Polk audio

[hillclimber]

I work for a company that has a very good working relationship with a local Mom & Pop electronics store. I can get a pretty amazing deal on a set of:
RTi A7's floor standing left and right
CSi A6 center channel
FXi A6's surrounds
DSW pro 600 powered sub.

Am I wasting time with these speakers? I basically want home theatre type speakers, but will listen to music in the background occasionaly.

My basement is 18' wide and 54' deep, with a slight angled turn half way. Where the room shifts is about 18' from the projector screen.
I was thinking along the lines of a either a Pioneer elite, Onkyo, or Yamaha receiver, in the 130 watt/channel class (7.2 channel).

If you need more info it is available. My budget for the speakers is around 2000.00 CAD.

Any thoughts or comments are welcomed whole heartedly. Just starting to get my feet wet in this and don't want to have to buy twice. The wife would probably string me up!!

 

[blued888]

Your choices are good. Might want to consider an internet-direct subwoofer though? Not sure how much you're getting your DSW Pro 600 for.

Since you're in Canada you can also consider SVS. Maybe you could go with a SVS PB10-NSD for your subwoofer. It has been tested to reach down to 19Hz. The Polk sub you mentioned only goes down to 25Hz.

 

[Gohanto]

I agree with blued888 that going with a different brand sub will get you more for your money. Polk makes wonderful speakers, but their subs don't really measure up as well.

And for a room the size of yours, I'd strongly suggest looking at least towards a PB12-NSD from SVS. Other solid sub brands are eD, HSU, Epik, and Velodyne, although I've owned an SVS for 5 years and it's still my favorite part of my system.

 

[blued888]

He might not be able to go for eD, Hsu or Epik since he appears to be from Canada.

SVS Subwoofers at Sonicboom Audio

 

[R-Carpenter]

No matter what the deal is, if you don't like them in the end, it'll be a disappointment. I'd listen to the speakers first. Personally, I can't listen to Polk speakers and find them irritating but to each it's own.

 

[cfrizz]

Hi Hillclimber. That will be an outstanding setup. The new RTIa line sounds quite different from the old RTI series. And the new DSW line of Polk subs is simply outstanding!

I heard a few of them at a gathering in Oct at Polk HQ in Baltimore that was held for the members of Club Polk, and they seriously rocked. I want one for myself.

Go over to www.polkaudio.com/forums/

We have lots of newbies who have joined to rave about the new series.

 

[DonBattles]

...

I myself was looking for a speaker upgrade and Polk was at the top of my list as I had some Polk RM's and for the most part was happy with the sound. So what better than a higher end product from the same company? Well rather than just buy I went out and auditioned many speakers and at the end of it all I ended up with Monitor Audio. So before you buy, no matter how good the deal seems, go out and listen to as many different brands as you can. As for the sub I went SVS based on what I have read here.

 

[hillclimber]

Thanks

I appreciate the feedback from everyone that responded.

Does anyone know of a retailer in Canada that will come and do a home demo? I have listened to so many speakers in so many different rooms that even the same identical speaker can sound amazing in one place and like a transistor radio in another

Once again, thanks to everyone.

 

[cl35m]

No matter what the deal is, if you don't like them in the end, it'll be a disappointment. I'd listen to the speakers first. Personally, I can't listen to Polk speakers and find them irritating but to each it's own.

I agree. All their new stuff is made in china and I've heard many complaints about them sounding too harsh and bright. That's why I only buy their used vintage audiophile quality speakers which can be bought at very reasonable prices on the bay and a'gon.

 

[allargon]

I agree. All their new stuff is made in china and I've heard many complaints about them sounding too harsh and bright. That's why I only buy their used vintage audiophile quality speakers which can be bought at very reasonable prices on the bay and a'gon.

Their stuff being made in China has nothing to do with them sounding harsh or bright. Even the speakers assembled (not really made here) in the US have parts imported from China. That's just manufacturing reality.

 

[cl35m]

Their stuff being made in China has nothing to do with them sounding harsh or bright. Even the speakers assembled (not really made here) in the US have parts imported from China. That's just manufacturing reality.

Good point. That must mean that Polk has a serious research and development problem.

 

[R-Carpenter]

I think it's a multitude of problems.
Large company such as Polk should have no difficulty at all designing great sounding loudspeakers. They have resources, finances and knowledge to do so.
The main problem as I see it, is not giving a flying duck about the end result and trying to compete with cheaper brands. This rat race for a budget speakers brings bad results. Polk use to be known as a good company, manufacturing good speakers and as far as I know they hold a few pattens. Now they are just another cheap brand, made in China.
I've been in woodworking and manufacturing for the last 15 years and I have too tell you guys, manufacturing in US can be done efficiently and profitably. Quality control is also way better.
It's then the company trying to squeeze every penny, lets go of a reputation, then it's a problem.

 

[audion3wb]

That is a rediculously large listening room first of all. Other than using commercial speakers it will be really hard to fill it with sound on a $2000.00 budget. I have the same setup and I used to have a DSWPRO500 for a subwoofer. First thing is first and that is to stay away from the polk subs. They just plain suck in my opinion. They may be fine for a small apartment but if you have a large listening room you need to go internet direct. I would look as SVS or HSU for a sub. The RTI A lineup overall in its price range isn't bad, yes there are better but it really depends on a lot of things. For me asthetically I found them to be the most appealing in their price range. I hear that axioms suffer from being bright also but they are probably more detailed than the polks. Also their cabinets are very box shaped and have cheaper finishes than the RTI-A. Had I been more patient and done more research I would have probably purchased rockets from av123, but that is in hindsight. All in all I am happy with my speakers. So give them a listen, and listen to some others companies too. If you like what you hear then its money well spent.

 

[cl35m]

I think it's a multitude of problems.
Large company such as Polk should have no difficulty at all designing great sounding loudspeakers. They have resources, finances and knowledge to do so.
The main problem as I see it, is not giving a flying duck about the end result and trying to compete with cheaper brands. This rat race for a budget speakers brings bad results. Polk use to be known as a good company, manufacturing good speakers and as far as I know they hold a few pattens. Now they are just another cheap brand, made in China.
I've been in woodworking and manufacturing for the last 15 years and I have too tell you guys, manufacturing in US can be done efficiently and profitably. Quality control is also way better.
It's then the company trying to squeeze every penny, lets go of a reputation, then it's a problem.

I agree. They've gone from making $3000 audiophile grade/quality speakers to $599 HTIB junk and overpriced at that. I saw them in BB yesterday and had to laugh.

 

[zoinks]

I agree. They've gone from making $3000 audiophile grade/quality speakers to $599 HTIB junk and overpriced at that. I saw them in BB yesterday and had to laugh.

You sure you're not just bitter because of your history with Club Polk?

 

[cfrizz]

BINGO!!!!!

You sure you're not just bitter because of your history with Club Polk?

 

[cl35m]

You sure you're not just bitter because of your history with Club Polk?

I'm still a big fan of their vintage stuff as you can tell by my signature but their current stuff is overpriced k-mart and/or wal-mart level products.

 

[dorokusai]

There's no reason to pollute this forum with hatred of a place you were removed(banned) from by the owners....not the moderators, so let it go, move on with your life Carl.

Mark

 

[dorokusai]

Originally Posted by allargon
"Their stuff being made in China has nothing to do with them sounding harsh or bright. Even the speakers assembled (not really made here) in the US have parts imported from China. That's just manufacturing reality." - allargon

Absolutely correct.

"Good point. That must mean that Polk has a serious research and development problem." - CL35

Polk Audio R&D homebase is Baltimore, MD....for the record. There is no problem, only the ebb and flow of any loudspeaker company in 2009.

I'm sorry you feel the way you do.