PSW111 or 505 w/ rti4 fronts?

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  • MADGSF
    MADGSF Posts: 603
    edited December 2011
    I agree that doing it once is better in the long run. I went from the PSW10 that came free with my speakers to my PC Ultra and now that I added the SMS-1 to my system I am happy.
    AVR: Elite VSX-21TXH
    Amplifier: B&K 7250 Series ii
    Misc: Velodyne SMS-1
    Mains: RTi-10
    Center: CSi-5
    Rear: Boston DSi460
    Sub: SVS PC-Ultra
    TV: Panasonic TC-P58V10
    DVD: Panasonic DMP-BD60K
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  • rengnath
    rengnath Posts: 118
    edited December 2011
    I just ended up purchasing a BIC Acoustech PL-200 and honestly, for $290 I couldn?t be happier.

    I found that CNET rated the F-12 as the number one value in home theater subwoofers, but a lot of the forum discussions didn?t have the best reviews. Almost every topic ended up bringing up the PL-200 as being superior to the F-12, although there was never a direct comparison done between the two. The PL-200 has a 12" woofer powered by a 250w RMS BASH amp, and reviews have shown it to go down to 23 hertz, and it is described as more "presentable" than the F-12.

    I?m happy with mine, and will probably buy a second one once I move because the system will be in a much larger room. The top is piano black, and it has wood grain on the sides. It?s a nice looking subwoofer, although bulky, and it brings big sound for $290. It definitely isn?t boomy, and it digs pretty deep.

    You can buy them from this online dealer:
    http://www.ebay.com/itm/310325286891?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649
    They will accept offers between $280 and $290.
    AVR - Yamaha Aventage RX-A800
    Amps - B&K Components ST2140 (for mains) and Parasound HCA-1000A (bi-amping center)
    Mains - RT1000i Towers
    Center - CS400i
    Sub - BIC Acoustech PL200

    My neighbors listen to very good music, whether they like it or not :cheesygrin:
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  • rengnath
    rengnath Posts: 118
    edited December 2011
    Heres a picture of the beast next to my rt1000i

    IMG_0538.jpg
    AVR - Yamaha Aventage RX-A800
    Amps - B&K Components ST2140 (for mains) and Parasound HCA-1000A (bi-amping center)
    Mains - RT1000i Towers
    Center - CS400i
    Sub - BIC Acoustech PL200

    My neighbors listen to very good music, whether they like it or not :cheesygrin:
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  • drdunwoody
    drdunwoody Posts: 16
    edited December 2011
    Thanks Rengnath, but I'm sold on the HSU from everything I've read. And just to keep the record straight, my original sub list was in the $150-$200 range and now I'm looking at around $400-$450. Everything I read (and know from experience) sayes to do it once and do it right. Now I need to pick the rear channell speakers to have the full 5.1
    Slightly off post but my rti4 fronts match my cs10 center. It seems people are much more willing to have surrounds that don't "match" the series of the fronts. The monitor 30s are cheap now ($90ish) but I'm tempted by the dipole rm8 for about $100 and the owm3 for a similar price. The rm8 and owm3 would be the easiest to hang on the wall which I'll need to do for this space. Feel free to make more recommendations as long as they don't triple my budget!
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  • tommyt21
    tommyt21 Posts: 685
    edited December 2011
    drdunwoody wrote: »
    Thanks Rengnath, but I'm sold on the HSU from everything I've read. And just to keep the record straight, my original sub list was in the $150-$200 range and now I'm looking at around $400-$450. Everything I read (and know from experience) sayes to do it once and do it right. Now I need to pick the rear channell speakers to have the full 5.1
    Slightly off post but my rti4 fronts match my cs10 center. It seems people are much more willing to have surrounds that don't "match" the series of the fronts. The monitor 30s are cheap now ($90ish) but I'm tempted by the dipole rm8 for about $100 and the owm3 for a similar price. The rm8 and owm3 would be the easiest to hang on the wall which I'll need to do for this space. Feel free to make more recommendations as long as they don't triple my budget!

    Timber matching is only important for the big three (the front sound stage).Monitor 30's make for some great rear surrounds and would work perfect for you, they also have a wall bracket on the back to hang them. I'm afraid your mistaken on your rti4 matching the cs10. They are from two diffrent lines and have totally diffrent tweeters. My adavice is to upgrade that center to either a Csi5/Csi3( same as Csi a6/ Csia4) those are timber matched to the rti4's. They are also a huge leap forward in dialog clarity. Remember (IMO) the two most important speakers in home theater are the Center Channel and the Subwoofer.
    Living Room
    Fronts: RTi A7's
    Center: Csi A6 VR3 "Fortress Plus"
    Front Heights: Rti A1
    Surrounds: Rti A3
    Sub: HSU VTF-2 MK4 Damn this is a good SUB
    Pioneer Pioneer Elite: SC-35-> Emotiva XPA-3
    TV: Lg LW6500 55" Passive 3D
    Blu-Ray Panasonic BD 210
    XboX 360 Slim/Kinect

    Acoustimac red suede panels
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  • EndersShadow
    EndersShadow Posts: 17,596
    edited December 2011
    Use whatever surrounds work for you. They dont need to be the same series, or even same company as the fronts. Monitor 30's would work great (Monitor 40's are overkill). The RM's would be good, or any small speaker you find (within reason of course).

    So the extra money you spent on your sub recoup by getting smaller/lower line surrounds. You will be fine.

    You also might post a "Wanted" ad in the flea market section. Maybe someone has some used surrounds they could sell you for a good price.
    "....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963)
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  • drdunwoody
    drdunwoody Posts: 16
    edited December 2011
    OH, I need the CSI center! I should have noticed that. I should be able to exchange the CS10...it is in shipment from Polk's ebay store now. They should let me exchang up so I can spend more money...
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  • Lietuvis91
    Lietuvis91 Posts: 908
    edited December 2011
    Surrounds don't "have" to match the fronts, but it sounds better if they do. And since you are buying new speakers, I don't see any reason to go with non-matching speakers.

    In your situation, get the right center and another set of rti4s for surrounds and call it a day. Should sound really nice. Check out fxia4 if you want dipoles.
    Living Room 7.1 HT Rig:

    M70 | CS2 | M60 | Atrium5 - Surr. | SUB - Emotiva ULTRA12 + Tara Labs sub cable | Pioneer Elite VSX-52 | Parasound HCAs 1000A | Sony BDP-S790 | Belkin PureAV PF60 | MIT Exp2 Wires

    Bedroom 5.0 HT Rig (Music/Movies/Gaming) :

    LSi9 | LsiC | Lsi/fx | Marantz SR7002 | NAD T955 | Sony BDP-S360 | Belkin PureAV PF30 | AQ Blue Racer II ICs & AQ Type 4 wires | PS3
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  • drdunwoody
    drdunwoody Posts: 16
    edited December 2011
    I think I'm going with the OWM3 for my surrounds. I need something to hang on the wall and one of the walls is a high-traffic location so I don't want it sticking out. The RTI4 has a depth of about 11.5", the Monitor 30 about 8.5" and the OWM3 about 4". I'll have everything BUT the sub in shortly (January), but I'll have to same a little longer for the sub so I can get the right one. Thanks again for all the great advice here. I'm excited to be settin up my first "home theater".
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  • Erik Tracy
    Erik Tracy Posts: 4,673
    edited December 2011
    Did you pull the trigger yet on the HSU?

    Here's a nice deal (no affiliation) - if you don't mind buying used:
    http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?homesubw&1329784341&/HSU-VTF-2-mk3

    H9: If you don't trust what you are hearing, then maybe you need to be less invested in a hobby which all the pleasure comes from listening to music.
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  • EndersShadow
    EndersShadow Posts: 17,596
    edited December 2011
    Erik Tracy wrote: »
    Did you pull the trigger yet on the HSU?

    Here's a nice deal (no affiliation) - if you don't mind buying used:
    http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?homesubw&1329784341&/HSU-VTF-2-mk3

    And he's got 2 so for 550 + shipping you could have both of em :eek:
    "....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963)
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  • drdunwoody
    drdunwoody Posts: 16
    edited December 2011
    Thanks for the link. I checked it out. FedEx would charge $73 to ship it. If he took 250 that puts the total at 323 and I would rather just get a new 10" for the difference. I don't mind getting used speakers as much as I do used amps. I've just had too many problems with things getting damaged in transit (I had a bass neck snapped in half by UPS once!). If it was within driving distance I would be all over it. I have the Rti4s here but can't open them until Christmas! The correc center (CSi3) is now on the way from Crutchfield (only $110 for an open box!). I'll probably just resale the Polk CS10 since I would make out better doing that then paying shipping back to Polk and then getting charged the 15% restocking fee. Since my sub is going to cost more than I had planned, I'm going to wait a month of two to recover from Christmas first. Then I'll get a new one! It will be a hard wait...especially if they go on sale again.
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  • drdunwoody
    drdunwoody Posts: 16
    edited December 2011
    Not to open the can of worms again but I was looking around and see the Velodyne Starfire 12 on sale for $260. I didn't find too much online about it. I know a lot of people like the Velodyne but from what I read it sounded like the Starfire is their "budget" line. Any thoughts on how that would compare to the HSU STF-2?
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