B&W vs Polk

mantis

Hello,
I did a a/b/c test with B&W DM602 s2,RT35i,and a Pair of rt1000p's.I used 3 different amps.2 receivers and one power amp.
Yamaha rxv995,Denon avr3801,and a B&K st140.I used Straight Chourus 2m audio cables,Monster 14g xp speaker wire,and a Pioneer Elite pdf19 cd player.I added in a psw450 for the book shelves when vs the rt1000p's to make it closer.I also used Ultimate fountation stands filled with play sand to put to book shelves on.
I started the test with the Denon.The rt1000p's sound very detailed and clear with nice low bass.The mid and highs where nice and airy.I switched to the b&w's and found a large fall off.The tweeter was a bit bright(could be du to the fact the speakers are only 2 months old)an they had ok low bass.I added the psw450 and blended them together.The Polk sub blended very well with the B&W's.Still that tweeter was a bit to harsh.The B&W's image very well.They also were airy in the mid to upper range.Then there was the rt35i's,They seem to lost the high's and have lots of mid range and faloff in the lows as well.They sure can image ,Those little bookshelves just about dissapeared.I also added in the psw450 with them and they were alittle harder to setup.I couldn't get rid of the what seemed like a mid bass over tone.The rt1000p's are crossed over much different then there little brother's,the detail is so much cleaner in the rt1000p's that I took them out of the race as they just killed the other 2 speakers.
I then hooked up the Yamaha rxv995 for the second amp in the face off.As soon as I warmed it up and started to play it,I told me how bright it was.The B&W's lost they low bass completley.They where all mid bass and extreme high's.The B&W's didn't match well with the Yamaha.I didn't use the sub in this test as they were close on the bottom end between the 2 speakers.I had the rt35i's on the 'B' channel and the B&W's on te "A" channel.
I switched to B to listen to the rt35i's.Still they semed to have a muddy over tone in the mid bass and the highs were a little more pushed out.Image still sounded clear but sort of dead if you will.Hard to explain but I wasn't pleased with the Yamaha.
The B&K st140 was the most neutral sounding out of the 3 as it is a power amp and has much more detail.The B&W's sweetend up much as they did wth the Denon.Open and airy,low bass came back and damn owed me.Wow what a book shelf speaker for 600.00 bucks they sound fantastic.I hooked up the rt35i's and they came to life as well,The muddy bass was less present ans the high's opened up alot.Image was so killer I had to make sure my center channel(which is the cs400i)wasn't on.It sounded like the music was playing dead center,the soud stage was wide,voice was tall and u front...killer.
To final's....Rt1000p's had no comparable speaker in this test,I had them in my front so I tried them out but the just killed the other 2 so bad I tooked them out.But the B&W DM602 s2 and the Polk rt35i's were much closer.
And the Winner here is....The B&W DM602 s2 for just cleaner, more open sound stage.But they sucked bad with the Yamaha.
The rt35i's didn't get killed but they do have a problem with mid bass low bass mud.I own all the Polk's in this test but the B&W's are owned by a friend of mine.
I learned(relearned) that not all apsand speakers mate well.The B&w sound so much better with the B&K and denon.The rt35i's did as well but mated better with the Yamaha.

juice21

thanks for the informative post. lots of fun stuff to play with, eh? what does your friend drive his B&W's with? i have demoed B&W's on several occasions, and they are wonderful speakers. i think if i every had 2 setups, i may have one polk and one B&W. another great product for the money, but still pretty pricy over the polks.

mantis

Hello,
My freind power's these speaker's with an Integra amp it's 160x2.It has 2 big green meter's on the front.I forget the model number.They sound great with that amp.He also uses a Yamaha rxv1 but I never heard them thew that.
Dan

juice21

interga's are great. i first demoed my polk's at a local dealer powered with integra components!!! my kenwood reciever is doing quite fine for now, but an upgrade is on the horizon...

juice21

bye the way, welcome to the forum:D

mantis

Thanks Juice but Ive been on the post since the beginning of time.I haven't posted post in awhile.I'm a custom Home Theater Installer and I don't get much computer time.his new forum is nice but I liked the old one better.
If you really want to here your Polk's you should look into B&K.I own a st140 2 channel amp,I had the avr307 installed in my rack.man let mt tell you it's such a nice combo they both compliment each other well.I have used Pineer Elite vsx26tx,Yamaha rxv995 and 992,and a Denon avr3801.Not I even comes close to B&K
Dan

juice21

i'll have to demo the B&K, i have to be honest with you. i've never considered them with my polks. i'll have to give them a listen. man, you have the life custom installs. i'm an architect, which i love (just had a museum opening firday evening), but i have seriously considered going into a 'home theater architect' trade with my passion for audio/video.

RuSsMaN

B&W 602 s2 - ~$600 a pair

RT35i's on a bad day - ~$349 a pair

Neither one is the last word in bookshelf speakers, but I do believe to an extent, you get what you pay for.

Compare $350 bookshelfs or $600, not one to the other....
For instance, DM303's ($300) against the RT35i ($300 @ Crutch)..

Both 6.5's, both 1 inch domes, both relative same size, both rear ported.


Cheers,
Russ