Looking for Tonally MAtching Front Speakers with my existing Onkyo -/JBL Based Setup

Hi All,

I am Prasanna KV. I am casual reader of this forum.

I have recently bought the following in my US trip.

1. Onky0 SR TX 505
2. JBL Control 1 Extreme Speakers (Fronts)
3. JBL Venue Series "Voice" Centre Channel
4. VElodyne Sub VX-10
With Monster Component Connects / Connectors.

I am intending to Add Bookshelf speakers and move JBls to the rear to complete my 5.1 Setup.

My budget is 15K (MAx 20K). I am intending to audition / shortlisted the following

1. Polk Audio - Rti4
2. Floor Stander Moduant Short 906i
3. Sonodyne / Norge


What are the other options I have and I am justing wondering how to check tonality with Voice Channel & Rears ?? Do i have to carry them around for auditioning?

regards,

PRasanna KV

Dear Mr.Prasanna

Its always better to have all the speakers from the same company , this way you get better tonal quality .

regards

Dear Mr.Prasanna,

I agree to what tharun recommended; having speakers from the same manufacturer, respectively from the same series is the only real option.

If this is difficult to realize, speakers with a neutral / linear frequency spectrum in combination with an EQ (I do not know whether the Onkyo is capable of adjusting frequency bands for each single channel and to what extent, if so an EQ is not required) could be an option.

Relatively neutral speakers I know are i.e. from Dynaudio, Canton, Geithain (ok, they are more concentrating on studio monitors) or the new Klipsch series (please do not try older Klipschis with the JBLs, it wont work).

A second possibility (you already considered with the pre-choice you've mentioned) looking for speakers having a similar sound like your present JBLs... but this might be very difficult.

"...Do i have to carry them around for auditioning?"

IMHO a good dealer would let you (as a potential buyer) have for some days speakers for testing at home.

Mr. Prasanna,
If you don't mind me asking, why are you sticking to the Venue centre channel? Is that a budgetary constraint? By my recollection, that speaker was an entry-level JBL (selling at $70 at some point on Amazon). The reason I ask is if you can sell/replace the centre speaker, you can get a tonally matched set of left+right front channels and new centre channel, all from the same manufacturer. Your sub and AVR are excellent components, and the JBL Control 1s will do a good job at the rear. This way, you are not bound by trying to tonally match new speakers to the JBL (which is very difficult to do for any differing speaker brands or series, as readers here have pointed out).
I also beg to differ on the issue of matching rear speakers with the rest of the setup. In my experience, unless you listen to a lot of multichannel music (SACD or DVD-A that has been originally engineering in a 5.1 track on the disc), rear speaker tonality is less important for movies and stereo music. (I know I'm going to get bricks thrown at me at this point from some members ). The rears for basic 5.1 add to the ambience and surround panning effects of movies and do not need to have the same 'voice characteristics' as the front and centre, which do most of the sound delivery. So I'm just giving you another path to think of taking, if you can replace the Venue centre speaker.
Affordable and great brands for the front+centre are the Wharfedale 9 series, KEF iQs, Missions among others. Other members on this forum will have many more and detailed suggestions, I'm sure.

-Jinx.

Hi Tarun, nuroxx, Jinx,

Thanks for the response.

ACtually your suggestion to replace Center is something which i am considering as well.

I have not considered KEF / Mission, LEt me check them as well.

Regards,

Prasanna KV