IMO, the best center ch speaker is no center ch speaker (Phantom). I've never been happy with any center speaker I've ever used. I could always tell that the dialog was coming from either above the TV or below it depending on where the speaker was placed (very annoying to me). Equally annoying to me is the fact that there is never a consistent blend/ timbre match between the mains and the center speaker (unless you have 3 identical speakers for the front) which for me, gives me the "I hear two distinctly different speakers blues".
Phantom center gives a seamless blend to the front sound stage and there is no localization - i.e. above or below the TV.
The argument for a center speaker is that it will anchor the sound to the TV for off axis listeners
but, even if the dialog is anchored to the TV for off axis listeners, they still get a collapsed sound stage anyway. It would be golden to have a "sweet spot" for every listener but it just ain't gonna' happen.
BTW, I've heard the VP150 in another forum members home and I think that, by itself, it is a pretty damn good speaker. IMO, I think the problem that most people describe with it can be said about most center speakers and is indicative of the fact that it (and most all center speakers) simply do not match the mains anyway and therefore sound less robust, shall we say, by contrast to the mains.
You ask, "Could this problem with the VP150's be just a case of it not being hooked up or placed right?". Not being placed right is the correct question. IMO, the only correct placement for a center speaker would be to place it smack dab in the middle of the TV and even then you would still get a different sound than the mains.
Try the phantom mode, you might like it.
Just my 2 cents.
