Center Channel suggestions- Help!

[amras7]

Thanks in advance!

Could you guys recommend a specific center, or a solid older option?

I'm looking for a transparent, neutral(but if it has to have color to the warmer side) center channel speaker to complement my system. My front and rear speakers are from a company called Signet(not that you should know them), known more for their vinyl record cartridges. They came out with a line of speakers in the 90's that got alot of critical acclaim including Stereophile's recommended lists. The problem is that they predate the HT revolution so their is no matching center available. To replace the whole speaker system would kill my budget, prevent me from upgrading other weak links in the chain, and be a waste of some pretty good speakers... SO...I guess I'm gonna try to match as much as possible.

The rest of my system-
Rotel 1055
Rega Planet2k
Panasonic S97
Integra Amp(150w/ch)
32" tube, to be replaced by a 50" plasma this yr
Signet 280 fronts, 260 rears. 88-89db sensitivity

Thanks!
Russ

 

[zumbo]

It's your lucky day. Pair of 280's, with matching center.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Signet-SL-280-B-U-Speakers-w-matching-Center_W0QQitemZ220069728673QQihZ012QQcategoryZ14993QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 

[amras7]

Thanks for posting that listing. Interestingly enough I've actually bought that supposedly "matched" center on ebay a few years back and was pretty dissappointed. It was released a few years after those initial Signets and they used entirely different drivers and cabinet construction quality. Maybe they thought HT enthousiasts wouldn't be as focused on quality. Then again things were very different in the early 90's. Bottom line the sound quality, though not horrible, was comparable to a $200 speaker you'd buy at Best Buy.

Thanks
Russ

 

[AVRat]

How much are you looking to spend?

 

[jcPanny]

Bookshelf as center

Get another one of the Signet bookshelf speakers and use it as your center channel. Can't get a better tonal match then that.