2 way center with 3 way fronts?

[debs67]

Hi! Pretty much new to Home cinema and the like!
I stupidly bought a pair of Diamond 8.3's for fronts and a Diamond 8 center, recently! I love the sound along with my subwoofer etc... However,I didn't realize that the fronts were not shielded and they are giving my TV problems! But moving them away is impossible in my small living room.So I'm putting the 8.3's to the back and buying new fronts.I want to keep to the same make.
So here's the question: Can I put Diamond 9.5's as fronts (which are shielded but 3 way) with the Diamond 8 center (2 way)? The 9.4's are 2 way,but not as powerful as my 8.3's whose sound I really like!
Any advice would be really appreciated!
My husband is beginning to get really fed up with me, this is my last chance to get it right!
Help!

 

[Leprkon]

2 way and 3 way are not very important. all that matters is that all three front speakers are voice-matched. in many cases, the manufacturer will voice-match (also called "timbre") within a model line (for example, you could mix/match any of the Infinity Primus line, but could not mix them with the Alpha or Kappa line)

check the Diamond website to see if the nine series is matched to the eights. very few center speakers are three-way, but most towers are.

 

[debs67]

Thanks again Leprkon!
I think I'll give Wharfedale a ring tomorrow and sort it out,hope they don't keep me on hold...I live in Greece!
Debs

 

[slopoke]

I like this!

First I've heard of a woman having trouble with HAF.

 

[Porcupine]

> But moving them away is impossible in my small living room.

I've found that if you are lucky, you can keep non-magnetically shielded speakers VERY close to a TV set if you put them in the right spot. When I put my non-shielded Infinity speakers exactly on the side of my TV they produced no noticecable discoloration. But if I put them even a tiny bit forward or backwards the discoloration of the set becomes horrendous at close distances. Maybe you could try experimenting more with placement of your 8.3's?

> 2 way and 3 way are not very important. all that matters is that all three front speakers are voice-matched. in many cases, the manufacturer will voice-match (also called "timbre")

I've felt that 2-way vs 3-way makes a big difference in the frequency response curve of speakers, where the humps and bumps are. And isn't the frequency response curve what defines "timbre"?

Yet I've also noticed many manufacturer recommended "voice-matched" surround sound setups have both 2-way and 3-way speakers, sometimes even with different types of drivers. This confuses me.

Maybe the most important part of surround sound matching is simply that the drivers simply respond with similar phase coherency and transient response. I think timbre matching is important too, but I feel that 2-way vs 3-way systems tend to have different timbre qualities.

 

[Buckeyefan 1]

Timbre - The quality of a sound related to its harmonic structure. Timbre is what gives a voice or instrument its sonic signature -- why a trumpet and a saxophone sound different when they play the same note.

A two way bookshelf (one with a horn tweeter, and one with a soft dome) could have the same frequency response and crossover settings, but would not be timber matched due to the different drivers.

You want to make sure the tweeters are identical, or at least of the same make when timber matching speakers. When purchasing speakers of the same line, usually the crossovers are set the same in the mains and center so the midrange isn't producing unnecessary highs, and the tweeter isn't producing upper end midrange. Keep in mind dome tweeters are not all made the same. Some are aluminum, some cloth. They sound totally different.

 

[Porcupine]

> Timbre - The quality of a sound related to its harmonic structure.

Agree 100% with this definition. That is why I say a speaker's timbre qualities are defined completely by its frequency response curve (the entire shape of the curve, not the freq range). If there are frequency response humps in the high freq region, the timbre of many instruments will thus be higher, etc.

> one with a horn tweeter, and one with a soft dome... could have the same frequency response and crossover settings, but would not be timber matched due to the different drivers.

If the frequency response curves were identical, I would say this hypothetical horn tweeter and hypothetical soft dome would have identical timbre qualities. However, this won't happen. Different types of tweeter have very different freq response curves.

Frequency response range, and crossover frequency, only define limits of frequency response. They don't necessarily tell anything about freq response behavior within that range.

> You want to make sure the tweeters are identical

Agree 100%.

The only things I am questioning are: 1) Is "voice-matching" the same thing as "timbre-matching"?

And 2) I still think that 2-way vs 3-way designs tend to have different frequency response curves in the mid/low frequency regions...thus I would say NOT being timbre-matched.

But like I said earlier, I think timbre-matching is not the critical issue when matching speakers for a surround system. I think identical transient response and identical phase characteristics are of the most importance. But timbre-matching would be a plus.

 

[Porcupine]

But maybe 2-way vs 3-way systems don't have as much difference in their frequency response curves in the mid/low region as I think. Maybe I'm wrong. But if not, then I wonder what is the point of making a 3-way system?

 

[Buckeyefan 1]

But maybe 2-way vs 3-way systems don't have as much difference in their frequency response curves in the mid/low region as I think. Maybe I'm wrong. But if not, then I wonder what is the point of making a 3-
way system?

Not in their curves, but ability to reproduce given frequencies at a given dB. Sometimes I feel my CSi5 Polk center uses too big of a driver paired with one tweeter. They come with 6.5" mid bass drivers. I tend to think the 5.25" Polk drivers execute the voice better than their larger 6.5" cousins. I think Polk should mate the 6.5 along with the 5.25 and two tweeters for best sound reproduction. I'm also a proponent of two subs, one 8", and one 12" for more of an even frequency response-as long as they are dialed in and not cancelling each other.