Prime Center Speaker

True 3-way center channel delivers crystal clear and natural sounding dialogue and vocals with an expansive soundstage, stunning dynamics and excellent dispersion for a convincing home theater surround sound experience.

Prime Center

Product Overview

It's rare, if not impossible to find a true 3-way center channel speaker at even close to what the Prime Center costs. Leveraging design elements and technology from the SVS Ultra Center, the Prime Center speaker features premium drivers and crossover components and sophisticated engineering that put it in a class by itself when compared to other center speakers in its class.

Center channel speakers are often considered the most underrated speakers in a home theater because they handle so much of the content yet are designed as afterthoughts by many audio brands. The SVS Prime Center accepts no compromises and anchors the front soundstage of a 5.1 home theater surround sound system or other set-ups with precision and power that complements even the most high-end multi-channel systems.

Quick Specs

• Tweeter | 1"
• Midrange | 3.5"
• Woofer | Dual 5.25"
• Freq. Response | 48 Hz-25 kHz (±3 dB)

• Dimension | 7.7" (H) 18.6" (W) 9.2" (D)

Well-equipped to play the most important role in a surround sound home theater, every aspect of the Prime Center speaker was designed for sonic excellence. From the premium grade drivers and sophisticated SoundMatch three-way crossover to the extra-thick baffle, internal bracing, and FEA optimized tweeter diffuser, the Prime Center channel speaker’s design and engineering features drive its performance into uncharted territory for a center channel speaker at its price.

Prime Driver & Tweeter Design

Since center channel speakers handle a large percentage of the audio content, including dialogue and vocals, and much of that sound falls within the mid-range, SVS engineered an incredibly light and rigid polypropylene cone for the Prime Center speaker’s mid-range driver to provide a flat frequency response and to generate the SPL necessary for stunning in-room dynamics and an expansive front soundstage. The mid-range driver is also housed in its own sub-enclosure within the cabinet to ensure there’s no modulation from the robust woofers.

The 1-inch aluminum dome tweeter is light, efficient, and rigid, playing crystal clear at high volumes for a sense of utter transparency, while offering an ‘airy’ presentation and incredibly unveiled highs so female vocals and dialogue always sound crisp, smooth and clear. The potent 5.25-inch woofers are built on an all-new cast ABS-fiberglass composite basket for precise component alignment and an inert frame without resonances or added harmonics. The light and rigid cone material render a flat frequency response and deliver deep and authoritative low frequency playback. For optimized bass extension the cabinet is rear ported and optimally tuned for dual woofers.

Innovative SoundMatch Crossover Design

Providing the perfectly balanced voicing for the Prime Center speaker is a proprietary SVS SoundMatch crossover that sports premium-grade capacitors, air-core inductors, and heavy-trace printed circuit boards. This combination of high-quality components yields lower distortion, tighter tolerances and all around better sound for the critical, dialogue and action-focused front soundstage. The 3-way crossover is uniquely tuned so each driver blends perfectly with each other while offering excellent on and off-axis response and pinpoint spatial imaging for the most convincing audio experience possible.

Performance Driven Cabinet Design and Geometry

Tapered edges on the Prime Center speaker’s front baffle, known as chamfers, minimize edge diffraction for clear and precise soundstaging. The cabinet’s presence is substantial but it does not take over a room visually and offers a modern industrial feel with acoustic enhancements like shorting rings and a tweeter diffuser. All of these advancements are packed into an attractively styled cabinet available in stunning piano gloss black or premium black ash finish.

Frequency Response / Acoustic Data:

• Rated bandwidth: 48 Hz-25 kHz (±3 dB)
• Nominal impedance: 8 ohms.

• Sensitivity: 86 dB (2.83V @ 1 meter full-space, 300-3kHz)
• Recommended amplifier power: 20-200 watts.

Speaker Specs:

• Black ash and piano gloss black finish options
• Single set of 5-way binding posts
• Dual 1” wide-flared rear-firing ports
• Cloth grille with pin/cup retention system
• Elastomer stick-on bumper feet (adds 3mm to height)
• Center Channel Loudspeaker

• Cabinet Dimensions: 7.6" (H) X 18.6" (W) X 8.6" (D)
• Overall Dimensions: 7.7" (H) X 18.6" (W) X 9.2" (D) (includes grille and bumper feet)
• Shipped Dimensions: Shipped Dimensions: 12.2" (H) X 23" (W) X 13.4" (D)
• Weight Unboxed: 20.2 pounds
• Shipped Weight: 23.3 pounds

Driver Specs:

1” Aluminum Dome Tweeter:

• FEA-optimized diffuser for airy and unveiled presentation
• Aluminum dome for exceptional transient response

3.5” Midrange Driver:

• Polypropylene cone for excellent stiffness/mass ratio and pistonic behavior
• Cast ABS-fiberglass composite basket ensures precision component alignment and excellent thermal transfer
• Vented voice coil former minimizes air compression artifacts

Dual 5.25” Woofers:

• Long stroke motor and suspension for high output
• Polypropylene cone for excellent stiffness/mass ratio and pistonic behavior
• Aluminum shorting ring to reduce gap inductance, lower distortion, and enhance high frequency response
• Cast ABS-fiberglass composite basket ensures precision component alignment and excellent thermal transfer
• Vented voice coil former minimizes air compression artifacts

Crossover & Cabinet Specs:

Crossover:

• 3-way crossover with premium-grade capacitors, air-core inductors and heavy-trace printed circuit boards
• Midrange-to-tweeter crossover: 2.4 kHz (12 dB/octave slopes)
• Woofer-to-midrange crossover: 350 Hz (12 dB/octave slopes)

Cabinet:

• Separate sealed midrange enclosure shifts standing waves beyond the driver pass band, improving sound quality
• Separate sealed midrange enclosure shifts standing waves beyond the driver pass band, improving sound quality
• Chamfered front baffle and flush-mounted drivers reduce edge diffraction and improved on-axis high frequency response
• FEA-optimized cabinet and bracing eliminates resonances

Press Reviews

The Poor Audiophile - SVS Launches Prime Series Speaker Family: An Array of Speakers From Tower to Satellite

"The Prime Center is a three-way design. I was happy to hear that SVS went with this design choice as it addresses the off-axis issues that are common to the...

Prime Series Speakers Receive Digital Trends Editors Choice Award

"With effortless performance, elegant design, and striking value, SVS’ Prime Series hits the ultimate sweet spot in the audiophile segment."

High Def Digest Reviews the Prime Bookshelf and Prime Center Loudspeakers

"A marvel of sound design. These loudspeakers uncoil the sound, and reach well above their price point dynamically. Easy recommendations for the aspiring but sensible home theater speaker enthusiast."

The Missing Remote Reviews Prime Center and Prime Tower 5.0 System

"The Prime Center is clear and crisp, and able to handle everything…it made the biggest performance difference from my usual setup."

Audioholics - Tarunvir Bains Reviews the Prime Tower and Prime Center Speakers

"I highly recommend the SVS Prime speakers for anyone looking to break into the first true threshold of fidelity-driven sound reproduction without breaking the bank. It’s reassuring to know you...

AVTechReviews - Chris Murray Reviews the Prime Series Speakers

"… have a surprisingly big sound… flawless in its performance…get a audiophile grade home theater system at a fraction of the cost."

Speaker Specs:

• Black ash and piano gloss black finish options
• Single set of 5-way binding posts
• Dual 1” wide-flared rear-firing ports
• Cloth grille with pin/cup retention system
• Elastomer stick-on bumper feet (adds 3mm to height)
• Center Channel Loudspeaker

• Cabinet Dimensions: 7.6" (H) X 18.6" (W) X 8.6" (D)
• Overall Dimensions: 7.7" (H) X 18.6" (W) X 9.2" (D) (includes grille and bumper feet)
• Shipped Dimensions: Shipped Dimensions: 12.2" (H) X 23" (W) X 13.4" (D)
• Weight Unboxed: 20.2 pounds
• Shipped Weight: 23.3 pounds

Driver Specs:

1” Aluminum Dome Tweeter:

• FEA-optimized diffuser for airy and unveiled presentation
• Aluminum dome for exceptional transient response

3.5” Midrange Driver:

• Polypropylene cone for excellent stiffness/mass ratio and pistonic behavior
• Cast ABS-fiberglass composite basket ensures precision component alignment and excellent thermal transfer
• Vented voice coil former minimizes air compression artifacts

Dual 5.25” Woofers:

• Long stroke motor and suspension for high output
• Polypropylene cone for excellent stiffness/mass ratio and pistonic behavior
• Aluminum shorting ring to reduce gap inductance, lower distortion, and enhance high frequency response
• Cast ABS-fiberglass composite basket ensures precision component alignment and excellent thermal transfer
• Vented voice coil former minimizes air compression artifacts

Crossover & Cabinet Specs:

Crossover:

• 3-way crossover with premium-grade capacitors, air-core inductors and heavy-trace printed circuit boards
• Midrange-to-tweeter crossover: 2.4 kHz (12 dB/octave slopes)
• Woofer-to-midrange crossover: 350 Hz (12 dB/octave slopes)

Cabinet:

• Separate sealed midrange enclosure shifts standing waves beyond the driver pass band, improving sound quality
• Separate sealed midrange enclosure shifts standing waves beyond the driver pass band, improving sound quality
• Chamfered front baffle and flush-mounted drivers reduce edge diffraction and improved on-axis high frequency response
• FEA-optimized cabinet and bracing eliminates resonances

User Reviews