Conclusion, Rankings and Evaluation
In every case where we measured a center channel speaker with redundant horizontal drivers we were able to improve the smoothness of its horizontal frequency response in that range by reorienting the speaker vertically. While only the $600 MTM was symmetrical enough to be universally improved by using it vertically, we can clearly see the wave interference in the designs and ways to avoid it.
|
Center Speaker Ranking |
Average
Frequency Variation From 0-Axis Due to Wave Interference, Standard Deviation, |
|
$2500 W(T/M)W Vertical |
0.61 |
|
$600 MTM Vertical |
0.80 |
|
$115 Bookshelf |
1.01 |
|
$2500 W(T/M)W Horizontal |
1.02 |
|
$250 MTM Vertical |
1.19 |
|
$600 MTM Horizontal |
1.62 |
|
$199 MMMM Vertical |
1.6 |
|
$199 MMMM Horizontal |
1.77 |
|
$250 MTM Horizontal |
1.94 |
To get the most cohesive performance out of perhaps the most important channel in your home theater, strive for getting a center channel that is identical to your mains. If you can’t accommodate that goal, then do your best to avoid or minimize wave interference across your room by being wary of horizontal redundancy. Look for designs that have a vertical arrangement of their tweeters and midrange drivers. Look for planar, coaxial, lower tweeter crossover points, higher order crossovers, or other designs that avoid or minimize the “double slit” effect and incoherency that can result. Perhaps you’ll find yourself buying a speaker with fewer, higher quality drivers. Perhaps you’ll save yourself some money. Perhaps you’ll find your guests enjoying what you’ve put together and happily encouraging you to spend more money on this family fun. That’s what we’re all really after, right?
Chris Seymour is owner of Seymour AV, an internet-direct manufacturer of “audiophile-first” audio and video equipment. Their first product is the Center Stage screen, an acoustically transparent, electrically retractable projection screen that offers a pure white image with positive gain at a reasonable price. Finally, audiophiles can get a screen that allows them to keep their sound.
Special thanks to who is perhaps the most impressive home theater dealer in the Midwest, Audio Video Logic. Ahead of their time, they’ve been demonstrating for years how you can often improve the sound of a center channel by simply rotating it vertically. They know first-hand the difficulties of countering myths such as “I can’t use that – it’s not a ‘center channel,’” and how to sympathetically counsel audiophiles into the intimidating world of home theater.
