THX speakers (1 Viewer)

[JohnSmith]

How do you know /find out the speakers roll-off? I've found out my pre-amp has 12dB/octave filter for the speakers, 24dB/octave for sub.

 

[LanceJ]

Jason: try not to take the marketing stuff so seriously & you won't feel that way (I'm sure you wrote that mostly tongue-in-cheek but just in case! ). BTW: as someone who grew up with receivers many times featuring "only" 25 watts per channel that still could get loud enough--but still clean sounding--to get you evicted, two hundred watts for any amp is a very nice rating (as long as that is an RMS rating; though even 100W RMS for certain rooms is still all many people need for a sub).

And I have read several pro reviews myself where they thought the THX speakers didn't reproduce music as well as movie soundtracks--Wayne's comment on "constrictedness" was almost always mentioned. THX speakers' tight control of vertical sound dispersion is most probably the reason for this. While working at Incredible Universe once (1995) I was able to listen to some Altec-Lansing THX speakers and also sensed that quality. It's great for making sure moving sound effects "move" cleanly & accurately across your monitor's image & also to aid in localizing dialog wherever the actor is standing. But for music this quality seems to only aid in producing a rather sterile quality. Mind you, music didn't sound BAD on the Altecs, just too.....dry......for my tastes.

And yes, IMO some speakers (in general) are better for music reproduction than they are for movies. Speakers with more high frequency "snap" and low-end "punch" help movies to sound more exciting. But with music--since music plays continuously--such a sound may become fatiguing after only a short time.

So unless the THX speakers sound really bad to you Jason, for a movie-only system I personally would buy those. As far as the THX amp certification.......no comment!

 

[Shane Martin]

Jason,
Have you considered other THX speakers like M&K or Triad?

 

[Bhagi Katbamna]

THX speakers are a way to set and forget. You are pretty much guaranteed that the fronts will match the center and rear speakers. Also they will be timbre matched so that despite being in different locations(free-standing fronts, rears on walls about 6 feet off the floor). Plus, they are certified to play to a certain loudness per room size. If you like the sound of THX speakers in music that is familiar to you, you can't really go wrong.
Some people don't like THX speakers for music though.

 

[JasonPetty]

Shane,
I've checked out the prices on other brands, but I'd end up paying retail and I just can't afford that. I was VERY impressed with the M&K speakers I heard, but they were just way out of my price range.

 

[Gideon]

Have been using THX equipment for the past 15 years. You will be rest assured of the sound and built quality.

Past Setup:-
1) Altec Lansing THX 5.1 speakers (15 years old and still using the tripole as rear surrounds)
2) Kenwood THX Pre & Power amplifiers (15 years old and still using the Power Amp)

Present Setup:-
1) M&K S-150 THX front 3 speakers (since 5 mths old)
2) M&K MX-150 THX subwoofer (since 3 months old)
3) Mondaurt Short THX dipole as side surround (2 yrs old)
4) Marantz SR 8200 THX Select A/V Receiver (2 yrs old)
5) Lexicon MC-8B THX Ultra Digital Sound Processor (5 mths old)

Future Upgrade:-
1) Rotel RMB THX 1090 Power 5 Channel Amplifier (End Sep 04)

Bottomline - Amazing combination with THX certification!

 

[JasonPetty]

Cool. Now I'm getting Excited.