Cerwin-Vega / Front Speaker Size (1 Viewer)

Hello to everyone, this is my first thread. I have been using my present speakers (which are CV AT15's) for twelve years and I love them as much today as on the day we meet. I'm now upgrading my present 4.1 system (I'm laughing to!) to a 5.1 or 6.1. I plan on keeping my AT's on a total different system powered by a different amp (Adcom GFA-555 II). I will us them as my second and third powered sub's. I'm I wrong to think that I should have all the same size voice matched speakers. I plan on buying a center channel speaker that has two 6.5" drivers but the guy at the store said with that center my front left and right should be larger in size. I know that CV's are not the greatest speakers made but in my ears I think there the greatest. With that being said. Why are CV speakers never rated that high, that's if you can find someone evaluating them? Let along selling them.

The size of the driver has no impact (ok, not NO, but very little) on the timbre and sound of the speaker. With such old speakers it's probably going to be impossible to get a matched center (they probably didn't have centers back then). Your best bet is hunting for a speaker from CV or even from another brand that closely matches the sound of your mains.

It's great that you love em, so don't let me(or anyone else) tell you otherwise, because it's always YOUR ears that matter.

As for why they aren't too "high-end", they are mostly cheap, decent enough, and can sound fine for rock and the like, but IMO(big emphasis on the my OPINION part ) they really don't stand up to the detail and quality of sound that some other brands dish out. They are good at being loud and still sounding good, they aren't ripoffs like bose, but they aren't "audiophile" speakers either, so they don't get reviewed in the big mags(they also aren't pushing extremely expensive wares either, which the magazines tend to like, BIG money products...)

So if you've done a lot of listening to the many highly-regarded brands out there and still love the CVs, there's no reason to get rid of them. A speaker that sounds great, always sound great. If, however, you've not set foot in a high-end store, or listened to a good 2-channel setup since you've bought these 12 years ago, you might wander in, what was the VERY best many years ago can be had for very reasonable prices nowadays.

And lastly, this is all based on my impression of CURRENT CV speakers, I am totally unfamiliar with old models, so maybe i'm just clueless and these are and have been fine speakers all along.

So anyway, just remember that the size of the driver really has nothing to do with the sound of the speaker(apart from the gross differences between, say a tweeter and a large woofer). Speakers made with IDENTICAL drivers can sound totally different based on cabinet and crossover. And obviously, all 6.5in drivers, or 12in drivers, or whatever, do not sound the same, and DEFINITELY won't sound the same in different speakers. You really want to hunt by ear, disregarding the type/size of drivers, for something that matches your mains. Of course, if you decide to replace your CVs, then it's easier to buy a matched set across the front, but would cost more $$, and you'd be parting with speakers that you seem to love.

Good luck!

I myself started with CV and I loved them. I thought my sub was good until I heard a real sub. I now have a real sub. My CV sub is just sitting. I had 12" CV fronts great for partys and ok for HT but I had to upgrade when I auditioned some speakers from Rutledge. My CV are about 5or6 years old and I was looking to get rid of them but if no one buys I'll keep them and just use them somewhere else. If you go to the CV site they have a center speaker you can check out. Welcome to the forum.

I've still have a CV sub and center speaker.

Check out this link here...old thread... I asked if it was worth getting the center for a cheap price, and got some informative answers. I ended up getting it for less then the $100, so I was extremely happy. Look for what you can get, and enjoy your 5.1 setup, when you get it!

you may find theres a difference between your old speakers and the ones they make today .
i have some recent ones and they are chinese made and quite budget .
i like them but understand why they are not considered , high end audio , i would call them speakers for partying and torturing your neighbours . i think they are also indestructable. they remind me of a harley davidson moterbike or a ruger rifle