Newbe question on speaker decision - Monitor vs Rti

crazy
crazy Posts: 443
edited January 2006 in Speakers
Greetings,

I tried seaching the forum for Monitor vs RTi comparision and was unsuccesful in finding the information I needed. If there is another post that compares these 2, I would much appreciate a link to that thread.

If not, then here's my question.

A friend of mine, who came over to my house and checked out Polk system now wants to get one and he's extremely confused whether to get the Monitor 60's or the RTi8's.

Now, since the RTi8's cost more than the 60's, it seems to be the logical choice - but the question is why and is it worth spending that extra bit?

Any help on this would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!!
Distant Dream - A New Beginning
www.distantdream.com
(Now also available on iTunes)
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  • BjornB17
    BjornB17 Posts: 752
    edited January 2006
    Hi,

    This is a very good question. I guess it call comes down to how big of a factor the price is for your friend. The RTi speakers are fantastic and are a little bit better than the Monitor series, although the monitor series is great as well.

    Basically, the RTis are more refined. If I am not mistaken, they use a slightly different tweeter, have better crossover, different drivers, and a little better construction.

    I have the Monitor 70s, which I am very happpy with considering they only cost me $240 a piece (after selling the 'free' subwoofer i got with them from circuit city), so for me it would have been a no brainer to get them instead of the RTi8s. However, If i would have planned to paied retail ($399 each for Monitor 70s as opposed the $349 each for RTi8), the RTis would be the clear choice, even if they were the same price or a tad more expensive.

    If you have a Tweeter or Fry's in your area, i think you can demo each of them there to be sure which he likes better.
    KEF Q150 | Rythmik F12 | Yamaha Aventage RX-A780
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  • Driver
    Driver Posts: 137
    edited January 2006
    i have a set of rti12's, rti6's and csi5, with a cs2 as a rear centre, no for me the 12's were the only choice, but as for the 6's, when deciding on surround speakers i heard the largest of the monitor bookshelf speaker they had to offer, it sounded ok but it wasnt what i wanted, i found the sound a little muddy, but as soon as i heard the 6's i knew then that these were the speakers of me, like bjorn mentioned they are more refined, the difference between them was quite noticable. at the end of the day its personal choice, what you want in a speaker and what you can afford . but i love my rti's:D
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  • BjornB17
    BjornB17 Posts: 752
    edited January 2006
    Driver wrote:
    i have a set of rti12's, rti6's and csi5, with a cs2 as a rear centre, no for me the 12's were the only choice, but as for the 6's, when deciding on surround speakers i heard the largest of the monitor bookshelf speaker they had to offer, it sounded ok but it wasnt what i wanted, i found the sound a little muddy, but as soon as i heard the 6's i knew then that these were the speakers of me, like bjorn mentioned they are more refined, the difference between them was quite noticable. at the end of the day its personal choice, what you want in a speaker and what you can afford . but i love my rti's:D

    I envy your speakers.... they are what i would have gotten if I had more money and wasn't a poor college student :) When i graduate it will be time for new speakers though (1 year from now) :D
    KEF Q150 | Rythmik F12 | Yamaha Aventage RX-A780
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  • Tour2ma
    Tour2ma Posts: 10,177
    edited January 2006
    crazy,
    Pretty much everything above is on the money, but your friend really has to audition them both and decide for himself.

    He also needs to consider either what electronics he owns or how much he has to spend on them as well...
    More later,
    Tour...
    Vox Copuli
    Better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt. - Old English Proverb

    "Death doesn't come with a Uhaul." - Dennis Gardner
    "It's easy to get lost in price vs performance vs ego vs illusion." - doro
    "There is a certain entertainment value in ripping the occaisonal (sic) buttmunch..." - TroyD
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  • crazy
    crazy Posts: 443
    edited January 2006
    Hi - thanks for all the help. So let me ask one more question - if you had to chose between say the Monitor 50's and the Monitor 60's given that the room is not too large (around 12 x 14) what would you recommend? The price difference isn't much and yes, the 60 probably will add more punch, but will it improve the clarity?
    Distant Dream - A New Beginning
    www.distantdream.com
    (Now also available on iTunes)
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  • crazy
    crazy Posts: 443
    edited January 2006
    Tour2ma wrote:
    Pretty much everything above is on the money, but your friend really has to audition them both and decide for himself.

    So he would prefer the Monitor based on the price but if the Rti's are much better (good price/ performance ratio) then he's open to those as well. Since it's a big purchase, he's willing to go the extra bit.
    Tour2ma wrote:
    He also needs to consider either what electronics he owns or how much he has to spend on them as well...

    Thanks for the response - so the electronics I recommended to him is the same I have, i.e. Onkyo TX-SR603X and one of the Onkyo DVD/ CD players. From other threads in the forum it seemed that this combination is one of the best for the Monitor series.
    Distant Dream - A New Beginning
    www.distantdream.com
    (Now also available on iTunes)
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  • Driver
    Driver Posts: 137
    edited January 2006
    BjornB17 wrote:
    I envy your speakers.... they are what i would have gotten if I had more money and wasn't a poor college student :) When i graduate it will be time for new speakers though (1 year from now) :D
    why thankyou, :o
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  • BjornB17
    BjornB17 Posts: 752
    edited January 2006
    crazy wrote:
    Hi - thanks for all the help. So let me ask one more question - if you had to chose between say the Monitor 50's and the Monitor 60's given that the room is not too large (around 12 x 14) what would you recommend? The price difference isn't much and yes, the 60 probably will add more punch, but will it improve the clarity?

    Well, i have the Monitor 70s in a 11x14 room and they do great. Still need a subwoofer with them though. I imagine the 60s would be fine though.
    KEF Q150 | Rythmik F12 | Yamaha Aventage RX-A780
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  • G-force
    G-force Posts: 82
    edited January 2006
    The wood veneer finish on the RTI series is just so nice compared to the laminate monitors, so if appearance is a factor I would consider that too as well as performance.

    I have some pretty high dollar veneer funiture around my house and the quality of the RTI cabinets stands right up the with any of it. I think of them as an attractive piece of furniture that is fully functional as well.
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  • Tour2ma
    Tour2ma Posts: 10,177
    edited January 2006
    G-force wrote:
    ...high dollar veneer funiture...
    Sorry, just struck me as oxymoronic... :D ... Then again it's been a long time since I bought any furniture...

    Welcome to the Club...

    True the Monitors aren't a "pretty" speaker. The T90EB is a better looking Mon 60.
    More later,
    Tour...
    Vox Copuli
    Better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt. - Old English Proverb

    "Death doesn't come with a Uhaul." - Dennis Gardner
    "It's easy to get lost in price vs performance vs ego vs illusion." - doro
    "There is a certain entertainment value in ripping the occaisonal (sic) buttmunch..." - TroyD
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  • BjornB17
    BjornB17 Posts: 752
    edited January 2006
    Tour2ma wrote:
    Sorry, just struck me as oxymoronic... :D ... Then again it's been a long time since I bought any furniture...

    Welcome to the Club...

    True the Monitors aren't a "pretty" speaker. The T90EB is a better looking Mon 60.

    LOL what's not pretty about them? I think they look pretty nice (don't worry, you wont hurt my feelings)

    I was wondering, is the face on the T90EB black or is it more like the same color of the RTi series?
    KEF Q150 | Rythmik F12 | Yamaha Aventage RX-A780
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  • Tour2ma
    Tour2ma Posts: 10,177
    edited January 2006
    Eye of the beholder...

    T90's are black.
    More later,
    Tour...
    Vox Copuli
    Better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt. - Old English Proverb

    "Death doesn't come with a Uhaul." - Dennis Gardner
    "It's easy to get lost in price vs performance vs ego vs illusion." - doro
    "There is a certain entertainment value in ripping the occaisonal (sic) buttmunch..." - TroyD
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  • lanion
    lanion Posts: 843
    edited January 2006
    BjornB17 wrote:
    I envy your speakers.... they are what i would have gotten if I had more money and wasn't a poor college student :) When i graduate it will be time for new speakers though (1 year from now) :D

    The whole Graduation -> Job transition hasn't been as for me as I'd have hoped.... But, I only graduated a month ago, so I guess it isn't too bad.
    My Iron Man training/charity blog.

    HT:
    32" Sharp LCD. H/K dpr 1001 to Outlaw Audio 7900 to Polk LSi + Paradigm Studio center. Hsu DualDrive ULS-15. PS3/Wii. Outlaw 7900.
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  • drew spelts
    drew spelts Posts: 310
    edited January 2006
    Hey Bjorn I got a pair of RTi10's in mint condition from a guy on here for only $525 shipped. I thought that was a killer good deal and now I am set to not have to buy new fronts for hopefully 10-15 years.

    As to crazy, if you get any of the bigger RTi series speakers such as the 10's or 12's make sure you invest in a good engine to push those babys because they want more than some cheap sony wana-be receiver will give you.

    Oh and I also got a CSi5 for $225 shipped in near mint condition.

    So just to let you guys know there are some really good deals in this comunity and everyone here seems prety great.
    Harman Kardon AVR635
    RTi10's Up Front
    CSi5 Center
    RTi6's Rear Surround
    Furman RA-1210:rolleyes:
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  • BjornB17
    BjornB17 Posts: 752
    edited January 2006
    lanion wrote:
    The whole Graduation -> Job transition hasn't been as for me as I'd have hoped.... But, I only graduated a month ago, so I guess it isn't too bad.

    what did you graduate with?
    KEF Q150 | Rythmik F12 | Yamaha Aventage RX-A780
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  • aaharvel
    aaharvel Posts: 4,489
    edited January 2006
    Only $60 more for a pair of RTi4 over a pair of Monitor 30.
    I'll leave it at that.
    H/K Signature 2.1+235
    Jungson MagicBoat II
    Revel Performa M-20
    Velodyne cht-10 sub
    Rega P1 Turntable

    "People working at Polk Audio must sit around the office and just laugh their balls off reading many of these comments." -Lush
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  • BjornB17
    BjornB17 Posts: 752
    edited January 2006
    aaharvel wrote:
    Only $60 more for a pair of RTi4 over a pair of Monitor 30.
    I'll leave it at that.

    The RTi4s are indeed a fantastic value
    KEF Q150 | Rythmik F12 | Yamaha Aventage RX-A780
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  • BjornB17
    BjornB17 Posts: 752
    edited January 2006
    drew spelts wrote:
    Hey Bjorn I got a pair of RTi10's in mint condition from a guy on here for only $525 shipped. I thought that was a killer good deal and now I am set to not have to buy new fronts for hopefully 10-15 years.

    As to crazy, if you get any of the bigger RTi series speakers such as the 10's or 12's make sure you invest in a good engine to push those babys because they want more than some cheap sony wana-be receiver will give you.

    Oh and I also got a CSi5 for $225 shipped in near mint condition.

    So just to let you guys know there are some really good deals in this comunity and everyone here seems prety great.


    You got a steal! :eek:
    KEF Q150 | Rythmik F12 | Yamaha Aventage RX-A780
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