[howard1818]

Was thinking of building an OB center channel using M165NQ Woofer
M156NQ Woofer
FS   51.7 Hz
RE   5.49 ohms
Qms   11.07
Qts   .55
Qes   .58
Xmax   5 mm each way
L (1k)   .50 mH
L (10k)   .12 mH
Vas   19.07 Liters
Mms   
13.1 grams

Cms   .723 mm/newt
Bl   6.35 Tesla-M
SPL   88.4 db
Area   137.07 sq cm   
The M-165NQ

The M165NQ is a newly developed driver for open baffle applications. Nothing on the market like these currently exists. These are the only drivers designed specifically to be used as mid-bass drivers in open baffle applications and they can also be used in sealed or ported cabinets.

These new woofers have a push pull motor design that uses a Neodymium magnet on the pole piece and a ceramic magnet on the top plate. They have Copper shorting rings and an Aluminum phase plug. The phase plug, back plate, and top plate are all Copper anodized. The voice coil is a large 44mm. The cones are paper, and play smoothly into the upper ranges with no break up or ringing. And they use our popular non-resonant polymer frames. There is no better frame.

The diameter of the driver frame is 7.25" and mounting depth is 2.9375".

See a .pdf file of the frequency response here.
2 of them and a NEO 3 tweeter, any thoughts on the baffle size? Is there a calculator out there I can use? Thanks

[VinceT]

I have been looking into GR Research myself. Danny Richie makes an open baffle monitor (NX-Otica line) using 2 of those drivers and the Neo 3. I'm sure you could lay one on its side and use it for a center, but maybe see if anyone over there has tried this yet. He designed another open baffle model center channel as well, but to my knowledge not with these drivers.

[howard1818]

that is what I looked at first I was just trying to make one a little more cost effective. The baffle is expensive to produce with the wave guide but it does come with everything you need and I may wind up going that way. It's already been designed and sourced

[VinceT]

The NX-Studio monitors look interesting. I wonder if he would design a center with the open top of the studio monitors with a woofer on each side. You could go sealed box with the woofers to keep the bass out of it.

[howard1818]

or I could do one in the center should be enough for a cc

[richidoo]

With high performance speakers and electronics that are properly setup and optimized, often the stereo imaging is so much better than consumer mid-fi gear that you can get away with no physical center channel speaker.

I thought I needed a center but after watching a few movies I realized we don't need it.
You might try it without a center, see what you think. I'm no HT ekspurt, so take it fwiw...

[howard1818]

I am going back and forth with 2 channel it does image just fine not sure with how music is recorded now how much information comes through the center

[matevana]

I had an open baffle center with two Faital Pro 10FE200 drivers. They had a Qts of .7 and were rated 96dB @ 1w/1m.  The dialog was movie theater quality. They were ultimately sold when I got out of 7.1 audio.

[Digi-G]

With high performance speakers and electronics that are properly setup and optimized, often the stereo imaging is so much better than consumer mid-fi gear that you can get away with no physical center channel speaker.

I thought I needed a center but after watching a few movies I realized we don't need it.
You might try it without a center, see what you think. I'm no HT ekspurt, so take it fwiw...

A lot of 5.1 movie soundtracks have dedicated sounds, like dialog, in the center channel.  It's not just a matter if sitting between your R & L front speakers - usually the dialog isn't in those.  If you're just doing a stereo home theater, then you are correct, you don't need the center channel.