Polk Audio Monitor 70s

[BostonMark]

Hi, I am new to the audioholics forum. I thought I knew a lot til I read quite a few threads on here. Seems like a lot of knowledge and experience is here. Anyway, my question: Is there anything wrong with the Polk Audio Monitor series? I have seen a number of Polk fans, but they all sing the praises of the higher end Polks. I am trying to get the best for my budget, and I found a pair of Polk Audio Monitor 70s for only 300 a pair. I had to drive to two box stores (CCs) to get both, but I thought they sound pretty good. My other speakers are also Polk, although I recently bought a Velodyne SPL 1000 series II subwoofer for the low frequencies. (Tweeter had a close out on it for $650) I like music and movies equally, and also have a small collection of DVD-Audio discs and SACDs. (everything from Beethoven to Metallica). I saw nothing on Polk Audio's more affordable offerings, and wasn't sure if that was because they had some problem or if only speakers in the 1200 a pair plus tended to be discussed in the forums. I did learn to never buy Bose or monster cable from many of the threads here, and I would appreciate any input on my speaker choices and how much I should have available to spend when I can upgrade them. (i.e. what amount would be required to notice a significant improvement).

 

[Ron Temple]

Hi, I am new to the audioholics forum. I thought I knew a lot til I read quite a few threads on here. Seems like a lot of knowledge and experience is here. Anyway, my question: Is there anything wrong with the Polk Audio Monitor series? I have seen a number of Polk fans, but they all sing the praises of the higher end Polks. I am trying to get the best for my budget, and I found a pair of Polk Audio Monitor 70s for only 300 a pair. I had to drive to two box stores (CCs) to get both, but I thought they sound pretty good. My other speakers are also Polk, although I recently bought a Velodyne SPL 1000 series II subwoofer for the low frequencies. (Tweeter had a close out on it for $650) I like music and movies equally, and also have a small collection of DVD-Audio discs and SACDs. (everything from Beethoven to Metallica). I saw nothing on Polk Audio's more affordable offerings, and wasn't sure if that was because they had some problem or if only speakers in the 1200 a pair plus tended to be discussed in the forums. I did learn to never buy Bose or monster cable from many of the threads here, and I would appreciate any input on my speaker choices and how much I should have available to spend when I can upgrade them. (i.e. what amount would be required to notice a significant improvement).

I've never heard the 70s, but you've certainly got a great deal. If you like the sound, it's a no brainer. A lot of folks like the Monitors, perhaps not as much as the RTis, but look at the value. If you elect to upgrade, you should get your money back...

 

[Griz]

That's an amazing price for the pair. I have a set of monitor 70's as well and compared them to other towers in the $1000 range (B&W, Klipsch, Infinity Betas). Personally, I thought the Polks sounded better than any of the more expensive towers, and were a far better value. I'm not an audio nutt, but I do spend a great deal more time listening to music since I bought the monitors. There's always something better though, I just couldn't find anything (or at least listen to anything) that sounded better without spending a disproportionate large amount of money.

In case you're looking, the CS2 center channel is an excellent match.

 

[mike c]

bostonmark, get a hold of "calihwaypatrol" aka chuck, i think he plays around with polk audio monitor 70's ... you should ask him

 

[BostonMark]

I like them a lot, I guess reading here gave me second thoughts. One local Circuit City had one tower, but it was only 199, so I bought it, after finding out another Circuit City also had one. The second CC had a floor model for only 99, so I got both for 300. They retail them for 800 a pair. I got the CSi40 for the center channel, it sounds pretty good. In the rear I have Polk R20s. I did like the sound of the higher end Polks at Tweeter, but to get a pair that I liked a lot better, I would have spent over twice as much money (or almost 5 times, since I got the floor model). I am always looking for floor models and demos to try to get the most bang for my buck. My velodyne sub SPL-1000 series II, sold retail last year for 1,300, I bought it from Tweeter for $650, because they are making way for the Velodyne SPL-Rs. I thank some of the reviews on this site for choosing Velodyne. I prefer shopping brick and mortar stores over the internet for subjective purchases. I guess, like many, I second guess myself, and wonder if I made the best choice given the situation. Thank God I didn't go out and buy Bose! (although, I've never cared for the sound of them anyway and I hate sattelite speakers)

 

[corysmith01]

BostonMark, sounds like you're just looking for some reassurance, which hopefully others have done here. Given the price you paid, I'd say that's an outstanding deal. I don't know where you'd pick up floorstanders at that price (except maybe when you think about the BIC offerings). And sure, the other polks are talked about more here, but I wouldn't be too concerned about that. It's all personal preference. I remember submitting a post some months back about my brother having just picked up some bookshelf Monitor 40's and feeling pretty impressed by what I had heard. I can only imagine that the Monitor 70's improve upon that.

I say sit back, crank 'em up and enjoy the music. That's a pretty solid set up at a pretty solid price.

 

[Sheep]

I like them a lot, I guess reading here gave me second thoughts. One local Circuit City had one tower, but it was only 199, so I bought it, after finding out another Circuit City also had one. The second CC had a floor model for only 99, so I got both for 300. They retail them for 800 a pair. I got the CSi40 for the center channel, it sounds pretty good. In the rear I have Polk R20s. I did like the sound of the higher end Polks at Tweeter, but to get a pair that I liked a lot better, I would have spent over twice as much money (or almost 5 times, since I got the floor model). I am always looking for floor models and demos to try to get the most bang for my buck. My velodyne sub SPL-1000 series II, sold retail last year for 1,300, I bought it from Tweeter for $650, because they are making way for the Velodyne SPL-Rs. I thank some of the reviews on this site for choosing Velodyne. I prefer shopping brick and mortar stores over the internet for subjective purchases. I guess, like many, I second guess myself, and wonder if I made the best choice given the situation. Thank God I didn't go out and buy Bose! (although, I've never cared for the sound of them anyway and I hate sattelite speakers)

You have quiet a system going there. I have nothing against Polk audio. As a matter of fact, I have nothing against speakers I havnet heard. And the same should go for everyone. If you see people talking about how bigbox store speakers suck, and they havent heard them, or claim they have the golden ear, don't listen to them, as they probly raise there speaker wire of the floor to reduce noice....


The Sheep

 

[CaliHwyPatrol]

I work at CC and I think the Monitor 70's sound better than the Infiniti Beta 50's (no offense Mike ) that we sell for $100 more a speaker retail.

You need to make sure you meet or exceed their power rating though (275w @ 8ohm IIRC) because when you do, they sound sooo much better. It is hard for an amp to drive 4 6.5 woofers by itself!

The only thing you need to watch out for is the dust cap coming off the cone. Sometimes they don't glue it on right and you will hear it vibrating. Other than that I love em! I think they look really slick with the grills off too.

Have fun with them!

~Chuck

 

[BostonMark]

Ha, I have them with the grills off! They match the finish of my Philips TV and stand, and that whole set up (speakers TV and stand) fits perfectly under my movie screen. I have an older Yamaha Receiver thats rated 100 watts a channel (clean though .07 THD) in 5 channels. I've gotten pretty good volume out of them without turning my receiver up too loud though. Plus I live in an apartment. So maybe if I did get money for upgrading again, I should be getting a more powerful amp instead of higher end speakers? I don't have any problems with the Tweeters on the 70s, although on Polk Audio's own site, I saw a few complaints about blown tweeters.

 

[mike c]

chuck, none taken

i knew these were cheaper than the betas BUT did not have anywhere to demo them. and like he said, the polk 70 page on their website is bombed with bad reviews re: its tweeters. thats enough to send me running in the other direction (but yeah the dual 6.5 midrange IS VERY tempting)

 

[Ron Temple]

What Cali was alluding to, the Polk towers really open up if you give them the juice. The Rti towers and those 70s will sound like you paid $1500 more if you put separate amps on them.

 

[CaliHwyPatrol]

Ha, I have them with the grills off! They match the finish of my Philips TV and stand, and that whole set up (speakers TV and stand) fits perfectly under my movie screen. I have an older Yamaha Receiver thats rated 100 watts a channel (clean though .07 THD) in 5 channels. I've gotten pretty good volume out of them without turning my receiver up too loud though. Plus I live in an apartment. So maybe if I did get money for upgrading again, I should be getting a more powerful amp instead of higher end speakers? I don't have any problems with the Tweeters on the 70s, although on Polk Audio's own site, I saw a few complaints about blown tweeters.

Having more power isn't necessarily about how loud they can get. They will just sound a lot better, even at lower volumes. I specifically tested these speakers and the difference is substantial.

About the tweeters, I haven't experienced that kind of problem with them. I've sold quite a few pairs of these in my time and have never had a return due to faulty tweeters. Also, our displays get run very hard 12 hours a day, 7 days a week and they have never given up on me. I hope you have the same experience!

~Chuck

 

[BostonMark]

The next time I go to upgrade then, would I get a more powerful surround sound receiver, or would I use the outputs on the Yamaha for two seperate amplifiers for the Front Left and the Front Right? My Yamaha is an HTR 5280, and it does have output jacks for all 5.1 channels if decide to add external amplifiers. If I get separate amplifiers added to the system, how will that affect the balance of surround sources (i.e. movies in DD and DTS, or SACDs and DVD- Audios in surround) ? Finally, any recommendations on the amplifiers?

That sounds like a really good idea for improving overall power. My very first stereo system when I was a teenager was a Yamaha integrated amplifer that was 150 watts a channel (a closeout at Tweeter for $500 bucks, a whole lot for me at that age) I loved it, it drove my power hungry Advent Legacys, and why I tend to like Yamaha. All my friends had cheap Sonys and Kenwoods

 

[satish536]

montior 70 or rti 10

I was jus gonna upgrade my front towers and had myself finalised down to two choices according to my geographical locations where it is hard to find speakers .....i was looking to get the monitor 70 or Rti 10 ...what is gonna be the basic difference in the respective series ....which one do all of u suggest , any help, advice, comments will be appreciated !!! thanks

 

[BostonMark]

I did listen to the RTi10s and the LSi series Satish, but for me it was a question of price. The RTi10s sounded slightly better, and gave a bit deeper bass, but I use a subwoofer for the low frequencies. For me, even at the suggested retail price, the RTi10s didn't sound $400.00 better. If price is irrelevant to you, the RTi10s did sound a little bit better, but for me, the Monitor 70s were the best value.

 

[satish536]

What Bout Drving These Babies

hey man thanx for the quick reply ...now ill let u know my second concern either of rti 10 or the monitor 70, what kind of power requirements do they have? can my present reciever or a new one <maybe a H/k AVR 335 or Deonon AVR 2105:- one of which im planning to get> would be able to drive these speakers efficiently ???

 

[CaliHwyPatrol]

If you think the Monitors are power hungry, then you have another thing coming with the RTi's. They definitely need some kind of extra amplification to get a good sound. The RTi 10's are rated to take up to 300w a piece so they aren't too much different from the Monitor 70's. But you still need to get that extra amping in there to get those dual 7" cones push.

The reason why the Monitor series sounded similar to you is because the RTi's were probably not amplified to their potential. The Monitors probably weren't either but when they both are you can really tell the difference between the two. The RTi's have a lot more potential than the Monitors as well as a better build, hence the higher price tag. I have the RTi 8's and even they need extra amping to get some juice out of them.

~Chuck

 

[BostonMark]

Well, I found a pre owned Rotel RB 991 power amplifier today at a Boston stereo store! Its a stereo amp, (200 w/ch), so I am going to use the preouts on my Yamaha, and hook the Polk Monitors up to that. When I picked the amp up, I got to listen to the $130,000 stereo set up they had. WOW. Two Krell amps for each side, and some sort of Dali magnas or some name like that.

 

[CaliHwyPatrol]

Well, I found a pre owned Rotel RB 991 power amplifier today at a Boston stereo store! Its a stereo amp, (200 w/ch), so I am going to use the preouts on my Yamaha, and hook the Polk Monitors up to that. When I picked the amp up, I got to listen to the $130,000 stereo set up they had. WOW. Two Krell amps for each side, and some sort of Dali magnas or some name like that.

Now you're talking!

Have fun with that!

~Chuck