RtiA7 vs Tsx550: Which sounds better?
Hello Ladies & Gentlemen:
I am having difficulties in deciding which to buy for my Pioneer SC-1522K as front floorstanding speakers. I'd love to hear 60% music and enjoy 40% HD/BluRay movies during my rest time. Which speaker is actually better? I don't know what actually "better" means. I guess, that which gives clear and beautiful and balanced sound when music is played. I am also using a subwoofer. From the fora and reviews I read, no one seemed to have listened actually to both the RtiA7 vis-a-vis the Tsx550. I understand Tsx550 is new, has 4 speakers with an inch larger woofers at 8" and smaller but 2 mids at 5.25" compared to the two 7" and one 6.5", respectively. Has anybody demoed both of them? I would like to ask your help in deciding which to buy, considering in my country they have almost the same price. Thanks
I am having difficulties in deciding which to buy for my Pioneer SC-1522K as front floorstanding speakers. I'd love to hear 60% music and enjoy 40% HD/BluRay movies during my rest time. Which speaker is actually better? I don't know what actually "better" means. I guess, that which gives clear and beautiful and balanced sound when music is played. I am also using a subwoofer. From the fora and reviews I read, no one seemed to have listened actually to both the RtiA7 vis-a-vis the Tsx550. I understand Tsx550 is new, has 4 speakers with an inch larger woofers at 8" and smaller but 2 mids at 5.25" compared to the two 7" and one 6.5", respectively. Has anybody demoed both of them? I would like to ask your help in deciding which to buy, considering in my country they have almost the same price. Thanks
Post edited by ulraman77 on
Comments
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I have not demo'd the RTIA7, but I do own the RTI8's which are equivalent to the RTIA5's (one notch below the 7's), and I had listened to the TSX550's quite a bit before purchasing the RTI8's. In a nutshell, I feel that the TSX550 is a great sounding speaker, and unlike some of the other Polk lines, they do sound a little bit warmer. I went back and forth between the 550 and the RTI8, liking both speakers and the way they sounded, but on my last demo I seemed to get a little tired of the 550...mainly because I felt like the RTI8 had a clear, accurate sound that was very true to the source material. Also they sounded out of this world with live material. From what I hear, people with the A7's and A9's feel like they are even better, especially the more power you give them.
Another thing to consider is that the 550 is a little bit larger and beefier in size, if space is a consideration. Lastly, unless you get a super price on the 550's, I really don't think they are quite worth what most places are charging for them. Just my opinion. -
I have not demo'd the RTIA7, but I do own the RTI8's which are equivalent to the RTIA5's (one notch below the 7's), and I had listened to the TSX550's quite a bit before purchasing the RTI8's. In a nutshell, I feel that the TSX550 is a great sounding speaker, and unlike some of the other Polk lines, they do sound a little bit warmer. I went back and forth between the 550 and the RTI8, liking both speakers and the way they sounded, but on my last demo I seemed to get a little tired of the 550...mainly because I felt like the RTI8 had a clear, accurate sound that was very true to the source material. Also they sounded out of this world with live material. From what I hear, people with the A7's and A9's feel like they are even better, especially the more power you give them.
Another thing to consider is that the 550 is a little bit larger and beefier in size, if space is a consideration. Lastly, unless you get a super price on the 550's, I really don't think they are quite worth what most places are charging for them. Just my opinion.
Thank you for your response. In my country, the price of the Rti A7 is higher only by $65 (average) from the Tsx550. Tsx550 sells somewhere near $890 a pair (or about $443 each. Amazon's price for Tsx550 is $375 each). RtiA7 is about $950 at local prices here. Unfortunately, stores here do not allow audition. They do not have Tsx550 in stock (but they have the RtiA7). Store owner cannot get a Tsx550 from the importer/supplier without paying for them. If I want to hear a Tsx550, I have to buy it. You will find this arrangement ridiculous, I bet. SO, they are pushing me to buy the RtiA7 because it is in stock and I only pay P3,000.00 (pesos) more. I am quite unsettled by this marketing mode. I am being convinced to buy RtiA7 because they have it in stock. In literature, the Rti is supposed to be a higher model than the Tsx. However, the Tsx550 is the flagship and I need to hear how it compares with the mid-model of the Rti series, the RtiA7.
Thanks for sharing your experience. I need to hear from one who had the chance to listen to the Tsx550. Aside from the marketing approach, I am also unsettled by the fact that Tsx550 has two 5.23 mids and two 8 woofers COMPARED to RtiA7's one 6.5 mid and two 7" woofers. I just thought that the one with the more speakers will sound better.
Thank you again. -
Dear Mr2686,
I auditioned the Tsx550 vs. the Rti A7. Guess what? I bought the Rti A7.
You are correct on so many points. The Tsx550, being the flagship of the Tsx series, is truly a great sounding speaker. It's bigger woofers make the vocals sound humanly real. I can get drowned in listening to high quality audio with the Tsx550 because it sounded warmer. I guess I listened too long (3 songs) to the Tsx550. When I listened to the RtiA7, the first time the pair were powered up, I almost immediately disliked the extreme clarity of its sound. The vocals sounded more 'metallic' than human. I felt that clarity was a surplusage. But I couldn't just choose the Tsx550 because I heard you whispering that I may become "tired" of listening to its totality of sound performance. After one song with the RtiA7, I had the Tsx550 hooked up again. There it was, the warm sound, the obvious bass, and the lower clarity which made the vocals sound real. I didn't finish the song and had the RtiA7 plugged in again in the middle of the same song. And there it was, an explosion of clear sound without the 'metallic' timber. The RtiA7 sounded a lot more alluring now, a lot more clear and with higher fidelity.
I had my Pioneer SC 1522K configured last night with the RtiA7. I played Audiophile music using them as stereo speakers. And I think they sounded even better than the set up at the Polk distributor's store.
Thanks a lot, sir!
Raul Reyes -
You are very welcome sir. I hope you get a lot of enjoyment out of those great speakers.
