LSIM703 or R200's
Comments
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His preference IMO/IME is one that is a "relaxed" speaker, with a flat response. Those are two things that are the complete opposite of a high fidelity speaker/system (to me). YMMV. He also has a tendency to over damp.
Tom~ In search of accurate reproduction of music. Real sound is my reference and while perfection may not be attainable? If I chase it, I might just catch excellence. ~ -
Trey says like a studio monitor, Tom says relaxed/over damped. Two completely different ends of the spectrum.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 -
By overdamped he means the enclosure is lined almost 100% with no rez which completely kills the volume and life to the speaker.
The pair I had was incapable of being louder then 80db in a 10x10 bedroom- Not Tom ::::::: Any system can play Diana Krall. Only the best can play Limp Bizkit. -
Gardenstater wrote: »I'll watch it again. I think he had some bad ringing in the CSD plot and moved the crossover point to minimize iirc (or maybe a notch filter), but don't hold me to that. He didn't like the ferromagnetic steel in the sandcast resistors and the binding posts, and the use of mylar caps.
I guess whatever your looking for you can mod to your liking. As good and cheap the R200's are maybe worth getting better speakers or maybe worth those upgrades. It was like $420 or so for the upgrade kit and I guess fun you get to do it yourself . Either way it's a choice of what one would want to do.
I would have to absolutely love the speakers to put another $400 or so dollars into them. The cabinet finishes tell me I would not do the upgrades, I'd rather have better looking built speakers .
Personally I think Polk messed up on the Reserve line except maybe the white, and I'm not really a white speaker kinda guy.Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time. -
Also, the smaller the subwoofer the better, High powered long excursion... No need for large drivers or excessive displacement. Dsp can fill the void
The r200 is a good speaker but I really preferred my definitive pm500 in my application. Something about the midrange in the 200 just did not work for me.
The 703 is very bloated sounding with a glass tweeter
The lsi line is one of Polks better products. The proof is in the longevity of the line and somewhat loyal fan base.
I have heard the lsi series many times modded and stock and they have always been good enough to sustain a solid listening session
You might be right on par with your comments. Never did I think the LSI line had flaws, even the LSI15 with the stock woofer on the side, I was able to get that to work well. I heard he upgraded woofer made a nice difference but I sold mine before I really looked into that upgrade.
The LSI7's are damn good speakers especially paired with a fast Woofer. I have a nice Sunfire I might mate with them.Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time. -
By overdamped he means the enclosure is lined almost 100% with no rez which completely kills the volume and life to the speaker.
The pair I had was incapable of being louder then 80db in a 10x10 bedroom
What pair did you have, out of curiosity? He is also a big fan of open baffle speakers.George / NJ
Polk 7B main speakers, std. mods+ (1979, orig owner)
Martin Logan Dynamo sub w/6ft 14awg Power Cord
Onkyo A-8017 integrated
Logitech Squeezebox Touch Streamer w/EDO applet
iFi nano iDSD DAC
iPurifier3
iDefender w/ iPower PS
Custom Steve Wilson 1m UPOCC Interconnect
iFi Mercury 0.5m OFHC continuous cast copper USB cable
Custom Ribbon Speaker Cables, 5ft long, 4N Copper, 14awg, ultra low inductance
Custom Vibration Isolation Speaker Stands and Sub Platform -
Tyler acoustics d2 and d3
Dannie Ritchie designed with his top of the line drivers- Not Tom ::::::: Any system can play Diana Krall. Only the best can play Limp Bizkit. -
TOTL...
*snickers like a red headed stepchild*
Tom~ In search of accurate reproduction of music. Real sound is my reference and while perfection may not be attainable? If I chase it, I might just catch excellence. ~ -
Tyler acoustics d2 and d3
Dannie Ritchie designed with his top of the line drivers
I disabled signatures. -
Just buy the damn things. We all have a different experience with them and most likely use them differently. The only way you're going to know is by listening yourself in your space with your gear.
FTR, the best sounding LSi speaker was the 7. The 9's had prominent midrange bump that sounded bloated, unnatural and had a nasal sound. No matter the gear or placement. The 15's bass was flawed.
Not sure what you're obsession with finish is, but a $750 retail bookshelf is going to have some compromises in the finish. I think it looks great. Do the Legends look a bit more upscale, sure but it comes at am increased price.
If you're worried about the finish then get the L200's and call it a day. You'll be paying almost twice as much.
Pull the trigger already, this probably the 3rd post in a year you lament about buying R200's, but now you say the finish isn't worth putting any upgrades into the speakers that you've never heard.
H9
P.s. come back after you've listened to the R200's"Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul! -
I don't care what anybody says, I owned the R200's and the L200's and the R200's are not better than the L200's. I also owned the LSi-7's (and 9's) and the LSiM-703's. I put them all up against each other at one point and there are reviews where I discuss that. The L200's are the logical extension of Polk's institutional memory and superior. However, if a person already had the LSiM-703's i don't know that I'd buy the L200's unless you got a real good deal, the L200's are better up top but the bottom end is really excellent on both, and although the L200's are better I don't know they are THAT much better that if I already had the 703's I'd pay full price to step up to the L200's. Like I said, if you got a deal on the L200's I'd jump on them. Again, the LSiM-703 was the logical extension of the LSi in my opinion, although I think the LSi-7 is also an excellent speaker. Unlike some others, I also think the LSi-9 is a very good speaker indeed. Keep in mind that each of the above-mentioned speakers will not sound that good with a receiver and will bloom with good power, but I doubt you have any problem with regard to good clean power. The better the power, the better each will sound. I really like the L200's but unfortunately that is not being offered to you at this time. It's tough to answer your question. The R200 is the newest and a good all-around speaker but once you hear the L200 next to it you will hear its limitations. Apparently, there are some problems with obtaining replacement parts for the 703's. The LSi-7's are fine speakers but when you figure a sub into the mix you're better off with the R200's maybe. Or wait until Polk introduces a new line and get 75% off the L200's. It should be about time for a new model, shouldn't it?
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The Gear... Carver "Statement" Mono-blocks, Mcintosh C2300 Arcam AVR20, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, Sony XBR70x850B 4k, Polk Audio Legend L800 with height modules, L400 Center Channel Polk audio AB800 "in-wall" surrounds. Marantz MM7025 stereo amp. Simaudio Moon 680d DSD
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