[pugs]

I need a pair of wall mountable surrounds that are very shallow.  My mains and center will be Salk HT3's and HTC respectively.  I was thinking about trying the Magnepan MMG W for surrounds.  I don't need a perfect match, but I don't want the tonal differences to be distracting.  Does anybody have an educated guess how the Magnepans will integrate with the salks?

I guess I should just try them and find out, but I was hoping that somebody can give me an idea how they'll work together.

Any other suggestions that would work?  I don't want to spend too much on surrounds.  My limit is somewhere around $600.

[pugs]

I was just looking at the Magnepan website and noticed the MC1 surrounds.  Has anyone compared them to the MMG W's?  Are they more than twice the price better?

[Marbles]

Another choice might be in wall speakers.

Rick Craig of Selah made me Carnilian in-walls that match up to my Salks very well.

You can see pics of them in my gallery.

[pugs]

Another choice might be in wall speakers.

Rick Craig of Selah made me Carnilian in-walls that match up to my Salks very well.

You can see pics of them in my gallery.

That might be too expensive for my budget.  Were they hard to install?

[brj]

There are the Odyssey "picture" speakers that hang on the wall.  I've wondered how well they might match up with Salks....

[Marbles]

Another choice might be in wall speakers.

Rick Craig of Selah made me Carnilian in-walls that match up to my Salks very well.

You can see pics of them in my gallery.

That might be too expensive for my budget.  Were they hard to install?

They were pretty darn reasonable and very easy to install.

Email Rick for details  

[pugs]

There are the Odyssey "picture" speakers that hang on the wall.  I've wondered how well they might match up with Salks....

That's a good idea.  I think they might be more than I want to spend though.  Do you know the price of the cheapest model by chance?

I would also be concerned with voicing compared to the Salks.  I had the Lorelei's for a little while and they were warm sounding.  I haven't heard the Salks yet, but they shouldn't be as warm and should have more clarity.  That's what I'm hoping for anyway.

[Marbles]

There are the Odyssey "picture" speakers that hang on the wall.  I've wondered how well they might match up with Salks....

That's a good idea.  I think they might be more than I want to spend though.  Do you know the price of the cheapest model by chance?

I would also be concerned with voicing compared to the Salks.  I had the Lorelei's for a little while and they were warm sounding.  I haven't heard the Salks yet, but they shouldn't be as warm and should have more clarity.  That's what I'm hoping for anyway.

They are pretty spendy....at least one of the Pictures is around $900 pair, and that might be the smaller ones.

They use Scan Speak drivers which are warmer than the SEAS/Arum Cantus/TC Sounds in the Salks.

[zybar]

There are the Odyssey "picture" speakers that hang on the wall.  I've wondered how well they might match up with Salks....

That's a good idea.  I think they might be more than I want to spend though.  Do you know the price of the cheapest model by chance?

I would also be concerned with voicing compared to the Salks.  I had the Lorelei's for a little while and they were warm sounding.  I haven't heard the Salks yet, but they shouldn't be as warm and should have more clarity.  That's what I'm hoping for anyway.

I think around $1K for the pic speakers.

I know many disagree, but I don't think it is the biggest crime in the world to not match front to back unless you are a super dedicated multi-channel listener.

I use Swan Diva surrounds and with my HT3's and NEVER have I been watching a movie and thought to myself, that plane or motorcycle sounds different at it pans to the rear...  

My thoughts are to put the money more into front amps/speakers, video source, and processing, not rear channels - which sounds like the direction you are going in.

George

[brj]

That's a good idea. I think they might be more than I want to spend though. Do you know the price of the cheapest model by chance?

Unfortunately, not off the top of my head.  I really haven't seen much information on them since they were announced, although I've occasionally checked the Odyssey website in hopes of an update.

I have to admit that I've never really been convinced that the rear channels need to exactly match the front/center channels in a HT setup.  Matching the center to the fronts I can understand, but how much non-ambient material really comes out of the rear channels?  Even in multi-channel audio, I've really never heard much real program material that was intended to emanate from the rear - just applause and hall effects.  Of course, it may be that I simply haven't heard the right material in the right system.

Then again, I suppose imaging in the rear may be important if you really want to localize those near-miss bullets!

[pugs]

I used to have surrounds that didn't match well with my mains and it really bugged me.  I then bought the matching surrounds and it was much better.  I then bought another set of matching surrounds and set both pairs up in a bipole like configuration and it was much much better.  I've never had a set of dipoles as surrounds, but I think that's the direction I want to head.  

Rick already gave me a price quote on the in wall carnelians.  Marbles, you were right, very reasonable, but still out of my price range.

[Rick Craig]

I used to have surrounds that didn't match well with my mains and it really bugged me.  I then bought the matching surrounds and it was much better.  I then bought another set of matching surrounds and set both pairs up in a bipole like configuration and it was much much better.  I've never had a set of dipoles as surrounds, but I think that's the direction I want to head.  

Rick already gave me a price quote on the in wall carnelians.  Marbles, you were right, very reasonable, but still out of my price range.

I also can make a small sealed version of the HT1 for you at a lower cost. With the Seas W18 and Fountek ribbon the cost would be $895/pair. This is a 15" x 9" x 11" cabinet in maple or cherry. These would be an excellent match for the HT3.

[Rick Craig]

I also can make a small sealed version of the HT1 for you at a lower cost. With the Seas W18 and Fountek ribbon the cost would be $895/pair. This is a 15" x 9" x 11" cabinet in maple or cherry. These would be an excellent match for the HT3.

 I forgot about the shallow cabinet    An in-wall version would be $695/pair.

[brj]

Pugs, if you are willing to consider in-wall speakers, it is probably worth talking to Jim directly.  He already offers in-wall versions of his HTS speakers, although I can only find prices for the cabinet and kit bases versions.  I don't know how closely that series of speakers would match with the HT3s, but I'm sure Jim can recommend something appropriate.

[Russtafarian]

I am using the MMG-Ws for rear channel and they blend beautifully with my Gallo Nucleus Ref main speakers.  Since my couch is against the wall, I have them mounted horizontally from the ceiling in line with the couch and tilted back slightly so they are firing right at the listening position from each side.

I listen to a lot of SACD and DVD-A Multi-channel and these things throw incredibly solid side images between front and rear speakers.  And I hear very little timbre shift between front and rear.  They are bass-shy so I have to use an ICBM to get the bass right.

At the MMG-W's price they are a bargain!  I'm very pleased with them and am not even remotely tempted to replace them with Gallo's new and pricey reference surround speakers.  Highly recommended!

[pugs]

I think I'm going to give the MMG W's a try.  I don't want to try in walls right now.  I just don't like the idea of not being able to move them once installed.