One of the known disadvantages of a television compared to an acoustically transparent screen is that the center channel speaker must be mounted above or below the TV, causing the center channel image to shift below the left and right speakers. This image shift could be eliminated by using a phantom center image, however, this badly harms listeners outside the sweet spot. I assume the system will perform better by optimizing the performance of a center channel below the TV, rather than removing it entirely.
I have a few questions about how to optimize the performance of the center channel speaker, given the constraint that it be placed below a television, rather than behind an acoustically transparent screen.
1) I intend to use 3 matching bookshelf speakers as the left, center, and right channel speakers. The speakers will then be timbre matched and avoid the design issues inherent in horizontal center channels. Are there any issues I should consider when using a bookshelf speaker as a center channel speaker below a TV?
2) I intend to angle the center channel speaker up towards the listening position. What is the best solution for angling a center channel bookshelf speaker up towards the listening position? Are there any mounts that will fit below the television and allow for stable articulation/angling up towards the listening position?
3) What impact (if any) does wide vs narrow dispersion characteristics of a bookshelf speaker have on the localization of the center channel below the television? Is it possible that a wide dispersion speaker, angled up, will be perceived as 'more centered' in the screen than a narrow dispersion speaker? Would this effect be more pronounced in a horizontal center channel speaker, considering the inherently wide vertical dispersion characteristics.
Are there any other center channel optimizations I should consider when placing the center channel below the television?
I have a few questions about how to optimize the performance of the center channel speaker, given the constraint that it be placed below a television, rather than behind an acoustically transparent screen.
1) I intend to use 3 matching bookshelf speakers as the left, center, and right channel speakers. The speakers will then be timbre matched and avoid the design issues inherent in horizontal center channels. Are there any issues I should consider when using a bookshelf speaker as a center channel speaker below a TV?
2) I intend to angle the center channel speaker up towards the listening position. What is the best solution for angling a center channel bookshelf speaker up towards the listening position? Are there any mounts that will fit below the television and allow for stable articulation/angling up towards the listening position?
3) What impact (if any) does wide vs narrow dispersion characteristics of a bookshelf speaker have on the localization of the center channel below the television? Is it possible that a wide dispersion speaker, angled up, will be perceived as 'more centered' in the screen than a narrow dispersion speaker? Would this effect be more pronounced in a horizontal center channel speaker, considering the inherently wide vertical dispersion characteristics.
Are there any other center channel optimizations I should consider when placing the center channel below the television?