RTi8

Rick Wilson · May 2005

Have enjoyed Polk speakers since the late 70s. Just recently purchased a pair of RTi8s. They are so much brighter than the RTi70s they replaced that I do not really enjoy using them. I have tried to give them some use to see if they might change over time, but the RTi8s are as bright as when first taken out of the box. I am kind of puzzled why all the other Polks we have owned have sounded so good and these have disappointed. Is there anything I can do short of turning the treble down or selling them? We were going to build a home theater system around the RTi8s but now don't know how to proceed.

dorokusai · May 2005

Welcome to the forum Rick

Let them get about 100 hours on them before you make a final decision. A number of owners have stated that the settle down after awhile, so I wouldn't worry about it for the moment.

The new RTi series uses a totally different tweeter, ala Vifa silk/polymer, than the previous RTi70 silk/composite. Vifa is a manufacturer of speaker drivers, and are well-known for their tweeters. The LSi line utilizes a Vifa ring radiator tweeter as a side note.

ALOT of people really like the RTi70, so you're certainly not alone in your fondness of it's performance. I find the new Vifa tweeter to have more clarity and accuracy, which compared to the previous series may be seen as brighter by some.

Give it some more time, and re-evaluate later.

okiepolkie · May 2005

I too extend a warm welcome to the forum.

I agree 100% with doro. They should calm down a little bit after several hours of break-in.

Just for reference, what are you using to drive the RTi8's? I know some gear can make the RTi's sound brighter. For instance, Yamaha tends to be a little on the brighter side, whereas Denon or Marantz tend to be a little warmer(taming the brightness a bit).

gregure · May 2005

I, too, find the Rti line to be too bright for music, unless at very low volume. However, for movies, I have never been disappointed in them, and they are never too bright w/ movies (partly because DD and DTS encoded tracks do not go above 12khz). Also, newer recordings such as SACD or 96/24 really seem to take that bright edge off quite a bit. It certainly helps to have better amplification too, as was evident when I upgraded from Onkyo to B&K. Of course, I'm speaking of experience w/ the 10's, and many on the forum prefer the 8's, so I honestly don't know which are brighter, although they have the same tweeters.
To be honest, however, if you are truly unhappy w/ the sound, I would recommend looking into something a little nicer, w/ true silk tweeters. The Mozarts from Vienna Acoustics are superb, a good cousin to the 8's in design (a tweet and two mids). The sound upgrade is incomparable, but it will cost you $2500 for the pair alone.

Rick Wilson · May 2005

Thanks for the comments and the welcome. I have about 50 hours on the RTi8s and am using a NAD to drive them. I was kind of surprised by the difference in sound between the RTi70 and the RTi8.

audiobliss · May 2005

Sounds like to me, especially with that NAD, put about another 50 hours on 'em and see how they sound then.

And, welcome to the forum!

Toxis · May 2005

I've always thought the 8's were bright. The 10's are much better IMO.

dorokusai · May 2005

A tweeter is a tweeter....another woofer wouldn't change any of that in this particular speaker. If you heard a difference, I certainly can't argue that point, but it goes against reason.

Why did you think it sounded better, can you expound upon that?

aaharvel · May 2005

my rti-4's took a long time to break in- but it was worth it.

it's prob. like that throughout the polk line, regardless of the amp you use. welcome!

Willow · May 2005

Is there a type of music that can help break in the tweets ?

Frank Z · May 2005

I might ruffle a few feathers but....

If they don't sound good right out of the box get rid of them and try something else. Break-in is not a concept that eveyone agrees with.

PolkThug · May 2005

If that tweeter does physically "break-in" it takes more than 72 hours. As for beyond that time frame, I don't know, but at 72 hours it measures the same as the first minute.

I think, however, that you could get used to it and enjoy it. I enjoy mine.

Regards,
PolkThug

fireshoes · May 2005

"LSi"

gregure · May 2005

Break-in is real, there is no doubt about it. My 10's sounded better after a few months of owning them than they did right away, but it was not a significat difference, more of an overall more blended sound. By no means did the tonal qualities of the speaker change at all. I agree. If you don't like the 8's run on NAD by now, you probably will never be happy. I truly don't think you should force yourself to "get used to" a speaker's sound if you don't like what you hear from the get go.
Now, there is a difference between getting used to a new type of sound, such as listening to electrostatic speakers (developing into my personal favorite) and simply forcing yourself to be happy w/ a sound that you don't like. In my experience, once you have heard electrosatics run well, it's hard to imagine going back to box speakers. You can't beat Martin Logans for clarity and depth of soundstage. Of course, that is an entirely different price bracket. Even the smaller ones such as the Aeons are over $3000 a pair.

Tour2ma · May 2005

Maggies beat ML's IMO, but we digress...

Give the 8's some more time. If they don't grow on you, move on... or maybe move back to your 70's.

deepinya · May 2005

Are the speakers breaking in or is your hearing getting used to the sound?

Id like to think the latter.

opus · July 2005

Boy Rick, I'm right with ya brother.

Just upgraded with a fellow polkie's 8's from my 70's and am having second thoughts. With my avr( denon 3805), listening to music almosts hurts my ears at moderate to high levels.

Does anyone have any suggestions for taming these highs? Would bi-wiring or running new jumpers instead of those supplied help?

I was planning on sending the 70's down the line but am holding on to them for now.

p.s. they are broken in

thanks..........kevin

marker · July 2005

I very briefly had a set of RTi150 before I returned them since they made the Denon AVR-3802 I had at the time shut down, but right off the bat I noticed the tweeter in it was very noticably "duller" or a lot more laid back than the tri-lam tweeters in the RT***i series just before it.

Have not been able to compare them to the current series' tweeters though other than just from memory.

I have seen recently where a few stated they liked the tweeters best in that series over the tri-lams and the new models.

coolfishy101 · July 2005

The 8's seem much brighter to my ears. I also notice the 10's crossover to the tweeter at 2.7KHz while the 8's crossover at 2.2KHz. Would that make a difference?

RTi8

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