LSI, VM VS RTI A series SUBWOOFERS

CaligulaPolk

Which has the best "Boomy" subwoofers built in LSI, VM or RTI A (9 or rest of series) for Home Theater??

Please discuss "boomy" experience you encountered with your Speakers ( RTI A, VM or LSI discussion only please!)

Unless you suggest another subwoofer addition to LSI, VM or RTI A

megasat16

I would prefer to call the woofers as the Bass Drivers in the RTi and VM series. The only true speakers with real subwoofers are in the LSi25 and LSi15.

But vaguely, I think you can call a woofer a subwoofer and vice versa.

I don't think any of the speakers you mentioned are boomy unless you have a placement issue, room issue with acoustics and the amp or AVR issue that doesn't provide enough juice to the speakers. I owned both RTi and LSi speakers so I know from the fact that they are not boomy in my room and in my setup. I can't comment on the VM series so I hope somebody will chime in with their experience.

CaligulaPolk

megasat16 wrote: »

I would prefer to call the woofers as the Bass Drivers in the RTi and VM series. The only true speakers with real subwoofers are in the LSi25 and LSi15.

But vaguely, I think you can call a woofer a subwoofer and vice versa.

I don't think any of the speakers you mentioned are boomy unless you have a placement issue, room issue with acoustics and the amp or AVR issue that doesn't provide enough juice to the speakers. I owned both RTi and LSi speakers so I know from the fact that they are not boomy in my room and in my setup. I can't comment on the VM series so I hope somebody will chime in with their experience.

I plan to JUICE (XPA-2 or 3 to juice LSI15, Lsi25 and LSiC too) speakers that has sub in it. Plenty JUICE to boom. My wife start liking look of LSI and said it is the top line product here. Also she like the idea of piano lacquer finish to match our furniture espcially our Sony HDTV.. I would rather RTi a series (Cherry) but i had read LSi info. it seem i like both now. However I must have boomy speakers including DSW sub (havent decide which yet) I want to know whats under speakers hood and which would generate better bass boomy.

megasat16

I think I know what you want to mean "Boom". I think you like plenty of bass that shakes your body. It's not the same kind of boom that's happened irregularly at some frequency especially for these speaker with un-natural frequency response. Speakers frequnncy response should be FLAT and the speaker should play whatever amount of bass, mid and treble that is recorded in the source material such as CD or DVD, etc.

When most people talk that the speaker boom, I think they meant it is bad because the bass slams harder than it should (or doesn't play some bass notes loud enough so it's shallow for some frequency and very loud for some frequency) and sounds quite bad. That kind of boom is due to poor speaker design (crossover, box, driver, etc.) and is not the same as the boom you like.

I think you want to have the speakers that plays Deep (low) and have articulate bass. If so, I am sure RTi and LSi will not disappoint you. You need to listen to VM series too what is a better suited speaker for you. Getting Emotiva Amps (or any other high power high current amp) will help you with whatever speaker you decide for sure.

Fongolio

When the term "boomy" is used around here (or most other hi-fi discussions for that matter) it has a very negative conotation. Boomy infers sloppy distorted bass. I think what you are looking for is good "punchy" bass. Bass that has impact you can feel. I have a set of RTiA7's and they get boomy if I don't have them placed well. They start to sound very articulate and punchy when I get them a minimum of a foot off the back wall and a minumum of the same distance from the side. That said, I sometimes am awed at how low they can go and still not distort.

Fongolio

megasat16....I posted at the same time and ended up saying pretty much the same thing in different words. Wasn't meaning to parrot.

CaligulaPolk

ah ok, punchy is a another good word, but in my case, Deaf people call "boomy" is good for us. I understand now, about hearing's "boomy" terminology is bad, I apology for misunderstanding. Yes, I damn want to feel shakes from the speakers. I even want my neighbor's house jump too to spite them

Im trying to invest $$ on good sub in these speakers to replace 6-8 buttkickers to 4:D It would made sense if i went that route. We worked hard in 08 and our tax money is gonna be worth it.

Its too bad that we cant demo either of the speakers at any store around here. We are going to collect a lot info about my need on site and hopefully we did right thing. Lsi to me is sweet looking with piano finish. i like it, and i also like rti a9 cherry. I dont go for looks right now, i want "punchy" bass coming from LSI or RTi a9. Which has powerful "punchy", I want the top line punchy! Will i need DSW with these subs built in speakers? Heck I want punchy sub than Marty's in back to the future

CaligulaPolk

Fongolio wrote: »

megasat16....I posted at the same time and ended up saying pretty much the same thing in different words. Wasn't meaning to parrot.

NAH ITS ALL GOOOD!! More helpful info the better!

Can the moderator please change my poll "boomy" to "punchy"

Thank you

megasat16

Fongolio wrote: »

megasat16....I posted at the same time and ended up saying pretty much the same thing in different words. Wasn't meaning to parrot.

Not in the least, sir! It's just that our thoughts are the same on this subject.

CaligulaPolk

megasat16 wrote: »

Not in the least, sir! It's just that our thoughts are the same on this subject.

how is ur lsi 15 as rear surround with 4 x Polk PSW1000?

megasat16

CaligulaPolk wrote: »

how is ur lsi 15 as rear surround with 4 x Polk PSW1000?

LSi15 is a great speaker for front or rear. I used them for rear surround because I like it that way. LSi15 or any other polk speaker can get more refined bass from any of the subwoofer or Polk subwoofer such as PSW1000 or DSW series or DSW Micro Pro Series subwoofers. It's not because these speakers shy of bass, but any speakers can use the help of dedicated subwoofer for HT use. For music, plenty of bass from LSi or RTi series speakers without additional sub. But having a musical sub adds a better stereo imaging and the dimension to the listening experiences. It's just a matter of how many subs you want to add to suit your taste.

I didn't say anything about VM series because I don't know anytihng about them. I imagine the VM series have good bass responses too.

CaligulaPolk

megasat16 wrote: »

LSi15 is a great speaker for front or rear. I used them for rear surround because I like it that way. LSi15 or any other polk speaker can get more refined bass from any of the subwoofer or Polk subwoofer such as PSW1000 or DSW series or DSW Micro Pro Series subwoofers. It's not because these speakers shy of bass, but any speakers can use the help of dedicated subwoofer for HT use. For music, plenty of bass from LSi or RTi series speakers without additional sub. But having a musical sub adds a better stereo imaging and the dimension to the listening experiences. It's just a matter of how many subs you want to add to suit your taste.

I didn't say anything about VM series because I don't know anytihng about them. I imagine the VM series have good bass responses too.

can anyone tell me about VM 's sub built in? are VM's punchy bass? anyone ? eric wong

MADGSF

I demo' the VM30 and they have almost nothing below ~70Hz. You MUST have a subwoofer in your rig when using them for any bass. I assume the VM20 has even less bass.

If what you are after is BOOM are mostly interested in HT and are planning to add external amplification then the RTiA9 gets my vote.

CaligulaPolk

MADGSF wrote: »

I demo' the VM30 and they have almost nothing below ~70Hz. You MUST have a subwoofer in your rig when using them for any bass. I assume the VM20 has even less bass.

If what you are after is BOOM are mostly interested in HT and are planning to add external amplification then the RTiA9 gets my vote.

will i need additional sub if i go for rtia9. i plan to buy sub but can wait for a while if rti will provide punchy bass.

megasat16

Man, you are making this a little different from what most people because you wanted to buy speakers based on which one has more bass. You know you can always have more bass with additional subwoofer along the line. But if you don't like the sound of the speaker, you may end up upgrading sooner than later. So, most people prefers their speakers to have better stereo imaging and clearer mid and highs than bottom heavy bass.

Lsi Series - Better Mids and Highs than RTi series - vocals and dialogue and strings instruments plays more realistics than RTi series because it's designed with more music listening in mind. But it doesn't mean that LSi15 or LSI25 has lower bass than RTi series. LSi15 and LSI25 does not lack bass compared to RTi series.

RTi Series - Very Good HT Use, But A Little Less Clearer Than LSi Series for Music Listening no matter how many amplifier you use.

It's because RTi and LSi uses different tweeters and different mid-woofers and different crossover networks. It's two different speakers. Both are very good. Both series does not lack bass but you can always add a subwoofer later on to have more bass.

Now, this is a general based on what most people seems to agreed upon and the fact that you said you'll use Emotiva Amps.

You can go With RTi A9 if you don't care about mids and highs but only wanted punchy bass.

Or Go with LSi 15 or 25 if you wanted to have clearer vocals or highs.

You can add subs later.

LSi25 is better to tweak for the ones who has patience because it's subwoofer has built-in amplifier and has settings you can tweak based on your room acoustics. It has more features if you know what you are doing.

LSi15 has internal crossover and it's designed to sound good with good amplification. Unlike LSi25, You can't tweak the crossover network because it's internal.

Most People prefers LSi15 because they want simple setup without messing too much behind the speakers. LSi25 needs a lot of adjusting and listening but once you setup right, it has more bass than LSi15 and a tad better imaging.

CaligulaPolk

rtia7 is most voted ... can whoever voted a7 tell us why?

sorry im on ps3

megasat16

xcapri79 wrote: »

With LSi15's and LSi25's which placement would you recommend?

1.) LSi25's front and LSi15's for side surround, or
2.) LSi15's front and LSi25's for side surround.

Perhaps this may depend on the listening mode, i.e. HT or multichannel.

On the LSi25's as a starting point where do you like to set it?

Basically Same Speakers with the option to tweak the bass settings on the LSi25. Logically speaking, I would try both 1 and 2 and choose whatever might be better by a slim margin. But technically, LSi25 needs a power outlet near it for each of the speaker but LSi15 don't. But LSi25 is my choice for occasional 2 channel music over LSi15 in my room.

Any tweaked LSi25 sounds as good as LSi15 but only a little better IMO. But the price tag is a lot more. I bought my LSi15 at the Fry's closeout sale so it's no brainer for me.

For critical music, I went to a different room with 2 channel setup.

CaligulaPolk

what about the bookshelf speakers with sub or fxi a series ? do they have punchy bass?

CaligulaPolk

CaligulaPolk wrote: »

what about the bookshelf speakers with sub or fxi a series ? do they have punchy bass?

bump

MADGSF

A subwoofer is always desired to get all out of movies you can. However the A9s with an amp will go as low as the cheaper subwoofers out there and keep you happy until you save up for a good sub.

I don't think the RTI series is less clear than the LSi. The problem is it's foward presentation can make it too clear. The LSi vifa tweeter is more laid back and with music that is better for some people. IMO the LSi are great for HT and music, the RTi are great for HT and with the right equipment good for music.

megasat16

MADGSF wrote: »

I don't think the RTI series is less clear than the LSi. The problem is it's foward presentation can make it too clear. The LSi vifa tweeter is more laid back and with music that is better for some people. IMO the LSi are great for HT and music, the RTi are great for HT and with the right equipment good for music.

Excellent Post. RTi series is sharp and more forward than LSi but it's not necessary as clear as LSi in clarity and resolution. I've gone through over a dozen of SS amps to verify that and have both speakers side by side. A Nice tube amp and tube preamp may tame the sharpness of the dome tweeter a bit and the vocals may be clearer than SS amp but it'd be hard to get the RTi sounds like LSi.

I listen to lots of instrumentals and classical and it's where LSi 15 or 25 sounds clearer than RTi 12 or 10 (older version of A9 and A7).

Fongolio

megasat16 wrote: »

RTi series is sharp and more forward than LSi but it's not necessary as clear as LSi in clarity and resolution.

The RTi"A" series has addressed some of this sharpness and mellowed out the tweeter slightly. I found the RTi10's very fatigueing because of this but the RTiA7 (next generation of RTi10) I can listen to all day. Still very clear but not nearly as harsh. Still not quite as nice for music as LSi but a lot better than the previous generation. If you just want shake the walls wake the neighbors bass then I suggest a 15" sub from velodyne or SVS.

megasat16

Fongolio wrote: »

The RTi"A" series has addressed some of this sharpness and mellowed out the tweeter slightly. I found the RTi10's very fatigueing because of this but the RTiA7 (next generation of RTi10) I can listen to all day. Still very clear but not nearly as harsh. Still not quite as nice for music as LSi but a lot better than the previous generation. If you just want shake the walls wake the neighbors bass then I suggest a 15" sub from velodyne or SVS.

It's a great news if the RTi A series has improved tweeter and crossover from the older RTi series and sounds less brighter. I hope to demo the new A series soon but I am afraid the retailer near me pair these with AVR to demo which might not do a good justice on the quality or the improvement.

MADGSF

I also had the A5 demo speakers in my setup for a month or so and second what Fongolio states. The new series has tamed the brightness somewhat. I just can justify the expenditure to move up.

Mark

lumpy

xcapri79 wrote: »

With LSi15's and LSi25's which placement would you recommend?

1.) LSi25's front and LSi15's for side surround, or
2.) LSi15's front and LSi25's for side surround.

Perhaps this may depend on the listening mode, i.e. HT or multichannel.

On the LSi25's as a starting point where do you like to set it?

Up untill recently - I had my 25's set as mains with 9,s as surrounds and a pair of 7's as front b,s and a LsiC for a center. I just moved everything except the 25's to a theatry after the purchase of new projector and receiver for my media room. The 25's are now set up for 2 chanel sacd listening.

I have them each hooked up to its on sepperate amp + LFE (sub) out from the reciever with the jumpers removed. It is my understanding that the external crossover is bypassed by the receiver when the LFE line is connected. I have the volume of the internal subwoofer set to half way, the sub chanel set to -3 and the main L+R set to 0 on the receiver.

When I was using these as the mains in the 7.2 set up, I could turn the volume on the back of the speaker all the way up and set the sub chanel to +10 to get the type of base that would scare the neighbors. The Lsi9's really added a punch to that set up though. I think that you will find that this will damage your ears though - it would screw up my inner ear if I did this for more than a minute in the 14X18 living room.