Speaker Dillema. Please Help (1 Viewer)

[maskman]

Hi,

This is my first post. I am in the process of setting up my home theater. I have a pair of florr standing Cerwin Vega Speakers that I use as my laft and right front speakers. I have a JBL Center Channel with two JBL rear surround speakers and a Sony Subwoofer.

My question is, What is my best solution for speakers that I use for my home theater as well as my stereo system. Are these 3-way Cerwin Vega speakers good for both? I would love to downsize, but I am afraid I waould sacrafice the rich sound they give me when listening to music. Is it possible to get really rich audio from speakers designed for a home theater?

I guess what I am really asking is, are there speakers that give the best of both Thearter and Music?

Thanks,
Dennis

 

[MaxL]

this topic is up for much debate. i'll just get this started by saying that i think the weakest link in what you've got is probably that sony sub. in general, a good sub, properly integrated, will improve most setups whether 2, 5, or 7 channel and whether you use large or small speakers.

suffice it to say there are great speakers that excell for both HT and stereo alike. some are large, some are small and they will almost always need a good sub to pick up from 60-100hz down. (to go subless for HT with truly high quality bass down close to 20hz would require expensive, probably quite large full range speakers with lots of high quality, expensive amplification.)

right up there with getting a better sub, i'd also wonder about finding a matching center. i'm not saying the jbl doesn't, but i wonder... having matching front 3 speakers is usually pretty important for voices moving across the screen sounding natural.

just a start...

 

[MikeNg]

Hi Dennis, welcome to the forum.

Quality bookshelf speakers (that can play flat from 200Hz to 20KHz) pair with a GOOD subwoofer (that can play flat from 20Hz to 120Hz), properly set up and calibrated should do well with both music and theater.

As to whether THOSE speakers will do well, I have no idea since you didn't give any info on model #'s, the type of room your in, playback demands (do you listen at full tilt reference level?), etc. Hoever, as a rule of thumb you don't want to mix/match different speaker brands/models for your front channels. I would suggest getting a CV center channel that matches your left/right, or get matching JBL's to go with the center, or start over!

 

[maskman]

OK...Well, I do have a pair of JBL S36 3 Way book shelf speakers that match the JBL S Center Channel. I was going to use them for the rear speakers, but they are a bit large. I wasn't sure if these would cut it for my main front left and rights. I am sure they would do great fpr the home theater, but I'm not sure about the music. I guess if I got a good JBL Sub, and some JBL rears, I should be ok. Am I correct? Anyone have any experience with these JBL Northridge Speakers?

Thanks for all the help guys.

Dennis

 

[MikeNg]

You don't have to match the sub to your mains. Consider SVS/Hsu for a good value HT sub.