LSi Center Channel Question / Recommendation

szhleppy

My current setup is 5.1:

LSi9 Fronts
LSi9 Center
LC65i Surround
Hsu Sub

Just got a new Sony 60", and the BDI Console that will be it's new home is on the way.

The problem?

1. The LSi9 won't fit in the drawer space given for the central unless I remove the side panels...no, I'm not going down that road.

2. The LSiC would work, but I've read up on here that once you drop it in a home theatre cabinet the sound quality really diminshes.

Now I'm considering the LC265i for a center. The walls are finished, so the performance enclosure really isn't an option. I can do some custom work to enclose the area as much as possible, but it still wouldn't be the optimum install.

Here's where I need your opinion:

LSiC in the shelf/drawer of the BDI cabinet (stock picture attached)

OR

LC265i in wall speaker

Thanks all!

sickicw

can you goto circuit city and buy one of thoes metal center channel stands that fit on top of your tv? give that a try. Also you get some stands for you lsi9 and put them next the the console.

szhleppy

sickicw wrote:

can you goto circuit city and buy one of thoes metal center channel stands that fit on top of your tv? give that a try. Also you get some stands for you lsi9 and put them next the the console.

Thanks for the ideas...I've tossed both around and shot them down. Guess I'm going for more of a clean look.

MSALLA

Can you mount a self off the wall above the TV? You could make that look pretty clean with a little thought.
What if you made a dumby panel inserted in the center speaker opening of the bdi console and mounted the lc265i in the panel. You could have the incloser behind the panel and veneer the panel to match the console. It would look like it was made that way.

szhleppy

MSALLA wrote:

What if you made a dumby panel inserted in the center speaker opening of the bdi console and mounted the lc265i in the panel. You could have the incloser behind the panel and veneer the panel to match the console. It would look like it was made that way.

hmmm...interesting idea. This is why I come to the pros for recommendations.

The problem with the BDI is that the top drawer/shelf opening is only 8 1/2". The LSi9 on it's side is 9", the LC265i is exactly 8 1/2"...then consider any type of enclosure and there is no room to tilt it toward the listening level. However, I do like the direction you are thinking with modifying the BDI cabinet itself. I'll definitely keep this in mind as I take a closer look when it arrives.

With this in mind, do you think that the LC265i in an enclosure inside the BDI cabinet would be a significant enough improvement over the LSiC to justify the additional work (I don't really like to work any more than I have to)?

Thanks!

EDIT: Removed "keep in mind". I saw somebody use this phrase in the WTB section and thought they sounded like a complete jackass. I'm trying to avoid sounding like a complete jackass this week.

MSALLA

szhleppy wrote:

With this in mind, do you think that the LC265i in an enclosure inside the BDI cabinet would be a significant enough improvement over the LSiC to justify the additional work (keep in mind...I don't really like to work any more than I have to)?

Thanks!

I'm far from a pro but from what I read on here, the Lsic sound is affected when you put it in a cabinet of any kind. I have never used in walls before but I can't see the difference between a wall and a panel in the console would make if you used the encloser. Don't take my word for it. I'm sure someone on here wil know better then me. It seems that between all the members on here, if you can think of something to do, someone has already tried it and will know if it will work or not.

DarqueKnight

The LSi9 is 7 inches wide with the side panels removed. This is something you might consider. There are some threads here where members describe removing the side panels of their LSi speakers. It is possible to do it without damaging the speaker's gloss finish.

In my prior HT system, I was using dual LSiC's placed on a shelf above a 57" rear projection TV. I wanted to go to a flat panel plasma mounted on a low profile cabinet. The Salamander Synergy Quad 30 cabinet was just the right size for my needs. However, the width of the LSiC's (20 inches) caused them to bump against the cabinet door hinges, which prevented them from sitting flush with the front of the cabinet. They were sitting back 3 inches from the cabinet front. This caused a hollow, echo-like effect similar to cupping your hands around your mouth.

I could have sat the LSiC's on a shelf above the plasma tv or on top of the Salamander cabinet just in front of the tv, but I would not have liked the looks of either of those options.

The attached pics are of my current HT configuration:

Dual LSi9 center channel speakers.
SDS SRS front speakers.
LSi15 surround speakers.
SVS PB12 Ultra2 subwoofer.
Hitachi 52HDT55 55" plasma HDTV.

DarqueKnight

szhleppy wrote:

With this in mind, do you think that the LC265i in an enclosure inside the BDI cabinet would be a significant enough improvement over the LSiC to justify the additional work (I don't really like to work any more than I have to)?

Using an inwall speaker in an enclosure would be going against the design principles of the speaker. Likewise, taking a box speaker designed for "open air" operation and placing it in a cabinet will usually cause problems.

The LSiC generally sounds terrible in any type of enclosure because it is a relatively small speaker and when you place it into an enclosure that is just a little larger than the speaker (enclosed cabinet space, cabinet drawer, etc.), the enclosure essentially forms a very small "room" around the LSiC. The LSiC's drivers and rear ports are first firing into this small "room", and when the sound gets to you it is colored by all the reflections from the enclosure around the speaker.

I was able to achieve good sound using the LSi9's in a cabinet because:

1. The width of the LSi9's lying on their sides (15") was shorter than the width of the cabinet shelf (19"). Therefore, I could bring the face of the LSi9's flush with the front of the cabinet.

2. The depth of the LSi9's lying on their sides (15-1/4") was just a little bit shorter than the depth of the cabinet shelf (17-1/2"). Plus, the rear of the cabinet is open. This minimized reflections from the rear port firing into an inclosed space immediately behind the speaker. Conversely, the LSiC was sitting 3" from the front of the cabinet and its 7-1/2" depth meant that the rear ports were firing into the remaining 10 inches of the cabinet enclosure. This made for "boomy" sound.

PolkWannabie

Is that a double wide shelf in the center top ? or does it have a post that would preclude centering a a speaker there ?

If it is double wide how much clearance is there top to bottom in that shelf ?

szhleppy

DarqueKnight wrote:

In my prior HT system, I was using dual LSiC's placed on a shelf above a 57" rear projection TV. I wanted to go to a flat panel plasma mounted on a low profile cabinet. The Salamander Synergy Quad 30 cabinet was just the right size for my needs. However, the width of the LSiC's (20 inches) caused them to bump against the cabinet door hinges, which prevented them from sitting flush with the front of the cabinet. They were sitting back 3 inches from the cabinet front. This caused a hollow, echo-like effect similar to cupping your hands around your mouth.

I could have sat the LSiC's on a shelf above the plasma tv or on top of the Salamander cabinet just in front of the tv, but I would not have liked the looks of either of those options.

The attached pics are of my current HT front stage.

Nice clean look Raj! That's exactly what I'm going for here. I've also been using dual LSi9's as my center up until now.

I may have solved my problem last night. JSP makes a cabinet I like (pic below), but the local Showcase (Tweeter) wouldn't sell it without the hutch. I found another local dealer though who will sell just the bottom credenza. This particular cabinet doesn't come with a "speaker insert" for the middle section, but I will just take out the glass and cover it with something that looks decent.

With this one, I can easily fit the 2 - LSi9's side by side in the middle section...now I just need to make sure my components will fit in the 2 remaining sections.

Thanks for the recommendations everyone! I'm sure this thread will be helpful for others...it seems like quite a few of us have been upgrading the old tele lately and will probably have similar issues.

BTW...I did pick up an LC265i last night before I found the dealer with the JSP cabinet. I got it from a local HT installer at a great price, so rather than return it to him I will probably end up putting it on the FM. I really need to cut down the impulse purchases.

DarqueKnight

When using a low profile cabinet, make sure you have enough clearance above the center channel to raise it the required angle for your seating position.

DarqueKnight

PolkWannabie wrote:

Is that a double wide shelf in the center top ? or does it have a post that would preclude centering a a speaker there ?

Each of my LSi9's is on an individual shelf that is 19" wide. There is no post or divider between the shelves on the inside of the cabinet. There are metal support columns at the front and at the rear. I can see that the black metal column is somewhat difficult to see between the two LSi9's, especially with the black felt I have stuffed in the space between the speakers and the columns.

In the Salamander Quad 30, if you put a single center channel across the two center shelves, the center support column would be directly in front of the tweeter, therefore, you would have to shift the speaker over to avoid the column. You would probably get some diffraction effects from the column being close to the side of the tweeter.

PolkWannabie wrote:

If it is double wide how much clearance is there top to bottom in that shelf ?

The Quad 30 has eight 19" wide x 17-1/2" deep shelves. The shelves sit on metal brackets. The metal brackets slide into grooves cut into the sides of the columns and are locked in place by turning a bolt. The shelf height is infinitely adjustable along the entire height of the metal columns. In my Quad 30, there is 10" of clearance between the cabinet bottom and the shelf above it. There is 7" of clearance between the middle shelf and the top shelf. There is 9-1/4" of clearance between the top shelf and the cabinet top.

Sherardp

Darqueknight you have an awesome setup. The equipment in that rack made my eyes water, Shhhhhwwweeeettt.

Emlyn

Another option with the Salamander line is to get a low profile triple or double cabinet (Triple 10 or 20) and put a riser shelf on top of it using either 8", 10", or 12" poles. The Triple 10 and riser provides a better viewing height with LCOS or DLP RPTV, the Triple 20 and riser might be better with a smaller Plasma or LCD. I'm using just a 10" riser shelf and a single front ported center channel speaker now that's about 8.5" high, leaving about 1/2" clearance to tilt upwards at the front with a couple of Audiopoints. This format allows the speaker to be completely unobstructed by poles or a door, and leaves room if I wanted to use two speakers or a larger one at a later date. Sitting on the thick, solid shelf seems to make the speaker work much better than it did sitting on top of my previous RPTV. It would also work well with the Polk Surroundbar. Sample photo below (not my system).

pblanc

I am also using two LSi9s as centers as opposed to one LSiC. The speakers are in the open on top of a big screen Mitsubishi TV. To my ears the LSi9s sound better. Maybe that is the obvious result of having 6 drivers instead of three. (I agree, DarqueKnight's set up looks like some serious s**t).

cfrizz

Awesome setup DK!

szhleppy

How about this for indecisive? After taking a closer look at the JSP cabinet I decided on (pic above) and trying to determine how I was going to wedge my components into it, the BDI (pic above in first post) looked appealing again.

So...I tore the sides off of 1 pair of LSi9's and now I'm just waiting for the BDI to show up. I wasn't interested at all in this option until Raj so eloquently stated this as the obvious choice. The sides come off very easily and shouldn't be any problem for the next owner to tape back on!

I'll post pictures in a couple of weeks after the BDI arrives and I've had a chance to get everything situated. Thanks again!

DarqueKnight

Why do you refer to me as "Raj"?

Ray

szhleppy

DarqueKnight wrote:

Why do you refer to me as "Raj"?

Ray

I must have picked it up misspelled somewhere else in the forum and it stuck. My apologies...no offense intended.

DarqueKnight

None taken.

DPT

I had a similar situation a little while back. I have a 50 inch plasma that I mounted above my fireplace. Because of the height of the mantle I was not willing to mount the tv higher to accomodate a speaker below the tv. I was looking for a tiliting center speaker mount for a possible LSic but that didn't work out either. I finally bought the Lc265i and built a speaker cabinet out of MDF, color matched it to the wall paint and mounted it to the wall with in wall speaker wire. It looks very nice and sounds great. The 265i has an aimable tweeter that points directly to my listening area. Overall I am quite pleased and every body is quite impressed at how it looks and sounds. Just my two cents.
By the way, have home depot cut it to size for you to save yourself some time. The speaker box is only four inches deep and looks very nice against the wall.