A best receiver for my Polk speakers

bteng23

Guys,

I am setting up a home theater system for my basement, but I have trouble deciding the speaker systems or recievers. My basement size is approx 15' by 20'. I feel like getting the Polk speakers below from newegg as they are on a great sale, and seem to be of good quality and to have great reviews.

Here are they:
Polk Audio PSW Series PSW10 10-inch Powered Subwoofer
Polk Audio CS10 Center Speaker
Polk Audio Monitor50 Series II Floorstanding Loudspeaker (front)
Polk Audio Monitor30 Series II Two-Way Bookshelf Loudspeaker Pair (surround)

I don't think if they are quite good fit to each other, but I would like to add a pair of rear speakers. Do I need another pair of floor standing? Are there other options? Also, which receiver out there can be a best fix to these speakers? Are pioneer vsk-1020k or onkyo tx-sr608 fix, or should I look for other recievers? My budget is around $800.

I am new to the audio world. Any input is greatly appreciated! Thanks guys!

Bryan T

inthewoods

Your on the right track. Either receiver would be good. Personally I'd bump up to the PSW505 sub and go with the larger CS2 center speaker. If your on a budget then I would look at doing a quality 3.1 setup and get the rears later.

Also if your going with Monitor Series II speakers stick with the CS1 or CS2.
The CS10 and CS20 are the matching centers for the TSi series.


As an example I did the newegg sale too for super bowl and love how it performs...

$1190:
Onkyo 608
Monitor 70 Series II
CS2
PSW505
RC60i

TNHNDYMAN

+1 on the 505 sub and CS2 as center. Depending on how far you go down this road, you might want to consider a receiver w/ pre outs so you could add an amp down the road. My two biggest mistakes so far was getting AVR w/o preouts and settling for the CS1 center

BtrSound

The denon 3311 is on sale at 6ave for $808. I just picked one up. It is pretty bad A$$

cnh

WELCOME TO CLUB POLK!

PSW505 and CS2, YES!

AVRs....Denon is OK...

If you go Pioneer or Onkyo step up to the Pio VSX-1120 or the Onkyo TX-SR708 or 808 (you want to have pre-outs for future power additions--it also helps with RESALE value!).

cnh

bteng23

Thanks guys! They are very helpful.

Will go for PSW505 and CS2. Not sure if want to go for a receiver with preouts... But does Yamaha RX-V667 have preouts? How is it compared with VSK-1120 and 708?

Another question regarding the speakers. Do you think it is wise to get 4 Monitor50 floor standing and use 2 of them as rear speakers? I am thinking of bumping up my budget a bit but still not ready to afford nicer ones...

Thanks...

mdaudioguy

Welcome to Club Polk! I prefer smaller speakers for surrounds and backs. Why not another pair of 30s? Or, move your existing 30s to the back and go 40s for side surrounds. Ideally, you want them placed slightly higher than floorstanding speakers.

rooftop59

The 6xx series yamahas all have pre-outs, generally the cheapest way to go. But some folks think that the lower end yammies have a bright or forward sound that does not makes as well with the monitors. If this is mainly for home theater I don't think that that would be as much of a problem however.

Good luck!

JimAckley

+1 on the PSW505 and CS2.

Definitely choose a receiver with preouts. This allows you so much more flexibility in the future, should you want to add an amplifier, or second zone, etc.

I know we are suggesting a lot of upgrades, but you will definitely thank us later if you can take advantage of them. Some step-ups to consider are using Monitor 40s instead of 30s as your surrounds. There's nothing "wrong" with 30s, but the 40s have a much fuller sound, IMO. Another, which I know is out of your budget now but might not be in the future, is to step up to Monitor 70s up front, and move your Monitor 50s to surround duty, giving you an incredibly robust system. At that point, if you chose Monitor 40s, you've got a great set of speakers to move to a 2-ch system, or to use as side surrounds.

Good luck on your system!

Jim

polkfarmboy

Onkyo is awesome for polks

inthewoods

Amazon does have some "like new" Pioneer VSX-1120-K's for $450 (or new for $547). If I was to do it over again I would have gone that route over the 608.

drewg74

I recently bought the Yamaha rx-v667 receiver and I ordered TSi500's from Polk's ebay "refurb" site. They come in on Tuesday and I'm curious as to the posts I'm reading about the Yamaha's being "bright" for Polks. What does that mean exactly? If I don't like the sound of the Yamaha's, which receiver, with pre-outs, would anyone recommend I return it for? I'm seeing a lot of Onkyo love on this site.

Thanks in advance for help!

bteng23

Guys thanks for all your input. Appreciated them so much!

I ended up getting the Yamaha 667 as the receiver with the 150 gift card deal at newegg. Paid 500. The primary reason is the pre-outs for the future upgrade. I orderded Bic F-12 as the subwoofer for 185. Still working on center and front at the moment. Let me know if you guys have experience with the speakers for this subwoofer...

I will most likely go with 3.1 setup at first. Will keep you posted with the progress.

mdaudioguy

drewg74 wrote: »

I recently bought the Yamaha rx-v667 receiver and I ordered TSi500's from Polk's ebay "refurb" site. They come in on Tuesday and I'm curious as to the posts I'm reading about the Yamaha's being "bright" for Polks. What does that mean exactly? If I don't like the sound of the Yamaha's, which receiver, with pre-outs, would anyone recommend I return it for? I'm seeing a lot of Onkyo love on this site.

Thanks in advance for help!

Bright essentially means an emphasis on the upper frequency range. Think of turning a treble tone control all the way up.

Not bright for Polks in general, but some consider the combo of the Yamahas (often described as producing a bright sound) and the RTi series speakers (often described as having a bright, or forward, signature sound). Usually, people don't describe the Monitor/TSi lines as bright, so you may find the pairing to be wonderfully pleasing to your ears. Let your ears be the judge, not our descriptions and inherent biases.

cnh

Congrats. If you can, get the CS2 as your center. That's THE most important channel in a surround soundtrack and you want the biggest and baddest in the series even if you decided on going with a couple of M40s for now--a good strategy, because they are cheap, almost as full range as M50s and you can move them to surround duty in the future.

Also, tell us what you think of that BIC sub. I've never heard one?

M-a-guy is also right about the Yamaha....it will probably seem less bright and forward with M speakers than with RTIs? And it has pre-outs...which is a GOOD thing!

cnh

mdaudioguy

polkfarmboy wrote: »

Onkyo is awesome for polks

That's quite a generalization.

bteng23

Thanks cnh. Am thinking the same as to get CS2 and M40s first. Probably need to save a bit for a future front pair upgrade. Some folks have been talking about the bright sound between Yamaha and Polk. Is that common if you know?

Am really new here so thanks advance for all your patience.

cnh

It's really dependent on the speaker. I know RTIs don't meld well with lower level Yamahas. The Higher models have a smoother sound, though. And as far as Monitors, I think you're OK. I used to have a Yamaha 54XX something, years ago and I did not find it that bright with whatever my speaker set was then. I'm not even sure, at this point?

I also think that Yamahas run better in two channel for music (that's always been priority for them IMO). And for HT, a little brightness can enhance the dynamics.

I think you're fine for now.

cnh

rooftop59

Let me clarify. I have had two yammies in the past, and older 57xx something or other and an rx-v1500. I really liked them both, especially the 1500. I also helped a buddy put together an entry level setup a couple years ago and he went the the rx-v363 and the r150s and I think that combo sounds very pleasant, especially in two channel. I also started off with the monitor series and was blown away as I had never had good speakers, and I think that you will be very pleased with your choices. Finally, the preouts are key, and the addition of an external amp may change the overall sound quality.

Peace,
paul

bteng23

cnh wrote: »

Congrats. If you can, get the CS2 as your center. That's THE most important channel in a surround soundtrack and you want the biggest and baddest in the series even if you decided on going with a couple of M40s for now--a good strategy, because they are cheap, almost as full range as M50s and you can move them to surround duty in the future.

Also, tell us what you think of that BIC sub. I've never heard one?

M-a-guy is also right about the Yamaha....it will probably seem less bright and forward with M speakers than with RTIs? And it has pre-outs...which is a GOOD thing!

cnh

I received my Yamaha667 and the CS2 today. M50s are on the way. Got them instead of M40s as front. Am thinking to use them as surround later when upgrading the fronts...

cnh, BIC F-12 is supposed to be a good sub same to PSW505. I ordered it because many people like it over PSW505 on music play. BIC seems to be known as one of the best for subwoofers. This model has its RMS at 150W that seems more compatible with my receiver's. Some articles indicated that sub RMS should be as close as center speaker RMS and receiver's. Well, I don't know how true that is but I will let you know once things are set...

http://home-subwoofers-review.toptenreviews.com/

It seems that wires don't come with the speakers. What type of the wires I should get for mine? 14, 16, etc?

JimAckley

My rule of thumb is to have as much power as the whole receiver or amplifier. Bass requires a great deal of power to produce. Plus, you can always turn a sub's volume lower, but not always higher

drewg74

Thanks for the explanation mdaudioguy. I received my TSI500's last night and hooked them up right away to my Yamaha, and I have to say, I'm VERY pleased with the overall sound. I have been doing sooo much research, and I was afraid the 90 watts/channel receiver wouldn't be enough for these speakers alone, and someday, when I win the lottery, I'll purchase an amplifier to really let these speakers shine. Thanks again for the help!

Next....center channel, then sub.

mdaudioguy

^^^ That's good to hear! Enjoy what you have, and build from there. An incremental approach makes a lot of sense. Good luck, stick around, post your impressions, and ask questions! (That's what I do...) Later, Ed

bteng23

Thanks guys for all your responses on this thread. You have been a great help! Here is the 5.1 I got:

Front: Monitor 70s
Center: CS2
Surround: Monitor 50s
Sub: BIC F-12
Reciever: Yamaha rx-v667

The m70s will arrive tomorrow. Am using m50s I got a week ago as the front speakers. They have already been impressive to me. Hooked up the sub last night and it was awesome with watching Haiwai-5o on CBS. (surprised for the first time to notice that HD channels are 5.1) Read a lot threads regarding M70s vs M60s before ordered 70s on newegg yesterday. They were both on sale again. They are not cheap to me but I guess I just can't let it go. Didn't feel great keeping 3.1 and waiting for further price drops on bigger fronts... Anyways, am so excited to set 5.1 up completely. Chose m50s as surround since I just don't like speakers to hang on walls. Don't know how much difference that would make vs using stands or what am doing?

Big crank up this time on my spending...