Worthwile Upgrade?
intangible
Posts: 262
Hey, guys. As you can tell from my join date and low post count, I am new to the world of decent audio equipment and could use a little help evaluating a possible upgrade.
Right now, I have a pair of Polk S10 speakers that I got from a nice fellow off of Craigslist. They are far and away the best speakers I've ever heard, but my other listening experience is unfortunately limited to basically the few pairs of bookshelves I own. There is a pair of Klipsch Chorus II speakers up on Craigslist at the moment for $600, which is a decent price from what I can tell. I am fairly certain that this would be an upgrade but have no idea if it will be the jaw-dropping transition that going from Monitor 40 bookshelves and AV receiver to the S10s and a real amp was or if it will just be an incremental gain. $600 is a large amount of money at my current salary; too much for the latter.
The other thought that I had but have no idea how to validate other simply asking is that perhaps the speakers aren't the limiting stage at the moment, so what might otherwise be a major upgrade would give minimal results. My signal path:
Asus Xonar DX -> ADCOM GTP-500II -> B&K ST1400 -> Polk S10
In the mail is a Yaqin CD2 tube buffer that will go in there where it sounds best that I picked up with hopes of more liquid mids and a larger sound stage after reading the rave reviews of it. I am using the 10" Emotiva sub to shore up the S10s, but I don't believe that would be necessary with the Chorus IIs, so it would go to dedicated home theater use. A few of you were nice enough to advise me on crossovers on the electronics board, but I have stalled that search after noticing this Craigslist ad until a decision is made.
Sorry for the rambling post and general lack of knowledge about anything. I appreciate any advice given.
Right now, I have a pair of Polk S10 speakers that I got from a nice fellow off of Craigslist. They are far and away the best speakers I've ever heard, but my other listening experience is unfortunately limited to basically the few pairs of bookshelves I own. There is a pair of Klipsch Chorus II speakers up on Craigslist at the moment for $600, which is a decent price from what I can tell. I am fairly certain that this would be an upgrade but have no idea if it will be the jaw-dropping transition that going from Monitor 40 bookshelves and AV receiver to the S10s and a real amp was or if it will just be an incremental gain. $600 is a large amount of money at my current salary; too much for the latter.
The other thought that I had but have no idea how to validate other simply asking is that perhaps the speakers aren't the limiting stage at the moment, so what might otherwise be a major upgrade would give minimal results. My signal path:
Asus Xonar DX -> ADCOM GTP-500II -> B&K ST1400 -> Polk S10
In the mail is a Yaqin CD2 tube buffer that will go in there where it sounds best that I picked up with hopes of more liquid mids and a larger sound stage after reading the rave reviews of it. I am using the 10" Emotiva sub to shore up the S10s, but I don't believe that would be necessary with the Chorus IIs, so it would go to dedicated home theater use. A few of you were nice enough to advise me on crossovers on the electronics board, but I have stalled that search after noticing this Craigslist ad until a decision is made.
Sorry for the rambling post and general lack of knowledge about anything. I appreciate any advice given.
Post edited by intangible on
Comments
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I would say that is a sound idea for an upgrade. Not that we want you to run from Polks.
Seems like a good price if they are in good working order. But you could probably find a set of Polk SDA 1C's for that price that would blow you away.. -
Well, someone else appears to have snapped them up, which makes my decision a whole lot easier.
SDAs are the other line I look for beside the heritage line, but the S10s I have now are the nicest Polk speakers I've seen for sale around here (St. Louis) in the five months or so I've been looking. I'm glad to know either would be a decent upgrade and will keep looking. Thank you for your input. -
SDA's are out there. It might take a while and maybe even a bit of a road trip. Keep looking at CL, E-Bay and Audiogon. There out there, just be a bit patient.
Also keep an eye on this forum post.
http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29951&page=43
