Speaker set or Mix brand speakers?

[blueraycouch]

I was wondering if sets speakers are better than buying different brand to get the best sound. A friend of mine said that the match speakers can be cheaper but might not be able to reproduce great sounds. He said that when buying speakers that I should look at the frequency of the speakers and have them match up or something but it sounded complicated. What are your views?

[JasonR]

Front three from the same line of speakers, the rest don't matter....

[Canada]

I would say it matters if all the speakers are timber matched. The front left and rights can be bigger (tower speakers). But the speakers should be the same manufacturer and the same line. The only speaker in a 5.1 system can possibly be different is the bass as it handles low frequency only.

[JJ]

For all practical purposes, Monsieur Couch, it is of the utmost importance that the front three channels - Left, Center, and Right - are matched by being from the same company and same line. Your subwoofer can be whatever you deem acceptable, and your rears can be, as well.

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by Canada

I would say it matters if all the speakers are timber matched. The front left and rights can be bigger (tower speakers). But the speakers should be the same manufacturer and the same line. The only speaker in a 5.1 system can possibly be different is the bass as it handles low frequency only.

Most surround speakers are bipolar or dipolar. Most of the sound comes to you from reflection from the room boundaries. They create a diffused sound so that you cannot locate the speakers. This is what THX recommends and is ideal for movies. Timbre matching is not important for rear surround speakers. Experts such as Dr. Floyd Toole, formerly the leading sound scientist at National Research Council of Canada and currently the Vice President of Engineering at Harmon International, have questioned whether rear channels need to be timbre matched with the fronts.

Using direct firing speakers for surrounds may have an advantage for listening to high-end multi-channel music. It is also what sound engineers use in a studio, but they have a different agenda. When you use direct firing speakers for music mastering, then timbre matching becomes more important.

[Getus]

Originally Posted by Big Daddy

Using direct firing speakers for surrounds may have an advantage for listening to high-end multi-channel music. It is also what sound engineers use in a studio, but they have a different agenda. When you use direct firing speakers for music mastering, then timbre matching becomes more important.

Could you be so kind and explain why that is?

[Big Daddy]

Originally Posted by Getus

Could you be so kind and explain why that is?

Arguments vary from person to person, based upon the preference of the individual.

The surround speakers should not distract your attention away from the movie. They should help to draw you into the film. This is what surround speakers should do. They are intended to reproduce ambient effects like crickets, explosions, gunfights, or the hum of a spaceship so they sound like they're coming from everywhere in the room—not just where your speakers are located. Dipoles/bipoles have a bigger surround sweet spot than direct radiating surrounds have. Dipoles/bipoles are a closer match to the surround speaker arrays found in movie theaters.

With stereo music, you are essentially creating images in space with two speakers. You can move instruments around in space. Add two more speakers in the rear and you now have the ability to pinpoint the source of the music between all four speakers, so in theory you can place an instrument anywhere in 360 degrees around your head. By introducing dipoles/bipoles, you destroy that image. You are more at the mercy of the room. The room will most certainly color the sound and add its own signature. Some may actually like this effect, but the music is less accurate. Your room's acoustics will affect bipole/dipole designs more than conventional direct-radiating. Direct-radiating models fire sound directly from their front baffles toward the listener's ears.

Conventional forward-facing systems, and horn-loaded systems will place the listener in a sound field in which the direct sound is more prominent. It is probably correct to say that the majority of listeners find stereo to be attractive if the room reflections are strong. The sound tends to be open and spacious, with a good sense of depth, but the specific images can be rather vague like real concerts. An advantage is that the stereo listening region is enlarged.

However, there are some listeners who do not like this kind of music reproduction, and prefer to have a very specific, almost pinpoint, sense of image position. Many recording engineers prefer this because they need to be able to hear, very precisely, the results of their manipulations. As a result, recording studios are often acoustically dead, and the loudspeakers are directional and identical. They use identical speakers so that they are perfectly timbre matched and the sound is not affected by the differences between the speakers. However, these same people usually prefer the more spacious version of sound at home.

[Getus]

Okay i think i understand now. Thank you for the explanation

[CasualKiller]

Originally Posted by JJxiv1215

For all practical purposes, Monsieur Couch, it is of the utmost importance that the front three channels - Left, Center, and Right - are matched by being from the same company and same line. Your subwoofer can be whatever you deem acceptable, and your rears can be, as well.

Most high end audiophiles will tell you that for a truly timbre matched system you should use 5 identical speakers, in your case the ideal setup would be 5 B&W 683's.

However for practical purposes this isn't always possible or affordable. One of the biggest problems with running MTM center channels is the "lobing" effect from sitting off center where the high freq may be muffled by the mid range.

If you wanted the absolute best audio possible without having 3 683's in front you would just run 2 and have a "phantom" center.

Try it if you don't believe me.

Now slightly veering away:

I have a friend who runs Cerwin Vega towers, a Monitor Audio Bronze center, Wharfdale surrounds and a Klipsch sub, he knows nothing of timber matching and thinks it sounds great.

Point being if it sounds good to you , that's all that really matters in the end.

[Beta Man]

I'm saving my pennies for 7 Nautilus Shells......... Gotta decide which custom finish to get though....... I should have a color picked out by the time I can afford them (that would be when my wife cashes my life-insurance check!!!!! )

[ozzman]

Mirage M-5si Fronts
Paradigm cc-270 center

Ive been in the search for a Mirage mcsi center for a little while but i just wanted you boys to know that this Paradigm center that iam useing with my Mirage Fronts have done a very good job (they work well together)

This might sound a little corny but when i find the MCSI speaker i think i might be a little sad to see it go. .It's truly done a good job for me. Clean and accurate is how i would describe the cc-270

So ,that all being said iam expecting big things when i get my new center.Like i said it sounds good now ,But Iam always O.K for better and timber matching my fronts

[MacDaddyOJack]

Originally Posted by Beta Man

I'm saving my pennies for 7 Nautilus Shells......... Gotta decide which custom finish to get though....... I should have a color picked out by the time I can afford them (that would be when my wife cashes my life-insurance check!!!!! )

That would also be when I move in

[jomari]

as mentioned already here, its IDEAL to have the soundstage (LCR) to be made by the same manufacturer, as well as within the same line (i.e reference vs synergy in klipsch for example), but most of the time, we have our own reasons, including not wanting to part with our superb two channel, or just because of finances.

as mentioned, the reason is for the us to have a 'cleaner' soundstage.

a good example is if you have a jet blasting across the screen from the left side/speaker into the center then the right side/speaker... it should transition smooth enough where the sound isnt 'jumping' from one speaker to another, and be able to localize (know where its coming from) but not be too forward to so speak.

[Slicker1]

Originally Posted by JasonR

Front three from the same line of speakers, the rest don't matter....

That was true for pro logic days(backs in mono), but not now that we have Dolby Digital....etc.(in stereo) timber matched speakers all around make a big difference.