Novice Question - Midrange is lacking

rojocito

Hello,

I'm a novice to home theater set up, so be patient with me. I just set up a new system for my basement home theater. Here's the specs:

5.1 Speakers:
1 CS2
2 RTi10's
2 FXi5's
1 (JBL) Sub10

Receiver:
HK AVR347

I am extremely pleased with how crisp and clear the sound it, and the set up is PLENTY loud for my very small space. However, I am noticing more and more that the midrange sounds are weaker than the bass and treble. When I get near my RTi10's, there is very little pressure coming off of the mids - most of the sound is coming from the tweaters.

I've read everyone's comments on bi-wiring and, I agree with the masses - I think it's probably a waste of time (although my salesman swears by it). So, I'm guessing that I need to add an amp for the RTi10's - do you all agree? The HK has great sound but not as much power as the comparable Onkyo I was looking at, so I knew I was giving up some wattage... but I did not know what the impact would be until I got the system home.

Any ideas? If I do need an amp - recommendations?

BTW - Don't take me the wrong way - I'm extremely happy with the system... especially when playing Halo 3 on the XB360 - makes it an entirely different experience!

Thanks in advance all.
-Dan

stian

Hi Dan.

I see you have the RTi10s.

how are they for 2-channel music?

Im wondering about buying RTi12, but im from norway, and no shops have them here so I cannot test how they are...

can you recommend them?

thanks

Stian, Norway

steveinaz

Dan
Let me say straight away, I have no personal experience with the Rti10. I have read comments about the "less than stellar" midrange on these and the Rti12--maybe someone else will chime in with better info. Of course, this kind of stuff is very subjective--so take it for what its worth.

You could experiment with bi-wiring, but honestly, I don't think that will help much. A dedicated power amp of good quality would probably help alot more.

Oh, and WELCOME!

zeppelin2

Do things improve if you hook up ONLY the RTi10's to the receiver? I believe there is a "Stereo Mode" that delivers more power to the front speakers, be sure to turn that on as well!

Have you made sure no DSPs or equilizers etc are enabled? Have you tried toeing them in (ie. pivoting them) so that the speaker face is pointing directly at your listening position? If you can change the channel balance to only one speaker, and then the other, do both sound the same?

Give those a try before you run out and get a new amp

danger boy

be sure the jumpers are in place on the rear speaker connections on your RTi10's. if they are lose, the mid bass drivers may not fire up... and be sure your main front speakers are set to large for the most mid's and bass

treitz3

rojocito wrote: »

I'm guessing that I need to add an amp for the RTi10's - do you all agree?

Yes. If you want to get those babies singing, then yes.

Welcome to Club Polk.

danger boy

treitz3 wrote: »

Yes. If you want to get those babies singing, then yes.

not having a good powerful amp would be the cause of lack of midrange sounds... it's either a receiver setting or unhooked speaker jumpers.

obieone

How are they wired? straight from the recvr or thru the sub?

SolidSqual

I had the Rti8s and I noticed a much meatier mid-range with the addition of the Parasound Halo A23.

AndyGwis

I would say that if they are hooked up properly, and you have run (and rerun) your EZEQ calibration properly, it's time to grab a separate amp.

I wouldn't jump right in and get a $500 - $1000 amp right away. Even a modest $200 - $300 amp with 100-150wpc should make a very noticeable difference for the positive. I would look at anything B&K you can find within your budget. I've loved every piece of theirs I have owned in my short audio journey, most so than the NAD, Adcom, Carver, and Parasound gear, which are all great in their own regards. Something about the B&K sound gets me all happy inside, and it would mate well with its generally warm sound and the RTi10's seemingly forward/bright sound.

ohskigod

does the midrange lack if only playing in stereo?

if your always in surround, or one of the matrix surrounds like PLII etc (thus using your center channel) then i think that might be the problem.

If you got RTi10's, you gotta look into getting the CSi5 to keep up with it.

if I am not mistaken, the CS2 is timbre matched for the Monitor series. This, and it being a relativly small center compared to your mains is what I would guess is the problem.

it's certainly not an emergency, but I have a feeling if you get the CSi5 (timbre matched and sized right for your RTi's, your going to be a pretty happy camper.

AndyGwis

The CS2 is a big speaker with 2 6.5" drivers. . . not a small one. But, yes, I think the CSi5 would be a bit of an upgrade.