# Center channel speaker sounds boxy?



## Oleson M.D.

I have gone through several center channel configurations in my HT. First was two BIC DV 84's placed head to head, wired in series. Sounded good, with a huge sound stage. But movie track audio was boxy sounding, especially male voices. Regular broadcast TV was just fine, however.

Now, we just upgraded to the Klipsch RC-64 II. Yes, on sale being last year's model.

It is awesome on music video, recorded or broadcast concerts, and regular live TV. But...center channel movie dialog still sounds boxy. And it sounds boxy with male voices on FM broadcasts. For the price ($$$), there should be zero boxiness in the Klipsch. BTW, we upgraded the side and rear surrounds to Klipsch Reference Series also. The main left and right speakers are VMPS Towers. The put out bass with an impact that will rearrange your intestines! The dual subs are from Madisound, being built from kits.

As much as I like all 55 pounds of this speaker, we may return it.

I know there are others who have experienced this issue. What did you you to remedy it, if anything?


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## Wayne A. Pflughaupt

I have no idea what “boxy” sounds like, but if your complaint is with male voices, I’m going to hazard a guess that the problem actually is too much lows, causing them to sound boomy or muddy. A center-channel speaker with small woofers would be the solution. Alternately, if your receiver has dedicated center-channel EQ, a reduction of all bands below 200 Hz would make a huge difference.

Regards, 
Wayne


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## RTS100x5

if you just upgraded to the Integra pre amp - then your ready for the ultimate in room/speaker correction EQ ...The DIRAC DDRC88BM will bring your system to a whole new level - especially in the dialog clarity department....


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## Oleson M.D.

Thanks for the input. It is most helpful. The Integra has not arrived yet. But the EQ for the center channel should address this issue. Yes, the male voices tend to be a bit boomy, not so much muddy in coloration. Almost like multiple octaves are being added to the tone. But it is not all male voices. Some are worse than others. 

Another issue is when the speech gets quiet, it is nearly impossible to make out what is being said. Maybe this is a problem with most movie dialog in the center. There is never an issue with TV broadcasts.

Some movie soundtracks are nearly crystal clear without any of this boominess or unwanted coloration in the center channel. And some movie dialog tracks are very hard to understand. 

We had some friends over for a screening of "Love & Mercy" recently. One person complained she could not hear the actors speaking, so I turned the center way up to compensate.

The Integra has Audyssey MultEQ XT32, which was the flagship version of the firms auto calibration, room correction compensation, using 8 mike locations for EQ. 

If the new Integra processor can fix this, that new center speaker ($$$) will be returned. Amazon has a 30 day return policy.


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## primetimeguy

Oleson said:


> Thanks for the input. It is most helpful. The Integra has not arrived yet. But the EQ for the center channel should address this issue. Yes, the male voices tend to be a bit boomy, not so much muddy in coloration. Almost like multiple octaves are being added to the tone. But it is not all male voices. Some are worse than others.
> 
> Another issue is when the speech gets quiet, it is neerly impossible to make out what is being said. Maybe this is a problem with most movie dialog in the center. There is never an issue with TV broadcasts.
> 
> Some movie soundtracks are nearly crystal clear without any of this boominess or unwanted coloration in the center channel. And some movie dialog tracks are very hard to understand.
> 
> We had some friends over for a screening of "Love & Mercy" recently. One person complained she could not hear the actors speaking, so I turned the center way up to compensate.
> 
> The Integra has Audyssey MultEQ XT32, which was the flagship version of the firms auto calibration, room correction compensation, using 8 mike locations for EQ.
> 
> If the new Integra processor can fix this, that new center speaker ($$$) will be returned. Amazon has a 30 day return policy.


Do you have Dynamic EQ engaged by chance? Try turning it off. 

Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk


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## Oleson M.D.

primetimeguy said:


> Do you have Dynamic EQ engaged by chance? Try turning it off.
> 
> Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk


There is zero EQ being used, dynamic, or otherwise.


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## primetimeguy

Oleson said:


> There is zero EQ being used, dynamic, or otherwise.


So audyssey is turned off? Did you at least run it to set channel levels properly? 

Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk


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## RTS100x5

there are several acoustic issues that lead to problems such as you described - mainly Impulse Response , Time Alignment, Room Acoustics - EQ'ing a speaker or adjusting the volume of a certain channel does not account for any of these issues - you merely have the same problem at lower or higher amplitude... most people just settle for putting a bandade on the most glaring issues .... when you hear a system that has been corrected of these problems is when you start to realize what you've been missing .....


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## Oleson M.D.

RTS100x5 said:


> there are several acoustic issues that lead to problems such as you described - mainly Impulse Response , Time Alignment, Room Acoustics - EQ'ing a speaker or adjusting the volume of a certain channel does not account for any of these issues - you merely have the same problem at lower or higher amplitude... most people just settle for putting a bandade on the most glaring issues .... when you hear a system that has been corrected of these problems is when you start to realize what you've been missing .....


I do not have my new Integra yet, so the EQ has not been tried yet.

The entire room is treated with acoustic panels, to greatly reduce "slap echo". The walls were constructed so they were not multiples of each other, to combat potential standing wave issues.

The center speaker is on the stage below the screen, angled so the speaker is in the plane with the listeners ears. We have seating for 13, on triple risers.

I would post a photo, but can't as I will not have my photos on a third party website.

You can see photos on this "other" forum...https://community.klipsch.com/index...-center-channel/&tab=comments#comment-2263322


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## Wayne A. Pflughaupt

RTS100x5 said:


> there are several acoustic issues that lead to problems such as you described - mainly Impulse Response , Time Alignment, Room Acoustics - EQ'ing a speaker or adjusting the volume of a certain channel does not account for any of these issues - you merely have the same problem at lower or higher amplitude....


I find that often the program material itself is poorly equalized. No amount of treatment is going to fix that. Really, the audio engineers should high-pass voices at 200 Hz or so to prevent the male voice “boom” (unless we’re talking about James Earl Jones ). But that seems to be universally not done.

Regards, 
Wayne


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## Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Oleson said:


> Another issue is when the speech gets quiet, it is neerly impossible to make out what is being said. Maybe this is a problem with most movie dialog in the center.


The problem there is probably that the boomy low end is determining your overall level. We have a similar problem here. My wife likes to play Pandora, but the channel she likes to listen to has a _very_ pronounced low end. I adjust the bass level down then you can hardly hear anything, so I then have to turn the overall volume up. 

So, try reducing the center channel bass, then turn up the level, and voice clarity should be fine then.




Oleson said:


> Some movie soundtracks are nearly crystal clear without any of this boominess or unwanted coloration in the center channel. And some movie dialog tracks are very hard to understand.
> 
> We had some friends over for a screening of "Love & Mercy" recently. One person complained she could not hear the actors speaking, so I turned the center way up to compensate.
> 
> The Integra has Audyssey MultEQ XT32, which was the flagship version of the firms auto calibration, room correction compensation, using 8 mike locations for EQ.


As with my last post, system calibration won’t compensate for poorly equalized program material. You have to fix that locally.




Oleson said:


> There is never an issue with TV broadcasts.


Tune in to MyGyver reboot on CBS. Some of the worst equalized voices I’ve ever heard.

Regards, 
Wayne


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## Oleson M.D.

Wayne A. Pflughaupt said:


> The problem there is probably that the boomy low end is determining your overall level. We have a similar problem here. My wife likes to play Pandora, but the channel she likes to listen to has a _very_ pronounced low end. I adjust the bass level down then you can hardly hear anything, so I then have to turn the overall volume up.
> 
> So, try reducing the center channel bass, then turn up the level, and voice clarity should be fine then.
> 
> 
> 
> As with my last post, system calibration won’t compensate for poorly equalized program material. You have to fix that locally.
> 
> 
> 
> Tune in to MyGyver reboot on CBS. Some of the worst equalized voices I’ve ever heard.
> 
> Regards,
> Wayne


Wayne - Thanks. I have been experimenting today...standing the center channel speaker up on end, swapping it out for another speaker, etc., etc.
It is now situated about 12" up off the stage floor, angled up about 30 degrees.

This Klipsch RC-64 II is awesome on music videos, recorded concerts, etc. It is good on most broadcast TV. It is sucky on some FM broadcasts, with male voices sounding like they are in a well, with an extra lower octave or two added. This speaker also excels at special effects, bomb blasts, gunshots, thunder, etc.

As stated, it does not do well on some movie dialog. The "Titanic" is just fine with the center dialog. "Love & Mercy" is not so good, especially in the opening scene where Brian Wilson is sitting at the piano mumbling to himself.

In the movie "Sully", some times the dialog is perfectly fine, other times boomy (male & female), and other times quiet and very hard to understand.

It would appear that the problem originates with the source material, rather than my components. I will find out more after my new Integra processor arrives. Hopefully, it will be good news!


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## Oleson M.D.

Wayne A. Pflughaupt said:


> I find that often the program material itself is poorly equalized. No amount of treatment is going to fix that. Really, the audio engineers should high-pass voices at 200 Hz or so to prevent the male voice “boom” (unless we’re talking about James Earl Jones ). But that seems to be universally not done.
> 
> Regards,
> Wayne


That seems to be the issue. As a music fan, I do not want to take anything away from the RC-64's performance. But...I'm not sure how to get around that, and have the dialog be decent.

The bass output, very smooth, with good musical impact, rivals that of my tower speakers.


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## RTS100x5

Wayne A. Pflughaupt said:


> I find that often the program material itself is poorly equalized. No amount of treatment is going to fix that. Really, the audio engineers should high-pass voices at 200 Hz or so to prevent the male voice “boom” (unless we’re talking about James Earl Jones ). But that seems to be universally not done.
> 
> Regards,
> Wayne


Agreed source material makes a HUGE difference - I now have several DSD tracks from HD Tracks and wow what clarity ! That being said - the Dirac mixed phase and alignment filters does an amazing job of bringing a coherent sound stage - especially in the vocal range.... its hard to describe until you hear it ...Im a believer :grin2:


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## Oleson M.D.

Wayne A. Pflughaupt said:


> I have no idea what “boxy” sounds like, but if your complaint is with male voices, I’m going to hazard a guess that the problem actually is too much lows, causing them to sound boomy or muddy. A center-channel speaker with small woofers would be the solution. Alternately, if your receiver has dedicated center-channel EQ, a reduction of all bands below 200 Hz would make a huge difference.
> 
> Regards,
> Wayne


My center has four 6.5" cast basket cerametallic woofers. And a compression horn driver (Klipsch RC-64 II). These are the smallest woofers in my theater setup, with most of them being 10", or 12" in size. Throw in several 8's in the surrounds.

You say a center with a smaller woofer would be a solution. How much smaller? At the other end of the spectrum, this center does have impact out the wazoo...something that I do not want to give up. 

I'm beginning to think that there is no perfect solution. We can either have a center with great music rendition, huge impact with gunshots, bomb blasts, car crashes, but (sometimes) dialog is sucky, or maybe we can have good dialog without any male voice and female voice boominess, but sacrifice that other positives listed above?

Again, when the Integra arrives we will do what we can with the EQ. My room was designed from the get go for sound, including custom built acoustic panels (home made), plus dimensions to avoid standing waves.

Thanks to you (and everyone) for your input!

edit: I am not the Lone Ranger on this issue, as when you do a search on center channel issues, boomy male voices, dialog difficult to understand, you will find many complaints similar to mine.


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## theJman

Oleson said:


> It would appear that the problem originates with the source material, rather than my components. I will find out more after my new Integra processor arrives. Hopefully, it will be good news!


Quality of source material definitely varies so you can probably chalk up some of your situation to that. Perhaps of bigger concern though is the fact you don't have room EQ enabled. There could be a time alignment problem, phase issue at the crossover range, SPL variation, etc. Trying to find a solution manually - without test gear or room correction - is like finding a needle in a haystack. It's more luck than anything else really. It may be better to hold off doing further analysis until the new receiver arrives. A solution at this point is likely more by accident than consequence.




Oleson said:


> My center has four 6.5" cast basket cerametallic woofers. And a compression horn driver (Klipsch RC-64 II). These are the smallest woofers in my theater setup, with most of them being 10", or 12" in size. Throw in several 8's in the surrounds.
> 
> You say a center with a smaller woofer would be a solution. How much smaller? At the other end of the spectrum, this center does have impact out the wazoo...something that I do not want to give up.


Typically centers with smaller woofers exacerbate 'boomy' or muddled voices. Why? Because they have a higher crossover point, which means the sub(s) have to play higher in the frequency range in order to compensate. Above 80Hz is where a lot of the male voice resides, something that's tricky for most subwoofers to produce cleanly. It's generally best to let your speakers handle that range.


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## Oleson M.D.

theJman said:


> Quality of source material definitely varies so you can probably chalk up some of your situation to that. Perhaps of bigger concern though is the fact you don't have room EQ enabled. There could be a time alignment problem, phase issue at the crossover range, SPL variation, etc. Trying to find a solution manually - without test gear or room correction - is like finding a needle in a haystack. It's more luck than anything else really. It may be better to hold off doing further analysis until the new receiver arrives. A solution at this point is likely more by accident than consequence.
> 
> Typically centers with smaller woofers exacerbate 'boomy' or muddled voices. Why? Because they have a higher crossover point, which means the sub(s) have to play higher in the frequency range in order to compensate. Above 80Hz is where a lot of the male voice resides, something that's tricky for most subwoofers to produce cleanly. It's generally best to let your speakers handle that range.


I turned on the "Dynamic Compression" setting on the Panny BD player. It seemed to help. But, I would still like to get the region below 100 hz cleaned up. Maybe some EQ will handle that.

Along with the new Integra, I just ordered the Panny DMP-UB900. Maybe that will help a bit also.

Overall, the system sounds great. Eleven speakers total. Made up of VMPS RM2 towers, dual Madisound kit built subs, Klipsch RC-64II center, with RB-81 II's for the side surround, RB-61 II's for the rear surround, plus a pair of Dynaco A25's for the rear left and right ambience (Dyna-Quad) speakers.

The place really rocks when listening to a concert at reference levels.

The center is absolute killer on music.

What would be the correct freq. range for the center channel? What x-over point do we want, to eliminate any potential boominess?


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## theJman

Oleson said:


> What would be the correct freq. range for the center channel? What x-over point do we want, to eliminate any potential boominess?


I don't necessarily know if there is a 'correct' crossover point for the center, but you might want to try 60Hz. The RC-64 has a -3dB point of 57Hz so it should be fine with that, provided you don't listen too loud of course. At 60Hz most of the dialog will move to the center, limiting the contribution of the sub. I still think you should hold off until the new receiver arrives though. Without measurement equipment, or room EQ scans, it's still a shot in the dark.


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## Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Oleson said:


> What would be the correct freq. range for the center channel? What x-over point do we want, to eliminate any potential boominess?


To eliminate (or at least minimize) the boomy male voices, I’d say crossover as high as you can. 200Hz would be ideal, or as close to that as you can get it.

Regards, 
Wayne


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## Oleson M.D.

Wayne A. Pflughaupt said:


> To eliminate (or at least minimize) the boomy male voices, I’d say crossover as high as you can. 200Hz would be ideal, or as close to that as you can get it.
> 
> Regards,
> Wayne


My processor has multiple x-over options, and 120 hz is now selected. But what speaker (s) is effected? I have no idea, and the menu does not state, only showing the frequency options. Is this for the center speaker? Is it for the subs? Mains?
The remote on my NAD T163 started working again, and this is referencing the x-over settings on the NAD.
The Integra will arrive today, and certainly will offer more x-over options.


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## Wayne A. Pflughaupt

If the menu does not specify which speakers are for the crossover setting, then you can be confident that it’s a global setting. Does the receiver have EQ that can be applied to each channel individually? If so you can make some adjustments that way.

Regards, 
Wayne


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## Oleson M.D.

Wayne A. Pflughaupt said:


> If the menu does not specify which speakers are for the crossover setting, then you can be confident that it’s a global setting. Does the receiver have EQ that can be applied to each channel individually? If so you can make some adjustments that way.
> 
> Regards,
> Wayne


The Integra has crossover settings for each speaker, plus a 15 band EQ for each speaker. I think we will be able to make the theater sound even better than it does now. And I thought it was good already!


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## valer

Nice home theater system Oleson.
I got several center channel speakers, and got a "Boxy" sound with one of them.
It was a Kef coaxial speaker with a 16 cm diameter main speaker (very close to the diameter of your Klipsch speaker).

I tried to modify it and never succeeded completely.
The issue is that the 16cm speaker has a "Boxy" sound when driven in large configuration (full audio bandwidth).
One solution is to cut the frequency of the center channel with the equalizer (as proposed before in the forum).
A workaround is opening the speaker box and filling it with acoustic damping material, and/or modifying the bass reflex port tuning (reducing the aperture).
Best bass reflex port location is on the front or the side of the speaker (not at the back panel as it will interact with the wall).
Do not forget a good decoupling of the cabinet (damping feet).

Ultimate solution is having smaller diameter speakers: 13cm and 11cm are better suited for the medium according to my various tests.

It is very difficult to have a full bandwidth center channel efficient for all types of sound track.
Good luck with your tests.


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## Oleson M.D.

I spent yesterday afternoon completely rearranging my theater audio installation. Several items were removed as they were no longer needed, or being used.

The Integra has a very nice menu for setting up your speakers. My wife and I literally took a tape measure, and measured each speaker distance from the "sweet spot" in the seating area.

We then applied the x-over points, with 200 hz being used for the center.

All speakers were then adjusted to the same volume output. I simply used my ears, then went up/down with the volume until it all sounded the same in relative output.

The center was EQ'd with a smooth roll off in the midrange area, around 2500 hz. Just enough to take some of the "edge" off, and allow the Klipsch to work seamlessly with the VMPS Towers. No other speakers were EQ'd, including the rear and side surround Klipsch 81's/61's.

All of this was done manually, without the help of the Audyssey MultEQ XT32. 

So far, I am pleased with the results. The center is cleaned up in dialog presence. 

On a side note, my NAD T163 is working perfectly now. The remote input is fully functional. If I had known this before, the Integra would not have been purchased. And the NAD is an awesome product. Their thought is music first, and that is my thinking also.

The new Panasonic DMP-UB900 in concert with the Integra DHC-80.3 is a powerful combination. The largest thing that strikes me is the low end impact. Not just car crashes / bomb blasts / special effects, but also the bass lines in recorded music. I would say more defined and with more presence than with the NAD T163 & Panasonic DMP-BD85.

Is all of the $$$ spent worth it? Time will tell. I was considering returning the Integra and putting the NAD back in the setup. The best bang for the buck was the five new Klipsch speakers installed, especially adding the rear left/right surrounds giving us 7.2. We previously had 5.2, never utilizing the 7.2 capability of the T163. 

So far, I like it!


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## derreckla

I recently replaced my RC-7 center channel and replaced with it with an RF-7 Tower so all 5 surround speakers would be RF-7 Towers. This has helped greatly with Dialogue clearness. I didn't realize it but the Klipsch Center speaker was Tingy on dialogue. The sound improvement has been awesome. Don't know if this is an option for you. I have a Sony 75" Z9D and modified RF-7 Box to fit under TV.


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## Oleson M.D.

derreckla said:


> I recently replaced my RC-7 center channel and replaced with it with an RF-7 Tower so all 5 surround speakers would be RF-7 Towers. This has helped greatly with Dialogue clearness. I didn't realize it but the Klipsch Center speaker was Tingy on dialogue. The sound improvement has been awesome. Don't know if this is an option for you. I have a Sony 75" Z9D and modified RF-7 Box to fit under TV.


So far, the dialog has improved. But it is very dependent on the source material. I really did not need to buy the RC-64 II. We had two towers in the center before, set up head-to-head, wired in series (8 ohms).

With the new Integra, they would have been fine, maybe even better the the Klipsch center. The soundstage was to die for!


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## Oleson M.D.

Update: While watching The Smithsonian Channel last night, the center dialog was a bit unclear, or slightly muddy, on both male and female voices.

When the commercial came on, the voices were bright and crystal clear.

I guess the marketing department knows how to do voices in the studio and engineer the soundtrack to work well!


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## hardeng

The center channel dialog boominess might be coming from the sub(s). Many like to run their subs hotter than they should be which boosts the bass from the center channel too much. This will get worse the higher the crossover is set to. So try lowering the center channel crossover to 40Hz or just set the center channel to large. The purists might say you'll loose some low frequency effects coming through the center channel, but the benefits in dialog clarity greatly outweigh any such concerns. 

One that's done, you might still have boomy bass and a "shoutiness" on the dialog. This is typical of a center speaker jammed up against the wall or in a cabinet. The boominess can be largely remedied by eq-ing out any peaks in the bass and providing a gentle rolloff from about 80Hz downwards. The "shoutiness" (in my case anyway) was due to a broad peak in the 300Hz to 900Hz range which again, can be eq'd down.


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## davidc1

Oleson M.D. said:


> Update: While watching The Smithsonian Channel last night, the center dialog was a bit unclear, or slightly muddy, on both male and female voices.
> 
> When the commercial came on, the voices were bright and crystal clear.
> 
> I guess the marketing department knows how to do voices in the studio and engineer the soundtrack to work well!


I know the thread is old, but did you ever set up the Audyssey MultXT32 room correction?


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## sealman

I would be curious to hear the outcome as well. I would guess that running Audyssey may have fixed the center channel issues. Of course that depends on whether it was a good measurement session as well.

As a previous owner of the same RC64ii I would not have described it as boxy at all. However that was also with Audyssey multxt32 engaged.


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## Oleson M.D.

No, as we now have a brand new Yamaha Pre-Pro in the lineup. I did everything by ear, and the overall sound is killer. Had a group of 13 people over to watch Midway, in 4K. They were blown away, with the picture and audio quality.

Note that we are now all Klipsch. Dolby Atmos.


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## davidc1

Oleson M.D. said:


> No, as we now have a brand new Yamaha Pre-Pro in the lineup. I did everything by ear, and the overall sound is killer. Had a group of 13 people over to watch Midway, in 4K. They were blown away, with the picture and audio quality.
> 
> Note that we are now all Klipsch. Dolby Atmos.


Oh well, forget the room correction I guess as Yamaha's is usually nowhere as good as Audyssey.


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## Oleson M.D.

davidc1 said:


> Oh well, forget the room correction I guess as Yamaha's is usually nowhere as good as Audyssey.


In our experience, not only as good (state-of-the-art), but better.


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## davidc1

You think Yamaha's is better? Are you using it? Why do you think it's better?


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## Kal Rubinson

Oleson M.D. said:


> In our experience, not only as good (state-of-the-art), but better.


Yamaha's YPAO usually fails to be effective in the bass.


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## Oleson M.D.

An update to an old thread...

With an all Klipsch speaker system (15 total), RC-64 II center, RF-7 III's L&R, I think the issue is solved.

The advice given has been taken. The freq's below 250 hz have been rolled off by 6+ db's. The 2500 hz area has been boosted a bit, 2.5 db's.

Using the Yamaha Pre-Pro CX-A 5200 ADVENTAGE, and tweaking all of the speakers for levels and EQ, the improvement is satisfying.

All adjustments were made manually, using my middle aged ears.


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## eddie1

Oleson M.D. said:


> Update: While watching The Smithsonian Channel last night, the center dialog was a bit unclear, or slightly muddy, on both male and female voices.
> 
> When the commercial came on, the voices were bright and crystal clear.
> 
> I guess the marketing department knows how to do voices in the studio and engineer the soundtrack to work well!


I have the RC64III. Have the same problem. Tried the EQ. It helped a bit. Try this. Cup your hands to your ears facing forward. See if the boxy sound goes away and clarity returns. Have a younger person listen to the dialog as well and give their analysis. Bet you are over 50. Hearing loss starts at the voice frequencies as well as high frequencies. Couple that with the fact that some movies and Blu ray mastering vary quite a bit. Manual EQ may be the only way even with a new receiver. Hope this helps. You are not alone.


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## Bala subramanian

eddie1 said:


> I have the RC64III. Have the same problem. Tried the EQ. It helped a bit. Try this. Cup your hands to your ears facing forward. See if the boxy sound goes away and clarity returns. Have a younger person listen to the dialog as well and give their analysis. Bet you are over 50. Hearing loss starts at the voice frequencies as well as high frequencies. Couple that with the fact that some movies and Blu ray mastering vary quite a bit. Manual EQ may be the only way even with a new receiver. Hope this helps. You are not alone.


Hi,
I am electrical engineer, so know something on frequency, crossover, response etc. Not an audiophile, but assume I have good ears. I undergo audiometry tests regularly for official purpose. I also have the habit of reading the posts on speakers which my family hates… knowingly that I will not buy anything new.
I had KEF LS50, R200c, wharfedale diamond subwoofer home theater along with Klipsch RF62II, RC62II (changed from RC52II to RC62II), RS42II and SW112 subwoofer (crazy…). I gave the KEF setup to my friend as over the period of time I found the Klipsch was more suited for home theater with bigger fronts and center and of course horns, higher efficiency for the impact. I found KEF LS50 was not satisfactory for home theater. R200C vocals was good or even sometimes better, but was with less bass (tiny) compared Klipsch RC62II.
I do see these comments on the Klipsch RC62II that it is boxy, or tin-can sounding, or vocals not clear which I also experienced. Especially this was true for some male voices. So, I wanted to share my experience thinking it may also workout for others and eventually useful. In fact, I have taken RC62II to near by Hifi shops having theater and there when connected blow everybody including the seller who is dealing with speakers day in day out. I also understand RC62II is not the limit but you may need to go for much larger size which do not fit in living rooms.
I saw the frequency response of RC62ii measured by sound and vision. I observed that it has dip (-3db) at 2kHz crossover region and bump (+3db) at highs. So, with AVR (Onkyo TXNR 929) I did the following after running Audyseey for center channel.

XO at 120HZ to remove lower frequencies (still some go to center at 12db/octave) and diverted to subwoofer, other speakers set at 100Hz, LPF for LFE at 120Hz.
In Manual Equalizer, I changed 63Hz at -6db, 2.5kHz at +2db, 16kHz at -2 db. Rest all at 0db.
Speaker levels for all speakers set at same level (no bumping for center).
AVR played with Audyssey OFF, Dynamic Eq ON, Manual Eq ON.
Remove the grill while watching as these are very thick.
With the above changes, I find the vocals have improved dramatically (very intelligent now) and also no more boxy sounding. Sound stage is a bit wider too. Further tweaking may or may not make it better, but decided that it’s enough.
I find that, by little tweaking we may be able to make the satisfactory outcomes. So worth trying based on individual circumstances. Also, I don’t see point in changing the speakers without trying these.
I thought this may be helpful for others (similar exercise may work out for other brands and models also), so have posted this. Good Luck.


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## squared80

Check your crossover.


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