Help me pick a set of (new) vintage Polks

jgerry
jgerry Posts: 9
edited April 2006 in Vintage Speakers
I've just resurrected my old pair of RTA8-TLs with a new tweeter, and man, am I enjoying them again. I think I bought them in 1991? They still image beautifully, even without a really good 2-channel amp. I'm running them with my HK home theater receiver, using for the L-R mains.

I'm enjoying them so much that I think I'm going to start looking for a vintage pair of Polks to make a real music listening room. And I'm looking for recommendations.

I've got an old Carver HR-752 receiver that still sounds amazing, I think I'll probably use that. It's 100 watts, but that's pretty conservative -- I've run some very large speakers with it, including 4 huge floor-standing PA speakers.

Ideas? I'm thinking of keeping my budget to under $400. Can I get some decent speakers for that price?
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  • schwarcw
    schwarcw Posts: 7,341
    edited April 2006
    Welcome to Club Polk! You can buy a lot of nice vintage Polks for $400 or less. The SDA-2's, 2A's or 2B's in good condition can be had for that much. A number of the old Monitor line is available also the Monitor 5's, 7's and 10's are popular with a lot of members. Check Craigslist.org in your aea for local sales. The bigger speakers will cost you to ship:( Good luck and happy hunting
    Carl

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  • ND13
    ND13 Posts: 7,601
    edited April 2006
    Where are you located?
    "SOME PEOPLE CALL ME MAURICE,
    CAUSE I SPEAK OF THE POMPITIOUS OF LOVE"
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  • jgerry
    jgerry Posts: 9
    edited April 2006
    I'm located in Atlanta, GA (profile updated!)
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  • ohskigod
    ohskigod Posts: 6,502
    edited April 2006
    I'd throw the RTA-12's to that list. some like the c, with the sl2000 tweet, some (like me) like the older 12b with the peerless tweet. great speaker none the less, and in your budget
    Living Room 2 Channel -
    Schiit SYS Passive Pre. Jolida CD player. Songbird streamer. California Audio Labs Sigma II DAC, DIY 300as1/a1 Ice modules Class D amp. LSi15 with MM842 woofer upgrade, Nordost Blue Heaven and Unity interconnects.

    Upstairs 2 Channel Rig -
    Prometheus Ref. TVC passive pre, SAE A-205 Amp, Wiim pro streamer and Topping E50 DAC, California Audio Labs DX1 CD player, Von Schweikert VR3.5 speakers.

    Studio Rig - Scarlett 18i20(Gen3) DAW, Mac Mini, Aiyma A07 Max (BridgedX2), Totem Mites
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  • Zen Dragon
    Zen Dragon Posts: 501
    edited April 2006
    Second the recommendation for some vintage SDA's. The 2 series and occaisionally a pair of 1's can be had in that price range. You don't get much more vintage than SDA technology. It's a place marker in audio time. :)
    The Family
    Polk SDA-1C's
    Polk SDA-2
    Polk Monitor 10B's
    Polk LSI-9's
    Polk Monitor 5's
    Polk 5 jr's
    Polk PSW-450 Sub
    Polk CSI40 Center

    Do not one day come to die, and discover you have not lived.
    This is pretty f***ed up right here.
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  • ESavinon
    ESavinon Posts: 3,066
    edited April 2006
    I just bought a pair of rta 12 with the peerless tweeters with stands and original boxes for $187. I highly recommend them.excellent imaging with a nice warm sound.
    SRT For Life; SDA Forever!

    The SRT SEISMIC System:
    Four main satellite speakers, six powered subs, two dedicated for LFE channel, two center speakers for over/under screen placement and three Control Centers. Amaze your friends, terrorize your neighbors, seize the audio bragging rights for your state. Go ahead, buy it; you only go around once.
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  • Tour2ma
    Tour2ma Posts: 10,177
    edited April 2006
    For the non-SDA models, Original Monitor 7's with the the Peerless tweeters should be at, or at least near, the top of your list. And you will pay no more than half your budget. Likely much less than half.

    For SDA's, the CRS+'s are a great intro, and again for less than your budget. But be forewarned that they don't ship very well (cross-over is prone to coming loose), so look local. But around Atlanta, the hunting should be pretty good.
    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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  • TroyD
    TroyD Posts: 13,083
    edited April 2006
    2nd Bruce's comments...

    BDT
    I plan for the future. - F1Nut
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,203
    edited April 2006
    What's wrong with the RTA-8TL's? Are you looking to replace them or add to them for HT? The 8's are really very nice already. About the only models that might improve over those are the 11's and any SDA speaker. Any vintage SDA would be my recommendation if you are looking to replace the 8's.

    H9
    "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!
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  • Tour2ma
    Tour2ma Posts: 10,177
    edited April 2006
    TroyD wrote:
    2nd Bruce's comments...

    BDT
    Gracias, Amigo...

    jgerry,
    FYI, I'm Bruce... ;)
    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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  • reeltrouble1
    reeltrouble1 Posts: 9,312
    edited April 2006
    You seek SDA. This sound is a must for any Polk lover to at least experience.

    Monitor 7 or 10 for second choices are very nice.

    RT1
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  • candyliquor35m
    candyliquor35m Posts: 2,267
    edited April 2006
    If you can have the room and $600-$700 and your significant other's blessing :), go for the SDA 2.3's. This will keep you from wanting to upgrade down the road but I think you will enjoy whatever you buy.
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  • jgerry
    jgerry Posts: 9
    edited April 2006
    I knew people would come out of the woodwork with some good suggestions!

    I am definitely NOT getting rid of my RTA8-TLs -- I love those babies, they survived half my college years with me! Plus they really still do sound great. But I'm using them in my den with my home theater setup, with some other polks for center and surround. I can't remember which models; they are not nearly as important to me as my RTAs.

    I was just thinking about getting a second set of vintage Polks for a "music room" of sorts, so they'd be an addition to the family, not a replacement.

    Unfortunately, my brother just wrecked his car outside my house, and since he's the starving artist, I'll be loaning him some bucks to get his car straight. I will revisit the speaker issue in a month or two though. I want my music room!
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  • Polkersince85
    Polkersince85 Posts: 2,883
    edited April 2006
    jgerry wrote:
    ... I'll be loaning him some bucks to get his car straight.

    Gotta get your priorities straight.. Polks;)
    >
    >
    >This message has been scanned by the NSA and found to be free of harmful intent.<
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  • reeltrouble1
    reeltrouble1 Posts: 9,312
    edited April 2006
    beware the second Rig, the Shed Rig started innocently enough, now its like my BOAT--Bring Out Another Thousand or so as we move up the food chain!!!

    Have fun.

    RT1
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