lsi disapointments

AdamRagland

i've noticed as i have cruised the forum this whole year (and even before i was a member and just trolled) i see how everyone raves about the LSI series. however, i have had quite a few chances to audition these speakers in a number of different environments. i have listened to both the lsi15 and 25s at both crutchfield and tweeter both with good components. what i heard seemed pretty boxy and heavy on the low end. seemed like it was very lacking in the mid-mid/high range. am i crazy? i hear everyone rave about them but i just don't hear it. should i give them another shot?

polkatese

Adam, if you were around SoCal, I would have invited you to listen in to my setup, and judge for yourselves, what the LSi15 is capable of. Mid and High are LSi15's strength. Low end could use some help, but it iis more of getting a different quality of slam. Strictly my opinion. My 2CH setup includes Krell 400Xi, and modded Pioneer Universal DV-563, MIT S3 bi-wire, and a REL Storm III sub.

Any local polkies around your area that have a LSi setup that you can audition to?

PolkThug

Did you check the plate amp settings on the back of the LSi25? If not who knows how jacked up it was.

ohskigod

I've never heard the LSi's sound right in a store....not once.

gotta hear them in a house, or order them for a home trial. only way to tell if there your cup of tea or not

markmarc

The biggest problem with LSi's in showrooms is that they are powered with equipment that doesn't have the capability to properly power them. I like HK receivers, but they just don't have the quality power to make the LSi's sing. I'm not talking massive watts per channel, but quality power. The vintage Adcom 535 amp at a declared 60wpc can make a pair of LSi9's sound great, far better than any showroom receiver.

AdamRagland

so would you encourage me to replace my rti70's with the lsi15s?

sucks2beme

Tweeter couldn't give a good demo on LSI's if you held a gun to their heads.
How could receivers using the big switchbox ever get the job done?
As often as not, the Denon's (set to 8 instead of 4 ohms) would go into protection
as soon as a little volume was applied. Those things were stacked in the display tightly
with no room to vent heat. Even under good conditions, most HT boxes crush under the load.
This is one reason I complain about Polk not getting the LSI series in good audio shops.
BB, CC, Tweeter, and let's not forget Fry's fine setup. You can't use your music. The
speakers are just sitting around half assed. The HT setups are never right for a 2 channel demo.
This is why most people end up with crappy speakers. There is no
perceived difference in quality at the store, so why spend more?

Frank Z

AdamRagland wrote: »

so would you encourage me to replace my rti70's with the lsi15s?

Yep, sure would.

tonyb

Go to a fellow polkie's place to audition first.You will need a bettter amp for the lsi's.
Who knows,maybe they are not your cup of tea,but the only way to find out is to listen to a properly set up pair.

SolidSqual

The Lsi15s are so good that I had to really go back and forth auditioning them with my acoustic zen adagios before I could justify the extra expense of the adagios. The Lsis have sick soundstaging when they are setup properly and driven correctly.

Early B.

AdamRagland wrote: »

so would you encourage me to replace my rti70's with the lsi15s?

Hell yeah! The 70's are entry level HT speakers, IMO. The 15's will blow them away in every category, especially for music, even if powered by an insufficient amp. With the prices of the 15's right now, it's a no brainer.

venomclan

I too was disappointed by the LSi's when I heard them at Sound Advice. It was the gear and the environment that was killing them. Try to find a decent way to audition them, I too think they will blow away your current ride.
Venom

AsSiMiLaTeD

Keep in mind too that not everyone is going to like the LSi the first few times they hear them. They have a very natural sound to them. If you're used to the bright nature of the RTi series, the LSi series is going to take some getting used to. The first time I listened to my LSi7 I wasn't very impressed. After a couple hours with them I can't go back now to RTi.

To me it was kinda like weening myself from the treble knob...

AdamRagland

i will need more than the gfa 555?

AsSiMiLaTeD

I don't think you'll need more. I would reccommend something different as I'm not a big fan of Adcom driving the LSi, but power-wise you should be fine.

AdamRagland

anything i can do to my 70's for now untill i save up some $$ to make any serious upgrade?

Frank Z

Some things to consider;
Location
Room Treatment
Proper HT calibration with an SPL Meter.

ben62670

AdamRagland wrote: »

i will need more than the gfa 555?

The Adcom GFA-555 puts out 325 watts at 4ohms. It is more than sufficient. The Older Adcom's have better sound than the new ones.

Ben

SlowcarIX

SolidSqual wrote: »

The Lsi15s are so good that I had to really go back and forth auditioning them with my acoustic zen adagios before I could justify the extra expense of the adagios. The Lsis have sick soundstaging when they are setup properly and driven correctly.

the LSi15, even with my new disc damaging top of the line yamaha player was awesome...replaced the pos with a PS3...i hear things that i dont hear w/ the yamaha and vocals/instruments hold pinpoint locations in space!

markmarc

A few years back I got a chance to visit with about a half dozen industry people at every level. Right or wrong this was their combined take on the LSi situation:

One of the sad truths is that a fair share of the blame on not having the proper equipment in showrooms belongs to marketing decisions Polk made years ago when they focused on Big Box stores. The independents ended up dropping Polk, or being dropped. This has lead to bad feelings by the mom and pop shops, who switched over and carry Paradigm, Polk's big competition. Now Polk is stuck with a great line that doesn't get the focus it deserves.

VSchneider

Sadly a couple of times I auditioned LSi at Tweeter before I bough mine, the LSi9 sounded worse than LSi7... I am not even talking about the 15s. The tightly stacked Yamaha's were frying but could not do the speakers justice.

dkg999

I went from RTi70's to LSi9's. There is a big difference! I'm still not a fan of LSi's for pure music/2 ch use, but I think they are fantastic for HT. The LSi9's produce a significant step up in clarity of dialoge and the detail you hear in the soundtrack of a DVD. I can actually hear more with the volume lower, and the presence in the room is just totally above what the RTi70 and it's peers could produce.

My question is if you are planning on using a decent sub, why go to the LSi15's over the LSi9's? I don't think the bass on the 15's is anything to write home about, so my suggestion would be to dump the cost difference between the 15's and the 9's into upgrading your sub.

Gizmo99

Just curious how much everyone got theri LSIFX for? There cost an arm/leg/first child. What was the lowest price on those sourrounds?

Yashu

Tweeter or Crutchfield does not have any amplification to match the LSI series. It would not be possible to do a correct audition there.

I always find it ironic that these great speakers are sold there and the best amplification is a Denon or Onkyo.

dkg999

Gizmo - catch a Tweeter store manager a few days before they have to report comp store sales and you can get about 30% off of list. I actually got mine at 50% off of list when Tweeter had to move inventory to pay bills before they got the influx of cash. Quite honestly, they are a deal at the normal 10% off of list that most places sell them for. I've been very impressed with them.

Gizmo99

dkg999 wrote: »

Gizmo - catch a Tweeter store manager a few days before they have to report comp store sales and you can get about 30% off of list. I actually got mine at 50% off of list when Tweeter had to move inventory to pay bills before they got the influx of cash. Quite honestly, they are a deal at the normal 10% off of list that most places sell them for. I've been very impressed with them.

At 50% off, what did you pay? 500?

Since we are on the topic of LSI, my budget is around 400-500. What decent amp can I use to power my front and center?? Some say the cheapest way is to buy the outlaw mono block