OTHER TECH

Much of the sound contained in an average movie soundtrack is limited to the center channel, so it should come as no surprise that center-speaker performance is often the first thing we comment on in this section. As in the Music section's main L/R speaker evaluation, we listen closely to the center's tonal balance - but in this case, when the speaker is reproducing dialogue. Another key thing is off-axis performance, which is the speaker's ability to sound clear and natural from all sitting positions on the couch.

We next focus on the system's ability to deliver a sense of sonic continuity between the front and surround speakers. Many contemporary big-budget movie soundtracks provide dynamic front-to-rear and circular sound-effect pans. (The helicopter flyby in a police-pursuit scene is a classic example.) A good speaker system will convey these effects smoothly and seamlessly, with no significant sonic gaps between the front and rear speakers.

Equally important is the surround speakers' ability to convey ambient effects. These are subtle elements that get embedded in the surround channels to provide a sense of spaciousness - stuff like wind, rain, bird chirps, and cars honking half a mile away. A high-performance surround speaker will provide a natural sense of ambience without calling attention to its location in the room.

While accurate reproduction of dialogue and ambience is key to getting good surround sound performance from a speaker system, many people also want to listen to movies loud - especially movies where motorcycles careen through space and smash into the side of passing tractor-trailers. That's why we generally wrap up this section with detailed comments on the system's dynamic capabilities, or its capacity to play loud and low without distortion. How well it handles things here depends largely on the subwoofer. Bass coming from the sub should retain a full and smooth character as the system's sound level increases; it shouldn't make rumbling or "blatting" sounds that call attention to the sub's location. Count on us to pull out a few reference action-movie discs here to test the waters - the more over the top, the better.