Polk Audio RM705 Center Channel Upgrade. CS10 or S35?

Charliecherng

Hello everyone. I am a relatively newbie here who is seeking for some helps :P Recently I am thinking to upgrade my living room surround sound setup. I have the Polk Audio RM705 5.1 system and am thinking to upgrade the center channel along with a receiver. I will be going with Yamaha V583BL for the receiver but still have not decided which center channel should I go for. I am considering Polk CS10 for budget reason. Is this center channel worth upgrading to? I might be able to spend a bit more on S35 but is it worth the extra cash? Or should I upgrade the front L/R instead? Any recommendation is appreciated! Thanks!

Jimbo18

Welcome to the Forum, Charlie.

In order to give the best advice, some questions members will want answered are, what size is your listening room? What is your budget? How will the system be used, mostly music or TV/movies? What receiver are you using to power your system now?

rooftop59

Seems like you are more interested in general advice for upgrading, so here goes: first, I would save up for an AVR with preouts which allows you to upgrade in the future and is usually more powerful and feature rich to begin with. Check out accessories4less.com. Second, the center is very important for home theater, but there really is not reason to by speakers new over used. They do not age like electronics do (I mean, eventually the crossovers need refreshed, but that's like 25-30 years down the road). Right now you can find RTiA series pretty heavily discounted, and that series has a big bad center. I would look for either an CSi5 or a CSiA6. But make sure you can fit them because they are BIG! Then save up to match the mains down the road.

That, at least, is my advice. Good luck!

Charliecherng

Thanks for the quick reply @Jimbo18 . The listening room is my living room, which is around 19'x12'. The budget is limited at around $200 max. I know it is little but just wondering if the budget center like CS10 would have made a big improvement. We mainly use it to watch movie, very seldom for music. The receiver we have now is Onkyo TX-SR313.

Charliecherng

Thank you @rooftop59 . But since I am a newbie, would you recommend a couple of the AVR you mentioned with preouts? The reason I am upgrading the receiver is mainly due to the newer video format like 4k and dolby vision and HDR10 as well as potentially to upgrade to atmos in the future. Another reason I am considering lower end model like Yamaha V583BL is that I may be building a dedicated home theater in the basement so at that point I will be purchasing some more higher end equipment for that rather than for my living room setup.
But again, all your comments are greatly appreciated!!!

Jimbo18

Charlie, if that's your budget, I would keep the current receiver, run your HDMI inputs into your TV and then run one from the TV to the receiver. It's not enough of an upgrade to go to the Yamaha with a limited budget.

As far as a speaker upgrade goes, look at your local Craigslist. $200 can sometimes get a decent front soundstage setup. For instance, here's an ad from our local Craigslist (no affiliation with me) -

https://charlotte.craigslist.org/ele/d/matthews-polk-audio-surround-speakers/6873372781.html

There's probably something similar locally to you. You will get a lot more speaker buying used, as @rooftop59 pointed out.

Charliecherng

@Jimbo18 I see. But in that case I will not be able to watch 4k blu-ray video since my current receiver does not support the format. My receiver budget can be up to $400, does that mean you would still save up for a better receiver?

Jimbo18

You can watch 4K blu-ray content. Run the HDMI from your blu-ray player to the TV, and you get 4K content, assuming it's a 4K player and you have a 4K disc. Then you run the audio out of the TV to the receiver. Your picture is 4K that way. Sound will be the same either way.

rooftop59

Charliecherng wrote: »

@Jimbo18 I see. But in that case I will not be able to watch 4k blu-ray video since my current receiver does not support the format.

Your receiver has audio return channel, so that is not a problem.

Charliecherng wrote: »

My receiver budget can be up to $400, does that mean you would still save up for a better receiver?

Here is one suggestion: https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/intdtr404/integra-dtr-40.4-7.2-ch-x-110-watts-thx-a/v-receiver/1.html

Charliecherng

rooftop59 wrote: »

Charliecherng wrote: »

@Jimbo18 I see. But in that case I will not be able to watch 4k blu-ray video since my current receiver does not support the format.

Your receiver has audio return channel, so that is not a problem.

Charliecherng wrote: »

My receiver budget can be up to $400, does that mean you would still save up for a better receiver?

Here is one suggestion: https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/intdtr404/integra-dtr-40.4-7.2-ch-x-110-watts-thx-a/v-receiver/1.html

Got it @rooftop59 Thank you all so much! I have learnt a lot today.

Jimbo18 wrote: »

You can watch 4K blu-ray content. Run the HDMI from your blu-ray player to the TV, and you get 4K content, assuming it's a 4K player and you have a 4K disc. Then you run the audio out of the TV to the receiver. Your picture is 4K that way. Sound will be the same either way.

Understood!!! Thank you so much @Jimbo18 . In that way I will only have to buy the 4k blu-ray player.

Charliecherng

Oh, by the way @rooftop59 @Jimbo18 Is there a specific center and main setup from Polk Audio that you recommend besides the one from the craigslist link showing above? Thanks!

Jimbo18

Charlie, that was just an example of what you could find locally on CL, or even the Facebook Marketplace. It wasn't meant to be a specific suggestion, just wanted to give you an idea of what you might be able to find locally.

Where are you located? We can take a look at your local CL for you.

rooftop59

Charliecherng wrote: »

Oh, by the way @rooftop59 @Jimbo18 Is there a specific center and main setup from Polk Audio that you recommend besides the one from the craigslist link showing above? Thanks!

If you insist on going new, I think the Sig series is where its at. Remember that since you need good stands for bookshelf speakers to sound their best--which adds at least $100 to the cost--you might want to look at the smaller towers.

On the other hand, if you are willing to go used then the sky's the limit. I loved the older Polk rtXXi series, like the rt55i mains and a CS400i center (which I still use in my HT). Scour craigslist and ebay and get your research on!

A wise person on the forum once said that speakers are like cars and mobile homes--the value tanks as soon as you drive them off the lot. You can easily double your value by purchasing used speakers, and if you go several generations old like I am suggesting, its more like 4-5 times.

Charliecherng

Jimbo18 wrote: »

Charlie, that was just an example of what you could find locally on CL, or even the Facebook Marketplace. It wasn't meant to be a specific suggestion, just wanted to give you an idea of what you might be able to find locally.

Where are you located? We can take a look at your local CL for you.

@Jimbo18 Appreciate your kind helps. I am located in NJ.

rooftop59 wrote: »

Charliecherng wrote: »

Oh, by the way @rooftop59 @Jimbo18 Is there a specific center and main setup from Polk Audio that you recommend besides the one from the craigslist link showing above? Thanks!

If you insist on going new, I think the Sig series is where its at. Remember that since you need good stands for bookshelf speakers to sound their best--which adds at least $100 to the cost--you might want to look at the smaller towers.

On the other hand, if you are willing to go used then the sky's the limit. I loved the older Polk rtXXi series, like the rt55i mains and a CS400i center (which I still use in my HT). Scour craigslist and ebay and get your research on!

A wise person on the forum once said that speakers are like cars and mobile homes--the value tanks as soon as you drive them off the lot. You can easily double your value by purchasing used speakers, and if you go several generations old like I am suggesting, its more like 4-5 times.

Very well said @rooftop59 I do not mind going used. Thanks for the suggestions and I will keep my eyes on those model from now

Jimbo18

Depends on where you are in NJ, but there are some good deals on Polk.

Here's some nice Monitor 4's for $20.
https://newjersey.craigslist.org/msg/d/glenwood-polk-audio-bookshelf-speakers/6867396280.html

Some TSX 330's for $135.
https://newjersey.craigslist.org/ele/d/westwood-speakers-polk-tsx330t-series/6854140647.html

Polk T150's for $140.
https://newjersey.craigslist.org/ele/d/weehawken-polk-t150-tower-speakers/6848822329.html

Good luck. Keep an eye on your local CL.

rooftop59

Here ya go:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Polk-Audio-CSiA6-BLACK-RTiA-Center-Channel-Speaker/233213320980?epid=1566811024&hash=item364c98df14:g:6VwAAOSwaAlcitUq

PeterBorren

Hi guys,

The RM705’s powered subwoofers outstrip the previous Polk subwoofers by delivering far better bass performance. A 100 Watt on-board power amplifier drives the RM705 subwoofer to room filling levels. For mounting the speakers you can also purchase an optional stand SA3 available in Black or Titanium priced $169.95.

Read this reviews :

https://www.highfidelityreview.com/polk-audio-rm705-home-theater-speaker-system.html

https://www.audioreputation.com/best-home-theater-systems/#6_Polk_Audio_RM705_51_Home_Theater_System