After 2 months with my Monitor 5B's... I think I'm in love.

nesticle
nesticle Posts: 86
edited April 2006 in 2 Channel Audio
I bought a pair of Monitor 5B's off Craigslist a few months ago in superb condition and I have to say that I'm blown away by them! I didn't really think too much of passive radiators, but these things changed my mind. I love the SL2500 tweeters, and even though I've heard the Peerless tweeters are better, I'm happy with what I've got. Right now they're hooked up to my Pioneer SX-650 reciever but I'm looking at a Sansui 881 to replace it. Will these things be able to handle 60 watts RMS?
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  • danger boy
    danger boy Posts: 15,722
    edited April 2006
    yes they can handle that many watts. they're Polks for petes sake. ;)

    i to am sometimes amazed at how much bass passive radiators put out.... it surprises me all the time.
    PolkFest 2012, who's going>?
    Vancouver, Canada Sept 30th, 2012 - Madonna concert :cheesygrin:
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  • nesticle
    nesticle Posts: 86
    edited April 2006
    Well I had a scary moment with the SX-650 when I was listening to Welcome to the Machine by Pink Floyd. I guess it was a little too loud and the woofers started sounding really distorted so I jumped up and ran over to turn them down. Thankfully they're okay but it spooked me a bit :-P
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  • Early B.
    Early B. Posts: 7,900
    edited April 2006
    Nesticle --

    Whenever I see your name, it reads like "Nestle (chocolate) testicles."

    Yuck.
    HT/2-channel Rig: Sony 50” LCD TV; Toshiba HD-A2 DVD player; Emotiva LMC-1 pre/pro; Rogue Audio M-120 monoblocks (modded); Placette RVC; Emotiva LPA-1 amp; Bada HD-22 tube CDP (modded); VMPS Tower II SE (fronts); DIY Clearwave Dynamic 4CC (center); Wharfedale Opus Tri-Surrounds (rear); and VMPS 215 sub

    "God grooves with tubes."
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  • nesticle
    nesticle Posts: 86
    edited April 2006
    You know you love it ;-)

    Actually "Nesticle" is a Nintendo Entertainment System emulator for the computer. And since I love NES and that was the emulator I used to play some games that I hadn't found in pawn shops yet... I just decided to use it for my internet identity.
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  • danger boy
    danger boy Posts: 15,722
    edited April 2006
    nesticle wrote:
    Well I had a scary moment with the SX-650 when I was listening to Welcome to the Machine by Pink Floyd. I guess it was a little too loud and the woofers started sounding really distorted so I jumped up and ran over to turn them down. Thankfully they're okay but it spooked me a bit :-P


    maybe you need to move up to the Monitor 10's instead.. if you like it loud.. i'd hate to see you damage those 5B's. they sound good. but are limited in their output.. plenty of Monitor 10's on ebay right now.. about 4 or 5 pairs currently.
    PolkFest 2012, who's going>?
    Vancouver, Canada Sept 30th, 2012 - Madonna concert :cheesygrin:
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  • organ
    organ Posts: 4,969
    edited April 2006
    Nice. PR's are not as common anymore because people want their nice slim cabinets and powered woofers. Glad you're diggin the Polks.

    About the distortion you heard... It could be a loose connection or you're pushing the amp too hard.
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  • Zen Dragon
    Zen Dragon Posts: 501
    edited April 2006
    5B's are great speakers and can easily take a clean 60W and quite a bit more.
    A good rule of thumb is to not turn the volume dial past the 12:00 point. You really don't want to turn up the tone controls too much either. If your going to the 12:00 level but still looking for more volume it is time to upgrade your amplification.
    The Family
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    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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  • organ
    organ Posts: 4,969
    edited April 2006
    IF, it is your receiver limiting the M5's, and it has pre outs... use the Sansui money on an external amp. I don't have any experience with Pioneer receivers except a DPL one back in the days. So I don't know if your receiver is running out of juice.
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  • steveinaz
    steveinaz Posts: 19,538
    edited April 2006
    They can take a ton of clean power. I ran Monitor 5jr's on a 215 watt Soundcrafstmen for years---and I like it loud.
    Source: Bluesound Node 2i - Preamp/DAC: Benchmark DAC2 DX - Amp: Parasound Halo A21 - Speakers: MartinLogan Motion 60XTi - Shop Rig: Yamaha A-S501 Integrated - Shop Spkrs: Elac Debut 2.0 B5.2
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  • billbillw
    billbillw Posts: 6,765
    edited April 2006
    My Monitor 5A have no problem handling 105W/ch of clean Onkyo power. The real limitation on the 5s are the size of the room. Don't expect them to crank and feel the bass in a 20'x20' room. I'm using mine in a small home office room(12'x12'?) and I couldn't be more happy. The combination of size, sound, and price are perfect for my needs. Glad to hear you're enjoying them.
    For rig details, see my profile. Nothing here anymore...
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  • halo
    halo Posts: 5,616
    edited April 2006
    organ wrote:
    Nice. PR's are not as common anymore because people want their nice slim cabinets and powered woofers. Glad you're diggin the Polks.
    Polk Audio RTA 11T, 11TL, or 15TL's give you the PR's in a tall, slim cabinet with plenty of deep bass response. I don't know why people buy new when you can get what you want in a vintage Polk for le$$. To each his own I guess.
    Audio: Polk S15 * Polk S35 * Polk S10 * SVS SB-1000 Pro
    HT: Samsung QN90B * Marantz NR1510 * Panasonic DMP-BDT220 * Roku Ultra LT * APC H10
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  • nesticle
    nesticle Posts: 86
    edited April 2006
    Yeah they're in my rec room which is 15x20. They're on either side of the cabinet, toed in slightly and the B pair of speakers is a pair of Larger Advents. With both A+B playing, its like a wall of sound! The Advents have the edge in bass, but the polks far surpass them in highs.
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