Ascend Setup

[k2208]

I received my Sierra today. I love the way it is packaged with the gloves and wrapped in a soft bag. Very nice! I first hooked it up as a front speaker where one of my cbm-170 classics resides to hear some music. It sounded very nice, and is extremely detailed. It paired extremely well with my other 170, I was surprised.

This is not a knock on the Sierra(more of a glowing statement about the 170's), but the difference that I heard right out of the box was not out of this world. The Sierra definitely does a better job at everything, but it is not an astronomical difference. Granted I only have 1 Sierra and I do use a sub, so I am not maximizing the potential. I would love to hear a pair of Sierras if anyone in the Columbus Ohio region has them. The 170's are amazing for the price, and I would venture to say that they would be perfect for 95% of home theater users.

I then put it in the center location. I calibrated the levels with my SPL meter and away we went. We watched X-Men Origins and it was fantastic. It is such a room filling sound pumping out of the Sierra. It blends very well with my 170's and my M&K
sub. I cant wait to get it broken in more to really hear it sing!

I must admit I am intrigued about the prospect of another 170 as a center. I am going to work the Sierra for awhile, and then I will move one of my 170's to the center and see how it does. The reason I am thinking that is I could purchase 3 170's for the price of 1 Sierra. I could put the new 170SE's across the front and move my classics to the rears.

I guess I am blown away by the Sierra, but in absolute awe of what the 170's can do at a fraction of the cost. I have never really compared my 170's to anything so I was not really aware of how awesome they are.

I am not saying the 170's are better by any stretch, but they are incredible for the price.

[k2208]

Ok, I have watched a couple more movies since my last post. Close Encounters of a third kind, and Nightmare before Christmas(both incredible on Blu-ray). The Sierra was awesome on both. It really fills the room up with sound. I found myself constantly adjusting volume up and down with my old Bo$e center because it had no punch. I would turn up the volume to hear good dialog, but then when any action happened I was blown out of my chair by the rest of the system.

I never really knew how much work a center channel put in during movies, it is amazing. I am really happy so far with the Sierra, and it blends extremely well with my 170's and the rest of my system.