HT center for The Finalists

[Nordskov]

I am about to build The Finalists as mains for my upcoming HT and are looking for a center speaker.
But finances are low so I havent got the cash for neither the original Statements nor the Statements II centers.

Im looking at something cheaper that will work with the Finalists.
I have my eyes on Paul Carmodys Swope HT center https://sites.google.com/site/undefinition/swope-ht
And John Krutkes Bargain Aluminium MTM http://www.zaphaudio.com/BAMTM.html
I know some of you will say this is blasfemi - but will one of these blend ok?
Im building the Finalists for music listening. Im not so anal about HT surround.

If you have any other suggestions in the same price range, you are welcome to chime in


Best regards,

Nordskov

[scardeal]

You do know that there is a Finalist/Anthology center right?

[BobEllis]

Even more blasphemous in some minds, go phantom center until you can afford the proper matching center.

[Nordskov]

You do know that there is a Finalist/Anthology center right?

Eh, maybe. There are so many varieties of centers for Jim and Curts designs. Statements, Statements II, Mini Statements, Anthology and now Finalists. Different drivers and cross-overs but more or less identical. Some on Curts website and some on this forum. I cant find my way around.
But I know I cant afford 2x RS225, 2x NE149 and some tweeter. Its almost the cost of a pair of mains. Even the RS180, TB-W1337 and NeoCD3.0 is too expensive.
Cant do that, sorry.

Thats why I ask for a cheaper alternative, that will not blend seamlessly, I know, but will sound ok.
Something in the neighbourhood of £150.

Cheers

[mischmat]

Might I suggest these? They're of the Dayton family so sound should be similar.

http://www.divine-audio.com/abouriou/

[Nordskov]

Hi mischmat.

Thanks for your suggestion. The Abouriou might do the trick.
With a pricetag around £150 its right in the sweet spot. Excellent

[fbov]

Here's the basic CC spiel. Spend the money on a good one now, or you will later. It took me 4 tries to learn that.

Abouriou is a nice MTM, but it's not in the same class as the Finalist CC, as horizontal CC's go.
- sensitivity, SPL capability and power handling superiority is large enough to matter
- sound field uniformity is much better than the MTM's >30* listening window.

Here's an article comparing frequency response among several MTM and 3-way commerical designs.

http://www.audioholics.com/loudspeaker-design/vertical-vs-horizontal-speaker-designs

And the bottom of this has similar data from Curt's design page.

http://www.eldamar.net/audio/RS150MTM/

Abouriou's off-axis response is much better than the two MTMs, due to a lower (1.8kHz) XO frequency than those tested (4kHz). But it's M-M spacing is similar to the $600 speaker, so the off-axis issues up to ~1.5kHz will still be present. Note that the review says the $600 speaker "has a wonderfully musical sound quality." This effect is subtle, affecting power response more than on-axis response. Those sitting on-axis might not explicitly notice the change in the room's reverberant sound field.

When I finally got my CC right, even my wife noticed, and that's no small thing. Dialog became more understandable. Subtle effects show up in subtle ways.

HAve fun,
Frank

[Nordskov]

Frank, I get your point. And I know Abouriou isnt in the same league as the others, but at half or even a third of the price, its worth considering.

As I said earlier, I cant afford another £350+ on a center speaker. My primary goal is first class stereo, HT is for fun.
I read your links and agree that a dedicated mid driver will offer better horisontal dispersion and better mid range coherency. And Im sure Curt and Jims designs are worth the money.
But Id rather spend money on rear speakers and AV-receiver than on a better center.
Its all about trade-offs and priorities.

I found another MTM design by Jeff Bagby:

http://techtalk.parts-express.com/forum/tech-talk-forum/42977-my-rs180-mtm-design?223870-My-RS180-MTM-Design=

It utilizes 2 RS180 instead of Abourious 2 RS150.
But I assume the horisontal dispersion will be better on the Abouriou because of the smaller diameter of the woofers and therefore higher beaming frequency.

Cheers,