Customer Reviews

Bose VCS-10 Center Channel Speaker (Black)

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

I almost didn't order this based on the poor reviews and Consumers Reports findings. I needed a thin center speaker to go with the acoustimass cubes - this was the logical choice. After researching it at length there were mixed reviews with many negative comments. I called Cruthfield and the Bose Outlet to get their opinions. They were surprised to hear that there were negative comments. The Bose outlet advised theirs sounded great and noted it must be hooked directly to the receiver - not the module like the cubes. I have had the speaker for a couple weeks and it sounds great. I have two other surround systems, one high end and a lower end system and the Bose performs admirably for such a compact system. The articulation of words coming from the center speaker sounds like a real person. I don't understand the bad reviews - unless it's not being connected properly. Worked for me - and as most retailers note you can always send it back.

I have no axe to grind with Bose. I originally bought this speaker for a custom cabinet with almost no room for a center channel set up. This speaker has an incredibly small footprint. If space is limited, this is not a bad option.

However, being honest, this is not a great center channel speaker. Choosing speakers is like the addage "certain horses for certain courses." Your budget, your room, your components - all play a part.

I have two home theater setups. One is a daily gathering area with basic in wall treatments from Polk Audio. The other is a dedicated theater utilizing Definitive Technologies with B&K Reference 7.1 Processing. Clearly the Bose VCS-10 can not hold its own with my larger setup. However, I have run it with my Polk Audio's and it was workable. The timbre match was slightly off and the vocals were not as sharp as they are with my Polk CSi3 but it was not awful.

My bottom line - you can certainly buy a better center channel speaker. Can you buy a better one in this price range. I think so - if you are only focused on the quality of this one speaker and not the blended sound of your system. You should always buy the best components within your budget - but remember you are building a system - it's not just about one speaker. If this speaker fits your space and (more importantly) matches your other speakers, then it may be the right speaker for you.

I've had the Bose Acoustimass system for 6 years and have been using a 5th cube for the center channel. I purchased a new home theater cabinet for Christmas and decided that the center cube wasn't visually appealing so I purchased the center channel speaker strictly for its appearance. I wasn't expecting the speaker to make much difference in the sound of my system but, when I turned the system on WOW what a difference it made. The surround separation is 50% better and the center channel is much more clear. Well worth the money.

I ordered through Amazon and received the speaker from 6Ave in two days.

I purchased this speaker about four years ago to complement my Bose main speakers for my surround sound set up. At that time, I felt the sound quality was pretty good but over the years as I listened to other center channels that other people had in their home theater set ups I came to realize that the Bose center speaker sound quality was not up to par. So last year, I purchased a Polk center speaker and the improvement in sound quality is absolutely insane. The Polk speaker which costs the same as the Bose ($199) was far and away the better product. The sound is cleaner, crisper, sharper...it made watching movies much more enjoyable. I couldn't believe what I had been missing out on all these years. The only reason I purchased the Bose was to match my speakers but that was a mistake because the sound I have now with Polk center and Bose main is excellent. Depending on who you ask, the center speaker is the most important speaker in a home entertainment audio system. If that's true then I wouldn't recommend Bose because all you're doing is buying the name and not the sound quality and to me that's a waste of money. I know because I made that mistake.

I received this speaker as a gift for xmas. When I first plugged it in, I experienced the same problem that other people had complained about...the voices seemed weak and difficult to understand. I turned the dB level all the way up and it became tolerable, but still not very good. I then happened across a website that discussed speaker placement. It suggested placing the center speaker directly above or below the tv (duh), but also said to make sure it was reasonably level with the tweeters on the side speakers (within about a foot). I made this adjustment and WOW! It was like night and day. The sound was incredible! Those of you who had problems might want to try something along these lines, and those of you checking this speaker out in stores should make sure everything is aligned properly when you listen. Hope that helps.

EDIT.....I have since tried out different centers, most of which sounded better than this one. If I were to rate it again, I would more likely give it a 3. Also, I have found that matching your center to your sides (manufacturers usually design centers to match the timbre and tone of their corresponding side speakers) can really improve the sound.

I would have to say that I'm a bit surprised by the number of negative reviews for this exceptional product. I purchased a Bose VCS-10 Center Channel Speaker as soon as Bose started selling them. Given the overwhelming quality that is always associated with Bose speakers and my past experience with their speakers in the 401's and 301's; this choice, for me, was an easy one.

If you're like myself and the years has done a bit of a job on your hearing, the Bose VCS-10 Center Channel Speaker and the proper settings on your receiver will make a world of difference in your home theater system and ultimately your movie watching experience. With those proper settings on your receiver, this speaker will beautifully bring the dialogue out in your favorite movies that has previously been somewhat drowned out by the other speakers in your system and you will soon find yourself rarely asking what it was that they said!

Along with the exceptional quality in speakers that Bose is known for, this speaker will sit right there on top of your television set and as it is magnetically shielded, it will not have an effect on your television set at all.

I highly recommend the Bose VCS-10 Center Channel Speaker to any and all that are in the market for a center channel speaker and are of a mood to get the highest quality product available without spending way too much money. I've used one for years and have been thoroughly happy with it, only recently replacing it on one system with a Bose Acoustimass system but that VCS-10 is right there, leading the way on another system! For years of quality output, you'd be hard pressed to do better for the meager price! {ssintrepid}

Consumer Reports placed these at the bottom of the list of one of their recent center channel speaker comparisons, and I COULD NOT AGREE MORE. Lower costing speakers performed far better. In some calculated tests of my own, I found these had far less range and "presence" than other major brand speakers. I have a Yamaha NS-C444 speaker that provides full, lifelike sound, and handles plenty of power.

This Bose center channel speaker was a major disappointment, and far from representative of their generally outstanding audio components.

I was thinking about this center speaker since seems this is the only one can be put onn the top of my Sony LCD rear projection TV but since read so many bad reviews here I decided to try one from CircuitCity.

Installed tonight and watching movies "Collateral". A lot of talking in the Cab but I can't hear clearly. I tune my receiver for a long time but only I can turn the volume very lound that I can hear the talking clearly but backgroud music is too lound.

Tried my Yamaha speaker bought from Bestbuy for $60 and wow... All I want to do is packing the Bose speaker and return it to the store.

Bose makes some good speakers but not this.

This center channel speaker works fine. I don't own any other Bose products, I don't particularly like or dislike Bose, and I'm not an Audiophile. As other reviewers have mentioned, there are probably better-sounding center channel speakers for the price. I grabbed this one mainly because I appreciated its low profile styling; it is literally 3 inches tall.

I've had this as my center channel speaker for a couple of years now. My previous center channel was a Yamaha model and I was quite pleased with it, but at some point I needed to get something with a smaller footprint and I chose this Bose.

The big draw of the Bose for me was the shorter height, but I'm not completely satisfied with the sound quality. The sound is a bit "muddy". Dialog doesn't seem as clear as it could be, and I sometimes feel like I'm missing part of what is being said. I even had my hearing checked to see if I had a problem. I didn't thank goodness, but even so I decided to temporarily go back to using the Yamaha center channel.

To my surprise, the Yamaha center channel no longer sounded good. It sounded tinny and cheap compared to the sound from the Bose. So while I can't give the Bose high marks, it's not the worst speaker out there. I'm now using the Bose again, but due to it's relatively high selling price, I can't fully recommend it.