Surround speakers: Same type as front row, or not?

[Zepticon]

Hi
I have been rocking surround for close to 20 years now, but still feel like a beginner since its a pretty casual hobby. But now that i spend more time at home with the wife and kids, im considering to prepare for some upgrades. I will get myself a Yamaha RX-A3080 to replace my 20 year old RX-V740. But with 11.2 channels, then the question arise.

I got a front row that i am pretty happy with (and even the wife thinks it sounds and looks OK):
2x XTZ 99.36 MK2 - Left/Right Floorstanding (will be upgraded to beryllium tweeters)
1x XTZ 99.25 MK1 - Center (will be upgraded to beryllium tweeter)
2x XTZ W12.16 - Subwoofer

With this setup, i was told that the BEST solution for centers was to get another 4x XTZ 99.25 to use as surround and rear surround.

But given that they are rather large black boxes, they have incredible low WAF as soon as they are moved from the front row to be placed around the room. Also given that they need a floor stand, it gets complicated for anyone without a dedicated home cinema room.

So my question is, how would it be to use the XTZ front row, and combine it with a good quality "in-wall" type setup for a 7.4.2 Atmos system?

 

[shadyJ]

Hi
I have been rocking surround for close to 20 years now, but still feel like a beginner since its a pretty casual hobby. But now that i spend more time at home with the wife and kids, im considering to prepare for some upgrades. I will get myself a Yamaha RX-A3080 to replace my 20 year old RX-V740. But with 11.2 channels, then the question arise.

I got a front row that i am pretty happy with (and even the wife thinks it sounds and looks OK):
2x XTZ 99.36 MK2 - Left/Right Floorstanding (will be upgraded to beryllium tweeters)
1x XTZ 99.25 MK1 - Center (will be upgraded to beryllium tweeter)
2x XTZ W12.16 - Subwoofer

With this setup, i was told that the BEST solution for centers was to get another 4x XTZ 99.25 to use as surround and rear surround.

But given that they are rather large black boxes, they have incredible low WAF as soon as they are moved from the front row to be placed around the room. Also given that they need a floor stand, it gets complicated for anyone without a dedicated home cinema room.

So my question is, how would it be to use the XTZ front row, and combine it with a good quality "in-wall" type setup for a 7.4.2 Atmos system?

First of all, I wouldn't bother upgrading to beryllium tweeters. The difference is not worth the cost. Furthermore, the existing crossover circuit should have to be modified as well for that to be a significant upgrade. If the crossover is the same, just replacing the tweeter could easily be a downgrade, even if it is for an ostensibly higher end tweeter.

You can use in-wall speakers for surrounds with no problem. They might not be quite as good as the 99.25 speakers, but surround sound mixes don't usually do anything heavy-duty with the surrounds anyway, so I doubt you would notice the difference. It's usually just ambient noises and effects noises, and any semi-competent speaker can handle that sort of thing fine.

 

[Zepticon]

First of all, I wouldn't bother upgrading to beryllium tweeters. The difference is not worth the cost. Furthermore, the existing crossover circuit should have to be modified as well for that to be a significant upgrade. If the crossover is the same, just replacing the tweeter could easily be a downgrade, even if it is for an ostensibly higher end tweeter.

Thanks for the reply!

The upgrade is said to be noticeable, but i have not heard it myself. The upgrade itself consist of the beryllium tweeter, and a new crossover made by Mundorf components. This does (according to the ones i have spoken to) improve both the mid and tweeter performance quite a lot. From what i have figured, XTZ sells it almost without making money of it.

And, given how satisfied i am with the speakers as is, both look and sound, i will keep them for a while so i can invest in some sound placebo, or Hi-FI jewlery

You can use in-wall speakers for surrounds with no problem. They might not be quite as good as the 99.25 speakers, but surround sound mixes don't usually do anything heavy-duty with the surrounds anyway, so I doubt you would notice the difference. It's usually just ambient noises and effects noises, and any semi-competent speaker can handle that sort of thing fine.

Ahh, that was what i was hoping. I do not consider myself picky regarding sound so my guess was that it would be much more practical with in-walls for my use.

 

[shadyJ]

The upgrade is said to be noticeable, but i have not heard it myself. The upgrade itself consist of the beryllium tweeter, and a new crossover made by Mundorf components. This does (according to the ones i have spoken to) improve both the mid and tweeter performance quite a lot. From what i have figured, XTZ sells it almost without making money of it.

This upgrade still sounds a bit sketchy. Mundorf has heavier-duty components, but unless your present crossover components are somehow out of spec, the components change will not so much to change the sound. If the entire crossover is reworked, as it should be to accommodate a new tweeter, that would change the sound, but if it is changing the mids, that implies that the present crossover is somehow flawed. If it was that bad that some simple value changes could have made it better, why did they sell it to begin with? It sounds like a lot of money and effort expended for a marginal return in sound quality.