Polk Monitor 60's

Sito

Hey All
I'm a newbie here so I'd appreciate any advice you could give me

So recently some of my parents older speakers have blown out and I was thinking of replacing them.
Newegg has the Polk monitor 60's on sale for $226 shipped for a pair.
I was wondering if this was a good deal, as I've seen the rti8's on sale for $150 each w/out shipping. I've heard that the rti8's are better speakers than the monitor 60/70's, but my parents don't need anything too crazy as their receiver is pretty old, its a pioneer vsx-502.
So the hard part is I need something that can perform, is decently future proof (say they get a new receiver since the one they have is so old) and is a good deal. It seems even when the rti8's are on sale they're around $350 w/shipping. I know there are better speakers out there, but I was just wondering if this was a decent price for for monitor 60's to be picked up. Or should I wait for the rti8's to go on sale again and if so are they worth the extra $100?

Thanks!

wutadumsn23

IMHO, the 60's are a very good speaker for the price. Having said that I also feel that the Monitor 70's are better still. I have the 70's and have been nothing short of amazed by their performance. The 60's are a better deal, but the 70's are on sale at Newegg quite often. Matter of fact, if color isn't an issue, they have cherry 70's at Newegg right now for $169.99 ea. w/ free shipping and no coupon code needed. That is a steal!! The black 70's are $229.99 ea. but as I said they go on sale quite often. I haven't heard the RTi line, but have heard nothing but good things about those as well. Honestly though, if your parents just want something to listen to and don't mind cherry, I would jump all over those 70's at the Egg. Get a matching CS2, and be done with it. Hopefully someone with experience in the RTi line will chime in, but IMHO for the price, the Monitor series can't be beat for a good HT/2 Ch entry/mid level speaker. Welcome to Club Polk.

-Jeff

cnh

I've heard the Rti series and my favorite is the Rti-12 or newer Rti-9...I find the tweeter on this series great for HT and not to 'my' tastes for music...except in the flagship which has a different configuration that tones this tweeter down..mellows it and gives the 9s a wonderful balance between HT and music...but they are pricey...

I would LISTEN to the RTi-8s for yourself...and decide. They are a fine speaker; different people have different tastes...I, myself also own M70s which I prefer over the Rti-8s even though they are supposed to be the better line?

cnh

Systems

I just replaced my Monitor 60's with Monitor 70's (last night). The 60's need a sub to sound decent whether its music or HT. What kind of amp are you using? If HT is your game then the 60's and 10"-12" sub will do (plus a CS1 Center and some surrounds). If you are mostly into music, I am betting that the 70's by themselves are good but would also benefit from a sub.
The $169.99 on 70's at New Egg is a great deal!

Sito

Thanks so much for the help guys, so I guess now I've ruled out the rti8's now I'm killing myself over to get the M60's for cheap and in black which my parents like, or pay some extra moola and get the M70's but in cherry. wutadumsn23 you said the M70's in black go onsale sometimes, whats the lowest you've seen the black ones go for? The bad part in this is I think my parents are considering getting a new TV so they are pretty cost conscious at the moment, otherwise I would have just suggested that they just get the M70's and be done with it. $100 saved is $100 and can go towards a new tv...... Decisions Decisions...

Systems

See if New Egg will honor the price code at this link. http://slickdeals.net/forums/showthread.php?sduid=0&t=1595707. Its a bit old but it worked for me on a code that was a couple of weeks old. Try chatting online with one of their sales reps to get them to honor the code.
You can only purchase one speaker with this code but it helps. Be sure to check the specs (height and depth) on the 70's as they are pretty big.
Keep in mind that the 60's with a sub, sound pretty darn nice. IMHO.

Sito

well tried talking to the newegg rep and they wouldn't budge on the code. So its either get the m60's in the color my parents want and for the price they like, or get the more expensive m70's in cherry which they don't like. Are the M70's that much better that they are worth the extra $$?

Sito

So guys I ended up getting the Monitor 60's for my parents. Since they wanted to save money and liked the black ones I settled on the M60's. My train of thought is when they upgrade their receiver they can eventually move the M60's as back surrounds and then pickup a better pair say the M70's when they go on sale. I'm sure they'll grow into them as well. Thanks so much for the help guys, I'll be sure to let you know how they sound/work out when I set them up!!

cnh

That's a good choice...if that old Pioneer receiver has a LOUDNESS button or feature you might want to engage it.....older Pioneer AVRs sometimes sound a bit ''thin" without the bass boost.

But it should have enough power to drive the M60s as they are a very efficient speaker...done the line and external sub would help your low end.

cnh

wutadumsn23

Glad you were able to decide on the 60's, as long as the folks are happy that is the bottom line, right? The black 70's routinely go on sale at Newegg for around the same price as the 60's are on sale now, around $180 ea. IIRC. Keep yours eyes open at Newegg everyday and click on their daily specials. Register at their site and sign up for their mailing list too, I get E-mails from them when they have specials, and the 70's are quite often on the list. Good luck and let us know how it works out.

-Jeff

Systems

Sito wrote: »

So guys I ended up getting the Monitor 60's for my parents. Since they wanted to save money and liked the black ones I settled on the M60's. My train of thought is when they upgrade their receiver they can eventually move the M60's as back surrounds and then pickup a better pair say the M70's when they go on sale. I'm sure they'll grow into them as well. Thanks so much for the help guys, I'll be sure to let you know how they sound/work out when I set them up!!

Good choice. Be sure to hook them up with a set of decent banana plugs and some 12 gauge speaker cable and you will enjoy the sound. Check out the Polk Direct Ebay sight for good prices on a sub.

cnh

Good point xcapri...

That Pioneer can't possibly have an LFE sub out. But the Polk subs have high input/output terminals for wiring directly to the L/R channels of your AVR.

cnh