MAXIMIZE the Sound From Your Center Channel Speaker | 5 TIPS Links to Reference Premiere System ⬇⬇⬇ All Klipsch Speakers - bit.ly/Klipsch_Speakers RP-8060FA II - bit.ly/Klipsch_RP-8060FA-II RP-504C II - bit.ly/Klipsch_504C-II RP-600M II - bit.ly/Klipsch_RP-600M-II RP-500SA II - bit.ly/Klipsch_500SA-II SPL-120 - amzn.to/3XtF1Hu Pioneer VSX-LX505 - bit.ly/Pioneer_VSX-LX505 New Reference Premiere Subwoofers - ruclips.net/video/cIDRLXA89iI/видео.html RP-1000SW - bit.ly/Klipsch_RP-1000SW RP-1200SW - bit.ly/Klipsch_RP-1200SW RP-1400SW - bit.ly/Klipsch_RP-1400SW RP-1600SW - bit.ly/Klipsch_RP-1600SW Recommended Videos: Hans Zimmer Live in Prague - amzn.to/3ULYfrm Top Gun Maverick - amzn.to/41bfbtL Hisense 85U7H - amzn.to/3mxkcgx 32" Speaker Stands - amzn.to/43zQRTV Weekly and monthly Zooms on Patreon - www.patreon.com/youthman MWAVE 2023 Tickets and Info - midwestavexperience.com/ Best pricing on Home Theater products - youthmanreviews.com/sales/ FREE Home Theater Design Tool - bit.ly/Home-Theater-Design-Tool Submit your Home Theater - hometheatertours.com. Ways You Can Support: Patreon: www.patreon.com/youthman Youthman Courses - www.youthmancourses.com/ Youthman Merch - teespring.com/stores/youthman/ Donation via Venmo @Youthman Follow Us: RUclips: Subscribe to this Channel: goo.gl/YEJ23p Youthman Crew Facebook Group - facebook.com/groups/youthmancrew Instagram: instagram.com/youthmanreviews/ Twitter: twitter.com/youthmanreviews/ Website: youthmanreviews.com/ ____ Disclaimer: Affiliate Links are used in the description of this video. I earn from qualifying purchases. Valencia Bespoke Series Theater Seats: Tuscany Ultimate Luxury - bit.ly/valencia-tuscany-ultimate-luxury Oslo Ultimate Luxury - bit.ly/valencia-oslo-ultimate-luxury Naples - bit.ly/Valencia_Naples Valencia Cinema Series Theater Seats: Venice - bit.ly/valencia_venice Budapest - bit.ly/valencia_budapest Piacenza - bit.ly/valencia_piacenza Piacenza Powered Headrest - bit.ly/valencia_piacenza_powered_headrest Verona - bit.ly/valencia_verona Verona - Powered Headrest - bit.ly/valencia_verona Valencia Premier Series Theater Seats: Oslo - bit.ly/valenciaoslo Oslo XL - bit.ly/valenciaosloxl Zurich - bit.ly/valenciazurich Tuscany - bit.ly/valencia_tuscany Bern - bit.ly/valencia_bern All Valencia Seating - bit.ly/valencia_all
Youthman - enjoy your vids! Improvement tip for much better sound from your theater!: Extend back riser further foreword. Remove back seats ENTIRELY, move front row seating to back riser to 2/7th's length dimension, and put couch in front row, closer than pressent main seating area! Should easily get better sound from ALL; seating locations, removing boomy low fidelity rear seating next to back wall. Your new main seating area/sweet spot is the back row, AWAY FROM BOOMY BACK WALL!! oh, and getting rid of 3 seat config with center seat in direct middle line of room is also a no go!! Go 4 seat wide configuration! You're welcome AudioAlexander
I appreciate the suggestions Brian. When I built my Theater Room 16 years ago, I made a commitment that if I could not fit my entire family, we do not need to build a theater room. We are limited on the depth of the room so I have to work with what I have available unless we eventually sell our home and build a bigger room. I understand the front row is not in the optimal placement, but I physically cannot go any further back. I love the immersiveness it provides and I have yet to have someone over for a demo that was not impressed (recently had 5 people over for demos). Not having a middle seat is definitely not going to happen. I’m not sure why you would want to sacrifice two seats by moving them off center rather than having a very dialed in center position.
@@Youthman Hello Youthman!! (btw, J.I.L !!! , indeed!!) You have an awesome system and space, that indeed looks very enjoyable, as you say! (all that matters in end) So congrats!!. Of course, everyone has different goals, tastes, lifestyles, clearly, and It's all good! Yup, we all ultimately end up with vastly different EVERYTHING in their systems/rooms, my experience proves. So personal preference and choices clearly rule in the end, yes! -as it should be. The whole middle seat removal suggestion is not obviously conducive for 2 ch music dedicated listening in your symmetrical room width setup, yes. However , going 4 seats wide ,and eliminating that center IS, however, likely maximizing the fidelity from your multi ch theater sound , if that's your main application in that space. I was merely suggesting working around the acoustical space laws, which dictate that sitting dead center of the room boundary is the single worst acoustic spot from freq response stand point (nice and peaky, with the worst nulls, and peaks too) Thus I recommend 4 instead of 3. The back row next to a back wall will of course always be bass boomy with reduced fidelity from those seats there, was the rest of the suggestion. Nice chatting with you! Keep the great vids coming!!
@@YouthmanWow! I didn't know that. That is tight! Course one could go 2 outside theater seats flanking larger center "love-seat" style chair!??? Then there's always slimmer profile line seating. Doubt that works for you though. Still, there's always the 2 rows of couches with throw pillows approach!! Lol! Fun fun fun! 🙂
As a retired member of the AES (Audio Engineering Society) I was curious to see what your recommendations where. Overall I found your presentation useful. However I'd add one basic recommendation: Simply increase the volume of your center speaker just a bit. This simple adjustment usually works! I'll note that db(SPL) readings are very difficult to take. They should involve multiple measuring points with a high quality mic, analyzed at least on a 1/3 octave device and even then are notoriously hard to interpete. I'll add one point where I DISAGREE with you. Do NOT/NEVER just buy a more expensive center channel speaker alone. All the front speakers need to be matched (LF, C, RF). Those 3 speakers need to have the same "voice" and should be ALL from the same manufacturer/series. My best
Every speaker has a "voice" or tonal signature. Even the finest speakers made sound somewhat different and on less expensive speakers that difference can be dramatic.@@doyouluvit
Having set up a Surround sound system at the outset in the early 1990's, I remember this recommendation way back then. So from that date forward, my center channel has been a 12" three way that matches my left and right channel speakers.
@@stevet7487 You did it right!!!!! Although I've found a decent subwoofer cuts down on costs quite a bit. I did that for a friend's setup years ago. Matched the front three with good bookshelf speakers and added a subwoofer. Crossover is best set at 80HZ I've also had surround sound (5.1) since the early 90's and always used cheap surrounds for the back two channels. No regrets - not that much of interest there
The coffee table blanket idea also applies to a hardwood or tile floor between you and your center channel and TV. If you put or have a soft rug or something similar on that hard floor between you and your TV, it will also help greatly at reducing floor reflections, which also muddle up the sound. Of course that goes along with room treatments all over, as you mentioned. The biggest improvement I've found, besides just having a really high quality center channel speaker to start with, is moving it forward to the edge of the table, chest, cabinet, shelf, or stand that it's on, and making it as close as possible to ear level and angle towards you. It amazes me just how many people like to push their center channel all the way back against the wall on top of a cabinet or on a shelf, and try to "hide" it behind something like a small plant, a picture, or other knick knack, as long as it doesn't block the view of the TV, that's "all" that matters, some people think!... And then even doing that they STILL think that it's gonna sound good and actually be intelligible, lol! Ridiculous!
I agree a rug is definitely needed if you just have hardwood floors. Way too many reflections. Let’s be honest, at one point we probably didn’t know this information either which is the entire point of this video. We all have to start somewhere.
I demo'ed the 504C and the 504C II. Ended up returning the II and keeping the original. Me and the wife thought it was clearer. I paired it with the RP8000s in the front stage and used RP5000s for the surrounds and rear surrounds. I use the Polk Audio OWM3s for my .4 Atmos. Sounds great!
I actually found it better with my smaller center (2 4” woofer and 1” compression horn tweeter to change it TO the Large speaker setting. This opened up the lower frequency sliders in the EQ settings for it in my AVR and let me boost the bass which helps especially make voices feel more natural and deep.
A Yamaha has my favorite option to turn the "Front Presence" on. These are two speakers over your Left and Right channels that are additional "center" speakers. This originally was intended to allow a left and right dialogue shift, but it also raises the voice into the center of a larger screen. This BY FAR, helped me increase the volume and perceived size of the center channel. I wish all receivers had this option.
Mr. Stevens, I couldn't agree more with all of your suggestions here. After trying several center channel speakers from a cheap single bookshelf speaker, the pair of cheap bookshelf speakers connected in parallel, a super cheap "center", a couple others and the Emotiva C1+ I run now. Absolutely the Emotiva C1+ is the best I've had and I'm happy with it. Spending the extra was well worth it. Crossover and level is the next to make it the best it can be. Someday, Good Lord willing and back breaking effort, I'll be able to install a separates system with a powerful amp on the LCR speakers for an even better audio experience for my family. Wishing you all the very best, Kevin
Angling the center up made a huge difference. It was straight at my knees before and it sounded good. But when a friend suggested that a flat firing center wans.t the best, and we angled the center up more, it made a very big difference. All great tips.
Great tips youthman. I was aware of most of them already but had not thought about the blanket on the coffee table that is right in front of me, so I will be using that tip from now on. I've also read the tip that it's best to not get coffee tables with a solid front panel since that is a huge flat surface to reflect sound back at the screen instead of allowing it to come into the room.
Thank you so much for this video. Just an additional comment, I’m running an SVS Ultra Center and I’ve dropped the crossover to 60Hz. I am running dual PB-1000 Pros and I found that a capable center gets very clear if it is in small format at 60Hz because it keeps some of those vocal bass notes from going to the monster subs. Most people tell you to set crossovers to 80Hz but on multiple setups (SVS, JBL and Polk) I’ve found that 60Hz center crossover instead of the 80Hz is clearer.
@@BEEFTEEF4 hello. I also have SVS ultra center along with Ultra bookshelfs and I can't get that cinema deep sparkle in voice and effects. Adding treble didn't help. Using Denon x4800h. So you say to change crossovers to 60Hz on center ? What about Front L/R speakers? Thank you
Solid advice. I'd also recommend considering having identical speakers for the L-C-R channels, ideally at the same height and depth. You can avoid a ton of issues that way, and it's sometimes cheaper to buy 2 pairs of good bookshelf speakers (gives you a spare speaker in case one fails too).
Not a ton of options for this, but from cheaper to more expensive one could try a Kali IN-5 horizontally, or a KEF LS50 or Genelec The Ones at any size or orientation.
But what if you have 2 towers and a center ? I have 2 R625FA's and a 504CII. Thr 504cii has a 5.25 woofer & towers have a 6.5 woofer which match my RP-600Miis 6.25 woofer I use for SL,SR,SBL,SBR,FWR,FWL
That’s exactly what I did. I bought two pairs of Polk ES20 and use three for LCR. Best move I ever made for my home theater. Dialogue clarity and immersive soundstage improved considerably over any traditional center channel I’ve owned.
Extra tip.....you can also adjust your "crossover" frequencies to a higher level to cut out lower frequencies that can also distort the clarity of a center channel adding to the effect of setting it to a "small" speaker. Love your stuff as always Mr. Youthman!!
I've never had an issue with any movie Nolan has directed. And I don't have a very expensive system. RBH made a great center (r56ci) and it makes all dialogue crystal clear.
@@dperr338Oppenheimer was actually pretty dry and straight forward. Visuals, acting, message were good but not on the edge of your seat like his other movies. More like “a beautiful mind”
100% agree. Incidentally, I have the same centre channel. Upgraded from a smaller Klipsch RC34 which I moved to a other smaller room. Love your channel and most of all, honesty. Been heavily invested into home cinema and have 2 theaters at home. Mainly Klipsch. I follow much of your advise and multi-team meetings with other enthusiasts and experts and have learnt a lot. Here in South Africa, it's a developing trend and information is limited. Hence, I relied heavily on your channel. You collaborated with many of the other you tubers on this topic so I have had a wholistic tutelage. Thanks so much👌
Great video, Michael. I had issues with this and the level matching really helped me. I also added a 3 channel amp (Emotiva BasX) to my LCR and it made a world of difference as well. Best money spent so far. Seemed a lot clearer taking the load off my AVR.
What avr are u using with this set up? I'm not liking the dialogue currently on the dennon 6700h. Sometimes it good other times the lower tones on voices sound muddy and sometimes hurts my ears at certain hrtz. I've tried lower the crossover, raising the crossover. Doing this while watching a movie with my wife, annoys her and me honestly. I've done all that is suggested in the video as well.
Moved my center speaker close to the edge of my entertainment center, then played Close to the Edge by Yes, and all is right with the world, at least for now. Thanks.
Great advice, I built my first 5.1 system 25 years ago,now have an older denon,no hdmi to even adjust the center Chanel a bit louder,but tilted it up to ear level and helped a lot. My wife he's the sub and getting older in hearing didn't help, got a new c3nter speaker, Boston, and is better.the new TV only has hdmi,no analog to adjust .denon,I'm a musician buy trade, and without letting the world sell me everything new,I'm bummed, I've had great stuff since 1999.most of it was before it was even broadcast capital in the day
Wow, been doing home theater setups for decades and I am today years old realizing that you shouldn't have a center speaker too far back if there is reflective surface underneath and ahead of it. I just pulled my center speaker forward, flush to the table. :D Never too old to learn new things!
Thanks so much for you expert advise. I made the adjustments you referenced and it really changed my system for the best. The sound was always great, but now it's much, much better!
Yup, the CC is very important. In my living room which is the main system for movies. But i hav 2 full range speakers 7 1/2 feet apart are angled to the center position and it sounds awesome. I got rid of my regular CC and won't be going back.. Ear level is Key.. AWEsome, info🙂
With cinema 50, they got rid of small and large speaker setting. Auto calibration set center, front left and right speakers to full range. Would you change them ,if so what hz? I have klipsch 450c and rp250f
My Vizio M51 Soundbar, the Center or Soundbar speaker is 80% of the home theater sound. It sounds very good with Movies and Music even Bluetooth music. The 2 small rears for Dolby Atmos and DTS are important too. Adding the Onkyo receiver and 12" subwoofer was a big game changer now sounds Awesome.
I've got the same centre running yamaha rx2060 aventage...I find changing settings in the parametric eq. Putting up the mid range and bass. Turing down the treble. Better.
I worked in a machine shop for 43 years, so my hearing is not the best, I starve for high frequency sounds. I have a dedicated A/V room, with a 110" screen, a ViewSonic PX701HD Projector. I use my Older Sony STR-DE898 7.1digital receiver, in the 5.1 mode. AR, ars 112ps Sub, AR, PSC 25 center, Bose 301V, front L and R, and smaller Bose for the rear I couldn't enjoy the system at all, until I added a $30. J B L Super Tweeter ST 200 along with the center speaker. Wow what a difference it made. I now enjoy every movie or show that I watch, I can hear clearly bow.
@@Youthman I've had mine for 20 years and I bought used on ebay. A couple drivers need replaced, but still kicking! It's crazy how much I can shake the house with NO subwoofers! They are being powered by a 5-channel (200 watts/ch) Rotel amp. I am one of those people that is not lucky enough to have a home cinema setup. Just a living room. Most of my equipment is old. Only the 4K tv and 4K player is new. My receiver is a Denon AVR 4306 that I got in 2007 when I upgraded to Blu-Ray and HD-DVD.
@@Youthman I am, very much. Let me ask you something. The center speaker you showed off here is one I’ve been eye-balling as I’m a big Klipsch fan. I have a center with 2 woofers. What advantage does one with 4 woofers give?
I want to make sure that everyone, regardless of where you are at in your Home Theater journey, can understand and follow along. I do my best to take complex things and make them simple and easy to understand.
Man that is some damn good tips I’ve got the Center speaker and it’s sort of facing my knees. I got some of those foam rubber rises from Amazon now. It sounds much better for example when you’re watching apocalypse now as the helicopter comes from the rear speakers to the front left centre front right rear it’s perfect so thank you very much. You have just saved me £450 for a B&W Center speaker Bower and Watkins
This could be just my situation but might be worth a try to some other people but switching from a silk dome tweeter/or similar style to a ribbon style tweeter in the center channel speaker made a night and day difference and all settings where the same before I ran calibration afterwards it was even better. I went from a polk xt30 to an emotiva c1+, I know it's not quite an apple to apple comparison but still might be worth a try.
I am now a ribbon convert. Although I don't actually own any yet. After hearing my friends Martin Logan motion setup in his theater room, I realized there is nothing like ribbon tweeters. The highs are so present yet sweet and natural. Best of all no ear fatigue. My next set of speakers will have ribbons in them.
@@d.j.cantelli8074 each style has pros and cons. Just from personal experiences ribbon tweeters just have something that works great in home theaters. My complete emotiva 7.3.6 cranks and never sounds harsh, just completely natural and effortless.
Excellent video, thanks for the tips. I have this same speaker and it's an upgrade from a budgeted one that I had earlier. I'm going to lower my crossover frequency as I think I may have mine set to high at 120Hz.
@@Youthman I settled with 100Hz as the cross over, sounds way better. 80Hz was a little too boomy. I played a bunch of video games with my kiddos over the weekend and played back some music later in the evening and I really like where the sound field is now. I'm probably just not used the amount of Bass that this speaker can handle, lol.
Mike your right about setting all your speakers to small even if you have large speakers because alot of low end eats alot of that power up subwoofers are made for that purpose
Hi Youthman I’m just curious about my setup in my family room that’s all off anything being center where I can place the speakers where I can get the best performance from them. All of my speakers and subs are Klipsch reference series. I have r41sa’s r820f’s r25c r51m r41m and 2 r12sw subs and my amplifier is a Yamaha RXV 3800 with about 140w per channel power output with 2 channel’s driven. I’m just wanting to make it sound like I’m in a movie theater with very little room to make it work. Any and or all advice from you is welcome Thank you for your time and and your help.
Hey i have a Onkyo RZ50 with the (dreaded?) DIRAC live whose software is just terrible. I have Martin Logan fronts and a large ML Center. Will definitely try your tips etc. Do you recommend etc. having (or finding in my case) someone come out and do the calibration for you?
Sir I have a question for you concerning center channels and I would appreciate your advice. When I recently got deep into the home theater game I went the klipsch RP series route due to being new into the hobby as well as they have some of the best DEALS and discounts at times that others do not offer so price dictated the path I took. But, since having the RP-405c I have always fiddled with volume and what not and as I spend more and more of my time and energy in my setup I am noticing how unimpressed I am with the sound discrepancy I am receiving from the RP-450c when going from seat to seat. So I am watching videos from Erin's audio and others about centers and it looks as tho the SVS Prime & Ultra as well as the Monolith THX-365c offer what I may be looking for. - so my question is, if I were to take either a SVS center or the Monolith center and replace my RP-450c.... Would I notice a huge difference in brand separation sound signature from my left and right RP-280F?
I've the rp504, really dont understand why the words sounds muffed. Done all of these steps. It sounded so much better before I auto calibrates the system for the new centre....
Wow I just moved my coffee table out of the line of sight and I had no idea how much it was affecting the sound.Now I have to figure out a way to get her not to notice it’s in the other room. Thanks for that tip!
Great advice! Another cheap way of angling your speakers is using rubber door stops! they dont rattle and you can change angle somewhat with them and they stay in place.
Hi, great tips on the center speaker placement. Can I ask if I can hook up a pair of stereo speakers to replace a single unit center speaker? How you can give me some light to this. Thanks.
Thank you for the kind words, Michael. Unfortunately that would not be a good idea. Google comb filtering. The short version is when you take two speakers, put distance between them, and play the same frequencies, they end up, canceling each other out in certain frequencies.
Regarding the blanket on the coffee table, I hadn't thought of that before. I'll be implementing this tip, with a modification: instead of a blanket, an array of irregularly-shaped, sound-diffusing snacks.
I have a Marantz SR7013 with Dali Oberon speakers and the center speaker on 0dB is way too quiet. The effects of other speakers are just way louder. I just set the center speaker to +5dB and it makes a huge difference. Now I can clearly hear the dialog. I also have all speakers set to small @80Hz and SW to put out LFE+Main at 120Hz. Scary how different a movie sounds with just a dB bump on the center channel 🙂
Thx. I've moved the TV (which has OK inbuilt speakers which vibrate the screen itself ..Sony A90J) forward as far as possible just now. As I understand my Marantz manual, setting the center to Small will normally route its lows to the Mains not the sub. If you have[ LFE + Mains] set THEN the lows will be removed from the mains and go to the sub. If you have mains with good low extension e.g. to 40Hz then they are probably better at most bass than using the sub. Just use the sub for the dedicated LFE signal. On the center level from recent RUclips movies which have 5.1 you can go into the movie's settings and toggle 5.1 on or off. When I have 5.1 on, although the movie has 5.1, the centre channel is too low. Turn 5.1 off and bingo..the center is fine, BUT you lose the proper surround. Netflix movies have no such problem. Anyone have a solution other than messing with my carefully balanced levels in the AVR?
How do you properly level match like what should the starting DB be of sound coming from the speakers? Cause as you know you can raise the volume up and down which can mess up results I’m not sure how to properly level match manually like what steps to take
I believe at some point you had the SVS Ultra Center. I have done most of your suggestions here and run the MC303 Mcintosh. The center still performs just 6 out of 10. Did you feel this center was lacking in your setup?
Should I set audio setting to All channel stereo or Direct and onkyos intelliVol from 0 to +12DB before using the set up Mic ? My reciever is txnr777 with Klipsch r25C if I get Large center what ones are good?
I personally have never found a use for all channel stereo. The only time you might want to use that is if you had a ton of people over and you just want music playing all around your room.
@Youthman okay thanks. My friend is partially deaf but even to me sometimes some movies are just super low and I live in a apartment so I'm just trying to figure out how to set everything up so I can hear everything clearly I have to polk audio moniter 40 2 for fronts, and the klipsch r25c for center, and a 8 inch nuance powered sub 2 no name speakers for the surround left and right. Thought about getting either klipsch 504 center or klipsch 8000 for left and right and use the polk audio book shelf moniter 40 for surround front left an right. But not sure what to do or how to spend my money
I would love to change my projector screen material to acoustic transparent screen, and put center speaker behind it. Because no matter if i pinpoint angle by the laser, and maximize height of the speaker as much as it doesn't cover the screen, and if you focus a little, the sound from it always seems like it's coming from under the screen. So putting center speaker behind the screen, and in middle of screen might be huge improvement.
This would definitely be more of an issue if you have a large projector screen. Like 100inch or higher, seeing that there will be more distance between the center of the screen and the speaker.(if placed below the screen) Having a big tv, its not as big of a distance, making it harder to localize. Thats if its right under the screen. If its anything over a foot away theres no hope 😄
@@tuner7961 Yeah, I've got 100 inch, it's about 2 feet distance between speaker and middle of screen so that's a problem. I could imagine that in typical TV which is normally 50-70inch screens wouldn't be the case that much.
Yeah and depending how close you affects it as well. We sit about 9ft away from an 82inch and the center is right under the screen. You cant tell its below it
I am considering the RP 504C v1. I have Jamo S809 towers and Dirac. Do you think it's wise to go to a Klipsch center? Hoping to avoid timbre issues with Dirac. S83 center is decent after EQ but the soundstage is too narrow
Best centre channel sound I found is lay 2 bookshelves on their sides, tweeter to tweeter then split the centre channel feed to power both. Voices sound unreal. Mine are ATC SCM 11's used this way.
My recommendation if you don’t have the funds to buy them all at once, get your front left and right, then a subwoofer, the. Center and finally surrounds.
Thanks for the great video. I currently use a definitive technology CS-9060 which has an 8" built in powered subwoofer. 32HZ to 42KHZ, 8 OHM, 91db. Should I set it to Large or Small?
@Youthman thanks a bunch. Another question: since the CS-9060 has an upward firing sub, would it affect the overall performance if I was to angle it slightly upward toward my ear level using isolation pads? If so, which one would you recommend that can handle its 26lbs weight?
I use 2 pairs of car wheel chocks, 2 stacked on either side of my center channel to prop it up. My Center is the Klipsch RP-504C II. It's pretty hefty, so, stacking 2 chocks on either side easily supports the weight. To raise the center so that's it on axis with my ears at listening position, you simply need to move the chock pairs forward or backward.
I use r.e.w. to measure my speakers. The frequency response shows all my speakers at the same level. When I use my s.p.l meter and the audyssey level match on my denon it's different. Which should I use?
It's best to give the different settings a listen and then decide for yourself what sounds more even. I compared my ypao calibration to my manual one and preferred the manual one better for some reason.
DIY is the least expensive option. They work great if you are handy. GIK or ATS Acoustics are popular if you want them prebuilt or want design options.
I have a question about level matching with an SPL Meter. I use to do that but I watched a few videos that suggested that you shouldn't as Audessey is adjusting the level based on how close you maybe to the speakers if you are not directly centered in the room. So for instance it may lower your side surrounds because you sit closer to them than your LCRs and changing that with an SPL messes up the Audessey Calibration. Is there any truth to that?
Odyssey is simply measuring how loud a speaker is at your listening position. If a speaker is closer and it measures louder, of course, odyssey will lower to match the level of the other speakers. But they should all measure the same volume at your listening position.
One more suggestion, mid to high range Receivers allow adjusting the volume/output to dedicated channels/speakers. It is usually with a range of 1-5 or 1-10 (Sony for sure does).
Hi there. I got a problem with my center speaker Klipsch RP-504C II. It sounds muffled and I can't seem to fix it. It got plenty of space behind and placed to the edge of the shelf. It's hooked up to my Denon avr-1700H and crossover is set to 60Hz. Do you have any suggestions to what I can do?
If you have Audyssey app, there are a few things you can try. Turn off midrange compensation, find the Schroeder frequency of your room and set a curtain for the center channel so that Audyssey is not EQing more than it needs to. If you clap loudly once in your primary listening position, does the clap echo?
I've done some of these tips just recently myself. First was bring it forward of the table. The difference was it made it more crisp. Just bought myself some black door wedges to angle the speaker up. I was using something white before and it ended up annoying me.
spent a decent amount on a full paradigm system, big center channel, integra receiver....the center channel voice performance sucked so bad, i had no ability to help it in any way. hated that system for that reason. im sure now receivers have some sort of way to address this, but back in 2004 integra did not.
It's occasionally difficult to get good dialogue sound from a 2.1 system in 2 channel stereo due to disc formatting. Top Gun Maverick is a good example. Lots of great sounds with low volume dialogue. With my older Denon AVR 3805 I have limited adjustability. How would you address that without simply cranking up the volume?
If you have the ability, you can boost the vocal frequencies. Granted, in a two channel setup this may effect everything but the dialogue may become more clear.
Thanks for the tips! Also, after maximizing the center channel, sometimes the source content can sometimes be the reason it can be hard to hear dialogue. VOX had a good video on that (though the title overstates the case) called, "Why we all need subtitles now".
If your left and right speakers are in the same brand of manufacturer ok even if the center channel maybe a different model Like klipsch 8000f left and right speakers with a 504c 2 center channel speaker
MAXIMIZE the Sound From Your Center Channel Speaker | 5 TIPS
Links to Reference Premiere System ⬇⬇⬇
All Klipsch Speakers - bit.ly/Klipsch_Speakers
RP-8060FA II - bit.ly/Klipsch_RP-8060FA-II
RP-504C II - bit.ly/Klipsch_504C-II
RP-600M II - bit.ly/Klipsch_RP-600M-II
RP-500SA II - bit.ly/Klipsch_500SA-II
SPL-120 - amzn.to/3XtF1Hu
Pioneer VSX-LX505 - bit.ly/Pioneer_VSX-LX505
New Reference Premiere Subwoofers - ruclips.net/video/cIDRLXA89iI/видео.html
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Youthman - enjoy your vids! Improvement tip for much better sound from your theater!: Extend back riser further foreword. Remove back seats ENTIRELY, move front row seating to back riser to 2/7th's length dimension, and put couch in front row, closer than pressent main seating area! Should easily get better sound from ALL; seating locations, removing boomy low fidelity rear seating next to back wall. Your new main seating area/sweet spot is the back row, AWAY FROM BOOMY BACK WALL!! oh, and getting rid of 3 seat config with center seat in direct middle line of room is also a no go!! Go 4 seat wide configuration! You're welcome AudioAlexander
I appreciate the suggestions Brian. When I built my Theater Room 16 years ago, I made a commitment that if I could not fit my entire family, we do not need to build a theater room. We are limited on the depth of the room so I have to work with what I have available unless we eventually sell our home and build a bigger room.
I understand the front row is not in the optimal placement, but I physically cannot go any further back. I love the immersiveness it provides and I have yet to have someone over for a demo that was not impressed (recently had 5 people over for demos). Not having a middle seat is definitely not going to happen. I’m not sure why you would want to sacrifice two seats by moving them off center rather than having a very dialed in center position.
@@Youthman Hello Youthman!! (btw, J.I.L !!! , indeed!!) You have an awesome system and space, that indeed looks very enjoyable, as you say! (all that matters in end) So congrats!!. Of course, everyone has different goals, tastes, lifestyles, clearly, and It's all good! Yup, we all ultimately end up with vastly different EVERYTHING in their systems/rooms, my experience proves. So personal preference and choices clearly rule in the end, yes! -as it should be. The whole middle seat removal suggestion is not obviously conducive for 2 ch music dedicated listening in your symmetrical room width setup, yes. However , going 4 seats wide ,and eliminating that center IS, however, likely maximizing the fidelity from your multi ch theater sound , if that's your main application in that space. I was merely suggesting working around the acoustical space laws, which dictate that sitting dead center of the room boundary is the single worst acoustic spot from freq response stand point (nice and peaky, with the worst nulls, and peaks too) Thus I recommend 4 instead of 3. The back row next to a back wall will of course always be bass boomy with reduced fidelity from those seats there, was the rest of the suggestion. Nice chatting with you! Keep the great vids coming!!
With my room being only 13’ wide, 3 seats is as wide as I could go anyways
@@YouthmanWow! I didn't know that. That is tight! Course one could go 2 outside theater seats flanking larger center "love-seat" style chair!??? Then there's always slimmer profile line seating. Doubt that works for you though. Still, there's always the 2 rows of couches with throw pillows approach!! Lol! Fun fun fun! 🙂
As a retired member of the AES (Audio Engineering Society) I was curious to see what your recommendations where. Overall I found your presentation useful. However I'd add one basic recommendation:
Simply increase the volume of your center speaker just a bit. This simple adjustment usually works!
I'll note that db(SPL) readings are very difficult to take. They should involve multiple measuring points with a high quality mic, analyzed at least on a 1/3 octave device and even then are notoriously hard to interpete.
I'll add one point where I DISAGREE with you. Do NOT/NEVER just buy a more expensive center channel speaker alone.
All the front speakers need to be matched (LF, C, RF). Those 3 speakers need to have the same "voice" and should be ALL from the same manufacturer/series.
My best
why do we need the same speakers? thanks
Every speaker has a "voice" or tonal signature. Even the finest speakers made sound somewhat different and on less expensive speakers that difference can be dramatic.@@doyouluvit
Having set up a Surround sound system at the outset in the early 1990's, I remember this recommendation way back then. So from that date forward, my center channel has been a 12" three way that matches my left and right channel speakers.
@@stevet7487 You did it right!!!!! Although I've found a decent subwoofer cuts down on costs quite a bit. I did that for a friend's setup years ago. Matched the front three with good bookshelf speakers and added a subwoofer. Crossover is best set at 80HZ
I've also had surround sound (5.1) since the early 90's and always used cheap surrounds for the back two channels. No regrets - not that much of interest there
Couldn't agree with you more. All speakers should be from the same manufacturer and L. C. R should be the same. Cheers 🍻 🍁 Eh.
The coffee table blanket idea also applies to a hardwood or tile floor between you and your center channel and TV. If you put or have a soft rug or something similar on that hard floor between you and your TV, it will also help greatly at reducing floor reflections, which also muddle up the sound. Of course that goes along with room treatments all over, as you mentioned.
The biggest improvement I've found, besides just having a really high quality center channel speaker to start with, is moving it forward to the edge of the table, chest, cabinet, shelf, or stand that it's on, and making it as close as possible to ear level and angle towards you.
It amazes me just how many people like to push their center channel all the way back against the wall on top of a cabinet or on a shelf, and try to "hide" it behind something like a small plant, a picture, or other knick knack, as long as it doesn't block the view of the TV, that's "all" that matters, some people think!... And then even doing that they STILL think that it's gonna sound good and actually be intelligible, lol! Ridiculous!
I agree a rug is definitely needed if you just have hardwood floors. Way too many reflections.
Let’s be honest, at one point we probably didn’t know this information either which is the entire point of this video. We all have to start somewhere.
I demo'ed the 504C and the 504C II. Ended up returning the II and keeping the original. Me and the wife thought it was clearer. I paired it with the RP8000s in the front stage and used RP5000s for the surrounds and rear surrounds. I use the Polk Audio OWM3s for my .4 Atmos. Sounds great!
I actually found it better with my smaller center (2 4” woofer and 1” compression horn tweeter to change it TO the Large speaker setting. This opened up the lower frequency sliders in the EQ settings for it in my AVR and let me boost the bass which helps especially make voices feel more natural and deep.
A Yamaha has my favorite option to turn the "Front Presence" on. These are two speakers over your Left and Right channels that are additional "center" speakers. This originally was intended to allow a left and right dialogue shift, but it also raises the voice into the center of a larger screen. This BY FAR, helped me increase the volume and perceived size of the center channel. I wish all receivers had this option.
isnt that the same as center spread on Denons (mainly used for upmixing stereo to dolby surround )
Mr. Stevens, I couldn't agree more with all of your suggestions here. After trying several center channel speakers from a cheap single bookshelf speaker, the pair of cheap bookshelf speakers connected in parallel, a super cheap "center", a couple others and the Emotiva C1+ I run now. Absolutely the Emotiva C1+ is the best I've had and I'm happy with it. Spending the extra was well worth it. Crossover and level is the next to make it the best it can be. Someday, Good Lord willing and back breaking effort, I'll be able to install a separates system with a powerful amp on the LCR speakers for an even better audio experience for my family.
Wishing you all the very best, Kevin
Angling the center up made a huge difference. It was straight at my knees before and it sounded good. But when a friend suggested that a flat firing center wans.t the best, and we angled the center up more, it made a very big difference. All great tips.
100% nice job!
Great tips youthman. I was aware of most of them already but had not thought about the blanket on the coffee table that is right in front of me, so I will be using that tip from now on. I've also read the tip that it's best to not get coffee tables with a solid front panel since that is a huge flat surface to reflect sound back at the screen instead of allowing it to come into the room.
Glad you enjoyed the video Chris
Thank you so much for this video. Just an additional comment, I’m running an SVS Ultra Center and I’ve dropped the crossover to 60Hz. I am running dual PB-1000 Pros and I found that a capable center gets very clear if it is in small format at 60Hz because it keeps some of those vocal bass notes from going to the monster subs. Most people tell you to set crossovers to 80Hz but on multiple setups (SVS, JBL and Polk) I’ve found that 60Hz center crossover instead of the 80Hz is clearer.
@@BEEFTEEF4 hello. I also have SVS ultra center along with Ultra bookshelfs and I can't get that cinema deep sparkle in voice and effects. Adding treble didn't help. Using Denon x4800h. So you say to change crossovers to 60Hz on center ? What about Front L/R speakers? Thank you
Solid advice. I'd also recommend considering having identical speakers for the L-C-R channels, ideally at the same height and depth. You can avoid a ton of issues that way, and it's sometimes cheaper to buy 2 pairs of good bookshelf speakers (gives you a spare speaker in case one fails too).
I too prefer LCR. Most cannot accommodate that, especially if they have a TV (which most do)
Not a ton of options for this, but from cheaper to more expensive one could try a Kali IN-5 horizontally, or a KEF LS50 or Genelec The Ones at any size or orientation.
But what if you have 2 towers and a center ? I have 2 R625FA's and a 504CII. Thr 504cii has a 5.25 woofer & towers have a 6.5 woofer which match my RP-600Miis 6.25 woofer I use for SL,SR,SBL,SBR,FWR,FWL
That’s exactly what I did. I bought two pairs of Polk ES20 and use three for LCR. Best move I ever made for my home theater. Dialogue clarity and immersive soundstage improved considerably over any traditional center channel I’ve owned.
Extra tip.....you can also adjust your "crossover" frequencies to a higher level to cut out lower frequencies that can also distort the clarity of a center channel adding to the effect of setting it to a "small" speaker.
Love your stuff as always Mr. Youthman!!
6th tip: somebody needs to start a petition that movie directors *cough* Nolan *cough* need to raise the volume on the dialogue!
It’s not about raising the volume, he often intentionally muffles the dialogue. It’s like his signature.
I've never had an issue with any movie Nolan has directed. And I don't have a very expensive system. RBH made a great center (r56ci) and it makes all dialogue crystal clear.
This is why I quit watching Nolan films. Heard great things about his newest film but I don’t care, I like to hear dialogue in the movies I watch.
Yep 😂, or just don’t have Mr. Matthew McConaughey utter any jumble mumble monologues ! 😅
@@dperr338Oppenheimer was actually pretty dry and straight forward. Visuals, acting, message were good but not on the edge of your seat like his other movies. More like “a beautiful mind”
100% agree. Incidentally, I have the same centre channel. Upgraded from a smaller Klipsch RC34 which I moved to a other smaller room.
Love your channel and most of all, honesty. Been heavily invested into home cinema and have 2 theaters at home. Mainly Klipsch. I follow much of your advise and multi-team meetings with other enthusiasts and experts and have learnt a lot. Here in South Africa, it's a developing trend and information is limited. Hence, I relied heavily on your channel. You collaborated with many of the other you tubers on this topic so I have had a wholistic tutelage. Thanks so much👌
Great video, Michael. I had issues with this and the level matching really helped me. I also added a 3 channel amp (Emotiva BasX) to my LCR and it made a world of difference as well. Best money spent so far. Seemed a lot clearer taking the load off my AVR.
Great to hear it!
What avr are u using with this set up? I'm not liking the dialogue currently on the dennon 6700h. Sometimes it good other times the lower tones on voices sound muddy and sometimes hurts my ears at certain hrtz. I've tried lower the crossover, raising the crossover. Doing this while watching a movie with my wife, annoys her and me honestly. I've done all that is suggested in the video as well.
One of the best audio channels (no pun)out here. Hands down.
Thank you for the kind words
Moved my center speaker close to the edge of my entertainment center, then played Close to the Edge by Yes, and all is right with the world, at least for now. Thanks.
Great advice, I built my first 5.1 system 25 years ago,now have an older denon,no hdmi to even adjust the center Chanel a bit louder,but tilted it up to ear level and helped a lot. My wife he's the sub and getting older in hearing didn't help, got a new c3nter speaker, Boston, and is better.the new TV only has hdmi,no analog to adjust .denon,I'm a musician buy trade, and without letting the world sell me everything new,I'm bummed, I've had great stuff since 1999.most of it was before it was even broadcast capital in the day
Wow, been doing home theater setups for decades and I am today years old realizing that you shouldn't have a center speaker too far back if there is reflective surface underneath and ahead of it. I just pulled my center speaker forward, flush to the table. :D Never too old to learn new things!
I learned something new every day. Glad you found the video helpful.
Thanks so much for you expert advise. I made the adjustments you referenced and it really changed my system for the best. The sound was always great, but now it's much, much better!
im looking into upgrading my center chennel...i really like the center that you are using...
Thanks Youthman ... These small changes made a big difference... take care!
That’s awesome!
Yup, the CC is very important. In my living room which is the main system for movies. But i hav 2 full range speakers 7 1/2 feet apart are angled to the center position and it sounds awesome. I got rid of my regular CC and won't be going back.. Ear level is Key.. AWEsome, info🙂
Thank you. This is the best advice I've seen on center channel issues.
Thanks I’m glad you found the video helpful
Your presentation is superb! You are succinct & totally clear to make everything totally understandable.
Thank you kindly
Thanks bro. I enjoy watching your channel. Greetings from Russia.
With cinema 50, they got rid of small and large speaker setting. Auto calibration set center, front left and right speakers to full range. Would you change them ,if so what hz? I have klipsch 450c and rp250f
My Vizio M51 Soundbar, the Center or Soundbar speaker is 80% of the home theater sound. It sounds very good with Movies and Music even Bluetooth music. The 2 small rears for Dolby Atmos and DTS are important too. Adding the Onkyo receiver and 12" subwoofer was a big game changer now sounds Awesome.
I've got the same centre running yamaha rx2060 aventage...I find changing settings in the parametric eq. Putting up the mid range and bass. Turing down the treble. Better.
I worked in a machine shop for 43 years, so my hearing is not the best, I starve for high frequency sounds. I have a dedicated A/V room, with a 110" screen, a ViewSonic PX701HD Projector. I use my Older Sony STR-DE898 7.1digital receiver, in the 5.1 mode. AR, ars 112ps Sub, AR, PSC 25 center, Bose 301V, front L and R, and smaller Bose for the rear I couldn't enjoy the system at all, until I added a $30. J B L Super Tweeter ST 200 along with the center speaker. Wow what a difference it made. I now enjoy every movie or show that I watch, I can hear clearly bow.
TY for the advice, and congratulations on the channel growth.
Very good tip to angle up my center channel speaker,wish I did it 10 years ago. Thank you
Glad you found it helpful
My setup is the Klipsch Legend Series, KLF-30s for the mains & surrounds and the KLF-C7 for the center.
I owned that same set up many years ago. Excellent speakers
@@Youthman I've had mine for 20 years and I bought used on ebay. A couple drivers need replaced, but still kicking! It's crazy how much I can shake the house with NO subwoofers! They are being powered by a 5-channel (200 watts/ch) Rotel amp. I am one of those people that is not lucky enough to have a home cinema setup. Just a living room. Most of my equipment is old. Only the 4K tv and 4K player is new. My receiver is a Denon AVR 4306 that I got in 2007 when I upgraded to Blu-Ray and HD-DVD.
I absolutely love this guy. Great tips, going to make sure my center is close to the edge when I get home!
I love you too Matthew. I appreciate the kind words and I’m glad you’re enjoying the videos.
@@Youthman I am, very much. Let me ask you something. The center speaker you showed off here is one I’ve been eye-balling as I’m a big Klipsch fan. I have a center with 2 woofers. What advantage does one with 4 woofers give?
Great advice there. Always awesome content which doesnt get too technical. Thank you ❤
I want to make sure that everyone, regardless of where you are at in your Home Theater journey, can understand and follow along. I do my best to take complex things and make them simple and easy to understand.
@@Youthman❤ awesome. I'll go ahead and move my center channel right away🤗thank you so much ❤
Man that is some damn good tips I’ve got the Center speaker and it’s sort of facing my knees. I got some of those foam rubber rises from Amazon now. It sounds much better for example when you’re watching apocalypse now as the helicopter comes from the rear speakers to the front left centre front right rear it’s perfect so thank you very much.
You have just saved me £450 for a B&W Center speaker Bower and Watkins
I add a passive sub to the center channel. It really fills out the sound!
This could be just my situation but might be worth a try to some other people but switching from a silk dome tweeter/or similar style to a ribbon style tweeter in the center channel speaker made a night and day difference and all settings where the same before I ran calibration afterwards it was even better. I went from a polk xt30 to an emotiva c1+, I know it's not quite an apple to apple comparison but still might be worth a try.
No but for real, Ribbon tweeters are so great for vocals.
I am now a ribbon convert. Although I don't actually own any yet. After hearing my friends Martin Logan motion setup in his theater room, I realized there is nothing like ribbon tweeters. The highs are so present yet sweet and natural. Best of all no ear fatigue. My next set of speakers will have ribbons in them.
@@d.j.cantelli8074 each style has pros and cons. Just from personal experiences ribbon tweeters just have something that works great in home theaters. My complete emotiva 7.3.6 cranks and never sounds harsh, just completely natural and effortless.
You need to do more videos like this in your sitting room. Because most people watching your videos will have a sitting room setup👍
That’s exactly what I mention at 45 seconds into the video 😉
@@Youthman oh yes I know you did👍
I agree with you. 😉 Filming another video in the living room as we speak.
Worked exactly as promised. Thank you!
Got Wharfdale Evo 4 LCR. The centre channel 4.C made a huge difference.
Excellent video, thanks for the tips. I have this same speaker and it's an upgrade from a budgeted one that I had earlier. I'm going to lower my crossover frequency as I think I may have mine set to high at 120Hz.
Awesome. Try different crossover settings to see what sounds best in your room. Let me know what you find out.
@@Youthman I settled with 100Hz as the cross over, sounds way better. 80Hz was a little too boomy. I played a bunch of video games with my kiddos over the weekend and played back some music later in the evening and I really like where the sound field is now. I'm probably just not used the amount of Bass that this speaker can handle, lol.
@@007galaxie Try lowering the woofer level instead of increasing the cross freq. I had to have it on 30% (both) to balance out the throw.
Mike your right about setting all your speakers to small even if you have large speakers because alot of low end eats alot of that power up subwoofers are made for that purpose
Thanks
Thanks for the video. Why not get a smaller center like the Klipsch RP-404C II, if bass is supposed to go to the sub?
This was the system they sent me so that’s what I reviewed.
Klipsch r34c and 504c double channeled sounds absolutely amazing..I have this setup. More immersive sound. Playing music or movies sound much better.
Hi Youthman I’m just curious about my setup in my family room that’s all off anything being center where I can place the speakers where I can get the best performance from them. All of my speakers and subs are Klipsch reference series. I have r41sa’s r820f’s r25c r51m r41m and 2 r12sw subs and my amplifier is a Yamaha RXV 3800 with about 140w per channel power output with 2 channel’s driven. I’m just wanting to make it sound like I’m in a movie theater with very little room to make it work. Any and or all advice from you is welcome
Thank you for your time and and your help.
i dont think you listed the foam pad slants in the description
I have the def Tech with a bass radiator. Should I still set it to small?
I am having issues with sounds. It almsot sounds like a crackle
Very good and detailed info on Center Channel. Well appreciated bro👏🏼👏🏼
Hey i have a Onkyo RZ50 with the (dreaded?) DIRAC live whose software is just terrible. I have Martin Logan fronts and a large ML Center. Will definitely try your tips etc. Do you recommend etc. having (or finding in my case) someone come out and do the calibration for you?
Sir I have a question for you concerning center channels and I would appreciate your advice. When I recently got deep into the home theater game I went the klipsch RP series route due to being new into the hobby as well as they have some of the best DEALS and discounts at times that others do not offer so price dictated the path I took. But, since having the RP-405c I have always fiddled with volume and what not and as I spend more and more of my time and energy in my setup I am noticing how unimpressed I am with the sound discrepancy I am receiving from the RP-450c when going from seat to seat. So I am watching videos from Erin's audio and others about centers and it looks as tho the SVS Prime & Ultra as well as the Monolith THX-365c offer what I may be looking for. - so my question is, if I were to take either a SVS center or the Monolith center and replace my RP-450c.... Would I notice a huge difference in brand separation sound signature from my left and right RP-280F?
Very helpful video really take my center speaker to the next level.
I thought my speaker was not great.
Thank u so much 👍👍
That’s awesome! So glad to hear the video helped you improve your sound.
I've the rp504, really dont understand why the words sounds muffed. Done all of these steps. It sounded so much better before I auto calibrates the system for the new centre....
Wow I just moved my coffee table out of the line of sight and I had no idea how much it was affecting the sound.Now I have to figure out a way to get her not to notice it’s in the other room. Thanks for that tip!
LMAO!!!
Great advice! Another cheap way of angling your speakers is using rubber door stops! they dont rattle and you can change angle somewhat with them and they stay in place.
Great idea with the door stops!
Very very helpful thank you so much.
Glad you found the video helpful Rodney
Hi, great tips on the center speaker placement. Can I ask if I can hook up a pair of stereo speakers to replace a single unit center speaker? How you can give me some light to this. Thanks.
Thank you for the kind words, Michael. Unfortunately that would not be a good idea. Google comb filtering. The short version is when you take two speakers, put distance between them, and play the same frequencies, they end up, canceling each other out in certain frequencies.
@@Youthman thanks for your reply. I was thinking of putting both the speakers side by side in the center.
Regarding the blanket on the coffee table, I hadn't thought of that before. I'll be implementing this tip, with a modification: instead of a blanket, an array of irregularly-shaped, sound-diffusing snacks.
That should work too and it’s more practical 🤣
@@Youthman if the snacks are particularly crunchy then it's also a formidable test of the speaker's clarity 😋
I have a Marantz SR7013 with Dali Oberon speakers and the center speaker on 0dB is way too quiet. The effects of other speakers are just way louder. I just set the center speaker to +5dB and it makes a huge difference. Now I can clearly hear the dialog. I also have all speakers set to small @80Hz and SW to put out LFE+Main at 120Hz.
Scary how different a movie sounds with just a dB bump on the center channel 🙂
Some American Dad episodes sound weird with Dolby Neural and Neo6.
I just learned something today. Thank you.😊👍
I’m so grateful the video was helpful! Appreciate you Sandy.
Thx. I've moved the TV (which has OK inbuilt speakers which vibrate the screen itself ..Sony A90J) forward as far as possible just now.
As I understand my Marantz manual, setting the center to Small will normally route its lows to the Mains not the sub. If you have[ LFE + Mains] set THEN the lows will be removed from the mains and go to the sub. If you have mains with good low extension e.g. to 40Hz then they are probably better at most bass than using the sub. Just use the sub for the dedicated LFE signal.
On the center level from recent RUclips movies which have 5.1 you can go into the movie's settings and toggle 5.1 on or off. When I have 5.1 on, although the movie has 5.1, the centre channel is too low. Turn 5.1 off and bingo..the center is fine, BUT you lose the proper surround. Netflix movies have no such problem. Anyone have a solution other than messing with my carefully balanced levels in the AVR?
Great advice Youthman. Also, great vintage home theater photo
Thank you kindly
Thank you. Next time I will try with blanket on my coffee table.
I'm learning thank you. I had no idea what Big vs Small speakers mean; appreciate that.
Sounds like a good video idea
Incredible Ken!
Should i trust dirac setup on the onkyo rz50?
How do you properly level match like what should the starting DB be of sound coming from the speakers? Cause as you know you can raise the volume up and down which can mess up results I’m not sure how to properly level match manually like what steps to take
This video should help - ruclips.net/video/V481X2RHUcA/видео.html
You can keep the mic pointed upward to the ceiling though.
I believe at some point you had the SVS Ultra Center. I have done most of your suggestions here and run the MC303 Mcintosh. The center still performs just 6 out of 10. Did you feel this center was lacking in your setup?
I added a line out converter from center and added a soundbar to center channel and it got a volume knob which is handy.
Should I set audio setting to All channel stereo or Direct and onkyos intelliVol from 0 to +12DB before using the set up Mic ? My reciever is txnr777 with Klipsch r25C if I get Large center what ones are good?
I personally have never found a use for all channel stereo. The only time you might want to use that is if you had a ton of people over and you just want music playing all around your room.
@Youthman okay thanks. My friend is partially deaf but even to me sometimes some movies are just super low and I live in a apartment so I'm just trying to figure out how to set everything up so I can hear everything clearly I have to polk audio moniter 40 2 for fronts, and the klipsch r25c for center, and a 8 inch nuance powered sub 2 no name speakers for the surround left and right. Thought about getting either klipsch 504 center or klipsch 8000 for left and right and use the polk audio book shelf moniter 40 for surround front left an right. But not sure what to do or how to spend my money
is Klipsch reference 5.2 with Denon receiver any good
I would love to change my projector screen material to acoustic transparent screen, and put center speaker behind it. Because no matter if i pinpoint angle by the laser, and maximize height of the speaker as much as it doesn't cover the screen, and if you focus a little, the sound from it always seems like it's coming from under the screen. So putting center speaker behind the screen, and in middle of screen might be huge improvement.
This would definitely be more of an issue if you have a large projector screen. Like 100inch or higher, seeing that there will be more distance between the center of the screen and the speaker.(if placed below the screen) Having a big tv, its not as big of a distance, making it harder to localize. Thats if its right under the screen. If its anything over a foot away theres no hope 😄
@@tuner7961 Yeah, I've got 100 inch, it's about 2 feet distance between speaker and middle of screen so that's a problem. I could imagine that in typical TV which is normally 50-70inch screens wouldn't be the case that much.
Yeah and depending how close you affects it as well. We sit about 9ft away from an 82inch and the center is right under the screen. You cant tell its below it
I am considering the RP 504C v1. I have Jamo S809 towers and Dirac. Do you think it's wise to go to a Klipsch center? Hoping to avoid timbre issues with Dirac. S83 center is decent after EQ but the soundstage is too narrow
Would you still recommend setting your center channel to small with a CS-9060 which has a powered sub-woofer?
Absolutely would set it to small. It only reaches down to 32 Hz. That’s not a Subwoofer in my opinion.
On a demon avr do you set dynamic eq on or off. And dynamic volume on or off for best sound
Dynamic EQ is preference. Try it on and off to which sounds best to you in your room.
Dynamic volume off.
@@Youthman ok thanks for the reply and help
Awesome as always 🤜🏼🤛🏽
Best centre channel sound I found is lay 2 bookshelves on their sides, tweeter to tweeter then split the centre channel feed to power both. Voices sound unreal. Mine are ATC SCM 11's used this way.
If you measure it, you’ll likely see comb filtering.
I want to build a 5.1 surround setup in segments what speak type should I get first?
My recommendation if you don’t have the funds to buy them all at once, get your front left and right, then a subwoofer, the. Center and finally surrounds.
@Youthman Thanks.
Thanks for the great video. I currently use a definitive technology CS-9060 which has an 8" built in powered subwoofer. 32HZ to 42KHZ, 8 OHM, 91db. Should I set it to Large or Small?
I would still set it to small as you want the subwoofer to handle the lower frequencies. That’s what they were designed for.
@Youthman thanks a bunch. Another question: since the CS-9060 has an upward firing sub, would it affect the overall performance if I was to angle it slightly upward toward my ear level using isolation pads? If so, which one would you recommend that can handle its 26lbs weight?
Hey yall! Got any advice for me? I need a slim centerchannel speaker with exelent clarity. Pls help
Will adjusting the test tone levels remove the audussy auto calibration settings
No, adjusting trim levels will not discard the settings Audyssey has made.
I just set my amp to all channels. Sounds so much better on my Yamaha than any other channel.
I might have missed the link but did you have a link for the angled speaker foam wedges?
These are the ones I use for my desktop speakers - Sound Addicted - Studio Monitor... www.amazon.com/dp/B0757LTZJJ?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
I use 2 pairs of car wheel chocks, 2 stacked on either side of my center channel to prop it up. My Center is the Klipsch RP-504C II. It's pretty hefty, so, stacking 2 chocks on either side easily supports the weight. To raise the center so that's it on axis with my ears at listening position, you simply need to move the chock pairs forward or backward.
I use r.e.w. to measure my speakers. The frequency response shows all my speakers at the same level. When I use my s.p.l meter and the audyssey level match on my denon it's different. Which should I use?
It's best to give the different settings a listen and then decide for yourself what sounds more even.
I compared my ypao calibration to my manual one and preferred the manual one better for some reason.
What acoustic treatments for the walls do you recommend?
DIY is the least expensive option. They work great if you are handy. GIK or ATS Acoustics are popular if you want them prebuilt or want design options.
I have a question about level matching with an SPL Meter. I use to do that but I watched a few videos that suggested that you shouldn't as Audessey is adjusting the level based on how close you maybe to the speakers if you are not directly centered in the room. So for instance it may lower your side surrounds because you sit closer to them than your LCRs and changing that with an SPL messes up the Audessey Calibration. Is there any truth to that?
Odyssey is simply measuring how loud a speaker is at your listening position. If a speaker is closer and it measures louder, of course, odyssey will lower to match the level of the other speakers. But they should all measure the same volume at your listening position.
One more suggestion, mid to high range Receivers allow adjusting the volume/output to dedicated channels/speakers. It is usually with a range of 1-5 or 1-10 (Sony for sure does).
.mike, what do you mean by early reflections? Can you give me some examples
Early reflections is sound reflecting off something (like your coffee table) before it hits your ears.
Hi there.
I got a problem with my center speaker Klipsch RP-504C II. It sounds muffled and I can't seem to fix it. It got plenty of space behind and placed to the edge of the shelf. It's hooked up to my Denon avr-1700H and crossover is set to 60Hz. Do you have any suggestions to what I can do?
If you have Audyssey app, there are a few things you can try. Turn off midrange compensation, find the Schroeder frequency of your room and set a curtain for the center channel so that Audyssey is not EQing more than it needs to. If you clap loudly once in your primary listening position, does the clap echo?
Hey, @Youthman. Your SPL link doesn't work. It is for a klipsh subwoofer instead. Please fix it so I can purchase it using your link.
Thank you let me take a look
I just used the SPL-120 link. It's working.
I've done some of these tips just recently myself. First was bring it forward of the table. The difference was it made it more crisp. Just bought myself some black door wedges to angle the speaker up. I was using something white before and it ended up annoying me.
That’s great to hear they improved your sound
spent a decent amount on a full paradigm system, big center channel, integra receiver....the center channel voice performance sucked so bad, i had no ability to help it in any way. hated that system for that reason. im sure now receivers have some sort of way to address this, but back in 2004 integra did not.
Great tips. Mine sounds pretty good.did a few things that did improve it as well
It's occasionally difficult to get good dialogue sound from a 2.1 system in 2 channel stereo due to disc formatting. Top Gun Maverick is a good example. Lots of great sounds with low volume dialogue. With my older Denon AVR 3805 I have limited adjustability. How would you address that without simply cranking up the volume?
Do you have the ability to add a center channel? I think that would help greatly.
If you have the ability, you can boost the vocal frequencies. Granted, in a two channel setup this may effect everything but the dialogue may become more clear.
8361A & Sphere is my plan
8350A's as L&R
KRK 8's as rears
12sho sub
7.1 monitor setup from an RME interface
Thanks for the tips!
Also, after maximizing the center channel, sometimes the source content can sometimes be the reason it can be hard to hear dialogue. VOX had a good video on that (though the title overstates the case) called, "Why we all need subtitles now".
Do recommend the wedge to tilt up my center channel for better position on my listening position?
You just want to have the tweeter aimed directly at your ears.
@@Youthman correct looking for something to point mine up more.
I bought these for my computer monitor speakers to aim them upwards - amzn.to/46y5IiZ
@@Youthman ok thank you these will work good on a rc64iii?
I wouldn’t see why not
Speakers look awesome
Love your glasses, where did you get? Make and model?
Thank you. Costal. I’m not sure the model. Honestly I can’t stand them. The nose pieces continue to fall off, so I super glued them on lol.
If your left and right speakers are in the same brand of manufacturer ok even if the center channel maybe a different model
Like klipsch 8000f left and right speakers with a 504c 2 center channel speaker