CBM-170's or CMT-340's up front?

[eRob]

I'm thinking about going with the package that has the CBM-170 fronts and surounds, CMT-340 center, and the Hsu VTF-2 MK2v sub. The room is going to be around 21 by 15. My question is do I need to have the CMT-340's for the fronts or will the CBM-170's up front work just fine? How about the sub in this size room, will it work good?

[BradJudy]

I have a very similarly sized room with CBM-170 mains and a Hsu VTF-2MkI and I think it works quite well (naturally, positioning and setup play a key role).

[craigsub]

We have 170's and a 340 set up in our 27x24 foot family room ... and it is fantastic. We have also switched off with an STF-1 (and a couple other subwoofers) ... the STF-1 does well... so a VTF-2 should be outstanding !

Also ... We have a pair of 340's available for this room, too ... but the 170's are MORE than enough.

[kindredspirit]

The 170's can definitely handle the job, but WOW!! the 340's are awesome. Love the HSU VTF-2.

[Ben_Wood]

Kindredspirit, I've been very pleased with my 4 170s with a 340 center and VTF-2 sub. Did you get iced in during the storm this weekend?

[Kpt_Krunch]

eRob - I belaboured over the same cunundrum as you with a room that is 12 x 22'. I decided to go with the 340's across the front and the 170's on the side (using the Omnimount 20's). I already had a great sub (the Paradigm PW-2200 V.2) which would be equivalent give or take to the VTF-3 from HSU. I decided on this setup for two reasons : 1. I enjoy multichannel music (DVD-A & SACD) as much as I do movies, and this was the recommended setup for it and 2. I wanted the look of a beefier speaker up front.

I'll be posting a review of my setup very soon now that the forum is up - but all I can say WOWOWWOWOWWOW. These speakers have far exceeded my expectations (and they were pretty high - believe me). This may sound like a cop out - but to be honest you'll be happy with either the 170's or the 340's as your mains I am sure. The 170's sure do produce a lot of good, clean, accurate sound for such a small speaker. One day I may just put them up front to see how they sound (don't know why I never did that before I mounted them, just never really thought of it until after all the work was done).

[gr1m]

eRob,
My rooms is veeerry similar to yours, I have a 15.5x20.5x9' room and my 170s up front more than hold their own, with the 340c & 200s as my surrounds - I love the setup! I mated them with a Pio 1014 and a PB10. I'm darn sure the 340s will be great and the VTF-2 an excellent choice.

[eRob]

Thanks for the advice everyone. I still haven't decided on what package to go with but it's nice to know the CBM-170's will work fine. It's going to be awhile before the room is built so I'll have plenty of time to decide.

[Shrubman]

I'm confused by these packages that use a larger center channel than the LF and RF. I thought the center channel was one of the least demanding in a system, often served by a thin set-top box in the HTIB market.

Please educate me.

[BradJudy]

Actually, the center is the most demanding role. I forget the exact number, but the majority of sound is coming through the center speaker. For this reason, many people consider if the most important speaker in the setup.