Which Speakers

thugin_life

I am upgrading my home theatre and i went to a couple hifi stores. I asked what the best speakers he has in and he told me about the polk audio Lsi lineup and the klipsch RF lineup. I am looking to get the LSi 25 or the RF-7. Ive been a polk fan for years. Unfortunatly the store only had the klipsch hooked up and so i could not here both. the klipsch sounds good but ive still got my mind on the polk i just want to here them before i buy. I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with the RF-7 as to how good it performs next to the Lsi25.

fireshoes

If you like the Polk sound, you'll like the LSi's. The Klipsch RF7's are complete polar opposites of the LSi25's. The RF7's have blisteringly bright highs and a hollow midrange IMO. The LSi25's can produce very powerful bass, have a full midrange, and detailed but not overbearing treble.

Where do you live? Maybe there's a Polkster nearby where you can hear the LSi's.

up2youjoe

I believe the LSi speakers are 4 ohm speakers and they require alot of power to drive them. Make sure your receiver is up to the job

RuSsMaN

The Klipsch are very detailed, the LSi very flat.

You *should* hear both, with a proper back end. The LSi will require a HIGH end receiver, or seperate amps to get the most out of them. The Klipsch will shine with lower powered class A amps and tubes SOMEWHERE in the back end, beit pre / amp / source, or any of the above.

Different sounds, neither one bad, but both are finicky with what they should be paired with.

Cheers,
Rooster

jdavy

I heard the Home Theater Demo of the LSi's in San Francisco given by Paul DiComo. You will love the LSis. I am still thinging about upgrading my RTis. Find another store that has them or get the owner of the store you are shopping at to set them up. You will not be disapointed.

LuSh

3 things.

1. Polk Audio LSI's sound NOTHING like existing or current Polk Audio speakers. They are TOTALLY different then the RTI line, by a wide wide margin. Sound is subjective but I HATE Polk RTI speakers, I really would rather listen to somebody running their nails down a chalk board. Some people love the speakers, again subjective but the differences between the two are abundant.

2. The LSi's are perhaps the most detailed speakers I've heard at this price point. The Klipsch are bright but not nearly as detailed, to my ears. The LSi's are warmer, laid back but the detail is there, use a well recorded jazz cd (live if you can get one) and compare the two. If your tastes are different try Nirvana's unplugged album. You'll hear alot more information in the LSi's. The feeback from kurt cobains voice reflecting off the mike, fait guitar feeback in the background, audience noise. The smaller details that really bring out the best (and worst) out of a recording.

3. The LSi's are inefficient, and wants lots of clean power. I hope you are using close to top of the Line Receivers or are looking into separates. A mid level NAD, Yamaha, Rotel, Marantez is not going to cut it. The Klipsch are much much more efficient. Mid level power will easily drive the speakers. LSi's require alot more in the backend. That means alot more $$$.

organ

Hi, I also saw your post about this on the Klipsch forum. I didn't like the way some of the members bashed Polk.

I have the LSi9 and RF-35. Like everyone here says, the sound is totally different and you should listen to both models.

If you enjoy warmer mids, laid back sound, better pin-point imaging in the soundstage, you'll probably like the LSi better.
The Klipsch is way better in dynamics and slam and sounds more like a live concert. The horns have a lot more detail and "air" IMO. The imaging is not as precise but more "life-size" and 3 dimensional..

Maurice

thugin_life

I had went on wednesday and decided to take a look at the RTi12 and matchin speakers. I spent crutial hours comparing the 3 speakers in movies and music. I ended up getting the following:
RTi12 - Fronts
FXi5 - Surround
RTi6 - Surround Back
CSi5 - Centre
I liked the bass response with the RTi's, im more of a bass guy. The highs were also good. The Lsi was more in the high range, they were good but overall i think the RTi's were better. The klipsch didnt really suite my needs. The imaging was not all that i thought it would be. When i bought the speakers and took them home and hooked the up to me B&K pre/pro, WOW. They sounded alot better than in the store with this yammi. I couldnt belive it. I tested it with pearl harbour and it blew me away. Im still deciding on whether i need a sub or not, i think i might get one for the impact in my movies. Never goin to have any regrets. Thx Polk!:D
Can any of you guys give me some good choises for a sub?

VR3

www.svsubwoofers.com

www.hsuresearch.com

fgr41

What he said.

Those two brands will give you hella bang for the buck!