Front & Centre Speaker / Amp tonal matching with a twist

wilco1uk

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Hi

I've currently got the following:

Denon AVR1910
Kef Q1 fronts, q6c centre and HTS2000 eggs for rears + Kef 1000 series sub.

And I've just bought the following:
Arcam A85 integrated amp + P85 Power amp (warm sounding I believe)
PMC TB2+ speakers (bright sounding I believe, although the + upgrades takes teh edge off).

I specifically bought the A85 to use the processor pass through functiom to plug it into the pre-outs on the Denon, so I could get use the Arcam for music and the ARCAM + Denon for Movies whilst still using a single volume control anmd only having one set of front speakers. ie in processor mode the Arcam A85 becomes a power amp only and I can do away with Kef Q1s, and use the PMCs for everything up front.

Anyway, when I came to connect the Arcam to my Denon I realised that the Denon doesn't have pre outs. Grrr. So after a week of reading up / searching. I've settled on a Pioneer SC2022 AV amp to replace the Denon. My budget is strictly limited to less than £400 so I am severely restricted on AV amps with pre-outs. The Pioneer is a blinding deal at £350 and I don't think I will get close in quality to it for my budget.

But, everywhere I read says that the Pioneer is a bright sounding amp, so :
a, Will the Arcam (acting as a power amps only) warm the sound up a bit or is it going to get really bright with the PMC fronts. ie Is it the pre or power amp that has the most effect on whether the sound is warm or bright.
b, PMC TB2+ centres are rarer (and more expensive) than gold dust, especially in the oak finish to match my fronts. I'd appreciate opinions on whether to keep the Kef q6 (is that warm, bright etc), until I can find (and afford) a PMC centre to match, or are there any other recommendations for a more tonally matching centre with similar sensitivity, considering that the centre won't be running through the Arcam power amps? Will the PMC centre be a tonal match considering its running off the Pioneer and not through the Arcam power amps?
c, While I've got upgradeitus, what recommendations to people have for rears (must be similar size to the eggs as space at the rear is tight).

I'll also be adding a BK XLS sub. My room is only 3m x 4m. Am I correct in such a small room the 400 won't really offer any extra benefit over the 200, and could in fact be detrimental (size and extra boomyness - lots of hard surfaces in my house)?

Thanks in advance.
 
I would not call PMC speakers bright sounding myself. They are a fairly neutral speaker with quite a rich sound.
The TB2s can create a good stereo image and hence you may be better not having a centre at all and letting the TBs create a phantom centre, Since you already have the Kef centre you could try it both with and without the centre and see which configuration you prefer the sound of.
There is no such thing as a sub being too big!!!!!! The 400 should work equally as well as the 200. The 400 should give you a lower frequency response and should give no more or less room issues than the 200. Although it may have more available power you will only in effect being using the same power as you will with the 200 since the system will be calibrated to give a certain level of sound at the viewing location. It is just that the 400 will have more in reserve which means you will not be pushing it as hard so may even improve sound quality as well.
 
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Thanks PSM1. I had just read that the PMCs were bright somewhere else. I've only ever heard them with my Arcam and your description of rich and neutral hits the nail on the head perfectly to me.
Great idea regarding losing the centre speaker, particularly as I've always had difficulties with centre speakers at lower volumes (ie voices always seem to be quieter compared to the sounds from the front mains, even with Audessey setup). Higher volumes its fine, so matrixing the front pair might solve my rooms acoustics.

Re the sub, its been my experience, admittedly more with car sub woofers than domestic, that larger drivers need more volume to stay controlled, ie smaller subs work better at lower volumes. And as I won't need much volume to fill my relativity small room.....
 
Car subs are a lot different to home ones since the space is a lot smaller than even a small room. The 400 will be fine even in your small room.
 

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