Yamaha/Polk

bigsexy1

Are Yamaha amps a good match for the RT***i series of speakers? Opinions please. I"ve always heard that Yamaha amps are "bright", and if that's the case, I think they would mate well with this older line of RT series speakers as I feel they tend to sound "warm". Any others care to weigh in? Thanks in advance!

mantis

bigsexy...that you??????haven't heard from you inawhile.....

Only in my opnion I feel Yamaha and Polk go together like oil and water..........Peanut butter and fish,etc..........no I don't like them together.

What you heard is what I hear........directly.To bright.Yamaha and polk anything for that matter is a bad mix.
I think Denon mates much better,newer,older it doesn't even matter.......exclude LSI....then you need to get you Rotel or B&K on.:D

RuSsMaN

What some view as 'bright', others may consider 'detailed'. A friend of mine had a Yamaha/Polk rig (cs400, rt35 rears, Thiel .5 mains), and it sounded great.

When I had my Polk HT rig, (RT800/cs300/lsfx) I chose Onkyo over Yamaha, for what it's worth.

Will it drive them properly, with current in reserve? Absolutley. As far as sound, see if you can get a decent demo / comparison somewhere, and let your ears decide.

Cheers,
Rooster

liv4fam

Bigsexy,

I had personal experience with Yamaha RXV-1 and the RT1000P's (Mantis's) and in my opinion I thought that the Yammie really hindered there performance.
I have had descent demo's with the Polks and they are pretty good when mated right.

Personally, I don't really care for the Tri-laminate tweeter as I think it tends to be a little forward and aggressive at times but very well suited to a warmer more laid back amplifier like Pioneer elite or Denon.

In my in-home Demo with the 1000's and the RXV-1 I noticed that the soundstage was severely comprimised and narrow. The level of detail they had with Denon was so much more evident than the Yamaha because the V-1 mushed everything together and presented a really muddy sound with no natural clarity or depth.

The tweeter actually becomes anoying to listen to as it is so squeaky and bright. Additionally the subwoofer pretty much loses the ability to blend with the rest of the speaker as the output of the Yamaha is so exaggerated that every part of the speaker draws attention to itself.

If you would like so to demo some really good quality receivers for the RT series I recommend you look at Marantz, Sony, Denon, and Pioneer.

Have fun.

bigsexy1

Thanks for the replys guys. Although I'm a little surprised. It seems like the general consensus is that the Polks with the trilam tweeters are "bright". I don't really think that they are, at least not compared to say Klipsch, Infinity, JBL, etc. However, I do agree 100% that Yamaha amps are "bright" sounding. But, that's exactly why it never hurts to seek out other's opinions though, which is why I asked here in the first place.
Here's my situation in a nutshell. For the bedroom system, which normally would be nothing more than a backup for the main system, I have a choice between an old Yamaha 2092 receiver, or a new Denon 3802 that I got back in July. For speakers, it's a choice between 5 M&K S85 satellites plus 2 S75 satellites and a M&K V90 subwoofer, or Polk RT1000i for mains, CS400i for center, and any combination of surrounds including 2 different pairs of f/x300i and 1 pair each of RT15i, RT25i, and Rt35i.
I was thinking about keeping the Polks and selling the M&Ks since I could get more money back out of the M&Ks, and IMHO, the Polks sound at least as good if not better. Likewise, I was thinking of keeping the Yamaha receiver instead of the Denon. At the time I got it in late '97 or early '98, it was Yamaha's flagship receiver then, and second in their entire product inventory next to only the top of the line integrated amp (DSPA1 I think it was, or something like that). As much as I payed for it then, and no more than I could get for it now if I sold it, I thought I'd keep it. I figured I could get a lot more of my money back out of selling the Denon 3802 than I could the Yamaha.
Besides, even though the Yamaha doesn't have any type of 6.1 processing capability, or even 5.1 DTS for that matter, (but no big deal to me since the Sony 7000 DVD player I originally bought with it back then doesn't do DTS either) it does do Yamaha's DSP modes. Church, disco, stadium, etc. are all fairly lame (IMHO), but I do like the rock club and jazz club modes with it for music somewhat. I also really like the movie theater modes it overlays on top of dolby digital 5.1 soundtracks a lot. IMHO, they are better than regular plain old dolby digital 5.1
The 2092 also has a connection for an additional pair of front "effects" speakers that you put on the front wall spaced further apart, behind, and above your main left/right front channel speakers. I'm using a pair of Polk RT15i for that purpose (with the M&K setup, it would be the pair of S75). I'm using the pair of RT25i for rear surrounds with the Yamaha. The Yamaha also allows me to bi-wire the RT1000i mains and CS400i center. On a side note, that speaker combination of Rt1000i, CS400i, RT25i, and RT15i all together cost me a total of $420 plus tax new! Was that a steal or what?
If I were to go with the Denon 3802 and the Polk's, I would obviously keep the same mains and center (although I could no longer bi-wire them like I can with the Yamaha) and use 1 pair of the f/x300i for side wall surrounds in dipole mode, and the other pair of f/x300i in the center part of the rear wall in bipole mode. I would also have the pair of RT35i in the rear corners on stands at ear level for use with if and when I ever get into DVD audio/SACD since the 3802 lets you hook up 2 different pairs of back surround speakers and simply reroute the rear channel amp's power to whichever pair you wish to use at any given time.
I also have a Yamaha cd changer, and an Adcom GFA535 60 watt per channel power amp I could throw into the equation. That Adcom amp was very conservativly rated at 60 watts per channel, but I understand was really pushing more like 80, with more dynamic headroom on top of that. If I were to run the Yamaha 2092's main left/right preouts to that Adcom amp to power the main left and right front channel speakers (Polk RT1000i), would that be an upgrade over the Yamaha (or Denon's too for that matter) receiver's internal main left/right power amps rated at 100 watts (110 for the Denon)per channel for those 2 channels (especially since it wouldn't cost anything extra to do it)? Plus, if I were to do that, for the 2092's connection for the additional pair of front "effects" speakers, the receiver's built in amps for those 2 front effects speakers are only rated for 25 watts per channel, and only @ 1 khz at that (not 20 - 20 khz). That got me thinking: if I do use the little baby Adcom 535 for my main front left/right speakers, I could reconfigure the Yamaha receiver's built in front left/right main channel amps to power the front effects speakers instead at 100 watts per channel (full bandwidth rated at that). So that leads up to my next question, which is would that be any additional benefit as well, or would it be best to leave the front effects channels as they are with their paltry amps they are currently set up with? If I keep the Denon 3802 and use the Adcom 535 for main front left/right, I could reconfigure the Denon's unused amps to power a set of the Polk RT25i bookshelfs in another room.
Given all that info, what choice of equipment would you guys keep out of all of that and how would you match it all up, and which would you sell?
Sorry this was so long, and thanks for sticking with it all the way to the end if you did

mantis

easy pic my man.......get the Denon and be.......

SO whats up man?

bigsexy1

To shorten up somewhat, since it seems like most of you don't like Yamaha/Polk, would you go with Yamaha/M&K, Denon/Polk, or Denon/M&K? Thanks again!

bigsexy1

Hey! What's up Mantis? Man, that sure was a quck reply! You even beat my second post here tonight. So you like the Denon. What speakers would you say, Polk RTi or the M&K to go with the Denon?

shack

Denon and Polk RT1000i, CS400i, F/X30is on the side and the RT35i for the rear. I have a Denon and the RTxxi series and they sound excellent together.

MxStYlEpOlKmAn

i got a yammer/polk --- if i could go back 5 months ago....i would of gotten the denon...

liv4fam

Go with the Denon and Polk setup dude.

Man, you're bedroom system huh?

You are out of control..................I love it!!!

bigsexy1

ATCV, Yamaha/Klipsch? Man, that gives me an earache just thinking about it!
Alright guys, you've convinced me to at least give the Denon 3802 a shot with the Polk RT**i speakers.
Can I still bi-wire my CS400i center and RT1000i mains even though the Denon has only 1 set of speaker binding posts per channel (instead of 2 like the Yamaha) by simply using banana plugs and hooking both set of speaker wires for each channel into the same set of banana plugs? Would that still be considered bi-wiring or not?
Also, would you guys use the Adcom GFA 535 power amp to power the Polk RT1000i main channel left/right speakers (They can definitely be bi-wired with it since it has 2 sets of posts), or the Denon's internal built in amps for that purpose?
And, thanks again in advance!

shack

It is easy to do. Have one set originating at the receiver with bare wire or spades and use a banana plug for the other. Both wires will come from one post.

abmarsh

I auditioned Denon and Yamaha receivers back to back on Klipsch and Mirage speakers (the store didn't sell Polks). I thought the Yamahas had a fuller, richer sound than the Denons and wound up buying a Yamaha. After hooking it up to my SDA 2s, I'm completely happy.

I've been a big fan of Denon for a long time. In fact, the receiver I replaced was a Denon I bought a bunch of years ago.

VE6OHV

I checked out everything in my price range when I went looking for a replacement reciver. It came down to the Onkyo, Yamaha, and the Denon. I took each one home with me and played with the settings for a week each. (I have a really cool A/V store owner as a client). The Onkyo and Denon were almost too similar to tell them apart, the Yamaha sounded "wrong" Hard to explain but just "wrong". It didn't seem to have the same detailed center and surround as the others. Kind of muddled, like it was putting too much emphasis on the mains. I finaly decided on the Denon AVR1803, the Onkyo TX-SR600 and finaly the Yamaha HTR-5560. I did BI-wire my 1000p's and CSI40 from the Denon by wiring the two sets of wires into one set of banana plugs. Never caused any problems (alas never noticed any diference either)


My set-up:
Mains RT1000p's
Center CSI40
Surrounds RT35I's
Rear Centers - Some sound dynamics bookshelf crap (for now)
Sub - Modified JBL PSW1000

Check them all out. My money is on the Denon AVR line.

MxStYlEpOlKmAn

I find the yammer to have a full sound. accurate, and semi clean. Its kinda bright - but the RTxxxI line sounds good on them with the treble lowered to -1! Sounds awesome actually. The Yamaha can pump out the volume. I also have a lower class Yammer, so i would imagine that the higher the end the more awesome they get. Although if I could take one thing back, I probally would of gotten the Denon.

TrappedUnder Ice

I have yammie and polk...I dont have any over bearing brightness issues..then again..I like the metal tweeter!

had this combo for almost 2 years now! Only thing I might do diff is use the yammie as a pre-pro and add seperate amps...

have fun...

btw...Yammie on klip....very very bright ;0P

Gary Robertson

Yes the RT series can sound excellent with a yamaha depending on the speaker placement.ie.is the speakers placed out from tr rear wall and in away from the side walls --it is on axis? and what is your height-room surroundings can have a lot to do with the brightness or rolled off highs you'll need to remove a lot of reflective things such as mirrors and picture frames with glass etc.as this stuff can cause "major reflection and resonance and add to the highs-but after playing with the room surroundings --yes i personally think the the yamaha polk os a good match-if the yamaha is a reciever you might wanna make sure that the ohms are mached correctly as recievers don't have the storage capasitors or the amprage to to control
a speaker with less ohms than 8 ..Also i think the the polks are all 8 ohms for the home and 4 for the car..
I myself have a yamaha front end that i sometimes use through me Adcom gfa 545II and run them through polk rt-7's with a velodyne 12/15 sub and i'm telling ya..People drive for miles to hear this..

Gary Robertson

bigsexy1

Actually Gary, my old yammy 2092 receiver can and does handle 4 ohm speakers (M&K). It even has a selector switch on back for 4 or 8 ohms.

bigsexy1

Also Gary, does the Adcom amp sound "bright" too in your opinion?

Gary Robertson

I Remember those , That is a nice reciever,Yamaha has always been known for trick circuitry.I have a Yamaha tape deck that has a play trim on it and when you kick in the dolby,you can turn the play trim knob and bring back the treble that was lost.Homorously,I don't care for Yamaha products,,my motorcycle is a Yamaha ,one of my front end cd players is a Yamaha,my tape deck is a yamaha and my guitars are Yamahas...ha,ha..Now all i need is a Yamaha piano from 1886 and i'd have it made..

joe logston

hi gary, wecome to the forum, i see you have the rt-7 they are a dam good speaker if set up right. and i like yamaha

Gary Robertson

No the Adcom is not too bright.
But---at first my brightness problem
was with horn tweeters so i had to explore around but when i ran across Polk's RT-7's It'just felt right and the "crutial mid range was suprising,especially after i got a good 40 hours of break in time on them.
I auditioned a lot of high end brand speakers,like Paradigm,j&m labs,(very expensive),nht 3.3-(loved them the the best actually) then came the B & W's, oh wow...But when i heard the Polk's they touched me, but still something was missing-i needed a little more bottom end, so subwoofers came into play and i auditioned several but the velodyne 12/15 just kinda reached out and kissed me (so to speak)..The Polk and velodyne combination was equal to some of the expensive brands and even even blew some right out of the water and the Polk/velodyne was only a fraction of the price of the others..Yes i am exrtemely happy with the sound of the Adcom-an if it wasn't for STEREOPHILE i wouldn't have known about any of this,,i would have owned a Technics rack system from best buy or something--boy what an awakening..

Gary Robertson

I am also an Adcom freak--
USE THE ADCOM.That little adcom is smooth and can store around 20,000 microfarriads of reserve power which
insures stability -high damping factor too those roderstein metal film resistors and the triple darlington array and the elimination of coupling capacitors--that little Adcom is one hot product and out performs most of the 4 to 8 thousand dollar amps in that power range...

strike

I'm matching yama rx-v1 to sda-srs's and like listening to this set up so much I hate to leave the house. Wouldn't mind finding a little extra wattage for em however.

Gary Robertson

Cool setup, i know the feeling about not having enough power -it is nice to drive the speakers with ultimate control without a high volume...

strike

Gary,

That's what I keep telling mama.;)

Gary Robertson

Ha,ha,ha,ha... Yeah, sometimes it's all about justification...It would be nice if we could get unpenatrable headphones for the TV...Then we could jam all day and the women could watch tv...Kidding..

jerryez

BigSexy1, If you decide to sell those Polk rt25i speakers, I would be interested in buying them. Email me jerryez@cox.net if interested?

joe logston

wecome to the gary,jerryez, and strike. i got the yamaha rx-v1 (gold) love it.

and have a merry x-mas to all

Gary Robertson

Y'all are too cool.I really enjoy the sound of the upper grade yamaha stuff too...