Polk CSi5 - Do I have an issue?

Kelley_Moore

Hello,

I recently purchased a new HT system After getting everything hooked up, I have given many demos to friends and family. One of my favorite movies to demo is WOTW chapter 5 when the tripod comes out of the ground.

My issue and how I get there...

WOTW - Chapter 5 - Once the thing is out of the ground and spews something out of it's rear end, it proceeds to beep it's horn to say hello. There is a troubling rattle that comes out of my CSi5 during this horn blow and it almost sounds as if the speaker is blown. :mad: The interesting thing is, even at lower volumes, the sound is the same so my question is, Did Spielberg do a bad sound job at producing the first horn blow or is my CSi5 blown?

My setup is in my signature so I don't have to type it twice. If someone has this movie and the same Center, let me know if you get similar results. I'm 6 days shy of my return window so I would like to get it replaced. Also, I'm in the process of getting an Amp since the Denon is probably not enough to drive the Polk’s safely. Maybe that’s the issue…

Thanks,

Kelley

MADGSF

First welcome to the forum Kelley!

I have the same front setup as you but I don't have WOTW to test with. However I don't have any problems with my center, even without an amp. Does the CSi5 make the same kind of noise with other movies? If it does at low volumes it could be an issue with the speaker.

To confirm you could try running one of your Rti10s off the center channel output as a test to see if the issue is with your receiver. Another option is to hook your DVD player straight up to the TV and see if the noise is in the sound track.

Ricardo

Follow MADGSF suggestion and connect one of your fronts to the center output; see if you hear the same sound.

That Denon is plenty to drive your center; don't look there; maybe the 10's might benefit from higher current watts....but if you don't listen at very high levels I wouldn't bother either.

Kelley_Moore

MADGSF\HTrookie,

I have not noticed the issue on music or any other DVD that I have watched. When I do my demos for friends, I usually take the Denon anywhere from -2 to 0 on the volume which is pretty darn loud for me anyway. I’m not sure my house could take much more from the SVS if I went to the positive side.

Anyway, I have 3 basic demos for friends…

Apollo 13 HD – Lift off scene
Matrix 2 – The highway scene
WOTW – Chapter 5

The speakers sound amazing on everything at high or low volumes except that one scene from the tripod in WOTW. Maybe that is what the producer intended but it just doesn’t sound right. I will take your suggestions and try them out.

Thanks for the advice HTrookie on the Amp. I guess I have read too many posts where people say that it’s better to have the speakers overpowered than underpowered plus, I am suffering from upgradeitis. I started out 5 weeks ago looking to spend no more than 3K. Now I am looking at 3k add-ons. Expensive hobby!

Thanks again and I will let you what the result of the tests were,

Kelley

Ricardo

Kelley_Moore wrote:

MADGSF\HTrookie,

Thanks for the advice HTrookie on the Amp. I guess I have read too many posts where people say that it’s better to have the speakers overpowered than underpowered

That's a true statement; what I say is that your receiver should be more than enough to power your speakers if you don't go too loud; I have a 3803 and I don't feel the need for more power; similar set up than yours, though I have the 8's vs the 10's for fronts. The 10's might benefit from more power and if you normally play at those levels close to 0....you might be risking your speakers. I do that for demos sometimes, but my normal listening is around -10.

ND13

If you still have time to return, then just RETURN it and be done with it. If I felt there was even the slightest imperfection with the performance of a NEW product, I'd just take er back.

Welcome to the Club.

MikeC78

I'd take it back also, you shouldn't be hearing any funny noises comming from that center.

Mike

Sherardp

yeah I agree with the other guys, just exchange it, that way youre sure you have new product and there is no problem with it. Also make sure your setup is calibrated using the often preferred Radio Shack SPL meter. I'm not 100% sure but I think the Denon has an auto cal feature, but it may throw things off just a tad bit versus manual calibration.

As the other guys have said if you dont listen at loud levels your denon should be fine, if you desire more add two outlaw monoblocks and bi-amp the 10s. Welcome aboard mate, and from checking out your sig. it seems like you have an awesome setup. Post up in the showcase, and let us check it out. Again welcome and enjoy.

Sherardp

Im normally listening at -20 or -16 for games and dvd playback. WOTW is an awesome movie, with a banging soundtrack. I checked my playback of the movie and havent experienced any unfamiliar sound in my center.

G-force

I know the exact part you are talking about. I have the CSI5 as well and there is a bit of audible distortion during the horn the tripod blows in scene 5. It is in the master soundtrack, so if you're only hearing mild distortion I would not worry about it.
There was actually a thread in the subwoofer forum of AVS about this same issue and everyone was experiencing the same thing. Now go to scene 13 I think it is where the tripod blows the horn coming over the hill, and you should not hear any distortion.

To me it's a bit annoying that the studio didn't clean that out of there before releasing.

Kelley_Moore

Folks,

MikeC78 indicated that no funny noises or distortion should be coming from the center, and Sherardp indicated the same and in fact stating that the condition did not exist while playing chapter 5 WOTW. So, I was ready to simply send it back and get a new one until G-force indicated that I am not alone.

Now, I’m still leaning towards sending it back, but since I’m new at this and eager to learn, I would like to know a little more of how some folks are experiencing the problem and others are not. Based on G-force, it appears other folks in another forum are experiencing the issue as well. I’ll have to go check that out.

Something I noticed last night was that if the volume is at -30 or -2, I still hear the distortion in that scene. Only, it’s bit louder at -2 obviously. I guess my question is this, what is it that G-force and I are doing differently from Sherardp that causes two different outcomes?

As for the SPL meter, I do own one and have done some calibration with the AVIA disk. Maybe I should do it again.

On another note, thanks for the welcomes!

Schwingding

Take it back. I played that same scene after reading this post - zero unusual/troubling sounds coming from any of my speakers. I have the same front setup as you, BTW, but each speaker is powered by its own amp. That soundtrack is very clean.

If you're turning up that AVR to the point where you say "damn thats loud!" you will be dangerously close to blowing your tweeters. I blew one or two with my Yamaha 5990 - a very similar receiver to yours, but now with separate amplification I can turn them up to any level desired with no tweeter worries.

Take it back and be done with it. Keep the volume at levels your wife would tolerate as long as you use the AVR to power the speakers.

ND13

Pick up three of the Outlaw monos to power your front stage. I think you'll be glad you did and not break the bank, plus they're very thin and won't take up much rack space...all three shouldn't be any different, in size when stacked, as most quality amps.

Take the speaker back before it's too late.

Kelley_Moore

Schwingding,

Did you buy your mono blocks over time or is there a reason you chose the 5 separates as compared to the Outlaw 7500? I was thinking of picking up either the Outlaw 7500 or 7700 since it will take up less space than 5 mono blocks.

Kelley

MikeC78

Kelley,

If you can swing it get the 7500. Some prefer the seperate power supply that the mono's have to offer and prefer to take it one step at a time. I would have a hard time getting 4 more outlets compared to 1 that you would only need with the 7500.

I see you are looking at the 7700, do you have a 7.1 setup? If not and plan on doing so in the future, you can get the 7500 and always upgrade later with the mono's?

Mike

If I had the funds, I'd get the 7500 and a dedicated 20 amp outlet for the amp.

Schwingding

I bought 3, and liked them so much I got the other two within a week. They still gave me the "buy 4 get 1 free deal", but free shipping isn't included in the 5 deal so the price break wasn't really that much over the 3 with free shipping.

Power is no issue for me, I ran 3 dedicated 20 amp circuits to handle my amps and sub, and I can always run more if needed. I have 400 amps running into the house. With that in mind, it seemed a no brainer that 5 big power supplies each producing 1 channel would be, theoretically at least, better than one power supply producing 5 channels.

Kelley_Moore

Mike,

I have 2 dedicated 20 amp circuits running to the back of my HT. Right now, I am only using one of them since I have everything with the exception of the sub, plugged into the Panamax. The Panamax is then plugged into one of the outlets.

If I get the 5 or 7 channel amp, can I plug that into the Panamax, or does that need to be on its own breaker? If it needs to be on its own breaker, what do I do for another surge protector? I would hate throw another G down for another Panamax so if there is a more cost effective solution, please let me know.

Thanks,

Kelley

MikeC78

Kelly,

Sometimes those power conditioners can limit the power to your amps. Some prefer plugging directly into the wall outlet. You should have a high current outlet on that Panamax, that's where you need to plug the amp into. You'll be fine. I have two amps ran off my HTPS 7000, no problems.

Mike

Schwingding

The formula for calculating amps from watts is:

Watts/Volts = amps

You'll be able to quickly determine your total max system load using that formula. I determined that under max load (something I'll never reach, btw), my system would require 31.8 amps. A single 20 amp circuit breaker will allow that much of a load for a second or two before tripping.

Since I ran dedicated circuits and know exactly what is on them - nothing other than my AV equipment, I chose to not employ any power conditioning, but rather run them through surge protection and then right into the wall.

I split the amps load between 2 circuits, and put the video equipment on another as I've read that the high current demands of a HT amp can affect video performance. BUT, I could still run ALL of my stuff on a single 20 amp circuit under less than max load. I don't listen that loud, rarely over 85db.

Hope that helps at least a little.