340SE as 2.1 for Home Theater?

[greglau]

Hi, would like to ask the objective opinions of this forum for my particular situation...

I am ready to upgrade my speaker system. Right now, I have an Onkyo 6.1 HTIB. I've also recently moved to a new apartment with a much bigger living room where the entertainment center is located which measures 15x15x9. The sofa is located pretty much in the middle of this space, maybe a foot or so closer to the rear.

The back of the right side opens up to the kitchen/dining area, about 13x19. The left side is the entrance way to two bedrooms, measures 6x6.

After long consideration I'm ditching the idea of surround sound; I am pretty sure I will go with a 2.1 system using the Ascend 340SE's as the L/R for aesthetic reasons as well as space saving measures. Leaning towards a SVS PB10 for the sub.

Now would a 2.1 system be good for my uses? My habits are 90% Movies/TV/Games and 10% music (though I hope that this will change with the new speakers...)

What do you guys think? Please advise!

Thanks,

Greg

[ebh]

i'm sure 2.1 would work great. you might want to go with a little more sub than the pb10. i've heard great things about it, but the living room sounds fairly large and a 10" woofer can only push so much air. then again, it is an apartment. but if you could step up to the pb12 or similar, it might be a bit more powerful.

the only other thing you might want to consider is going 3.1. i value having a center channel for films because it helped make voices and positioning clearer. but many others are very happy with a phantom center. you can always start 2.1 and build from there.

the only other thing you might want to think about is if it's possible to move the couch back a bit. i have read that it's better to have the listening position not in the middle or all the way back, but at 1/3 or 2/3 because of issues of reflections and the like. in any event, i think you will be happy with your purchase.

[bikeman]

the only other thing you might want to consider is going 3.1.

2.1 will be fine but adding a center will do good things for movies. You can always experiment with surround speakers if the bug get ya. Pick up an inexpensive pair just to try it out.
Your room is square which can be an issue when it comes to a sub. I'd consult with the company you're considering as to which sub and how best to place it before purchase.

David

[greglau]

2.1 will be fine but adding a center will do good things for movies. You can always experiment with surround speakers if the bug get ya. Pick up an inexpensive pair just to try it out.
Your room is square which can be an issue when it comes to a sub. I'd consult with the company you're considering as to which sub and how best to place it before purchase.

David

Thanks for the square room + sub information David, I will do that before I pull the trigger, thanks.

I think I'll go 2.1 for now, and if the imaging is not good enough, I can always add another later. I'm trying to keep the entertainment center as 'clean' as possible so i'd like to try a minimalist approach first. I've been using my HTIB's L/R speakers in Stereo mode, I think I'll be okay with a pair of 340s for now... and if it's not at least I have something to look forward to...

Thanks again!

[Dread Pirate Robert]

Hi, would like to ask the objective opinions of this forum for my particular situation...

Objective opinions? Gah...head...hurt!

After long consideration I'm ditching the idea of surround sound; I am pretty sure I will go with a 2.1 system using the Ascend 340SE's as the L/R for aesthetic reasons as well as space saving measures. Leaning towards a SVS PB10 for the sub.

In that large a room (compared to most home theaters), the PB10 may come close to its limits and begin to compress at "typical" HT volume levels. I can't be sure about this, but it has to be marginal--it may or may not be just enough. Don't get me wrong, it will still impress, especially at the lowest frequencies and if you're used to a HTIB sub, but it may not be able to deliver the soundtrack quite as intended. A PB12 or 20-39 PCi should give you plenty of headroom unless you want to absolutely "pressurize the room" with massive bass, and the 16-46 PCi could be an interesting option as well. Contact SVS, and they'll help you determine how much sub is needed for whatever class of performance you expect. Hsu Research also sells subs of similar performance and value.

Oh, duh, I just realized that this is an apartment. Maybe you could try running a 2.0 or 3.0 system first to see how you like it, because I doubt your neighbors would like the PB10. Perhaps a good compromise would be a smaller sub that doesn't dig as deep but can still keep up with the Ascends musically, such as the Hsu STF-1.

Now would a 2.1 system be good for my uses? My habits are 90% Movies/TV/Games and 10% music (though I hope that this will change with the new speakers...)

Based on what I've heard from others, as well as my own experience, there is a pretty good chance that you'll want to listen to more music on your upgraded HT/stereo rig. I used to listen to music almost exclusively through headphones, save for concert DVDs, but I've all but ditched the headphones since upgrading to Ascends.

What do you guys think? Please advise!

Well, to be honest, I still like the idea of surround sound, and wouldn't dream of doing away with it myself, at least in the case of movies that make use of it. It's perfectly fine if you feel differently, and it won't hurt to give 2.1 a try when you get your 340SEs and whatever sub you choose (just be sure to let Ascend know that you want the option of buying the rest of a surround package for the package price at a later date).

From personal experience, because I needed to decide how to mount the massive (for surrounds) 170SE on my walls, I used my new Ascend fronts both by themselves and with my old surround speakers, and found that while 2.1 and 3.1 work fine for movies when using superb speakers, even my cheesy old surrounds noticeably improved the HT experience (for me). In fact, I began to wonder whether I even needed to upgrade the surrounds, since this is the least sonically demanding role for speakers, but after I upgraded, I felt silly for even considering this option as the 170SEs were such a significant improvement, even as surrounds. I can run them level, as I do now, instead of slightly hot like I did before, and still get much better ambience from them.