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Thread: Infinity Alpha 37C Center with Ascend L/R's?

  1. #1
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    Default Infinity Alpha 37C Center with Ascend L/R's?

    I'm in 'upgrade mode' and have pretty much decided to get a pair of 170's or 340's for L/R fronts in my ~2000 cu ft room. (Have a Pio 1014 AVR and SVS PB10 sub and am primarily interested in HT rather than serious music listening.)

    Question 1: Any recomendation for 170's or 340's in this size room? (Price is not my primary consideration; I would like the best speaker for my size room; I don't need to have the 340 'just because it is bigger', only if it would give better performance even in this smallish space.)

    Question 2: I currently have an Infinity Alpha 37C center speaker that I like very much (as do many people); it is very clear and 'neutral'. Does anybody here have any experience with the 37C, and in particular know how it would go with Ascends as L/R's? (I may eventually get the 340C, but the 37C is so good I plan to keep it a while.)

    Thanks much for any wisdom you may provide!
    Last edited by millerwill; 03-29-2005 at 07:00 PM.

  2. #2
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    "Question 1: Any recomendation for 170's or 340's in this size room? (Price is not my primary consideration; I would like the best speaker for my size room; I don't need to have the 340 'just because it is bigger', only if it would give better performance even in this smallish space.) "

    I had a similar question before I bought my 340M's. Dave F. assured me that the 340's would not be wasted with near field listening. By near field, I mean 8' to the prime listening position with the back wall directly behind. I don't have a pair of 170's to compare but I am very pleased that I went with the 340's. Although I purchased them with the intent of using them primarily for home theatre, I now use them almost everyday for music.

    "Question 2: I currently have an Infinity Alpha 37C center speaker that I like very much (as do many people); it is very clear and 'neutral'. Does anybody here have any experience with the 37C, and in particular know how it would go with Ascends as L/R's? (I may eventually get the 340C, but the 37C is so good I plan to keep it a while.) "

    I do plan to add the 340C at some point but I have been using a CSW center speaker in the meantime and it gets the job done. When I pan the speakers using AVIA, I can certainly tell that the CSW is not timbre matched. I believe your Infinity is a better speaker so I would guess you'll be pleased with the results. Timbre matching is always best but that dosen't mean compromises are not acceptable. I wouldn't hesitate to try it. I only use the center for movies. All my music listening is done in two channel.

    David

  3. #3
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    From my listening experience at bigbox stores, Infinity speakers always seemed too bright. I even like the edge that the tweeters in speakers such as the Paradigm Studio 20s have, but Infinity takes this another couple steps beyond my comfort level. I'd say that the Infinitys I've heard also suffer from the average consumer liking big bloated bass over clarity. The Ascend 170s go a hair below 60Hz in my room, but it's all clear, beautiful sound.

    I've never heard the 340s, so others can help you in the comparison. I can tell you that five 170s in my 1500ft^3 room is absolutely perfect. I average 7' from each speaker face at my sweet spot.

  4. #4
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    Nicholas and bikeman: Thanks to both of you for the input. Nicholas, I've never seen the Alpha 37C at a B&M place (and it's now discontinued), only the lower end Inf's; a number of reviewers in the past have said that it's the best center they've ever heard (for whatever that's worth!); the Beta 360 is its successor, though a number of people have said that they think the 37C is better than it. I was hoping to snag someone who actually had first-hand knowledge of the 37C and the Ascends, but I know that hitting this precise combination of experience is hard.

    Re 170 vs 340, I suppose this has been beaten to death in these discussions--a credit to the 170, I suppose, that it is even competitive. As I noted, I don't particularly mind the extra cost of the 340, but have a nagging suspicion that it may be overkill for my situation. I do like the 'full experience' in an action movie, but my wife (and even I) don't want it ridiculous (we're not teenagers anymore!). Clarity, at a good solid level, is the premium. (Is there any 'rule of thumb' on the voume of the room at which the 340 is recommended over the 170?)



    Quote Originally Posted by Nicholas Mosher
    From my listening experience at bigbox stores, Infinity speakers always seemed too bright. I even like the edge that the tweeters in speakers such as the Paradigm Studio 20s have, but Infinity takes this another couple steps beyond my comfort level. I'd say that the Infinitys I've heard also suffer from the average consumer liking big bloated bass over clarity. The Ascend 170s go a hair below 60Hz in my room, but it's all clear, beautiful sound.

    I've never heard the 340s, so others can help you in the comparison. I can tell you that five 170s in my 1500ft^3 room is absolutely perfect. I average 7' from each speaker face at my sweet spot.

  5. #5
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    My experience with the Infinity speakers has been with the Alpha & Beta Towers, the bookshelves in those lines, along with some of the primus units. As I said above, I thought they were overly bright and had the typical mass-consumer boomy midbass.

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by millerwill
    Re 170 vs 340, I suppose this has been beaten to death in these discussions--a credit to the 170, I suppose, that it is even competitive. As I noted, I don't particularly mind the extra cost of the 340, but have a nagging suspicion that it may be overkill for my situation. I do like the 'full experience' in an action movie, but my wife (and even I) don't want it ridiculous (we're not teenagers anymore!). Clarity, at a good solid level, is the premium. (Is there any 'rule of thumb' on the voume of the room at which the 340 is recommended over the 170?)
    Hi millerwill - welcome to the forum! I don't think I explained it very well in my pm I sent you over at AVS - I'll try to answer it again here publicly and I'm sure other forum members can add and expand on my thoughts.

    At low to mid volumes both the 340's and 170's sound fantastic. You never need to strain to hear any details at all (which is very good for home theatre). In fact, I find it bothersome sometimes. What I mean is, at a certain volume level, the effect blend in precisely with natural noises in the house. Because of the clarity of these speakers, it sometimes spooks me a little, as I find it hard to determine if the noise is coming from my speaker or from inside my house (my son or dog running around somewhere creating havoc).

    When I turn the volume up loud (-15 to -10 on my H/K) I can hear the highs coming through the 340s more distinctly than the 170's. And because I don't have any acoustic treatments in my room (in fact, I have anti acoustic treatments if I can use that phrase) it can sometimes bother me - but only at these ridiculously loud volumes (if you listen to Metallica or Deep Purple at -15 on an H/K 520 AVR on DVD-A you'll know what I mean ) so I like to keep it somehwhere between -25 and -30 on the volume gain. The 170's though, from what I can discern at the high volume level, don't seem as harsh. However, it must be noted the 170's are on the wall to either side of me, about a foot (give or take a couple of inches) above my head, angled slightly down. The 340's across the front are (L/R) toed in slightly and have more sound travelling inte the glass doors of my bookcase on one side, and two rather large pictures the other side of the wall. If your room is dead (acoustically treated) the 340's would do you just fine. If your room is a compromise like mine is, you 'may' find the 170's a bit more forgiving when turned up really loud. I haven't tried the 170's in the position of my main L/R though, so I may get the same effect at loud volumes with the 170's if I did.

  7. #7
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    Kpt Krunch:

    Thanks very much for the detailed and thoughtful analysis! One thought: it sounds to me like you're using the 170's as the surround speakers, with the 340's the fronts (as you said). Since the surrounds don't get as major a signal as the fronts (right?), could this be the reason the 170's don't sound as harsh to you in sound passages, i.e., they are simply not getting as strong a source?

    It really is difficult to decide on this (170 or 340) without hearing them. (But I understand that the way Ascend operates is why we get a superior product at a very reasonable price!) But I am tired of upgrading in 'baby steps' and having to undo half-way measures. Perhaps the wisest course is to get a pair of 170's, and if I decide later that I want more punch, relegate them to surround duty and get 340's.

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