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big screen - two channel system enough for dialog?

If I have a large screen (100"+), will I need a dedicated center channel to hear dialog well??

My priority is music, and movies are mostly drama and comedies where dialog is critical. Surround effects are NOT a priority. Many folks here believe you can get much better value from 2 channel systems, but I am getting older and dialog intelligibility is key.

I am concerned about blu-rays needing to downmix from 5 to 2 channels and with such a big screen and separation of my mains, will two channels just make the dialog more diffuse??
tswei99

Showing 4 responses by tswei99

tswei99 OP
17 posts
 
mitch, could I ask why you installed the surround system if stereo was OK for dialog?
tswei99 OP
17 posts
 
thanks for all the responses so far. i pose the question now because I am building this room from the ground up and am trying to figure out how much wire/conduit to lay, the general layout, and of course budget. from what i have read, there are lots of people who think 2 channel is not only better value, but superior in many ways.

i just worry about the separation of my mains when it comes to dialog as I will be using a pretty large screen and I don't want it to be high up. So that leaves mains spread apart which means they'll have to be well out into the room.

one solution i was thinking of was to use Klipschorns (i am one of those high efficiency plus low power tube kinda guys) in the corners. this would allow my big screen in the middle, at almost any height, maybe with a couple of subs underneath, and the horns off into the corner. This would leave the floor clear, a big bonus since I have small kids.

Zd542, I totally take your comment about centers being too small in many cases. the HT systems I have heard often have this problem, and I think quality two channel might even be better in this case as imaging might be better.

I know I can go with the trial and error method, just want to avoid tearing up walls, repainting, etc if I can.
tswei99 OP
17 posts
 
Rlwainwright,

did you mean Mitch4t's 22 ft wide, 70 ft long and 22 feet high room?

What makes this a standing wave problem, the relative proportions or absolute size??

My room is about 17' x 30' x 10'. It's also irregular (about 15' along the long wall the wall jogs in maybe 4' and widens). Will this be a problem??

I have yet to sheetrock it so I can make tweaks if necessary.
tswei99 OP
17 posts
 
Rlwainwright,

did you mean Mitch4t's 22 ft wide, 70 ft long and 22 feet high room?

What makes this a standing wave problem, the relative proportions or absolute size??

My room is about 17' x 30' x 10'. It's also irregular (about 15' along the long wall the wall jogs out maybe 4' and widens to about 21'). Will this be a problem??

I have yet to sheetrock it so I can make tweaks if necessary.
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