Can someone tell me...

AsSiMiLaTeD

why I like the LSi7 better than the LSi9?

I listened to the two side by side this evening, and for some reason preferred the LSi7 over the more expensive LSi9. I'm not sure exactly why, it's almost like the LSi9 had too much midrange, I know that's retarded...

Now granted I was at Tweeter, and they were running them off a Denon receiver, so I know that neither were powered correctly. I also know that this 'underpowering' is not a constant, as I imagine the LSi9 were underpowered more than the LSi7. I am sure I can attribute some of the sound difference to this, but I think it was more than that - I jsut think I like the general tonal character of the LSi7 better...strange I guess.

Anyone else have similar findings?

dkg999

I have always thought the transitions and balance between the tweeter and mid/woofer are smoother and better balanced in the LSi7. I heard this again recently when we had both speakers at H9's place for comparison. I think the LSi9's have a lot more presence, but I still like the smoothness of the 7's. Your mileage may vary!

haimoc

With enough power, Lsi9s would be better than Lsi7s. That was just my experience. It is the same thing with Lsi15s and Lsi9s. 15s is much more harder to drive.

treitz3

Speaker placement yeilds a great deal at home, right?

It could have been that the speakers were "sandwiched" so tightly together that the speaker couldn't breathe, if you will.

This could be one reason why you heard what you did.

Were the two speakers at ear level, or was one on a shelf higher than the other? One in the corner moreso than the other? Same Amp? Solid shelf -vs- cheap laminate shelf?

AsSiMiLaTeD

Everything except the speakers themselves was a constant...including placement

treitz3

The only other thing that I can think of is that you are enjoying less resonance with the 7's.

dorokusai

The LSi7 is the best speaker in that lineup.

MikeC78

I think you already aswered your own question...

They were ran off a receiver, the LSi7's should sound better than the 9's.

McLoki

The 7's are pretty close to a 6 ohm load. The 9's are a true 4 ohm load. (well more of a 4 ohm load anyway)

When running off an AVR the 7's are a much easier load to drive. (and much closer to being run within the AVR specifications)

That is my guess.

Michael

MikeC78

dorokusai wrote: »

The LSi7 is the best speaker in that lineup.

Care to elaborate or is that just your opinion?

dorokusai

MikeC78 wrote: »

Care to elaborate or is that just your opinion?

You never really expect a bookshelf to sound great or amazing, but when they do...its truly something special. Floorstanding monkey coffins are overrated.

MikeC78

dorokusai wrote: »

You never really expect a bookshelf to sound great or amazing, but when they do...its truly something special. Floorstanding monkey coffins are overrated.

That doesn't answer the question, but ok...

McLoki

MikeC78 wrote: »

That doesn't answer the question, but ok...

sure it does. He likes bookshelves more than towers and likes the 7's more than the 9's.

Michael

dorokusai

MikeC78 wrote: »

That doesn't answer the question, but ok...

I'm pretty sure it does unless you wanted a bunch of lengthy adjectives strung together in op-ed format to explain why I like it. It's just an opinion, who cares.

VR3

9's sound bloated - to much midbass and not enough transition to bass. IMO

MikeC78

McLoki wrote: »

sure it does. He likes bookshelves more than towers and likes the 7's more than the 9's.

Michael

Thanks! I was just curious since I've never heard the 7's before.:o

cheddar

Vr3MxStyler2k3 wrote: »

9's sound bloated - to much midbass and not enough transition to bass. IMO

I have the 7's and they sound great both by themselves and rounded out with a subwoofer. I've only heard the 9s at Frys in less than ideal conditions, but everywhere I've read stated that they have a mid-bass hump. Some people like the extra bass. Others, like yourself, seem to like a more linear speaker in that range.

Yashu

the 9s need more POWER.

It makes me shake my head to see LSi being sold in stores with nothing better than denon and onkyo receivers... How hard would it be to stock NAD, Adcom, Arcam, or the many other wonderful budget audiophile integrateds... Hell, even the new Onkyo 9555 integrated would whip the pants off any mid-fi AVR in 2 channel, but no store seems to want to stock it.

The 9s were some of the best bookshelf speakers out there in it's price range, even still today they they are no slouches. The 4 ohm load is polk's mistake considering where polk lets their stuff be sold and auditioned.

The 9s need more breathing room too as well as more power.

However, some people prefer the sound of smaller bookshlelves due to nearfield phase integration. Larger speakers need to be farther away to sound their best where smaller speakers are going to sound better up close. I could never see myself with a set of LSi 9s sitting 2 feet from me and about 3 feet apart and expect them to sound as good as my JBL pro nearfield monitors, but if I were to set them (the 9s) on stands and place them in the proper positions I would get room filling sound that would rival many towers.

As I understand it, the two mid drivers on the LSi 9s are crossed over at different points, and I would assume that the 9s have a better bottom end but perhaps a slightly less defined midrange. That is just conjecture, however, because I haven't had the chance to audition both 7s and 9s together.

Monster Jam

In Vegas, only two stores I know of sell the LSi speakers:
Frys
Tweeter

Both stores, from what I know, sell only one amplifier brand, for Frys, its Monster Power. For Tweeter, its Krell. Frys has the Monster driving Monster speakers. Tweeter doesn't have the Krell on the floor.

Yashu

Monster makes speakers?!? oh noes that can't be good.

jmwest1970

I comes down to one thing...your ears.

Some people like a more forward sounding mid, like the 9s, while others prefer the laid back sound of the 7s. I'm a mid fan,, but I've found the 9s to be a little boomy in the mid-bass area so my preference is the 7, but only with a good sub that transitions well.

We all know it takes a nice stoudt amp to push either to their full potential, and we also know that amps, whether stand alone or an AVR, color the sound somewhat. I prefer the smooth sound of an H/K and the like to something bright, but YMMV.

dorokusai

When did demos include a subwoofer? Have we lost focus on real audio? I'm not opposed to the augmentation of low frequency, but it's certainly not neccesary.

michael_w

I swapped out my 7's for 9's and ditched the sub in the transition and so far so good. After switching out some electronics I've found a good balance and killed the boomy and bloated sound. Placement, the room (and it's treatments) and the electronics will all either make or break the speaker. I've placed my 9's a lot differently than the 7's to suit the different styles of speaker.

There's a reason they make different models in similar price ranges. Different tastes call for different speakers. This is the same as the RTi 8/10/12 dilemma but in the LSi series. There are a ton of people here that will tell you to buy 8's or 10's over the 12's, just because it's what they like in a speaker.

jmwest1970

dorokusai wrote: »

When did demos include a subwoofer? Have we lost focus on real audio? I'm not opposed to the augmentation of low frequency, but it's certainly not neccesary.

I think it depends on your musical taste. In my case, my listening is done on an AVR without the effects. This leaves me with 2 channel plus the sub, and since I do listen to a wide variety of music I consider the sub as a factor when listening to potential purchases. That said, I do demo without a sub when listening for accuracy and imaging. Of couse I'm not an engineer or an audiophile, so my sense of accuracy may be totally out in left field.

cfrizz

I agree JM. Bass is a part of the audio spectrum, so it is a part of real audio. There are no rules set in stone about what each of us prefers our music to sound like.

I have always run my sub in 2 channel. When I turned the sub off, it was clear I wasn't catching all of the bottom end or was so muted that I had to strain to hear it. So I would say that whether you have bookshelves or towers, the music will benefit from a sub. At least for me. YMMV.

dorokusai

It used to be that one listened to a loudspeaker based on its own merits, then you decided what to do....oh well, its a fast food type audio business now.

engtaz

As always, each person is his or her own expert. Only the person listening knows what they like best. Everyone's listening knows what they like best. There are better speakers for Rap, Country, Rock, Vocal, and Mozart. They speakers are colored in a way to enhance those types of music.

cfrizz

That is a given Mark. However, as good as it is, that doesn't mean it might not be lacking in the lowest bass area where a sub could help out greatly.

I love my RTA-8T's but they need some assistance with the bass that the 2 drivers have a hard time picking up. That doesn't mean the what the rest of the speakers does is crap.

I don't understand what your objection is.

dorokusai wrote: »

It used to be that one listened to a loudspeaker based on its own merits, then you decided what to do.

heiney9

I will have to say I prefer the 9’s to the 7’s in my room with my set-up. That’s not to say the 9’s are better or the 7’s are better. They have a few very different sonic characteristics and I prefer the fuller bottom end on the 9’s. The 7’s don’t have the lower midbass hump that the 9’s have. That lower midbass bump give the 9’s more impact and allows more scale to the music over the leaner 7’s especially in a medium sized room.

For me personally if I had the 7’s in my set-up I would need a sub and I’m not a big fan of subs for 2ch music. The very strange thing to me with the 9’s is even with that lower midbass warmth it never upsets the upper midrange particularly where vocals and acoustic instruments are concerned. The upper midrange to my ears is spot on very lively and has the perfect body and weight. Not a hint of chestiness or raspiness or ringing on piano keys.

It’s very strange (to me) the difference between the LSi’s and my newly rebuilt classic Monitor 5b’s. Even with the RD0’s the upper midrange and lower range highs are very “out front” whereas the LSi series has all the presence and detail but is much more laid back and natural sounding. The 5b’s sound someone like is shouting at you where the LSi’s sound as if someone is carrying on a normal conversation. I like them both for different reasons and they are in different rigs.

Bottom line is the both the LSi 7’s and 9’s are spectacular for their size and price point and they do have slightly different sonic characteristics and one needs to listen to both properly set-up and decide which sound you prefer.

H9

JimBRICK

well you've guys made my mind up the nines it is for my fronts

AsSiMiLaTeD

I'm picking up the LSi7s this evening from fellow Polkie Sami. I can always grab some 9s down the road if I want, but I fell in love with the 7s instantly and want to try them first.

Thanks for all the input everyone