I'm contemplating getting either the SuperSat 3 or SuperSat 50 as LCR for a home theater in family room. Not ideal given that it's a larger room open to some other areas, but there are various constraints that I'd rather not go into detail about that have led me to look for some lower profile on-wall speakers.

The specs look very similar. They appear to have the same drivers/tweeter, but the SuperSat 50 has the QPIRs. The only info I found said that the QPIRs extend useable bass, but what spectrum is that accross? If I set my AVR to "small" speaker and 120/100 Hz crossover as the manual suggests, will the QPIRs effectively be doing nothing? Are the QPIRs what give the 50s the lower frequency response spec or does that come from cabinet design or elsewhere?

It's $750 more for the trio of 50s vs. 3s, so if I'm not going to notice a significant difference between the two with those crossovers, then I may just save the money, but if the QPIR has some influence on frequencies above 120/100 then I'm curious what difference I should be expected to notice? I think the 50s look nicer with larger TV's, but I'm not sure I would justify spending the extra money for that.

Thanks,
B

The SuperSat 50's have over twice the cabinet volume and almost four times the low frequency radiating area. The result is they can be crossed over lower and will play considerably louder at lower frequencies than the smaller SuperSat 3. Ultimately, your choice will be influenced by subwoofer(s) location(s) and how loud you want the system to play. With two good subs in the front of the room and a 120Hz crossover, the SuperSat 3 system will rock. You might also consider a SuperSat 50C for the center for a good balance of power handling and budget.

I had a GE SuperSat system for a time: SS50 l/c/r, and SS3's for surround duty. With only one subwoofer, I really struggled to create a seamless sound experience. With two subs it was much easier.

The ss3 is a great speaker, but I wouldn't go smaller than SS50 for l/c/r unless the room was just tiny. Keep in mind that in dialogue heavy films - you'll reap the benefits of the SS50c over a ss3.

Sounds like I wouldn't regret getting the 50s over the 3s. Thanks for the feedback.