Advice on Speaker Upgrade

[dpriest]

I decided to go with the KEF Q350 and Q650C. Just bought from Crutchfield. Have 60 days to return them. The person on the phone thought they would be a very good match with the SVS PB-3000 Sub and Yamaha receiver I have being used in a Home Theater environment, cranking the volume, even more so than the Polk L series. Stay tuned for my review... Thanks again to everyone's feedback.

 

[lovinthehd]

I decided to go with the KEF Q350 and Q650C. Just bought from Crutchfield. Have 60 days to return them. The person on the phone thought they would be a very good match with the SVS PB-3000 Sub and Yamaha receiver I have being used in a Home Theater environment, cranking the volume, even more so than the Polk L series. Stay tuned for my review... Thanks again to everyone's feedback.

That someone says a speaker and sub "match", let alone avr, just tells me they're largely FOS (full of s*it).

 

[dpriest]

That someone says a speaker and sub "match", let alone avr, just tells me they're largely FOS (full of s*it).

Well, I'll just have to wait and see. I can always return them...

 

[-Jim-]

I decided to go with the KEF Q350 and Q650C. Just bought from Crutchfield. Have 60 days to return them. The person on the phone thought they would be a very good match with the SVS PB-3000 Sub and Yamaha receiver I have being used in a Home Theater environment, cranking the volume, even more so than the Polk L series. Stay tuned for my review... Thanks again to everyone's feedback.

I think using 3 Q350s (with one turned on it's side) would have been fine for your needs. I expect you'd have saved about half the cost of the Q650c. I hope you enjoy whatever you keep.

 

[Golfx]

Well, I'll just have to wait and see. I can always return them...

When I find new people who want advice i always hope that Audioholics‘ principal speaker reviewer, James Larson, will post on the forum string. Perhaps you are unaware but @shadyJ is James Larsan. I wish you would have paid attention to his helpful suggestions. But that said you may love your choices and Crutchfield is the best online retailer for HT gear. The polks L200 and L400 recommended by @shadyJ will test and likely sound better than what you ordered.

 

[shadyJ]

When I find new people who want advice i always hope that Audioholics‘ principal speaker reviewer, James Larson, will post on the forum string. Perhaps you are unaware but @shadyJ is James Larsan. I wish you would have paid attention to his helpful suggestions. But that said you may love your choices and Crutchfield is the best online retailer for HT gear. The polks L200 and L400 recommended by @shadyJ will test and likely sound better than what you ordered.

The KEFs are probably very good also (I don't have much experience with the Q series), and they would be a lot cheaper. I am sure he will be happy with them.

 

[Bobby Bass]

As I've previously stated, there is nothing inherently wrong but something with better dynamic range. Again, at times it is difficult to clearly understand the dialogue in certain movies where I will need english subtitles. Someone recommended the Arendal 1723 THX but those are too big for my needs. It was also mentioned to replace the Polk di/bipoles in the rear surround with my NHT SuperOnes because di/bipoles are not ideal to use in an Atmos environment and replace the Front LCR.

Might of suggested Arendal because of their 60 day no-risk return policy. If the 1723s are too big you can try the 1723 S or 1961s. Polk has a great return policy too if you try an upgrade as others suggested.

 

[Steve81]

The KEFs are probably very good also (I don't have much experience with the Q series), and they would be a lot cheaper. I am sure he will be happy with them.

Hopefully. The Q series is handicapped; good driver, simple XO. In the case of the Q350, you’ve got a two-way UniQ in a vented box, which brings even more compromise. The UniQ mid/woofer is no excursion monster, and the harder you push it, the worse it does at its job of waveguide to the tweeter. The vent may help an around its tuning point, but how much is it really helping by 120Hz or so? There, it wouldn’t take a lot to run the Q350 out of steam, so I’d still recommend as high an XO as possible.

 

[chaz57]

Hi all,
Since I first established a home theater setup 18 years ago, I have only experienced only one brand of front and rear speakers. I am not unhappy at all with the sound, however I'm not sure what I may be missing out on. Very similar to my eye sight years ago before I went to the eye doctor to have my eyes checked and realized prescription glasses would be a game changer on how much better I could see. I recently upgraded my 5.1 setup to a 5.1.2 setup by installing two RSL C34E speakers a couple years ago so no need to upgrade these.

My current home theater setup is the following:

For my Front Left, Front Right and Center speakers I am using the NHT SuperOne Bookshelf speakers.
My surround back right and back left speakers are the Polk Audio FXi3 left and right pair.
Again, my FPL right and FPL left in ceiling speakers are the RSL C34E speakers.
My one subwoofer in the front on the floor is the SVS PB-3000
My receiver is the Yamaha Aventage RX-A6A

The NHT SuperOne Specs:
Configuration: 2-way acoustic suspension
Woofer: 6.5" paper cone with rubber surrounds
Tweeter: 1” soft dome
Frequency Response: 56Hz - 20kHz +/- 3dB
Crossover Frequency: 2.4kHz
Sensitivity: 86dB
Impedance: 8 ohms nominal, 5.3 ohms minimum
Power Handling: 125W
Weight: 9.1 lbs each
View attachment 63264


The Polk Audio FXi3 Specs:
bass-reflex
frequency response 60-26,000 Hz (-3dB)
8-ohm impedance
sensitivity 88 dB
handles up to 150 watts
5-way binding post connectors
dipole/bipole switch
View attachment 63265

This setup is pretty much exclusively for Home Theater use, watching movies, TV shows, etc and minimal music listening. I don't want to switch to free standing speakers but keep them on shelves. Please let me know your thoughts and recommendations.

Thank you for your help in advance.

If I could suggest replacing your center channel speakers with a Klipsch RP-504II RP-504C II Center Channel Speaker | Klipsch and replacing the surrounds with some Klipsch RP-600M II's RP-600M II Bookshelf Speakers | Klipsch , They might be a bit bright, but depending on what you have powering your setup you can change the setting (EQ) for each speaker. And yes adding a second sub will make a huge difference.

 

[dpriest]

Update on the KEF speakers. There is definitely an improvement over the NHT Superones and I am happy. They are brighter and when I am pumping volume through them from my A6A, they sound good. The center channel is clearer and the dialogue is clearer but not perfect. There are probably other variables involved. The L200/L400 could have been better but also much more money. I'm sure I could have gotten speakers that sounded better than the KEFs and then replaced the L200/400 speakers with better ones, etc. I've seen pictures of people's home theater setups with a custom built room perfect for acoustics with theater style seating, huge 8K projector, 9+ speakers, blue LED lighting that encompasses the room and total equipment that I'm sure amounted to hundreds of thousands of dollars. I also see people who post their home theater setup in what looks like a mud room in an apartment with a 65" TV. I am somewhere in between. We can always get better and better and better.

The challenge for me is not being able to go into a store and listen to all these speakers side by side plus what sounds good in a store might not sound that good in my space. Returning is a pain in the rear. Taking the speakers down, boxing them up and sending them back is a hassle, especially the big speakers. I'm happy with my setup and while watching a movie I really enjoy the overall experience. I have a lot of gratitude for Audioholics and this forum. Thanks for the feedback!

Regarding a second sub, I spoke to a guy at SVS who installed custom home theater setups for for over 20 years. He helped me tweak some of the settings in the Yamaha A6A that helped me. He knows all the equipment I am using and how I am streaming my movies. He is truly a diamond in the rough and he has called me when he thinks of something that might be helpful. I pondered at getting a second sub to add to my PB-3000. When I brought it up to him, he essentially said it was unnecessary but would be beneficial only in a couple of situations that didn't apply to me. By the way, SVS has the amongst the best customer service and support I've experienced anywhere. They go above and beyond support for their own products.