Re: 2Pi's completed - now I want a center channel [message #74392 is a reply to message #74391] |
Wed, 07 November 2012 14:33   |
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Wayne Parham
Messages: 18910 Registered: January 2001
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Illuminati (33rd Degree) |
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Those are great looking speakers, congratulations!
You can use a one Pi as a center where you have one π, two π or two π towers as left/right mains. There is enough spectral match between the three. However, do not lay it on its side or use any sort of horizontal array (drivers side-by-side).
Flanking subs are driven with a low-passed signal of the main speaker they're flanking. Second-order seems best, with crossover around 100Hz. Third-order or fourth-order can be used with a slightly higher crossover, e.g. ~125Hz third-order to ~150Hz fourth-order. But I find the latter approaches are more "localizable", which is not what we want. A flanking sub run second-order blends seamlessly.
Phanton centers work well when the mains generate constant directivity and are setup with the crossed-axes method. They can't be too far apart either; It works best when the physical separation between left and right mains is less than about 15 feet. Part of the cross-axes method is that the listeners must be just behind the point where the axes cross, so if all these conditions are met, phantom centers work very well, providing a believable image. Centers are always preferred, but if the setup is right, a phantom center gives a very satisfying illusion and doesn't lack much.
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