SVS Prime Center Speaker (Premium Black Ash)

Basic ReviewPros:Great build quality. Very heavy cabinet not prone to stray resonates withinStill small enough to fit into most home theater cabinetsExcellent highs with clear voices and reproduction of higher frequency soundsConsThe midrange driver is very, very "bright" meaning it stands out from the crowd and may require turning the level down at the receiverDetailed ReviewUpdate:After 15 or so movies through this speaker it has warmed up dramtically and sounds much better than it did when first out of the box. There are still a few voices or sounds within a certain spectrum that the mid range driver doesn't handle very well but overall this has been a very good addition to our home theater. It was definitely worth the money.I bought this speaker to replace/compare with a JBL ES25C. Buying speakers is a huge gamble as always and in my metro area there is no real option other than Best Buy to trial speaker sounds and their selection is limited. I was very happy with the JBL speaker but after purchasing an SVS subwoofer I was blown away by the performance and quality. I decided to see if their center speaker would be equally as exciting.As professional reviews note, the SVS prime speaker is very "bright" and sometimes a little too much so. We are using this speaker specifically for a surround sound setup and during the first film I had to turn it down as it was way too "in your face" for my taste. After the 4th film I noticed that it had calmed down a bit and I was able to return the speaker level to a neutral setting. I would suspect that this speaker, as with the JBL, will warm up a bit as time goes on. I spent a lot of time sitting in front of it and comparing its sound with the JBL. The SVS is more capable of hitting the clear highs and mid range sounds. I was not aware that I was missing so much of this with the JBL and went back through the Transformers Age of Extinction to see what exactly was missed. This is a very good movie for setting up speakers as it was shot in Atmos and fully utilizes every speaker at every level. I found that there were many sounds that had gone unnoticed with the JBL and were very prominent with the SVS.My family all commented that the SVS was much clearer and voices were more distinct than any other center speaker we've tried. My personal feel is that it is too "bright" right out of the box but seems to be calming down some as time goes on. I will update this review after a few months for anyone that is interested in long term performance. There was very little on the web about the SVS speakers so it truly was a very expensive gamble. We feel that it was worth it so far. Our room is 14' x 20' x 8' and everything is run from a Yamaha Aventage receiver. Is it worth the money? I would say yes but given that it didn't hit a home run right out of the box I gave it 4 stars.By the way a comment about SVS customer service. They are the absolute best! They are very responsive and always full of helpful information no matter what it is that you need. The service I received on the subwoofer was so good that I had no problem giving this Prime center a shot. They were right, they said it would out perform the JBL and it really does. And I was perfectly happy with the JBL.

Balanced clarity and fidelity in a well made and designed enclosure. Rich and full sound!

This speaker is exceptional with woman's vocals. Zero distortion, and solid all-around performance with theater applications. Can't justify a higher price-point when paired with my Elac 6.5 setup.

PRO(s)BeautifulSounds great at both low and high volumes (watts)Well constructedFlawless finishAMAZING companyCON(s) - There really are noneRear port limits placementThe center channel is the most important channel in a surround system and this is a great center channel. I didn't have the $ for the Ultra which is definitely a better speaker but this will not disappoint. I have a very large listening area and this handles it effortlessly.It's also one of the most beautiful centers I've seen. I love to just look at it.I also would like to mention that the company is truly awesome! I've directly purchased from them and had to contact support and I always get right through and everyone is so helpful and friendly. SVS has earned my business many times over.

This center channel was part of my first foray into a home theater setup. While I was impressed with the sound quality, no matter where you sat in front of the TV, there was often this feeling of the sound/voices from the center channel coming from a small "point" under the TV. Basically it didn't sound very "full" like you'd get from your L/R speakers if played in stereo. Duh, it's one channel, of course it doesn't sound the same as stereo, right? Maybe I'm just picky about a system I spent several thousand dollars on.Well, I eventually upgraded to the SVS Ultra Evolution center channel, and the improvement, I'm sorry to report, was noticeable immediately. I say sorry to report because it costs 2x as much as this Prime Center. I guess the larger drivers of the Evolution really make for a more full sound. While voices only improved slightly, other sounds coming through the channel were richer and fuller, almost eliminating what was distracting about this Prime Center.I still think this is a great speaker, and is worthwhile especially on a budget. But as they say when buying this sort of thing, cry once. Just pay for the higher end product if it doesn't break your budget.FWIW, nobody else who listened to my setup could tell the difference between the two, so YMMV.

Helps disperse center channel for wider viewing area

Needed a center channel that fit the aesthetic of our Polk S55s and this worked great. Sound is crisp and clear, fills in the mids and highs nicely without having a significantly different timbre from the Polks. Visually blends in with the Polk pattern. Hard to beat SVS for the money you pay.

I often buy SVS speakers. But This center, being a true 3 way speaker, sound to me so much fuller than a standard 2 way. I only buy 3 way speakers because I feel, at least I can, hear the difference and a 2 way is missing the midrange 98% of the time. I recommend this speaker!!