RTi color choice?

discome

What is everyone's favorite color choice for the RTi series? I am going to be getting some new RTi A1 speakers and can't decide between the black or the cherry finish. Is the cherry finish very "red" or is it more muted? Most photos I see seem to not show the cherry color very well. Are both colors very "shiny"? It seems from photos that the cherry may be less shiny than the black which seem to be glossy form the photos I've seen. I don't have anywhere local to really get a good view of the finishes and I am trying to figure out which would look better in my living room setup. The black may blend in to the background a little more but the cherry seem like if they aren't too "red" that they really could be excellent looking in person.

thoughts?

cstmar01

personally I like the cherry but black looks great as well. They cherry has a more reddish tint to it, IE thats why its called cherry I beleive but ya know I can be wrong.
Cherry sometimes can be hard to come by depending on where your trying to buy the stuff from.

discome

I am leaning towards the cherry color, but my entertainment center is a medium sort of "walnut" finish and these A1's would be sitting on top of it (about 5.75 feet off the ground). I just want to make sure the cherry wouldn't clash too much. There are a few online vendors that have both black and cherry. I guess I could find one with a good return policy and buy the cherry, but that is taking a risk (plus being out the cost of shipping, etc). Any other thoughts???

mystik610

discome wrote: »

I am leaning towards the cherry color, but my entertainment center is a medium sort of "walnut" finish and these A1's would be sitting on top of it (about 5.75 feet off the ground). I just want to make sure the cherry wouldn't clash too much. There are a few online vendors that have both black and cherry. I guess I could find one with a good return policy and buy the cherry, but that is taking a risk (plus being out the cost of shipping, etc). Any other thoughts???

Here are a couple of pictures I took a while back that compare the black against the cherry. The cherry will match just about any wood furniture or floors. My 'tv stand' is a dark ash color, and the 8's match very well. They have a very rich, deep color that only real wood can deliver. Pictures don't do them justice.

Being that they're made of real cherry wood, the color will darken over time, especially if exposed to direct sunlight. Interstingly enough, about a month back I picked up a CSi5 on ebay, and the finishes don't match.....My CSi5 is lighter and more reddish...my RTi8's are darker and look more like a rose-nut finish.

leroyjr1

Love the cherry finish but the black goes with everything. Cherry is also very hard to match with other cherry products where black is black.

Norm Apter

I guess its just a matter of personal taste. I wouldn't even consider cherry, even though the Lsi in cherry do look nice. I have 8 different speakers from the RtiA line in two different systems, and I chose black for each. They're not quite as 'showy' as in "look at me" sort of way, but the black does exude a kind of subtle elegance. And they just seem to blend into the room better in a neutral sort of way, which is what I want more than something that sticks out. If you want "show pieces", on the other hand, the cherry might be better suited to you.

comfortablycurt

cstmar01 wrote: »

personally I like the cherry but black looks great as well. They cherry has a more reddish tint to it, IE thats why its called cherry I beleive but ya know I can be wrong.
Cherry sometimes can be hard to come by depending on where your trying to buy the stuff from.

For the record...Cherry isn't always going to have a reddish tint. It's called cherry because the veneer is cherry wood from a Cherry Tree.;)

Cherry can have a wide range of colors, it can be a light, off whitish color that's almost pinkish, all the way to a really deep, bright red...and anywhere in between. It can also have a more brownish tint to it depending on how it's finished.


I like both finish's quite a bit. The black is going to blend better with a wider range of decor though. As others have mentioned, the cherry can be hard to blend with other furniture in your room, where as black is black.

Toolfan66

Black!!!

kevhed72

Black....some wood "colors" become dated looking over-time as styles change, but black is forever IMO. I attempt to all my audio / video gear in black.

virtualdean

discome wrote: »

What is everyone's favorite color choice for the RTi series? I am going to be getting some new RTi A1 speakers and can't decide between the black or the cherry finish. Is the cherry finish very "red" or is it more muted? Most photos I see seem to not show the cherry color very well. Are both colors very "shiny"? It seems from photos that the cherry may be less shiny than the black which seem to be glossy form the photos I've seen. I don't have anywhere local to really get a good view of the finishes and I am trying to figure out which would look better in my living room setup. The black may blend in to the background a little more but the cherry seem like if they aren't too "red" that they really could be excellent looking in person.
thoughts?

I like Cherry. Black is too mundane for me. My a9s are cherry and they look beautiful. I love the looks of different wood grains and stains. Black hides all that. My furniture ranges from medium rosewood to brownish teak. They fit right in. Too each his own I guess. You need to go to see them in person.

enjoy

mystik610

virtualdean wrote: »

I like Cherry. Black is too mundane for me. My a9s are cherry and they look beautiful. I love the looks of different wood grains and stains. Black hides all that. My furniture ranges from medium rosewood to brownish teak. They fit right in. Too each his own I guess. You need to go to see them in person.

enjoy

To me it depends on the decor of your house.

If you're in a room with a lot of warm colors, and a lot of wood, then Cherry speakers will blend seamlessly with the room and draw less attention to themselves. If you have any kind of wood floors, Cherry speakers are the way to go. I like my Cherry RTi8's because they actually look like a well thought out part of my decor. Wood stains really don't need to match perfectly in a room...in fact you usually want contrasting wood finishes to give the room some accent.

Big black speakers will draw a lot of attention to themselves in rooms with a lot of warm colors and wood....even though black is a default color for electronic equipment. That being said, if your decor utilizes a lot of black and metal furniture (a metal TV stand or component stand for instance), then black speakers will blend more seamlessly in the room.

Sherardp

See my sig line for pics. When the lights are down the black just blends in. I like them but if you have wood entertainment center or what have you then you may opt for the cherry. Both are nice IMHO. Pick the one that blends in with your decor and room settings.

discome

I ended up going for black. I now have the RTi A1s in black sitting on top of my entertainment center and I think I made the right choice. They look good, but they also blend into the background. They sound good as well, though I am waiting on my sub (DSW) to arrive to really fill in the low end.

searay40dad

leroyjr1 wrote: »

love the cherry finish but the black goes with everything. Cherry is also very hard to match with other cherry products where black is black.

+1...