Infinity Beta design flaw??

PolkThug

So, we get the Beta 50's in at CC and I'm demoing them (to myself)and thinking the vocals sound really flat. Since they haven't had much play, I let them play at moderate volume all night til close. Come back, the vocals still sound bad. Then I start looking at the grills. They are thin sheet metal with little holes in them, and there is a fabric on the inside, similar to what Polk uses for their inwalls. Remove the grill, and it sounds like a totally different speaker (for the better). I think they really screwed up on this grill design, lots of blockage. The center channel is designed the same way. Maybe the grill 'fabric' can be removed like what I did with my Polk inwalls, then there's just a metal plate blocking the sound path. It is sad that this will be CC's 'higher-end' speaker.

Regards,
PolkThug

jefft1314

Sad, is a drastic understatement. Compared to the RTI's, the Betas are total underperformers, and they just barely edge out the monitor line which in my opinion, is a pretty poor sounding speaker. Sorry Polk.

thehalo8

I thought the same thing when I first started to demo the beta's. Now when customers want to hear them I take off the grill first. Plus I have had a lot of customers turned off by the fact the metal grills flex when listening to louder volumes. I really think Harman Kardon/Infinity messed up on this one.

radkrisdoc

Saw this one long ago. Took a look at the grills, was surprised...no shocked....then I realized........... and gave myself to Polk......oh well no infinity's for me, Im a Polkie body soul and heart
I didnt even care to audition them after I saw the grill tragedy. Very poorly designed.

steveinaz

It's a shame too. Infinity made some very impressive speakers in the "emit" tweeter days. I had a pair of RS-III towers (1985'ish I think) and adored those things. Beautiful oak cabinets, wonderful bass and astonishing midrange/highs.