SR6500 vs. MM6

KevinLWhitaker

So I am considering upgrading to the SR6500 from my current MM6 but am having difficulty justifying the $750 price tag. From those of you out there who have listened to both extensively, how much improvement would I get from the SRs? Just so you can gauge what I am looking for let me comment on what I like about the MM6. I find them to be a warm and smooth speaker (their transient response sounds excellent to my ear). I like the fact that they are not overly bright (except on a few recordings). I like their impact and excursion. I like that they are strongest in the mid range freqs which I am most sensitive too. I also like that they can sound excellent playing very diverse music.

Also, these will be installed in an extended cab truck (Toyota Tundra) in the stock locations (lower doors, A pillars) and driven off a head unit with time alignment and parametric equalizer and supported by a sub.

So convince I need these or at least give me enough ammunition to use with justifying to the wife.

Kevin

exalted512

There is really a night and day difference on detail. The only thing that the mm6 has over the sr's is midbass. But even then, while the SRs dont have much midbass, it is still EXTREMELY accurate, which was my only complaint about the mm6s. But other than that, SRs are hands down better speakers in every aspect
-Cody

Thom

I'd say the SR's have plenty of midbass, while perhaps the MM6 had too much. The SR's completely kill the MM6 overall- the mid is much nicer, the ring radiator tweeter is great, and the crossovers use higher quality parts throughout. I'm guessing you don't have a dealer nearby to demo them?

exalted512

Thom wrote:

I'd say the SR's have plenty of midbass, while perhaps the MM6 had too much. The SR's completely kill the MM6 overall- the mid is much nicer, the ring radiator tweeter is great, and the crossovers use higher quality parts throughout. I'm guessing you don't have a dealer nearby to demo them?

actually, thats worded a lot better than mine was, because thats what i meant
-Cody

MacLeod

Ive had both of them and while the MM6 is one of the greatest speakers ever made, it is no match for the SR's.

About the midbass, the SR's have excellent, smooth midbass that blends well with a sub, the MM6 had more of a punch to it which is no suprise as that thing is built like a sub! Other than that, the SR's mids are much more natural and smooth sounding.

The SR's tweeters are world class! Whenever somebody listens to my system, the first thing they remark on is how smooth the tweeters are. I listen to a lot of heavy metal and the difference between the MM6 and the SR's was night and day in clarity and lack of harshness.

The MM6 can be made to sound great especially if youre bi-amping like I was but it does take a little tweaking where the SR's simply rule right out of the box!

Bottom line is, if you have the $750 to spend, SPEND IT! I guarantee you it wont take you very long to realize where that extra money went!

You definitely owe it to yourself to find a Tweeter and go have a listen.

1996blackmax

MacLeod wrote:

the MM6 is one of the greatest speakers ever made

I will have to disagree with you on this one . Like I've said before, I understand that this is a Polk forum, but there are other things out there.


I have listened to the SR's, they are a nice set of speakers. The SR6500's are definately in a whole other league than the MM6's.

MacLeod

Good grief.

Yes there are other things out there. There are a bunch of things out there. And the MM6 is STILL one of the best speakers ever made. :rolleyes:

1996blackmax

Don't think so....

Good speakers yes, one of the best ever made, no....

unrealii

I've got SR6500 tweeters. They are fantastic. Better than my old db3000's which I would say are comparable to the mm6 tweeters.

audiobliss

I want MM6s.

1996blackmax

unrealii wrote:

I've got SR6500 tweeters. They are fantastic. Better than my old db3000's which I would say are comparable to the mm6 tweeters.

Good to see you back .


I still have my DB3000's, actually the whole DB3065 set in my garage . Good set of speakers, but my Rainbow's are something else altogether .

KevinLWhitaker

Thom,

There is no dealer with SR6500s to demo them and without first hearing these its hard to justify their price tag. Hence my post to get others input.

All - thanks for the responses.

Kevin

brettw22

I've been blasting my 6500's lately in my car and they sound VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY (got it?) good........I'm extremely happy that I have 2 pairs of the things too (whether people recommend it or not).

Now I can't wait to get the subs and finish it all up.

1996blackmax

How do you have your system setup? Are all of the speakers playing at the same level, or are the rears playing at a lower volume than the front speakers?

I have run rear fill, and I prefer it with the volume attenuated a good deal. I also delay the sound from them.

MacLeod

brettw22 wrote:

I've been blasting my 6500's lately in my car and they sound VERY VERY VERY VERY VERY (got it?) good........I'm extremely happy that I have 2 pairs of the things too (whether people recommend it or not).

Now I can't wait to get the subs and finish it all up.

Youll never be "finished".

Greg Peters

KevinLWhitaker wrote:

There is no dealer with SR6500s to demo them and without first hearing these its hard to justify their price tag. Hence my post to get others input.

You're not the only one that has a hard time finding the sr's to demo in person.

I finally found a dealer who had them in the demo board, but I had to drive an hour south, across the border. Was it worth It? I would say yes- after hearing them, I am still wanting to buy a pair. The problem is, the US dealer did not want to budge an inch below the MSRP of $899.95 plus tax.

Speaker choice is a subjective decision,and should be based on your likes (and dislikes), and how they handle the type of music you would typically throw at them installed in your car.

My own personal preference is to brighter sounding tweeters. The pair I listened to had the attenuation set at 0db on the crossovers, so the sr6500 tweeters could in theory be dialed up a bit to suit my ears.

What I did hear was an airy, clean, transparent tweeter that did not seem as directional as some I have listened to. Midbass response was very smooth and surprisingly full without having a subwoofer playing along as well. While I can't say that they sounded perfect in a sound board (with an unfamiliar h/u providing garden variety source music from FM radio), they definitely had a lot of potential with some time spent tuning. When the sales person stepped away, I had the opportunity to turn them up some and I was very impressed- they seem to come alive at moderate volume.

I do believe the sr6500s are well worth the $750 they go for through some authorized dealers. I would hesitate to spend the $899.95 without putting them through a much longer audition with some reference CDs, and the ability to experiment with the tweeter attenuation levels in the process.

MacLeod

Yikes!! Thats ridiculous that dude wouldnt come off the $900 price tag! Ive never seen them for more than $750!

Greg Peters

They must stick to their guns in Bellingham, WA. Yikes is right.

1996blackmax

That's too bad that they did not drop the price. In my experience, I have found that most places will drop the price some.


Will Sounddomain ship to you? If they did would there be hefty taxes to pay?

Greg Peters

1996blackmax wrote:

That's too bad that they did not drop the price. In my experience, I have found that most places will drop the price some.


Will Sounddomain ship to you? If they did would there be hefty taxes to pay?

I had my finger on the "Buy Button" when I went into that shop (with wife in car, resigned to the fact). Had they been willing to negotiate some I would have taken them home that day.

The salesman said he would only move on the price if I "bought a whole bunch of other stuff", which I didn't need at that moment. Also said he could not move on the price without approval from his boss (who was then at the CES show in Vegas). It would probably be best to negotiate with the boss next visit.

Sounddomain does ship to Canada by special arrangement, but the taxes are high. If they ship via UPS, there are HUGE brokerage fees (based on declared shipping value) on top of taxes. It's far better to declare audio products at the border and pay the taxes with product in hand. A local Polk dealer will order sr6500s for the equivalent of $900 US (tax in), but hasn't got them on display to audition.