Just purchased Monitor 40s, looking for matching center

MrGlobe · May 2009

Hello,

I have recently purchased a pair of Polk Monitor 40s, and am expecting delivery of them sometime this week. I am looking to complete my home theater setup with polk speakers, and am slowly replacing them. I am looking at options for a center channel. Probably the CS1 or CS2, which would match the Monitor 40s better?

So far, I have polk T15s as my rear surrounds, and the Monitor 40s to be used as my front L/R speakers. Now is where my dilehma comes, I am currently using a JBL Voice Venue series speaker as my center channel, but would like the center to match up with the front L/R. I figure the Monitor 40s will match better with the JBL center than my current front L/R which are 12" 3-way Technics tower speakers.

Will it be possible to just use the JBL? I guess I will know once i recieve the monitor 40s how well they match up with the JBL center. What are some things to look for that will allow me to see that the speakers do not evenly match up? Any audible cues I should look for? If i could just keep using the JBL, I would have ~$150-$200 additional to put towards a sub (something I dont have yet)

Thanks for the help!

Globe

EDIT: How do the CS1/2 stack up against the lower end CSM? how about a cheap Dayton center channel?

slowpolky · May 2009

go to polk audio direct on ebay and pick up a cs1 for like 50 dollars

vijayl · May 2009

I wud go w/ CS2 now and if/when u wanna upgrade fronts to M50/60/70, u can use M40 as surrounds.

cnh · May 2009

vijayl.

Has the right idea.....look you're 'upgrading' now, if you want to admit it or not. And you probably won't stop here! So the CS2 cannot be beaten as a center for the M/TSI series!

As far as the JBL center. I'd say try it and see what "YOU" think.

You should be the final judge on that.

Having said that, I'll now add my opinion. The Polk has a silk/polymer dome tweeter. The JBL has a titanium laminate! That alone should make it very hard to timbre match let alone matching the polyplas 5 inch drivers with the Bilaminate Polk drivers!

Finally, the crossovers on Polk centers are usually at a LOWER frequency than most JBLs and the Venue speaker is encased in a cheap plastic case that resonates too much.

Conclusion...go all Polk upfront....but you can use the JBLs for now and see what you think?

cnh

danz1906 · May 2009

vijayl wrote: »

I wud go w/ CS2 now and if/when u wanna upgrade fronts to M50/60/70, u can use M40 as surrounds.

Agreed,Go for the Cs2:D

Rodeo0530 · May 2009

Just know that the CS2 is big! It's not ridiculously big, but it is bigger than I had anticipated when I opened mine up. Sounds great though!!

wutadumsn23 · May 2009

I would also recommend the CS2, I have one wiht my Monitor 70's and it is awesome. It is a bit on the beefy side, so make sure you have room for it first.

slowpolky · May 2009

if you wana upgrade then sell the monitors and buy the rti6 and then buy a csi5 then buy psw505 then buy fxi 6 then when your done sell it all then buy lsic fx lsic 9 then buy lsi15 then buy blah blah, im givin the guy good advice because if one buys monitor then one is obviously budget concervative and for like 50 dollars you can spend a couple of bucks more and get monitor 30's for the rear and it will match the cs1 where as it wont do good with a cs2

vijayl · May 2009

wow.. slow... polky

ken brydson · May 2009

slowpolky wrote: »

if you wana upgrade then sell the monitors and buy the rti6 and then buy a csi5 then buy psw505 then buy fxi 6 then when your done sell it all then buy lsic fx lsic 9 then buy lsi15 then buy blah blah, im givin the guy good advice because if one buys monitor then one is obviously budget concervative and for like 50 dollars you can spend a couple of bucks more and get monitor 30's for the rear and it will match the cs1 where as it wont do good with a cs2

That thar 'puter have a period key?

cnh · May 2009

slowpolky wrote: »

if you wana upgrade then sell the monitors and buy the rti6 and then buy a csi5 then buy psw505 then buy fxi 6 then when your done sell it all then buy lsic fx lsic 9 then buy lsi15 then buy blah blah, im givin the guy good advice because if one buys monitor then one is obviously budget concervative and for like 50 dollars you can spend a couple of bucks more and get monitor 30's for the rear and it will match the cs1 where as it wont do good with a cs2

Sounds like you're having a melt down. Sure people upgrade. But Monitors are not 'bad'. They're a nice speaker set. Rtis, personally, I don't care for most of them (too BRIGHT) except for the 12s and the A9s because they're the most 'musical' IMO. Relax....stop to take a breath or two and ENJOY what you have.

Remember The R. Stones: You can't always get what you WANT...but if you try some time you just might get what you NEED!

cnh

Oblique · May 2009

Hey MrGlobe I have a matching brand new set of Monitor 30's an a Cs1 for sale, Only problem is that they're in maple color, Im trying to do a similiar setup like you but decided I should of got them in black afterwards. I bought a PS10 for the sub and a Cs1 in black im going to get my Monitor 40's real soon too.

Here's the link http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=82952

sandworms · May 2009

csi5 on polk direct $179

Mike21 · May 2009

+ 4 (or is it 5?) for the CS2.

Mike

rooftop59 · May 2009

Agreed on the jbl, but listen for voices as the pan across the front three speakers in movies in you hear a change in volume, tone, and character. If you think it sounds good, then keep it, but chances are you will hear a difference.

for your budget on polk direct you could get a cs1 AND a psw10 right now, which would round out a very respectable setup. However, I do think that the cs2 is better for voices in movies as well as multi-channel audio, and you probably will want a little more for the sub than a psw10.

I say get the cs2 now and save up for something like the dayton sub-120 on parts express. If you keep a look out you can get it for under 150 shipped. I think that you would be very happy with that setup.

MrGlobe · May 2009

Thanks for all the replies!

I am happy very happy with the monitor 40s, they sound awesome!

I have not spent too much time thinking about which sub to get, although I liked the Dayton sub 100, and its price ha. The problem is that I live in a 4 plex and Im not sure how much bass I would really get to experience before the neighbors complain. I was planning on spending $300-400 in a month or so on a nice sub, such as an SVS or something like that. (But still not sure if I will be able to use it much)

When I first plugged the m40s in, I had the reciever set up for the 12" tower speakers that were previously my Front L/R (meaning they were set to large with a 60hz x-over) and the bass was noticeably better than how I thought I should have it (now its set to small, 100hz x-over, is this wrong?)

Also I appreciate the suggestions for a center, and will be purchasing one soon.

Thanks!

MrGlobe

ken brydson · May 2009

MrGlobe wrote: »

Thanks for all the replies!

I am happy very happy with the monitor 40s, they sound awesome!

I have not spent too much time thinking about which sub to get, although I liked the Dayton sub 100, and its price ha. The problem is that I live in a 4 plex and Im not sure how much bass I would really get to experience before the neighbors complain. I was planning on spending $300-400 in a month or so on a nice sub, such as an SVS or something like that. (But still not sure if I will be able to use it much)

When I first plugged the m40s in, I had the reciever set up for the 12" tower speakers that were previously my Front L/R (meaning they were set to large with a 60hz x-over) and the bass was noticeably better than how I thought I should have it (now its set to small, 100hz x-over, is this wrong?)

Also I appreciate the suggestions for a center, and will be purchasing one soon.

Thanks!

MrGlobe

If you're not running a sub you should set them to large and send a full range signal, otherwise everything below your crossover point is going nowhere.

MrGlobe · May 2009

sorry to be dense, but does this mean I should set the X-over for the front L/R as low as it will go? should i do this for all the speakers?

Thanks

Globe

ken brydson · May 2009

MrGlobe wrote: »

sorry to be dense, but does this mean I should set the X-over for the front L/R as low as it will go? should i do this for all the speakers?

Thanks

Globe

I could be wrong but if you st the mains to large the c/o is bypassed

motomech · May 2009

MrGlobe wrote: »

Thanks for all the replies!

I am happy very happy with the monitor 40s, they sound awesome!

I have not spent too much time thinking about which sub to get, although I liked the Dayton sub 100, and its price ha. The problem is that I live in a 4 plex and Im not sure how much bass I would really get to experience before the neighbors complain. I was planning on spending $300-400 in a month or so on a nice sub, such as an SVS or something like that. (But still not sure if I will be able to use it much)

When I first plugged the m40s in, I had the reciever set up for the 12" tower speakers that were previously my Front L/R (meaning they were set to large with a 60hz x-over) and the bass was noticeably better than how I thought I should have it (now its set to small, 100hz x-over, is this wrong?)

Also I appreciate the suggestions for a center, and will be purchasing one soon.

Thanks!

MrGlobe

I didn't see what reciever you are running, but on my Onkyo 506 w/ the Monitor 40's set to large, I set the X-over at 60 Hz.(yes, it's still a 2-way, even on Large). The Polks don't seem to have a problem with this and they intergrate better to the sub.
Since you can't use much LF, just buy the PSW 10 from Newegg for a $100 shipped. It will work fine w/ the M40's in an apt.
BTW the Monitors will sound nicer as the drivers loosen up.

Just purchased Monitor 40s, looking for matching center

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