FXi50 mystery...Were there TWO versions?
Carbo3D
Posts: 10
I've now seen two versions of the FXi50 bipole/dipole surrounds: almost all without a bass port on the tweeter-only side, but I've also seen photos WITH a bass port and darker tweeter surrounds. I've scoured through the old Polk websites (via WayBack machine) with NO hint or mention of a ported FXi50. Was Polk known to make mid-model changes and keep the same model number?
Comments
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YesPolitical Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
There is a possibility that over the years the fx500i and fxi50 have become interwoven on the internet...
Fx500i used a tri làm tweeter, fxi50 used silk...
Slight cabinet differences, etc. Both have the arc port, but in different locations
- Not Tom ::::::: Any system can play Diana Krall. Only the best can play Limp Bizkit. -
Polk-er Players, regarding the two different fxi50 models, here's the official Polk 2003 page showing a port-less surround. Yet other sites refer to a speaker with a port. Very odd.
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The artist who rendered the model on the Polk page may have just forgot to draw in the ports. I've never seen real FXi50 or FXi30 speakers in the wild that are not ported. I'd buy the ones that had the ports! I do think there were two finishes available - black and rosewood. The FXi50s tended to not be kept in stock in stores where I am because the smaller FXi30s may have been better sellers.
The run on that version of Polk's RTi line was pretty short from what I remember. May have had something to do with shifting production from Mexico to China. I was using four RTi150s at the time thanks to Circuit City's once a year speaker upgrade program. Crazy policy.
I never did buy the FX speakers from that line. Compared to other RT speakers the tweeter in those was not as bright as previous or later versions thanks to the German tweeter they decided to use. Good speakers. Those RTi150s loved power.Post edited by Emlyn on -
Mine have the port. But these are the only pair I have ever seen.
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The only caveat to that port is that it's not a port like you think. That is the arc port, it is tuned to the cabinet resonance out of phase...
The fx500 and fx500i had a long production run but the fxi50 was only like 2 years or less- Not Tom ::::::: Any system can play Diana Krall. Only the best can play Limp Bizkit. -
Great information, folks. I've got a pair of fx300is but have an opportunity to get the fxi50s WITH the port. The FR on the 50s is stated from 40Hz-27kHz vs 50Hz-22kHz for the 300i. Anyone have opinions? P.S. Emlyn: I can't IMAGINE upgrading brand new speakers every year!
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Back then, Circuit City was just trying to move product to stay afloat. My initial purchase was a pair of RT1000p, upgraded to RT1000i, then RTi150 for only the difference in price between the price paid on the owned pair and the price on the new pair. They even tended to throw in a cheap subwoofer or a couple hundred $ cash off another pair of speakers. The first two pair were not good designs, in my opinion, because of the attempt at a powered tower. The RT55i big bookshelf speakers were a better design. In a way, I wish I still had the RTi150 system I had.
The FXi50s are good speakers for surround, and not easy to find given their short production run. The switchable bipole/dipole design was clever. -
When I got the surrounds, I also got the RTi150 towers. They were good but I compared them to the RT800i's and thought they had similar qualities. Strictly HT, that is.
