What does Polk mean to you? Why do you listen to Polk?

cnh

The System Showcase, maybe?? Is that still "functional"?

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/system-showcase/

Some of us don't do facebook for any number of reasons. Though, if Polk wants to stay current with the 35 and under crowd they really "must" have FB status (thanks Mr. Zuckerberg?).

Member sales rating, functional yet? I believe Doro was working on that, but he's not there anymore. And Patrick is still listed as Web Master (on a number of forum sub-sections) but he hasn't worked at Polk for months?

Love the Polk "outreach" here. But there are items on this forum that "need" attention?

Would appreciate some action on that. It goes without saying that we're all willing to provide as much "market research" as we can? And have helped sell tons of Polk product from this site.

cnh

TroyD

F1Nut tapped it pretty well.....

Here is what Polk has meant to me....in terms of speakers, they have always over-delivered. Still do. The LSiM's are fantastic. The Montior 7A's that I have are fantastic. I've never owned a Polk speaker, other than the "Bozo" Model 9, that I thought wasn't up to snuff...although the Model 9 had a very distinct cool factor.

Here is what I see, Polk...and much of this is forum driven, has a rabid, fanatical following...again, much like Harley Davidson. I think a large part of that is due to the forum. I think that Polk has, far and away, the best manufacturer forum. We've supported/bought your products and carried your water for many, many years. I think that the current administration either doesn't appreciate that or doesn't care or both. I've hosted 4 Polkfests and this year I got a very cold shoulder from Polk on it...which, to be honest, I'm pretty bitter about. I, and many others on this forum have invested into growing something that Polk always did support...a grassroots fraternity. To have the plug pulled on that sucks. For the record, Polk did send a nice pair of speakers to give away in support of the githens center and shirts....but it's not stuff that I'm talking about it's supporting the concept, hell, we couldn't even get this years Polkfest added as a Sticky in the events forum.

So, yes, products are great. However, I think that taking the whole company with heart thing and playing that up while at the same time cutting the people who have put actual teeth in that concept adrift is a bit disingenuous.

This may be some sour grapes on my part but it is what it is.

BDT

D2Lo

@nspindel Beautiful restoration!
@cnh thanks. I'll make sure the social media guys are aware of that! They probably already are, but just in case.

D2Lo

Any other thoughts on the secret sauce at Polk? This has been great by the way.

TroyD

There is a systems showcase on the forum, btw...

tonyb

Gonna disagree with the "Facebook presence" comment. The internet doesn't revolve around facebook and any youngster over the age of 7 knows how to use google.

kevhed72

FWIW, Customer Service - awhile back I lost a spike to one of my RTIa9s, or something to do with one of the feet, and I posted a question here where to get a new one. A couple of weeks later I received a box with 8 new feet with spikes (for a pair of speakers) free of charge. Also, a recent promotion allowed me to purchase a pair of LSiMs that I would not have otherwise could have afforded. Lastly, you have some folks on this forum who are extremely knowledge on all things audio and video.
Also, if Polk is looking to target the under 35 crowd more, which may not even be their target demographic, I think the younger crowd has moved away from Facebook to other sites.

Toolfan66

Not only has this forum been fun, it has brought my audio experience to a whole new level, it has also helped Polk Audio in sales not only from myself, but a few friends as well.

Other sites should also be thankful for this site as it has help generate sales for them as well, be it Sonicraft, parts express, W4S, OPPO, MIT, Audioquest, and that list can go on and onand on...

I will just say it has been fun, a lot of fun...

SDA's RULE!!!!!! when it comes to the Polk Line IMO!!! LOVE EM...

Thanks for being here!!!!

Larry..

jflail2

I went into the local Crutchfield store blindly looking for speakers, with the only advice from my friend here being "DO NOT buy Bose. It's trash. Go see the guys at Crutchfield instead."

Soooo, I found a very pretty pair of LSi-7s and a Denon receiver that I liked. The helpful gent at Crutchfield let me know that the Denon would absolutely NOT push the Lsi's, and that I should consider Rti's instead. After talking to some folks here, I ended up moving on the Rti's.

I ended up with an open box pair of Rti-10's for $375, but was heart broken when I realized the bass port on the back of one of the speakers was cracked. I reached out to Polk CS to see if I could buy a replacement part, and they instead sent me the part absolutely free of charge, and in a matter of about 2 days.

So my initial draw to Polk was a combination of what was available in my town, the excellent help from the folks here on the forums, and of course Polk's incredibly responsive and caring customer support efforts. Which was followed immediately by "holy cow, I didn't know movies could sound this good at home!"

I've since purchased used Lsi's from another forum member for a bedroom rig, and honestly can't see a day where I don't have at least a couple sets of Polk speakers rocking my house.

tonyb

Polk has always been a beaming light of bang for your buck in sound quality. Coupled with a CS dept. second to none, how can you not like them ? This forum too is an important part of the Polk mojo, one that needs a tad more attention too imho.

Given that these days we have more speaker makers in direct competition with polk than you can shake a stick at, this is no time to let down on the mojo. A little more involvement from the company would be nice. People get their rocks off when they can call/communicate with someone who designs and builds their speakers. As an example, take Jim Salk. Be nice if we had someone from Polk as involved with customers. That's how you retain brand loyalty, and no bean counter can measure that.

madmax

The first time I saw a pair of 1.2 SDA SRS in an audio store I knew polk must be something special. I mean who else would make something like that other than a bunch of audio freaks on a mission. Later I got to know their company as part of my audio family. When I first found the forum it was a scary freak show but I blended right in.

GlennDog

For me, it's the sound stage. Instruments and vocals in pin-poiint locations. It's a little blurry 30+ yrs later, but here goes. A good friend who I still hang with, purchased 12Cs turned me on to Polk (he still has 'em). Like my glacier white pearl Harley, I saw it/heard 'em and had to have 'em. The 2Bs Studio version was in my price range and I've been rocking them ever since. That is, until I was able to score some SRS 2s that were semi-redone.

Bottom line, it's the SDA affect

Polk Audio, the gift that keeps on giving . . . quote me (it may be my siggy)

mgforshort

Why do I love Polk? Well, let me count the ways...
My first real speakers were Magnepans, then a pair of Acoustats (electrostatic).
A friend at work bought a pair of Polks and we all admired them. A few months later I sold the Acoustats and bought a pair of Polk 3.1 TLs from the "Good Guys".
I think it was 1991, not sure.
It was like climbing out of the bathtub and jumping into a river. You get wet, one way or the other, but it's a very different experience.
My 3.1s still sound fantastic, still the best speakers, ever. We have 4 Lsi9s and 2 Lsi15s, and I love them all, but the 3.1s I just love a little bit more.
And, once we get a bigger house, I plan to add a pair of LsiM to the chorus.

Faustin

When I first heard Polk 10's in 1979 and did some comparisons to other speakers at that time I felt they were the best bang for the buck. Clean, detailed and easy to listen to. My friends made fun of them because of the vinyl wood grain instead of real wood. I would venture to say the crap they bought back in the day because they were wood cabinets are looong gone. Still have Peerless tweet,original MW6500's and have only recently rebuilt the crossovers. To me the vintage Polk speakers are still some of the best speakers around.

PolkieMan

Polk can thank Stereo Review magazine for my first interest in Polk. Thanks to a review of the SDA SRS line in mid 1990 I bought my first 2.3tls. Since then it's always been Polk even my computer speakers.

George Grand

Cause I got them for free!

sda2mike

it's been my main spks for 11 yrs! they seem alive almost. especially in the intricate high end - toe curling detail...oh, the midrange is quite life-like...some times the bass rattles me cage..i'm well deep in the rabbit hole. I love em. the other ****e around them is what gets questioned and swapped out..sometimes I dream of bigger sda's, but after a session with the tl'd 2b's, I'm quite happy:)

mike

GospelTruth

Bought my first Polk speakers in '88 or '89 - as set of 5jr+ series 2. I would always drool at the larger offerings from Polk at Classic Stereo in Grand Rapids, MI - but I just couldn't afford that stuff paying my way through college back then. Those 5jrs replaced a pair of Kenwood rack speakers and I loved the Polks. Forward to post college and a friend is looking for speakers and I tell him that I love my Polks. He got a pair of the S6 back then I believe and I just wasn't as impressed as I was with the monitor series from before (10, 7, 5). So I finally have some coin to buy a 5.1 surround back in '98 and I went with Energy speakers as my impression of Polk at the time had diminished. I only had room for one system so I gave my 5jrs to my sister and her husband as I didn't think I would ever need them again.

Roughly two years ago I go back home and find they upgraded to a HT in a box. They put the Polks in the garage where they sat collecting dust. They were dirty, but I had them shipped with my parents when they came out to visit. They looked a lot worse than they were and I cleaned them and all they were missing was a badge plate. I still hooked them up to see how they sounded after all these years. Incredible! I couldn't believe that I had gotten rid of these guys. But, being a perfectionist, I wanted that badge to make them "restored". That is where I stumbled upon this forum - wow. This community is a gold mine of information and passion. I learned about those SDA speakers that I forgot about back in that stereo store. Contributors raved about them, so I found a pair of 2Bs on craigslist and brought them home. Even more amazing! I have since bought a pair of 3.1TLs from a fellow member and plan to stop the journey there for now and work on upgrading them.

Polk means community. I don't see that with the Energy brand (which I still have for Home Theater). Based on the discussions here, I have learned that Polk service is second to none. So Polk also means great customer service. I have also learned about the current offerings from Polk and what members think of them. If I were where I was 8 years ago (single, no kids) I would more than likely have bought the LSiM series for the Home Theater based on the passion for them here. But, life has changed right now so that isn't going to happen. However, I do have a restored faith in Polk because of what members say about that particular line.

Polk was my first love of a speaker, and I've found that love again here and with those old SDAs and my 5jrs. Bring the SDAs back again and that "halo" affect for the brand I believe would be awakened. People would want to own Polk even if they couldn't afford the SDA line. I know that was true for me back in 1988 - I couldn't afford the big guys, but owning those 5jrs made me feel like I was at least part of the family.

Derm

For me Polk means a step up from where I was and in a sense now that I have started to get serious about the equipment I use.
I decided Polk was a great place for me.

I started with a Yamaha system (components and speakers) as my first step away from boomboxes...lol (hey it was the 80's).
I then went Kenwood, then Technics with JBL's and had this for about 10 years or so until I realized I was basically not in the game and I was blown away at how crappy the stuff I had really was.

I was at a decent local high end electronics store and heard some floor units of other brands and got to hear what some powered amps sounded like on a up level speaker (far above what I had at home).
From there my current journey began.
I ended up with what I have in my signature for HT.
I am now looking at assembling a 2 channel rig and I get so much info. from this forum that helps me immensely. (Don't judge me by my post count. I am on here every day or so lurking but I only comment or post if I feel there is something of value to add).