New RTi Series tweeters

Mike Reeter

I know I should send an e-mail to Polk and ask this,but I thought I would try here first.

Does anyone know if the tweeters in the new RTi series are the same or different than the most recent series?

I have had a pair of RTi12's for around 3 years,along with a CSi5 making up the front end of out HT rig.

My only quam with these speakers is the tweeters are a "little" sharp...If the new series has a "better",smoother,tweet in them,do you think I could replace my "old" series tweets with new replacements?

They sure "look" to be the same size.

Just a thought...thanks for any imput.

Yashu

I should hope they would be updated to calm their crazy brightness... but if polk had to change the crossover network to handle a "new" RTi tweeter, then the chances are that you cannot just swap them out.

Now, polk has a history of producing tweeter upgrades that can be dropped into older models... and other speaker manufactuerers update tweeters all the time while keeping the crossover the same... so I don't know.

Does Polk give good technical e-mail replies? You might e-mail them, but if they are like any large company, you may just get a form letter in return with some marketing fluff thrown in making the short answer "if you try it, it will void your warranty".

Mike Reeter

I called Polk c.s. today...same tweeters and mid-drivers as before in the new RTi series....

Yashu

Well there you go. Brightness remains a problem, but on a positive note, there won't be much voicing problems when combining the new RTi with the old.

VR3

Thing to consider...

They might of tweaked the crossovers. Crossovers have alot to do with a drivers sound.

So while I'll say theres a 80% chance they are still the same bright speaker, I'd say theres a 20% chance they may have altered it.

Serendipity

Vr3MxStyler2k3 wrote: »

Thing to consider...

They might of tweaked the crossovers. Crossovers have alot to do with a drivers sound.

So while I'll say theres a 80% chance they are still the same bright speaker, I'd say theres a 20% chance they may have altered it.

Agreed. However, when I heard the old RTi series and thought they were bright, they weren't too bright for me.

Mike Reeter

Vr3MxStyler2k3 wrote: »

Thing to consider...

They might of tweaked the crossovers. Crossovers have alot to do with a drivers sound.

So while I'll say theres a 80% chance they are still the same bright speaker, I'd say theres a 20% chance they may have altered it.

Was told x-overs are also the same,only cosmetic changes.

Yashu

The brightness is really only an issue if you are using the RTi for music. For movies they are perfect.

That is the thing... polk has a music speaker... a more expensive one... they do not want to make the RTi a more music friendly speaker because then perhaps less LSi would be bought.

I think as far as HT is concerned, the RTi is a wonderful speaker... It is one of the best values out there for HT...

Mike Reeter

Yashu wrote: »

The brightness is really only an issue if you are using the RTi for music. For movies they are perfect.

That is the thing... polk has a music speaker... a more expensive one... they do not want to make the RTi a more music friendly speaker because then perhaps less LSi would be bought.

I think as far as HT is concerned, the RTi is a wonderful speaker... It is one of the best values out there for HT...

I don't have any problems with RTi tweeter for movies...I have SDA SRS 2.3 TL's for the music listening thing:D

I do have several Music DVD's that would "sound" much better if the tweeters were a little more laid back.

I've come to the conclusion of getting a tube amp. to drive the top-end of our 12's to smooth them out a bit.

RuSsMaN

I don't know where you guys are getting bright associated with the current RTi line up. That tweeter has a pretty much dead flat response, it doesn't have any hotspots like the SL2000 for example.

The RTi isn't a speaker designed for music? Did you fall out of your tree?

Personal preference on the tonal signature is one thing, but lets not make blanket statements that simply are not true.

Cheers,
Russ

Mike Reeter

Ahhh well,Yashu...I guess you and I are the only ones that think the RTi line are a tad bit on the bright side.

I might spend another $500-$1000. on some i/c's and wires...that's the ticket:D

RuSsMaN

You could certainly try that. I've never had a $1000 i/c, so I can't really comment.

Why do people buy speakers they feel are bright in the first place? That's what I don't get.

Lowell_M

RuSsMaN wrote: »

Why do people buy speakers they feel are bright in the first place? That's what I don't get.

I don't get that either. I personally think there is a large difference between the RTi generation I have (Rti70's) and the RTi8's/10's/12's. A friend of mine has RTi12's driven by Carver amps and using an H/K receiver as a pre and I really can't stand the brightness.

I recently had the opportunity with H9 to directly compare my RTi70's in my setup to LSi9's and you just can't beat the smoothness of that Vifa tweeter. Until that direct comparo' I didn't really notice the slight brightness/airyness of the 70's. What sucks about this stupid hobby is I was perfectly happy with my system before that and now the lack of imaging and smoothness as compared to the LSi's is driving me nuts.