Center Channel Speaker Hearing Aid User (Horizon or Sierra2 Raal)

I'm just about to change my LCR set-up. Trying to learn if Ascend Horizon Raal would be a much better choice for my understanding dialogue. I'm going to use Sierra2 Raal for the left and right fronts. For what a single Horizon will cost I could find a set of 3 Sierra2's in the pre-owned market. Again speech discernment is my most important concern. Room size is 15X20. Distance from speakers is 11 feet.
Thanks everyone for listening;)

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Originally Posted by davethedyer

For what a single Horizon will cost I could find a set of 3 Sierra2's in the pre-owned market. Again speech discernment is my most important concern. Room size is 15X20. Distance from speakers is 11 feet.

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Assuming you've searched this and other sites, you've no doubt seen what people post about center channels. When you pull it all together and sum it all up, the majority opinion seems to be that the center channel is the most important speaker for an HT setup; it should be your highest performing (and therefore likely your most expensive) speaker. Said another way, get the best center channel you can afford and have the room for.

I've had a Sierra-2 center (not the EX), and traded that out for a Duo (<- that's a link you can click on but it's hard to see that). The Duo won hands down for me, especially on speech intelligibility. Large step up, even my wife says so. And I only went the Duo route because I don't physically have room for the Horizon. I would buy the Horizon in a heartbeat if I could use it.

But there's zero reason for you to believe me, or anyone else. Ascend Acoustic has a free in-home trial. You can try either the Duo or the Horizon (or anything else they make) in your own home and find out for yourself. If you think it's worth it, keep it. If not, send it back. Very little risk with the potential for a lot of reward. Just sayin'.

Thanks for the post Bruce. Yes I've read about the new Duo and it's center channel praises.
Also I would have no problem mounting the Horizon above my screen angled down.
I just can't decide whether it's overkill for my room.
For the price of one Horizon Raal I could pick up 3 Sierra 2's on the second hand market.

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Originally Posted by davethedyer

Thanks for the post Bruce. Yes I've read about the new Duo and it's center channel praises.
Also I would have no problem mounting the Horizon above my screen angled down.
I just can't decide whether it's overkill for my room.
For the price of one Horizon Raal I could pick up 3 Sierra 2's on the second hand market.

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You have to decide whether your major concern is price, or as you said earlier: "...speech discernment is my most important concern." You're the only one who can decide what's most important to you.

The horizon is quite more sensitive than sierra2, i would guess you would need haft the power to get the same loudness compare with sierra2.

I have the same experience as Bruce going from S2 to Luna Duo as center. That said, the Horizon is more sensitive and will play louder than the Duo (or others) at same volume level. So, I also agree with Bruce's post above about what is most important to you - audibility or price.

Thanks for the input everyone.
So the Horizon playing louder is an advantage?
I'm most concerned with speech clarity.
My Rotel amp has plenty of power.

As the Horizon is more efficient, it will take less power to reach "X" decibels versus a less sensitive speaker, like the S2 or S2EX. So, you'll have more amp headroom with the Horizon.

I think the dedicated midrange of the Horizon will also be a plus for dialog clarity.

As you noted, it is a big price jump from some of the others. Perhaps try the Duo first and if that doesn't work for you, return it and get the Horizon.

I'll disagree a little with the other posts and say that speech intelligibility should be similarly good among reasonably good speakers. Sure, there might be small differences, but all should be ok.

A bigger issue - one that can have a bigger effect - is speaker placement, room setup, AVR/receiver settings, etc.

What Rotel are you using?

If you were to buy the three Sierra 2 speakers, could you set the 'center' speaker vertically, near ear level, or at least vertically and angled to near ear level?

Can you post a pic of where the speakers would be placed?

I’m tend to lean towards Beave’s thinking.

While the Duo may or may not be the “better” speaker, I have never had an issue with the vocal intelligibility of my Sierra-2.

That said, I think it would definitely look better as a center.