# Center channel and surround sound receiver



## craigm (Jun 24, 2013)

We have a Bose Acoustimass 15 surround sound speaker system and since we made a big upgrade on our tv we would like to upgrade our 5.1 surround sound. However, we would like to just upgrade the center channel speaker and the Sony str-de635 receiver and would like to keep the combined cost under $600.00. For the receiver we were looking at either the Denon avre300or the Yamaha rxv375bl. A couple of people told us that we need to be careful if we mix speaker brands if we’re keeping the 4 satellites. Is this true??? Someone was saying something about matching timber. We were thinking maybe the Polk Audio Blackstone TL2 or 3 or spending a few $$ more and going with the Infinity Primus pc351. Does anyone here have any recommendations? We definitely want clear dialogue and good sound from our center channel. Help and recommendations would be greatly appreciated!


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## Mike Edwards (Mar 10, 2011)

craigm said:


> We have a Bose Acoustimass 15 surround sound speaker system and since we made a big upgrade on our tv we would like to upgrade our 5.1 surround sound. However, we would like to just upgrade the center channel speaker and the Sony str-de635 receiver and would like to keep the combined cost under $600.00. For the receiver we were looking at either the Denon avre300or the Yamaha rxv375bl. A couple of people told us that we need to be careful if we mix speaker brands if we’re keeping the 4 satellites. Is this true??? Someone was saying something about matching timber. We were thinking maybe the Polk Audio Blackstone TL2 or 3 or spending a few $$ more and going with the Infinity Primus pc351. Does anyone here have any recommendations? We definitely want clear dialogue and good sound from our center channel. Help and recommendations would be greatly appreciated!


you DEFINITELY want to timber match the front 3 speakers... otherwise you'll notice a distinct difference in panning sounds etc. the surrounds it's not so big a deal. but the front 3 speakers you really want to be using the same drivers (tweeters etc) across the board


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## Peter Loeser (Aug 11, 2012)

Agreed that it's ideal to have timbre matched speakers across the front. What about upgrading your front left, right, and center speakers now and waiting till later to upgrade your receiver? I assume the desire for new features is the reason for the receiver upgrade?


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## craigm (Jun 24, 2013)

Peter Loeser said:


> Agreed that it's ideal to have timbre matched speakers across the front. What about upgrading your front left, right, and center speakers now and waiting till later to upgrade your receiver? I assume the desire for new features is the reason for the receiver upgrade?


Well, I know when you upgrade a head unit in a car it makes a big difference in the quality of the sound (as it does when you upgrade speakers). My thought process was that the receiver is old also. You see, we have the L and R front speakers as well as the L and R rears mounted on really nice brackets in the corners of our great room where the wall meets the ceiling. I didn't really want to waste that set up. If I should change the 2 L and R fronts well so be it. 

Do you think I should change all 5 speakers instead of changing the receiver?

Another question is what speakers are timber matched with the Polk Audio Blackstone TL2 or 3 or Infinity Primus pc351?


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## jstanley214 (May 22, 2013)

I've also heard that you should always spend most of your budget in speakers vs the receiver. A decent receiver is important but not as important as the speakers. You could potentially get something like the Martin Logan MLT2 speaker set for about $320 on Amazon and the rest on a new receiver. I haven't gotten to listen to these personally but I've heard nothing but good about these. I've also heard that Martin Logan sounds better than anything Bose could produce. How true it is I don't know since I haven't heard them yet myself. I have listened to several Bose setups so to say Martin Logan sound better makes me really want them. I'm planning on getting them myself in the next few weeks. Here is a link to Amazon. MartinLogan MLT-2 Home Theater System (Black)
http://amzn.com/B0049P2000


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## jstanley214 (May 22, 2013)

I also forgot to mention that there shouldn't be a need to lose your setup with the speakers on the wall. The wiring is already there so just replace the speaker bracket for whatever speakers you go with.


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## Mike Edwards (Mar 10, 2011)

jstanley214 said:


> I've also heard that you should always spend most of your budget in speakers vs the receiver. A decent receiver is important but not as important as the speakers. You could potentially get something like the Martin Logan MLT2 speaker set for about $320 on Amazon and the rest on a new receiver. I haven't gotten to listen to these personally but I've heard nothing but good about these. I've also heard that Martin Logan sounds better than anything Bose could produce. How true it is I don't know since I haven't heard them yet myself. I have listened to several Bose setups so to say Martin Logan sound better makes me really want them. I'm planning on getting them myself in the next few weeks. Here is a link to Amazon. MartinLogan MLT-2 Home Theater System (Black)
> http://amzn.com/B0049P2000


ehhhhhhhh, yes and no. sure if you're spending $5k in speakers you don't want to blow just as much on the receiver but those speakers will only sound as good as the power you have flowing TO them. right now we don't know what his receiver IS and what reasons he has for upgrading. if it's just because he wants "Something new" and it has all the power he needs, then just upgrade the speakers. but at the same time if he's got an old old receiver that doesn't do modern codecs and has outdated EQing software, then maybe it's time.

and ML's will blow the DOORS off of Bose (actually pretty much ANY speaker out there will beat Bose ... Bose's prices are about triple of what they really would be valued at compared to other speakers).


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## Mike Edwards (Mar 10, 2011)

craigm said:


> Well, I know when you upgrade a head unit in a car it makes a big difference in the quality of the sound (as it does when you upgrade speakers). My thought process was that the receiver is old also. You see, we have the L and R front speakers as well as the L and R rears mounted on really nice brackets in the corners of our great room where the wall meets the ceiling. I didn't really want to waste that set up. If I should change the 2 L and R fronts well so be it.
> 
> Do you think I should change all 5 speakers instead of changing the receiver?
> 
> Another question is what speakers are timber matched with the Polk Audio Blackstone TL2 or 3 or Infinity Primus pc351?



personally I'd recommend replacing them all IF you're gonna upgrade. those bose speakers will NOT play nice with the center's you're looking at buying. you would notice a NASTY tone difference trying to match those satellites with a proper center channel 

and just a side note. having them that high up can be a problem too. you really wanna try and keep the speakers tweeters at or JUST above head high when in the seated position

another option is upgrading your receiver and the front 2-3 speakers... then save up down the road and get some surrounds.


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## jstanley214 (May 22, 2013)

I guess the point I'm tryin to make here is that he could do something like a Pioneer VSX-921 with the ML's and would be incredibly happy. The 921 has enough power for those would likely be a nice upgrade from what he currently has assuming what he has is old. The receiver costs i think less than $200. I got mine for about $225 about a year and a half ago. I think he would probably be able to get all of it for right at what he is looking to spend or maybe even slightly less. I think he is going to be surprised at the sound compared to Bose if he replaces all of it with something similar to what I'm talking about.


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## Mike Edwards (Mar 10, 2011)

jstanley214 said:


> I guess the point I'm tryin to make here is that he could do something like a Pioneer VSX-921 with the ML's and would be incredibly happy. The 921 has enough power for those would likely be a nice upgrade from what he currently has assuming what he has is old. The receiver costs i think less than $200. I got mine for about $225 about a year and a half ago. I think he would probably be able to get all of it for right at what he is looking to spend or maybe even slightly less. I think he is going to be surprised at the sound compared to Bose if he replaces all of it with something similar to what I'm talking about.


most definitely


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## craigm (Jun 24, 2013)

Thanks for all the info and I mean that sincerely.

The receiver I have is a Sony STR-DE635. It was a very good receiver at the time but that time was about 12 years ago. 

As for speakers, from what everyone has been saying, I am thinking more seriously about dumping the Bose. And replacing all but the sub.


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## craigm (Jun 24, 2013)

4 satellites a center and a sub for $314??? And these are good speakers? WOW!!!


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## Peter Loeser (Aug 11, 2012)

As stated above, I think you will find it very easy to improve upon the sound of the Bose cubes without spending much. That will almost certainly have a much bigger impact on your overall experience than just a new AVR & CC.


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## jstanley214 (May 22, 2013)

And now that we know how old your receiver is, get that setup and you will be thrilled! Lol!


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## craigm (Jun 24, 2013)

jstanley214 said:


> And now that we know how old your receiver is, get that setup and you will be thrilled! Lol!


LOL!!!


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## craigm (Jun 24, 2013)

Oh, one more thing............... our upgraded tv is a Sharp 3d quattron 70" smart tv. And we absolutely love it so far.


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## jstanley214 (May 22, 2013)

Have you calibrated the TV yet?


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## rab-byte (Feb 1, 2011)

I've read through your post and I'd like to propose a different approach for you. 

Replace your AVR first, get a better one! RX-A830, SC-61, Denon x3000, Marantz anything, or some other ~650-900 option(onkyo). That will get you real power and plenty of connections.

After we have power then you can revisit the speaker issue. 

Also if you're not replacing the whole speaker system then get the Bose v10 center and be done with it or resolve yourself to upgrading the rest of the speakers sooner then later.


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## craigm (Jun 24, 2013)

jstanley214 said:


> Have you calibrated the TV yet?


No. The picture is great no matter what we watch - movies, sports, tv programs. We have 6 TV's in our house and it's just my wife and I here. We've had or have Sony's, Toshibas, Vizios and like I said, this picture on the 70" quattron is incredible. We've fine tuned it but not calibrated it.


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## craigm (Jun 24, 2013)

rab-byte said:


> I've read through your post and I'd like to propose a different approach for you.
> 
> Replace your AVR first, get a better one! RX-A830, SC-61, Denon x3000, Marantz anything, or some other ~650-900 option(onkyo). That will get you real power and plenty of connections.
> 
> ...


Thanks for your input. I'll definitely consider those receivers. I think I made up my mind from everyone's input that yes, I will be replacing all the speakers except the sub.


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## rab-byte (Feb 1, 2011)

craigm said:


> Thanks for your input. I'll definitely consider those receivers. I think I made up my mind from everyone's input that yes, I will be replacing all the speakers except the sub.


Then invest enough for the upgrade to matter. 

Marantz 1504 ~500
DefTech PC600 ~800

Done


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## Mike Edwards (Mar 10, 2011)

craigm said:


> Thanks for your input. I'll definitely consider those receivers. I think I made up my mind from everyone's input that yes, I will be replacing all the speakers except the sub.


you WILL want to upgrade that sub. I guarantee it. my recommendation is spend about 2/3 the cost of your speakers and receiver on the subs minimum.

but as others have said. start out with the receiver and AT LEAST the 2 fronts. you can upgrade later as you have money.


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## jstanley214 (May 22, 2013)

Came across this receiver this morning for $200.

http://sellout.woot.com/offers/7-1-channel-3d-a-v-receiver-2


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## jstanley214 (May 22, 2013)

rab-byte said:


> Then invest enough for the upgrade to matter.
> 
> Marantz 1504 ~500
> DefTech PC600 ~800
> ...


Unless I read wrong, he isn't wanting to spend more than $600 total. Those receivers would eat the entire budget. As far as an upgrade to make it matter, is current receiver is 12 years old. Almost any modern receiver is going to be an upgrade that matters at this point.


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## jstanley214 (May 22, 2013)

craigm said:


> No. The picture is great no matter what we watch - movies, sports, tv programs. We have 6 TV's in our house and it's just my wife and I here. We've had or have Sony's, Toshibas, Vizios and like I said, this picture on the 70" quattron is incredible. We've fine tuned it but not calibrated it.


Most TV's look pretty good out of the box but has much more potential if you calibrate it. You don't even have to do much. I have an iPhone and used the new THX calibration app to calibrate our TV in the living room. It's a 55" LG 3D LED tv. We had it for about 2 years before I calibrated it because we were happy with the picture. After using that calibration app, it was like we had a brand new TV. The picture is way better than it looked before. The app actually uses the camera on the phone as a color filter to really calibrate more than just the stand brightness and contrast. The app is also available for Android as well. I had read somewhere that they are going to update the app so that you can enter in the exact brand and model of the TV so you can calibrate absolutely every setting available to your specific TV. I've also used it on your 40" Samsung LCD in the bedroom. We've had that TV for about 5 years and I couldn't believe the difference it made. Next will be my projector. I haven't done that one yet since I'm still messing with the set up. I'm going to do it after I finish building the screen. Currently, I've just Googled setting for it and copied settings others have used but every room is different so I want to calibrate it myself. Proper calibration can also prolong the life of your TV too. Judging by what you've told us about your TV, you probably spent a decent amount money on it so I would think you would want to get the most you possibly can out of it. Nice choice of TV by the way. That's along the lines of what I want when we eventually get a new TV for the living room but we are really happy with the one we have now especially after the calibration.


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## rab-byte (Feb 1, 2011)

jstanley214 said:


> Unless I read wrong, he isn't wanting to spend more than $600 total. Those receivers would eat the entire budget. As far as an upgrade to make it matter, is current receiver is 12 years old. Almost any modern receiver is going to be an upgrade that matters at this point.


I agree completely. That said I'd like to see him get something with some power behind it's wattage. Dialing up the amperage will bring more out of any speakers, even his Bose speakers. Remember while Bose aren't the best ever they do perform better then cheap HTiB speakers and better then some budget speakers. 

Thus my reasoning is to get him an AVR he can keep for another 12 years. 

IMHO Once he has switched out the amp he should revisit the speaker issue.


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## craigm (Jun 24, 2013)

I would LIKE to keep it under $600. HOWEVER, if I feel the need to spend more I will. Now, as for the speakers, taking everything said here under consideration I decided to replace the Bose entirely. I've narrowed it down to either 

1. Polk Audio TL1600 speaker system 
2. Martin Logan MLT2 system. 

Any thoughts on either?
Does anyone know how the center channel speakers of these 2 compare to one another?

And again MANY thanks to all of you for responding. The information at times is mind boggling but has been helpful as well.


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## jstanley214 (May 22, 2013)

I'm more partial to the ML's over Polk only because I've spent a lot of time reading reviews on both. From what I've read, ML seems to get better reviews over all but both are pretty good systems. I made my mind up that I would go with ML when the time comes. That doesn't mean that Polk isn't any good it just seemed to me that ML had better reviews overall.


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## rab-byte (Feb 1, 2011)

If you want to go Martin Logan think about doing it in phases. Get a motion6 or 8 center. Then upgrade to motion4/15/20's as left right. Then get the sub and surrounds. The mt is a good 5 speaker package but you won't really get Marin Logan sound till you step up to folded motion tweeters or their ESL panels. Again a really good system will be with you for a while so spending more give you a real benefit. Doing it in phases makes it hurt your pocketbook less.


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