New Polk RTi setup thoughts

gtaudio

Hey guys just finishied up my setup a few days ago. *Probably not perfect as I couldn't make up my mind on rears or subs.

Here is what I went with:

RTi A7s for the right and left
CSi A6 for the center
RTi A1s for the surround right and left
RTi A1s for the rear surrounds
2 PSW125 subs both in front between Audio rack and the A7s.

I think it should be alright, I almost went with 505 subs but honestly the PSW125s are nicer looking to me and the 505 is pretty dated. * I can't blast the bass in my house anyway or I'll scare my kids.

I also go back and forth if I should have gone with dipole FXis for the rear right and left but again I chose the aesthetics of the Cherry A1s.

I think the rears and the subs are the weak spots hope I don't regret my choice.

I am running an Onkyo 608 which seems like decent power for the A7s.

What should I set the crossover to? Audessey setup suggested 40 hz but I changed it to 80 hz with two subs.

Any adice on setup or thoughts on this setup would be appreciated.

tonyb

Play around with the settings until it suits your ears. For what it's worth, that receiver is a tad on the light side.

http://www.hometheater.com/content/onkyo-tx-sr608-av-receiver-ht-labs-measures

In 7 channel surround, your only pushing 30 watts, think thats enough ?

Congrats on the setup though, 80 hz is a good place to start.

Lietuvis91

I have that receiver and in 7 ch mode it starts to get weak on power. I would use a crossover of 80hz or more. Probably higher for the rtia1s, try 100-120hz. Play the same movie scene with different settings and you will very quickly hear the difference. Higher crossover point will provide more clarity, but will reduce depth, so you will have to find the sweet spot of where it all sounds just right to your ears.

I also find that it sounds best to set all speakers to the same frequency, so try 80, 100, 120hz for everything, and see how you like it. You may have to adjust the volume and phase(if adjustable) on your subs to blend them in right. However, you do have the ability on this avr to set each set of speakers differently. I suspect something in the 100-120 range for the center and the rtia1s is going to be the ticket, but again, you will make that decision based on how you like what you hear.

chumlie

Nice setup but you may want to put more power to your front 3 if you can. Maybe see if store will let you upgrade your reciever to something with preouts and add a power amp to make that system shine. Just my opinion.

B Run

I agree, i'd either upgrade to a 7xx series with preouts and add an amp, or a much more powerful receiver.

gtaudio

Thanks all, guess I should have clarified the receiver is a year old, only the speakers are new. I previously had a 7.2 all onkyo setup those have been moved upstairs to the living room for music only duty. I have had three Onkyos over the last five years and have been very happy but I have been thinking it may be time to move on to something better. I am considering the 809 if I stay with Onkyo, I could actually use more inputs. I am full with the rear 5 on the 609.

I changed the cross over tonight to 80 right left, 90 center and 100 rears. I'll keep playing with it until I feel it's right.

chumlie

/\ reported/\

gtaudio

chumlie wrote: »

/\ reported/\

Am I missing something?

gtaudio

If I am able to convince the wife that I need a new receiver any suggestions? I am thinking an HT oriented receiver with pre-outs would work well but have never had a separate amp before what are the popular choices?

PrazVT

If you're going to get an amp, then you don't have to spend a lot on the receiver. Generally, Onkyos and Yamahas tend to include pre-outs at a lower price point (Onkyo 70x series, Yamaha RX-A8xx +).

Amp-wise your popular choices would be Parasound, NAD, Rotel, B&K, Adcom, Emotiva, etc.

Parasound amps (ex. 5250, A51, A52, HCA2205) tend to be warm and a good match w/ the RTi A series in my experience. I'm using a NAD amp now and it works well with them as well. I'm sure the other guys here can give their experiences w/ the other brands.

5 channel and 7 channel amps both exist, but you could get a 5ch and run the rears off of the receiver.

Lietuvis91

Why don't you give your current setup a run, play with the settings, see if you can get to the point where your ears like what they hear, before you go buy any more new gear. If you are new to this, keeping it simple at first and learning how to get the most out of what you have may be nice for a little while. Up to you.

gtaudio

PrazVT wrote: »

If you're going to get an amp, then you don't have to spend a lot on the receiver. Generally, Onkyos and Yamahas tend to include pre-outs at a lower price point (Onkyo 70x series, Yamaha RX-A8xx +).

Amp-wise your popular choices would be Parasound, NAD, Rotel, B&K, Adcom, Emotiva, etc.

Parasound amps (ex. 5250, A51, A52, HCA2205) tend to be warm and a good match w/ the RTi A series in my experience. I'm using a NAD amp now and it works well with them as well. I'm sure the other guys here can give their experiences w/ the other brands.

5 channel and 7 channel amps both exist, but you could get a 5ch and run the rears off of the receiver.

Thanks! We are almost neighbors used to live in San Mateo.

gtaudio

Lietuvis91 wrote: »

Why don't you give your current setup a run, play with the settings, see if you can get to the point where your ears like what they hear, before you go buy any more new gear. If you are new to this, keeping it simple at first and learning how to get the most out of what you have may be nice for a little while. Up to you.

Thanks, I wouldn't say I am new in fact pretty experienced in HT, but this is the most I have spent on speakers as I tend to be pretty conservative in funding my HT setup, I have lot's of other expensive hobbies! Your point is well taken.

Willow

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?127667-Onkyo-TX-SR706-300-shipping

plus this:

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?128046-Rotel-RB956ax

would be a great start for under 500

gtaudio

Thanks for the links but I am very picky about appearance and functionallity. Probably why I love the cherry RTis so much.

I am going to keep my current system as is for now and assess the need for pre-outs later.

chumlie

gtaudio wrote: »

Am I missing something?

Yaeh. The post above that , The one the mods deleted after i reported it. Not Yours.

gtaudio

chumlie wrote: »

Yaeh. The post above that , The one the mods deleted after i reported it. Not Yours.

Thanks I wasn't sure if something was misinterpreted.

m34est

I think you made a good decision. I have FXi3s as my side surrounds in a 5.1 system. If you were staying 5.1, I would suggest trying out the dipoles, as they do a good job of mimicking a 7.1 system, but with your 7.1 setup, it would probably would not add to your listening experience.