Dipolar rears or direct radiating? (1 Viewer)

[James_EJr]

Should I purchase another set of Paradigm's ADP-170s for the surround rears to go along with the surround sides or keep my Paradigm Atom speakers as my surround rears? Thanks.

 

[Lew Crippen]

Most who are setting up 7.1 systems use dipoles for the sides and direct radiating for the rears—that is if they use dipoles at all.

If you expect to listen to five channel music, you definitely want direct speakers for the rear. The mixes rely on sound location, so dipoles at the rear don’t work so well.

I use dipoles for my surrounds and if (or when) I go to 6.1 or 7.1, I’d keep my dipoles for the sides and get directs for the rear.

 

[Marvin E]

Check out the following article:
http://www.hometheatermag.com/showarchives.cgi?25
I use dipoles for the side and rear center surround speakers.

 

[Joel~Solid]

Dipoles for the sides. I have a direct radiating for the 6.1

 

[Kevin C Brown]

I use direct radiators all around. If you can, try it both ways. I simply prefer the more precise imaging with direct radiators. With dipoles, the high freqs are rolled off too, because the design itself relies on off-axis sound.

 

[Marvin E]

What high frequencies are rolled off? I have tried the following combinations:
dual direct radiating speakers, bipole side and and dipole rear, dipole side and bipole rear, dipole side and direct radiating rear, and dual Axiom QS4's, and nothing sounds as good as dual dipoles, IMHO. With dipole speakers, I have never experienced high frequency roll off. What I do get is the same kind of effects you get in a commercial theater.

 

[Kevin C Brown]

Go look at any freq response plot for a direct radiator. Now look at the off-axis plots. Just as the sun rises each day in the east, the high freqs are rolled off as you go more and more off-axis.

Here's just one example:

http://www.soundstagemagazine.com/me...ascend_cbm170/

Dipole speakers are *designed* to deliver off-axis sound to within the primary listening window.

 

[Marvin E]

Go look at any freq response plot for a direct radiator. Now look at the off-axis plots. Just as the sun rises each day in the east, the high freqs are rolled off as you go more and more off-axis.

Here's another example:

http://www.hometheatermag.com/showarchives.cgi?25:3
I believe I read in a speaker review that if you use direct
radiating speakers as side surrounds, they should be mounted downward toward the listening position, but an angle toward the front of the room. This would give you more of an ambient soundstage. True?

 

[Donnie Eldridge]

Or, you could do what THX advises.

"For optimum results, THX recommends use of two THX Ultra-certified dipole speakers for the back surrounds. However, allowing for customer preference, a pair of direct radiating speakers can also be used for the back surrounds under a new THX specification."


Linked here

 

[Randy Haines]

I use dipoles on the side with high mounted anglemounts I built. I use direct boxes for the rear, right now in Ultra2 configuration, meaning both are together on the rear wall. My jury is still out on whether I can stand the dipoles at all. the mounting I listed is new as of last Thursday. I have actually had the dipoles for a year, but just now am starting to appreciate them with the new mounts. Good luck to anyone who uses dipoles and likes them. I doubt I'll ever get that type again. I'll just use multi- directs on the sides if I do replace them. The speakers in question are Klipsch RS-7's. The rest of the system is Klipsch, a mixture of older and new, with one of the subs not Klipsch, and the other from their pro line, both passive. Forte's in the front, RC-7 center, KG-4's in the rear. I like the center and the rest of the speakers. If I had the room, I'd use Klipschorns in each of the 4 corners with Belle Klipsch's as centers front and rear and an array of Heresey's as side's. And 2 subs in the front and 1 in the rear. All subs would be double 18" Bag End at that point. Need a fairly large room for all this though, so it's just a thought right now.

 

[Kevin C Brown]

Oooh, and just to murky the waters even further, I really like the idea of the new Mirage Omnipolars for surrounds and rears. Direct *and* reflected sound. Theoretically, good imaging plus a lot of diffuseness...

 

[Adam Horak]

After a long time evaluating the dipole vs. direct I have come to no conclusion whatsoever. I cannot decide which I like more. I completely depends on the soundtrack.

If the movie place me in the middle of a rainstorm, then dipoles sound great. If a bullet is whizzing past my head, then monopoles sound great. which effect is more important? I guess everyone has to decide for themselves.

 

[Lewis Besze]

I had dipole,bipole and monopole,at 1 point in my HT.
I ended up with monopole all around.YMMV.
However of MC music is on your horizon then the choice is clear:monopole.