new to home theater

[joesspotss]

just purchased a marantz sr7000 reciever used on ebay and am at present using it in 2 chan stereo. i love it and listen to more music than video but may want to add h/t to my system. i have an older set of speakers (cerwin vega d-5). i'd like to add to it incrementaly i guess starting with a center speaker. any suggestions? do i have to match brands?would it sound ok with just what i have?
thanks for any suggestions

[Smokey]

i have an older set of speakers (cerwin vega d-5). i'd like to add to it incrementaly i guess starting with a center speaker. any suggestions? do i have to match brands?

Yes, it is critical to have the same brand/Timbre center speaker as front speakers.

[Geoffcin]

just purchased a marantz sr7000 reciever used on ebay and am at present using it in 2 chan stereo. i love it and listen to more music than video but may want to add h/t to my system. i have an older set of speakers (cerwin vega d-5). i'd like to add to it incrementaly i guess starting with a center speaker. any suggestions? do i have to match brands?would it sound ok with just what i have?
thanks for any suggestions

But if you don't, I would spend a good long time making sure the speaker you get sounds similar to your older speakers. My suggestion to make thinns easier for you is you get a matched set of 3 speakers first, and use your CV speakers for surround duty. The surround speakers are not as important as the mains for timber matching.

[accastil]

i agree with geof...your receiver is really good...buy 3 timbre match speakers for the front(2 mains and 1 center) and move your cerwin vegas to the rear.

[accastil]

oh and i forgot to tell you..give MORDAUNT SHORT 502 DECLARATION speakers a listen. if you dont like them sounding with your marantz then trash my suggestion. but i can only tell you this...nothing beats the MS and Marantz combo for HT and music at their price level.

[AVMASTER]

But if you don't, I would spend a good long time making sure the speaker you get sounds similar to your older speakers. My suggestion to make thinns easier for you is you get a matched set of 3 speakers first, and use your CV speakers for surround duty. The surround speakers are not as important as the mains for timber matching.
why are the surrounds not as important?

[GMichael]

why are the surrounds not as important?

Most of the sound will be coming from your 3 front speakers. The surrounds only get some effects & just enough sound to make you feel like you're in the middle of everything.

[Geoffcin]

Most of the sound will be coming from your 3 front speakers. The surrounds only get some effects & just enough sound to make you feel like you're in the middle of everything.

I coudn't have put it better myself.

Most of what's coming out of the surrounds is not going to be subjected to critical listening. That being said; I NEVER said that a fully matched system wouldn't be better.

Joesspots want's the best cost effective way for him to get decent HT. That's the question we're trying to answer.

[accastil]

why are the surrounds not as important?
mostly critical for your music listening would be the 2 front speakers while the center and the subwoofer would be most critical for your HT enjoyment.

in any case, you should have the proper settings on your receiver to optimize the soundfield.

the rears only get a very small share of the entire soundtrack. mostly transients of backgrounds only.

[Woochifer]

Most of the sound will be coming from your 3 front speakers. The surrounds only get some effects & just enough sound to make you feel like you're in the middle of everything.


mostly critical for your music listening would be the 2 front speakers while the center and the subwoofer would be most critical for your HT enjoyment.

in any case, you should have the proper settings on your receiver to optimize the soundfield.

the rears only get a very small share of the entire soundtrack. mostly transients of backgrounds only.

Actually, the amount of surround activity and the need to timbre match the surround speakers depends very much on the source. For older movie soundtracks that mostly use the surrounds for ambient sounds that are mostly recorded in monophonic and split into two channels, then the timbre match with the surround speaker is not quite a vital.

However, for multichannel music, concert DVDs, and newer movie soundtracks that freely steer directional effects between the main and surround channels, then you definitely want as close a timbre match as possible. Aggressively mixed movie soundtracks that make full use of all five channels such as Master and Commander can convey a startlingly realistic soundfield with very precise imaging cues all the way around. With nonmatched surround speakers, the depth perception and stability of the side imaging with this soundtrack is far less pronounced than with a closer timbre match. Multichannel music is especially revealing when using nonmatching surround speakers.

[AVMASTER]

that's the response i was looking for. I understand from the original post that we were going for the simple solution ( 3 matched LCRs and whatever for surround) and thats fine as long as we suggest matched surrounds as his near-furture purchase--for the purpose of high-resolution audio formats and newer movie soundtracks

[GMichael]

Actually, the amount of surround activity and the need to timbre match the surround speakers depends very much on the source. For older movie soundtracks that mostly use the surrounds for ambient sounds that are mostly recorded in monophonic and split into two channels, then the timbre match with the surround speaker is not quite a vital.

However, for multichannel music, concert DVDs, and newer movie soundtracks that freely steer directional effects between the main and surround channels, then you definitely want as close a timbre match as possible. Aggressively mixed movie soundtracks that make full use of all five channels such as Master and Commander can convey a startlingly realistic soundfield with very precise imaging cues all the way around. With nonmatched surround speakers, the depth perception and stability of the side imaging with this soundtrack is far less pronounced than with a closer timbre match. Multichannel music is especially revealing when using nonmatching surround speakers.

Agreed.

[Geoffcin]

that's the response i was looking for. I understand from the original post that we were going for the simple solution ( 3 matched LCRs and whatever for surround) and thats fine as long as we suggest matched surrounds as his near-furture purchase--for the purpose of high-resolution audio formats and newer movie soundtracks

This post was not asking about the theoretical, but the practical.

I'll go even futher, and try to present the BEST choice for assembling this HT. If the budget is a constraint (and who's isn't?) then spend your money on the BEST center you can get.

A for instance;

I recently reviewed a quality Axiom system. If I were to recommend them to this buyer (and I would!), then I would say to get the larger VP150 center, and make due with the smaller M3ti standmount speakers for mains, rather than the larger and more expensive floorstanders. In this way eventually you can add the floorstanders, and move the standmounts to surround duty. This way you can build a matched systen sensibly, and not break the budget.