Best cherry floor standers for music
I'm looking for to floorstanders in cherry for music only. I was kind of getting set on the rti A5 or A9 since its a real cherry veneer and you can get them at half the original price now. But people are saying the Tsi or Signature are better for music. That just surprises me that a speaker retailing for $200 or so each would beat a speaker that retailed for $1000 each, at anything. Seems like you would just get a lot more for your money with the RTI on the current sales.
It also doesn't look like the signature series comes in cherry. That's a problem for me. I love cherry wood, if that wasn't already obvious.
I would also rather get $700 - $1,000 speakers on sale for $500 each then $300 speakers on sale for $250.
I have a little bit of a soft spot for Polk, but I'm not ruling out looking somewhere else also.
It also doesn't look like the signature series comes in cherry. That's a problem for me. I love cherry wood, if that wasn't already obvious.
I would also rather get $700 - $1,000 speakers on sale for $500 each then $300 speakers on sale for $250.
I have a little bit of a soft spot for Polk, but I'm not ruling out looking somewhere else also.
Comments
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The RTiA series are aimed more for HT with a tipped up top end. Depending on the gear you mate them with will determine how well they perform for you.Political 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 -
Not a fan of the cherry LSiM-705’s? I would think those are a much better option for music. Some good prices out there if patient
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For sure the LSiM705 would be the better choice for music. The only down side for the OP might be that the cabinets are not actual cherry veneer.Political 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 -
I’m sensing this post going off topic quickly based on the title.
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Yes I've looked at the LSiM a lot. I read about all I can find. It's a little more than I wanted to spend at about $1500 for a pair. And, yea, its too bad they didn't use the real cherry in the veneer. Although everyone e says the finish is very nice. If I'm paying that much I'd like the real thing.
I have a nightstand the wife's grandfather made out of cherry. I see it every night, and appreciate it more as time goes by. I like wood and cherry is the prettiest wood I know of. As much as I'll be looking at a big pair of towers, it matters to me if I can get those same tones. -
I have the lsim705’s, my eyes are shut when I list to those beautiful speakers. I just hear the music !Some final words,
"If you keep banging your head against the wall,
you're going to have headaches."
Warren -
The LSiM series uses real-wood veneers, but the "Mt. Vernon Cherry" finish is not actually a true cherry wood veneer, correct?
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Yeah... the RT in RTi is for “reference theater’, so definitely more HT oriented — and, they are frequently described as “bright”, which might not be the best for music (some would describe bright as detailed... but for others, bright means too much listening fatigue).
Some of the bigger, older RT’s can be very good for music, but you won’t find those new, and cherry is very rare. Something like the RT55 or RT55i, for example, would be big bookies well suited to music IMHO. That might end up being an extended Craigs List search, though.Alea jacta est! -
The LSiM series uses real-wood veneers, but the "Mt. Vernon Cherry" finish is not actually a true cherry wood veneer, correct?
CorrectPolitical 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 -
if you have the opportunity to get some listening time on the RTi A9, do try to do that. Its my favorite from the RTiA range. It has the look your looking for and i've heard it many times with music and could easily live with a set at home.
(Please don't ban me - am only trying to help) -
Appreciate all assistance.
I always do this---spend $1000 hours worth of my time trying to save $300.
Only downside of LSiMs that I've heard is that they're "clinical." Or cold. Reproduce the sound without any color. I can understand a speaker that would faithfully reproduce and not fill in any of the bumps being undesirable when you actually hear it. Like women in pictures. Who wants a faithful reproduction of the original and wouldn't rather have the image softened up a little bit by stuff that wasn't actually there originally?
It's just funny with music that this would also be the case. You would think they would mix in whatever they wanted as far as effects during the recording of the music, so that if all that your home system did was faithfully reproduce what was recorded, you should get it just like the sound guy in the studio decided it sounded best. And that should be the best since the sound guy is a professional and should have a golden pair of ears.
All that, plus not real cherry. ! -
I've never heard of anyone saying the LSiM series is clinical and having heard most of the series, clinical is the last thing that comes to mind.Political 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 -
What are you planning on powering them with? That will have a pretty big impact on how the tweeter will perform.
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He seems to be saying if the speaker is accurate then it is bad. A speaker that distorts the music is better.Lumin X1 file player, Westminster Labs interconnect cable
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Three 20 amp circuits. -
That may be why most home-listeners/audiophiles do not have powered studio monitors in their setups.
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Yea, that's just what I'm saying BlueFox. Thanks.
I can't listen to them so I have to go on reviews.
Here is one review that described what I said.
https://www.hometheatershack.com/threads/the-official-3-000-speaker-evaluation-home-audition-event.84850/
I have read other things to the contrary though.
I'm just using a middle of the road avs for now for power. -
The LSiM series are really nice speakers. They are not “clinical.” And you don’t have to spend $1500 a pair for them. You may want to worry less about real cherry veneer. Even that review you referenced said the Finish on the Mt Vernon was “outstanding.”it also said the 705’s are “real show pieces.” There’s a pair for sale right now in the for sale forum here for $800. You show me better bang for the buck at $800 a pair. They were going for $800 a pair for awhile new during the Adorama sale with free shipping. Maybe you could find a pair new still on a comparable sale with free shipping. If you’re anywhere near Chicago I’d consider that pair on the forum.
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Oops, I guess the seller of the 705’s on the forum here has decided to keep them. You never know, I’d keep an eye on Adorama and Polk’s EBay store for a sale. Adorama just put the 702’s back on sale for an unbelievable price so you never know.
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Thanks for the tip but I just bought some new 705's. Feel pretty good about it. $700 each. I searched everywhere I could think of and there was no better price. I missed the Adorama $1000 per pair sales, but I don't think those sales can or will be repeated. I think there aren't many of these speakers left on shelves anywhere any more. I have the feeling there might be about 10 new pairs left nationwide. I certainly didn't find any others. And from most of what I've read, they're worth twice that. The ones I got also happen to be in a store about five miles from where I grew up.
I didn't mention it, but I had found another write-up where the reviewer hooked up the 707's for his listening test, plugged the first song in, and found himself crying. Said the dog crawled into his lap to make him feel better, and that the only speakers that had made that kind of impression on him were some >$20k pair at a show. https://www.residentialsystems.com/technology/polk-audio-lsim-loudspeaker-system
The only other real set of speakers I've ever had were pioneers that the old man got in Korea during Vietnam. So they were at least 30 years old when I first started listening to them. They moved with me literally about 15 times in my 20's and 30's until I finally stopped dragging them around. They're in the parents' attic right now. Need to get them down and compare. -
Sounds good. Pun intended.
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Yea, that's just what I'm saying BlueFox. Thanks.
I can't listen to them so I have to go on reviews.
Here is one review that described what I said.
https://www.hometheatershack.com/threads/the-official-3-000-speaker-evaluation-home-audition-event.84850/
I have read other things to the contrary though.
I'm just using a middle of the road avs for now for power.
I would not base my decision on any of the speaker reviews in that link because they were using HT gear including the use of a calibration program to judge speakers playing 2 channel music.
Political 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 -
I thought this had posted days ago, but apparently it had not.
Thanks for the tip but I just bought some new 705's. Feel pretty good about it. $700 each. I searched everywhere I could think of and there was no better price. I missed the Adorama $1000 per pair sales, but I don't think those sales can or will be repeated. I think there aren't many of these speakers left on shelves anywhere any more. I have the feeling there might be about 10 new pairs left nationwide. I certainly didn't find any others. And from most of what I've read, they're worth twice that. The ones I got also happen to be in a store about five miles from where I grew up.
I didn't mention it, but I had found another write-up where the reviewer hooked up the 707's for his listening test, plugged the first song in, and found himself crying. Said the dog crawled into his lap to make him feel better, and that the only speakers that had made that kind of impression on him were some >$20k pair at a show. https://www.residentialsystems.com/technology/polk-audio-lsim-loudspeaker-system
The only other real set of speakers I've ever had were pioneers that the old man got in Korea during Vietnam. So they were at least 30 years old when I first started listening to them. They moved with me literally about 15 times in my 20's and 30's until I finally stopped dragging them around. They're in the parents' attic right now. Need to get them down and compare. -
@Blue42 your original and identical post is still visible above from December 12 (link below). 🤔Thanks for the tip but I just bought some new 705's. ...Alea jacta est!
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Oops. I had posted it. Would delete it if I could.
I've been listening to the 705's for about three days and I can't point out any faults, except that the bass punch is lacking, but that's probably due to pushing them with an AVR. It will do the low tones, but no impact.
I'm going to give it some more break-in time, but at this point my preliminary feeling is they're probably not for me. I think the speakers put the recording out just like it was cut in the studio. But to my ears it's something about the sounds being tied together that's missing.
I played a lot of songs that I love and that usually get me pumped. On the 705s I hear nuance that I never have before, and can clearly distinguish the different instruments in different places. My old man was over Saturday and said he could hear every individual bass note clearly. I noticed it too. Nothing is blurred together at any frequency. Play Steely Dan, "Peg" and you'll notice it. And I would say that the silence between sounds stands out. But I haven't felt any emotion going with anything.
If you have a pair of these I would also recommend Son de la Negra by Mariachi Real de San Diego. That was a track on these that really impressed me.
Another preliminary take of mine is that these would be good to have if you are really into sound equipment and have multiple pairs of speakers. If you really want to hear a track without any sustain that isn't really there in the instruments, any blur, or any distortion, these will do it.
To explain some of the background for my opinion I'll volunteer that I have never had a really good system at home, but I play guitar and bass and do sound for church and have worked with a couple professionals and $50k systems. I apparently have a good ear; since no one else can ever hear the awful sounds coming from the stage so often at different places, and that's why I first got into doing the sound--to fix it On a lot of songs I plug in reverb just to fill the sound in. Which IS distortion. It can sound a little empty and cold without some filler sometimes. I think that's the same thing going on here. If I had a board at home I'd like to play with them. -
So, would you describe them as “clinical”, now that you’ve heard them?
Also, be careful about pushing them too hard with an AVR... unless it’s something like a NAD (unlike most AVR’s, they are rated for 4Ω loads, and most are even rated for 2Ω loads). You don’t want to get clipping, which could damage the tweeters. What are you using?
A good power source does help the bass, especially from large speakers like these.Alea jacta est! -
Your problem, which will always be a problem regardless of the speakers is, "I'm just using a middle of the road av[r] for now for power."Political 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 -
I want the name of your dealer.
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I bought from IQ Home Entertainment in Fairfax, VA. I think they have another new pair, and I know they have an open box pair for $650 each.
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Your problem, which will always be a problem regardless of the speakers is, "I'm just using a middle of the road av[r] for now for power."I've been listening to the 705's for about three days and I can't point out any faults, except that the bass punch is lacking, but that's probably due to pushing them with an AVR. It will do the low tones, but no impact.
Yep.
