Great frequency coverage and driver compliment. Nice three way design and great sensitivity.

Size and impossible to remove speaker grill (like all AR Hi-Res speakers)

Great speaker. Highly recommended with speakers in the AR Hi-Res line-up. I'm using mine with a set of AR-9's and the front stage is seamless and full. The response is smooth and constant across the entire frequency range. The 3-way design reduces the burden of low bass reproduction on the 5.25-inch front firing drivers and sends those frequencies to the down-firing 6.5-inch driver. This affords clean and accurate sound reproduction.
My only complaint is the speaker grills are extremely difficult to remove; these in no way impairs the sound or build quality of this speaker.

Overall, highly recommended.

Similar Products Used:

Bose, AR SC2, Design Acoustics.

Best sound for the money, quality construction, adjustments

I am amazed at how much people here actually paid for theirs. I recently purchased mine for $164.99 at EtronicsOnline and I am not dissappointed.
Keep in mind that this speaker is very large and heavy (~35lbs), so keep this in mind. It is of course magnetically shielded but due to the size and weight, I wouldn't recommend placing it directly on a television unless you have a projection TV. I have mine sitting on top of my entertainment center directly over my TV.

It is a very asthetically pleasing model. Rock solid construction. This unit has a 6/12" slot loaded downfiring woofer which really adds to the bass response for realistic voices and other center specific sounds.

On the back it has toggle switches to adjust the mid-range and high-end frequencies for your preference and/or to match your other speakers. This really helps adjust the listening environment to suit your tastes.

I am very pleased with this speaker.

3 way..down firing woofer

None

This speakers is simply amazing...what do you expect from AR. The post I have read about this speaker is that it is too big. I think AR has done an amazing job to constrain the size of the speaker considering how much is in it. The mid and highs in this speaker make the human vocie sound truely human. The Center is the focal point of a HT system (75% of the sound). You must have a large enough speaker in order to handle the sound like it was intended to be handled. Clapton's Unplugged DVD showcases what this speaker can do. I was simply blown away by its imaging and realism. Can't go wrong here.

Similar Products Used:

Cerwin Vega Center
Advent center

Bass extension, efficiency, price

not quite as full as more expensive speakers

I've found this to be an excellent center channel speaker, with unbeatable value. Voices are nice and realistic without sounding boxy. Doesn't sound as full as I would like but I believe my receiver is the culprit (Kenwood VR-307). Almost sounds like it needs a good kick in the butt to really open up. I'm upgrading to an Outlaw Audio receiver, so we'll see what happens. Whatever the case is, I prefer a more laid back presentation to one that is compressed, forward, and boomy (like so many others). Don't get me wrong though, the AR-2C can keep up with all the action you can throw at it.

I also dig the looks of this thing - I listen with the grills off (sounds better) and I love the mag-alloy drivers. I don't have tower speakers but I found that it matches very well with the AR-17's in the front. I actually moved the larger AR-15's to the rear because they didn't blend as well. Must be the AR-17's matching 5.25" driver (the AR-15's have a 6.5" driver). The size of the front speakers don't seem to matter too much in my system since I anchor the bottom end with an NHT-SWP sub. I actually love the AR-15's because they image so well - must use good stands though.

Hint: If you really want great bass, check out Hsu Research at hsuresearch.com. I think they have the best subs regardless of price (easily beats the Velodyne HGS, Energy, Klipsh, Polk, B&W, and Sunfire series in output and extension). They are another product with tremendous value.I will be upgrading to their TN1220 very soon.

But I digress. Back to the AR-2C. Love it, wouldn't trade it, looks great, excellent value. You would easily have to pay double to improve it's performance, I got mine for $305. This is a no-brainer.

Similar Products Used:

Infinity CC-3, lower-end AR, Energy, Polk, M&K

Overall quality, good base for a center speaker.

none

Just got this speaker recently and has been a great improvment in my system. I was so impressed that I recently purchased a pair of AR1's. Should get them in a couple of days, but I need some new speaker cable to go with these three speakers. I am using them primarily for HT use. Any advice would e greatly appreciated. However the AR2c is a tremendous speaker for the price.

Similar Products Used:

JBL, Yamaha, KLH

probably the best center speaker made at this time

VERY HEAVY

ABSOLOUTLY BREATHTAKING FOR MOVIES.RIGHT IN YOUR FACE...SMACK DAB IN THE MIDDLE...YET IT BLENDS SO WELL.
IT ALMOST MAKES YOU APPRECIATE YOUR OTHER SPEAKERS' ROLE IN HOME THEATER.IT KEEPS YOU GLUED TO CENTER STAGE,IF THAT WAS THE DIRECTORS INTENTION.AND THEN LETS YOU REALIZE JUST HOW WELL A RIGHT TO LEFT SOUND MOVES ACROSS YOUR ROOM!!!
AS FOR MUSIC.THIS IS TRULY A FULL RANGE,SWEET SOUNDING SPEAKER.NICE MIDS AND UNHARSH HIGHS,WITH JUST THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF BASS.I PAID AROUND $375 WITH S&H.MORE THAN MOST MAIN STREAM CENTERS OUT THERE...BUT WHEN YOU START GETTING SERIOUS ABOUT SOUND WITH 5.1 AND DVD,YOU NEED TO RETIRE THE GOOD,BUT NOT GOOD ENOUGH CENTER SPEAKER.

HERE IS A TIP: I USE OTHER AMPS TO SEND AUDIO TO OTHER LOCATIONS IN MY HOME.ONE OF THESE AMPS IS GETTING A SIGNAL FROM THE "CENTER OUT",ALLOWING ME TO PUT MY OTHER CENTER SPEAKER AT THE FOOT OF MY BIG SCREEN.THIS WILL GIVE A MUCH TALLER SOUND STAGE.SO NOW YOU HAVE A WIDE AND TALL STAGE!!!
NOTE:ADJUST THE LOWER SPEAKER TO BE ABOUT 3db DOWN FROM THE TOP. HAPPY LISTENING.

Similar Products Used:

INFINITY,JAMO,PHASE TECHNOLOGY

Great Freq response and Sensitivity for a centre channel! Blows others out of the water! I got mine for $340 too!

Cost...(usually $600, mine was $340.) Size, very large due to its 4 drivers. Weight...~30 lbs!

GREAT CENTER CHANNEL! Low lows, high highs! If you can afford it, or get a good price, and don't mind the size/weight, then you can't really beat this speaker! Due to its sensitivity (94dB) I had to turn it WAY down (~7dB) to match my front (87dB) and rears (90dB down 3dB). This thing can handle the power too!

Similar Products Used:

Tested CerwinVega, Klipsch, Polk, Infinity, etc....

Quality construction, extended range, great looks, accurate sound.

Mid Frequency "metalic" coloration

This is an excellent center channel speaker. I have tested this speaker with a wide variety of music and movies. The only thing that separates this speaker from perfection is coloration around 1000Hz.
The unit has impressive low end for its size. I am sure frequencies between 100HZ and 300HZ are somewhat altered due to the slot firing woofer, but when listening to the unit it does not sound unnatural.
High end performance is excellent. DTS unleashes very sharp and accurate highs from the speaker. Be aware that the foam baffle that surrounds the tweeter virtually eliminates high frequencies at angles greater than 60degrees from center. This should not be an issue for listening, but if you approach the speaker above or below its center axis (say to adjust your receiver, etc.) the sound will change drastically.
The imaging is excellent from this speaker. It has the ability to clearly project as a center and seamlessly blend with the left and right channels. This makes it performance as a center speaker outstanding.
The box itself is very well constructed. The HF, MF tuning switches provide desired results. The grills are sturdy and attractive yet alter the sound very little. The magnesium mid drivers are truly the most attractive and understated drivers I have seen. I find the physical size to be at the upper limit of reasonable. All of the competitive speakers that can achieve this extended bass range are at least this big if not significantly larger.
The only negative side of this unit lies in the magnesium woofers. The midrange sound from these speakers has a “metallic” coloration. What does this do to the sound? Brass instruments sound fantastic, but strings sound harsh. Sharp sound effects (like brass hitting the floor in The Matrix, or the sound of a gun cocking) are so accurate that it is amazing. But unfortunately even human voices sound a bit resonant in the lower frequency range.
The AR2C has its faults, but overall it is an outstanding value. When considering all aspects (sound range, cost, quality, looks) I could find no match for the AR2C. I compared this unit to Definitive, Thiel, Klipsh, and Polk among others. It is not an audiophile speaker, but is at the very high end on mainstream home theater.
You really can’t go wrong for the online price.
Enjoy.

Similar Products Used:

Infinity, Polk, Defenitive, Klipsh

hf, mf switch. Price!!! Quality of AR high res line

size.

$305.00 w/shipping at aok. (www.stores.yahoo.com). Got it today, this is the best non thx ultra center you can buy. The Ultra standard has you use a much larger center, even though this center is huge!!! I hate to complain about it but I've got a mitsubishi 40" picture tube, and it stands out like a soar thumb on top of this tv. The wife aproval rating is way low on this one, but one listen and you won't care. The downfiring woofer is a great idea. I switched my center speaker level to large center on my denon avr 2800, and it sends the lower frequency's that make voices and other effects sound more natural. I've heard that it really matches up well with the AR1 towers, I won't know until tomorrow when they show up. I know it's hard to believe that a $300.00 center could be all that, but it does list out at $600.00, so don't buy at a retail store. This is one of those real finds or real bargain's were we the consumer for once don't get screwed. I just really wish that AR would make a dipole surround with the same tweeter and woofers.

DENON AVR2800
AR2C
AR1
MONITOR AUDIO SURROUND
ANALYSIS PLUS OVAL 12 WIRES

Similar Products Used:

Cambridge soundworks center. Monitor audio silver 12

unreal clarity, good low range, great looks

size is pretty big

I first had the AR-2C, it didn't have the kick that I needed for my home theatre. BOY!!! You want to talk about kick. This speaker is amazing. Every reviw below me is correct. The range of this speaker is something to behold. For the money it absolutley can't be beat.

Similar Products Used:

AR-2C