Speaker selection woes

[kidintraffic]

Well I went ahead and purchased the Polk R50s to be used as the fronts of my system. I have some older speakers that I will be using as my surrounds.

I still want to pick up a good center channel to match the R50s. I read about the Polk CS-2, but I heard both good and bad about it. Suggestions?

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Well I went ahead and purchased the Polk R50s to be used as the fronts of my system. I have some older speakers that I will be using as my surrounds.

I still want to pick up a good center channel to match the R50s. I read about the Polk CS-25, but I heard both good and bad about it. Suggestions?

I say just get 5 of the R50s + 1 subwoofer.

Or get 6 of the R50s for a 6.1 system.

 

[kidintraffic]

I say just get 5 of the R50s + 1 subwoofer.

Or get 6 of the R50s for a 6.1 system.

So use an R50 as a center? hmmm... Didn't think about that. Do you recommend a certain subwoofer? Remember, while I don't have a set budget, I still am trying to keep my cost low.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

So use an R50 as a center? hmmm... Didn't think about that. Do you recommend a certain subwoofer? Remember, while I don't have a set budget, I still am trying to keep my cost low.

HSU has a $300 subwoofer that is pretty good for the price.
http://www.hsuresearch.com/products/stf-1.html

I think the first thing you should do is listen to the pair of R50s you just ordered.

If they sound great to you (like they do to my brother), then just get more of them for a 5.1 or 6.1 setup.

Having identical speakers all around is an excellent idea.

 

[kidintraffic]

Thanks for the advice. I was already planning on picking up at least two more, if I like the sound of them once they are hooked up. That will probably help me on a decision on what type of sub I should get as well.

 

[jostenmeat]

What do you think about the Polk R50s? Fry's has them on sale right now and I was thinking about picking two up to start piecing things together.

I am sorry I did not get back in time before you ordered, but I have found the greatest disappointment with the bottom of the line Polks. Maybe you will have better luck. I cannot think of a more disappointing speaker, but I realize that they are very affordable.

I'd rather a pair of studio monitors for something similar, like Behringer 2030p or KRK st6.

I do have a decent set of older speakers that I could use for my rears. So that would leave me with needing a decent center channel to go with the Polk R50s. What would be a good match for these speakers? Would rather stay within Polk if I end up with the R50s.

Yes, definitely, if you are keeping these, then buy the closest thing to a matching center. Whether identical to main, or within the same line (matching center), and if none of those are possible, then within at least the same brand from around the same "era" of when they were designed.

 

[kidintraffic]

I am sorry I did not get back in time before you ordered, but I have found the greatest disappointment with the bottom of the line Polks. Maybe you will have better luck. I cannot think of a more disappointing speaker, but I realize that they are very affordable.

I appreciate the honesty. I'll see how they sound once they get here. Like I said before I'm not looking for something amazing right now. Just trying to start getting into the hobby and then see how everything goes from there. I ended up going with the recommend center to match the fronts. Polk CS2.

 

[skers_54]

I have the R50's in my living room. They're decent for watching tv, the occassional movie and parties. Not so much with music. The Behringers (which cost the same) are leaps and bounds better if you find the Polks lacking. The R50s were my first "real" speakers too, so I suspect that you'll enjoy them .

 

[kidintraffic]

The R50s and CS2 came in today. Found that the R50s are a little lacking on the low end. Not sure if I should buy two more of those and a sub or just spend a little more cash on 2 more fronts and move these to the rear.

Within the Polk line, what are a good set of towers to match the CS2 within a decent price range?

 

[kidintraffic]

I'm actually thinking that since I want to stay at a lower budget, picking up 2 more R50s and a Dayton sub may be a good route to go. Yes? No?

I like the overall sound of the R50 just want a bit more umpff factor.

 

[kidintraffic]

The more I listen to the R50s, the lack of bass is less apparent. If I go with another pair of the R50s, I'll definitely be picking up a sub at the same time...just to fill in the empty sound space.

OK another idea I'm throwing around is pick up a pair of Polk Monitor 50s for the fronts and put the R50s in the rear? Are the Monitor 50s worth the extra money?

How do the Monitor 50s sound compared to the R50s? Opinions on both. Thanks

 

[Exit]

Does anyone recommend any other speaker systems for a budget of around $500 give or take?

Gene recommends the TSAT-1000-HT8-B 5.1 System from the Speaker Company for $399. You can see what you make of it at the link below:

http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/speakers/satellite/tsat-1000-ht8-b

If you just want to start out with a pair of towers and expand later, Tom Andry has a lot of good things to say about the TST2 speakers from the Speaker Company for $499/pair.

http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/speakers/floorstanding/tsc-tst2

I still like the EMP HTP-351 5.1 Speaker system for $489 (posted earlier in the thread) because I heard them and they can fill a large room with quality sound. The subwoofer is also pretty good - going down to 30 Hz.