Where do you put your center channel with TVs so thin these days?

[pdawg17]

I'm looking into dumping my 32" CRT and upgrading to a DLP tv...since they are not very deep, where do most people put their center channel? I have a Paradigm Studio CC so it is way too big to sit on top...

[eisforelectronic]

You could attach a shelf to the wall above or get a TV stand for it. I have also set up a pair of stands in front of the TV to support a larger center speaker.

[BRANDONH]

I'm looking into dumping my 32" CRT and upgrading to a DLP tv...since they are not very deep, where do most people put their center channel? I have a Paradigm Studio CC so it is way too big to sit on top...
Does the DLP have built in speakers?
If so does it have a center channel input option?
1) if it has built in speakers but no center channel option and your receiver has a Center Channel pre-out, use a male/female single RCA cable comined with a male/male RCA Y-connecter. insert both male's into R & L audio in then the Single RCA to the receiver center pre-out.
Note: that the TV volume will need to be at Max. but you still control the volume with the receiver.
2) If the TV does have a center channel option then just run a single RCA patch cord from the receiver center preout to the TV center input.
This eliminates the center channel box and the sound comes from the TV which will sound more natural.

[pdawg17]

Would it be accurate to say that the one negative to using the TV as a center channel is that it wouldn't be "matched" with my other speakers?

[markw]

Think about it.

[Woochifer]

The trends that I've seen seem to go with either center speaker shelves that attach to the top of the TV, or center speaker floor stands that go in front of the TV.

https://www.sanus.com/images/TVSb.jpg
Sanus' TV top shelf

http://www.soundanchor.com/img323.jpg
One of Sound Anchor's heavy duty center speaker stands (holds up to 300 lbs.)

Right now, it looks like I'll likely go with a flat panel TV of some kind and mount it on a floor stand. Typically, these flat panel TV stands also have a shelf that's big enough to hold a center speaker.

http://www.salamanderdesigns.com/syn/imgs/gal_324mb_01.jpg
Salamander Design's modular plasma mount (the open shelf in the picture that partially encloses the center speaker can be removed) is probably what I will go with.

[Woochifer]

2) If the TV does have a center channel option then just run a single RCA patch cord from the receiver center preout to the TV center input.
This eliminates the center channel box and the sound comes from the TV which will sound more natural.

As others have mentioned, using the TV speaker as the center channel is not a good idea at all. The most important aspect in selecting a center speaker is how well it timbre matches with the mains, and the TV speakers I've heard are uniformly inferior to almost anything that you can buy as a standalone center speaker. In general, if the match is inadequate, then you're better off not using a center speaker at all. Given how much of the signal in 5.1 soundtracks typically gets channeled through the center speaker, the last thing you want is something that sounds significantly different from (and vastly inferior to) the mains.

You mention eliminating the center channel box, but keep in mind that the TV itself is a very resonant and minimally damped enclosure. Speakers are typically designed with a very specific relationship between the interior volume, bass extension, and (if applicable) the size of the port opening. I seriously doubt that TVs are designed around optimal audio performance for a specific set of drivers. (for one thing if you designed a TV enclosure with a port opening designed to create the most even frequency response, the ventilation would probably be inadequate to cool the various parts inside the TV) Plus, the amplification inside the TV will be far inferior to what a receiver can provide. With all these things in mind, the sound from the TV speakers will not make anything sound more natural, but can go a long way towards severely degrading the audio quality.

[pdawg17]

Wooch...thanks for the input...I would probably go with a floor stand except I have a 1 year old and she would be climbing all over that thing for hours at a time which is probably not a good idea :)...I'll look into that TV stand and see if it would work on a DLP model or not...

[BRANDONH]

As others have mentioned, using the TV speaker as the center channel is not a good idea at all. The most important aspect in selecting a center speaker is how well it timbre matches with the mains, and the TV speakers I've heard are uniformly inferior to almost anything that you can buy as a standalone center speaker. In general, if the match is inadequate, then you're better off not using a center speaker at all. Given how much of the signal in 5.1 soundtracks typically gets channeled through the center speaker, the last thing you want is something that sounds significantly different from (and vastly inferior to) the mains.

You mention eliminating the center channel box, but keep in mind that the TV itself is a very resonant and minimally damped enclosure. Speakers are typically designed with a very specific relationship between the interior volume, bass extension, and (if applicable) the size of the port opening. I seriously doubt that TVs are designed around optimal audio performance for a specific set of drivers. (for one thing if you designed a TV enclosure with a port opening designed to create the most even frequency response, the ventilation would probably be inadequate to cool the various parts inside the TV) Plus, the amplification inside the TV will be far inferior to what a receiver can provide. With all these things in mind, the sound from the TV speakers will not make anything sound more natural, but can go a long way towards severely degrading the audio quality.

All the above duly noted.
It is inexpensive and hey if you do not like the sound your not out much money.
And natural it will sound.

[Woochifer]

All the above duly noted.
It is inexpensive and hey if you do not like the sound your not out much money.
And natural it will sound.

I've already tried mismatched center speakers with my system, and they sounded far from natural. In fact, they sounded so bad that I kept the center channel switched off until I bought the matching center speaker for my system. And right off the bat I can tell you that the tonal characteristics of those mismatched center speakers were much closer in their voice characteristics than the speakers in my TV ever can be. If my TV speakers are 2 1/2" one-way paper drivers with virtually no high frequency extension and midrange that cuts off far short of the crossover point, it can do nothing but destroy the front soundstage and imaging effect, not to mention make the dialog with my movies less intelligible because of the abundant cabinet resonance that a TV speaker will create.

If you use it the TV speakers as the center channel in your system and you like it, then by all means enjoy it. But, that doesn't mean that it is an optimal setup, or that a more conventional timbre matched center speaker won't sound more natural. Rather than me trying my TV speakers as the center channel, I would actually suggest that you try turning off the center channel and let your main speakers handle those duties.