Request for help with my speaker settings/Center channel woes

[Frank Champ]

Hey everyone,

I have this setup:

Receiver: Denon AVR3312CI
Front Left & Right: Polk RTI A9
Center: Polk CSiA6
Surround Left & Right: Polk FXiA6
Surround Back Left & Right: Polk FXiA6
Sub: Epik Empire
Amp: Emotiva XPR-5 (for Fronts, Center, Surrounds)

I've had this setup for three years now and I just can never get it to sound satisfactory. The main problem I think is the center channel. Sometimes it sounds like the dialogue is trapped in a box and if you raise the volume too loud it will screech trying to get out. During pure dialogue scenes it quite frankly hurts my ears. During music + dialogue, the dialogue is too low.

I setup the speakers running Audyssey on the Denon. Since then I've played with adjusting settings over and over again. I've read a lot about what these settings actually mean but quite frankly a lot of it I just do not understand.

These are my settings right now after running Audyssey today. The only changes I made were to the distance and I changed the center speaker to Small.

Crossover Frequency:
-Front & Surrounds: Full Band
-Center: 80Hz
Subwoofer: LFE
LPF for LFE: 90Hz
Speaker Config:
-Center: Small
-Front & Surrounds: Large
Audyssey Bypass L/R: No
Audyssey Flat: No
EQ Manual: No
LFE: 0db
MultiEQ XT: Audyssey
Dynamic EQ & Dynamic Volume: Off
Distance:
-Front L: 13 ft
-Front R: 12.5 ft
-Center: 11.5 ft
-Subwoofer: 11.5 ft
-Surround L: 7.5 ft
-Surround R: 7.5 ft
-Surround Back L: 5.5 ft
-Surround Back R: 5.5 ft
AFDM: On
D.Comp: Off
Cinema EQ: On
Levels:
-Front L: -3.0 db
-Front R: -3.5 db
-Center: -4.0db
-Subwoofer: -3.5db
-Surround L: -4.0db
-Surround R: -4.0db
-Surround Back L: -6.5db
-Surround Back R: -6.5db

Does anyone have any suggestions? Anything obvious jump out as a potential problem? Do I even need the subwoofer given the size of my towers?

Much appreciate any help!

Thanks,
Frank

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

It's not the EQ or AVR settings - it's the speakers.
Frank, you need start budgeting for upgrading them.
If you can use bookshelf vertically for center I'd get these: http://www.wavecrestaudio.com/products/hvl-1-two-way-loudspeaker-pair

 

[Frank Champ]

Thanks for the response...

You would recommend I replace my entire system with 7 of those? Or just the center?

I recognize money doesn't mean much, but the 7 Polk speakers cost me about $2200. Those 7 speakers would only cost $670.

 

[agarwalro]

Is there any reason to believe the Center's tweeter is malfunctioning?
How does the speaker sound by itself or on all channel stereo?
How is it positioned with respect to your seated ear height? Is the tweeter axis pointed to the main listening position?

Try these settings,

Crossover Frequency:
-Front & Surrounds: 80Hz
-Center: 80Hz
Subwoofer: LFE
LPF for LFE: 120Hz
Speaker Config:
-Center: Small
-Front & Surrounds: Small
Audyssey Bypass L/R: No
Audyssey Flat: No
EQ Manual: No
LFE: 0db
MultiEQ XT: Audyssey
Dynamic EQ: Off
Dynamic Volume: Light

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

I'd keep Dynamic EQ on,
You can play with LPF for LFE a bit lower - from 80 to 120 - whatever sounds best to you.
Oh and Agarwalro is 100% right - keep setting for all your speaker - SMALL

 

[agarwalro]

I'd keep Dynamic EQ on

Dynamic EQ (and corresponding variants from others) is the most amazing current gen processing tech. I was on the fence about this. Since anemic bass is not the issue, I opted to leave it off.

 

[herbu]

I keep:
Dynamic EQ = ON
-Reference Level Offset = 10dB

Dynamic Volume = OFF

You can also try increasing the volume of your Center ~3dB (from -4dB to -1dB).

Audyssey has a "Dialog Level" setting. You can also try to increase this some... I would start w/ ~3dB boost.

100% Agree to set ALL speakers to Small.
100% Agree to tilt your Center if necessary to point directly at you.
100% Agree that a real good Center will immediately help voices.

I suggest playing with ALL these settings. Find the ones YOU like best. My wife and I are getting older and also had trouble simply understanding some voices in TV/Movies. Played a bunch w/ settings and finally got a new Center. Happy to say it all came together. If you decide to go w/ a new Center, suggest talking to Dennis Murphy at Philharmonicaudio.com.

 

[lsiberian]

If you can get another L-R speaker for the center and then mount the TV that would certainly solve the problem. I've been using an exact match center for years and never have any issues.