RTi70's coming!

wodom1

I've got some brand-new in the box RTi70's coming in today (hopefully undamaged) via Fedex that I bought off of Ebay for $399 + shipping. I'm counting down the hours until I leave work (3:00). They'll be paired up with a Denon AVR 1801, Denon CD DCM-60, Sony DVD and turntable. I've got a few questions about placement and break-in. The 70's will be in the same place as the speakers in the picture below--will they be too close together? Since I live in a 500 sq. foot studio apt, my options are pretty limited. I may be able to get a few more feet in between them if I move a chest that is next to my bed, or do you guys think they'll be fine with about 4 feet of space between them? Also, as you can see they'll be in a corner--there is nothing I can do about that--how will this affect the sound? The other thing that I am curious about is break-in time. Do I have to allow them to break-in before playing them at normal volume or can I just hook them up right out of the box and play them at my normal volume level (-38 on the Denon)? I know that I'll have tons more questions once I get these things hooked up tonight. Thanks!

-Josh

wodom1

Here's one more angle.

RuSsMaN

What's to the left of your guitar amp in the first pic?

Can the setup not go on the wall where the dvd/cd racks are? Seems plenty wide enough.

Ever thought about getting a futon?

Cheers,
Russ

wodom1

Thanks, Russ. There's about 4 feet of wall to the left of the amp, then a doorway to the foyer that leads to my front door. I've thought about putting everything on the side wall, but then the couch would be perpendicular to the TV, and I would have no place to put the other speakers for surrounds. I can possibly move everything over to the right some towards the bed if I can find a place to put that chest.
I've thought about getting a futon, but would rather have a bed.
A futon would free up alot of space, though. I'll put up the pics of the rest of the room.

wodom1

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wodom1

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RuSsMaN

Is the floor carpeted?

wodom1

no, it's hardwood.

RuSsMaN

Damn.

I was just working around the room a little, what about putting the TV/gear where the sofa is now, and putting the sofa back by the bed? I don't even know if it would fit there. Then run the 70's in each corner, with toe in - one where the small bookshelf is, one where the white lamp is.

You'd have to buy little carpet samples, or small mats to run the wire across the doorways. Just seeing how you could be the best soundstage out of the space.

Cheers,
Russ

wodom1

That may very well be an option. When I first moved in, I had the TV and current speakers where the couch is, and the couch where the CD's and DVD's are. I've been thinking about canning the couch that I have now and getting something smaller like a love seat on the cheap. I wouldn't be able to use my current speakers as surrounds though, since they are floorstanding. I'm planning on getting some FX's in the future to hang on the walls anyways and I could totally set it up the way you recommend. Right now, I don't think the couch would fit between the bed and the radiator. I can't wait to get a bigger place, at least a 1 bedroom!

ken brydson

Just lose the bed and sleep on the couch. That's what I've been doing since the wife got pissed about my HT addiction

gmorris

Just say "The hell with it" and move all the audio equipment into the kitchen!!

Just kidding. But seriously, you really should consider moving everything around so you can get the speakers out of the corner. The RTi70's make some pretty solid bass. I'm just afraid if you put the 70's where your current speakers now reside, you will get one awefully boomy bass note. Bass defintion will suffer with a corner placement like that. I like Russ's idea of putting them along the long wall.

walk

That is the preferred location for HT (on either side of the screen). Short of getting a bigger screen, not much you can do about that. For stereo music the preferred location is a little bit wider though. They will sound fine in the corner, you can always turn the bass down.

If I were you I'd consider putting the tv in the middle of that wall with the speakers on either side. Or put your cd racks on either side, then the speakers, to seperate them more. Then put the couch on the opposite wall, and the bed... wherever it will fit! For surround speakers, you can always mount them high up on the wall like above the windows, or even hanging from the ceiling.

A smaller couch might be good too A few years ago I picked up a love-seat (2-person couch basically) from Pier 1 for like $220. It's great, it's very light, foam and plastic, I can lift it over my head with no problem..

wodom1

Well, they were in my apartment when I got home yesterday, thanks to my girlfriend who went to my place to meet the Fedex guy. These speakers are beautiful! They're black. I really wanted the cherry, but couldn't find any for sale, especially for the price that I paid. They sound magnificent too. They're so much more defined and clear than those old Sony's that I had. I've never really heard a good pair of speakers for an extended period of time before so I didn't know quite what to expect. Placement is still an issue for the moment. I moved the TV over to the right, on top of the chest and put one speaker right next to the bed, and the other is about 1.5' from the radiator for an approximate distance of about 6' between them. I think that I'm going to go with Russ' suggestion, but am going to have to wait until I can get some FXi's on the cheap to hang on the wall. I'm also going to can the couch in the near future and get a smaller loveseat or something similar.
I really havn't been able to listen to them in depth yet. That will be coming tonight. My girlfriend is going out with some friends of hers, so I'm going to be all alone tonight to play with my new speaks! You should have heard her last night while I was hooking everything up--"why did you have to choose such an expensive hobby?' And the funny thing is, I haven't begun to spend lots of money. I've spent less than $1200 thus far on everything that I have. One thing that really suprised me though about these speakers is the bass--I didn't think that 6.5's would be able to put out as much bass as these do. These have got more and tighter bass than those old Sony's did, and they had a 12" woofer! Perhaps it has to do with effeciency? I don't know, but the one thing that I do know, is that I love my new Polks! I think that ultimately I'm going to go with some LSi15's when my girlfriend and I get a place together next year, but for now, these 70's are rockin'.

-Josh