Another RTxxi vs. Lsi thread

beardog03 · October 2005

Okay here goes...

I got my new Parasound 5ch amp, so I decide to hook all the Lsi`s up, and see if I should keep them for HT or keep running the RTxxi`s (older versions).

It seems that the Lsi`s don`t have as much info comming through, but they are much smoother..

I`m stumped..

I was going to go with the newer speaks and sell the older ones to pay for my amp, but now...

I have some new I/C`s comming..(AQ DiamondBacks), that I got a good deal on, and knowing they can be a little bright, hope they liven up the Lsi`s..

They Rtxxi`s are loud enough, and clear enough, but I was hoping to incorperate the te Lsi`s into the mix..

I`ve been using the 7`s in the office rig...sound great
The 9`s in the main rig...sweet

The center has just been sitting around waiting to get into the game..
I just needed an amp to push them with..

A few cosmetic issues with the amp, but it really does a great job..

By the way...
Mesquithead is a great guy to do business with...
he has stayed in touch by e-mail, and phone....

as is Opus and swerve, and Cody, and.....

I`ve gotten a little gear recently, so if I miss somebody...

STOP SELLIN ME GEAR..!!!!!

Anyway...I`m going to do some more listening, because I have learned that the longer you listen to something, the more you become accustomed to it, and all the little things that you hear, or don`t hear, fade away....

just tryin to get a little feedback from thosewho have done this also..

bear

MacLeod · October 2005

Maybe the RT's are just brighter which sound better for movies and seems to give the appearance of more detail.

My bookshelf speakers are very bright and not as good as Id like for music but for movies they work quite well.

You may just want to stick with the RT's for theater and keep the LSi's for music.

The IC's wont matter.

beardog03 · October 2005

your probably right..

sorry about the huge pic..

It took a while to get used to the csi40, from the 245i...

maybe I`ll sell the Lsic, and go back to the rtxxi`s...

Jury is still out..!

F1nut · October 2005

Is the Parasound rated to drive 4 ohm loads?

beardog03 · October 2005

HCA-2205A..

220wx5 @ 8ohms
300wx5 @ 4ohms

60 amps peak per ch

MacLeod · October 2005

I think you should keep the LSi's! They are much better for music.

Its the American dream to have a dedicated HT and dedicated 2 channel setup!
.....or is that the American dream is to sleep with Sarah Michelle Gellar? Maybe thats just mine!

beardog03 · October 2005

so your saying sell the beautiful Lsic that I have and go back to RTxxi`s..?!!

MacLeod · October 2005

No, Im saying keep them all!!! Keep the LSi's for your music and the RTi's for HT......or have I misunderstood your setup?

beardog03 · October 2005

no you got it right , but I don`t use the Lsic for music...

MacLeod · October 2005

Is it possible that what you think is more info is due to the RT's being brighter overall then the LSi's?

I kinda have a feeling that if you sat and watched a few movies with the LSi's youd come to like them better. The extra info would soon be outweighed by the smoother and cleaner LSi's I would think.

beardog03 · October 2005

you have hit the nail square on the head..!!

I watched movies (cartoon movies cuase they have the best sound tracks) ALL day yesterday, and I got used to them..and really enjoyed them..

I just have to turn them up louder to get all the info..

and I need to calibrate...

I`m not real good at that part of it.. :rolleyes:

MacLeod · October 2005

Cool. Maybe the LSi's are less effecient and need a little more grunt to make em sing.

Either way, if it were me I think I would keep the LSi's. I know how good the Signature Reference car speakers are and theyre basically LSi's for the car.

beardog03 · October 2005

I know...rub it in... :rolleyes:

I`m doin the momo`s for now, until I find that damn money tree..

I think ND13 hid the map..!!

Emlyn · October 2005

beardog03 wrote:

I just have to turn them up louder to get all the info..

and I need to calibrate...

I`m not real good at that part of it.. :rolleyes:

The LSi line, apart from being 4 ohm nominal, is lower in efficiency than the RT lines. Usually around 88dB for LSi's and 90dB to 91dB for the RT's, meaning without calibration the LSi's will produce less sound given the same input level from the amplifier/preamp setup. Calibration using an SPL meter would solve the volume difference, but the LSi's will still sound more "laid back" than the RT series because they are designed that way. To me they sound more natural overall than RT speakers though, and I found this to be true through four of the current and previous RT lines.

cfrizz · October 2005

Congrats Bear! I think you need to give the LSI's time. They truly are different from the RTI's.

Para 2205 amp...DROOL! DROOL! DROOL! DROOL! SIGH!

beardog03 · October 2005

Ms. Frizz..

We have the same AVR..!!

I still like my old Yammie though...can`t seem to sell it , it`s just there cuase I like it..!!

I know...I`m a sicko..!!

The Parasound is a great amp..

cfrizz · October 2005

Bear did you try the LSI's on the Denon?

beardog03 · October 2005

yes..all day yesterday..!!

getting ready to do it again..!!

using the Parasound amp of course..!!

I had the Denon doing rear ch duty with the RTxxi`s, but now I have the 5 ch amp, so the Para is doing all channels..

scottnbnj · October 2005

is that (the pic) how you have them set up?

either way, my in-room frequency response measured narrower than 9's +/-3db response is supposed to be. i haven't gone back and measured since i've been doing more with my room's acoustics, but it was easy to hear that traps extended lf and wall-type treatments extended hf. the combination also cleaned up and did alot to equalize peaks and dips inside the extremes.

if you haven't done anything with treatments, it might be natural to think that they'll deaden and attenuate tonal balance across the spectrum and collapse image and soundstage, but in my room it equalized tonal balance across the spectrum and extended response at the extremes. and, most importantly to me, the image is much better focused and the soundstage has expanded in a big way.

as i've said, my limited experience listening to rti's makes me believe that their tonal balance might play well to a room that would do this to lsi's, and with ht the image flags wouldn't be as obvious.

)

beardog03 · October 2005

okay....

yes that is an actual pic I took this morning while having coffee..!!

got The Incredibles running right now..

MAN..I love this Pc-Ultra...The whole house is shakin..!!!!!!

scottnbnj · October 2005

hey, not cutting you at all. i'd trade rooms and placements any day,.. if the gear and booze come with it.

anyway, things should start to come around after you make the commitment and put your room on a leaner speaker diet.

)

beardog03 · October 2005

one can never have enough speaks...!!

scottnbnj · October 2005

gotta keep your ear on the ball. up until the point where they get between you and the tunes.

)

markmarc · October 2005

I use the RTi-35 for HT in the family room, and my goal is to have some LSi9's for my audio only setup in the living room (currently a fine pair of Infinity Kappa 200's). The RTi's IMHO are much easier to calibrate for HT. I use my HK AVR75 to run the RTi's, but when listening to audio it becomes my preamp thus allowing an Adcom 535 to do it's thing with the 4 Ohm load (a big difference over the AVR).
My next goal is to get a 60gig iPod, load it up with all my cd's (full file size) and enjoy the music.

Another RTxxi vs. Lsi thread

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