What to upgrade first for most impact?

[biorep]

Where to start? I've got a nice little HT setup that I'm looking to improve. I am looking for advice on what to upgrade first to make the most improvement in sound. Here is the current setup:

Reciever: Kenwood VR-307 -probably 5-6 yrs old, 100wpc X 5
Fronts: Polk audio shelfs, 100w (originally bought for rears, but bought new rears below)
Center: Definitive procenter c2, 200w
Rears: Sonance Symphony S622TR In-Ceiling Speakers, pointing straight down over both ends of couch, 125W
Sub: Definitive Prosub 200TL, 250W 12"driver

Afew questions:
1. should all the speaker wattages be the same?
2. should I buy new Definitive fronts to match the center and sub? (I've heard something about timber matching)
3. i dont think i would buy in cieling rears again, the room has 15' vaulted cieling, and i think the rears are supposed to be at your sides pointing at you
4. The reciever only has 1 optical input so i have to switch back and forth the satellite tuner and the dvd player
5. One thing that reallybothers me is that when watching in DD5.1, the dialog in the center is never loud enough over the other sounds in the front, even after setting speaker distances

Any advise is appreciated!

 

[jaxvon]

First off, what's your budget?

I think I'd upgrade the reciever first. You have some other nice equipment that seems to be serving you okay. If you have money after the reciever, then start going for speaker upgrades. But that's just me...

 

[brian32672]

5. One thing that reallybothers me is that when watching in DD5.1, the dialog in the center is never loud enough over the other sounds in the front, even after setting speaker distances

Any advise is appreciated!

I had this problem. And the Acoustech center I bought solved that problem. Center is now much louder and crystal clear. The 96db sensitivity really helped.

 

[j_garcia]

Speaker distances are not what you need to set, the levels are what need adjusting. That may still not fix your problem.

I would definitely upgrade ther receiver first, followed by main speakers + center.

 

[Audioholics]

Get a new receiver first. The ease of use and upgraded surround modes will be nice for you. You can also better adjust your center channel level. If you grab a unit with PEQ you can even tweak to get better sound across your front sound stage.

 

[biorep]

Thank you for all the advice. I will start researching recievers first since I really don't want to replace the center. I will look into the PEQ feature as well.

quick question: since the center is 200w, should the reciever have 200wpc, or does it matter? if I get new fronts, should they match at 200w also? is timber matching important and I should stay with definitive?

thanks again for all the help!

 

[jaxvon]

The power rating is really unimportant, it has no impact on the sound, unless you're trying to pump 900W though a speaker rated for 5. Timbre matching though, that IS important. I would recommend that you stick with Def Tech if you were to buy some new main speakers, as they would give you a more cohesive and consistent sound across the front.