Signature Series 5.1 center channel advice prior to ordering

WsW · February 2017

ok... so sorry to start another thread but I have come a ways and now am ready to pull the trigger in the next day or two (or less!)

The bundle I am looking at is the Sig s60 Towers (2), S20 rear, S30 center, PW110 sub (wouldn't buy this woofer, but package is cheaper with it than without...), and a Yamaha RX-A860BL.

Last question(s) (hopefully)!

I have to build a custom mount/shelf for my center channel and space will not be an issue... between the s30 and s35 what would be most beneficial for HT (Blu-rays and Directv- sports/movies/tv) and 3.1 music vocals? (primary emphasis will be on HT bluray and tv)

Bigger but fewer drivers ( (2) 5-1/4") and housing of the s30? Or More smaller drivers ( (6) 3")?

For $84 more I can swap out the s30 for the s35. I like the look of the s35 but want what should produce better sound. SUGGESTIONS and firsthand EXPERIENCE with these two center speakers please!!!

Thanks!

(side note... made it by another BB tonight and this made 5 of the last 6 BB's to have their Polk demo stations out of service while the much more sophisticated Klipsch demo stations were all rocking flawlessly)

dalylaleahthor · February 2017

The consensus for any HT center speaker is the bigger it it the better it should be.

mdaudioguy · February 2017

dalylaleahthor wrote: »

The consensus for any HT center speaker is the bigger it it the better it should be.

Not sure the forum has reached a consensus as to which Signature Series center is "bigger." The design differences are significant. I've yet to read a good review that compares both. I've only had my ears on the S35 (briefly) and was impressed with HT performance.

WsW · February 2017

Crutchfield tech stated the 6-3" drivers of the s35 would push more air for bigger sound than the 2-5 1/4 drivers
s35(6x3)>s30(2x5.25)
18>10.5

while the s30 would be able to produce lower frequencies they stated with the sub and towers it wouldn't matter... i agree for sound track but this is the center channel speaker for voices (I don't want Morgan Freeman sounding like mickey mouse! HA jk but I assume a strong deep male voice will still sound prominent and accurate on the s35?)... logic check?

experience from those of you who have the s35 for HT?

pkrfan · February 2017

From a pure surface area perspective I'm not sure I agree that the s35 would push more air.

If you approximate the speakers as circles surface area = 3.14 x (radius)^2
For the s35: 3.14x(1.5)^2 = 7.065 in^2 x 6 speakers = 42.39 in^2
For the s30: 3.14x(2.625)^2 = 21.637 in^2 x 2 speakers = 43.27 in^2

They have essentially the same combined surface area.

If the s30 have more displacement then they should push more air. I'm certainly no expert in this area so I would rely on first hand experience if able.

DaveHo · February 2017

Personally, though I've heard neither, the two center choices don't excite me. Why they don't have a center using two of the 6.5 drivers is odd. That would be the logical choice for a TOTL center to me.

pkrfan · February 2017

That was my thought when I first heard about this series. I went from a Monitor CS1 to a CS2 for this very reason. I would eventually replace my monitors with something better so I'm interested in this comparison as well.

mrloren · February 2017

I too would have liked to see a 6.5" based center speaker. When I went back to a CSi-5 I could tell the difference right away from my CSi3 and TSX 250c. I might just keep my CSi-5 in the mix with two S55 towers when I do get them.

mdaudioguy · February 2017

Only us forum dweebs want big centers. The S35 is a decent center and handles its business well. Sounded good to me. I'll get a chance with the S30 this coming weekend.

rooftop59 · February 2017

mdaudioguy wrote: »

Only us forum dweebs want big centers. The S35 is a decent center and handles its business well. Sounded good to me. I'll get a chance with the S30 this coming weekend.

Yea, unfortunately here is a place where I think Polk has done their research from a marketing standpoint and realizes that the "soundbar" sized center will be much more popular than a mammoth center. it sounds like this series is a throwback to older polk speakers with an overall warm, inviting sound with nice detail and no major obvious frequency bumps. So it kinda makes me think that a cs400i might not be too shabby with the towers if one really wanted a big a$$ center...

WsW · March 2017

pulled the trigger on the receiver, (2) s60 and the par of s15 ($149!) last night!

good deal, now the waiting game begins and the search for the right center continues... Thinking about ordering the S35 from Crutchfield to give it a go and if I don't like it I can swap it out for s30 or another center that may pair well with the signatures... pretty sure I am going to be happy with the s35's performance though and like the look it will give to the room (thinking grill-less/naked is the way I will rock them)

@DSkip as this will be my first surround system that is not HTIB or soundbar would you be comfortable in asserting if I was impressed in the store (way back weeks ago when I could find a BB with a working display) this is going to be a center that will serve me well? I was really focused on clarity from the front when I started this build because we have such a hard time hearing dialog in certain shows and sports broadcasts. The guy at the high end retailer showed me big centers and stressed that I wanted to make sure the depth was prominent for things like strong male voices (he played the intro to a movie like lord of the rings or something to show that narrator's voice through the beginning...)

I figure if I decide to upgrade a few years down the line the s35 with a small avr would make a good speaker bar type substitute for a second tv in the house (bedroom, kids play station/xbox monitor, whatever)

UNLESS, there is a reason to go with something outside of this series which may or may not be tremble matched that would be hands down superior in relatively the same ball park pricing??? (assuming not but please educate me if so!)

rohan_b79 · March 2017

Just pulled the trigger on two S55 towers yesterday. I too was quite split when deciding on whoch speaker to buy, so Here is my reserach and some realtime audio listening of these at a local Fry's elctronics store.

I was split between these and the Klipsh RP-26F, and a Q acoustics 3050.
The Klipsch are overpriced in my opinion, and most people are right in calling them over bright. I heard the POlk Signature and the Klipsch for a few hours in a local fry's store, and here is my assessment of them. The polks produced a tad bit more bass (maybe becasue of the powerport, I don't know!!) and had excellent high-frequency reproduction over the Klipsch. The POlk's were only half a point behind the Klipsch in terms of tweeter performance. I too like a bit warmer feeling high's like a a lot of audiophiles do, the Polk 's sounded much more rounded and relaxing in their high's, whereas the Klipsch made me jump out of my seat every time I heard that horn tweeter. I didn't know I liked less bright speakers until I compared with Polks, standalone Klipsch sounded great until you heard the POlk signatures which have treble that is more easy on the ears.

Now Q acoustics 3050 is a British brand which has rave reviews, but its impedance is only 6 ohm, and the POlk's are rated at 8 Ohms, which was another plus for polks as they would be easier to drive. The polk had everyhting going for them, they were great sounding , extremely stylish, with magnetic grills, and American for a excellent price.

I would not get a center channel, as you can read by googling a bit that center channels are not that amazing and remove the stereo effect of the dialogues. In movie theatres they have multiple center channel speakers lined up behind the screen with drivers oriented in vertical fashion (all home center channels have horizontally laid out drivers),we cannot emulate that in a home theater setup with a LCD tv atleast, maybe with a projector screen someone could attempt that. For the most part a center is just an expensive feel good speaker that every honest and knowledgeable speaker salesman knows. Trust me I have a center and you would be better served to turn off the center in your AV and this way the dialogues will come through the left and right towers in stereo and from much bigger drivers compared to the s35 (3.25 inch). The S30, drivers are 5.25 inch a little bit smaller than the S55 6.5 inch driver. So there you go just my two cents.

WsW · March 2017

s60 towers came in yesterday... after unboxing i noticed one of the tweeters has a crease in the dome...

hooked them up and they sound amazing but waiting on the response from the seller for replacing the one with damage... both boxes showed pretty significant evidence of bumps and bangs on thier route to my house.

hopefully this resloution is quick.

s35 will be here today... i will hook it up and see if it makes a difference but movie dialog was pretty dang good with the 2.0 hookup i had last night... tonight will get me to 5.0 setup and demo...

still kicking around the decision on a sub between svs pb1000 and pb2000... not sure i need the 2000 and if for some reason i decide to go with a second i dont think i can justify the extra $ for another 2000

rooftop59 · March 2017

If it's just for home theater and your room isn't massive, just get the pb2000 and call it. You'll be happy...

WsW · March 2017

Running wire to surrounds, not even out of the box yet and guess what pings my phone.

Full set for $800 s60/s30/s20

https://www.adorama.com/pkults20c.html?sdtid=9851260&emailprice=t&utm_medium=Affiliate&utm_source=rflaid62905

DaveHo · March 2017

Smoking deal, but I don't need more speakers, I don't need more speakers, I don't nee....

gurot1 · March 2017

I don't want to delve to far into this on this current thread, but room accoustics could be an important part as well. I was not really liking the sound from my csi3, changed it to a csi5. A little improvement but was still dull sounding. Even after changing up to the lsim706c still somewhat dull sounding. Dialogue sounded distant and cool...tried REW and found out a few of the sofa positions and MLP has huge nulls between 75 hz and 110 Hz depending on how far into the room the sofa was from back wall. I know this post doesn't exactly address your question, but I thought it would be important to keep that in mind. BTW, the csi5 is now in the living room and sounds better than it ever did in my HT area! My HT needs more accoustic treatment still...sometime this spring.

mrloren · March 2017

WsW wrote: »

Running wire to surrounds, not even out of the box yet and guess what pings my phone.

Full set for $800 s60/s30/s20

https://www.adorama.com/pkults20c.html?sdtid=9851260&emailprice=t&utm_medium=Affiliate&utm_source=rflaid62905

I almost pulled out the CC for that..... new speakers are a want not a NEED,,,, darn it.

VoodooGTS · March 2017

Not sure between the two but coming from a CS10 to a S35, the S35 sound a lot better imo. A lot more clearer and sharp.

patstock11 · March 2017

Wish I would know about that deal b4 I went to best buy. 2 s55's for $586....Ordered an s30 from Amazon for $199. And I already have surrounds. Woulda been a nice package tho

Signature Series 5.1 center channel advice prior to ordering

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