the Interceptor's general AUDIO thread

Now that my paradigm kit has had ample time to break in, it is indeed awesome. I highly recommend paradigm to anyone who wants bang for buck
 
Sorry for the bump, but this should be the right place for this: I'm looking for some headphone for my PC in the $30/25eur price range. Microphone is optional
 
Starting to think about adding the surround to the tv stereo set. As I mentioned before, it's almost exclusively for movies now, possibly games later as well.

How bad would it be if I added a couple of plastic satellites to the pair of bookshelf speakers I have now? I definitely don't want to get 5 identical speakers for 5.1, this will be a massive waste of money. But I'm curious about the whole surround thing, and how will it improve the overall enjoyment of my "home theater" :)

I'm just not sure where to start. I'm afraid to ruin everything if rear/surround pair and a central speaker will be badly mismatched to the front pair. Also no sub, low end will be handled by the stereo pair as well.
 
It's not that bad if rears don't exactly match the fronts. You definitely want your center speaker to match your fronts though.

You could start by adding a set of stereo speakers to the back. You don't necessarily need a center speaker if you don't sit off-center regarding your front pair.
 
Starting to think about adding the surround to the tv stereo set. As I mentioned before, it's almost exclusively for movies now, possibly games later as well.

How bad would it be if I added a couple of plastic satellites to the pair of bookshelf speakers I have now? I definitely don't want to get 5 identical speakers for 5.1, this will be a massive waste of money. But I'm curious about the whole surround thing, and how will it improve the overall enjoyment of my "home theater" :)

I'm just not sure where to start. I'm afraid to ruin everything if rear/surround pair and a central speaker will be badly mismatched to the front pair. Also no sub, low end will be handled by the stereo pair as well.

not that many people have the same rears that they have for fronts, generally they're a smaller version (e.g. I have paradigm monitors at the front and matching rears)
 
It's not that bad if rears don't exactly match the fronts. You definitely want your center speaker to match your fronts though.

You could start by adding a set of stereo speakers to the back. You don't necessarily need a center speaker if you don't sit off-center regarding your front pair.

Do you think the receiver will know that central speaker is missing and will mix the signal to the fronts? I need to read the manual I guess...
 
Do you think the receiver will know that central speaker is missing and will mix the signal to the fronts? I need to read the manual I guess...

generally no, unless you've configured it not to.

Centre speakers make a massive difference in filling out the soundstage
 
Do you think the receiver will know that central speaker is missing and will mix the signal to the fronts? I need to read the manual I guess...

Should be a fairly standard feature. Mine does it automatically when the center speaker is disabled.
 
Ok, I've been reading up on the home theater setups, and the opinion is unanimous that the center speaker is hugely important (if not most important) and has absolutely to be matched to the front pair.

But if I want to have a matched central channel, with a speaker from the same line there will be several problems. Firstly, I can't find anyone selling these speakers anymore. Kirksaeter is a tiny Norwegian manufacturer, and without any marketing budget it seems. Secondly, my main pair is a the smallest of the line (Prisma 55), and their central channel speaker (Prisma 105) is noticeably larger by comparison, as it's designed to be used even with the largest floor-standing speakers. It's rated power is 3 times a big. Although they do claim that the tweeter is the same over the whole range, it feels wasteful to buy a class higher speaker for the center. And thirdly - 370 ?!

But I have no clue how would I go about matching some other manufacturer's speaker to what I have now..
 
Think of it this way, generally the center speaker is where the dialogue comes from, so you want to be able to hear that. Expensive yes, but they really are important. Now, it's not super critical you get a matched one, but it certainly helps fill in your fronts. You could get along with a non-matching speaker, but you may be missing out on some minor sounds. Still though, expect to spend at least 100-150 funny Euro monies.
 
Oi. I'm thinking of buying an Audio Technica M50 (because I want some nice headphones since all I have is a pair of Shure in-earphones which aren't incredibly comfortable for long periods of time). Can anyone give any reason not to get a set of M50s? The price is right and they're supposed to be real good all around, the only negative is the lack of a detachable cable, but then with a coiled cable I don't think I could possibly fatigue the cable out so that's alright.
 
I want some new headphones for my Shuffle to replace the Apple ones. I know the Shuffle's sound quality is nothing spectacular(I hate the hiss in silent moments) but I'll also be getting a new player some time later(probably some Cowon). Anyway, I find the in-ear type uncomfortable, although the noise cancellation is nice. And I need something I can put in my bag or a pocket so these caught my eyes

3695760492_f029488a_sennheiser-headphones-px-100-ii_6udqt_54.jpg


Sennheiser PX 100-II
 
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