The Dust cleared and a victory was had.
OK,
I have been putting this off for sometime due to the fact that I needed to be sure.
As some of you might have seen my pic's in the off topic,I picked up the Lsi 15's.
I have been searching for speakers for quite some time now.I have been back and forth with many different companies,and I found my way home.
The strongest runner up was the Audience line from Dynaudio.
It would have been the 82's up front.But the Lsi 15's where right there with sound quality and a couple things I actually liked better.
The Review,
I heard them the first time with a Yamaha rxv1, they sounded real good with some flaws.Search for my older post I worte awhile back.
Then I listened to the with a Pioneer Elite vsx47tx.They sounded alot better,cleaner and more open.The Pioneer had a better overall matching ability with the Lsi 15's.
So after along hard road of thinking listening to so many different companies in there price class,I desided to bring them home.
Out of the box they sounded abit...well dead,tight and not real impressive,But as I know so well speakers need time to break in.So I ran the **** out of them of a couple of weeks and then noticed they where opening up.
I ran them at first with my Denon avr3801.It mated so well with the rt line, I figured it would be ok just to get going.The amp road is another story in it self.The Denon had a hard time keeping up with the demand that the Lsi 15's put on them.I knew at this time they needed better amps to hear the true beauty that I could hear wanting to come out.
I'm not a fan of used gear by no means, but I do know the owner well from the Stereo Exchange,I talk to him from time to time and sell him my old gear,I go threw gear alot.He got in a Rotel pre amp and Amp.A little Dual mono 60 watt,and a preamp as raw as can be, no remote or anything.So I picked that up as I feel real strong about Rotel and there awesome sound quality.B&K has new **** comming out but I didn't want to wait that long to hear a better amp on these speakers.I brought it home, wired it up and the first impressions was awefull.I hated the way it sounded right out of the box.I was mad at myself for buying used gear and madder that It sounded like ****.
Then It happened............the speakers started to break in some more and I noticed a real clear,punchy sound.Open and airy.I hooked the speakers up to the Denon again and it all went away and got cloudy soundiing,like the Denon couldn't reproduce all the sounds in the music I was listening to.I tried the famous USE A RECEIVER AS A PRE AMP and that even sounded worse.I had more punch with a sick sounding pre amp.The Rotel amp didn't like the Denon at all.
So I hooked it back up the the pre amp(RC-971) and all was happy.
Man let me tell you about Rotel with the Lsi 15's.........You know how good I think the Audience line is......and there respect in the Industry is really not matched by many.......I think in all honest opnion,I think the Lsi 15's can hang or better the Dynaudio's to a degree.They have this ability to play female voice like better quality more expensive speakers do.I know what your thinking if you read some of the reviews when they compared them to the Evidence Tempations.......and didn't get shamed.......thats dead wrong,but in there price class and slighty above, they can hold there own against anybodies speakers.
I'm gonna leave a couple of tips for any owners of the Lsi 15's and some things to consider if your thinking of going Lsi......
1) you need good amps......receivers not cut it.They hold back the ability to sound there best.I wish I had a chance to test them on more kinds of gear but I have been so busy lately,I haven't even listened to them for like a week.And I have Lsi withdraw,soon as I'm done with this post,I'm gonna go listen for awhile.
2)Wire,if your not a believer in good quality wire, these speakers will tell you all about how bad some wire sounds.I tried alot of Monster,straight wire and Transparent on them, you can hear a bigger difference on them then on the rt line.I couldn't belive some of the things I heard........WOW.
3)Set up/placement........big hear, not simple drop and go, the tweeter off to the side can play games with your positioning.I found that I kept toeing them out from where I usually want them to be.The still need to be toed in some,but not as much as most monopole speakers do.
4) let them break in...they don't take a ton of hours like B&W's do, but they need there fair playing time before you can really set them up.
5)back to the wire...speaker wire that is...Bi wiring is as usual with most speakers the best way to speaker wire them.
I'm also a big big Banana plug user but the Lsi 15's should use Spades.I switched from Banans to spades on my Monstercable M1.4s bi wires due to the fact the wire is heavy and with bananas they did this big loop up then down to the floor,If you look at my pic of the back of the right speaker, you will see how nice the spades make the wire lay.........When I order Transparent speaker wire for them,I will get Spades on the speaker side and Banan's on the amp side.
Well to end this..I will say this........they are worth complete retail price.......worth every penny you have to spend on them.
O I forgot to add one of the desiding factors over Dynaudio........Dipolar rears...they currently don't make em and Don't seem to be realising any soon.If you want real wood veneers you have to pay more.
For the Lsi 15's..the black side panels aren't for me.I'm gonna get a cherry pair......it's much nicer looking.The black isn't really black..it's like grey/brown/black or something..it really looks like they didn't stain them enough,thought it looked cool and went with it.........
Ok I gotta run..Got some unwindiing to do,I had to work 6 days this week and I'm tired........nice cold one or so and I'm gonna listen for awhile.......
I want to thank everyone at Polk for making such a fantastic sounding speaker....good job guys and girls!!!
Dan
I have been putting this off for sometime due to the fact that I needed to be sure.
As some of you might have seen my pic's in the off topic,I picked up the Lsi 15's.
I have been searching for speakers for quite some time now.I have been back and forth with many different companies,and I found my way home.
The strongest runner up was the Audience line from Dynaudio.
It would have been the 82's up front.But the Lsi 15's where right there with sound quality and a couple things I actually liked better.
The Review,
I heard them the first time with a Yamaha rxv1, they sounded real good with some flaws.Search for my older post I worte awhile back.
Then I listened to the with a Pioneer Elite vsx47tx.They sounded alot better,cleaner and more open.The Pioneer had a better overall matching ability with the Lsi 15's.
So after along hard road of thinking listening to so many different companies in there price class,I desided to bring them home.
Out of the box they sounded abit...well dead,tight and not real impressive,But as I know so well speakers need time to break in.So I ran the **** out of them of a couple of weeks and then noticed they where opening up.
I ran them at first with my Denon avr3801.It mated so well with the rt line, I figured it would be ok just to get going.The amp road is another story in it self.The Denon had a hard time keeping up with the demand that the Lsi 15's put on them.I knew at this time they needed better amps to hear the true beauty that I could hear wanting to come out.
I'm not a fan of used gear by no means, but I do know the owner well from the Stereo Exchange,I talk to him from time to time and sell him my old gear,I go threw gear alot.He got in a Rotel pre amp and Amp.A little Dual mono 60 watt,and a preamp as raw as can be, no remote or anything.So I picked that up as I feel real strong about Rotel and there awesome sound quality.B&K has new **** comming out but I didn't want to wait that long to hear a better amp on these speakers.I brought it home, wired it up and the first impressions was awefull.I hated the way it sounded right out of the box.I was mad at myself for buying used gear and madder that It sounded like ****.
Then It happened............the speakers started to break in some more and I noticed a real clear,punchy sound.Open and airy.I hooked the speakers up to the Denon again and it all went away and got cloudy soundiing,like the Denon couldn't reproduce all the sounds in the music I was listening to.I tried the famous USE A RECEIVER AS A PRE AMP and that even sounded worse.I had more punch with a sick sounding pre amp.The Rotel amp didn't like the Denon at all.
So I hooked it back up the the pre amp(RC-971) and all was happy.
Man let me tell you about Rotel with the Lsi 15's.........You know how good I think the Audience line is......and there respect in the Industry is really not matched by many.......I think in all honest opnion,I think the Lsi 15's can hang or better the Dynaudio's to a degree.They have this ability to play female voice like better quality more expensive speakers do.I know what your thinking if you read some of the reviews when they compared them to the Evidence Tempations.......and didn't get shamed.......thats dead wrong,but in there price class and slighty above, they can hold there own against anybodies speakers.
I'm gonna leave a couple of tips for any owners of the Lsi 15's and some things to consider if your thinking of going Lsi......
1) you need good amps......receivers not cut it.They hold back the ability to sound there best.I wish I had a chance to test them on more kinds of gear but I have been so busy lately,I haven't even listened to them for like a week.And I have Lsi withdraw,soon as I'm done with this post,I'm gonna go listen for awhile.
2)Wire,if your not a believer in good quality wire, these speakers will tell you all about how bad some wire sounds.I tried alot of Monster,straight wire and Transparent on them, you can hear a bigger difference on them then on the rt line.I couldn't belive some of the things I heard........WOW.
3)Set up/placement........big hear, not simple drop and go, the tweeter off to the side can play games with your positioning.I found that I kept toeing them out from where I usually want them to be.The still need to be toed in some,but not as much as most monopole speakers do.
4) let them break in...they don't take a ton of hours like B&W's do, but they need there fair playing time before you can really set them up.
5)back to the wire...speaker wire that is...Bi wiring is as usual with most speakers the best way to speaker wire them.
I'm also a big big Banana plug user but the Lsi 15's should use Spades.I switched from Banans to spades on my Monstercable M1.4s bi wires due to the fact the wire is heavy and with bananas they did this big loop up then down to the floor,If you look at my pic of the back of the right speaker, you will see how nice the spades make the wire lay.........When I order Transparent speaker wire for them,I will get Spades on the speaker side and Banan's on the amp side.
Well to end this..I will say this........they are worth complete retail price.......worth every penny you have to spend on them.
O I forgot to add one of the desiding factors over Dynaudio........Dipolar rears...they currently don't make em and Don't seem to be realising any soon.If you want real wood veneers you have to pay more.
For the Lsi 15's..the black side panels aren't for me.I'm gonna get a cherry pair......it's much nicer looking.The black isn't really black..it's like grey/brown/black or something..it really looks like they didn't stain them enough,thought it looked cool and went with it.........
Ok I gotta run..Got some unwindiing to do,I had to work 6 days this week and I'm tired........nice cold one or so and I'm gonna listen for awhile.......
I want to thank everyone at Polk for making such a fantastic sounding speaker....good job guys and girls!!!
Dan
Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time.
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time.
Post edited by mantis on
Comments
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O lastely,
I ran the rt1000p's against the Lsi 15's......no compare, the rt1000p's got out classed in every single way,they couldn't even hang in there anywhere...I was suprised and glad ..my upgrade was complete........Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time. -
Dan,
Nice review. Just one note, the "black" side panels are ebony if I recall. Real ebony is not "black", but as you described it...sort of grey/brown/black and is a very hard, dense wood. Enjoy!Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
Excellent review. Personally I like the color of your 15's. Do you think the 15's preform better on a certain style of music than another? *techno/acoustic/hard rock* Or are they a jack of all trades?Two Channel Main
Receiver - VSX-54TX
Mains - Csi40's
Sub - Spiked Velodyne Cht-8 On Spiked Landscaping Stones
"If you could put speakers in a needle, I'd never see him again..." - My Girlfriend -
Glad to hear you're loving those speakers. Can you give some specifics on their sound (i.e. imaging, detail, bass, etc.)? What do they do well? What do they do not so well? How about some compare and contrast to some other speakers. Heheh, that should keep you busy for awhile.
Aaron -
Checked out your pics Mantis. Nice set-up.
Do you plan on replacing the cs400i? How about the lsi fx rears?Polk Rt800i -Fronts
Polk cs400i -Center
Polk fx500i -side surrounds
Polk rc60i -rear surrounds
Onkyo TX-NR 1009 (9.2) receiver
Velodyne cht12
Polk psw111 -
where do you go to see mantis pic. of lsi-15 i cant seem to find them.
mantis that was a great post, i had a feeling that you would get the lsi-15, for the price you can not beat the polk lsi line.
all i can say is thank you polk audio.
i know that im going to get the lsi-9 as so as i can afford them.. rt-7 mains
rt-20p surounds
cs-400i front center
cs-350 ls rear center
2 energy take 5, efects
2- psw-650 , subs
1- 15" audiosource sub
lets all go to the next ces. -
here it is they're close to the bottom and on the second page.Two Channel Main
Receiver - VSX-54TX
Mains - Csi40's
Sub - Spiked Velodyne Cht-8 On Spiked Landscaping Stones
"If you could put speakers in a needle, I'd never see him again..." - My Girlfriend -
Oh sorry, that link is to the second page.Two Channel Main
Receiver - VSX-54TX
Mains - Csi40's
Sub - Spiked Velodyne Cht-8 On Spiked Landscaping Stones
"If you could put speakers in a needle, I'd never see him again..." - My Girlfriend -
Liquidsound,
they can play most music extremely well,they really shine with Voice and Acoustic.Lorenna Mckennitt is my Favorite female singer, and sometimes when my eyes where closed,I could feel her in my room.Breathing and singing personally to me.....very nice.
Hard rock/heavy metal....Kinda like what Russ hears or better puts see's..............I put on some System of the down,Metallica,Antrax,Megadeath,Slayer,Etc.........and I saw dead people.....they keep it clean and clear.
I got at this point make a comment on Heavy Rock music.....It's difficult for most speakers to play clean and clear.......most speakers make the music sound all as one sound,with no seperation,air,or clarity....I know Metal is hard and overdriven, hell most cd's are recorded poorly.I hate this as the better your speakers are the more you can notice how awefull some things get recorded.Feel comfortable in the Lsi's ability to play all kinds of music well,but as most speakers they shine everywhere else but poorly recorded Heavy metal/rock music.
Aaron,
Imaging is fantastic,better then I expected.After I learned more about how they respond,I have found a couple of really good setup techinics to make them fill the front soundstage from wall to wall and retain rock solid Imaging.I have heard some people say that the bass is the speakers only weakness...........WHERE!!!!The 8 inch blends in so well you can't tell it has another driver filling the bottom end.....this is also coming from a guy who lived with Powered towers and the bass stuck out like a sore driver...
Detail you ask???????DAMN man the sounds I have heard from them is unreal .....They are retarted clear and detailed.....I sit there sometimes and just have to laugh at them.....They are some really detailed speakers....crisp airy and warm..all in one sound...beautiful.I will leave you with this thought........they as an entire sound allow you to listen to the music and not the speaker........don't get that wrong...there not perfect....but damn there good.....like the Audience 82's from Dynaudio.....but here is the kicker...........with out good amps driving...........they loose alot of quality....and then they sound like a regular sounding speaker.
Feed them and they go crazy......
Begbe,
I'm selling the entire Rt line I currently own..including the sub.
Rt1000p's
cs400i
FX/500's
Rt35i's
and the psw450.
I have all the manual's boxes and all are in excellent shape,no damage anywhere.Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time. -
The pics are also on the Picture things a...... post in off topic.....go check them out Joe........
Liv4fam lent me his digital camera for a day and I snaped a couple pics of the basement in my being built house and some of my curent system
I'm not a Photographer...so be nice!!Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time. -
I dare to say I may sell my current rti setup. Still debating.
I may keep the fx500i's just because of budget constraints. Think they might work fine with the lsi line-up considering they'll be used only for movies ?Polk Rt800i -Fronts
Polk cs400i -Center
Polk fx500i -side surrounds
Polk rc60i -rear surrounds
Onkyo TX-NR 1009 (9.2) receiver
Velodyne cht12
Polk psw111 -
I don't think they mate well at all.
I'm using them for movies like that for now untill I move.Then I will finish off the Lsi line for 7 channel mated with a ReL sub.
I'm looking into Rotel for HT and Music duties.The RSX1065 is awesome sounding.
But I'm eyeing up there seperates in the RSP1066 PRE AMP.
Nice stuff and affordable.Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time. -
mantis found your pic.
im happy for you, you findly got to audio heaven.
and you didnt have to spend tons of money to do it.
im just around the corner i know that the lsi-9 will sound awsome with my aragon stuff, cant wait to get the lsi-9. rt-7 mains
rt-20p surounds
cs-400i front center
cs-350 ls rear center
2 energy take 5, efects
2- psw-650 , subs
1- 15" audiosource sub
lets all go to the next ces. -
Yes you got Aragon .....nice stuff man..I like there mulichannel amps.I have installed them mated with B&W...really nice....Yeah.Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time. -
Smell it before you eat it huh. Tell me, how long did it take you to figure that one out? *smiles*Two Channel Main
Receiver - VSX-54TX
Mains - Csi40's
Sub - Spiked Velodyne Cht-8 On Spiked Landscaping Stones
"If you could put speakers in a needle, I'd never see him again..." - My Girlfriend -
-
everything comes in time.I have waiting a long time.And I just begun my upgrade,I got alot of things to come.
Thanks.Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time.
