RTi4 or Monitor 40

RodneyWoodford

Which is the better speaker RTi4 or Monitor 40's.

Gulfstrings

I've never heard an RTi4 speaker, but the M40 has two drivers vs the one in the RTi4 and that has to be worth something. I own a pair of M40s that serve as the fronts in our bedroom system and can tell you I really enjoy them. You can see them in my systems photo album. They're not small. If space is an issues then the smaller speakers may better suit your needs.

thesurfer

The rti4, Has better drivers, better crossover,, its a step up in terms of quality,, The Monitor 40, Has the extra driver,, but, in my OP, is not as clean, or accurate,, tends to smear, at higher volumes,,, Quality, over Quanity, is how i see it,, But, it depends on your needs, and what your trying to do,,

Geoff4rfc

RodneyWoodford wrote: »

Which is the better speaker RTi4 or Monitor 40's.

Also not ever hearing the RTi4, it does have a slightly larger frequency response than the 40's. I own the 40's hear great things from them.

If I had to chose between the two, I'd definitely do a side by side comp.

My 40's are not my mains, so they don't get a chance to fail in any capacity. They do their job very well.

VSchneider

Quality over quantity for me.
I've heard both Monitor 50 (a close cousin of Monitor 40) and RTi4. I have also owned/still own RTi25 and RTi A1, which came before and after RTi4, and they never disappoint. Monitors didn't sound "bad", but to my ears RTi are more detailed with cleaner lows.

But that all is for me...

What's your ultimate goal? 2-ch or surround? How large is the listening area?

BtrSound

What other speakers were you planning on using? Were you only going to use them for two channel bookshelf speakers or as part of a system?

mr bivens

I have both. The RTi4 is so much better. Well defined soundstage, much better highs, a lot more satisfying sound overall.

B Run

No contest Rti4 is a better sounding speaker.

HTguru1982

The Monitor 40's are decent speakers, no doubt. But the RTi4's are simply better.

cnh

This is a question that only you can answer. Yes, the 4s have more detailed highs and 'maybe' tighter bass but they are somewhat 'bright' with a number of receivers and I've found that some lower to mid receivers don't like them at all? Whereas the Monitor 40s will have a better lower end, less bright highs and are a more 'forgiving' speaker. They don't really smear sound--but rather have a bit more cabinet resonances because of the extra volume and lack of a power port on the Rti-4s.

You need to really hear both and decide. If you plan to 'upgrade' your fronts in the long run, the RTI-4s might be preferable as you will be able to move those to surround duty and get some more upscale RTI towers as your fronts?

Finally, let me give a personal example. I ran some RTI-4s on an HK 3490 for a few weeks and they just sounded 'flat' and lacked depth. This really surprised me because the HK has received mostly positive reviews here! So I removed them from that system and I figured I'd throw them into a less important system, i.e., my bedroom 2.1 powered by an Onkyo TX-SR604 with an 8" 100 watt sub. Low and behold the Rti-4s were like a new speaker--they 'liked the Onkyo AVR better than a dedicated and more powerful HK stereo receiver--go figure. In this system they were much better than Monitor bookshelves. So there they stay!

That's why I say listen. Simply looking at specs and prices will not tell you what you need to know. Here's another example. I run M70s as my main HT fronts. I've heard Rti-A5s and the rest of the Rti-A tower series. Though the 7s can reach lower it isn't until I get to the RTI-A9s that I think....'Hey, now that's an improvement over my M70 Onkyo TX-SR805 set up! People here will swear by the tweeters and 'better' crossovers in the Rti-A5s but "I" don't hear that. What I hear is the M70s kicking 5 A$$ with fuller sound and better imaging and sound-stage! But a LOT of people will disagree with me--hey they're my ears, after all!

And that's the point. Try to listen because 'received' wisdom cannot account for subjectivity, your room, and your equipment and how all of this impacts your choice and appreciation of speakers!

cnh

nhhiep

one is more movies, the other is for music. That is their purposes. what are you listening to? RT stands for reference theater, in case you didn't know.

cnh

That's a bit of a misnomer as some RTI speakers can do 'both' music and movies quite well. Most notably the bookshelves and the largest tower IMO.

cnh