speaker upgrade opinion form polk ot klipsch

C

cheapskete OCer

Audioholic
i currently have polk r50s fronts cs2 center and 2 pairs of r15s for surround and rears..Im wanting to get klipsch rf82 fronts rc62 center and im undecided on rears just 5.1 for now thats all i can afford im thinking a pair of rs 35s

Do you think that would be a big upgrade. i can get everything for under 1300. and im hoping to sell all my polk for about 500-600 so i would then only be spending 700

I really want the dual 8" woofers in my fronts so i can send some lower frequency sounds to them..
any thoughts...thanks
 
GlocksRock

GlocksRock

Audioholic Spartan
I think the polk setup you have now is pretty decent, but I also think you would notice a big improvement in sound quality with the Klipsch Reference series. I would also get a sub even with dual woofers in your front towers.
 
bandphan

bandphan

Banned
what sub are you using and what is the crossover set at. If you were looking for a full range stereo speaker and no home theater your logic would make for more of an upgrade. If you have an avr that can keep multiple crossover setups you could also achieve a stereo setup with ht. If your only looking for more low bass, i suggest upgrading the sub, and not looking to over drive your mains just imo
 
Pyrrho

Pyrrho

Audioholic Ninja
i currently have polk r50s fronts cs2 center and 2 pairs of r15s for surround and rears..Im wanting to get klipsch rf82 fronts rc62 center and im undecided on rears just 5.1 for now thats all i can afford im thinking a pair of rs 35s

Do you think that would be a big upgrade.

It does not matter whether we think it is a big upgrade. You will be listening to them (and paying for them), not us. From listening to the speakers, do YOU regard it as an upgrade, and, if so, enough to justify the cost and trouble of getting them? Have you listened to a wide variety of speakers, of as many types as you can find (e.g., domes, horns, ribbons, etc.), that are in your price range? If you have not listened to a variety of speakers, you need to do that first to make sure you are getting something that you will not quickly regret.


i can get everything for under 1300. and im hoping to sell all my polk for about 500-600 so i would then only be spending 700

Hoping for, and getting, are two different things. Do you have a buyer at that price? Is that what people are paying for your models of speakers, in the condition yours are in, on places like eBay? If not, then you should probably revise your expectations.


I really want the dual 8" woofers in my fronts so i can send some lower frequency sounds to them..
any thoughts...thanks

Dual 8" woofers on front channel speakers are no substitute for a good subwoofer. What subwoofer are you using? If you are wanting more bass, your best bet is buying a new and better subwoofer, not new front speakers.
 
GlocksRock

GlocksRock

Audioholic Spartan
I don't think you will get what you are asking for your polk stuff, I sold my R15's for $50 a pair, and I think I got about $100 for my R30s, and I think I sold my old CS2 for $200. So you may get lucky and find someone who will pay that much, but I wouldn't hold my breath.
 
C

ChunkyDark

Full Audioholic
You can buy those r50s new for ~75 each shipped and a new cs2 ~150. So with what GlocksRock wrote I'd say ~250 would be a more reasonable expectation.
I don't say this to be spiteful, but just help with your pricing for a new system.
 
C

cheapskete OCer

Audioholic
I have a subwoofer already its a Epik Knight 15" ..My reciever is the onkyo 705 so it has the double bass option if i want to run the lows to the fronts aswell.
As far as listening to the speakers. i live in iowa and the only place close that has speakers to listen to is Best buy and American tv in desmoines and there demo rooms suck half of the stuff isnt hooked up. I have always wanted a big klipsch set up..and i know i can get the rf 35 package without the sub for $1400
but if spend that much money i would hope the speakers to keep me happy for atleast 5yrs.. I have only had the polks for about 18months and i like them but woot had the rf 35s on sale last weekend for $505 a pair shipped and i didnt buy them because i just bought a new HT couch the day before, but now im regretting not buying them and i have been thinking about new speakers since..:D

as far as the bass is concerned i have plenty now but.. the Epik woofer carries through the entire house like crazy and i have my stereo on alot for tv and xbox it would be nice to on occasion turn the sub off for my G/Fs sake and have some decent bass coming out of the fronts that doesnt carry through the entire house.
 
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itschris

itschris

Moderator
I think it may be hard to sell your speakers for that much unfortunately, but you never know. Even though I've never been a huge fan of Klipsch, I'd definately lean that way over the polks. I've had a chance to listen to some new Klipsch and I have to say they're not nearly as harsh as they used to be... or at least the way I always remembered them.
 
bandphan

bandphan

Banned
this could be a slight lateral move. id expand your upgrade options;)
 
J

jamie2112

Banned
I would have to agree with Bandphan on this one. I think you should audition as many speakers as you can even though you are in Iowa I bet you could listen to some other choices. IMO you can do better than Klipsh....just a thought....
 
WmAx

WmAx

Audioholic Samurai
I would recommend that, to spend your money more wisely, you should do much more research. The Klipsh is no hi-fidelity speaker - perhaps less so than the Polks you have. What the Klipsche is, is a high SPL speaker with a very directional high frequency dispersion pattern, leading to a, uhm, what might be best described as a 'headphone like' treble characteristic that gives it one of it's signature characteristics. The cabinets are very poorly designed/built on all Klipsch speakers(including the Reference line), being very high in cabinet talk/resonance, causing severe timbre distortion. I realize that most audio enthusiasts don't realize it - but it causes a profound impact on the sound signature. In fact, if you are very interested in music listening, and if you want to spend around $1500 and get a true/drastic upgrade, go for the Paradigm S1 speakers and couple them with a decent subwoofer. It's a 2 channel solution - but 2 darn good channels will beat out 5 medicore ones any day of the week. Buy a 3rd S1 later down the road for a center channel and use two inexpensive speakers for the rear channels(these are the least important - and primarily only contain effect/ambiance cues anyways). The S1 speakers, while not being completely inert I expect, will be far lower in resonance, due to their solid cast metal cabinets with bracing molded in every 2.5"-3" or so. The S1 also has exceptional off axis dispersion - pretty much superior to any other hi-fi monopolar speaker I know of, except some other Paradigm models and a pro audio monitor using a similar HF assembly. If you want to go cheap, I can still recommend speaker that fit the application for better fidelity as compared to Klipsche.

-Chris
 
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