Center or Phantom Center?????


Why do we perfect our two channel setups.....and then add a center channel??? I know...it's for the 7.1 movie setup.....and it anchors the dialog....and all that jazz. But shouldn't a good stereo setup up front do the job? I'm gonna a/b test my phantom center mode with the center active mode and report back here.
hbrandt
I agree with Ultrakaz.
I made the test myself last weekend and phantom center sounded better, although it may be that my mains are far better and different brand than my center.

Will keep testing.

Brgds.
Hbrandt- Yes; and don't bother. Ditched my center channel speaker a couple of years ago. My front left right speakers image very well and even off-axis listeners have the dialog anchored to the screen. I think the eye-brain relationship comes into this also. Spend the money on more DVDs.
For movies in 5.1 DTS or Dolby Digital, I prefer using the center channel. Everything in Mono, Stereo, and Pro Logic, I use the Phantom center. I usually switch off the surrounds as well, in these modes.
Sonny
Dosen't mixing the center channel info into the L&R channels cause phase cancelation?
Boldstrummer...No. This is the same mixing that recording engineers do when that make stereo recordings from multitack original recordings.