Trying NOT to bi-amp.

wald0

Okay I am looking at putting this Onkyo TX-8555 receiver with a pair of Polk Monitor 50 towers. First of does this look like a good match? I'm able to get the 50's for about $100 a piece, and the receiver for about $200. That is about my max, but if anyone wants to make suggestions. Question is will this setup work? I'm not too familiar with bi-amping, but the 50's have bi-amp terminals. Is there a way to hook them up regular with no biamping and how would I do this?

Also does anyone think this setup would sound good? I have heard reviews for both, but most of them are on classical music or jazz. However I listen to a lot of Progressive House and Trance, but also my share of lossless classic rock and such. I do value SQ above all, but I still want it to get fairly loud. I'm upgrading from internal iMac speakers, LOL.

Alright I appreciate any comments. Cheers.

thsmith

Just leave the straps in place on the speaker, connect + from receiver to + on speaker, same for -

wald0

thsmith wrote: »

Just leave the straps in place on the speaker, connect + from receiver to + on speaker, same for -

That sounds simple enough. Thanks for the clarification.

Anybody heard these played?

Hilbert

Monitor 50s were my first Polk speakers (a long time ago, last May ). Good bang for buck. You will like them much better than your iMac.

My only question is bass. No idea what progressive house is, but anything progressive surely has a significant bass line, and the Monitors don't have a lot of bass. You may want to consider adding a subwoofer.

wald0

Hilbert wrote: »

Monitor 50s were my first Polk speakers (a long time ago, last May ). Good bang for buck. You will like them much better than your iMac.

My only question is bass. No idea what progressive house is, but anything progressive surely has a significant bass line, and the Monitors don't have a lot of bass. You may want to consider adding a subwoofer.

Well Progressive House is kind of just a style of House music. It's bascailly dance music, but stuff with usually not a lot of words, kind of melody-based, with a lot of feeling in it. Sometimes it has a lot of bass, but it isn't really like heavy metal or rap is about bass. IMO the bass is never really the focal point, it is more just there to complete the spectrum of sound - it's always there in balance... Some say it is repetitive, but I say it is the kind of music that grabs you. To each his own :cool:

For a sample go HERE (you only have to wait 45 secs)

Thanks for the comment. I'll definitely consider the sub.

wald0

Does anyone have any suggestions on the receiver? I am definitely leaning toward an Onkyo because I have heard such good things about them, but I am not set on one.

thsmith

Just checked out the specs on the Onkyo TX-8555 , I have not heard one.

Why are you choosing this receiver ? I take it it is for music only since it is 2 channel.

If music is the case then have you considered some vintage speakers and Pre/Pro.

With some Vintage Monitor 10s you most likely will not need a sub if you feed them enough power. Not sure what going prices are but I think they can be had for a decent price, probleably close to the new Polks you are looking at.

Just a thought. May want to do a search on 2 channel rigs, I have seen a couple of post here for people looking for opinions.

wald0

thsmith wrote: »

Just checked out the specs on the Onkyo TX-8555 , I have not heard one.

Why are you choosing this receiver ? I take it it is for music only since it is 2 channel.

If music is the case then have you considered some vintage speakers and Pre/Pro.

With some Vintage Monitor 10s you most likely will not need a sub if you feed them enough power. Not sure what going prices are but I think they can be had for a decent price, probleably close to the new Polks you are looking at.

Just a thought. May want to do a search on 2 channel rigs, I have seen a couple of post here for people looking for opinions.

I was looking at the Onkyo TX-8555 because my friend's dad had an Onkyo (not TX-8555, idk what his was), and it sounded great with whatever speakers he had. He was kind of an audiophile like me, even though he listened to different music. He swore by Onkyo and Denon (Denon, whoa, $$$).

Anyway I am kind of looking to spend only around $400 for both speakers and amp/receiver, although I could possibly go up a tad. I noticed the Polk 10's look way sweet, and probably just what I need. I do watch movies, but I couldn't really care less about surround sound because I care about music, LOL. I want a system that is going to be clean, and loud, with a lot of attention to detail. Now when i say loud, I guess I should say efficient. I'm not the type of person to overpower my speakers and enjoy the garbage-sounding noise that comes out. Yeah, I like party music, but I only like loud volume when it has essentially no trade-off for quality. I loove getting absorbed into the sound. I hope all that makes sense.

Could you suggest a better receiver to use? To be honest, I rip most of my music to my computer in 320kbps or lossless and listen from iTunes. My iMac has a mini-jack speaker out, and I have a Monster Cable mini-jack to RCA adapter and some Monster RCAs. Point is, I would find most of the features kinda useless on the TX-8555, when really all I want to do is power the speakers. I don't really need a tuner and I really don't even need the option of switching sources. I do most of my media stuff from my computer. I wanted to avoid buying a pre-amp and all, because wouldn't that double my cost? But HERE it is mentioned that most receivers are overrated for power. Wouldn't want to be really pumping 50wpc into some 250w beasts now would I? I want to squeeze the most bang for my buck into this pricerange. I wouldn't mind buying something used. Mostly I want SQ more than I want "shiny." :cool: I also wouldn't mind getting a less famous brand, as long as the brand stood for quality.

Sorry about the barrage of questions but this is where I stand on things. Thanks for the comments so far.

rayslifecycle

Monitor 10s are quite efficient - in general - multi-driver speakers are more efficient then 2 way bookshelf speakers. - there is a 6db difference in my Monitor 10s and my Monitor 7s.

I would definitely recommend the classic monitor 10s over the new monitors you are looking at. They rock. Look for a model with Peerless tweeters.

If you are trying to do this for a 400 budget - I would look at used equipment - especially if it is just stereo - there is a ton of great 20yr old equipment out there that will blow away many of the newer china (or worse) made stuff.

comfortablycurt

I second the vintage equipment suggestion.

If it's just for two channel listening you'd be able to get a lot more for your money going vintage.

curved

Check out HK's - if it's 2-channel, the HK 3390.

gdb

IMO separate components always sound better than "most" receivers of similar cost. Link below is to three different amp possibilities between $75-$120 from a CP member (prices are w/shipping too!) Good hunting !:)
http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=76502

wald0

I guess from all my talking around I think I'd want to buy a good quality 200wpc stereo AMP. I don't need the bells and whistles. Something like the Onkyo M282 would be nice, but with like double the power. I have heard of some 200wpc amps on here, but the brands I don't know of as well. Can anyone suggest a good ~200wpc Amplifier comparable to Onkyo/Denon brand without price going through the roof? Thanks.

curved

How much do you want to spend?

You should be able to find a used Adcom 555 for around $300-350. Some other used equipment to look for:

-Parasound
-Carver
-Rotel
-Adcom

Otherwise check out Emotiva's. You get a nice little warranty with them

HuskySpade

I have a pair of Monitor 30s that I just love. They sound great, and sound much larger than they look. Shoot, i'd spend $100/ea on some Monitor 50s!

Im using them as my rear channel in my bedroom accompanying a pair of Polk Tower Speakers.

If you're considering a rear channel, AUDITION THE MONITOR 30s!! Same voice coils as your 50s, just compact. They make a powerful and satisfying rear channel for me..