, very poor. I have only noticed it so far on this film and "The Lost Wolrd" Jeff Goldblums voice.

:(


Whitty