Using three EMP EF30C's for front speakers?

[MikeB_18]

While seeking advice on a new 7.1 setup, the EMP EF30C's were recommended to me for all three front speakers. They felt the speakers would hold up better than the EF30's in my 16x20 room and that the woofer-tweeter-woofer setup set vertically would decrease some of the reflection off the ceiling and hardwood floors but still allow the sound to dispurse throughout the room.

Theorically it makes sense to me but I'm far from an audiophile. Any one care to comment?

 

[jcPanny]

EMP speakers

Check out the package deal on the EMP speakers with the floorstander, center, surrounds and sub for $900. Basically you are getting the floorstanders for the same price as the EMP 30Cs.
http://store.audioholics.com/product/1831/1/emp-ef30t-5-1-speaker-system

If you need something less obtrusive, consider the EMP on-wall speakers (on sale for $99 each) for the L/C/R channels and the bookshelf speakers for the surrounds.
http://store.audioholics.com/search?xSearch=emp+on-wall&x=0&y=0

 

[Midcow2]

budget ?

While seeking advice on a new 7.1 setup, the EMP EF30C's were recommended to me for all three front speakers. They felt the speakers would hold up better than the EF30's in my 16x20 room and that the woofer-tweeter-woofer setup set vertically would decrease some of the reflection off the ceiling and hardwood floors but still allow the sound to dispurse throughout the room.

Theorically it makes sense to me but I'm far from an audiophile. Any one care to comment?

What is your budget? The may be other better options.

First and most important are your front and center speakers; put most of your money there. long term you might not be happy with three $190 each EF30 center speakers. A pair of Cambridge Audio S30 ( $249) would probably sound better.

Second, a sub SVS or Hsu ( $400 up) .

Third, surrounds ( don't have to match front centeter or sub).

 

[MikeB_18]

My original budget was $1500 for a 7.1 system and trying to stick to bookshelves and somewhat smaller surrounds. We basically figured that for the money starting with a 5.1 set for about $1500 and then added the additional two back speakers at a later time was a better fit. Two reasons being my Onkyo SR605 doesn't matrix 5.1 to 7.1 and there are very few 7.1 tracks out there on Blu-ray. For money and time at this point, the 5.1 made sense.

The recommended system is,

Subwoofer: HSU VTF-2 MK3 - $550 shipped
Surrounds: Emotiva ERD-1 (pair) - $$370 shipped
Fronts : 3 x EMP EF30C - $570

 

[Midcow2]

My original budget was $1500 for a 7.1 system and trying to stick to bookshelves and somewhat smaller surrounds. We basically figured that for the money starting with a 5.1 set for about $1500 and then added the additional two back speakers at a later time was a better fit. Two reasons being my Onkyo SR605 doesn't matrix 5.1 to 7.1 and there are very few 7.1 tracks out there on Blu-ray. For money and time at this point, the 5.1 made sense.

The recommended system is,

Subwoofer: HSU VTF-2 MK3 - $550 shipped
Surrounds: Emotiva ERD-1 (pair) - $$370 shipped
Fronts : 3 x EMP EF30C - $570

Subwoofer :great choice!


Surrrounds : are for enchancement and if you like Emotiva ERD-1 they would be good

Fronts: I would substitute two very good speakers instead.
some of the best bookshelfs are Cambridge Audio S30 ( $249/pair) or Axiom M3 V2 ( $330 /pair) or Ascend Acoustics CBM 170 SE ($348) or B & W 686 ( $480/pair)

B & W 686 probably the best

 

[MikeB_18]

Subwoofer :great choice!


Surrrounds : are for enchancement and if you like Emotiva ERD-1 they would be good

Fronts: I would substitute two very good speakers instead.
some of the best bookshelfs are Cambridge Audio S30 ( $249/pair) or Axiom M3 V2 ( $330 /pair) or Ascend Acoustics CBM 170 SE ($348) or B & W 686 ( $480/pair)

B & W 686 probably the best

What would you recommend for a center? I weighing all options at this point as long as they're within my price range.

 

[gene]

While seeking advice on a new 7.1 setup, the EMP EF30C's were recommended to me for all three front speakers. They felt the speakers would hold up better than the EF30's in my 16x20 room and that the woofer-tweeter-woofer setup set vertically would decrease some of the reflection off the ceiling and hardwood floors but still allow the sound to dispurse throughout the room.

Mike,

There is no reason you can't use EF30Cs for front speakers but I highly recommend you consider the two hottest deals on EMP speakers offered right now as they are bigger bang for your buck.

EF30T 5.1 system for $899
http://store.audioholics.com/product/1831/1/emp-ef30t-5-1-speaker-system

and the EF50T 7.1 system for $1099
http://store.audioholics.com/product/1833/1/emp-ef50t-7-1-speaker-system

If you can swing towers for the front channels, this is one smoking deal at more than 50% off that will expire at the end of May. Tom Andry reviewed both the EF50T and EF30T and found them to be excellent performers, especially the EF30T which beat out his former reference speakers and he now uses instead.

With the savings from these systems, you can put towards an extra E10s subwoofer. You should do your best to get 2 identically matched subs as two subs properly placed and setup are always better than one sub to yield more even bass distribution for all seats.

Alternatively if you hold off till summer, Emotiva will have a killer subwoofer system consisting of 2 12" sealed subs and a 1000 watt amp for around $1k. Their speaker system is also excellent and easy to install into cabinetry or on walls. We have a formal review on the ERM 5.0 system you should check out.

Consider your space limitations and how you will install the speakers before settling on a system but try your best to integrate 2 subs if you can using the guidelines I outlined here:

http://www.audioholics.com/tweaks/get-good-bass/subwoofer-connection-guide

 

[Audioholics]

Alternatively if you hold off till summer, Emotiva will have a killer subwoofer system consisting of 2 12" sealed subs and a 1000 watt amp for around $1k. Their speaker system is also excellent and easy to install into cabinetry or on walls. We have a formal review on the ERM 5.0 system you should check out.

Hey, you can't say that - we don't even sell Emotiva subs in the store and you're supposed to be biased! You messing up our image here, Gene.

 

[Midcow2]

center

What would you recommend for a center? I weighing all options at this point as long as they're within my price range.

Match the vendor if you can. Assuming B & W 686 go with that first, then later add the B & W center. HTM61 ($650) or HTM62 ($425).

If you can't match, then Def Tech Procenter1000 ($220) would work well.


Good Luck

 

[Midcow2]

I disagree with you completely!

Mike,

There is no reason you can't use EF30Cs for front speakers but I highly recommend you consider the two hottest deals on EMP speakers offered right now as they are bigger bang for your buck.

EF30T 5.1 system for $899
http://store.audioholics.com/product/1831/1/emp-ef30t-5-1-speaker-system

and the EF50T 7.1 system for $1099
http://store.audioholics.com/product/1833/1/emp-ef50t-7-1-speaker-system

If you can swing towers for the front channels, this is one smoking deal at more than 50% off that will expire at the end of May. Tom Andry reviewed both the EF50T and EF30T and found them to be excellent performers, especially the EF30T which beat out his former reference speakers and he now uses instead.

With the savings from these systems, you can put towards an extra E10s subwoofer. You should do your best to get 2 identically matched subs as two subs properly placed and setup are always better than one sub to yield more even bass distribution for all seats.

Alternatively if you hold off till summer, Emotiva will have a killer subwoofer system consisting of 2 12" sealed subs and a 1000 watt amp for around $1k. Their speaker system is also excellent and easy to install into cabinetry or on walls. We have a formal review on the ERM 5.0 system you should check out.

Consider your space limitations and how you will install the speakers before settling on a system but try your best to integrate 2 subs if you can using the guidelines I outlined here:

http://www.audioholics.com/tweaks/get-good-bass/subwoofer-connection-guide

Thank you very much for giving me a -20 point rating. Just because you sell a product doesn't make that the best or only solution.

 

[MikeB_18]

Sounds good, thanks to everyone for your help. It'll be a few months before I order anything but I want to get a feel for what's out there for my budget. This gives me a bit more to think about before ordering.

Thanks again!

 

[gene]

Thank you very much for giving me a -20 point rating. Just because you sell a product doesn't make that the best or only solution.

Um I have no idea what you're talking about but your welcome I guess

 

[Midcow2]

Okay maybe it wasn't you ...

Um I have no idea what you're talking about but your welcome I guess

I have tried to be helpful and share my knowledge and experience in this forum and answer questions honestly and truthfully to all those who ask. Sometime there can be an honest difference of opinion, such as in this thread apparently. I personally think that two very good front towers and possibly a center is better than using three center speakers.

But at 12:30pm on 05-13-2008 I was give a red chicklet of value -20 points with the comment "might want to make sure you're familiar with all the speakers you're talking about before offering pros/cons ..."

If it wasn't you Gene I am sorry, but apparently someone with some power decide my responses and recommendations were strongly not in agreement with their views.

Anyway, I am upset and thinking about moving on. I have learned a lot and thought I provided very good answers, but oh well, I guess I am not a fan of the chicklet system even though I guess i was striving for my second green chicklet in my signature.

Soo long see you all later

 

[gene]

I have tried to be helpful and share my knowledge and experience in this forum and answer questions honestly and truthfully to all those who ask. Sometime there can be an honest difference of opinion, such as in this thread apparently. I personally think that two very good front towers and possibly a center is better than using three center speakers.

But at 12:30pm on 05-13-2008 I was give a red chicklet of value -20 points with the comment "might want to make sure you're familiar with all the speakers you're talking about before offering pros/cons ..."

If it wasn't you Gene I am sorry, but apparently someone with some power decide my responses and recommendations were strongly not in agreement with their views.

Anyway, I am upset and thinking about moving on. I have learned a lot and thought I provided very good answers, but oh well, I guess I am not a fan of the chicklet system even though I guess i was striving for my second green chicklet in my signature.

Soo long see you all later

No I didn't give you a chicklet as I rarely even do those. It was probably one of our forum mods and its a pet peeve amoung all of us when readers come online and definately state that speaker X is better than speaker Y without having any experience with speaker Y.

As for the speakers you recommended from Cambridge Audio, they do look quite nice and I am thinking about contacting them to line up a review but they seem to have limited distribution in the US which wouldn't benefit a majority of our readers.

 

[Midcow2]

Actually it appears tha EMP is very new company based on RBH

An could potentially be a good maybe even a great company. It partnered with Audioholics in January 2008 and that will provide it a good marketing outlet.

Now for a AV moderator to give me a -20 point rating and not have the cojones to own up to it is really pretty gutless.

I was told I should know more about speakers before comparing. Well there are absolutely no reviews or information on the EMP EF30Cs. And actually the EMP50Cs are only evaluated on AV. I assume they are a higher level than the 30Cs but I may be wrong. However, they are pretty lightweight for a center at 9.5 pounds.

Maybe three centers would work and maybe three EMP EF30C centers would work but it would be nice to see some type of evaluation as such compared to other alternatives in the $600 price range.

I know the center I have, Def Tech CLR3000, could potentially be used as three centers for front and center speakers but it is substantially heavier , 51 pounds each, and substantially costlier, retai $1099 each. But then each center has a 150watt 10" powered subwoofer, two 6 1/2" mids and a 1"tweeter. Now that is a great center channel

Hey is you disagree with me fine and you want to give me red chicklets fine, but to do it anonomously is being cowardly!

 

[gene]

I was told I should know more about speakers before comparing. Well there are absolutely no reviews or information on the EMP EF30Cs. And actually the EMP50Cs are only evaluated on AV. I assume they are a higher level than the 30Cs but I may be wrong. However, they are pretty lightweight for a center at 9.5 pounds.

Maybe three centers would work and maybe three EMP EF30C centers would work but it would be nice to see some type of evaluation as such compared to other alternatives in the $600 price range.

I know the center I have, Def Tech CLR3000, could potentially be used as three centers for front and center speakers but it is substantially heavier , 51 pounds each, and substantially costlier, retai $1099 each. But then each center has a 150watt 10" powered subwoofer, two 6 1/2" mids and a 1"tweeter. Now that is a great center channel

There is a review of the entire EF50T system which includes the EF50c:
http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/speakers/floorstanding/emp-tek-ef50-speaker-system

And a review of the TK5 from RBH which are virtually identical to the EF30s:
http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/speakers/bookshelf/tk-5c

and RBH TK-5CT which are virtually identical to the EF30T
http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/speakers/floorstanding/rbh-sound-tk-5ct

I think its safe to assume the EF30C is a good speaker but I still recommend the towers as mains, esp b/c of the super promo the Audioholics store is running.

 

[Midcow2]

I agree

....
I think its safe to assume the EF30C is a good speaker but I still recommend the towers as mains, esp b/c of the super promo the Audioholics store is running.

And that was my main point that I was recommending "towers as mains". That is why I didn't understand why a "moderator" gave me a minus 20 point red chicklet without the courtesy to sign their name. Oh well!


Cheers