My Personal Take on Polk Audio Speakers

turbogeek

Recently a college friend visited my house and comented on my polk speakers and hifi setup. While he admitted that they sounded very good, he also thought there had to be a reason why they could be bought in common stores like Circuit City, etc.. He seemed determined to believe either they had durability issues or that it was simply the acooustics of my house making them sound better than they were.

Now here is my take on Polk products and this is in fact what I explained to him. I used to race bicycles professionally in Europe for about 6 years and during that time I saw and rode many excellent performing road frames made from supposedly generic manufacturers. One of the best road frames in the world in fact today is the carbon fiber Trek OCLV frames which are mass produced and can be seen by the tens if not hundreds at many races each weekend accross the country. Many of what I call cycling snobs or elitists look down upon Trek OCLV frames because of their vast mass production and mass marketing of their product. But the truth is, regardless of how they are sold or mass produced, the end product ends up being a superb, a very light, very stiff, very comfortable racing frame for a great price.

This was the basic analogy I presented to my questioning buddy. Polks may in fact be sold at what he considers discount electronics stores, but this does not take away from the technology of the company, the quality of the product or the bang for the buck you get. In fact, I think by Polk doing business the way they do, they have likely increased sales which results in more money available for better R&D, more economies of scale to purchase and use higher quality raw material goods at better prices which eventually result in the building of great products at great prices.

For the money, as I told my buddy, these are very hard speakers to beat. Soundwise I would put them right there against the entry level speakers from makers like Dynaudio, Canton, B&W and others. Maybe this assessment of mine is wrong, but that's how I view their lineup.

Frank Z

When I met Matthew Polk he reinforced what I had heard about his business beliefs years ago. Build a great speaker that is affordable.

Why do some people have a hard time understanding that?

madmax

Some people have a need to pay the bigger price because that is their only assurance that they are getting the best they can. There is a thing called the "EAR" which can make life a lot easier in the audio world.
madmax

nadams

It kills me when I'm trying to explain to my boss and a co-worker that Bose are NOT the best speakers in the world, as they put it. They would hear nothing of my justifications as to why they are not.... All my boss would say is "But they're so small!" and "They sound so good". Needless to say, when I asked them if they had heard anything by Polk, they went strangely silent.

Sorry, I guess it's just my little rant...... I just hate bull-headed people who won't take another person's opinion with some merit. I, myself, have heard the Bose HTIB systems, and think that they're horrible (at least the lower-end ones, which is what we were talking about). Not to mention the price tags on this stuff...

Thank God I managed to convince my uncle to go separates. No Polk speakers in his system yet, but at least he's on the right track.

madmax

I didn't know bose made a lower end speaker.
madmax

newpolkman

I started shopping for a surround sound system this summer. After looking on several audio reviews and close friends---- I started listening to every speaker set up that I could find. I went back to several set ups quite a few times

---

B&W and Polk

---

To me the polks-lsi9s sounded the best---- from very low to high the clarity was great --- Polk may not be the best for everyone

---

but they are for me--- and this forum has been very helpful with all of my questions---- Only one regret --- wish that polk dealer would have said something about the lsi--power requirements-- so I could have started with a better recever and planed for an ampor monoblocks rex

turbogeek

What are you using to power your Lsi's and why is it giving you problems? How many watts/channel is your receiver rated at and is it rated down to 4 ohms?

ChrisDurano

Whats the big deal with Circuit City. I like going there.

madmax

Last time I went to CC I was looking to see what everyone was talking about. So I go back in the "high end" room. I'm looking at the newest polks. The 18 yr old salesman comes in. He shows me the "white van" looking speakers. (have metal laced covers over the woofers). He says they sound great! I tell him that what I am really interested in these particular polks. (RT18?, does that sound right?). His response said it all and I quote "Those are like really good speakers, I mean like if you want to buy something that like you wont want to bring back tomorrow and get a refund those are like the ones you might not want to bring back".

Jeez...

madmax

dorokusai

I went to CC looking for SACD's....asked the guy if they carried them, explained what they were....and the whole time hes staring at me with a blank look on his face, like he just caught me and his mom in the hucklebuck, right before I give her a donkey punch.

hotwheelman

The circuit city we have here sucks major butt and what's sad about it is that it did'nt used to until they did away with anything that is or was high end equipment. They only have one high end room now and the only speaker lines they have in it are sony and infinity, not trying to knock either line but were in the hell are the polks? They have another room that is supposed to be the lower end room I guess, and the only polks in the there are the r50 and the psw303 and 404 subs, and the inwalls. Why do they not at least have the subs in the high end room? And like I said where in the hell is the rest of the polk line at? I can't even get a decent rti demo on around here. Hope I havn't highjacked your thread turbo but this is a major rant for me.

ChrisDurano

I like CC's speaker trade up option and price match guarantee. I really don't go there to get product knowledge. I'm better off getting that from you guys. Remember when CC was blowing out their RT600i's, I didn't hear too many complaints back then.

Shell

ATCVenom, very good post.

bigsexy1

At least my CC has a hot, nearly 6 foot tall blonde!

4_everyman

Originally posted by bigsexy1
At least my CC has a hot, nearly 6 foot tall blonde!

bs1, you're gonna have to keep patronizing that store to help ensure that she'll still have a job there.
Rgds,
--Pete

bigsexy1

4E, believe me, I do just about every Tues. Ya'll should just see her from behind (or any angle for that matter) when she's walking across the floor in those tight black pants!

Yowzaa!!!!:D

mantis

For the money, as I told my buddy, these are very hard speakers to beat. Soundwise I would put them right there against the entry level speakers from makers like Dynaudio, Canton, B&W and others. Maybe this assessment of mine is wrong, but that's how I view their lineup.

Ok I was with you for the most part but you lost me here.Dynaudio entry level speakers destroy the rti series to death.There is no compare in my opnion.Lsi can barely hang in there with Dynaudio entry level with would be the Audience series.

b&w............I don't know about that.......closer I will say

Polk is what it is.Good quality at a great price.there is much better out there...and a whole lot worse.


I'm still happy with My Lsi series.........

turbogeek

I can only comment on what I hear not what you hear. I have listened to Dynaudio Audience 72's and 82's with the same power and processor source as my LSi's and I certainly did not hear major differences and definitely nothing to the point of them destroying the LSi's to death. The key words in your post are those famous words, "in my opinion." and everyone has one! Maybe you have more sensitive ears than I do, who knows????

:-)

TroyD

I like apples.........you like pears.


HK Fooey

TrappedUnder Ice

Well...Kinda on subject>
We have a shop here called Cons....lovely name if ya ask me!? Anyway....my wife had bought an $88 home theater for my sister in law (would not have put in dog house) on black Friday.... needless to say I took it back yesterday. The manager asked why i was retruning it.....I asked him if he had ever herd of Curtis? he said only here... I said... well?......

So I ask to look at some other HT in a box....I'm not gonna spend over 300 on my sister n law anyayway!!!hehe....the We start talking about Bose....and he is amazed at my dislike to them. He was even under thier spell! they used to sell Polk (that was a joke) and still had couple speakers laying around...at prices too high for liquidation...

needless to say...made CC look pretty HIGH TECH!!!

oh well.... ended up getting the yamaha YHT-100 for under 300. More or less bought it for the reciever... can addd polk speakers later

Tour2ma

Originally posted by bigsexy1
4E, believe me, I do just about every Tues. Ya'll should just see her from behind (or any angle for that matter) when she's walking across the floor in those tight black pants!

Yowzaa!!!!:D

Enough is enough... either take some pics with your little ol' digital cam and post 'em, or shut up...

Tell her you're from Playboy doing advance work for a "Girls of Circuit City" layout scheduled for next year...

4_everyman

Originally posted by bigsexy1
4E, believe me, I do just about every Tues. Ya'll should just see her from behind (or any angle for that matter) when she's walking across the floor in those tight black pants!

Yowzaa!!!!:D

BS1 - I'll send you a roll of quarters!
Rgds,
--Pete

burdette

You have to remember there are different types of audio/video shoppers... those who know what they want to hear, and seek it out, and those who don't know **** and go to a store like CC to buy something. Most of us here are on our 3rd or 4th.. or 10th.. or 35th systems... and we'd seek out a particular model to hear it. And we'd have read reviews and comparisons. We view CC as a point of purchase only, not a resource for information. MOST people who walk into CC know as much about audio/video as I know about bicycle frames. Give me a dangerous amount of cash, no research, and the desire to 'get into biking' and I'd no doubt walk out with a Bose bicyle sold to me by some high school kid.

Tour2ma

Wow... I didn't know Bose makes bikes!

Well put burdette....