Polk Audio - What are your experiences?

[Johnny Canuck]

I bought some Polk RTI 12's 2 months ago. I had a POS Panny receiver that wasn't close to giving these monsters the power they needed. I read on the Polk site they need lots of power to run at their best. So i went out and got a Denon 3805, mostly from the rave reviews here. Still very weak on the low end. Get a NAD power amp. Hook it up to my fronts and i was getting a splitting headache from the brightness. Have the NAD on the lows, not bright. Turn off my sub and I hear VERY little bass from these.

Most audiophiles hate Polk from what I see. My research has shown they are good value. Not the best, but best for your money. Research has also shown me high end audiophiles can be a little clouded by fancy names. Polk is sold at CC , Best Buy and in Canada, Future Shop. Polk used to be sold in high end stores but Polk decided to mass market their products so now high end stores don't sell them. Or more like CAN'T sell them or compete with big box stores' prices.. Replaced with Boston Acoustics as a lower end "entry level". I wonder how much these high end stores ASSUME Polk is garbage because it is sold at these big box stores and tell customers that. I wonder if high end consumers ASSUME Polk is garbage for this reason as well. How much do high end stores say Polk is garbage because they have some bitterness towards the company who pulled out. Surely nobody can truly say Boston's are better than Polk.

If you do your research and check other sites, you will see some love Polks. The LSI 15's were rated best speaker of 2003 on one site I saw. They are favoured to the Paradigm studio 100's and some B & W products.

i guess I am asking for honest opinions and experiences. Speakers are personal preference I know.

 

[sjdgpt]

I am a Polk LSi fan.

You are right, they are not the "best" speaker on the market. IMHO that title goes to Martin Logan. Neither are Polk's the "best" speaker ever made, that title IMHO goes to Apogee.

Ok, now get back into the real world. Apogee is off the market, and my HT room isn't big enough, much less my whole house, to properly showcase the ML's that I want.

So Polk is a "compromise" speaker for me. And I don't feel like I compromised very much.

The LSi's are some pretty serious speakers. A full bodied, without being chesty or boomy, bass and upper bass. The mid range and tweeter is just wonderful, a very clean sound with great detail, without being bright or too vivid.

Are there other speakers on the market to consider at the same price range? Sure.

Did I mention the LSi's look good?


Most audio-nuts go "nuts" over what they don't have, can't have, or can't afford. Maybe that is why the snoooty nose audio boutiques don't like Polk.... they are readily available and affordable, and often already owned by a prospective customer.

 

[howie85]

Love my Polks

I had my polks for a few years unitl I decided to bi amp them. I thought they sounded good but not great. They sound much better now, like I bought all new speakers. I have not had the opportunity to listen to many upscale spkrs but from what I have heard I feel like im in the ballpark anyway.
My Polks
Curt

 

[20to20K]

I agree with SJDGPT on the Polks...

I own Polk LSi15's (in fact driven by a 3805) and while I'm very happy with them I realize there no where near the best speakers made. I feel I got the most speaker for my money...and I compared them to several.

I also agree that the LSi series sound much better than the RTi's. I found the RTI12's to be bright to the point of fatigue while auditioning. Nothing the audio guy did seem to help them. The LSi15's cost me only $100 more but they blew them away both musically and aesthically...I think they're really gorgeous speakers. High quality construction, real wood, very heavy.

I recently went back to Tweeter to see if anything there warrented taking advantage of their great upgrade policy. If I could find something that sounded marginally better for $1000 or less I would have upgraded. I listened to the Martin Logans, the Sonus Fabers, and a couple others and the only ones Tweeter had that sounded better to me where the Faber Grand Pianos. They sound awesome and how that little enclosure delivers that much bass is beyond me. They where $3500 however and I didn't think they sounded $2000 better. I know Logans are suppose to be hot doodoo but they didn't to my ears for some reason. I hear that wiring, amplification and positioning for Logans are very critical and maybe none of the above was done correctly.

Don't let the mass market stigma stop you from getting the Polks. If you like them, and they're in your budget...get those bad boys. I love mine and until I'm in a position to spend around $5000 on a pair of new speakers I have absolutely no intention on upgrading. Those snooty audio-fools aren't gonna help you balance your checkbook when payment comes due on those Wilsons!

To this date the best speakers I ever heard was a pair of vintage B&W 808's from the mid 80's that an uncle of mine has. Those cost about $7500 BACK THEN!

 

[Johnny Canuck]

Thanks everyone....

20to20k.....aren't the LsI15's 4ohm speakers? Will my Denon 3805/NAD 2200 drive them ok?

Also, you said you have compared the RTI12's to the LSI15's side by side....how is the bass in the 15's compared to the 12's.? Don't the 15s use a side mount driver? Are room acoustics and room size more important for that kind of thing?

Like I said , the RTI12's are extremely week in bass IMO compared to what everyone says about them. However, I may be expecting too much as i love bass. I don't find the 12's overly bright now when I took the NAD off the highs.

If there is anyone else who has done a side by side i would love your input. I see some on the Polk site like the RT series better. Maybe because the RT's apparantly are better for HT and the LS is for music. I ama 75% music 25% movies...are the LS good for HT too? The Polk site can be a little PRO POLK so I would love to hear from some others...


Thanks

 

[Francious70]

I've got a pair of R50's and I absolutly love them. They have good extension down to 50Hz, which is good considering it only has 2 6.5" drivers and a tweeter.

Are there better speakers on the market?? Absolutly

Are Polk speakers an excellent value for what you get?? Absolutly

Will I love my Polks until I actually have money?? Peobally don't see myself needing to upgrade, unless one breaks or somthing.

Paul

 

[20to20K]

Thanks everyone....

20to20k.....aren't the LsI15's 4ohm speakers? Will my Denon 3805/NAD 2200 drive them ok?

Also, you said you have compared the RTI12's to the LSI15's side by side....how is the bass in the 15's compared to the 12's.? Don't the 15s use a side mount driver? Are room acoustics and room size more important for that kind of thing?

Like I said , the RTI12's are extremely week in bass IMO compared to what everyone says about them. However, I may be expecting too much as i love bass. I don't find the 12's overly bright now when I took the NAD off the highs.

If there is anyone else who has done a side by side i would love your input. I see some on the Polk site like the RT series better. Maybe because the RT's apparantly are better for HT and the LS is for music. I ama 75% music 25% movies...are the LS good for HT too? The Polk site can be a little PRO POLK so I would love to hear from some others...


Thanks

Yes the Polks are 4 ohm speakers and while my 3805 did an admirable job driving them (and my other 3 speakers) on their own...I didn't really hear how
good the speakers sounded until I got my ATI amplifier. I imagine your NAD would do them similiar justice.

In my side by side comparison with the RTi12's the bass on the LSi15's blew them away. I didn't have to do anything fancy with speaker placement for the LSi's either at home or in the audio shop. I tried moving the RTi's around to get better bass without luck. We also tried different recievers, outboard amps, etc and nothing could give them the bass I was looking for(nor take away the brightness I was hearing). That was a good idea biamping...we didn't try that. Driving the bass with more current from the NAD and leaving the highs more laid back with the lower current AVR is probably what did the trick.

You have to realize that all of this is subjective. Based on what you read it sounds like SOMEBODY thought the RTi12's had nice bass...maybe it just wasn't the bass that we're looking for...i.e. more mid bass vs. deep pipe organ bass or whatever.

I brought some Marcus Miller CD's which are bass heavy, Dave Holland quintet, fusion stuff with Dennis Chambers on drums, Brothers Johnson,
even some rap (Tribe Called Quest) and the LSi's were thumpin' while the RTis were sleeping...at least to my ears.

As far as the HT/music thing goes...umm...I guess I'm.... lets say 78.5% music and 21.5% movies (but that's just an estimate!) But remember, research shows that 86.32894% of all statistics are made up out of thin air! Seriously...music is much more important to me than movies. In fact I didn't even bring any DVD's with me when I went to audition speakers.

Then again I have absolutely no complaints about how the LSi series perform while watching movies. I had Spidey 2 on the other day and that operating room scene with Doc Oct had some incredibly intense sound and the LSi really engulfed me in it. Actually freaked my 12 year old son out so much he asked me to turn it down some!

Bottom line is don't listen to me, don't listen to the audio shop guy, and for God's sake don't listen to the Polk website! We're all here for support and information...the decision has to be with your ears(and wallet). Any decent audio shop should have a 30 day return policy and certainly an upgrade policy. Take advantage of this and try them out in you home if you can't reach a definitive conclusion based on audition.

Sorry about the long post....

 

[GaryZ06]

Here is my take on this....oh first off ...nice site you have here.....What constitutes the best?......What sounds good to the listener....which is objective.....no right or wrong.I have heard speakers that sound great to me but crappy to others.I have the Polk RTi12's in cherry wood and they look awesome and to me they sound great...I have them hooked up to a Pioneer 1014 but I am going to get 3 Outlaw monoblock 200-M amps to run them and my center CSi5....To me my Polks are a very good bang for the buck....Oh and for bass I have a Velodyne DLS 5000-R sub.Here is a pic of my system.

 

[howie85]

Have the NAD on the lows, not bright. Turn off my sub and I hear VERY little bass from these.

Just a thought when you tried them with your sub off did you change the settings in the Denon to NO for sub so it will direct the bass signal to the mains which should be set to Large. Sometimes little things get overlooked.

 

[howie85]

I have been thinking about upgrading my fronts to towers but then I loose the match to the rest of my system. I guess when im really ready I will have to do them all at the same time.

 

[Polkfan]

I have a pair of, now considered vintage, RT7 bookshelf speakers. They sound very good. I haven't heard any of the newer Polk speakers, but I give the RT7 three thumbs up. They rock coupled with the PSW650 sub. But they excell with Jazz and Classical, which I listen to the most.

 

[Johnny Canuck]

Nice set up GaryZ.....

quick question...how does that tile floor affect your SQ? I have hardwood laminate floors and I'm thinking my system is too bright...Tile must be much more reflecting....

 

[GaryZ06]

Nice set up GaryZ.....

quick question...how does that tile floor affect your SQ? I have hardwood laminate floors and I'm thinking my system is too bright...Tile must be much more reflecting....

Thanks Johnny......The tile definetly makes it brighter and there is some reflection......I have vaulted 11 ft. ceilings so that doesn't help.I added a area rug a little while ago and it helped and will be adding another one soon.

 

[gmauriello]

polk experience

Are you looking for HT or music? I currently have two sets of Polk RTi bookshelf speakers for 2 channel music and I think they are a very nice pair of inexpensive speakers. About a year and a half ago I went auditioning speakers for a dedicated home theater room...listened to Polk LSi series, Klipsh Reference Series, B&W, Paradigm, PSB, Energy and Definitive Technology...ended up going with 2 Def Tech systems...the procinema 100/ProCenter c2/prosub 200 tl for my family room and bp7002/clr2500/bpvx/p, bpvx, super cube 1 for theater. I absolutely love them both. Speakers are a personal preference item...what sounds good to you? the best advice I can give about this subject is find one or two places you can do side by side tests and don't forget about acoustical treatments and speaker placement because they can have a HUGE effect on sound quality. With respect to Polk, I think they have dropped in quality over the years...spending more on marketing than R&D. BTW...Sandy Gross (founder of Def Tech and co-founder of Polk) left Polk to start Def Tech because of that reason. Good luck.

 

[hifiman]

The audio world is really no different from everything else; there is an ebb and flow to everything. Brands like Polk used to be much higher up the food chain then they currently are now. Does that mean they're a bad or low quality speaker? Certainly not. I believe they represent a good bargain for the money. The last two speaker sets I have owned have been Polk. I currently have the RT12s and the matching center; I kept the bipole/dipole rears from my last setup. I like what I have now and will stick with it for the forseeable future.

 

[steve6]

polk experience

I have had numerous Polk permutations over the years (currently the Monitor 70's) and agree that there is plenty of value for the dollar. Also that Polks are decried by "audiophiles" because they are sold at places like CC. Of course, CC doesn't help itself by having terrible listening rooms with employees who know little or less about what they're selling. This isn't true of all of them, but, sadly, a lot of them.

Also note that Polk customer service is deservedly legendary and that the Polk Web site has its own very active forums, which is a nice little thing.

I would absolutely put Polk up against any of the other "budget" or "mid-fi" brands or however you want to describe it.

 

[Sheep]

Everytime I have heard polk speakers, it was at futureshop. I liked them, but not enough to buy them. I didn't find them to be too bright, but I like a warm midrange, and they didn't have it, it was dry for me.

I heard the RTi12's and some of the of RTi bookshelfs. The bookshelfs didn't sound much different then the 12's...IE: there was a lack of bass, and dynamics that usually comes from towers. Although, it was being powered by a HK Reciever. They probly have a power amp in the room for all the speakers, but a dedicated unit for each unit is going to yeild a better result.

As far as value....not really a value here. All there stuff is jacked up, and it doesn't sound good enough to warrent the price tag. The RTi12's used to sell for around $1300. They are $899 now, but thats to much.


Sheepstar

 

[hifiman]

It's a bit hard to follow what you're saying in your post Sheep, but regardless, your post helps illustrate why it is so useless for people to start threads like this one. This whole hobby is subjective in absolutely every aspect and one man's trash is another's treasure.

 

[Sheep]

It's a bit hard to follow what you're saying in your post Sheep, but regardless, your post helps illustrate why it is so useless for people to start threads like this one. This whole hobby is subjective in absolutely every aspect and one man's trash is another's treasure.

Sorry,

I, more then a shadow of a doubt, have a literacy disease. Never saw a doctor, but sometimes, I'm just worthless with words. I edited it, should make sence now....hehe jacket

SheepStar

 

[Johnny Canuck]

Well I was in a store today and heard $4000 Energy speakers, being powered by Parasound amps and a Denon 3910. They sounded like crap IMO. I feel I paid too much for my Polk RTI 12's, but after hearing this Energy crap, not so much. I like detailed highs.

BTW, I would say the RTI 12's are worth about $1000-$1200 Canadian. I paid $1600. Too much. $899 is the deal of the century. In fact, that deal was bogus as many called and they were sold out from Day 1 and "weren't getting more, took no rainchecks" I think it was a mistake.

In fact, let's ask anyone out there if they bought Polk RTI 12's for $899????

JC