Which center channel?

[myun01]

I am in the beginning stages of building a HT. So far I have purchased a pair of Polk RTi100s and would like to find a center that will blend well with them. I am in the price range of $300-$400. I have checked out the Paradigm CC-370 or the B&W LCR60. Both are not bad centers. I just dont wanna buy a center that wont sound good with what I have. ANy suggestions?

[bturk667]

Why wouldn't you go with a Polk Audio center channel? Voice matching, it seems to me, in HT would be very important, so a polk center channel seems logical. What do I know, I'm a two channel guy.

[TinHere]

I am in the beginning stages of building a HT. So far I have purchased a pair of Polk RTi100s and would like to find a center that will blend well with them. I am in the price range of $300-$400. I have checked out the Paradigm CC-370 or the B&W LCR60. Both are not bad centers. I just dont wanna buy a center that wont sound good with what I have. ANy suggestions?

Check at the Polk site and get the one that is timbre matched to your mains for a seamless soundstage if you are happy with the mains. A "better" center won't make the system better if it doesn't match your mains.

Good luck.

[myun01]

the recommended CC for the RTi-100s are either the CSI30 or CSI40. The 30 has (2) 5.25in drivers and the 40 with (2) 6.5in drivers. However, Ive heard that the Paradigm CC-370 is supposed to match pretty well and is priced well. Plus, I thought that Paradigm made a better center than Polk anyhow.

[Woochifer]

The logical starting point is obviously with the matching Polk center speaker since they likely use the same drivers as the ones in your mains. With center speakers, all that matters is how well they match the mains. Any mismatch, even if the center speaker subjectively sounds better than the mains, will call attention to itself and disrupt the continuity of the front soundstage. Because of this, center speakers should never be auditioned by themselves, since any evaluation absent the mains is completely irrelevant. I would just go back to your dealer and do a quick check on how well the Polk center matches with the mains. Keep in mind that because of the horizontal positioning, it won't be a perfect match with the mains. I would doubt that the Paradigm or B&W centers would be a better match, but you never know.

With your choices, I would look for the Polk center speaker that uses the same sized drivers as your mains.

[Willow]

I would go with polk, try the csi3, 30, some of polks centers have an angled top/bottom side so you can set it under the tv which then angles the tweeter to ear level, this way if you must place it under the tv you wont need ugly door stoppers to angle your speaker...and as Woochifer said the polk would be your best bet even say other brands have "so called better speakers" your 3 fronts are almost a must for timbre matching.

[myun01]

The Polk site recommends matching the RTi100s with either the CSi30 or CSi40. Since my 100s have a 6.5" driver, Im looking more toward the CSi40 since it has the 6.5" driver versus the CSi30 which contains the 5.25" driver. However, the reviews here on Audioreview for the CSi40 are horrible. Its rating is around 3.5 / 5.00. But the rating on the CSi30 is much better. Im not really concerned with the price difference, but I also dont wanna get ripped off! This is really screwing with me!! Ive heard that the Paradigm CC370 matches well with the RTi100s, but I was wanting to hear it from others as well. If anyone has any useful information, please drop a line or two.

[This Guy]

These reviews don't mean anything. These people were probably trying to match this speaker with some other brand. I'd do what Polk says. If you don't like the CSI40 try the 30. If you don't like either, try the Paradigm. You can not trust these reviews, a lot are done by people that don't even own it.

-Joey