Dipole surround speaker to match KEF 104.2?

If Kef made a speaker with the same mid and tweeter as your 104s, I would buy 4 of those.

Dipole surrounds pre-date Dolby Digital 5.1 and 7.1 processing technology. Dipoles were really designed for the early dolby pro-logic processing with diffused mono surround. Think of your theater system as a 7 channel stereo. Would you use a dipole for the center, left or right? I think not. The dolby website recommends 5 "identical" speakers.

Thank you for the good suggestions. The Dolby website does recommend identical speakers, but interestingly the THX website recommends "diffuse" surrounds (dipoles) on the sides, and monopole back surrounds placed together, for 7.1 use.

Maybe for critical SACD or DVD-A listening, identical monopole speakers would be best, but I plan to mainly use the multichannel mode for movies, and stick to 2 channel for music. (I may change my mind after I listen to a SACD or DVD-A, which I have not done yet.)

More comments/suggestions would be welcome.

I am using a $500 (new) pair of Definitive Technology BP-2X bipole rear speakers with KEF 101/2 for front L&R and the model 90 center. Sounds great even with SACD and DVD/A.

I use a pair of KEF 102/2s with my KEF 104/2s. They are located along the walls lateral to the listening position. The center channel is a KEF 200 C. I run all the speakers in bi-wire mode. Frequencies below 80 Hz are shunted to a Velodyne HGS-15. This arrangemnt is excellent for 5.1 Dolby Digital and dts. The 104/2s and HGS-15 combination is excellent for stereo, and blend seamlessly.

The KEF 200 C is a much better match for the 104/2s than a 100 C. I moved my 100 C downstairs to use with a second pair of 102/2s and a Velodyne HGS-10. The 102/2s and 100 C are well matched.

db