Digital Trends

HSU VT-12 Speakers

March 5th, 2004 | by Douglas MacLean

Testing (continued)

Next we decided to test the system against our usual list of films. We concentrated on films with noteworthy use of low frequencies in the four main speakers. One criterion we like is to use films that feature a nice thunderstorm. When we listened to a venerable classic, Twister, we noticed that the rolling thunder effect was lost. With normal speakers capable of reproducing the low range, the thunder appeared to move around the room. With the VT-12 system it seemed to remain located in the center of the room. We also noticed this with Terminator 2 during the scene when the Terminator first appears. On a standard system, the lightening crackles all around you, here it seemed more centered. Considering the cost and size of the speakers, most consumers may consider this a realistic tradeoff — we thought it was.

One very notable aspect of this system is the center speaker. The dialogue was noticeably cleaner than that of most center channels we have tested. Each word was understandable and stood out from the background music and effects. Too many systems provide only the bare minimum for the center channel speaker; only the mid range. With the VT-12s, you get one that faithfully reproduces the full spectrum of sound. The center carries the low end as well gives more depth to the dialogue. This had the effect of letting the dialogue stand out from the background.

Finally there is the addition of the rear center channel speaker. This little speaker did an excellent job of filling in the center rear of the audio field. It is important to remember that this is not a true, discrete channel but rather it is matrixed, derived from audio information contained in the two rear channels.

Practically, this is not that important at this point in time. EX and ES titles represent only a fraction of the DVDs presently released. Naturally, these discs did better at producing a realistic rear center sound. The VT-12 was capable of using the information on EX and ES discs to create a very convincing audio environment. Even with standard six channel DVDs the effect produced was notable. Logistically there are some problems with getting this seventh speaker properly placed in the room. If you have your couch up against a wall the rear speaker will wind up positioned almost directly over your head.