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Timbre matching Reference and Reference Premiere speakers


bobtal

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Hi all, a newbie here, who recently got his first AV receiver and went with Klipsch speakers. Current setup is 3.1, aiming for 5.1 and then probably won't upgrade for 5+ years.

So for fronts I got R-51Ms and R-52C center. Also got a R-100SW sub. I was initially thinking of going with R-41Ms for surrounds or maybe even the same R-51Ms, but, I may have the budget to go with a pair of RP-500Ms now which I'll put as fronts along with the R-52C center and move the R-51Ms to the back. I have heard the RP-500Ms on their own and (to my relatively untrained ear) it's a noticeable difference in clarity compared to the R-51Ms.

Would I have an issue with timbre matching of RP-500Ms with the center R-52C since it's not exactly the same speaker line, but it's still the same brand and same size woofers (5.25"), which is most important as far as I can tell from browsing various articles and forums. The system is used about 50/50 for music/movies and when listening to music I could only use the front pair RP-500Ms and the sub, though I would like to have the option to experience the 5.1 possibilities of the receiver with stereo music and wouldn't want to have timbre mismatch.

TL;DR: Should I stick with the initial plan of getting another R series pair (41 or 51) surrounds in order to get more "timbre matched" sound with the R-52C center or go with the RP series RP-500M to get better quality sound from the fronts and how much would I be losing regarding the timbre match from them not being the same speaker line as the center (and the rest of the speakers).

 

Receiver is entry level Denon AVR-X550BT if it makes any difference.

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I will probably get bashed by someone for this, but I wouldn't worry too much about it.  Unless your primary purpose of your audio system is to sit and listen to music, like Mozart not Metalica, I don't think it is much of a consideration.  If you are using your system for home theater, the explosions, gunfire, dialog, etc. aren't the kinds of sounds where timbre really becomes a consideration.  Just my 2 cents. :)

 

RD

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Just as long as you realize that there may come a time when listening to music, DVD music, streaming music may come into it.

With the  5.1and up systems that you pay good money for there are typically timbre or series matched centers that are usually offered in a package. There are no really good reason to not when possible match. This also comes into play when listening to 5.1recordings made for your system.

As for matching, do the best you can.

And as for bashing, hope not to disappoint but, just a discussion.

Besides, a pure direct mode and I am a 2

Channel guy.

Glad you guys are helping each other out with the HT...

Mostly it is your ears and taste that tend to satisfy the most.

Cheers

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BillyBob,

 

I have a cat named BillyBob, by the way, my wife named him Billy Bob Tailed Thornton, for obvious reasons. 

 

I don't disagree with anything you said, but my point was that as long as he stay with the same manufacturer, which he is obviously doing, that he should worry too much about timbre in a home theater system.  What you say is true, I wouldn't intentionally mismatch my front three speakers, say from different manufacturers, any more than I would use two different speakers in a stereo only setup. I think sometimes people new to a hobby or interest get caught up in the latest buzzwords that get thrown around and give assign those things more importance than they sometimes deserve. He is, as you say, going to have to "do the best he can", because that's all he can do.  So I was just trying ease his concerns about timbre as a result.  

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Think I saw that in a related discussion y'all were having.

Yes, definitely Klipsch. Yes, you may have eased his mind. Will stick with what I said. You owe me no explanation but, glad you have.

You seem to have things together perhaps more than myself,lol...

Please stick around and help these new members out, if you want to.

Members here are not always available at times. Welcome and as for the cat, a simple photo will do. Funny as almost named a Siamese bobtail billybobtail as suggested by another member.

What a hoot and welcome to the forum...

Edit...just saw OPs forum name is bobtal.

Serendipity...

 

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Since the reference line and the ref premiere line have two different tweeters, there is quite a solid argument that you would have a timbre mismatch. Were I you, I'd stick with reference for now, save up the moolah, live life, and see where your priorities lie in 5+ years. Might not be that you even want to upgrade your system or use that money on audio/HT at all...

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Thank you all for your feedback. In the end, I decided to go the safe way and got another pair of R-51Ms for surrounds, because knowing myself, if I got RPs I'll try to listen to the timbre mismatch and I'll notice it (or think I'm noticing it) and start to plan for an upgrade right away (I kinda started checking even new receivers). And that's a month after I just bought my new system I'm supposed to enjoy for a while. Coming from a JBL cinema 350 soundbar, this is already a big improvement with the 3.1 already, and wouldn't want to go down the rabbit hole of chasing the best possible sound (just yet).

 

I've read on a lot of forums how one should avoid reference series because they are low end, but to my ears, this is hi-fi really, so I'm a happy reference owner. And I really think the reference line sounds amazing considering the cost, not to mention the cool looks. Initially, I though of going with some cheaper Yamaha speakers, and a considerably cheaper Yamaha subwoofer but I'm glad I went with Klipsch all the way. And staying with the same line, was probably the safest way to enjoy the system without regrets.

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