I bought some 50% clearance EMPTek E55TI towers and E55CI center today...

slammin86

I bought these today. I plan to get the matching surrounds once they are in stock again.

http://www.emptek.com/e55ti.php

http://www.emptek.com/e56ci.php

I will be replacing my 1 year old polk M70 towers and CS2 center. I will be powering these off my acurus a3x200 being fed from my onkyo 709. I also have an ED A5-350 subwoofer.

I loved the polks for movies, but for music I just cannot make them sound right. Even running audyssey and setting the treble to -4 on the receiver they are too bright and lead to ear fatigue rather quickly. I have tried manually disabling audyssey and setting the 2 channel EQ on my own and I just cannot find the sweet spot.

Every review I found for the emptek says they are a neutral speaker. I hope they are what I am looking for.

I got the towers on the 50% off deal so for the price it all seems like a steal.

halo71

Wow! Congrats! Those look sweet. Helluva step up looks like.

ravaneli

they are pretty. So pretty almost don't matter how they play : )

Tankman

slammin86...Hey man thanks for posting the links.I have been looking at these as upgrades too.Polk has the LSi15's at a great price about the same as these.Let us know what you think of them when you get them set up in your system.They are a great looking speaker.

slammin86

Tankman wrote: »

slammin86...Hey man thanks for posting the links.I have been looking at these as upgrades too.Polk has the LSi15's at a great price about the same as these.Let us know what you think of them when you get them set up in your system.They are a great looking speaker.

If you do buy look at their b stock ones. These are what I bought.

http://www.emptek.com/e55ti_clearance.php

Almost too cheap to pass up. The single center cost more than the 2 towers.

EndersShadow

slammin86 wrote: »

If you do buy look at their b stock ones. These are what I bought.

http://www.emptek.com/e55ti_clearance.php

Almost too cheap to pass up. The single center cost more than the 2 towers.

Those are drop dead prices! And they are only 6 ohm which most AVR's can drive. Wouldnt give up my 15's personally but if I still had my Monitor 60's this would be veerrrryyyyy tempting!

heiney9

Look like a garden variety white van speakers to me. Let us know how they work out. These have nothing on LSi's. In fact there isn't much out there from established well known reputable companies that can better the LSi's at their price point.

Not knocking 'em, just giving my impression based on the looks, name and website.

H9

sda2mike

congrats! the website looks more than legit...their use of english is clear and concise...something white van speaker sellers cannot grasp..plus hq is in utah

halo71

heiney9 wrote: »

These have nothing on LSi's. In fact there isn't much out there from established well known reputable companies that can better the LSi's at their price point.

H9

Pretty broad statement for never having heard them don't you think?

heiney9

Nope, not really.

The LSi's have been the darling of their price point since they were introduced 10 years ago. Just going by actual professional reviews, thousands of user reviews, having owned them, etc. Can you show me evidence to the contrary? Or are you just going post vague statements to constantly challenge. Obviously you have your head buried in the sand for quit some time if you didn't notice the very positive reviews of the LSi series in the past ten years compared to the competition.

H9

heiney9

I see AVS has some support for these. The last couple pairs of AVS endorsed speakers I've heard left me seriously wanting.

I hope these are what the OP is looking for and more, looking forward to a really in-depth review compared to the Polks.

H9

halo71

Nah, no sand. I've read the Lsi reviews. Reading reviews does not automatically make me believe they are better than anything else in their price point though. My comment above was not vague at all.

And as far as the "name and website"....really? You form an opinion that way? That website does not look anymore generic than MANY other audio websites. Take Hawthorne Audio's site for instance, it is kinda generic looking I think. But I don't knock their speakers based solely on looks of their site or their speakers. That's is plain silly.

heiney9

You are damn right I form an opinion from a website, especially since these are web only speakers. The website is so vague it screams "white van". There is more information on a single technical page on the Polk website than there is on the entire EMP Tek site.

They give absolutely no technical specifications, build specifications or even identify who they are or what they have specifically done in the industry.

Look, I'm not going to debate this with you. Those are my thoughts, you don't agree fine move on just like I'm going to do.

H9

heiney9

halo71 wrote: »

But I don't knock their speakers based solely on looks of their site or their speakers. That's is plain silly.

Right.....because there aren't hundreds of thousands of internet scams around every corner. Pretty naive.

H9

FTGV

My rule of thumb is you get what you pay for.

heiney9

Again good luck to the OP, I look forward to having my suspicions aborted and I hope these will fill the void where the Polks couldn't.

H9

sda2mike

some people believe their opinions are so important, that everybody must hear them...positive or negative...give the guy a break! don't be a tool! to the op: enjoy your new speakers

halo71

lol....okay Brock. I am pretty sure that many new audio brands started off somewhere as well with their websites. Didn't mean to ruffle your feathers. I just don't see the need to always bash someones choice in audio gear. Seems you do that if it is not something you have owned, currently own or plan to own in the future.

Moving on.....

heiney9

WOW, so I guess now we can only say radiantly positive things, noted.

Even the Emo site has a LOT more information on their products. Doesn't necessarily make them better, but when you are an internet only company you better make that first impression count. Sorry, but I am constantly skeptical of many things so my pessimisim always comes out first and foremost.

You are right as I shouldn't be totally negative, he's already bought them so me coming in and expressing my thoughts does him no good at this time.

H9

Glowrdr

I compared specs against the M70's - and it looks to me like the 70's are a better speaker. Without knowing or hearing though - everything has a sound. Some good, some bad. As someone else mentioned - they sure are pretty though.

shawn474

The speakers LOOK nice, but I am not financially gifted enough to drop that kind of coin on a set of speakers I have never heard. That is one hell of a blind buy. After you get them set up and calibrated report back and let us know how they perform and how you like them. I am interested to hear.

concealer404

Hell, i'd consider buying them just based on looks. Bonus points if they matched the decor of the room.

chumlie

Congrats on your new speakers.

codyc1ark

Hmm... I can't comment on the speaks, but the reviews look... Planted? I think the first give away was that the first two reviews are exactly the same, a few months apart, under different names. I hope you are happy with these, as they look like they have some potential. I wonder if the towers are 52lbs a piece, or together? Let us know, good luck!

slammin86

Wow I did not expect this to happen. I do not know where to start.

First off I did A LOT of homework on these before just purchasing them. EmpTek is owned by RBH Sound which is a pretty established name in home audio. They are not the "white van" speakers mentioned above.

They offer a 30 day risk free trial and even pay the return shipping.

They have been reviewed by at least 2 "professionals" and have also been blind tested against some other more known speakers and did quite well in each review.

Please take the time to read this article.

http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/speakers/floorstanding/emptek-e55ti

As well as this one.

http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/speakers/floorstanding/2010-1k-faceoff

To the ones saying that I am dropping a lot of money on these towers, did you see the b stock ones they sell at half price? I paid like $395.50 for both towers shipped and $450 shipped for the center. Heck I paid more for my polk towers without listening to them first.

Also, a quick google search reveals some forum threads with positive feedback.

If these turn out to be crap I will be the first to admit it. But I am fairly confident that is not the case. I can return the center for a full refund but am stuck with $395.50 towers. I'm not really too concerned at this point. I have been looking at and researching speakers to replace the polks for several month and had actually looked at the emp's before. But the b stock clearance price was too hard to pass up so I bought them.

Thanks for taking the time to read this thread and look for some updates once they arrive.

slammin86

codyc1ark wrote: »

Hmm... I can't comment on the speaks, but the reviews look... Planted? I think the first give away was that the first two reviews are exactly the same, a few months apart, under different names. I hope you are happy with these, as they look like they have some potential. I wonder if the towers are 52lbs a piece, or together? Let us know, good luck!

Look at the reviews I just posted. The front plates are 1.2" thick and the rest is .6". The weight is 50+ lbs each.

I am honestly shocked how quickly everyone is to trash these speakers. Just because they are not a mainstream store sold brand does not mean they are bad.

codyc1ark

slammin86 wrote: »

Look at the reviews I just posted. The front plates are 1.2" thick and the rest is .6". The weight is 50+ lbs each.

I am honestly shocked how quickly everyone is to trash these speakers. Just because they are not a mainstream store sold brand does not mean they are bad.

I was not trying to trash em, my point being that weight CAN point to solid components. At 52 per, they should be pretty stout. Still, the website review is fairly fishy... You seem to have done your homework, and from most of your posts you seem to know what's going on. Im interested to hear what you think.

concealer404

Hrmmm.... i'm a little intrigued by those reviews.

Can't help but wonder about them vs. my Legend V.3s.

ravaneli

FTGV wrote: »

My rule of thumb is you get what you pay for.

what a useless rule of thumb. If it had any merit than it really wouldn't matter what we buy, would it? Two hundred, 5 hundred.. you pay more but you get more. Buying walmart crap over Polk is not less bang for the buck, you just spent less.

slammin86

I encourage everyone to at least look at this page of the review.

http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/speakers/floorstanding/emptek-e55ti/e55ti-introduction

This shows the back of the drivers as well as the inside of the cabinet where you can see the thickness and the bracing. It also shows the crossover.

Have any of you guys heard of rbh sound?

Tankman

Attachment not found.Attachment not found....Crossover on the right is of the Monitor 70.Both seem close in build.:question: