Matching R300 with CSi A4 or CS A6(RTi centers)?

poop_on_you

Already did a search and I know the RTi series are not timber matched with R series.

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=56416&highlight=r300+match
http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=47338&highlight=r300+match

Problem is, I don't know a cheap reliable place that sells CSR/CS10/CS20 in Toronto, Canada. Bought the R300 on sale in a package from Futureshop and it's missing a center, but the only centers they sell separately are CSi A4 and CSi A6..

I've heard that the center is the most important speaker in the system and that's where most of the money should be spent on. Will the CSi A series center sound ok with the R300 fronts or should I save my money and take my chances with ebay? Ideally, I want to buy a matching center from a place where I can get a full refund for open box in 30 days without them asking me why.

Thanks for the help.

Zeros

The Polk CSR goes for about $50 including shipping on eBay usually. I know because I have one and was thinking of selling it there. The CSR is a match for the R series speakers as well as the CSM (which I think is newer). I would go the eBay route for the cheapest matching center. I rarely have any problems buying speakers of eBay, just look for someone with good feedback obviously.

You could also try a CS2 (replacement for CS20) which should be available locally. In this thread a few people said that it matched well with their R50 fronts:

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1138202&posted=1#post1138202

SivaNevets

heres comes a guy from RFD
welcome to the club

i would be it from ebay/amazon. gibby audio video in toronto has them but the price isn't great.
never know theres CSM looks like a centre version of M10 i think both CSR/CSM will work perfectly with R300.

(for ppl dont know, futureshop in canada is selling R300+M10+PSW10 for $280 CDN, wut a great price)

poop_on_you

Thanks for the replies.

SivaNevets, your advice is much appreciated since you are both RFDer and a Polkster. I guess I will save my money and try my luck on ebay. Gibby's is a little too far from me.

I know CS10 and CS20 are supposed to match TSi, and CS1 and CS2 are supposed to match Monitor. I figure I might as well get the best "perfect matching" center if I'm buying from ebay.

From http://www.polkaudio.com/search/older-models.php
It seems the matching centers are:
CS175
CS175i
CS245i
CS250s
CS400i
CSR (perfect match for R series)

CSi20 (perfect match for R series)
CSi25 (perfect match for R series)
CSi3
CSi5

Is this right?
Also, the higher numbers mean they are better right?

kawizx9r

I'd like to chime in regarding the CS245 and 400 simply because I don't know off hand (although I can look it up online) what the others are timbre matched to exactly but the ones I mentioned are part of the RT series. They all have dynamic balanced drivers (i and p series being identical except the blue-colored woofers) but their distinct characteristic, as opposed to the others above, is the tri-laminate tweeter used throughout the series along with ls-90's and the sort.

If you can find a csr, get it since its the best match you can get. Honestly though if you have a store nearby with a polk center at a good buck (with a nice return policy) Id say give it a try for awhile and see how it suites you. If your ears can tell the difference or youre simply not happy with it, take it back!

The higher numbers that fall within the same series of a speaker usually mean it utilizes slightly larger drivers i.e. the cs245 uses 5 1/4" mid bass drivers while the cs400 uses 6 1/2" mid bass drivers.