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Grex > Oldmusic > #96: Home Theatre System: speaker sensitivity question |  |
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eprom
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Home Theatre System: speaker sensitivity question
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May 2 04:06 UTC 2002 |
hmmmm.....I have an average home theatre setup.
2 tower fronts speakers, 2 bookcase rear surround speakers
and a center speaker.
I'm thinking of replacing the center channel.
The center speakers I've been looking at are rated at a
higher sensitivity (92 dB) than my fronts and rears (89 dB).
how important is it to match speaker sensitivity with your
other speakers?
In theory the center would be twice as loud (3dB) as the
other 4 channels?????
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| 47 responses total. |
gull
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response 1 of 47:
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May 2 13:57 UTC 2002 |
Most home theater receivers have a way to balance the speakers, so it
shouldn't matter. Just dig out your manual and see what the procedure is.
Even my cheapo Aiwa receiver has a way to do it...it even has a test mode
that generates white noise in each channel in turn, to help you figure out
which ones need to be louder or softer.
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tpryan
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response 2 of 47:
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May 4 20:36 UTC 2002 |
The SW: Phantom Menance DVD also has a home theater check-out
clip/program on it.
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gull
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response 3 of 47:
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May 5 02:14 UTC 2002 |
I think all DVD releases where THX did the sound have that.
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jaklumen
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response 4 of 47:
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May 5 11:16 UTC 2002 |
*ponder* Works, I guess. I think I heard about speaker sensitivity
being related to efficiency of how the speaker handles sound, i.e.,
it's a better indicator of output that wattage alone. Home audio can
get really involved if you want and Radio Shack is one place to start
for questions and answers if you want to go further.
Otherwise, yeah, it's just figuring out how to balance the speaker
output. Equalizers may help if you run into distortion problems.
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jmsaul
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response 5 of 47:
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May 5 14:15 UTC 2002 |
Well... if you want to get really involved with home audio, I'd personally
stay away from Radio Shack. The staff won't necessarily have a clue, and
depending on your price range you'll be able to get better equipment
elsewhere. (If your price range is the kind of price range Radio Shack
carries, you're better off getting used higher-quality gear; if you have
serious money to spend, you want to go to a specialty store.)
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jaklumen
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response 6 of 47:
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May 6 09:12 UTC 2002 |
Actually, I don't doubt that, although Radio Shack has improved some
of their lineup somewhat in partnering with RCA. My understanding is
that some tools and a few obscure components can be gotten there.
Used higher-end? Where would a person find that, say, for someone
that lives out in Hicksville, Eastern WA?
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scott
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response 7 of 47:
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May 6 13:21 UTC 2002 |
Radio Shack does sometimes have rather high-end components, although probably
by accident. Some years ago they had a small speaker (the "Minimus-7", I
think) which some audiophiles were quite fond of. There was even a kit you
could buy to improve the tweeter or something.
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gull
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response 8 of 47:
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May 6 13:29 UTC 2002 |
I won't buy anything made by RCA, after they churned out all those defective
TVs in the 90's.
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jmsaul
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response 9 of 47:
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May 6 13:34 UTC 2002 |
I don't know your area at all, but if there's some community out there where
rich Seattleites spend their weekends, I'd start with its yellow pages. Or
do a Google search on "NAD, "Arcam", or "Paradigm" and whatever words you
think might find you an audio store in your region. Those brands can
sometimes be found very cheap used, and there usually isn't anything wrong
with used high-end audio gear except scratches on the case.
Hmmm... well, if Kennesick is near you, there's a place called Quicksilver
Audio (www.quicksilver-audio.com).
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