Just picked up some RT16 speakers - Have Questions

jemrey81

Hey all, I just picked up a pair of RT16's at a garage sale for $40. The owner said that there weren't any issues with them when he replaced them a few years back, but if I hook them up and something is wrong he would take them back.

I got them home and sure enough, one of the woofers is crackly. I took the crackly woofer out, unplugged it and put it back in and re-tested..... everything else sounds good. I have tried to find replacements, but it seems that they are hard to locate being that they're 7.5".

So I called around and found a speaker repair shop that said they charge $45 to repair those speakers..... I am considering doing this, but what are your guys' thoughts on the overall cost of these?

I would be into them for $85, but not sure how long everything else will hold-up..... or I can return them and get the $40 back and keep on the lookout for other speakers.


My current set up consists of TSI100 fronts, CS10 center and PSW505 sub (no rear options for our layout). Would I be better off getting some TSI300?

The RT16 actually sounded better than I thought it would with the CS10, but what is the correct center for those towers?

adb3da

Awesome grab for $40! I have a pair that I bought new when they were on clearance (I think I picked them up in 1997). They were my first Polks and they are special to me.

I think Polk had some issues with these drivers. I had one go bad after about 3-4 years. It sounded very similar to what you are describing. Polk replaced the driver under warranty and it looks slightly different. The dust cap on the original drivers has a small design on them. The new one did not. I think if the others are still working well at this point, then you are ok. The one that is bad may have gone bad a long time ago.

I can't recall the part #, but I'm sure someone else can help.

I think they are really great sounding speakers. It's worth $85 IMO.

nwohlford

The driver is a MW8103, but they are hard to find.

rooftop59

I owned the bookshelf version of those - the rt7s - and really liked them. My favorite polk bookie only bested by (in some respects) the lsi7s. I ran them with a cs400i center and it was a pretty sweet setup. The tweeters in the cs400, 400i, and 245i are all very close to the one in the rt16s. I believe the exact match would be a cs350ls, but that can be harder to find. There is a cs400 on ebay right now for a very reasonable price, I would pick that up if I were you.

I would definitely get them fixed IF you trust the repairman. I demoed the tsi200s, and while they are nice for the money, the rt7s are vastly superior. Better parts, better build quality, more dynamic with better extension both ways, and a pretty neutral speaker overall IMO.

Good luck and let us know what you do!

jemrey81

Thanks for info and tips guys....

I just emailed a guy that has the CS400 for sale about an hour and a half away - we'll see if his price comes down enough for me to make the drive!

jemrey81

Well it looks like I can get the CS400 for $100...... I think I'll be taking a little road trip this weekend to grab it.

Now I need to sell my TSi100's and CS10.... and repair the woofer on the RT16.

rooftop59

That's a reasonable price but I would try to get him to either come down a bit more or meet you halfway. but, even with 30 bucks in gas its a reasonable deal if you have the time.

adb3da

Post some pics when you're all set up.

jemrey81

rooftop59 wrote: »

That's a reasonable price but I would try to get him to either come down a bit more or meet you halfway. but, even with 30 bucks in gas its a reasonable deal if you have the time.

Yeah, he was asking 150 and the lowest he is willing to go is 100. I don't mind the drive, it's going to be a beautiful day in a beautiful area.... I'll just make a day trip out of it with my kids (wife will be working all day). Gas will be 30+, but looking on ebay the shipping is 30 so it's alright.