Amplification / Home Theater receivers for RTi A series

Norm Apter

OK, so now I'm in the planning stages of building a 5.1 Home Theater System from scratch. Those who read my other thread are aware of the fact that I plan to go with a pair of RTi A5s for fronts and RTi A1s for rears. (Center and Sub are yet to be determined and selecting those at this point is less important to me).

For now, I'd like to focus on what could be used to drive a 5.1 system with the RtiA series. I suppose there might be two ways to go:

1) Combo: HT receiver with pre-outs and external amp
2) HT receiver that is powerful enough to drive the speakers on its own

Checking the specs of the RTi A series on the Polk product pages, I see the following:

RTi A5s - 8 ohms at 20 - 250 WPC (recommended amplification)
RTi A1s - 8 ohms at 20 - 125 WPC (recommended amplification)

Again, I'm in the position of starting from scratch. So, I'd like to know the most cost-effective and best way to sufficiently drive (i.e. provide enough power) a 5.1 system with the RTi A speakers I've mentioned above. Looks like I won't be needing a receiver/amp that can drive 4-ohm loads (which I have for my Lsi9s in a separate 2 channel rig).

Any suggestions as to whether I should go with option #1 (Combo of HT receiver and amp) or option #2 (stand alone HT Receiver) above?

And depending on how you come down on that, any particular brands/models of receivers/amps that might go especially well with the Rti / RtiA series for Home Theater (5.1) use (though I'd also like to be able to switch to 2 channel for listening to music at times) ?

Thanks,
Norm

cfrizz

I would say option 1. This gives you the most flexibility and IMHO the best sound. Your speakers don't have to be 4ohm loads to benefit from external amplification. Mine are & improved greatly with an amp pushing them.

How much do you want to spend? Could you afford to get lower priced seperates from a company like Outlaw or Emotiva? Are you willing to buy used from Audiogon which will get you more for your money.

Your options are endless. Do your best to find a store that has the RTI-a's with different avr's & demo, demo, demo until you find the right combo to your ears.

Hilbert

I won't presume to offer advice, but my experience may be relevant: I had (150 watt max) Monitor 50s, 30s, & CS1 connected to 95 wpc Yam 663. They were OK for movies (but then I'm happy enough with movie sound via TV speakers), not really adequate for music. Greatly improved by addition of 200 wpc Emo xpa 5.

I suspect you'll want an amp down the road, unless maybe you start with some sort of monster multi-thousand dollar avr. Good luck,

Pepi28

Hilbert wrote: »

I won't presume to offer advice, but my experience may be relevant: I had (150 watt max) Monitor 50s, 30s, & CS1 connected to 95 wpc Yam 663. They were OK for movies (but then I'm happy enough with movie sound via TV speakers), not really adequate for music. Greatly improved by addition of 200 wpc Emo xpa 5.

I suspect you'll want an amp down the road, unless maybe you start with some sort of monster multi-thousand dollar avr. Good luck,

How can anyone be happy with the sound that comes out of their tv after hearing it through a dedicated home theater system?

And to the 1st post, you need a center that will match your fronts to have a good surround experience. Unless of course you plan on just running a phantom center, which to me and most other polkies around is still not sufficient. Just my 2 cents.

nm4710

I have an RTi setup (very similar to the RTi A line). I tried several receivers - HK, Denon, Sony, Onkyo...to be honest none made my RTi10s (similar to the A7) sing. I purchased an Emotiva LPA-1 which is a modest 125wpc amp. It made a HUGE difference. The speakers sound entirely different - since they have much more bass, I find they are much balanced and much less shrill. Also the bass itself is tighter and more well-controlled. My advice to you would be to look into a modestly priced receiver with preamp outs and later add an external amp.

As for the amp itself, the Emotiva UPA is a bargain at $599 and will drive 7 channels with a more-than-adequate 125wpc. If you have five channels or less the emotiva XPA-5 can deliver 200wpc for $699. These are truly the best value for money I've seen for amps - usually cheaper than even buying used equipment!

Norm Apter

nm4710 wrote: »

I have an RTi setup (very similar to the RTi A line). I tried several receivers - HK, Denon, Sony, Onkyo...to be honest none made my RTi10s (similar to the A7) sing. I purchased an Emotiva LPA-1 which is a modest 125wpc amp. It made a HUGE difference. The speakers sound entirely different - since they have much more bass, I find they are much balanced and much less shrill. Also the bass itself is tighter and more well-controlled. My advice to you would be to look into a modestly priced receiver with preamp outs and later add an external amp.

As for the amp itself, the Emotiva UPA is a bargain at $599 and will drive 7 channels with a more-than-adequate 125wpc. If you have five channels or less the emotiva XPA-5 can deliver 200wpc for $699. These are truly the best value for money I've seen for amps - usually cheaper than even buying used equipment!

I've kind of had Emotiva in the back of my mind ever since June or so when I saw a few posts in which Polkies were singing there praises here at Club Polk. I tried looking on Agon for any used units but none seem to be available lately.

Does anybody know where one can purchase Emotiva gear -- online, at retail stores? If any retail stores carry these units, I'd love to go have a listen.

mmadden28

Norm Apter wrote: »

I've kind of had Emotiva in the back of my mind ever since June or so when I saw a few posts in which Polkies were singing there praises here at Club Polk. I tried looking on Agon for any used units but none seem to be available lately.

Does anybody know where one can purchase Emotiva gear -- online, at retail stores? If any retail stores carry these units, I'd love to go have a listen.

Can't find them because people are generally happy with them :cool: and don't want to get rid of them. They do turn up from time to time though.

Emotiva is direct sales only-its one of the reasons they can be so inexpensive-no middle man. They also own the factory.

XPA-5's are on sale for $699 with free shipping. My RTi12's thank me time and time again.

Hilbert

Pepi28 wrote: »

How can anyone be happy with the sound that comes out of their tv after hearing it through a dedicated home theater system?

Because movies are

(a) enjoyable trash, not to be taken seriously;
(b) 95--98% visual; and
(c) movie soundtracks fall far short of the real thing, in my limited experience, even in commercial theaters, so that one has to use one's imagination regardless of the audio system.

Just my opinion; feel free to disagree.

Happy to say that as I type this my LSi9s, along with Haydn and a piano player named Marc-Andre Hamelin, are thanking me for my XPA-5.:)

mantis

I suggest you look seriously at the Pioneer Elite vsx01tx. If you can get a 03 or 05 then by all means but the 01 is a really killer receiver which works great for both music and movies. Full HDMI switching and processing for Dolby and DTS HD. It also has 2 zones powered. Nice piece. Excellent sound quality and well built.

Dan

RutgersFTW

As long as you've got a non-crazy amount of components, I'd go with a budget HT receiver with pre-outs and a decent amp for your mains. I tried a few different options with RTi8 and RTi6 fronts and found a cheap NAD amp on Audiogon that made everything sound awesome.

And for the millionth time (at least in my head), a lower impedance speaker is not better or worse... it's just a lower impedance speaker. For anyone who listens to rock and roll, the RTi series have always been much more engaging and exciting than the LSis, whose measured performance isn't any better than the RTi series. If you did them, awesome, but everyone on this board who insists RTis aren't up to snuff for a stereo setup are passing off bad info.

Plenty of budget stereo set-ups are based around Paradigm Atoms or PSB Alphas... Polk RTis are more refined and measure better than either of those speakers... therefore, RTi series ARE capable of a satisfying music experience, often for cheaper than the LSi series. Again: subjective opinion is not a substitute for good engineering and measured truth. The RTi As are an epic value and anyone should be proud to own a pair.

Kex

Norm Apter wrote: »

...
For now, I'd like to focus on what could be used to drive a 5.1 system with the RtiA series. I suppose there might be two ways to go:

1) Combo: HT receiver with pre-outs and external amp
2) HT receiver that is powerful enough to drive the speakers on its own

Checking the specs of the RTi A series on the Polk product pages, I see the following:

RTi A5s - 8 ohms at 20 - 250 WPC (recommended amplification)
RTi A1s - 8 ohms at 20 - 125 WPC (recommended amplification)

...

And depending on how you come down on that, any particular brands/models of receivers/amps that might go especially well with the Rti / RtiA series for Home Theater (5.1) use (though I'd also like to be able to switch to 2 channel for listening to music at times) ?

I'll add some of my experience to this question. With those speakers, which are not unlike my own in terms of size (except that I have five large speakers, not just the front two), I found the following:

- Great results with an entry level harman/kardon AVR147, rated 40w/ch.
- Very similar (but not better) results with and Emotiva LMC-1 & LPA-1 combo, rated 125w/ch.
- Outstanding results with a NAD T754, rated 70w/ch.

The harman/kardon was the easiest to setup, because of the menu structure, and automated calibration using EzSet/EQ (which can be fine tuned manually afterwards if necessary).

The Emotiva was the biggest and heaviest, but the most quirky to use, because of a poorly designed remote and less obvious menus and/or functions. I was also the biggest disappointment, since I could not tell the difference when compared to the modest harman/kardon.

I got the NAD because I might be getting 4 ohm speakers in the future, and the h/k will not drive them (nor will most receivers). It was the biggest surprise, adding much more detail to the sound, much more bass output from the speakers and much tighter bass, and better surround sound processing (including for movies). The way the NAD drives my speakers, it would be impossible to imagine that it is actually less powerful than the Emotiva on paper IMO. It also has some excellent features that neither of the other two offer that make adjustments from movie watching to music listening more convenient, not to mention an competent, well laid out, and robust learning remote which is capable of executing macro sequences. The menu structure is as clear and straightforward as the h/k.

NAD can be expensive, but if you do not need HDMI, you can get the T754 refurbished for $500 shipped (or $1,100 new). If you do need or want HDMI, you can get the T755 refurbished for $900 shipped (or $1,300 new). Those would be my earnest and enthusiastic recommendations based on my experience, even more so since the NAD will be a great choice for two channel listening.

http://nadelectronics.com/product-info#AVReceivers
http://www.spearitsound.com/nad/T754.asp
http://www.spearitsound.com/nad/T755.asp

If you need HDMI, and the NAD seems too expensive, I would have no hesitation in recommending harman/kardon for ease of use and sound quality. Either the AVR254 or AVR354 from amazon.com at about $400-500 currently.

http://www.harmankardon.com/product_detail.aspx?cat=REC&sType=&prod=AVR+254
http://www.harmankardon.com/product_detail.aspx?cat=REC&sType=&prod=AVR+354

P.S. I'm also in L.A., so if you want to listen, that might be a possibility (if somewhat tricky to schedule sometimes).