HT center channel project - two 2118s and one 034

[robertbartsch]

I've got a few drivers lying around that are screaming "use me"

Since the center channel of one of my HT systems now lacks a center speaker, I was thinking of building a box with two JBL 8" 2118s and a single JBL 034 tweeter.

My observation from a few other systems I have built/known is that the center channel audio material is mostly voices and, therefor, the center speaker does not need to go very low.

The "other" JBL components in this system include (2) 15" woofers, 1" compression drivers and slot tweeters, (2) studio monitors - 4312, (1) 18" woofer.

Are these JBL components suitable for a center channel speaker?

What frequency would be a good crossover point?

[rdgrimes]

Actually, the center channel is the most over-worked channel these days. Most movies nowadays are mixed with 75% of all dialog in the center exclusively. I'd go so far as to say that a 3-way is mandatory for cone-based drivers, since dialog tends to fall smack dab into the midrange slot. And a solid 80Hz woofer really ads depth to voices. The 034 is easy to mount but doesn't handle a lot of power. There are good examples of 2-way 8" units, such as the L46 and 4408. But keep the crossover for the 034 at 3500 or higher, which is where a good mid-range would come in.