Polk 10b vs Norman labs 10

erniejade

I picked up a set of normal labs 10 today. Pics see this thread
http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=111356

I got them for a good price and i figured if I didnt like them, I could sell them for what I paid for.

Now, i know they would not be able to compete with my carver amazings, or 1.2 or 2.3's. My 2nd system is in my living room 18x13. Right now it has some " spare parts" that i am using polk 10b, McIntosh 2105, sony 300 disk ( someone gave it to me and it is not bad for free LOL) and a onkyo p3200 preamp. The music Ray Lamontagne God Willin and the Creek don't rise.

1st up the polk 10b, stings and mid is strong throughout, You can hear the bass strings being hit on the beginning of repo man. THe bass itself is solid but not over powering like hard thump. The upper range can get a bit on the harsher side if pushed too hard but for normal volume, they are fine. Solid speaker except for the finish. I wish they would have used something different. To me with the grills off you can see it is veneer and I think it looks cheap.

The Norman labs 10, ( not sure on what the original price was ) 1st thing right off the bat the bass. WOW. Surprising low they hit. It is not sloppy it is tight. for how light the speakers are it is tight!!!!! Mids are lacking and the highs are very laid back. the opening on repo man the room shook with authority but because the mids to me are a bit too relaxed it was missing some authority. The tweeters are smooth and having 2 per speaker i would think it would have more sizzle. It is a very listen-able speaker! The more i listen to it, the more i like it. I wonder if i changed the caps out if it would help open up the mids.

Now remember both speakers are from the late 70's if I am correct. Price range, no idea how much the Norman's were.



So is there a winner, NO. Not in my eyes. I love the bass out of the norman's but i love the mids off the polks. I think i am going to put on something a little more demanding and see how it does.

jmwest1970

IIRC, the Norman Laboratory Model 10 sold at $600 each back in the early 80s. I sold Norman Labs for a few years along side Polk Audio and found them to be similar to what you describe. However, I found the bass to be extremely sloppy. Most of this was due to the lower woofer being ran full range. I found the Polk 10s to be much punchier despite running dual 6.5" drivers with a PR. I discussed this with my boss, Gail Dixon, a few times and he agreed. He eventually bought Norman Laboratories and when he introduced the 432 he crossed over the lower woofer at 800Hz instead of running it full range. That made a huge difference in the tightness of bass. Another thing you'll find with the Model 10 is that the lower tweeter is crossed over much lower than you'd expect. It basically acts as an upper midrange driver. This is why you lose so much in the midrange and high end. If this were a dedicated midrange like on the 431, 432, and 435 series you'd find that part of the audio spectrum much more forward. While they'd still be laid back on the top end they would sound much crisper.

indyhawg

When did you work at Audioworld JM? I used to go in the a lot back when I lived in Central Ar. I always liked the Norman Lab speakers.

erniejade

Jmwest. You said the woofers are running at full range?? Now if I fould a dedicated mid to fit in them and put a filter to cross the bottom woofer over would I get better results?

I tried some more demanding music. Phil collins and paula cole. The bass on this was so over powering it knocked out most of the vocals!! It did get very slopy also. For whatever reason the ray lamontagne must have not been as demending
And was a bit more tame on it. On things that should have had controlled bass to it just overpowered any bit of mids or highs.
I can see the potential of them if I can modify them and get them more in balance. Or I just sell them lol. They do shake the room that is for sure!!

jmwest1970

Wow! I forgot about this thread a long time ago. I worked at Audio World from the fall of 1990 through the summer of 1991. Unfortunately, my sales skills weren't as good as the other guys and I tended to "play" too much for their taste. As for the changing the woofer to a mid, I don't think I'd mess with it. If you really want to make a difference in the sound you might try changing out the parts in the crossover and removing the circuit breakers. There are several threads over at audiokarma.org that detail how to do this. Otherwise look for a pair of model 431. I'd love to find a pair of those again, but I haven't seen them since 2001 or so.

dorokusai

Ernie - Do you still have these?? Can you post more pics of the Normans? Great mini-review, sorry I missed it from 2010 and it sounds like a cool vintage rig.

Joe08867

To say the Norman's would have more bass is an understatement. 10's aren't even in the same ballpark bass wise. Monitor 12's would keep up though.

The lack of mids has always been an issue for me with Norman Labs stuff. It seems to be a theme with them. Probably why you don't see them much.

jmwest1970

Joe08867 wrote: »

The lack of mids has always been an issue for me with Norman Labs stuff. It seems to be a theme with them. Probably why you don't see them much.

This is why I'm such a fan of the 431 and 631 series. They have an awesome 5" dome midrange that's much more forward than any other NL speaker. That's also why I figure I can't find a pair.

cnh

I second Doro's request for Pics. I've never seen one of these. Would be interested in some shots!

Thanks!

cnh

Joe08867

Here is a generic pic off google.

erniejade

I do not have them. I sold them for a set of JM labs 815 in it's place.

indyhawg

I just missed out on a pair of 10a's locally a few weeks back.

JM----do you know what is the difference between the 431s and 432s?