Help choosing rear speakers in new HT setup

Knottian

Hello everyone, I'm a longtime Polk fan in the process of building a new HT setup to replace my aging Yamaha 5.1 system, and I need a bit of advice. At this point, I'm pretty well set on using another Yamaha as the receiver (RX-V675), a pair of RTiA5s for my fronts, the CSiA6 for my center channel, and the PSW110 for my sub (the home in which it's in doesn't need a lot of bass to resonate). When I get to the rears however, I'm a bit stuck in my decision; at this point, I'm at a crossroads of whether I should get a set of bookshelf speakers, or a genuine pair of HT speakers. Any of the options are going to be a significant upgrade to my aging satellite speaker setup, but I'm not sure which is the better option between a pair of the F/XiA4, the RTiA1, or the TSi100.

Any assistance or advice would be much appreciated. To further clarify, the primary usage for the new system would be largely cinema and gaming, as the family has an assortment of Polk/Yamaha bluetooth speakers around the house.

Emlyn

The A4 or A6 are the best choice as they offer switchable bipole/dipole settings. More versatile in a home theater system as they work well either as side or rear surround speakers. Straight bookshelf speakers are a better choice for a surround sound music system because of their more direct rather than diffuse sound.

rooftop59

i echo Emlyn's suggestion. For movies and games the F/X are likely the way to go, although I don't think you would be disappointed with the rtiA1.

I know you tried to head it off, but with all the money you are investing I would highly suggest you go with a better sub. It doesn't have to be huge gut wrenching bass, but even an HSU STF-1 is going to crush that Polk, with tighter, more musical bass that goes deeper to boot. And you're not spending much more. Or step up to the STF-2 or a little sealed guy like the SVS SB-1000 and you wouldn't take up any more floor space but the quality of the bass will be significantly better. Just a friendly suggestion ;-)

rpf65

I've used both the RTI A3 and FXI A6 for surrounds, rear side. For movies, the FX speakers are in a league of their own. Had a few people look at them like they are some kind of alien creature, but normally after the first action scene, the questions start.

Can't speak of the performance in a rear position, using the A3's there, and I don't plan on trying the FX's there. Figure if a dog snaps their head around looking for some animal in the back of the room, it must be pretty good.

In a 5.1 system, go with the FX no matter where the are going to live.

Erik Tracy

From a former post:

http://forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/comment/1935689#Comment_1935689

gudnoyez

If your sticking with a 5.1 then +1 on what everyone is recommending the FxiA4 or the FxiA6

Knottian

Wow, thank you everyone for so many great and detailed responses. I apologize for the delay in getting back to everyone; I'm a programmer and have been on a crunch getting out a new system to my company. Anyway, I'd like to address each person with some additions/questions:

@gudnoyez - I would love to go with a 7.1 setup, however the space that the HT System will be going into doesn't really warrant, or truthfully have the design to accommodate anything more than 5.1.

@Erik Tracy - Thanks for the fantastic and informative link, as it further answered almost every minor "but what if" scenario, and the response you directly linked to was a bit of needed comic relief.

@rpf65 - I appreciate the first-hand experience with the A3s as well, since I'd considered those for my rears. I've been a bit unsure of the look as well with the FX series, and the alien comment really hit that home; I love the look of some of the bookshelf speakers, but ultimately sound is what matters and if the FX is better for movies/gaming, that's the route I'll take. If you had to choose between the FXiA4 or the A3 for your rears, what would you ultimately prefer?

@rooftop59 - Thank you very much for the sub suggestion. I did try to head that subject off a bit, but if you genuinely feel that I would benefit from a cleaner/more accurate bass, I will definitely take a look at both options and let you know what I think.

@Emlyn - Thanks for the quick breakdown of the differences between the two; I'm a software/hardware computer guy who's played instruments and dabbled in audio engineering throughout my life but never really dug too deeply into the effects of the various specifications (I suppose this a subtle a reminder to snag a quick breakdown online somewhere of said material). Are you familiar with how music sounds on the FX series? It will not be the primary function as stated before, but every once in a while the wife and I like to put on a concert BluRay.

rpf65

If I were running a 5.1 system, I would probably lean towards the FX speakers. The bi pole/di pole settings allow you to choose between a more forward sound or wide field sound.

If I didn't already have the A3's in the rear duty, I would probably go with a pair of FX's for the rears also. They are really impressive speakers for surround duty