Center Channel?

[oddeoowphil38]

Hello forum members. I am seriously considering the following center speakers:
1. Paradigm cc-370 v.4
2. Ascend Acoustic CMT-340c
3. Paradigm cc-470 v.3

Of the three I have heard the cc-370 quite exrensively and I must admit I really was impressed. I fully understand that the reference cc-470 v.3 is significantly better but also much more expensive. Kinda too expensive for my budget. I have never heard any Ascend product but am aware of how well their products have been received. So my question is the Ascend CMT-340c as good or maybe better than the Paradigm cc-370 v.4? They are both close in price and within my budget. Some people just get an extra speaker such as the Ascend CBM-170 for their center. I asked my Paradigm dealer about using a Monitor 3 v.4 or a Studio 20 v.3 as a center depending on which I go with for my fronts-they claim that is not a good idea. So what are the advantages of using this kind of set-up vs. using a more typical center with a MTM design? Any thoughts? Thank you for your time. Have a great day.
Phil

[Woochifer]

Forget about upgrading the center speaker by itself, unless your current center channel has serious mismatches with the main speakers that you can no longer tolerate. Have you checked to see if MTX makes a center speaker designed to match the ones that you currently use?

Center speakers are not about how good they sound by themselves, they're about how well they MATCH the main speakers. Even if a center speaker subjectively sounds better than your mains, it can still disrupt the continuity of the front soundstage if the center's voicing differs enough from the mains.

If you plan to keep your current main speakers for a while, then you should look for the center speaker that best matches those mains. Otherwise, you should just save up and upgrade all three front speakers together.

[bjornb17]

Your best bet may be the MTX Monitor6C. You may want to email them at mtxaudiohome@mtx.com to see if they are timbre matched. It's the only center channel they make that may fit in with your setup.

I have one of them. They may not be on the audiophile level, but for the money, it's a great buy and I'm very satisfied with the sound of seemingly good construction of it.

MSRP is $130 but you can find them brand new on ebay for about $30-50. Look for the ebay store called 'thedeepdiscount' which is where i got mine from, and I think they sell it for the cheapest as well.

[oddeoowphil38]

Woocifer I am getting rid of my MTX and going with bookshelfs instead. Not sure if I am the Paradigm Monitor 3 v.4 or Ascend CBM-170 or Paradigm Studio 20's v.3 for my fronts. Hence, if I go with the Monitor 3's then I will use the cc-370 v.4, or the Ascend CBM-170's will use the CMT-340c, and if I can afford it I will use the cc-470 v.3 to go with the Studio 20's v.3. I would also like to audition the PSB Image series but no dealer near me. The studios are a bit out of my price range so chances are I will end up with the Monitor 3's or the Ascends 170's for my fronts and go with the corresponding center respectively speaking. I just wanna know how well does the Ascend CMT-340c stack up against the Paradigm cc-370 v.3 or v.4? I also would like to know just how much better the cc-470 v.3 vs the cc-370 v.3 or v.4??? My cc-170 v.3 is ok nothing spectacular and I want better. So far the cc-370 v.3 and v.4 have both impressed me quite a bit. However, many compare the Ascend product to be more on par with the Paradigm Studio series. Thus, if it is really that good then no doubt in my mind I will soon become an Ascend owner.

[Woochifer]

Woocifer I am getting rid of my MTX and going with bookshelfs instead. Not sure if I am the Paradigm Monitor 3 v.4 or Ascend CBM-170 or Paradigm Studio 20's v.3 for my fronts. Hence, if I go with the Monitor 3's then I will use the cc-370 v.4, or the Ascend CBM-170's will use the CMT-340c, and if I can afford it I will use the cc-470 v.3 to go with the Studio 20's v.3. I would also like to audition the PSB Image series but no dealer near me. The studios are a bit out of my price range so chances are I will end up with the Monitor 3's or the Ascends 170's for my fronts and go with the corresponding center respectively speaking. I just wanna know how well does the Ascend CMT-340c stack up against the Paradigm cc-370 v.3 or v.4? I also would like to know just how much better the cc-470 v.3 vs the cc-370 v.3 or v.4??? My cc-170 v.3 is ok nothing spectacular and I want better. So far the cc-370 v.3 and v.4 have both impressed me quite a bit. However, many compare the Ascend product to be more on par with the Paradigm Studio series. Thus, if it is really that good then no doubt in my mind I will soon become an Ascend owner.

Well, there's your answer. No sense in deciding on a center speaker before you've even figured out which mains you want to go with. Asking about which center speaker is better doesn't really matter much, unless you're talking about which center speaker provides the best voice match for the accompanying main speakers.

Pretty much your query should be about the MAIN speaker, and the center speaker will simply be part of the same discussion. Also, I would not presume too much about the Ascends just yet. Speakers are highly subjective, and just because people are saying that it's "on par with" the Studio series does not mean that you'll actually prefer those speakers when you actually listen to them. Without even listening to them, you're already talking about there being "no doubt" that you'll soon own Ascends!

Factory direct speakers tend to receive an inordinate amount of hype, so I would be cautious about believing everything that others are telling you. Keep in mind that there is a "flavor of the month" quality to how that hype migrates from speaker to speaker. Three years ago, it was all about nOhr and the Swan Divas, then the hype fell on Axiom and Onix Rocket, and now the hype is all about Ascend. Retail speakers are easy to try out, but with factory direct speakers, you have to buy them to try them out. Shelling out the bucks up front and knowing that you have to pay two-way shipping charges if you decide that you don't like the speakers creates a lot of resistance to returning them, and gives the mail order speakers an advantage if you're doing sighted listenings.